Novak HV4.5/4s Lipo: First Impressions

[SpEEdyBL]

OMG where should I start! This setup was totally beyond my expectations. When I first jammed the throttle, the 7.5lb MBX R2 plain wheelied. Yes, wheelied even with the stock center diff. Not only that but the two front Proline moab tires came clear off the rims. The old CA glue that I used was probably to blame, but it did look kind of odd when it happened. None of my other vehicles could wheelie like in the first place, so this was something totally unexpected. Now that I was totally psyched, instead spending the time to reglue the tires before testing again, I put on the old worn down stock tires and rims. This time, I was a little easier on the throttle and managed to get a few speed passes. One thing is for certain; this setup is faster than anything I have ever driven (Kontronik twist 47 on 3s lipo in Losi xxx4) by a large margin. I was afraid to reach full throttle because it seemed as if the buggy could lift off the uneven road surface that I was running on, at any moment. Even though the buggy is bigger and heavier than my xxx4, it seemed more responsive and definately had better accel. When I nailed the throttle, from a stop or when it was rolling slowly, it still wheelied, which was impressive, given the fact that these tires had little traction.

An interesting thing I noticed however, was the fact that the pinion gear got a little warm for some reason. The gears are in good shape, but the bore reducer that I had to use in order to fit the 5mm bored pinion on the 1/8 motor shaft, isn't exactly tight fit which causes the pinion gear to be off center ever so slightly.

Also, you are probably wondering about the temps, but I wasn't able to run long enough to get an idea of how things would heat up exactly. The motor and the battery were cool, but the esc was hot. I was not running the included fan, and I wasn't using an external bec. (Although novak claims that an external bec is not required for the HV-Maxx esc, they are referring to the esc being used with two packs in a series, which allows the bec to work from just one of the packs; sort of cheating imo)

Vehicle: Ofna MBX R2
Battery: Maxamps 5000 mah 4s
Gearing: 11/51

btw, hope to be able to get a video of this in action, because it truely is unbelieveable. I am also going to test this setup more extensively, and I will be comparing it to my 8xl which already thermals my Mamba Max on 3s. Could be another bec issue though.

[rccardude04]

Wait... A 1/8 buggy... wheelied... from a stand still?
Holy... lol.
Sounds entertaining. I can only IMAGINE what this would do to an E-Maxx LOL!
-Eric

[ElectricThunder]

Sounds unbelievably disgusting. I bet if you used the HV6.5, it'd be easier on the ESC, but it'd probably still pack a nasty punch. (I know....you're testing the 4.5 and the 8XL)


I'm putting my HV ESC back in my Rustler....:D I'll be running the SS5800 off it though.;) Definitely can't wait to see how your buggy moves though, and temperatures should be interesting to see.

[SpEEdyBL]

Yeah, and I didn't think it could be physically possible for the buggy to wheelie like that. The center diff is fairly easy to spin.

[ElectricThunder]

So I guess the "wow factor" category is won by Novak so far then?:D

[GordonFreeman]

With a top speed of 65 MPH, this 1/8 scale still does wheelies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpAid1ImWVk

Aint brushless great?!

[schenck77]

I dont think I have ever seen an electric 8th scale that wouldn't wheelie. also if you are going to compare it to your 8xl you should test them on the same voltage. 3s on your 8xl is not going to be very impressive. 4s is pretty much the standard for 8th scale do to the speed controls.

[SpEEdyBL]

Who said I wasn't going to test my 8xl on 4s? I've only been able to test it on 3s because I just got my 4s pack. Don't worry. I will make sure my testing is fair and I will be thorough.

[schenck77]

did say you weren't going to test on 4s. Just wanted to make sure since you listed running the 8xl with the mamba on 3s.

[SpEEdyBL]

Just a quick update: The motor shaft snapped off after the 3rd charge. It seemed to be running fine, but the next time I ran, I pegged the throttle, the car went two feet and the shaft snapped right off. I guess I can't run novak after all. Darn. I don't even know if the lehners are as efficient or as well suited powerwise as the novaks.

[ElectricThunder]

That sucks! I thought they were hardened steel shafts?

[SS Pede]

Hardened steel can still be brittle though, even if the surface is very hard. Some ductility is also important. Don't some other big motors have larger shafts than the standard 1/8" on the Novaks?

[NoLaD]

Pretty much all other motors considered for 1/8th conversions have a 5mm shaft, for durability purposes. I wish Novak would do the same.

[bxpitbull44]

With a top speed of 65 MPH, this 1/8 scale still does wheelies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpAid1ImWVk

Aint brushless great?!

I dont know what you were smoking with that music:D, but that car is absolutely sick! All of these guys coming out with the conversions, some pinhead at one of these big manufacuters needs to pull his head out of the sand and make a brushless car from a nitro-like platform. Not a nitro car with the guts yanked and replaced, not Fine Design charging a cagillion dollars for a nitro conversion, but a full scale production models with a load of hop ups.

[chilledoutuk]

perhaps your shaft converters lack of concentricity caused too much stress on the shaft.

do you have a picture of your install?

[SpEEdyBL]

That could be it. The shaft broke right where the flat spot begins, and the pinion gear was 15mm away from the mounting face of the motor. Too bad there aren't any mod1 pinion gears smaller than a 12 tooth that fit 1/8" shafts. I might try a 12 tooth anyway and run road tires. My 8xl plain overheats geared 20/51 and the novak on an 11 tooth pinion is still slightly faster.

[vad]

That could be it. The shaft broke right where the flat spot begins, and the pinion gear was 15mm away from the mounting face of the motor. Too bad there aren't any mod1 pinion gears smaller than a 12 tooth that fit 1/8" shafts. I might try a 12 tooth anyway and run road tires. My 8xl plain overheats geared 20/51 and the novak on an 11 tooth pinion is still slightly faster.

There is a place that offers 1/8" bored mod 1 pinions. check out that RC monster place in the internet.

[SpEEdyBL]

RC Monster doesn't sell mod1 gears smaller than 12 teeth. Thanks though. I just picked up a 12 tooth hardened steel 1/8 bore pinion from Mega Motor USA, which happens to be within 10 miles of my house.

[chilledoutuk]

is Novak going to replace that broken rotor?

or are you buying your own replacement?

[SpEEdyBL]

I bought a replacement. It doesn't appear to be covered under warranty and I didn't feel like sending it to novak. Also, the extra $35 allowed me to get $10 off on my order from tower.