large RC ESCs

[cowfish_29]

I have not so much money. A few years ago i tried 1/10th scale and it was fun but i had no where to drive. Now that i moved, i have a whole rural island to zip around at, and i really wanna get back into it. I have been looking at HPI RS4 rally cars. They look like lots o fun and they got that sweeett subaru body. 4wd too, looks great. The problem is that i want an ESC that is somewhat small, can take down to 15 turn motors, and has a reverse, under $60 or so. Is there such an item?

[SlowbutCourious]

have u checked tower hobbies

[cowfish_29]

yes, many MANY times. They don't have much in that direction.

[crazydave]

Your problem is reversable speed controls are neither small nor cheap.

I'd reccomend the Novak Rooster. It's $70 @ Tower, handles down to 15 turns, and about as small as you can get in an inexpensive reversible ESC. If you don't want to spend that much, need something smaller (this should fit snugly in the HPI Rally. I've seen them used in the RS4 sedans) or if you intend to race competively (reverse is not allowed in organized competition, that's why you don't see many of them), I'd suggest the Novak ExplorerII. $50, also handles 15-turns, and has the bonus of having a hookup for a brakelight set. That would be kind of a cool feature on a rally car.

I used Novak, and Tekin products, and I had reliabilty issues with a Tekin Rebel. It is their cheapest reversing ESC, and unlike their more expensive ones it uses inexpensive foreign labor. Also the heatsink is glued on, which is also a concern regarding reliabilty. That speed control died in it's first good crash.

Even the inexpensive Novak speed controls are made in the USA, and have removeable heatsinks. I used a Novak Racer EX in many different cars for several years, running 10-13 turn motors, and never had any issues with that speed control.

[cowfish_29]

wow! thank you! Novak seems like the way to go. I am not sure i really need reverse but its nice when your just driving around. I might have to go with the explorerII. And brakelights! Man i gotta get myself a job again. Life is just a lot less fun without any play money

[mpbiv]

Originally posted by crazydave
Your problem is reversable speed controls are neither small nor cheap.

I'd reccomend the Novak Rooster. It's $70 @ Tower, handles down to 15 turns, and about as small as you can get in an inexpensive reversible ESC. If you don't want to spend that much, need something smaller (this should fit snugly in the HPI Rally. I've seen them used in the RS4 sedans) or if you intend to race competively (reverse is not allowed in organized competition, that's why you don't see many of them), I'd suggest the Novak ExplorerII. $50, also handles 15-turns, and has the bonus of having a hookup for a brakelight set. That would be kind of a cool feature on a rally car.

I used Novak, and Tekin products, and I had reliabilty issues with a Tekin Rebel. It is their cheapest reversing ESC, and unlike their more expensive ones it uses inexpensive foreign labor. Also the heatsink is glued on, which is also a concern regarding reliabilty. That speed control died in it's first good crash.

Exactly what he said. Reversible's are usually the largest (partially because they have extra MOSFET's for reverse). I think the only ones that are relatively small would be something like the LRP Quantum Reversibles, but these aren't exactly cheap either.

Personally I don't really like the orange and purple stuff novak sells but its definitely reliable. My best friend has a original Rooster and it works flawlessly. He also has a Tekin Rebel which works flawlessly.

I have a Tekin Rebel right now in my RS4 and I cannot complain. I had a issue with it once where it wouldn't program properly and went full throttle all the sudden. Sent it back to Tekin and had it warranty repaired even though my warranty had expired a few weeks earlier. Since then its been golden, running for at least the last 4-5 years, two different radio systems, and several mode changes (disabled reverse for 2spd) without any problems.

I guess with Tekin its hit or miss. However I don't believe Tekin is even in business anymore, their site is down, and most of the major vendors that carried there stuff no longer do. So that kind of rules them out.

So I too will suggest going with Novak. The need for reverse will almost solely depend on you driving abilities and style. Most people use it to back out of hard situations, which might be useful if you are going to do some mild offroad with an RS4 rally.

[cowfish_29]

yes, i won't be racing any organized events, mostly mountain bike trails and such. Thanks for all of your help everyone!