What are the best Connectors for brushless motors. Right now I just have it direct soldered with no connectors but want to change it out to go back and fourth with brushed motors I have... deans i do not believe sell a 3 lead connector. Would the lipo battery terminal leads work well? I would think they would be the best choice considering the current leaves the batteries on them so they must be low loss right?

AstroFlight makes a 3 pin zero loss connector, but they are $10/pair. You can use bullet connectors and you can get some pretty heavy duty ones from RC-Monster.com or starluckrc.com (up to 10 guage wire!).

Or you can try what I did, which looks a little klugy: I use a pair of Deans on the ESC and a pair on the motor. I use a female for 2 wires on the ESC and a one pin of a male for the other wire on the ESC. Then I use a male for 2 wires on the motor and one pin of a female for the other wire on the motor.

Some people have glued two two-pin ultra-plugs together, but it is hard to get more than one pair exactly perfect and then you can't swap them (which, IMHO, defeats the purpose). So I don't bother gluing them together, or cutting off the unused pin.

Like I said, it looks a little klugy, but works fine.

Another approach is to use Powerpole connectors, They are individual connectors that can be ganged together in whatever configuration and however many wires you want. I've done that too.

I've been using the same type that come on most 1/18th scale motors. Maxx Products (www.maxxprod.com (http://www.maxxprod.com)) sells them in packages of 6 for $6.75, I think the part number is 2856 but haven't got the package to prove it. They work fine with large wire and are very compact.

Here is a post I did back in 2005:

I called up Deans to see if they had plans for making a 3 pin Ultra connector. Although he was not allowed to disclose any details, it sounded like it was coming soon. A Deans 3 pin (pole) Ultra connector would be perfect for switching from brushed to brushless while still staying compatible with all of my gear and my friend's gear.

So, in the meantime, I made my own connector with some superglue and a dremel.

Here is my setup with a Brushless motor:
http://www.comparecenter.com/images/photodata//James/Hobbies/800/IMG_6704.JPG

And here is my setup with a Brushed motor:
http://www.comparecenter.com/images/photodata//James/Hobbies/800/IMG_6711.JPG

I'm not sure about the Novak GTB, but for the LRP Sphere, all you have to do for a brushed motor is combine the blue and yellow wires. From one of the male Deans connectors I disassembled, I used a spare connector to short the blue and yellow wires:
http://www.comparecenter.com/images/photodata//James/Hobbies/800/IMG_6708.JPG
(This could also be done with wire.)

I'm really happy with the results. The superglue holds extremely well, and now I can easily interchange my brushed and brushless motors with my new Sphere. Additionally, the 3rd connector on the brushed motors does not interfere when I use a brushed speed controller that only 2 connectors. I'm looking forward to when Deans releases their 3 pin version of the Ultra connector.

A few people wanted to know the details on how to make the connector, so I'll post it here. This is the technique I use:
Using a dremel with a cutoff disc, cut a Deans connector in half. (The extra metal connector can be used later to short the brushed motor connector)
Place some sandpaper (600 grit or so) face up on something flat.
Lightly rough up the side of the connector that is to be CA'd, being careful not to change the angle of the connector.
Using thin CA, glue the 2 connectors together (place them on something flat while holding them together so that the angles are flat)
Take some backing soda and fill in the gap between the connectors.
Drip a drop or 2 of thin CA into the center of the backing soda.

I knew I had seen this before! I just couldn't remember where.

Great job! :thumbsup:

that's a great idea. thanks for the pics

These (http://nexusracing.com/product_info.php?cPath=140_167_226&products_id=1632&osCsid=0ecfd26b12f47ba9410eb9221cb43146) things right here work well so you dont have to worry about threading the wire through the holes everytime. Get a set for each motor so if want to swap one out its much easier to solder the wires to that flat surface.

Has anyone used the Novak 3.5 Low-Loss connectors? 5 pairs cost about 8 bucks. I am waiting for Deans to create a 3 pole connector but that hasn't happened yet.

Also, is it recommended to but the male or female on the brushless motor side? I know for batteries you always use the female side on the battery and when I was running brushed I had the female on the motor as well. I guess I just answered my own question; put the female connectors on the motor side.

Any thoughts?

I would think you would put the male on the motor. Because there could be power coming from the speedo that could get shorted. Just like a battery.
Of course, I don't know why you would have the speedo turned on and no motor.... but it could happen.

I agree with gezer. Many times I've unsoldered a motor lead so the motor wouldn't run while setting an ESC or testing something out. Plus, with the female on the ESC you wouldn't plug the battery into the wrong end of the ESC by mistake.... sounds dumb but I've done dumber things then that ;)

I am still going to be using Deans for the battery so there won't be an issue with hooking up the battery to the wrong side of the ESC. Also, running Oval the ESC is in a location that the wires will only reach to the motor or battery.

So, do these Novak connector stay connected or is there a better choice out there or should I modified some Deans and make a connection like some of the other guys have done? I use to use sermos by Duratrax (I think that is what they are called) but I don't know how they would hold up to the demand that the brushless system requires.

Quick note about Deans on the motors is that it is cheaper to buy the female Deans to put on all of your motors, than it is to buy a bunch of male Deans. But, I am just cheap that way.

Has anyone used the Novak 3.5 Low-Loss connectors? 5 pairs cost about 8 bucks. I am waiting for Deans to create a 3 pole connector but that hasn't happened yet.

Any thoughts?
The 3.5MM connectors are generally used on the 1/18th motors. Unless you are running the Mongoose, you would be better off with 4MM connectors (they are the same price - $8/5pr) as the 3.5s.

But IMHO, having used both, the "Castle Bullets" are much better than the Novak style (which are the same as Trinity and Corally) and are actually less expensive - tower selling these for $3.79 for 3 pair or $7.58 for six pair.

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXTJH8&P=7

The difference is that Castle doesn't sell the males separately like Novak does, so if you have more motors than speedos, you still need to buy the full set of 3 pair of Castle males & females. So the Novaks could end up being less expensive after all.

According to Novak's website both the 3.5mm and 4.0mm connectors are both for 12-14 gauage wire. However, the 3.5mm is what they recommend for the GTB and the 4.0 is what is recommended for the HV ESC. Really, I don't think it matters, they are basically the same size and weight, so it is probably better to go with the 4.0mm since I assume that they have a better transfer of electrical power.

Too bad Deans is not making a 3 pole connector, for brushless.