ESC Afro ESC,s and high pole count motors

Karubah

Karubah

Member
I have been having a bit of trouble with Afro ESC s and DT 750 motors. I kept getting random throttle speed after a few minutes of flying on the TC. 1 or 2 motors would suddenly drop speed or go full speed causing the Tri to flip or just drop out of the air. After doing a bit of research online I found out that they don't like motors with a high pole count.
So thought I would experiment by hooking it up to a servo tester on the bench and giving it varying amounts of power and see what temp the Afro gets too before the motor starts hiccuping. After about 1 and a 1/2 mins the Afro got almost too hot to touch, not a hot day, temp sitting on around 15 deg. C.
I am still waiting for the Afro programmer to arrive and will flash them with the latest firmware and see if it overcomes this problem.
Damn things have cost me 4 yaw servos by flipping over and landing hard on the motors.:cussing:

Edit. No props fitted when testing on the bench.
 
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Derek

Derek

Well-Known Member
I'm sorry to hear about the repeated damage but its a cool idea that you are doing this. I'm hoping to build a pair of tricopters soon. I will be watching this thread with interest.
 
Karubah

Karubah

Member
Update... It look likes the Afro ESC , DT750 motor and 4s battery combo is the problem. Switch to 3s and all works well. I am now running 1100kv motors Afo ESC and 4s battery and this combo also works well. Forgot to say both combo,s are using 10x4.5 props.
 
wolfman76

wolfman76

Well-Known Member
def gonna watch this thead also seeing as i plan on getting some afro esc's also to start putting a few quads back in the air.... have you used that programmer yet and if so how does it work out for you???
 
Karubah

Karubah

Member
No I haven't used the programmer as yet. I started playing with different combinations while waiting for the programmer to arrive and found a couple that work for me.. more research to do with these ESCs to see what there limits are.
 
Lee

Lee

Well-Known Member
I have had a series of 6 crashes with my QAV500 that have been baffling me.
Each time, the quad would be flying perfectly for about 5 mins, then suddenly one motor would cut out.
I have swapped out and changed most of the electronics.
But after reading online and what you have posted here Andy, I think its the same issue.
I have flashed the latest firmware to my Afros, so lets see if that helps.
Windy for the next week, so testing will have to wait.
 
wolfman76

wolfman76

Well-Known Member
how do you flash and where do i go to get latest firmware for my 30amp afro esc i also have the afro esc programmer i really want to get my spider x quad back in the air... also do you have to apply power to esc's in order to program them???
 
Lee

Lee

Well-Known Member
L

Lanman

New Member
Hi Lee,
It's a bit gusty here but I've been flying my re-flashed Afro ESCs and so far it looks good. Had about 12 aggressive flights with the new firmware and no sign of sync issues. In fact prior to the firmware update I couldn't get my tricopter off the ground. I did notice my DT750 motors are running cooler with the new firmware and the Afro ESCs come down warm but not hot which is how it was prior to the firmware update. Overall my motors feel more responsive. I'm cautiously optimistic that my sync issue is gone... maybe.

As for updating the firmware, I had one ESC that wouldn't update. I suspected it was because the boot loader wasn't enabled. If you have an ESC that won't take the new firmware you can use the USB ASP programmer to enable the boot loader and update the firmware. That method requires a special cable from HK or hardwire it yourself if you're good with a soldering iron and feeling adventurous. Once the boot loader is enabled, you can install any future firmware updates using the USB Linker because the boot loader was enabled. Just an FYI incase anyone runs into the problem as I did.

Dave.

Lee said:
I have had a series of 6 crashes with my QAV500 that have been baffling me.
Each time, the quad would be flying perfectly for about 5 mins, then suddenly one motor would cut out.
I have swapped out and changed most of the electronics.
But after reading online and what you have posted here Andy, I think its the same issue.
I have flashed the latest firmware to my Afros, so lets see if that helps.
Windy for the next week, so testing will have to wait.
Click to expand...
 
Lee

Lee

Well-Known Member
Thanks Dave,
I didn't seem to have any issues uploading the new firmware.
Its still blowing 50MPH here, so i'm waiting :(
Good to see you on our friendly little forum :)
 
L

Lanman

New Member
That's a lot of wind. It's calm here in the morning and gusting 20-30 by the afternoon. Four more problem free flights this morning so I'm getting a little more confident in it.

Dave
 
Lee

Lee

Well-Known Member
Tested the upgraded firmware on the Escs
:( Not good news.
The motors don't seem to want to randomly shut down anymore.
The problem is, they are losing sync very easily now.
I can make the motors cog at will with fast throttle changes.
Don't think i'm going to entrust these escs with my expensive Quad.
I will buy some that play nicer with my motors FM4006.
 
Karubah

Karubah

Member
I flashed with updated firmware on the 30amp Afros and still had sinc problems. I pulled the Afros off as and binned them as I just could not trust them with high pole count motors. I do have them on smaller motors and they seem to work ok to date. I went back to Birddog ESCs on the dt750 motors and they work well.
It looks like we have come the same conclusion Lee. I just don't trust them and will not buy any more.
 
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