I was running my sphere comp in 13.5 last night, and it AND my best 13.5 motor went up in flames. The speedo literally was on fire, and the windings on the motor were all burned up. Any thoughts on what went 1st? The car was running as well as it ever has run before it torched off.

we had one go up in flames runnin w/ a 17.5 , melted the speedo and flames were risin . We all thought it was due to over gearing :confused:

It could have been the motor bearings. I had a freind that his seezed up and over heated and took out his motor and GTB. I take mine out every 2 race days and clean and oil them I also drilled a small hole in the back of the motor just to oil the rear bearing.

It was the speedo. It has happened to many others, myself included. Mine lasted 30 seconds. Same deal as yours flames and everything. Actually gave me a pretty good burn on my thumb.

On the bright side they will replace it no questions asked, which also says something about the prevalence of the problem. I promptly sold the replacement. I won't purchase products from a company that sells seriously defective and dangerous items.

Now lets bring on the "mine works fine, so you must have hooked yours up wrong" posts. :rolleyes:

I have had one motor thermal because of a bad bearing, but the bearings in this motor (after the carnage) are still like new. The previous run last night, the car was on it's usual pace, and the motor came off at 115 degrees. I'm thinking like Pat...... POS out of the box.

that's awsome! got pics?

I just gave mine right to Heath to send back, so no pics. Unfortunately it took out the motor, battery, body and T-bar (I had the speedo on the right side) as well.

Think of a melted pile of blue plastic partially charred black and it about covers the look.

You must have hooked it up wrong. LOL. No, that sucks really. But seeing flames is kinda cool, like a real car blowing up. As long as it's not mine. :p

Ha I should have figured a way to direct the thrust out of the back of the car. Maybe I could have had an afterburner effect!

that's awsome! got pics?

Ziggy was at the track and took a pic and sent it to his buddy at Associated.

:waveIt was the speedo. It has happened to many others, myself included. Mine lasted 30 seconds. Same deal as yours flames and everything. Actually gave me a pretty good burn on my thumb.

On the bright side they will replace it no questions asked, which also says something about the prevalence of the problem. I promptly sold the replacement. I won't purchase products from a company that sells seriously defective and dangerous items.

Now lets bring on the "mine works fine, so you must have hooked your up wrong" posts. :rolleyes:
:wave::wave::thumbsup: YOU SAID IT I DID'NT!!!!!

The red wire goes the positive terminal of the battery and the black goes to the negative! lol

Oh crap both my wires are black!

Now lets bring on the "mine works fine, so you must have hooked your up wrong" posts. :rolleyes:


Mine works fine :D -- and it's hooked up to 8.4 volts of LiPo power !

Mine works fine :D -- and it's hooked up to 8.4 volts of LiPo power !

Good thing those flamethrowers have built in current protection. I wouldn't want to see what happens to one of them when a LRP decides to go into meltdown and drops a short across one without it.

At least it will stay in the car and not fire a projectile into somebody :-)

At least it will stay in the car and not fire a projectile into somebody :-)

I wouldn't know I've never had a NiMH explode. You must be using them wrong :p

LOL.. not me... I just duck when I hear that huge BANG .

I heard a huge bang last weekend, then I realized J body slammed his car! lol.

LOL.. yeah ... we went over to see the explosion when we heard that ...

there junk,had 4 of them blow in one day at our local track,mine was a day old,got over
300 degrees,burnt my fingers trying to turn it off good thing it did'nt get the motor too,
lrp replaced them but i'm still having trouble with it every now then it just shuts off,buy
a novak never had aproblem with mine,it does'nt even get warm...

I don't get it I've got 3 of them and have never had a problem with any of mine exept I took one apart to clean it and messed it up when I put it back together. I sent it back and they sent me an upgraded 2007. you would think I would have gotten a bad one if everybody was having problems. I wish all that luck would turn to the lotto. LOL

It's probably only a few percent at most that have problems. Odds are if you have 3 they'll all be fine. Or it's only specific batches that they've had problems on, who knows.

I had one bad one. Sent it in, argued with them about the warranty, they fixed it for free sent it back and it has worked fine since November.

It was the speedo. It has happened to many others, myself included. Mine lasted 30 seconds. Same deal as yours flames and everything. Actually gave me a pretty good burn on my thumb.

On the bright side they will replace it no questions asked, which also says something about the prevalence of the problem. I promptly sold the replacement. I won't purchase products from a company that sells seriously defective and dangerous items.

Now lets bring on the "mine works fine, so you must have hooked yours up wrong" posts. :rolleyes:

I'm curious to what do you use for a Brushless speedo now if not an LRP and not one that will go up in flames? Is anyone having luck with anything outside of Novak or LRP?

We have a full line of BL motors now, but not speedos...trying to get up to speed on what other racers are using...

Here's a pic of a Novak from the Open Wheel champs:
file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/VALUED%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-2.jpg

It was the speedo. It has happened to many others, myself included. Mine lasted 30 seconds. Same deal as yours flames and everything. Actually gave me a pretty good burn on my thumb.

On the bright side they will replace it no questions asked, which also says something about the prevalence of the problem. I promptly sold the replacement. I won't purchase products from a company that sells seriously defective and dangerous items.

Now lets bring on the "mine works fine, so you must have hooked yours up wrong" posts. :rolleyes:

I'm curious to what do you use for a Brushless speedo now if not an LRP and not one that will go up in flames? Is anyone having luck with anything outside of Novak or LRP?

We have a full line of BL motors now, but not speedos...trying to get up to speed on what other racers are using...

Here's a pic of a Novak from the Open Wheel champs:

"mine works fine, so you must have hooked yours up wrong"

I'm curious to what do you use for a Brushless speedo now if not an LRP and not one that will go up in flames? Is anyone having luck with anything outside of Novak or LRP?

We have a full line of BL motors now, but not speedos...trying to get up to speed on what other racers are using...

Here's a pic of a Novak from the Open Wheel champs:
file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/VALUED%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-2.jpg

I've been using Novak. What are the specifics around the picture? I have seen Novaks go up in flames as well, but not new out of the package. When something goes bad after 3 months of running and crashing the car then so be it, but new out of the package is a different story. (and before anyone brings it up, having a loose wire, a bad switch or even a completely shot speedo out of the package is very different than something that starts on fire burns you and ruins a bunch of other equipment)

I guess we can all argue about this, but the original poster simply asked what happened. Similar thing has happened to a decent number of people. Trying to prove that a different brand also has problems is irrelevant and is not a valid argument.

I guess it could happen to anyone then.

My LRP Comp '07 works great! Got the first GTB also. No problems with either one in the past year. :thumbsup:

I've been using Novak. What are the specifics around the picture? I have seen Novaks go up in flames as well, but not new out of the package. When something goes bad after 3 months of running and crashing the car then so be it, but new out of the package is a different story. (and before anyone brings it up, having a loose wire, a bad switch or even a completely shot speedo out of the package is very different than something that starts on fire burns you and ruins a bunch of other equipment)

I guess we can all argue about this, but the original poster simply asked what happened. Similar thing has happened to a decent number of people. Trying to prove that a different brand also has problems is irrelevant and is not a valid argument.

Not sure why you took my post that way, (negatively) as it wasn't my intention. I just reposted a pic of another speedo in flames due to the title of the thread. I've heard of more fires in the past 2 years, (speedos, cell explosions, lipo fires, etc;) than I have in the previous 20, in all honesty.

My post wasn't trying to prove one better than another - No argument here, just asked what others like you were using in brushless. I'm not pro/con for either brand, not sponsored by either company- really unbiased- just looking for info. If you guys have a different brand figured out, I wanted to know- that's all. Since we have released our brushless motor line, but don't offer a speedo, I am interested in the pros and cons of all manufacturers-not from their sales staff, but from the consumers.

I don't agree or understand where you feel it is acceptable to have a speedo catch fire in any situation, whether it is new out of the box or 3 months old...I personally would take issue with either scenario. Different strokes, as they say-

Hell, this isn't anything new due to brushless either...anyone remember Zubak's Tekin fire at Sandhills back around '99-2000? Big Man had a little cookout right in 1 and 2...Talbot and I blamed the juice... heh heh :thumbsup:

I hope this isn't our solution to burnt brushes!

Oh, about the picture: It was Billy Fisher's EDM where his Novak caught fire in the 2 minute dash for Cash. Not sure if the fire was self-inflicted or not.

I have seen Novaks go up in flames as well, but not new out of the package.

Pat,

Last season, we saw at least 3 Novak GTB's go up in smoke, and flames would have followed if they did not get the wires off the battery as quick as they did. All 3 of these were Brand New - First time Hooked up.

They were Spread Spectrum w/ LIPO CUT OFF units...

Charlie @ NOVAK had said then that they found an issue (hopefully taken care of now) that caused them to go quickly...from what I remember he had said they discovered the problem at the Off-Road Nat's last year.

I do know ALL 3 ESC's were taken care of promptly w/o question. (And on 2 of the occasions - I lent one of MY Non-LIPO/ Non-Spread Spectrum GTBs out to be used for the day in their place...and on both occasions - MY OLD versions WON on that day (That's the closest I get to winning a RACE - by loaning OUT equipment....LOL)

Ah it goes both ways then. I hadn't heard of those. I'm pretty disappointed with all our equipment lately then. :(

I don't agree or understand where you feel it is acceptable to have a speedo catch fire in any situation, whether it is new out of the box or 3 months old...I personally would take issue with either scenario. Different strokes, as they say-


Not my position at all. Remember the part where I said "crashed".

I'm actually one of the few who cares that a lot of the crap we buy is dangerous. I can't think of any other consumer good where this level of quality would fly. Imagine buying a DVD player bringing it home and having it catch fire! Totally unheard of and then on top of it all, these companies don't recall this stuff. Unreal.

Do you guys think there are more fires in brushless then in brushed looking in the past.

I think so! The ESC's are so high tech these days that it doesn't seem to take much to set'em off. Brushed ESC's seemed to roll over and just die. Now they go out in a Blaze of Glory!!! :thumbsup:

I gues the moral of tis story is if your wires wrap around your left rear tire you are going to draw too much current that everything will blow up ..... Sorry for your loss PANCARTOM >... Just send it back and give them Zigs name that will tkae care of it ..

ROCKET

My sphere works fine,but it's in my toolbox,and hasn't been in a car since August '07.:rolleyes:

Here's A Good One For You Guys.i Am Currently Running A Novak 17.5 With A Lrp Sphere Tc Speedo. In My Maverick 05 Oval Car.while Running Carpet This Winter At Stockton And Norcal I Ran In To A Shutdown Of My Speedo Several Times After Tow Laps The First Time.2 Minutes Into A Race The Second Time,after One Warm Up Lap The Third Time.run Spectrum Receivers.changed Out The Receiver,had Speedo Checked For Set Up By Qualified Pros Rechecked The Motor.wires And Gearing.motor Never Reacjed Above 99 Degrees Before Total Shutdown.and A Reset Of The Power Switch And The Car Ran Fine For The Rest Of The Race.i Changed Out Motors Which I Borrowed And Had No Problem For That Race.sent The Motor Back To Novak Since It Was New And Was Told By Them,nothing Was Wrong With The Motor But They Didn't Send Me Back That Motor Instead Sent Me A Reconditioned Motor.wonder Why?
Problem Now Is Replacement Motor Has Old Style Soldering Tabs And The 12 Guage Wire On The Speedo Is Very Hard To Affix To The Tabs.they Seem To Be Set Up For 14 Guage Wire.have Any Of You Put 14 Guage Wire On Your Lrp Speedos? I Know This Would Cause More Heat Due To Higher Resistance.just In Case You Ask.i Was Running 4 Cell 4200 Nmh Pack And Yes The Lipo Setting On The Control Was Shut Down.running 100 Spur 42 Pinion.waiting For The Tall Pinions To Come Into My Local Hobby Shop.the Fast Guys Were Running 104 Spur 52 Pinions.any Suggestions Would Be Appreciated.

Old style solder tabs? There have only been two styles on the Novak motors. Originally they came with a through hole PCB that you soldered to, then they switched to the metal tabs. The 17.5 was never made with the through hole style, so as far as I know there has only been one style of solder tab on the 17.5 motors. Nobody seems to have trouble soldering 12 awg to it.

Other than that I really can't pick out what you are asking in that post, it is a bit tough to read.

...it's so hard to read when people write a whole story like one sentence...

Here's A Good One For You Guys.i Am Currently Running A Novak 17.5 With A Lrp Sphere Tc Speedo In My Maverick 05 Oval Car.

while Running Carpet This Winter At Stockton And Norcal I Ran In To A Shutdown Of My Speedo Several Times After Tow Laps

The First Time.2 Minutes Into A Race The Second Time,after One Warm Up Lap The Third Time.

run Spectrum Receivers.changed Out The Receiver,had Speedo Checked For Set Up By Qualified Pros Rechecked The Motor.wires And Gearing.motor Never Reacjed Above 99 Degrees Before Total Shutdown.

and A Reset Of The Power Switch And The Car Ran Fine For The Rest Of The Race.

i Changed Out Motors Which I Borrowed And Had No Problem For That Race.sent The Motor Back To Novak Since It Was New And Was Told By Them,nothing Was Wrong With The Motor But They Didn't Send Me Back That Motor Instead Sent Me A Reconditioned Motor.wonder Why?

Problem Now Is Replacement Motor Has Old Style Soldering Tabs And The 12 Guage Wire On The Speedo Is Very Hard To Affix To The Tabs.they Seem To Be Set Up For 14 Guage Wire.

have Any Of You Put 14 Guage Wire On Your Lrp Speedos?

I Know This Would Cause More Heat Due To Higher Resistance.

just In Case You Ask.i Was Running 4 Cell 4200 Nmh Pack And Yes The Lipo Setting On The Control Was Shut Down.running 100 Spur 42 Pinion.

waiting For The Tall Pinions To Come Into My Local Hobby Shop.the Fast Guys Were Running 104 Spur 52 Pinions.any Suggestions Would Be Appreciated.

So many issues - lol

1st - on the shut down... although you said the LIPO Cut-Off was turned off, I'm wondering if it was still "ON". I had this issue on my LRP Sphere Comp 3 or 4 times now. I had thought it was off - and it was ON.

2nd - On the solder tabs on the motor. You said it was a 17.5. Novak DIDN'T produce a 17.5 with the OLD style solder tabs (If it's the board type w/ holes) you may want to contact NOVAK and see if they sent you the WRONG replacement motor.

3rd - On the wire gauge. A lot of guys go upto the 12ga wire, myself I am still running the original wires on all of my GTB and LRP ESC's. I Run 10.5, 17.5 and 21.5 and have NO Shut Down or Over Heating issues.

Make sure the 'sensor harness' is plugged in ALL THE WAY from the motor the the ESC. I've had this cause issues on the LRP a couple times (mine seems to plug in a little snug compared to my GTB's)

I have 2 LRP ESC's and 3 GTBs *the original non-lipo version of the GTB's. I've had No issues or problems with ANY of these....other than the LRP is a PAIN to set up compared to the GTB.

I've seen the older Sphere's do that on occasion. Just "shutdown" for no reason, like a LiPo cutoff is engaged (which usually like Joe said, it is) Is it shutting the whole car down, or just motor cutting out? Seen bigger motors shut down the system (receiver pack or stutter stopper fixes that)

Does anyone know what the temp threshold is for the thermal shutdown? This past weekend at the velodrome, I had 2 seperate shutdown issues. One was a lipo/xbr/10.5 combo that quit at the end of the run. When I checked the temps, the motor was 120, and the speedo was 99.

The second was a lipo/gtb(with fan)/17.5 combo that quit again at the end of the run. Temps were both below 100 on this one.

I wonder if these motors can cool off so quick as to give you an eronious reading by the time you check them. Also, neither battery took more than 2200 mah when charged. I wouldn't think that would take you deep enough into the discharge curve to trip the lipo failsafe, so I figure it has to be heat related.

Any ideas would be appreciated.

Smoking Johnny - Email me if you can. More then likely we sent you the wrong motor. The 17.5 was never made with the older PCB tabs, if thats what you received, I'd like to replace it with one that has the tabs for you.

If you're local shipping isn't an issue, I can send a call tag if you'd like. But please try to email me first.

Charlie@teamnovak.com
Tech@teamnovak.com
CS@teamnovak.com

Thanks.

Smoking Johnny - Email me if you can. More then likely we sent you the wrong motor. The 17.5 was never made with the older PCB tabs, if thats what you received, I'd like to replace it with one that has the tabs for you.

If you're local shipping isn't an issue, I can send a call tag if you'd like. But please try to email me first.

Charlie@teamnovak.com
Tech@teamnovak.com
CS@teamnovak.com

Thanks.

First rate service once again!

Charlie you are the best!

Charlie
I currently own a lrp sphere that hasnt had any problems(knock on wood). I have been a diehard lrp fan up till recently after reading all your post and racer comments on how you have helped them out. My next speedo will be a novak due to all your hardwork and dedication to the consumer. You dont see that much these days. Keep up the good work! I am now officially switching brands.

Pan Car Tom, Bill Dysart had his 2nd Sphere blow up this evening.The other one is on its way to LRP.In fact none of the 4 cars in the A-Main finished! Not sure as to the reason,however I only smelled 1 esc.

wonderful.... nothing like the smell of a burned up speedo. My wife made me take all of my clothes off at the door, and threw my a$$ in the shower I smelled so bad.

I have a LRP tc with the fan and have had no problems with it. I was worried about it after reading post last fall after I purchased it. I was after a gtb w/fan but the Local HS did not have a novak in stock and needed it for racing the next day. They sold me on the LRP saying it was the best out at the time and then I get home and read all the post. I now have a gtb also which I use for 21.5/lipo. I hope to have no problems with it, but if I do its gtb and nothing else.

Charlie
I currently own a lrp sphere that hasnt had any problems(knock on wood). I have been a diehard lrp fan up till recently after reading all your post and racer comments on how you have helped them out. My next speedo will be a novak due to all your hardwork and dedication to the consumer. You dont see that much these days. Keep up the good work! I am now officially switching brands.

Do I smell a good deal coming on an LRP??? http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/images/icons/icon5.gif