Deans connectors

[Dusted]

I am a newbie in RCs and Li-Pos, I only ran NiCds in the past and very little of that. I am just finishing cleaning and restoring (not full restore just bearings etc) my RC10T and I just got my first Li-Po batteries (Gens Ace 4000mAh 25C #2S1P) and a set of Deans Ultra plugs Part#1300.
My question is the Deans seem very small when compared to the Li-Po battery wires. First of all is it OK to replace the connectors on LiPos and did I get the wrong connectors are there bigger Deans that I should have bought instead or are these OK even with the size difference.
Thank you and I have been enjoying reading all the information here on the site especially the 10T section.

[8rad]

The Deans are great and will handle the power. They can be tricky to solder though. A third hand really helps to hold the plug and the wire for soldering. Also, be careful not to heat the solder tabs too much as you can melt the plastic quite easily.

[jwscab]

couple of tricks for deans connectors:

whichever end you are soldering, mate up a matching connector so that the other connector will keep the soldered pins located(they won't melt and twist and move around). This also gives you more material to hold onto.

Grab it with a vice or lay flat on a bench with something heavy on top.

tin both pins with some solder and the iron, and do the same for the wires.

add heat shrink over wires and move as far back as possible.

for the next steps, do both steps for ONE WIRE at a time, doing it this way, the heat shrink on the first wire will prevent accidental shorts:

-place the wire next to the pin, add some solder to your iron, and quickly touch and heat both parts to allow the solder to flow between both parts, and hold on as long as possible to let the solder solidify. this is tricky because the wire will get hot. use gloves if you have to. I say quickly because you want the flux from the fresh solder to help make a clean connection with the two tinned parts.

-wait a bit to let everything cool, then slide the heat shrink up over the connection. while shrinking the tubing, push it up toward the connector with a small screwdriver or something so that they shrink up as close to the connector as possible.

-repeat for the other wire.

[Dusted]

Thank you for the soldering tips good to know!
Any problems running these electronics with the Li-Po battery?
Futaba S148 steering servo
JR RS300 Receiver
Novak GTX ESC and a stock brushed motor

[8rad]

You will need a LiPO cutoff module.

http://www.hobbypartz.com/libaprforcar.html

[RC104ever]

Are the Deans much better than the Traxxas plugs? Just curious as I have been using those without a problem

[soniccj5]

No problems with a S148 and LiPo. That is what I am using.

[badattitude]

Really great advice for the OP! Only other thing is to make sure you do not short the lipo battery wires. A nicad could take a small touching of the wires, a lipo is more sensitive, plus nicads were usually empty when soldered on.

I suggest taping over one of the lipo wires at all times to eliminate the possibility of shorting the lipo by accident.

[jwscab]

yeah, that's one good point I forgot to mention, and I'll update my post up there. Do ONE side at a time, the heat shrink will prevent accidental shorts.

[Dusted]

I do have to say I am nervous about soldering the LiPo but there is a lot of good advice here so Im not as nervous as I was. I did forget about the low bat cutoff so thank you for that as well

[Coelacanth]

I went with all Deans Ultras originally, and I have to say I'm now re-fitting everything I own with EC3 connectors. They're a helluva lot easier to solder (soldering 2 round wires onto 2 tiny flat spades located 5mm apart while attempting to not short out your battery--who thought THIS was a great design, anyway?! ). With EC3's, you solder the wires into 3.5mm bullet cups, then press the bullets into the connector housings. You don't require a third hand, soldering jig, or rubber-band-on-a-pliers. The way they go in means no need for heat-shrink, too. Lastly, the connector housings make it impossible to reverse-connect them. With Deans Ultras, you can physically reverse-connect them enough to short the battery, if you're not paying attention to the polarity.

Seems like a no-brainer to me. The only advantage of the Deans Ultras is you can solder thicker-guage wires as opposed to the EC3's...but to be honest, unless you're running a high-powered 3s or more LiPo system, 3.5mm bullets should be sufficient...and if not, use EC5's, which use 5mm bullets.

[Dusted]

Well should I just buy the Gens Ace 4mm Banana connector then I am matched with the batteries and only have to solder the other ends to motor etc?

[Dusted]

I should mention I am not racing except maybe with friends more fooling around in the yard/dirt here at the house.

[Coelacanth]

Well should I just buy the Gens Ace 4mm Banana connector then I am matched with the batteries and only have to solder the other ends to motor etc?

They're alright but they're bulky & ugly IMHO, and also it's still possible to reverse-connect them and short out your battery. There's more discussion on motor connectors here. The EC3 connector shape eliminates the risk of accidental reverse-connecting.

http://www.rc10talk.com/viewtopic.php?f=40&t=24414

The only downside to EC3's is if you're planning to use some really fat wires. I don't see advantages to using Deans Ultra connectors, and I say that after putting them on everything for my friend's and my cars previously. Every time I had to solder some more, I procrastinated because they're such a royal pain in the ass. Begone, Deans!

[Dusted]

I got the EC3 connectors. The more I looked at the Deans the more nervous i got about them shorting out. Thank you for all the great info