New to Lipo/brushless

[Frank Stevens]

Hello all, my name is Frank Stevens and I am returning to model flying after a lengthy gap (over 10 years). I have been modelling since the early fifties with control line combat & A team race, progressed to sport r/c and gliders in the seventies. Enticed back by the progress in electric flight. I am building a Cularis, and updating a couple of my old models to brushless/lipo power.

I have managed to glean a lot of information in the forum pages, but I have one really silly question that will probably cause a few sniggers. I am using gold bullet connectors for the battery-ESC-motor connections, and I have a vague idea that most people use the male connector on the battery. This seems to me to be an accident waiting to happen, and surely it should be the other way round?

[Bruce Richards]

I use one of each as I think most people do. This ensures that the polarity is correct between battery and ESC. I use male on negative and female on positive. I know others have them the other way round but as long as I stick to my system all my components will be physically compatible.

[Frank Stevens]

Thanks Bruce, that sounds like sensible advice which I will gratefully adopt.

[Helidel]

I use male as pos from the battery and keep it safely covered with a fitted piece of shrink tube, when not in the plane, cut a piece long enough to fit over the connector, heat about 3mm on one end, then seal with pliers, fit over the connector and shrink again at the thinned neck of the connector. I use red tube on a charged battery and a green on a used one, this helps in not trying to fly a plane with the wrong battery

Using the pos as a male makes it easier to disconnect the battery externally without removing a hatch/canopy, as the female can be secured to the fuz and it doesn't protrude

[Tim Mackey]

I also use male gold bullets on the positive from the battery - frankly it makes not a lot of difference which way you do it, as long as you are methodical and careful, and ALWAYS insulate it when out of use. As electrons actually flow negative to positive ( putting it simply ) then why should we worry about exposed positive plugs rather than negative ones. We are not dealing with automobile negative chassis issues etc here are we.

[Frank Stevens]

Thanks for your replies, I feel much more confidant now. I am in the process of using Timbo's clothes peg jig for soldering the connectors - a very useful tip from the forum. Many thanks.

[Tim Mackey]

Blimey I forgot I posted that ! Where the heck did 'ya find it ?

[Frank Stevens]

Hi Timbo,

I found it in a thread started by Ads who was thinking of soldering his 2mm battery connectors straight onto 4mm ones. Part of your help was to show a picture of the jig

Funnily enough I was just about to throw out a bag of wooden pegs from the days when the club I was in at the time started a frequency control system where each member had their own peg to put on the board. I think this was because people kept taking the board ones home!! Coloured for 27mhz and orange with the No. for 35mhz, I seemed to get through quite a few - the missus couldn't find enough to hang the washing out. Happy days?????

[Former Member]

[This posting has been removed]

[Tim Mackey]

Oy ! get your own washing in !!

Its looking a bit well used these days... but heres a quick mock up to show the idea

[Frank Stevens]

Timbo, you also gave advice about soldering irons (Min 50w + large bit). I tried last night with a Weller heat gun and a 25w iron - waste of time and a gold connector. I ordered a decent iron on line after that, can't wait for it to arrive. Incidently your original was a better picture, very easy to follow. Thanks again

[Tim Mackey]

The "Instant heat guns" are pretty useless for much really...its not the tip temperature its the ability to hold that temperature when applied to the work, and for that to happen you need a decent "mass" in the iron bit.

Aldi or Lidl were doing a nice set of about 3 different complete irons for something ridiculous like £9