Novak SS5800 in my B4 = 40+ mph!

[OptimaMan]

Hey guys, got a B4 the other day and put in my Novak SS5800. With a brand new GP3300 peaked, with 19/81, I get top speeds of 31.9 and 31.5 mph two way speeds. Average speed of 31.7 mph. The motor is running approximately 34000 rpm. Assuming voltage drop under load, the Kv is about 4850 rpm/volt.

Then I geared it with a 30 tooth pinion (largest I could fit with stock spur) and got top speeds of 41.5 and 41.2 mph two way speeds. That translates to approx 28000 rpm => 4000 rpm/volt.

I'm actually surprised at the top speed - not too shabby for Novak. The acceleration wasn't slingshot, but enough to get it going and smooth enough not to break traction too often.

Stay tuned - I'll run other BL for comparisons soon.

[robnjr]

Hey OptimaMan, got my Novak SS5800 on Monday. I had to leave in a few hours on a business trip for the week, so I threw it in my Pro3 for a quick test. The sucker FLEW with the standard pinion (35 tooth pinion, 116 spur). I had a hard time controlling the car (this was with plain old Piranha 1900 7-cell hump pack), kept spinning out as I accelerated (the Pro3 doesn’t suffer from lateral body shift, since the motor shaft is parallel to the car axels). I didn’t do an accurate speed measurement, but it was a LOT faster than the same pinion that gave me about 30MPH with a 19 turn Chameleon using the same 7 cell batteries. I figure I was doing at LEAST 40 MPH. Keep in mind, this is a mostly stock Pro3 with few hop-ups. Man, what speeds am I going to get when I up the pinion size????? Looks like it will easily handle a much larger pinion, as the motor and ESC were barely warm after two back to back runs…. I also plan to give it a try in the ‘ol Optima Mid this weekend if the weather holds. Overall, I’m VERY impressed with the little I’ve seen so far….AMAZING!!!!

BTY, what’s the main difference between the braking profiles on the SS? I assume its stronger braking, but the instructions don’t really say much about it….There’s absolutely no braking in neutral with profile #1, just coast. Does high brake profile give some neutral braking? Of course I can experiment when I get home, but I’m curious.

[glassdoctor]

All the profiles have brakes. The #1 has brakes, you just need to adjust the radio to get some drag (coast) braking.

[robnjr]

I know they all have brakes, and that three profiles have no reverse. I also know I can adjust throttle trim to reduce coasting. . But what's the difference between "low min brake" and "high min brake"???? The manual doesn't say. I assume one is a stronger brake profile, but what does that have to do with minimum?

[End Overend]

The different brake profiles only have to do with the amount of brake that the the ESC/motor put out. The lower setting just lowers the maximum braking threshold a little.

With a 2wd vehicle the minimum setting works better, with 4wd the maxium brake setting works better (at least in theory). I've found out that the minimum setting works great for 2wd or 4wd. Even with my XXX-4 I used to the minimum setting and dialed my end points down to around 70%. That was more than enough braking for my driving style.

If you want drag brake you will have to dial it in with your trim adjustments.

[Signats]

Low min brake = less inital braking at the instant the brakes begin to turn on.

Hi min. brake = more inital braking at the instant the brakes begin to turn on.

Low is good for slippery or marginal traction surfaces and the vehicle only has two wheels doing all the braking (2wd/ 4wd with a front oneway bearing)

Hi is for when there is ample traction, and you want/need the brakes to hit harder when they are first applied, or when you just tap them.

The setting is for how hard the brakes come on in the first instant that they are engaged, and the way I understand it, with either setting there is no difference in the maximum braking power applied to the drivetrain at full brakes on.

Signats

[robnjr]

Thanks for the info....that's what I was looking for, and it makes sense.

[OptimaMan]

Hey guys, I got my B4 going 43.4 mph with 7.4 volts Lipo pack. That translates to approx 4000 rpm/volt. If I translate that to an 8.4 volt pack, I could theoretically go approx 48 mph with the 7:1 ratio (30 tooth pinion and stock spur). At this speed, I can still get the ProLine road rage tires to spin out, but at 30 or so mph, I can't spin it out anymore. Interesting is that 2 cell lipo is 2mph faster than a 6 cell gp3300's. That translates to approx 5% more power delivery.

[robnjr]

Latest update: I increased the pinion/spur ratio on my Pro3. Final ratio is now 6.5. I got up to 47MPH with a freshly charged 7 cell 1900 Piranha hump battery! I can’t wait to see how fast this car will go when my matched GP3300 seven cells arrive.

I’ll probably just keep the SS5800 in my Pro3 and get another one for the Optima Mid.

[OptimaMan]

If your FDR is 6.5:1 and tires are like 2.5 inches, your motor is spinning at 41000 rpm which approximates at 4880 rpm/volt (assuming no voltage drop). That's pretty good. In my B3, I can't seem to get it that good. With a FDR of like 11:1, I get about 4700 rpm but with FDR of only 7:1, I can only get about 4000 rpm/volt. I guess TC's have less wind resistance and rolling resistance which can explain that. Looks like you're pretty happy with the Novak. I guess you can say a Novak, geared for top speed, could most certainly take a 2wd buggy or 1/10 TC to 50 mph with 7 cells.

One dude claimed he got his novak going to 60 in his TC. I guess if you were able to drop the ratio down to like 4:1 or so, it could be possible. I'm stopping my SS5800 experiments in my B4 for now.

Robnjr, you should really try another BL system for the Optima Mid instead of another Novak. My recommendation is to get a 18.61K (225), ultimate BEC (approx 30), and get like a Lehner 1520 6 turn (7144 rpm/volt) or 1515 7 turn (8165 rpm/volt) or even the 1515 6 turn (9525 rpm/volt). Gear it really short (like 12:1 for the 1515 6) and you'll see over 50 mph with 6 cells!!! If you really want to push the mid to 60 on 6 cells, you should try a 1920 5 turn...Or, if you make an 8 or 10 cell stick pack, you can get a Lehner Basic 5300 or 4200 motor and it'll take the mid flying easily over 60 mph!!!

[robnjr]

Thanks for the info OptimaMan. What's the cost of a system like that? I paid about $220 for the SS5800 from Tower ($20 off coupon code, and free shipping since I have the supersaver membership).

[OptimaMan]

The cost... that's the bad part... but the power is almost 2x the Novaks. You know, if you wait till this fall, I believe Castle Creations will have the Mamba 80 which should most definitely be below 200 bucks and it probably has BEC. You can get a Basic 5300 or 4200 for about 120. So for about 300 or so (maybe a tad more) you'll have a system that will scream. Unfortunately, you'll have to wait for that controller. A Schulze 18.61K alone goes for 225+ S&H and doesn't have BEC so that will add another 30 bucks!

[robnjr]

Thanks again for the info OptimaMan. Yeah, the price is a little steep for the setups you recommended, so I’ll wait a little and see what happens. I’ll probably just stick to the SS for my Mid, since It seems adequate. I’m not looking for outrageous uncontrollable speeds or anything like that, just a good, reliable (and low maintenance) system that gives decent runtimes. I can add one of the systems you mentioned to another Mid once the price comes down a little. Also, I’ll probably change the ratio back on my Pro3 to get better acceleration and longer run times once my GP3300s arrive. I was just “testing the limits” when I tried a 6.5 final ratio. I have to say acceleration wasn’t amazing with the car set up like that….Besides, I got lots to keep me busy restoring my Mids: I spent quite a bit on Ebay the past few months buying old Mids and parts. When I’m done I should have 3 or 4 nice Optimas, with one converted to a “Monster truck” (though not one of those huge ridiculous monster trucks). Overall, it’s hard to bitch about the Novak considering the price and performance. I also wonder how hard it would be to control a car like the Mid running a non-sensor motor, since the Pro3 spins out pretty easy when running the stock ratio…Don’t the sensorless brushless systems have crazy power curves? BTW, I runs my Mids mostly on-road. I don’t like to abuse these vintage cars too much..

[mtrsprt]

45.8mph. :) 7 cell "cheapo" 3000mah hump pack from Ebay.

Novak 5800

B4 with 25/81 gearing. With 600' of straightaway. 3 tries.

[sft]

Hey guys,

Gearing:
I just bought a SS5800, I used that same towerhobbies deal robnjr used, cheaper than eBay's used prices after shipping.

I also just bought a TC3 off of eBay, and want to take things slow and not overheat anything. I have the stock 72 spur gear and want to know what sized pinion I should use? What size pinion would be unsafe to use?

I read some people were running 24 and another 26, but what's a safe place to start? I've got a set of 16-24 even pinions.

thanks.




P.S. Now that I have my TC3 and my SS5800, I'm really kickin' myself for not finding a radio/receiver quicker on eBay. At least it is on it's way and I'll only have to wait a few more days. All this fun in the house, but now way to use it.

[sft]

I forgot to mention I am using 7 cell GP3300's.