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vent your losing unnecessary time in being able to enjoy your
new car.
MOTOR MAINTENANCE. After every 2 to 3 runs, re-
move the brushes from the holders and inspect the tips for wear
and/or burning. If you notice any excessive wear, replace the
brushes with a new pair. To inspect for a burnt tip, look at the
side of the brush on the contact end. If it is a burnt blue color,
then the lubricant in the brush has been burned away; new
brushes should be installed. These are important steps, for worn
or burnt brushes can cause irreparable damage to the motor
commutator. Changing brushes frequently will help maintain
the life of your motor. For stock upright brush motors we rec-
ommend our #738 motor brush; for stock laydown brush mo-
tors we recommend our #765 or #766 motor brush. For upright
brush modified motors we recommend our #737 motor brush.
And for laydown brush modified motors use our #760 motor
brush. These are off road compounds, giving you excellent motor
life and good power, but we do have other compounds for dif-
ferent applications. At the same interval you should carefully
clean the motor. One recommended method is to connect the
motor to an old partially chraged battery pack and, while the
motor is running, spray a motor cleaner directly on the brush
commutator area. Run the motor for approximately 15 seconds
and apply the spray several times for 2 or 3 seconds. Discon-
nect the motor and spray again, making sure the runoff is clear
and clean. If the runoff is still dirty, repeat the spraying action
until clean. After completing the cleaning, apply a small amount
of lightweight oil to the bushings or bearings for lubrication.
Never over gear your car (large pinion and/or small spur
gear). Over gearing can cause excessive heat and can dam-
age or destroy your motor.
SCHOTTKY DIODE. A new development for motors
and high frequency electronic speed controls is an add-on de-
vice called a Schottky diode. This diode is used by many speed
control and motor manufacturers to improve the life and perfor-
mance of both components. The diode is suppose to keep the
braking MOSFETs cooler, improving their performance and
making them more consistent. It also helps to reduce the amount
of high voltage spikes from the motor that could reach your
speed control; these spikes can contribute to premature fail-
ure. The reduced spikes also would increase the motor com-
mutator life. Reedy sells a package of two replacement diodes,
#745.
WARNING! Do not use Schottky diodes with reverse
speed controls! The speed control will be damaged! Also, the
diodes are polarized, so make sure that you hook positive to
positive and negative to negative. If connected backwards, the
car will act like it has a shorted motor when the throttle is ap-
plied until the diode shorts out.
We also recommend the use of
two diodes per motor when running a high power, low wind
motor in most vehicles. Because of the new high current mo-
tors, the current draw can be enough to overload a single di-
ode.
A full line of Reedy stock and modified motors are listed
in the 1/12 scale catalog which should come with your kit. If
you did not receive one in your kit you can call or write us,
asking for the 1/12 scale catalog, and we will happily send you
one at no charge.
RADIO MAINTENANCE. Radio problems are normally
the more common problems. But keep in mind that radio prob-
lems are caused by many sources to the radio system. Often it
is the result of a combination of several factors which can in-
clude: motor noise, poor electrical connections, bad wiring lay-
out, reversed or defective crystals, weak transmitter batteries,
and so on. You can also have a very sensitive receiver. If your
radio problems persist, one of the following tips may help:
Make sure your motor noise capacitors are properly
installed. Most speed control manufacturers now recommend
three .1 uFd capacitors per motor.
Make sure the brushes are free in their brush holders
and that they are not chipped at the contact edges, which could
cause arcing. Replace if necessary.
Try a different motor.
Try a different steering servo.
Try a different radio frequency, (the transmitter and re-
ceiver crystals can be loose, damaged or broken).
Try mounting the receiver on its side with the crystal
up to get it away from the chassis. Also move it away from the
side of the chassis.
Dress the radio wires well away from the power leads
from the motor or battery.
Move the antenna wire away from the servo wires,
which can generate a signal into the antenna wire.
The new, high frequency speed controls now also gen-
erate a low frequency signal which can cause interference with
the receiver. Try to keep them at least two inches apart if pos-
sible.
If you have one of the new Schottky diodes, make sure
that it is soldered on correctly. If soldered on backwards it will
make the motor feel like it is shorted out.
Keep in mind that you can also run into outside inter-
ference at times, and the 75 mhz radio band will tend to be
more susceptible to this problem than the 27 mhz band. Large
metal objects such as chain link fences, light poles, cars, vans,
trailers or even florescent lights can occasionally cause local
interference by momentarily blocking or reflecting or modifying
a signal.
DIFFERENTIAL MAINTENANCE
.
You should re-
build the differential when the action gets somewhat “gritty”
feeling. Usually cleaning and applying new lube per instructions
will bring it back to new condition. Normally, as the parts seat,
the diff will get smoother. If after carefully cleaning and relubing
the diff parts the diff still feels gritty, the diff balls and drive rings
should be checked and possibly replaced. The standard diff
balls and drive rings should be changed any time you cannot get
the diff to feel smooth after it was cleaned, lubed, and reas-
sembled.
CLEANING YOUR CAR
.
You can clean your car
with many products Some may also be safe for cleaning
electronics parts. Others may be safe for cleaning Lexan
bodies. Electronics part cleaners will clean your car, motor
and electronics. They are convenient and work very well, but
can be expensive. There are also motor cleaning sprays
which will clean your car and motor but are harmful to plastics
like servo, receiver and speed control cases. Like the elec-
tronic cleaners, this works very well, but can cost a lot. To
keep your maintenance costs down, you can clean your car
(not the motor) with normal household cleaners like 409,
Fantastic, Simple Green or similar cleaners. These cleaners
have water in them so they are not recommended for use on
motors or electronics. Because of the water, you need to help
prevent rust on the steel parts (front axles, screws, etc.). This
can be accomplished by carefully drying the parts or spray-
ing them with a product like WD40 to seal the surface of the
part from moisture (after they have been cleaned) so they will
not rust. The rust will not affect the performance of the
vehicle only it's appearance.
WARNING! Most of these
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