ESC and Motor Shopping

I am still looking for an ESC, I started to buy this one

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=5498

but at the last second I noticed that it said “Voltage: 13-25v (4-6 cell Lipo)”

I am planning on using it with a 3 cell Lipo battery, since that is all I currently have.

I was looking at a ESC from  heads_up_rc on ebay, and it said
Input = 6 to 13 volts
Battery: 2 & 3 cell Lipo  or  6 - 10 NiMh/NiCD
This got me thinking that I need to make sure the ESC I end up buying will work with a 3 cell Lipo battery.

The “power up” ESC they sell is $24.00 plus $2.00 for shipping so I am thinking about just going with that one, it’s rated at 32 amps.

Hobbycity.com does have this one

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=2163

25 amp with a Burst Current of 35Amps

For $18.59 which is a good price, and it is rated for

Lipo Cells: 2-4

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=3731

the start looks like it is the same as the first one, just costs a couple bucks more and they only have 24 in stock, so it might sell out and then take a while to deliver.

The Pulsar they have 339 in stock.

I forgot that I wanted the watt’s up Watt Meter from tower hobbies, that may make the difference, because once you pay for shipping then it’s usually cheaper to keep buying parts from that same site.

For example, the 2410-08 motor is $11.50 on heads up rc on ebay, but it is only $9.95 at hobbycity.com

The only problem is that hobbycity will charge about $3.00 for shipping, then if you order more the shipping goes up, but heads up rc, only charges $2 for shipping and you can order as many items as you like, so if I am ordering anything else from them it’s like getting free shipping.

Looked all through tower hobbies magazine and couldn’t find any outrunner motors like I am used to.

Which is a bummer because I could save on shipping if I could order from them, but I searched on “brushless” and “outrunner” and nothing useful came up.

It looks like the also don’t have the honey bee king helicopter either.

If I order this plane,

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXVU20&P=7

which I am planning on doing, then I will also need some more parts.

Tower hobbies sells this power system for their slow stick

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/WTI0001P?&I=LXWK48&P=V

but I really like the brushless motors and I think I am going to just stick with them, they are easier and the parts are more interchangeable with the other equipment I currently have.

Ok, I need a list I have decided to buy the plane then I will also need

1- motor
2- ESC
3- 3 servos
4- Receiver and crystal (already have this)

Actually with a motor and 2 ESC’s I think I have enough parts to get both planes to run.

So I think I am just going to order the plane at tower hobbies, and then the motor and ESC from heads up rc on ebay.

This is kind of cool, I just re-read the email that tower hobbies sent me and it said free shipping on any order of $50 or more before December 3, 2007

Well today is December 8th, but I put the code in and it gave me free shipping anyway I guess they are extending their free shipping deal.

So with the free shipping I have decided to go ahead and order the watt meter and the plane.

I am just going to be bummed if I send this order off, then find some more stuff I want to order.

I need to keep a list of items I am thinking about ordering so I will know where to look to see what I want from the different sites.

But I think if I get my motor and ESC then I will be set for a while.

The only other thing I can think of would be a couple of servos, I need to see if tower has any cheap servos.

Then I need to keep track of where I am buying these servos incase I need to replace any of them, and I also need to order some extra servos when I am getting them for $3 or $4 each.

Tower hobbies really need to have a feature where you can sort by price, I am looking at tons of servos in the $25 to $35 dollar range and I know I don’t want to pay more than $4 for a servo.

 December 8, 2007