How would you build an AATV,(amphibious 6 wheeler)?

I got it :) Ground as much as I could with a dremel cutoff wheel then broke the rest out with a punch.

I don't think the Alltrax will work with a hall effect but I'll check on that. However I don't want to use a thumb throttle. When I'm gripping the control sticks it's easier to control the throttle with 1 or 2 fingers while gripping the stick with the rest of my hand. I never liked thumb throttles.
 
I went for the throttle, it'll save me a lot of time and I spoke to someone who said it's a pretty good unit. Drinks and dinner for me and my girlfriend cost me $60 last weekend which is literally money down the toilet :mrgreen: so I figured $46 shipped for something that lasts is worth it. The price on the thing keeps increasing, probably because I've heard they are no longer in production, so get em while their hot if you need one.
I got it from Cloudelectric.com, who has now partnered with beepscom.com, but beeps has jacked the price to $60! I guess cloud hasn't caught up yet on ripping us off.
Batteries should be coming later this week.
 
Hubba. (I need a drool-cup.)

:mrgreen:
 
Getting close to wiring this thing and just want to double check before I melt anything :shock:
Some systems seem to use a 12 volt setup to power the contactor and controller, but from this Alltrax diagram I should be able to just run my 48 volt pack voltage directly to the primary side of the contactor and to the controller. Correct?
http://www.alltraxinc.com/files/Doc100-045-A_DWG-AXE-No-Reverse-wire-dia.pdf
 
JRP3 said:
Getting close to wiring this thing and just want to double check before I melt anything :shock:
Some systems seem to use a 12 volt setup to power the contactor and controller, but from this Alltrax diagram I should be able to just run my 48 volt pack voltage directly to the primary side of the contactor and to the controller. Correct?
http://www.alltraxinc.com/files/Doc100-045-A_DWG-AXE-No-Reverse-wire-dia.pdf
Click to expand...
I don't think so. The drawing indicates "Observe Coil Voltage", in the contactor note. Methinks you need to step your pack volatage to match the coil rating of your contactor.

:?
 
The contactor is rated for 48 volts, doesn't that cover it? Also, I don't see any voltage reduction in that diagram, unless I'm missing something?
The way I read it is + side from the pack, through some switches, then split to pin 1 on the controller and + on the contactor primary.
 
My interpretation of the drawing note is the required rating of the contacts for specific models, ie:
a 250A contactor is sufficient for the AXE 300A models
a 400A contactor is sufficient for the AXE 400A, 450A, 650A models

It looks like the coil of your 586 contactor is rated for 48V and the contacts are rated for 36V.

:?
 
Yeah, looking at the PDF I was starting to think that myself. WTF? Does that make any sense? Why would the coil be rated higher than the contacts? I mean when would you ever put more voltage to the primary side than you'd run through the secondary? I specifically asked when I purchased the contactor if it was the correct one, think I'll email them and see what they have to say.
 
Another wiring question: My throttle has 3 wires, white, black and red, but the controller only needs 2. Black and white give the 0-5K ohms that I need so I assume I can just ignore the red wire?

Update on the Protech4 chargers I bought, seems as if they are not isolated on the negative side so I can't charge the batteries in series with them :oops: Guess I should have checked that first. So I tied the 3 positive leads together on each one and am using them as individual chargers for now. I'll probably end up getting the Minn Kota 440 charger I was originally planning on but was hoping to do better than 10 amps per battery, but I don't want to spend too much and that seems like the best deal I can find for modular charging.
 
Yes, just ignore the 3rd wire on the throttle (well, tape it up so it doesn't touch anything).

You can isolate the chargers. The best way is to take them apart and break the connection inside, but the exact spot to cut depends on the specific charger, and I have not seen that one.

Plan B is to cut off the ground pin on the AC plug on all but one charger. The one with a ground will provide shock protection. You can then leave all the batteries connected in series while charging.
 
You can isolate the chargers. The best way is to take them apart and break the connection inside, but the exact spot to cut depends on the specific charger, and I have not seen that one.
Click to expand...
I've been told that isolating the grounds of the three outputs on the charger is more complicated than that, otherwise it would have already been done. Plus I'm not comfortable poking around inside.
This is one of the chargers, I also have a 20 amp version:
http://www.promariner.com/productFeature.php?ProductNum=61230
Just to be clear, as I understand it, the charger is isolated in that you can use more than one charger on a series pack but you can only use them as single output chargers, not 3 output. I don't see how cutting the grounding pin on the AC plug would isolate the 3 negatives on each charger?
 
The AMPhibian is ALIVE!! :lol: :shock: 8) :mrgreen:
Worked perfectly as soon as I hooked up the last connection. Seems to be performing as planned, I was able to go right up my steep hill without having to get a run at it and I even dragged up 3 small logs as a test. Doesn't feel as if it wants to tip over backwards either, though it might on something even steeper. Top speed feels like it's around 20 as expected, I'll have to check it with a GPS or I might use the bike speedometer idea. Hopefully I'll get some videos soon. Still need some work to make it waterproof so no float test for a little while.
Thanks to everyone here for all the help.
 
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