Brushless equivalent of brushed motor

[DustinI]

Howdy,

I've dug out my Goldberg Electra. Maiden flight July 2004 with original motor, battery, and prop.

As you may imagine, the motor, battery, and prop are a bit dated. Currently installed (actually recently uninstalled) is one of the old ElectriFly T-600 can motors, an old AstroFlight motor control (one of the ones that require both a motor battery and a receiver battery), a 7 cell 1100 NiCd battery, and a 9x4.5" folding prop.

I'd like to upgrade to a brushless motor and lipo battery. What motor/motor controller/battery/prop configuration would you recommend? I wouldn't mind having similar performance as I used to get with the can motor. I just want to be able to motor my way to the thermals.

Once I've gotten my new gear, I'll need some recommendations on how to install it. The current setup is a complex system which consists of a curved piece of wood and a rubber band. Will a brushless motor work mounted in such a way as well?

[JimD]

Hi Dustin, it was great seeing you at the 50th Annual Cumberland Soar for Fun...glad the event got you excited about soaring again!

Let me think about this a bit...wait, I know a perfect setup! Let me talk to Darrel and get back to you. He has a surplus system from a Radian XL that would work great.

[MarnochS]

Hi Dustin,

I converted my Electra over to a brushless motor system a while back and cut out a bunch of weight.
All you need is a 480 size motor system like the one in the smaller Radian Sailplane (arround 1000kv)
I can't remember what exact motor I'm using .....and ....well ...I'd have to take the prop and small cowl off to see ......
30amp speed controller and 1300mAh 3-cell lipo ---- receiver is run off the 3amp bec in the speed controller
The Propeller is a 12 x 6 APC electric folding and spinner to match the motor shaft
Battery was mounted at the forward edge of the battery compartment on some rails I installed - for balance and easy access.

I just cut off the old motor mount ( mine was ABC plastic ) and glued a stack of plywood over the current firewall to get the motor out to match the old one.
​i did cut out the center to allow for air flow -





In Action and the 2015 Visalia Fall Soaring Festival..... flew extremely well ....fun too
I programmed in some down elevator compensation at full throttle as to make the climb out smoother




Scott

[JimD]

Thanks Scott! great to see how others have moved through the hobby over time.

[JimD]

Some history:

I taught Dustin to fly in the summer of 2002 when he was 15. His goal was to build a plane and fly it on his birthday in August. He settled on a Sig Seniorita and between June and August, 2002 he built and covered the plane unassisted! Meantime, I was teaching him to fly using one of my planes, a Clancey Aviation Big Lazy Bee. True to his plan, he soloed and got his first flight on the Seniorita on his 16th birthday in August, 2002.

Next, he built a Telemaster 40 and spent the summer of 2003 flying it.



The following summer (2004), he decided to get into soaring and built his Goldberg Electra. Inspired by Maynard Hill's trans-Atlantic flight, he used Maynard's color scheme on the Electra.



In the Fall of 2004 Dustin headed off to college and that his flying was put on hold. Graduating and getting a job further interfered with flying...until now!

Dustin lives and works in Pittsburgh, PA, about 2 hours from Cumberland. His parents still live in Cumberland and he made a side trip to the Soar for Fun while being in town to visit his mom and dad.

Looks like the flying bug bit him while he was here!

[DustinI]

Wow! Those picture sure bring back some great memories. Thanks for posting them.

I have the Seniorita ready to go and airworthy. The .25 Thundercat glow engine purrs like the day I soloed on it. Hopefully you get to see it at HighPoint Aviation in the not so distant future .

[Mugen2008]

Dustin,

I've got a BL10 Brushless Outrunner Motor, 1,250 Kv (EFLM7225) - pulled from a Radian XL. I don't have a spare ESC though. Speed Controller was a 40AMP.

Let me know if you want it. You going to be back in town soon? Over Thanksgiving?

Darrel

[DustinI]

MarnochS Thank you for the pics and fine advice. With your suggestions, I think I'll have no problem mounting a brushless motor on the front of the Electra.

Mugen2008 I will be in town during Thanksgiving and I'd be happy to take take the brushless motor off your hands. Will the 1300mAh 3-cell lipo that MarnochS suggested work well with it? Let's PM to coordinate a convenient time to meet up.

It was great seeing some old and new faces last weekend at the SOAR For Fun. Looking forward to being up there again, this time with an airplane and a stick.

[DustinI]

I got almost all I need for the Electra. I just ordered the same setup that comes in the Radian XL. I made one mistake though. I thought my Hitec Triton would charge lithium polymer batteries. Upon closer inspection, I now see that the Triton will only charge lithium ion batteries.

What LiPo charger would you all recommend? I don't mind paying a fair price for a high quality made in America product, but I don't like paying a premium price for features that I'll never use. My Triton will charge everything else in the hangar, so it's alright if the new charger specializes in LiPos. I'd like it to be a field charger so DC is my input of choice.

Look for pics of the firewall installation coming at you next week!

[DustinI]

Sorry for the long delay in getting the new motor and electronics installed. I needed some motivation and next week's Spring Soar For Fun in Cumberland was it.

I cut a piece of hardwood to fit in the front to act as the firewall. I drilled holes for the mounting screws, the motor shaft, and ventilation. I epoxied the firewall into place and installed the motor. The wing for this airplane is at my parent's house in MD. So, I'm going to have to wait till next week to see how the balance looks. One thing's for sure, it doesn't look pretty, but it'll fly (I hope ).

This is my first experience with a modern electric motor and speed control. My first reaction to the motor is "holy cow!" That little thing sure can spin a prop. My second reaction is, what do all these beeps mean? Here's a youtube video of me plugging my speed controller into the battery and the ensuing beeps. Don't mind the constant beeping. That's my transmitter's low battery alarm. The beeps I'm interested in are the loud ones from the speed controoler. Are these beeps normal? https://youtu.be/ErcyAT1jQbA

[JimD]

Dustin, think of those beeps as the tune a dail-up modem makes!

part of the tune let's you know there is power to the ESC and the other part says the motor is armed and ready to run when the throttle is advanced.

[DustinI]

Aha! Thanks for the info. Also, thanks to Mugen2008 for the motor. Looking forward to seeing everyone and to try out the new and improved Electra next weekend.