Vorteks Motor Issues

[TheBeardedGiant]

Im using the stock 550 motor and I recently switched to metal gears and added 4x4 upgrade to my Vorteks, and since then I've smoked two motors. The first motor after upgraded to the 57t .8 mod spur gear, I was using the 15t .8 mod pinion and I assumed the gear ratio was too high. Got the motor replaced and switched to an 11t .8 mod pinion and smoked the motor again. I've made sure to have a proper gear mesh, and I'm not sure what could be my problem. Is the motor just not capable of pushing the 4x4 and the metal gears?

 

[slick2500]

Go brushless ditch the brushed setup. Those brushed motors burn up in 2wd buggies.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

I think 4x4 is too much for the motors. I've burned a couple with 2wd. Well. 1. But I totally over ran it. Other just broke.

They come off a run decently hot so more pressure can't be good

The new motors. We will see. I'm oiling them a lot and using a compressor to blow them off after running. And don't run lots of packs in a row. Going well so far

We will see

Im using the stock 550 motor and I recently switched to metal gears and added 4x4 upgrade to my Vorteks, and since then I've smoked two motors. The first motor after upgraded to the 57t .8 mod spur gear, I was using the 15t .8 mod pinion and I assumed the gear ratio was too high. Got the motor replaced and switched to an 11t .8 mod pinion and smoked the motor again. I've made sure to have a proper gear mesh, and I'm not sure what could be my problem. Is the motor just not capable of pushing the 4x4 and the metal gears?

Ps... 11 tooth... May do it too. 15 seems to be the sweet spot for speed with stock other gears. 14 may work. But 11 may be too much torque.

 

[AaronF]

my 550 MEGA 4x4 has the 550 brushed motor. apparently they only last about 6-12 months.
Went brushless and its way better. Jennys RC has everything you might need at half the price.

 

[slick2500]

my 550 MEGA 4x4 has the 550 brushed motor. apparently they only last about 6-12 months.
Went brushless and its way better. Jennys RC has everything you might need at half the price.

6-12 months? Days maybe.

 

[SrC]

I think 4x4 is too much for the motors. I've burned a couple with 2wd. Well. 1. But I totally over ran it. Other just broke.

They come off a run decently hot so more pressure can't be good

The new motors. We will see. I'm oiling them a lot and using a compressor to blow them off after running. And don't run lots of packs in a row. Going well so far

We will see

Ps... 11 tooth... May do it too. 15 seems to be the sweet spot for speed with stock other gears. 14 may work. But 11 may be too much torque.

I would verify the exact Pinion/Spur Ratio that you started out with, out the box, and drop you gearing down to that ratio. Moving up to Larger Pitch/ Modulus with gearing, limits your gear ratio combinations. So it's all too easy to over gear because of this.
Brushed motors always need constant cleaning and lubing. The nature of the beast. Just part of owning a brushed setup. Brushed motors have always been this way since the advent/ heyday of RC back in the 1980's. Use an electrical contact spray to clean them out. And I advise lubing the motors Brass Oilite bushings, or the BB's if equipped, very often. 90% of the heat a brushed motor makes is normally from the Brushes.
The rest is from the BB's/Brass bushings. Brushes as they wear, quickly foul out the motors.
I like Brushed in my Crawlers and still run them in all my Vintage models. But I run Rebuildable Brushed motors. I Can replace the Brushes this way while also cleaning up the Armature's Commutator. They come with True BB's. So they can run cooler. They are are cheap enough, or you could go all in, and buy a Holmes Hobbies brushed motor also. HH Rebuildables or sealed can types. Cost more. But HH are best of Brushed that you will find. Don't bother with a Heat Sink on them. Use a Fan mount and Fan blowing directly at the motor. Best. Need a Temp Gun to monitor heat. 160F is pretty much the limit for most motors. With brushed motors, The magents are not Neodymium as found in BLX motors. So high extreme temps will weaken the motors magnets much faster. Brushed Motor becomes less efficient and you get extreme Brake Fade. They just wear out much quickly for this reason. If temps are not in check.
BLX or Brushed, they need regular maintenance. So if you move up to a BLX setup, don't think that Maintenance is optional. Cleanouts and lubing is still necessary or you will find yourself replacing that BLX motor often as well. And they are more costly.

BLX motors by contrast can last for years, if they are maintained properly, BB's being replaced at some point , well before they take out the armature.

 

[FireDrake001]

I think 4x4 is too much for the motors. I've burned a couple with 2wd. Well. 1. But I totally over ran it. Other just broke.

They come off a run decently hot so more pressure can't be good

The new motors. We will see. I'm oiling them a lot and using a compressor to blow them off after running. And don't run lots of packs in a row. Going well so far

We will see

Ps... 11 tooth... May do it too. 15 seems to be the sweet spot for speed with stock other gears. 14 may work. But 11 may be too much torque.

Well, Arrma's brushed motors are crap for one. You are lucky to have them last more then a single month of runnning.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

my 550 MEGA 4x4 has the 550 brushed motor. apparently they only last about 6-12 months.
Went brushless and its way better. Jennys RC has everything you might need at half the price.

I would verify the exact Pinion/Spur Ratio that you started out with, out the box, and drop you gearing down to that ratio. Moving up to Larger Pitch/ Modulus with gearing limits your gear ratio combinations. So it's all too easy to over gear because of this.
Brushed motors always need constant cleaning and lubing. The nature of the beast. Just part of owning a brushed setup. Brushed motors have always been this way since the advent/ heyday of RC back in the 1980's. Use an electrical contact spray to clean them out. And I advise lubing the motors Brass Oilite bushings and BB's if equipped very often. 90% of the heat a brushed motor makes is normally from the Brushes.
The rest is from the BB's/Brass bushings. Brushes as they wear quickly foul out the motors.
I like Brushed in my Crawlers and still run them in all my Vintage models. But I run Rebuildable Brushed motors. They come with True BB's. So they can run cooler. They are are cheap enough, or you could go all in, and buy a Holmes Hobbies brushed motor also. HH Rebuildables or sealed can types. Cost more. But HH are best of Brushed that you will find. don't bother with a Heat Sink on them. Use a Fan mount and Fan blowing directly at the motor. Best. NEed a Temp Gun to monitor heat. 160F is pretty much the limit for most motors. With brushed motors, Th emagents are not Neodymium as found in BLX motors. So high extreme temps will weaken the motors magnets much faster. Brushed Motor becomes less efficient and you get extreme Brake Fade. YThey just wear out quickly for this reason. If temps are not in check.

Wow. That's a lot of good info. I'll look into Holmes motors. Or the kraton.

I have a 35 turn in my crawler. Need time to build it better and do competitions.

I'm finding mine run ok. But then there is this one. Lol. Will post a picture. Still going. Took tons of hits and landings. Got a 16 tooth pinion on it for the moment. Just to try.

Mine don't really get to hot... figure if I can touch it it's not so bad.

So far I've had these current motors last at least a month. One is 2 or 3 months. Oil them and blow air on them a lot. Haven't done the electric cleaner yet.

 

[FireDrake001]

Im using the stock 550 motor and I recently switched to metal gears and added 4x4 upgrade to my Vorteks, and since then I've smoked two motors. The first motor after upgraded to the 57t .8 mod spur gear, I was using the 15t .8 mod pinion and I assumed the gear ratio was too high. Got the motor replaced and switched to an 11t .8 mod pinion and smoked the motor again. I've made sure to have a proper gear mesh, and I'm not sure what could be my problem. Is the motor just not capable of pushing the 4x4 and the metal gears?

I would just go brushless honestly. More power less issues

Wow. That's a lot of good info. I'll look into Holmes motors. Or the kraton.

I have a 35 turn in my crawler. Need time to build it better and do competitions.

I'm finding mine run ok. But then there is this one. Lol. Will post a picture. Still going. Took tons of hits and landings. Got a 16 tooth pinion on it for the moment. Just to try.

Mine don't really get to hot... figure if I can touch it it's not so bad.

So far I've had these current motors last at least a month. One is 2 or 3 months. Oil them and blow air on them a lot. Haven't done the electric cleaner yet.

View attachment 296213

Yeah. Totally look into a brushless setup. Another brushed option is actually the Titan 12t Traxxas brushed motors. They are one of the highest quality brushed motors you can get. They are made in taiwan and can last years compared to most other ones. I have one that used to be in my stampede 2wd for a year and still works in my neighbors Granite 4x4.

 

[SrC]

Sealed type stocker motors just wear out from The brushes being worn. Then toss them. Rebuildable motors you can replace the brushes and keep rolling.
Brushes can last about 15 runs depending. And that is not much at all. The faster RC's will alway have a BLX setup. Makes more sense.
Crawlers run great with Brushed motors. The Throttle feedback is better IMHO. There isn't any "Cogging" with Brushed motors. BLX there is. One Main drawback for running a BLX setup in a Crawler.
Crawlers, the gearing is much lower and more suitable for brushed as well. Runs way cooler, rarely getting hot.
Brushed motors burn out quickly when running 3s packs. FWIW. But many do at the sacrifice of the motor.
9.6 volts is typically the comfortable limit for a 550 can Brushed motor.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

Sealed type stocker motors just wear out from The brushes being worn. Then toss them. Rebuildable motors you can replace the brushes and keep rolling.
Brushes can last about 15 runs depending. And that is not much at all. The faster RC's will alway have a BLX setup. Makes more sense.
Crawlers run great with Brushed motors. The Throttle feedback is better IMHO. There isn't any "Cogging" with Brushed motors. BLX there is. One Main drawback for running a BLX setup in a Crawler.
Crawlers, the gearing is much lower and more suitable for brushed as well. Runs way cooler, rarely getting hot.
Brushed motors burn out quickly when running 3s packs. FWIW. But many do at the sacrifice of the motor.
9.6 volts is typically the comfortable limit for a 550 can Brushed motor.

I'm running nimh. More volts touch more speed. They start at 10.5 10.6 and drop. To be honest I like them more than lipos on brushed. Takes me back 20 years roo. Lol


Not sure my esc will turn on for 3s. Don't want to burn it. I've thought about it

 

[SrC]

Lipos have a more linear and sustained voltage out put. Hence more volts, heat and wear to a brushed motor over the whole bash duration.. With Nims, the initial high voltage tapers off quickly in the first several minutes running.
The manual will state if the ESC can run 3s packs.
I do 3s with some of my 1/10 cars here. But I watch my Temps and gearing. And I use Rebuildable BB raced (not Brass bushing raced ) brushed motors, always. I replace my brushes with Harder compound brush's. Handles higher Volts/amps better . Just that the commutator wears out faster. There is a trade off at some point.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

Lipos have a more linear and sustained voltage out put. Hence more volts, heat and wear to a brushed motor over the whole bash duration.. With Nims, the initial high voltage tapers off quickly in the first several minutes running.
The manual will state if the ESC can run 3s packs.
I do 3s with some of my 1/10 cars here. But I watch my Temps and gearing. And I use Rebuildable BB raced (not Brass bushing raced ) brushed motors, always. I replace my brushes with Harder compound brush's. Handles higher Volts/amps better . Just that the commutator wears out faster. There is a trade off at some point.

Yeah. I get it. Almost burned my house down with a lipo. My fault. But it was a wow moment. The esc in these is 40 amp. Says 2s lipo and 6 or 7 cell nimh

I actually had a nimh catch fire in the car after a hard landing. The non hump 7th cell broke off and poof. I paid 12 bucks for the battery on clearance. O well. I taped everything up better now and use velcro

I think I'm going to let things play out for a bit with what I got.

It's cheap enough for my taste. I think the injora motor I have in one works quite well. 16 bucks. Lasted over a month so far full speed and my kid never letting off the trigger.

Just looked at jennys. Holy moly. I could run these forever ar that price.

The whole brushless thing makes sense. But then it's upgrade everything in it...

Guess the stock gears will work for a bit. Need metal motor mount. 20 bucks on top of the 100 plus for esc and motor. Need new receiver as the one i got is built into the esc

I get it's never ending and gives and takes. Finding it out way more than ever now with all the options.

Or keep these as is for the kids and buy that kraton.

Always need more money to spend somewhere on these

 

[slick2500]

Yeah. I get it. Almost burned my house down with a lipo. My fault. But it was a wow moment. The esc in these is 40 amp. Says 2s lipo and 6 or 7 cell nimh

I actually had a nimh catch fire in the car after a hard landing. The non hump 7th cell broke off and poof. I paid 12 bucks for the battery on clearance. O well. I taped everything up better now and use velcro

I think I'm going to let things play out for a bit with what I got.

It's cheap enough for my taste. I think the injora motor I have in one works quite well. 16 bucks. Lasted over a month so far full speed and my kid never letting off the trigger.

Just looked at jennys. Holy moly. I could run these forever ar that price.

The whole brushless thing makes sense. But then it's upgrade everything in it...

Guess the stock gears will work for a bit. Need metal motor mount. 20 bucks on top of the 100 plus for esc and motor. Need new receiver as the one i got is built into the esc

I get it's never ending and gives and takes. Finding it out way more than ever now with all the options.

Or keep these as is for the kids and buy that kraton.

Always need more money to spend somewhere on these

And it is at this moment you realized it would have been cheaper to just start with the brushless model in the first place.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

And it is at this moment you realized it would have been cheaper to just start with the brushless model in the first place.

Na. Still loving them just the way they are

I'm learning to drive again and these fit the bill. I'll most likely upgrade to a kraton one day And leave these for the kids.

Learn better battery care too. One wrong setting and boom

 

[SrC]

Yeah Brushed motors are so very cheap these days. Just realize running and all, especially sealed unrebuildable types need replacing often.
Back in the day when BLX wasn't even a thing, Brushed motors were setting me back $75.$100. back then at the Track.
Nowadays they are so cheap, they can serve a good econmical purpose for some RC platforms.
The lighter the rig in hand the better Brushed motors are. And I would never put a brushed motor in any 4x4. Only best for 2WD.
Enjoy.

And it is at this moment you realized it would have been cheaper to just start with the brushless model in the first place.

+1
I just didn't want to be that guy and say it, like I have 100 times before.
If you want to stay brushed, just have spares in your tool box at the ready. Especially the sealed ones. They are truly disposable consumable parts. Don't last long. Old technology. Even any decent Power tools these days, all went to BLX motors in them.
With my Crawlers however, brushed are still my favorite and last long. I don't mind trashing them in the mud, snow and water and submerging them in streams. Cheap enough to replace.
I never treat any of my BLX rigs like that however.

 

[Vortex 2wd]

Yeah Brushed motors are so very cheap these days. Just realize running and all, especially sealed unrebuildable types need replacing often.
Back in the day when BLX wasn't even a thing, Brushed motors were setting me back $75.$100. back then at the Track.
Nowadays they are so cheap, they can serve a good econmical purpose for some RC platforms.
The lighter the rig in hand the better Brushed motors are. And I would never put a brushed motor in any 4x4. Only best for 2WD.
Enjoy.

+1
I just didn't want to be that guy and say it, like I have 100 times before.
If you want to stay brushed, just have spares in your tool box at the

Already have one ready to pop on with pinion lock tighted down.

 

[SrC]

You know the drill...
I bet there will be a BLX rig in your future at some point. Hopefully a 6s Arrma platform.
Enjoy.