RC-Monster Forums - Here, at Last!: TeamNovak Ballistic 8 motor

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Here, at Last!: TeamNovak Ballistic 8 motor

Bigger, Bolder Ballistic

If you have questions, I will have Bob check in. This motor is his "baby"....

Novak's 1st 4 pole motor?

Interesting. Look forward to seeing how these run.

Thought this was interestingly "home brew" sounding

Quote:

Novak’s Ballistic 8 rotor sets itself apart from the other brands in that it is drill balanced

Does the quality of my rotor depend on which guy is holding the drill, an dhow much coffee he's had??? :intello:

I have a feeling you are joking JT. Drill balancing is done by way of removing material (via a drill/mill/etc) just like a car crankshaft is balanced.

looks like they are going to dabble in the 8th scale esc as well

Quote:

Originally Posted by magman (Post 409521)

looks like they are going to dabble in the 8th scale esc as well

We like to dabble in everything....:lol:

Quote:

Originally Posted by JThiessen (Post 409515)

Interesting. Look forward to seeing how these run.

Thought this was interestingly "home brew" sounding

Does the quality of my rotor depend on which guy is holding the drill, an dhow much coffee he's had??? :intello:

Bob showed me the rotor drilled for balance----much more exact than adding weights that can spin off.

The guys who drill can't have any caffeine!

In addition to designing the motor, we had to design/build all of the manufacturing and test equipment necessary to make it.

During the time we were prototyping and testing this motor, our neo magnet segments (need 4 pieces for each motor) skyrocketed from 1.40 to 8.00 each!

When can we have them? Are they available and shipping now? I have been anxiously awaiting these for a while now and am glad to see they are a reality!

Quote:

Originally Posted by RC-Monster Mike (Post 409532)

When can we have them? Are they available and shipping now? I have been anxiously awaiting these for a while now and am glad to see they are a reality!

Hi Mike,

We are building these motors now---if all goes as planned, we will be shipping in September.

Quote:

Originally Posted by lincpimp (Post 409516)

I have a feeling you are joking JT. Drill balancing is done by way of removing material (via a drill/mill/etc) just like a car crankshaft is balanced.

Yeppers! Much more "eloquent" ways of stating what they are doing. Its common nomenclature to use for those doing the task, but for advertising purposes, much better adjectives exist.

Again, looking forward to matching one of these up on one of my rigs.

Finally. Will get one for sure.

Quote:

Originally Posted by NovakTwo (Post 409526)

During the time we were prototyping and testing this motor, our neo magnet segments (need 4 pieces for each motor) skyrocketed from 1.40 to 8.00 each!

Over what time period (calendar dates) was that when the price went from $1.40 to $8.00? (Curious what part of the Neo price curve this equates to.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ta_man (Post 409586)

Over what time period (calendar dates) was that when the price went from $1.40 to $8.00? (Curious what part of the Neo price curve this equates to.)

You've seen the same thing happen with other motor manufactures.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JThiessen (Post 409587)

You've seen the same thing happen with other motor manufactures.

I know. I'm trying to get a handle on the magnet price increase as related to the raw material price increase.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ta_man (Post 409586)

Over what time period (calendar dates) was that when the price went from $1.40 to $8.00? (Curious what part of the Neo price curve this equates to.)

We have been working on this motor so long that I believe that the first neo quotes we got were @.70/segment!! I got these numbers from the folks here involved with sourcing our magnetic material. Each week the neo prices increase, so 8.00 probably is no longer viable.

Quote:

Here are the neo charts I googled up and posted elsewhere:

Maybe, a picture (chart) is worth a 1000 words....
Neodymium is the blue line:

Neodymium Prices from March 2010

Here is an additional chart that begins at Jan 2012:

Neodymium metal prices, news and information

Quote:

The price of the rare earth material, Neodymium, has sky-rocketed in the past few months. The Chinese government now controls all neo mining and also the price charged to all vendors using this substance in manufactured items.

ROAR specifies neo in the magnets for ROAR-approved motors and sets a 540 motor list price cap of $149.00, that mfgs of these motors must meet. So brushless motor manufacturers have difficult choices ahead: maintain the same quantity of neo in their magnet "recipes" and raise prices accordingly, use less of the metal and change the characteristics of the magnet, or switch to a different material completely. Neo prices increase each week.

All of the rotors that we are currently using have the same magnet recipes we have always offered; we have not changed our rotors due to this crisis.

Our rotor prices have quintupled in the past few months making the current motor prices unsustainable. We will be announcing price increases for both our 540/550 motors and the 540/550 systems in the next few days. We are also considering setting up a Rotor Return Program for our customers to send back old, weak (but not damaged) rotors for exchange. We have the ability to re-magnetize old rotors and make them as good as new.

--------

Re-magnetizing rotors is kind of labor intensive, but it does recycle the older rotors we get back from our customers with their motor exchanges back into the system. When we sell RMF motors to our customers (either through our exchange programs, or our RMF store) they always include a fresh rotor.

We are considering designing a Rotor Recycling program for old 540 and 550 Novak rotors. Start collecting all of your old, but un-damaged (no cracks or broken) Novak rotors----they are more valuable than ever...

I see the Novak webstore has them available for pre-order at $250. Can we expect a bit lower price from an LHS or online retailer like RCM once they are released? I'd love to try one but $250 is a hard sell to me.

This is the price, for now---these motors are all manufactured here in Irvine; and, we've had major neo magnet price increases that have made this intro price much higher than we had anticipated.

As time goes on, if (when ?) the neo prices moderate and we find less labor intensive methods of manufacture, we will definitely pass the prices on to our customers. This is a competitive industry and we intend to compete.

Quote:

Originally Posted by simplechamp (Post 409694)

$250 retail for an Orange motor is reasonable. Green motors are now $300 retail.

NovakTwo: You get my PM?

Quote:

Originally Posted by ta_man (Post 409786)

$250 retail for an Orange motor is reasonable. Green motors are now $300 retail.

NovakTwo: You get my PM?

I have answered our PM and forwarded your comments.

Link to Charlie's post on TeamNovak Facebook.

Quote:

As time goes on, if (when ?) the neo prices moderate

is that a guestimate?

With the hybrid cars etc, and the upcoming windmills, i'd expect this material to become more expensive?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Serum (Post 413106)

is that a guestimate?

With the hybrid cars etc, and the upcoming windmills, i'd expect this material to become more expensive?

Maybe not. Part of the reason that prices spiked in the past year was that China, now the only source, raised prices on the material.They could get away with that because they effectively forced all the other mines out of business by holding their prices very low for an extended period. Now that prices have spiked, other mines are coming on-line or re-opening. That should help moderate prices.

I got my 2D motor in today. First impression is very good when you look at the motor. I'll post pics of it later and some more details.

I did a preorder which included free shipping, pinions and a hat. Well I didn't get any of those. Tried calling them, but no answer. Oh well, I'll do my review tonite or the next.

Quote:

Originally Posted by snellemin (Post 413298)

Sorry about the free shipping, pinions and a hat. I think that offer was for the 1.5Y motor but I can send you some pinions and a hat if you will just e-mail me what #teeth you need and your address. Are you sure you had the correct phone number because we always answer our phones except on weekends? You can e-mail me at bob@teamnovak.com

Bob took care of me and send me a black hat and a bag of pinions.

Any plan for Novak to make longer version motors (truggy type)?
Any other different KV will be available?

Any test results from anyone?

Quote:

Originally Posted by coolhandcountry (Post 416258)

Any test results from anyone?

scroll up to post 23 :sleep:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gallagher (Post 416256)

Any plan for Novak to make longer version motors (truggy type)?
Any other different KV will be available?

There are two versions- a shortish buggy one & longer truggy one....

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gallagher (Post 416256)

Any plan for Novak to make longer version motors (truggy type)?
Any other different KV will be available?

We will see if there is enough of a demand for the longer motor before we go into production. We have 1.0 Y stators (Kv=2850) in stock of the 1514 motor available for special order. We have also tested 2Y staters (Kv= 1400) and 3D (Kv=1700) 1514 stators. If anybody out there wants to try any of these stators PM me and I will send you one.
Bob