Wire length

[BHChieftain]

I know in general the shorter the wires the better-- lower resistance and all that. I also know that short wires between the ESC and Motor is really a good idea as it can affect the timing. My question is does the lenght of the battery-to-ESC leads matter nearly as much as ESC to Motor?

Chief

[properchopper]

Good topic. It seems conventional wisdom suggests that the shorter this span, the less "ripple current" (wasn't that once an alcoholic beverage?). The latest trend to add caps seems to address this. I'm listening for more learned input.

[Shooter]

Batt to ESC: Shorter the better.

One of the main reasons we are able to tolerate so much current draw is the short wire length. The longer this gets, the more vulnerable we are to heat build up as you said. As the wire heats up, the resistance gets even greater!

Do you have an application that requires slightly longer wires? If so, it wouldn't be a bad idea to use larger wire.

[Flying Scotsman]

This not a learned response, if the wire diameter is small, then keep it as short as possible, if it is 8/10 gauge I would presume the length should not be so much of a factor.

Edit: Shooter I am a slow on the keyboard

Douggie

[BHChieftain]

No doubt the shorter the better-- but here are 2 setup choices:

In both options, the total length of the wires are constant

Option 1)
Position ESC so that the ESC-to-Motor and ESC-to-Battery wires are all equal length

Option 2)
Position the ESC as close to the motor as possible, so the ESC-to-Motor wires are as short as possible, and the ESC-to-Battery wires are therefore longer (but still same total length as option1).

Which option is better?

Chief

[Flying Scotsman]

I would go with option 2.

Douggie

[blackcat26]

No doubt the shorter the better-- but here are 2 setup choices:

In both options, the total length of the wires are constant

Option 1)
Position ESC so that the ESC-to-Motor and ESC-to-Battery wires are all equal length

Option 2)
Position the ESC as close to the motor as possible, so the ESC-to-Motor wires are as short as possible, and the ESC-to-Battery wires are therefore longer (but still same total length as option1).

Which option is better?

Chief

I would say option 2 as well. My theory...could be wrong but the motor wires are generally smaller in size than the battery wires. So in my thinking they would benefit from being shorter than the battery wires.....

[byron]

i'm in the same boat ,i just got my first esc and the wires that go to the motor are to short . they are 12 ga ,should i go to 10 ga or 8 ga . it is a 120 hk and running 4s p spec?

[bigwaveohs]

The length of the wires between the motor and ESC doesn't really matter and it certainly won't effect the "timing" (think about how long the wires are inside the motor).

If you absolutely must add length to the battery/ESC wires you need to compensate for the added inductance which will cause spikes and ringing and can damage the ESC. Do this by adding caacitance. Add 220uF at the ESC for each 4-inch/10cm extension. Use smaller caps in parallel to help dissipate the heat build up.

[ejimbo4]

I am getting ready to install motor,esc and batteries in mine and am I correct that if I want to shorten the wires between motor and esc that I need to shorten the esc wires and leave the motor wires alone?

[bigwaveohs]

The wire length between the motor and ESC is not critical. You can shorten either one, although the motor wires are usually just an extension of the internal windings which are enamel coated and VERY difficult to clean and solder...I would shorten the ESC wires and leave the motor wires alone...JMHO.