Granite Granite 4x4 issues

[Tdub0527]

Hi all,

I am new to RC's so I am glad I found this place. I have had my Granite 4x4 for about 2-3 weeks and have driven it a lot but not where it should already be breaking down.

So I was driving it and I noticed it wasn't steering right anymore. I believed it to be the servo and took it apart. Yup, the servo had teeth missing and was broken. I am trying to work with ARRMA to get a new one but they are slow to respond on e-mail.

So I am waiting on the part and am not going to drive it obviously because the servo is out. However, when I was holding it off the ground to test something and the drive power it doesn't run at all anymore. Batteries are full, you can see the receiver is working cause the lights go but no power to the drive.

Is that because you need a servo in for the drive power to work? I am just nervous because I don't want to wait all this time and then find out there was also something else wrong with it.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Ted

 

[bicketybam]

Servo out shouldn't be an issue. Did the wire from the ESC going into the receiver come loose when you remeoved the steering servo? Is it plugged into the right slot? Is it orientated the right way?

By the way, the stock Servo is garbage. If you put the same one in you will replacing it again shortly. Just go and get a better one. Should be around $30 and you won't have to worry about the servo again.

 

[Tdub0527]

I thought the same thing and plugged the each in every slot each way and none of them worked. Does this mean my esc is bad too? Could my motor be dead? Crazy I’ve barely used this thing!

 

[Jerry-rigged]

The ESC goes in slot #2. Make sure the white and black are in the correct direction too... I think the white goes toward the inside, not 100% sure...

 

[bicketybam]

I guess you should check the motor wires too.

 

[Curvin]

Most likely the motor has expired, pretty common on the stock brushed units. I had servo, motor and shocks go within the first few hours of run time.

 

[bicketybam]

Most likely the motor has expired, pretty common on the stock brushed units. I had servo, motor and shocks go within the first few hours of run time.

Wouldn't the motor have expired while he was running it? Ive never had a motor go so I'm not sure how it usually goes. The way I read his original post is that he was running it, the servo went, he took it apart to remove the servo and now the motor doesn't work. What would have happened between him shutting it down to investigate the service and now that would make the motor go poof? That's what has me baffled, lol.

 

[Tdub0527]

Will ARRMA replace these or do I need to buy them on my own? Kinda poopy that something that is that expensive only lasts 3 weeks. Any advice on what motor to replace it with?

 

[bicketybam]

Will ARRMA replace these or do I need to buy them on my own? Kinda poopy that something that is that expensive only lasts 3 weeks. Any advice on what motor to replace it with?

So you are sure it's the motor? It was running fine, you shut it down to replace the servo and when you plugged everything back in the motor is shot? That just seems odd. The motor usually smokes and get hot when they go and they are usually on when it happens.

 

[Cheapbastard]

Hook power directly to your motor leads (wheels off ground or motor out) and see if the motor spins or not if it does your motor should be good if not the motor is bad. If the motor is bad talk to Arrma again they could send you a replacement but like the servo could go out again.

If you have the funds brushless is the way to go as you can see if check out a few threads on here people have problems with the esc and brushed motor. Brushless combos can be had anywhere from $30 and up with the lower priced escs longevity and reliability come into question.

Plastic geared servos (like stock Granite) are not that great and sooner or later the gears can strip. Get a metal geared servo if you decide to get another servo but with stock esc be careful what servo you get. Some servos require a esc that has a good bec (battery eliminator circuit) so as not to cause brownouts (temporary loss of power) the power that some servos consume are greater than what the bec can provide.

The only 12t brushed motor you could try is the Titan 12t 550 motor but they are not that great either it's still just a brushed motor.

 

[Tdub0527]

Sorry everyone, I wasn't as clear as I could have been in my post. I was running my Granite and the Servo broke to the point it wouldn't stear correctly but you could still have a little fun with it. I ran it a little longer then took the servo apart. Saw the broken peices teeth but was able to get it back together and it still kinda turned the wheels. I probably shouldn't have but I did run it a little bit more very carefully. Then with a fully charged battery it just stopped working. I did smell a electricy sent but no smoke and not any hotter than when I ran it before.

Now I get no power with fully charged battery. Servo is out and I was wondering if I wasn't getting power cause you need a servo in. My servo is for sure bad...is my ESC and the Motor bad too?

-Ted

 

[Jerry-rigged]

Without a servo, the Rx and ESC should still work.
For a new servo - I have 2 of these in different cars. Strong, fast, and cheap -
https://hobbyking.com/en_us/trackst...course-steering-servo-11-1kg-0-09sec-57g.html

As for the ESC/Motor - you will need to do more troubleshooting. But if you unplugged it all, first thing I would check is that you have the ESC plugged back in right.

When you plug in your battery, and turn on the ESC, do you get any LED's on the ESC?

 

[Tdub0527]

Alright, so my Servo is for sure busted...I took that apart and there were broken teeth in the gears. The ESC seems to be picking up signals just fine. It turns on with an LED and when I hit the throttle you can see it pick up the remote by lighting up the LED (see picture) but there is no power to the motor. Checked all the plugs and it is in the right plug the right way. Double Triple checked. The other thing that doesn't happen is when you turn on the truck with the ESC it doesn't make that sound anymore...only lights up the LED.

I am having a hell of time with ARRMA support. They are super slow to answer e-mails and I ended up calling today and some guy basically refused to help me because he wasn't the one that responded to my initial support and I had to work with that person??? Super weird and left a bad taste in my mouth for ARRMA.

I am still going to pursue getting these parts because I think owning a $250 product that breaks within two weeks maybe 3-4 hours of use is absolutely rediculous.

That said, I want to replace the servo with a metal servo and the motor with something aftermarket but will is economical and can take NIHM batteries. I went with the Grantie 4x4 instead of the BLX because I am just getting into this hobby and the wife isn't too happy with even the purchases I've made so far. I love the little truck and want it back on the road ASAP. Any advice on metal Servo and Motor that will work with my ESC or and economical ESC would be super super helpful.

Thanks,
Ted

 

[Cheapbastard]

Did you try doing what I said in post #10 to check the motor? The noise or beeps comes from the motor not the esc if the motor is bad it will not beep. As also said earlier you could try the Titan 12t 550 motor check Ebay to get a new one at the lowest price.

 

[Tdub0527]

Did you try doing what I said in post #10 to check the motor? The noise or beeps comes from the motor not the esc if the motor is bad it will not beep. As also said earlier you could try the Titan 12t 550 motor check Ebay to get a new one at the lowest price.

I just went to the garage and tried directly plugging the motor into the battery. Nothing...must be dead for sure. If I go with the Traxxas Titan 12t 550 is that easy to install in the Granite? Any videos you guys could point me in the direction of on how to replace it?

Big thanks for your help!

 

[Curvin]

@Ted,

As much as you may dislike hearing this, I can only give you advise on my direct experience , which is that I went through identical failures within the first 2 hrs usage.

ARRMA was useless regards warranty in my instance, seriously, don't bother with replacing the engine with another brushed ARRMA unit, you will only experience the same failure in short order . I bit the bullet and purchased a budget brushless ESC/Motor combo , a 3rd party 20KG metal geared servo . I also have a brand new 5000MAH NIMH that I completed wasted my money on , so I feel ya.

Check out my thread :
Senton 4x4 Mega : Journey from stock breakages to brushless and beyond.

There is some good contribution from various members who have helped me navigate the same scenario. Plenty of info re brushless options, servos, shocks, etc.

 

[Tdub0527]

@Ted,

As much as you may dislike hearing this, I can only give you advise on my direct experience , which is that I went through identical failures within the first 2 hrs usage.

ARRMA was useless regards warranty in my instance, seriously, don't bother with replacing the engine with another brushed ARRMA unit, you will only experience the same failure in short order . I bit the bullet and purchased a budget brushless ESC/Motor combo , a 3rd party 20KG metal geared servo . I also have a brand new 5000MAH NIMH that I completed wasted my money on , so I feel ya.

Check out my thread :
Senton 4x4 Mega : Journey from stock breakages to brushless and beyond.

There is some good contribution from various members who have helped me navigate the same scenario. Plenty of info re brushless options, servos, shocks, etc.

Wow @Curvin..this is super helpful! Thank you so much for your note and I'll be checking out that thread. I really don't know how the wife will respond to more money into this thing when it broke this fast!

 

[bicketybam]

If I could have done it all over again I'd never would have bought a brushed vehicle. I didn't know any better.

 

[Curvin]

If I could have done it all over again I'd never would have bought a brushed vehicle. I didn't know any better.

Yep , I was in exactly the same space. I was clueless 4 months ago, I am now fast becoming the RC whisperer... LOL !

 

[bicketybam]

I also knew when I bought the Granite that I was going to install a brushless system in it sooner rather than later. Turns out it was 3 days later, lol. My Senton brushed motor didn't even get used once.It came out immediately.