[NSRCA-discussion] ESC Motor Combo

[Scott McHarg]

Dave,

Thank you for your input.   I knew you would have some good insight into
Castle.  I have always flown them since I got back in.  I have fixed the
issue by updating the firmware to the latest stable version first, then the
latest BETA version published two days ago.  The ESC was on fixed endpoints
and I reset the transmitter endpoints per Castle's help file.   The other
thing I did was set PWM to 8 kHz per Hacker's website vs. Outrunner.

I know better than to change more than one thing at a time but I did.   I'm
not sure what fixed it but everything is working as it should now.
Incredible power and a fairly cool motor and ESC even down here in Texas.

Thanks again,
Scott
On Jul 30, 2014 9:41 PM, "Dave Lockhart via NSRCA-discussion" <
nsrca-discussion at lists.nsrca.org> wrote:

> I don’t think any ESC manufacturer recommends auto calibrate for
> performance applications.
>
>
>
> Castle instructions advise to plug in at HALF throttle (generally 1.5ms),
> then reduce to idle to arm.  In auto calibrate mode, the low and high
> values are set at default values….there is no guessing of any kind.  To
> recall, the defaults are 1.35ms for “low” and 1.7ms for “high”.  The ESC
> will not arm until it sees a value less than 1.35ms, and if it sees a value
> less than 1.35ms, it resets the “low” to match the lower value.  Most
> radios with default endpoint/ATV values are in the range of 1.2ms low and
> 1.8ms high.  After the ESC is armed, it “sees” the throttle range from the
> lowest value (likely 1.2ms) to the default high of 1.7ms.  Going to full
> throttle after the ESC arms will allow the ESC to reset the high value to
> something greater than 1.7ms.
>
>
>
> Castle and many other ESC brands have default settings that allow the
> broadest range of users to use the ESC without having to do any
> programming.  Having spent a fair bit of time with Patrick del Castillo and
> a number of the Castle engineers, they would be quite amused to hear Castle
> is designed for the sport fliers.  Patrick has always had the goal of
> making ESCs that would provide the best performance with the best
> motors….he despises any change in code to accommodate “sport” motors if
> there is a chance of losing any performance on the best motors.
>
>
>
> Regards,
>
>
> Dave
>
>
>
> *From:* NSRCA-discussion [mailto:nsrca-discussion-bounces at lists.nsrca.org]
> *On Behalf Of *Peter Vogel via NSRCA-discussion
> *Sent:* Wednesday, July 30, 2014 4:11 PM
> *To:* Scott McHarg; General pattern discussion
> *Subject:* Re: [NSRCA-discussion] ESC Motor Combo
>
>
>
> Sounds like a Castle ESC in "Auto" endpoint mode.  The correct way to
> handle one of those is to arm at FULL throttle and then drop to zero
> throttle, that way the ESC knows the high + low end points.  If you arm at
> low then it "guesses" at the top end point in the first few seconds after
> it gets a signal above zero, hence a slow advance of the throttle confuses
> it.  (Castles are designed for sport fliers who think a takeoff is full
> throttle immediately).
>
>
>
> Personally, I *hate* the idea of arming a system at full throttle, so with
> a castle ESC (I think I'm down to 1 of those in my hangar at this point) I
> set up fixed end points right away.
>
>
>
> Peter+
>
>
>
> On Wed, Jul 30, 2014 at 1:03 PM, Scott McHarg via NSRCA-discussion <
> nsrca-discussion at lists.nsrca.org> wrote:
>
> Hi guys,
>
>
>
> I need a little help.  My buddy has just recently bought a Mythos 125 and
> has gotten frustrated with it.  The setup is the HACKER A60-7XS V2
> <http://www.f3aunlimited.com/catalog/product/view/id/661/s/hacker-a60-7xs-v2/category/53/> and
> a Castle HV85 ESC.  He recently went to this motor so that he could fly 8S
> packs which he is currently running.
>
>
>
> Recently, he brought the plane over to the house and wanted me to have a
> look.  Before I dive into it (which I haven't yet) by looking at the
> logging on the ESC, etc., is there anything wrong with this combination?
>  I've always flown Castle ESCs myself but I remember reading on here not
> too long ago about how the Q80 and the Castle controller don't really get
> along.  I mainly want to make sure that this doesn't apply to this
> combination as well.
>
>
>
> I know there are a ton of variables and again, I haven't begun to dig into
> it.  Essentially, if you start at idle and bring the throttle up slowly as
> if you were in the air flying transitioning from a down line to horizontal,
> the RPMs only increase slightly even to full throttle.  Two takeoffs were
> aborted due to this.  If you jam the throttle from idle to full throttle,
> the motor comes alive and performance is spectacular and it will act fine
> with smooth transitions for a period of time if not the rest of the flight.
>
>
>
> Just mainly making sure there are no specific hangups with this combo that
> y'all can think of.
>
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Scott
>
>
>
>
>
> *Scott A. McHarg*
>
> VSCL / CANVASS U.A.V. Pilot Texas A&M University
>
> PPL - ASEL
>
>
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>
>
>
>
>
> --
>
> Director, Fixed Wing Flight Training
>
> Santa Clara County Model Aircraft Skypark
>
>
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