Quark durability test

Wait a minute...Three super cool products in one test run! I need to hear more about the motor and especially the A123 packs. Read lots but it's all hype till someone actually races with one of them...What were you using? Did you have a Magic Turbo box thing in there as well and how did they perform relative to other cells currently out on the market? Please advise!

[RC-Monster Mike]

The A123 packs worked great. We tested 4s 4600s(2 each 2s2p packs wired in series) - these were slower than the 4s Lipo pack, but yielded almost 15 minutes of runtime and smooth, powerful performance. We also pushed a set of 2300 packs(2 3s packs in series). This was a touch faster than the 4s Lipo setup(same gearing on all driving) with slightly less punch(2300mah packs were working hard in this setup) and yielded around 6 minutes on the track(only 2300 mah batteries). The 6s setup came off the truck at almost 160F(hottest anything got all day). All in all, I would say the A123 packs were great - they are a nice product and we hope to do more testing and possibly power the RC-Monster race trucks with these(more on these later - I have some ideas and further testing to do). We did not have a turbo box(A12 didn't have one available for us this weekend), but will certainly put it through its paces when the opportunity presents itself.
The Neu motor is slightly shorter than a 1950 lehner motor, but slightly larger in diameter(similar overall size or total mass). These are less expensive than the Lehner motors, offer a little more screw in the mount(Lehner motors require VERY short screws - these aren't as bad) and are equally as efficient, if not slightly more efficient. I pushed the motor hard on a hot day and it never got over 140F, which is extremely impressive. Being a 4 pole motor, the BK controllers don't like them much. The MGM and Quark controllers handle them well, though. The motors are pretty open, though(you can see through the motor), which isn't ideal for running in the dirt. I simply cut a piece of scrap lexan and placed it between the motor and motor mount to keep the insides clean - this seemed to work quite well and took about a minute to make. I recently signed on as a dealer for these motors, and will begin stocking them in the very near future.
The "slipperential" held up all day as well - in fact it worked perfectly - you will see it in my truck at the bash next weekend. :)

[BrianG]

I've been really watching those A123Systems batteries at various places and they seem to be really nice with their high discharge and charge C rating, and safe! I just wish they had single ~4Ah cells. And then you need a charger/balancer that is specifically designed for a 3.3v nominal cell, which requires you to get their specific charger.

By the way: what is a "slipperential"? Is it a center diff with a slipper directly on it?

Will those Neu motors be available in different (smaller) sizes - like the equivalent of LMT 1940/1930,1920?