Dead Mamba Max ESC?

Hey guys,

I've been running my Muggy conversion with a MM/8XL combo on 5S. Today, without even thinking about it, I bought a set of 40 series Mashers. I just thought they looked cool and mounted them up. I didn't realize how much bigger they were until I got them on the truck. I geared 9/46 and it ran fine. No cogging or anything. Tonight, just to see, I put on a 10T pinion and it cogged a little. At one point, I wasn't paying enough attention and it cogged for a couple of seconds and then nothing. And I do mean nothing. No smoke and no workie. I'm guessing that the cog sent too much current though the esc and that in conjunction with the over voltage fried it pretty quick. I'd say that it was running on the ragged edge.

This thing is that it doesn't smell burnt and I didn't see any smoke. I pulled it off of the truck and plugged it into my computer and it was recognized and I was able to program it. It just won't power on.

Anyone have any idea what could be the problem? I'd just like to know if it might be something that I can fix myself.

Thanks.

[BrianG]

The computer simply talks to the brains part. The power delivery part is seperate. You might have actually burned an FET or maybe one of the PCB traces.

[glassdoctor]

One that I killed still worked but worked bad... there was one other that I killed... IIRC it was dead dead like yours?? :evil:

[ssspconcepts]

Originally Posted by AAngel

Hey guys,

I've been running my Muggy conversion with a MM/8XL combo on 5S. Today, without even thinking about it, I bought a set of 40 series Mashers. I just thought they looked cool and mounted them up. I didn't realize how much bigger they were until I got them on the truck. I geared 9/46 and it ran fine. No cogging or anything. Tonight, just to see, I put on a 10T pinion and it cogged a little. At one point, I wasn't paying enough attention and it cogged for a couple of seconds and then nothing. And I do mean nothing. No smoke and no workie. I'm guessing that the cog sent too much current though the esc and that in conjunction with the over voltage fried it pretty quick. I'd say that it was running on the ragged edge.

This thing is that it doesn't smell burnt and I didn't see any smoke. I pulled it off of the truck and plugged it into my computer and it was recognized and I was able to program it. It just won't power on.

Anyone have any idea what could be the problem? I'd just like to know if it might be something that I can fix myself.

Thanks.

Have you tried another motor?

I didn't try another motor, I just threw in another MM. I guess I'll have to try to pop the heatsink off to see if I can see what fried. On the other hand, for $50, Castle will fix it. I just thought that someone may have run across the same thing and was able to fix it easily.

[BrianG]

Because it didn't smoke/burn (and I assume doesn't smell bad) and it totally doesn't work, yet is recognized by the PC, I would look closely at the circuit traces - especially the power and/or ground.

Good luck on pulling off the heatsink without destroying the FETs. Try freezing the ESC first - I find that helps weaken the bond. Some people have said that heat works.

Honestly, for $50, I'd just send it in...

Brian,

I almost can't resist the learning experience. If it is just a burnt trace, that shouldn't be too difficult to repair, if my electronics vocabulary isn't letting me down I think I know what you mean.

I've used Arctic alumina a lot when potting electronics for portable applications. You wouldn't believe how soft it gets at around 170*. You can actually pick at it with a dental pick and remove it. 170* shouldn't hurt anything on the MM either. I feel that mine should come off since I had to epoxy the heatsink back on and I used AA to do that. Of course, as you said, the smart thing to do would be to send it to Castle.

[ssspconcepts]

Originally Posted by BrianG

Because it didn't smoke/burn (and I assume doesn't smell bad) and it totally doesn't work, yet is recognized by the PC, I would look closely at the circuit traces - especially the power and/or ground.

Good luck on pulling off the heatsink without destroying the FETs. Try freezing the ESC first - I find that helps weaken the bond. Some people have said that heat works.

Honestly, for $50, I'd just send it in...

I agree...if it is fubarred they will probably replace it with one that has been reconditioned like new.

[neweuser]

Not good news, I just bought a MM to run on 5s and a 10xl in a maxx!!! lol

[BrianG]

We have to remember that the MM is intended for lighter 1/10 scale applications. The fact that it can be used in heavier vehicles, on 5s, etc should be considered an unintended benefit and "at your own risk" IMO. We're just so cheap that we only want to pay $140 for an ESC and wonder why we have problems when we try to shoe-horn it into an application it obviously wasn't desinged for. :)

Brian,

I do have to keep reminding myself of the MMs intended purpose, but they seem to perform so well. Until now, anyway.

I have, I think, killed another MM. I was running on 5S with my 8XL with 10/46 gearing with bowtie mtr tires. I was just running the track. I hit the big triple and over shot it a bit, so the truck landed flat on the other side, rather than hitting the down ramp. When I went to hit the throttle, nothing. Just the lights blinking. I unplugged it and plugged it back in to reset it, and still, nothing. I was really taking it easy too. Motor, battery, and esc were all cool. Not even warm.

Does anyone have a clue as to what the blinking lights mean? I thought it meant that the radio wasn't connected. I checked the continuity in the lead wires with my fluke and they are fine. The radio is fine. The motor is fine.

If I can't get this one back up and running, I think I'm gonna hang it up for a while until I can invest in some decent equipment. Maybe the Teken R1MT will be out by then.

[neweuser]

Why not get a Quark???

[BrianG]

Hmm, you might have damaged the PCB or something with the impact, although you'd think the MM would be a little more durable than that. I'd check for any cracks near where the throttle cable is soldered on. I did notice that the edge of the external case is pretty close to the PCB and on a hard impact, the force could have done something to the PCB in that area. Also, I'd remove the MM from the case and inspect elsewhere...

neweuser,

Yeah, what can I say. I'm an idiot. I was looking at the "better" controllers and did a lot of research. Just going by the specs, I chose to go with the 16016 Compro. That was a nightmare. I have another thread discussing that. Anyway, I now have five MMs and the Compro. The Compro is on its way back to Mike, so that he can check it out to make sure that I didn't screw something up in the programming, then after that, I have to wait for it to make the trip to the Czech Rep for repair. I'm pretty confident that it wasn't me screwing up the programming. Anyway, I'd be pretty hard pressed to convince myself to spend another ~$300 to get another controller. I'm just kind of aggravated with the whole thing right now, escpecially since I have to spend $100 to get my MMs fixed.

Brian,

I went over the whole thing, well, the parts of the pcbs that are exposed anyway, with a magnifying glass and can't see anything. No cracks, chips, or anything.

I just wish I knew what the blinking lights means. That might point me in the right direction. I tried call Castle, but got no answer, as has been par with Castle lately.

[BrianG]

You seem to have the worst luck with stuff! I think if I had half the ESC problems you have, I'd have found another hobby! ;)