Clod Buster 5400KV motor?

[DoubleDareLover]

So I have a Clod thats got a CPE aluminum chassis and great shocks and 2 Hobbywing EZrun MAX10 ESC's with 4000kv motors. The hobbywing ESC's are soldered together for 1 battery. Right now I am using a 2s Lipo. Could I change to 5400KV motors for extra top speed or would I have to change the pinion? If I have to change the pinion how would it mesh with the other gears? Would a 5400kv motor put a lot more stress on my clod than a 4000kv? Or will I be fine? WIll the motors and esc's heat up faster with a 5400kv motor? Thanks for your help guys!

[GoMachV]

Honestly I think you would be cheaper and just as well off to use a 3s battery since the esc are rated for it.

Pinions don’t need to change necessarily but a pinion change might get you the speed you want. Think of it like a car, you currently have a hot rod engine but you’re in second gear. You put a taller pinion on it and you’re stuck in third. That means you’re taking off in third too, so it’s slower acceleration up to a higher top speed. Now, would you want to replace the engine to make it faster while staying in second gear, or would you rather just go with the one you have and third gear. In my opinion these would be my choices:
1) adjustable motor mounts and taller pinions
See how it goes. You’ll want them anyway in case you do a…..
2) 3s battery. This will light a fire under it. If it’s not enough….
3) change motors.

[DoubleDareLover]

So how do I do adjustable motor mounts? I don't know how to work on these things well. I had my hobbyshop do my upgrades but they went out of business. Will a 3s destroy my gearbox with the 4000kv motors already in it? Or should I change to 3300kv motors and 3s?
BTW I have an aftermarket steering servo mount with a great servo and the rear is locked out.

[DoubleDareLover]

With the stock pinion and a 5400kv motor would it be like 2nd or 3rd gear like you mentioned? What about with the 3s and the 4000kv motors. And what about the 3s and 3300kv motors? 2nd or 3rd gear? What combo will heat up the fastest as well?

[Elkcycles]

I would avoid 3s and 5400kv. The Clod's gearboxes won't like that too much without modification. I would forsee some broken steering knuckles in your future. You should be ok with 3s and 4000kv.

Adjustable motor.mounts from CPE:
https://teamcpe.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2251

[DoubleDareLover]

How do the adjustable motor mounts work on the clod? What is the clods stock pinion? Will a smaller pinion cause more heat or will a bigger pinion cause more heat? Will a smaller pinion give more torque or more top end than a bigger pinion? How fast would the stock silver cans do with a 3s battery? How much faster will my 4000kv motors be than the silver cans? Will the brushed silver cans even work with my brushless esc's?

[DoubleDareLover]

Will the adjustable motor mounts be easily installed by a hobbyshop? With a different pinion than it has in it right now? What size pinion do I want for mostly top end with my 4000kv motors with a 3s battery? Higher torque will be harder on the gear box than higher top speed right? Will higher torque add more heat or higher top end add more heat? Thanks so much guys!

[DoubleDareLover]

WHat do the long screws do with the adjustable motor mounts?

[DoubleDareLover]

Is it true or false that a higher KV motor needs a smaller pinion? Would a 32pitch 16T pinion be good for a 4000kv or 5400kv motor front and back? Also would it be better to run a faster motor in the rear than in the front? 5400kv back and 4000kv in front?

[DoubleDareLover]

What would be easier on the gear box? 3s lipo with 4000kv or 2s lipo with 5400kv?

[andymac0035]

As stated above, a swap to 3S would give the speed you want. Keep in mind, it's still a clodbuster, and won't deal with hard hits well.

You can get good performance out of one, but two things are mandatory:

-You need to be (or get) really good at handling/driving it (to deal with the extra speed and power).
-You need to get your skills up in regards to working and tinkering on it.

Building a clod is all about balance, take your time and you'll get there.

[DoubleDareLover]

Thanks Andy! I would say I am a good driver. And my Clod is far from stock. I have a CPE chassis, awesome shocks, a super strong steering servo hooked up up front and the rear steering locked out. Among many other things.

[Steve71]

As suggest above, 3s and an adjustable motor mount is a real good place to start. You will see a nice bump of speed with 3s. Far as the 5400kv and 3s...as Elkcycles mentioned, that is going to start stressing the gearboxes unless you are REALLY careful with the throttle. On my Clod I built I have dual Castle 5700kv and 3s smc lipo and it is an absolute handful to drive. And is very hard on parts, especially gear cases/gears. I've upgraded my gear cases with TTR straight axles in the rear, TTR cvd's in the front, Hesse axle tubes, metal spur and counter gears, and even with all that if I land on power or am too abrupt with the acceleration too often then I end up breaking things.

Here's a short vid of mine to show you how much of a handful that combo can be. It's hard to keep the wheels on the ground and if you grab too much throttle it will do a standing backflip, which is not always a good thing . The top end is really almost unusable as well. In the vid I don't even give it full top speed, mainly because it gets a bit squirrely when you take a monster truck up over 40mph.

[DoubleDareLover]

Wow that is super fast! Thanks for the video!