Kraton New Castle Creations Cobra 8 Combo vs Hobbywing G2 Max6 Combo

[332_RC]

I use the same combo and also a 20T pinion. I have punch control set to 40%, which would be equivalent to setting punch at 6 out of 10 in the Hobbywing.

Any less punch control (i.e. higher punch) and the car just flips on its back at any speed when I hit full throttle.

You have the Max6 G2? Do you use the app with your setup to adjust parameters?

I started with an 18T with Backflip 6s, but the temps were so low I could go up to the 20T pinion without much of a temp penalty. I tried on purpose to see how high the temps got with the 20T, but I could only get temps up to 140F after 15 minutes of full throttle runs.

Great info! I got a great start point without worry of temps. I bet your K6 will fly!

 

[dure16]

You have the Max6 G2? Do you use the app with your setup to adjust parameters?

No, I have the MMX8S 1717 1650kv.

 

[trexdd]

My K6S is a 18T pinion with punch set to one below max. That’s with the Max6 G2 with the 4990 can 1650 kv.

 

[Dan B.]

I was part of Cobra 8 testing and have a few months behind the wheel with it. I’d consider it a refresh of the Monster X with maybe a little more power and some new features. It’s a solid ESC but I wouldn’t expect a big power increase going from stock to Cobra 8 / 2200kv.

The Kraton really wakes up with a bigger motor. I run the Monster X 8S / 1717 1650kv and it has been solid. Fast, runs cool, and I like the data logging. I’m sure the Max6 G2 performs similarly.

If you’re looking for a little more power without going extreme, check out the Monster X 8S /1520 combo or a Max 6 / 4092 piecemeal combo.


You sure about that? Doesn’t sound right to me. Maybe you’re thinking of just the 1512 motor targeted for buggy racing?

Yes, all of the combos say the same on the spec sheet, that the ESC is capable of 6s, but with supplied motor is 4s only. Goes for all three of their combos, even the 1800kv one. I was surprised that you couldn’t even run 6s going all the way down to an 1800kv motor. I wouldn’t buy one for that reason alone, but others may feel differently. Thats way too expensive for a downgrade in performance over the stock RTR system, and to be honest I can’t even understand why Castle would build something like this and market it at that price point as an 1/8th scale system while even low-budget RTR’s are running 6s systems already. Good luck with this one, Castle…

EDIT: I just saw this further down the spec sheet, also!

Application Guidelines:

With Included motor: Ideal for 1:8 scale buggies, truggies, on-road vehicles and 1:10 scale monster trucks up to 9lbs and up to 4s LiPo.

Seriously? I’m scratching my head trying to figure out exactly who might buy this thing…

 

[dure16]

Yes, all of the combos say the same on the spec sheet, that the ESC is capable of 6s, but with supplied motor is 4s only. Goes for all three of their combos, even the 1800kv one. I was surprised that you couldn’t even run 6s going all the way down to an 1800kv motor. I wouldn’t buy one for that reason alone, but others may feel differently. Thats way too expensive for a downgrade in performance over the stock RTR system, and to be honest I can’t even understand why Castle would build something like this and market it at that price point as an 1/8th scale system while even low-budget RTR’s are running 6s systems already. Good luck with this one, Castle…
View attachment 350395

Yeah the 1512 motors have always been rated for 4S. Not sure why Castle, Tekin, Maclan, etc. design their 1/8 buggy size motors for a max of 4S.

That 1515 2200kv is rated for 6S though, according to the spec sheet.

 

[cancelthefuture]

Yeah the 1512 motors have always been rated for 4S. Not sure why Castle, Tekin, Maclan, etc. design their 1/8 buggy size motors for a max of 4S.

That 1515 2200kv is rated for 6S though, according to the spec sheet.

Pretty sure 1/8 race buggy only runs 4s in competition. Castle has always been really conservative with their application recommendations though. 6s on a 1515 2200kv is really not that unusual, I bet they just don't wanna warranty them when they overheat.

 

[Panther6834]

A few things to know:

1) In most cases (not all, but most), Castle ESCs can handle greater amperage than their HW counterparts. This is why you will find (almost) all speed runners using Castle ESCs, and (almost) never using HW ESCs.

2) If you're military (current or former), Castle offers a 15% discount. HW doesn't.

3) If you work in the education field, Castle offers a 25% discount. Again, HW doesn't.

 

[Matt5176]

Hello all, I've been thinking about upgrading the motor/esc on my Kraton 6s v5. I was going to go with the Hobbywing G2 Max6 w/ 4990 1650kv motor, but a lot of the videos I've watched seems like that almost too much power, if that's such a thing. Now I'm kind of thinking the new Castle Creation Cobra 8 w/ 1515 2200kv motor. I know with the Cobra 8 being new there's not a lot of, "drive time with it", but it seems like it would have more controllable power. I know pinion/spur size plays a big roll in everything, but that's cheap and easy to adjust. The Castle Creations is more expensive, but money really isn't an object for me. I'm certainly open to suggestions on other motor/esc combos too.

I run a max 5 g2 in mine

 

[cancelthefuture]

A few things to know:

1) In most cases (not all, but most), Castle ESCs can handle greater amperage than their HW counterparts. This is why you will find (almost) all speed runners using Castle ESCs, and (almost) never using HW ESCs.

2) If you're military (current or former), Castle offers a 15% discount. HW doesn't.

3) If you work in the education field, Castle offers a 25% discount. Again, HW doesn't.

I'm really curious how the new gen of hobbywing stacks up now. Yesterday on my Max6 I hit 380 amps on 8s. My understanding is that's pretty close to the limit of MMX8s as well. The discounts are nice for Castle but the sticker price difference sort of nullifies that. MMX8s combo with 1717 is sticker 380 USD versus Max6 4990 sticker 250. Additionally Max6 comes with the bluetooth built in which is another 40 dollars from Castle even with the coupon for B Link. Don't get me wrong, the Castle ESCs are willing to go a lot further when it comes to pushing the absolute limits, but for 90% of use cases the limits hobbywing has in place will not be hit by normal hobbyists.

 

[Dan B.]

I’ve almost always run HW systems on my bashers. This season will be the first time I’ve run Castle. I put an XLX2 in my Lim and have an MMX8S for another upcoming build. I have a lot to learn.

 

[cancelthefuture]

I’ve almost always run HW systems on my bashers. This season will be the first time I’ve run Castle. I put an XLX2 in my Lim and have an MMX8S for another upcoming build. I have a lot to learn.

I have MMX8s in my Infraction cuz Max6 g2 wasn't out yet and I found MMX8s on a deal on amazon for 285, I really like it a lot but I ditched stock fan immediately and don't use the BEC. I just run a receiver pack so I don't have any brown out risk with a savox, brake servo, and multiple fans running off the receiver.

 

[dure16]

I have MMX8s in my Infraction cuz Max6 g2 wasn't out yet and I found MMX8s on a deal on amazon for 285, I really like it a lot but I ditched stock fan immediately and don't use the BEC. I just run a receiver pack so I don't have any brown out risk with a savox, brake servo, and multiple fans running off the receiver.

That’s probably the smart way to do it. I’m not smart, so I run a 60kg servo, brake servo, and three 4028 fans off the MMX8S BEC. It’s been working perfectly that way for a long time so I haven’t felt the need to change anything. Great basher.

 

[Dan B.]

I have MMX8s in my Infraction cuz Max6 g2 wasn't out yet and I found MMX8s on a deal on amazon for 285, I really like it a lot but I ditched stock fan immediately and don't use the BEC. I just run a receiver pack so I don't have any brown out risk with a savox, brake servo, and multiple fans running off the receiver.

I’m toying with ideas right now for powering the ESC. I’ll probably end up running the servo on a dedicated pack and letting the BEC on the ESC handle the fans.

 

[cancelthefuture]

That’s probably the smart way to do it. I’m not smart, so I run a 60kg servo, brake servo, and three 4028 fans off the MMX8S BEC. It’s been working perfectly that way for a long time so I haven’t felt the need to change anything. Great basher.

If it works it works, I've just seen the difference between a servo on the Arrma 6s ESC BEC versus a dedicated BEC or RX Pack and I'm not so sure 8 amp peak is enough when the Savox alone stalls at 7 amps so I never even gave it a shot. When I upgraded servo on my stock infraction electronics I was browning out immediately when turning while hitting the hand brake.

 

[dure16]

and have an MMX8S for another upcoming build.

Please tell me that’s going in the Lasernut!

 

[Dan B.]

Please tell me that’s going in the Lasernut!

You built that Lasernut so well it’s hard to improve on it! The stock electronics are still in it and doing fine. Even the servo! I have a track in the woods and that thing rips. It handles better than pretty much anything I’ve ever run out there. It’ll smoke any other rig I have on that course.

 

[Blacksunshine]

Well, after a lot of back and forth, everyone's help here and some YouTube videos, I ordered the Castle Creations MMX8s with the 1717 1650kv motor through Tower Hobbies. After all the discounts it really wasn't bad price wise. One more question, is the B-link worth getting or should I just stick with the free Castle link USB?

 

[dure16]

Well, after a lot of back and forth, everyone's help here and some YouTube videos, I ordered the Castle Creations MMX8s with the 1717 1650kv motor through Tower Hobbies. After all the discounts it really wasn't bad price wise. One more question, is the B-link worth getting or should I just stick with the free Castle link USB?

I find myself never using the b-link because the USB link is a much better experience.

 

[morrjr71]

Well, after a lot of back and forth, everyone's help here and some YouTube videos, I ordered the Castle Creations MMX8s with the 1717 1650kv motor through Tower Hobbies. After all the discounts it really wasn't bad price wise. One more question, is the B-link worth getting or should I just stick with the free Castle link USB?

I have the USB link, and I have the B-Link in one of my two Castle-equipped vehicles. The cost to put a B-link into my other Castle-equipped vehicle is too much for my liking, especially since I don't change settings much after getting things the way I like them initially. IIRC, there are a few settings that can't be done with the B-Link, so you need the USB link anyway.

I run the MMX 8s and 1717 1650kv system in my Kraton 6s. It's a beast on 6s, so I occasionally run it on 4s. IIRC, that's the vehicle I have the B-Link in.

 

[LibertyMKiii]

I tested the Max6 G2 combo (4990 motor) yesterday. I have to say it is really nice to pull the rig up beside you and change the punch settings from the app without needing to remove the body. Also checking motor temp, ESC temp, and battery voltage before continuing your bash.

I could absolutely do these things manually with a cell checker and IR temp gun but this convenience is something I can certainly get used to!

So far I have zero second thoughts about running a Castle system in a basher over this Max6 combo.
Speed running is still all XLX2 for me.