Underwater brush break in???

[racerdave]

I came across a website somewhere that explained this procedure, along with pics. I thought I bookmarked it but I guess I didn't. Does anybody know of this site,or explain the prcdure? rd

[mcquto]

I was under the impression that you only used this procedure with closed endbell motors like the mabuchi 540. Most motors now are fully rebuildable. Here is the article I think you are looking for.
http://rccaraction.com/articles/supercharge_stocker.asp

[highroller]

The water dip method is used to speed up the breakin process without generating heat buildup. When a low voltage source isn't available 5volts or below then the water dipping method is okay. Hook up a 6 or 7 cell pack to motor and dunk in water for 30 second or so. Take out and spray with motor cleaner to remove moisture, reoil and run. The other method is to hook up to a 3cell pack (6cell broke in half), 4cells or 5volt tap on power supply or motor breakin (charger). Run motor until brush conforms to the shape/contour of the commutator. Bolink sold a product called Electro Whirl which was a motor bath cleaner, that was also used to breakin and cleaned away brush deposits at the same time.

[SteveK]

Water-dipping for closed-endbell motors because popular because the brushes are very hard. That's good for longevity but it takes a long time to break them in. I talked to some guys that run 2.4 hour endurance races with stock TL01s, and they say new Mabuchi motors are only just getting good near the end of the race. Regular motors have softer, more conductive brushes break in very quickly.

I bet it would be hard to find somebody that knows how long the brushes last: If you haven't burned out the motor or worn out the bushings beforehand, by the time you wear out the brushes you've forgotten how many runs you have on the motor, or when you put it in.

There are tons of odd tricks like water dipping for 540s: That used to be all there were, and for a while the parking lot races required them as well. One trick is to squirt toothpaste into the comm/brush area, and it acts like an abrasive polishing compound. I forget if the guy said to do it to a worn motor or a new one, but he said he couldn't believe how well it worked.

[vols-std]

don't you get a hell of a short cut?


GreeTz
Ben