New CC BEC on 6s Trex 600. Any thoughts?

[RobertAbles]

Anyone tried the new Castle 10 amp bec to eliminate the flight pack and regulator?

It is good to 6s and output is programmable up to 9v...

Seems like this would be a pretty good weight loss....

Also, it is only 22 bux!

[Flybar-less]

It works.

[RobertAbles]

I think that wiring in 2 deans connectors on each pack would eliminate the possibility of spooling it up on the work bench.

You would plug in the bec and the esc separately...

This would be much safer I think...

[Anubis328]

Does it get all kinds of hot or something? It says it's expecting 5mph airflow around it.

[RobertAbles]

RJohn just put one on, so he is our guinea pig...

I would think as long as it is NOT under the canopy the air flow will be o.k. His is mounted on the outside of the frame below the motor area... Should stay cool there..

In all reality we are pulling less than 1 amp from the electronics anyway...

Let us know the outcome form test flying John!

[Flybar-less]

It gets a little warm with 8717s but seems to work well. Had to look for stuff to remove and relocate forward due to the loss in weight. I agree not having a seperate supply is an inconvenience for setup, but mine is already setup, just charge and fly. Gave me an excuse to install Quick UKs Uberclamp.

[Anubis328]

I had a question about this also...

Peak: 10 amps
Continuous:
<12 volts input = 7 amps*
<24 volts input = 5 amps**Ratings are determined with a 5mph airflow on the BEC. Servo connectors are not rated for current in excess of 5 amps. Users are encouraged to replace the connectors if more than 5 amp currents are anticipated.

Does this mean on a 6s setup, that you're only getting a 5a bec?

[StatiC]

Yea. 5amp continuous and 10amp max burst for 6s which seems strange to me because I thought switching BECs were not really affected by increases in voltage. Everyone will have different servo draw but my system during flight pulls around 2.42A max and .9A Average during soft 3d maneuvers. I am still using the optional Align 6A regulator. I have yet to install the CC BEC that I bought a few weeks ago.

See my post here:
https://www.helifreak.com/showthread.php?t=47735

I am using DS8717 servos on cyclic and DS8900G on the tail.

[Duke600]

I just installed one myself I will see how it performs tomorrow. I used a set of deans so I can unplug it from the ESC so it will not spool up on me when I am working on it.

[Pinecone]

The way I install extrenal BECs is to wire in a Micro Deans. That way I can disconnect the external BEC and power it off a small lipo pack with not worry about the motor spooling up.

I just tried a CC BEC on my Hurricane 550 and the one I got was DOA. It put out enought power to blink the light on the 401, but the servos didn't budge or make any noise. No Rx signal either.

[rick m]

i just bought the castle bec last week have flown 5 flights so far no problems setup is align xl motor, 75amp speedy, 6cell 6400 kokam lipo mounted on tray under canopy runs cool. servos are 3050 futaba digitals & 401 combo on tail . bec is programed to 6 volts.

[Flybar-less]

I made three flights today with the CC BEC. The forth time I plugged in to go and the CC BEC went up in smoke and killed two of my 8717s.

[Pinecone]

I noticed on filling out the return form, that for the CC BEC and Caslte Link you have to call before sending it in. I will be calling today.

[StatiC]

Originally Posted by RJohn

I made three flights today with the CC BEC. The forth time I plugged in to go and the CC BEC went up in smoke and killed two of my 8717s.

Ouch. Those are too nice of servos to be ruined like that. I am curious what voltage level you programmed the CC BEC for and how many cells you are running. Not that I expect that was an issue because rumor has it that the DS8717 servos can handle very high voltages unofficially.

I bought the CC BEC a few weeks ago and I am now considering sticking with my Align 6A regulator(they call it a BEC). I can't afford something like that happening to my 600 right now. My heli balances perfectly as it is now anyway with the rx battery and the airthunder battery. If it ain't broke... don't fix it I guess.

Anyone else have any problems with the CC BEC?

[Flybar-less]

6 Volts, fortunately my tail has an Emcotec 5.2v regulator on it. The BEC seemed to go into an oscilation causing the servos to rapidly travel. Spektrum reciever seems OK. Perhaps the onrush-current protection is inadequate for 6S.

[kgfly]

There have been problems reported using the CC BEC with Spektrum Rx if it is plugged into the BAT connector (which is the logical place). Apparently the circuitry on the BEC to support the CasteLink interface pulls the signal pin low and can put the Rx into Bind mode. If you want to use the BAT port perhaps use a short servo extension between the BEC and the Rx with the Signal wire removed.

[Flybar-less]

No signal wire.

[StatiC]

Thanks for the information. I have a spektrum and had no idea about this problem. Looks like not a big deal as it is easily worked around. It surely would have frustrated me if I didn't know about it.

RJohn, let us know what CC says about your BEC when they get a chance to look at it.

[Big Fil]

Originally Posted by Pinecone

The way I install extrenal BECs is to wire in a Micro Deans. That way I can disconnect the external BEC and power it off a small lipo pack with not worry about the motor spooling up.

That's exactly how I wire mine which works out well.

On another note i've been running the Medusa BEC on my bird since summer with Spektrum and it has performed well. My dad also put the Western Digital 5A BEC on his which has also performed just as transparent. For the price I see why people have been going with the CC but it doesn't leave you any growing room if you go higher cell count.

[StatiC]

Originally Posted by Big Fil

My dad also put the Western Digital 5A BEC on his which has also performed just as transparent. For the price I see why people have been going with the CC but it doesn't leave you any growing room if you go higher cell count.

The reason I went with the CC BEC besides the obvious price is because based on specs the CC BEC can handle more amps and it's programmable voltage all the way up to 9v (I was thinking about going 8v at the time of purchase). Since I bought some pretty beefy servos I wanted something with more amps just as an extra feel good thing. I don't plan on going over 6s anytime in the foreseeable future so that is not an issue for me personally.

Heck... I bought the CC 125 for extra amperage safety factor too which is way overkill even if I upgrade to a neu motor. The cost wasn't that much more to over spec a few electronic parts on my heli and it didn't add much weight so I did it knowing I won't ever have an amp issue with the over speced components(unless I get a dud of course .

I wonder how closely all the companies rate their devices. Some might overspec and some might underspec and some might be in the middle somewhere. Short of someone testing all the BECs for amp draw until they fail I don't know if I will ever know for sure which BEC (or ESC) can take amps better than another. The CC BEC stating that the rated current is for a 5mph wind over the BEC didn't make me feel to comfortable though because don't know for sure how fast the wind blows down the side of the heli. I wonder what the Western Digital would be rated at with the same wind blowing across it.