Hill Helper

[Kepler]

Cunning until the oneway bearing locks up. Hmm, maybe still OK if it fully disengages.

[rearengine]

Yup! good points ... Maybe it's not all that important for me to put the brake on .. My thought was with motor coasting it would hit the park peg , and bounce back on the tire .. probably not a big deal .. What do ya think? Got more SNOW #%**&#@) ... Bill

[Kepler]

I think the bounce would be hardly noticeable. I would keep the brake disabled if I was you. Risk for no real advantage in my opinion. Is the disengage spring loaded in any way? If not a spring would reduce any possible bounce.

[rearengine]

Pix of the new launch ramp ... The first one was to flexie ,and couldn't handle the recoil .. This one works as a park soft stop also .. The roller is off the tire about 1/16th " ... Rode 5 miles today , never missed engaging the tire.. I cut a corner out of my mouse pad , and stuck it on the ramp with two way sticky tape .. So far so good ... As you can see in the pix the roads are full of salt & sand .. I guess I had better cover up the controller ... Bill

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[spinningmagnets]

It sounded like it would work OK when you mentioned the idea, but...now that I see it, I like it a lot! Soft-return and launch-ramp all in one. Simple, sturdy, cheap...I doubt the mouse pad will wear out any time soon, but easy to replace if needed.

I think if I held back my sliding roller-frame with a spring (compared to you being able to use a forward tilt and gravity), I could add a ramp like this. That would allow me to have the roller completely off the tire, perhaps eliminate the two clutch-bearings ($20/pair), and also allow me to maybe use the $18 steel rollers from BMP as an option...

[rearengine]

Spinner... What size is that roller ? I'm going fast enough for me with the 1.25 roller.. I haven't had any loss of sync or power drop .. I peddle to 8-10mph then hit the thottle hard enough so it jumps off the ramp... once on the tire it's 80-100% throttle ... I do hear some what of a scream on the way up, but never any power loss, just really good acceleration up over 24 mph .. hot off the charger @ 26.9 - 27.2 v ... The only gadgets I have for testing are my hands every thing is luke warm... And that's

I think I would like to try a knurled roller ... It would be cleaner , and easier on the tire.. ya think?..
Bill

[spinningmagnets]

Cunning until the oneway bearing locks up

Although these type of one-way needle bearings actually have a very good record in industry, those normally have some automatic clean lubrication built-into the system. I can imagine an FD customer never greasing them, (just a smear of grease needed every 6 months or so?) and I imagine the bearings would start producing a dry screetch before complete failure (as I have seen bearings do in the past).

The more I think about your ramp, Bill, the more I like it. And then by adding the steel roller, it would do three things for me. It eliminates greasing maintenance, eliminates the need to occasionally replace the sandpaper, and it clearly removes all possible drag when unpowered. The drag right now is so low I can't feel it, but if an improvement eases a customers concern, it is worth pondering.

Any round thing can be knurled by a jig in a machine shop, though they prefer to do the knurling when the steel is at its softest (before the hardening process), so that the tooling lasts longer and the knurls are deeper and sharper. If you'd like to try out the BMP 1.0" roller, its yours for the asking (your thread here has helped me a lot, its the least I can do!). Going from 1.25" down to 1.0", your top speed would drop from 24-MPH to roughly 20-MPH, but the hill-climbing should be slightly better (less motor-bog, less heat)

[Kepler]

I really like the launch ramp addition to the friction drive concept. Looks like you have it sorted nicely. This setup really negates the need for one way bearings in the roller. Unfortunately it’s a little more difficult to achieve with the roller hanging above the tire as on a standard bike configuration. I am playing with some ideas using the motor shaft as a launch roller. Having gone to a single swing arm, I can now use the other side of the drive to mount a relatively compact launch ramp mechanism. Not sure if I really need it but certainly worth experimenting with.

[rearengine]

Hey Kep ... Thanks for taking a look ... So far I couldn't be happier with the set up .. I say sofar because I don't have nearly the miles on it as you do on yours.. The ramp has given back the free wheeling of an unassisted rear wheel .. I'm sure a ramp would work on yours with a fixed arm on the off side of the drive ... HA!! I sure as hell don't have to tell you how to do it ..

Spinner is sending me his knureld 1" roller to play with .. With out the one way bearings it might slam it back to the park / launch ramp pretty hard ... WE shall see.. I'm glad it's 1" so I can keep cadence with it when I want .. The 1.25 is to fast for me now .. sending a pic with the original soft park taken off..

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[rearengine]

I can't say I'm real happy with the 1" roller wth out the one way bearings in it ... The free wheeling roller didn't bounce on engagement from the launch ramp ... 1.25" roller seams to be the right diameter for me...
Do any of you know where I could find a 1.25" one way KNURLED roller ? I emailed Bikemotorsports ,said they stopped offering them 2 yrs ago .. Bill

[rearengine]

Well I smoked the works ,Esc & motor .. I should say my son did .. I am using the servo tester for throttle , and I didn't tell him that it wouldn't return to off ... He hit the brakes , and you know the rest of the story ... Lots of smoke , but no one hurt ...

It seems this is obout the only motor that isn't on back order at Hobby king .. Can any one tell me if this motor has a skirt bearing ? I'm thinking this motor If it has the bearing & 120 amp or more ESC.. Leme know what you think ...

Kepler which Hyperion motor are you using ... can't find the thread that you listed the different motors you spect... Thanks Bill

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[adrian_sm]

Yep. I have only bench tested it, so can't tell you much more than:

- No skirt bearing.
- 2.3 no load current.
- Bearing quality is not great, I get weird resonance sound at one speed, and some rattle that sounds like it is the bearing.

[spinningmagnets]

Keplers default motor of choice seems to be the Turnigy 6374-200kV, which does have a skirt bearing. I believe he was using 5S to get around 25-MPH.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=3890

He tried the Aeolian 63mm motor with a 170-kV at 6S because he hoped it would have the same speed but lower amp-draw (heat being a concern to pay attention to with a motorshell-drive). I don't remember if the Aeolian has a skirt bearing. Its possible that it might not, and if they had worked out for Kepler, he could special order a batch with the 63mm skirt bearing added...
http://www.hobby-parts.com/aeolian-c6374-kv170-brushless-rc-motor-for-rc-airplane-p-414.html

[Whiplash]

I have over 200 mikes on one and is been through hell with melted together phase wires and the lot, great little motor for the money!

[adrian_sm]

Yes the Aeloian 6374-200 motors have a skirt bearing.

I bought all the available motors suitable for my friction drive from HobbyKing recently, and the only one that had a skirt bearing was the 6354-250kv.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/stor ... oduct=5144

But they appear to be out of stock at the moment too.

The Aeolian would be the best bet.

[Kepler]

Just an update on the Aeloian 170 kv motor. Yes it does have a skirt bearing and looks very similar to the 63-74 in construction. It does however seem to loose sync much more easily then the 63-74. Aeloian 200kv motor might be better for sync. I didnt see much advantage in terms of low speed operation in relation to heat and current draw. Still think the 63-74 is the best choice. Wish they would hurry up and come back in stock. I will order the Aeloian 200kv and see how that goes.

[rearengine]

I thought the SK 6374 might NOT have a skirt bearing ...Thats why it is the only one that isn't on back order I would guess... If any of you have a motor you want to part with , I'm a buyer..
I've changed my drive to running on the can , and it really ran well ... The 280 KV was a little faster than i wanted to go , so i'm thinking 200 or less would be great ... Guess I will put my order into Hobby King , and get in line ... Maybe I'll try the Aeolian 6374 200 since we know it has the skirt bearing...

I thank you all for the replys ... Bill...

[rearengine]

Has anyone used this controller ? If so what do you think of it ? It is in stock ... Maybe thats bad .. Bill http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/stor ... duct=16367

[adrian_sm]

Not me. But I like the adjustable LVC, and aluminium enclosure. Might also be relatively straight forward to water proof.
I think I avoided buying one last time around becuase of the poor user rating, but reading the reviews thery are all around an incorrect label, not performance. Not much feedback on performance in the reviews though...

Let us know how it goes if you get one. Otherwise I'll buy one next time I place an order.

- Adrian

[Hillhater]

Yes the Aeloian 6374-200 motors have a skirt bearing.

I bought all the available motors suitable for my friction drive from HobbyKing recently, and the only one that had a skirt bearing was the 6354-250kv.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/stor ... oduct=5144

But they appear to be out of stock at the moment too.

The Aeolian would be the best bet.

Adrian,
have you run the TK 6354 -250kv yet ?
The one i have so far has refused to stay in sync with any combo of controller or setting that i have tried.

Just an update on the Aeloian 170 kv motor. ..... It does however seem to loose sync much more easily then the 63-74.

Kepler, .. is that with the Castle controller ??..or one of the Turnigy's ?

[adrian_sm]

No. Sorry work & personal lives are way too hectic at the moment.
I'll post results on my thread, when I get a chance to play.

[rearengine]

Well I have the Turnigy dlux 100A SBEC coming ... They say it's shipped , could take 48 days I took the 63-64-280 motor apart and it looks ok , with a little luck, maybe it's just the 85A esc that fried ... I'll let yall know how it works out , when up and running ... Bill

[rearengine]

Well .. I'm all set for the new controller from Hobby King ... If it ever gets here ... Going to put it between the mount plates you see in the pix ... Has anyone tried to track an order from Hobby King ? Another question .. How do you log in to Hobby King's US warehouse ? They say it's open ...Castle Creations is state side , is that right

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Bill

[Hillhater]

... Has anyone tried to track an order from Hobby King ? Another question .. How do you log in to Hobby King's US warehouse ?

I used the tracking option for a delivery to Australia and it was spot on. It told me exactly where the package was at any day, and even told me when(to the hour almost) to expect the courier at the door !
Logging on to your local w/house is just a matter of picking the "USA warehouse" option from the RH side of the HK "Home" screen.

[rearengine]

Thanks Hillhater... I thought that tab was just for email.. AS far as tracking , all I get is it left Hong Kong for US ... Ah well thats a start Bill