I just can't leave my yellow BladeZ alone. Now, I've added an E-10 Rad2Go motor and a Curtis controller courtesy (and cash) of Craig U. I was running 10 awg wiring throughout, but am now thinking of using 6awg. My question is, should I use the same 6 guage wire to bridge the brushes as for the wiring coming out of the motor? I have already eliminated the soldered connectors and will be adding a direct injection squirrel cage blower to the side of the motor to keep things cooler. As you can guess, pictures will follow!
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I'm not sure how much current you're running, but 10ga should be able to handle more current than the motor armature. If you pump too much current into that motor, you run the risk of demagnetizing the magnets or toasting the brush holders.
Two things to consider when choosing wire size: 1, will it burn up? and 2, how much resistance loss is there? If the wire is short, then the loss will be minimal. Longer pieces of wire should be heavier to reduce loss. Heavier is better when it comes to minimizing losses.
I run 90 amps through 10ga wire for a few seconds at a time with no meltdowns. It handles 60 amps for at least 30 seconds. Somewhere around 40 amps continuous should be safe.
So, to get the torque and initial acceleration I want for this particular scooter, I can use the existing 10guage wire. Maybe improvements could be made by shortening wire runs and changing the pinion gear to a higher number of teeth? I do know the Rad2Go controller and a 12 tooth pinion gear don't do anything for torque on this particular scooter. If I bolt the Curtis 1204 controller on, I'm looking for trouble or can it be adjusted to some degree? I have no current monitoring devices and probably wouldn't know how to use them if I did. This is my Achilles heel..lack of understanding the flow of electrons, etc. But, give me some hand tools and I can shape the parts! Ha! Here's a picture of my blower I installed. Maybe I don't even need it, but it was fun planning and executing the project. It probably will do well since it is "direct injection" right into the motor case. Maybe this will give ideas to others adding a blower. Oops! Maybe no photo this time. Can't seem to get it to appear.
The blower is good. It will allow a higher continuous current without meltdown. As I recall the 1204 limits at a very high current. I'm not sure if it will toast your magnets or not. I think others have used one, so I guess it works. As long as the gearing isn't too fast the typical operating current will stay in the safe zone. A top speed around 25-30mph or so would be in the ballpark. I'm working on an add-on current limiter (adjustable) that works with most controllers, but I think a Curtis is one it won't work with. I know with that motor, if you give it enough current, it will throw you off the scooter.
There you go! That's what I'm looking for...a thrill ride. So, back to the wiring...should I stay with 10 guage or go to 8 or 6? I am definitely going to keep the wire routing much shorter than before. Craig had modified the first controller I bought from him to operate at 30% acceleration. At least that's the way he had it labeled. The next one he sold me was just an outright sale, not part of a modification package. So, I guess it is at 100% and like you said, likely to toss me off if I'm not careful. Probably what I need is a 60-75% acceleration controller, but don't reckon I'll get it since Craig is leaving the country soon. Thanks, Fetch, for your input. I'd still be walking if it weren't for this forum and the experts here. Also, how and where are pictures posted to this forum?
Fatter wire is always better. I looks cool too. The batteries may be the current limiting piece.
When you type a comment, just below the text box there's a "Insert image/file" link. That works for me, but you have to make sure the size is small enough. The other way is to use imageshack to make a link. I had trouble getting pics in here before, but David has it set up nice now.
I think there's a how-to post on this somewhere.
The batteries I'm using are B&B HR22-12 (3) I thought these were supposed to be some of the best affordable batteries. What I might need to do is get a couple of Power Cheqs to keep them balanced, etc?