Introduction
Running a fast electric can impose high loading on electric motors.

Picking the right motor for your needs and the equipment you have could save you hundreds of dollars and/or many hours of maintenance.

Fastelectrics annual review of motor costs sets out to establish the real costs of buying and owning electric motors for racing or heavy sport use.

This year has seen the widespread introduction of less costly high performance brushless motors at the top and lower price ranges and price falls for brushed exotics. New low priced controllers from Hacker JETI MGM and Lightning and RC-Hydros have complimented these

Not surprisingly the winners have changed from 2001. Surprisingly, modifieds can be some of the most expensive packages with costs in excess of topline brushless motors with programmable controllers. The biggest surprise of all may be the best value motor for a novice.

Method
The major part of the review focuses on a person wanting to run a mono or rigger in the N2 (6 cells any motor) class.

Assumptions

• • All motors are used at 10 race meetings ie 30 heats.
• • A 05 user will own a commutator lathe, intends purchasing one or will have a shop do the work
• • A ferrite motor will require new brushes at 6 runs in mono and 3 runs in hydro; and the armature, bearings springs will be replaced during or at the end of the season.
• • A Neo 05 motor was assumed to have ¼ the recurrent costs of a ferrite motor but otherwise costs were equivalent
• • Neo “exotics” would use one set each of brushes and bearings per season
• • Brushless motors would use one set of bearings per season

The findings:
The cheapest N2 motor setup over 12 month is most likely to be a Mega Mini 3 ($119) followed by a modified running a mono direct drive ($105-$130 if shop serviced)

At $185 the MEGA 22/20/… & Jeti brushless controller were calculated to be the cheapest N2 motor /esc over a full seasons running.

Runner-up, if you have a commutator lathe, is a modified/esc/direct combo for N2 mono at $195. If you don’t have a lathe and want a brushed motor/esc combo the Mega Mini 3/esc ($204 for hydro or mono) or a Lightning Neo 540 /esc ($219 for mono and serviced by a shop) rank high on value.

If you want to win regardless of the level of competition and run N2 grab a Lightning Neo (mono only - $218 if you have a lathe - $231 to get it serviced by a shop); or a Hacker 50-L (mono and hydro) and Master Navy 77-3P ($387.10). If you want to go brushless on a budget a Mega 22/20/2 and Master Navy will $245 will make an excellent value package particularly in a mono.

The Hacker brushless setup will set you back $370. However this is less than the cost of running a 05 modified in hydro with a set which includes, motor, gearbox, esc and lathe and parts. This combo topped the cost chart at $304-374

I also had a peek at the higher cell count classes:

8 cell - I am looking at lower maintenance options here. Mega 22/20/…/Jeti - $185; Mega Mini 4 - $204; Lightning Neo at $247 (with shop doing the maintenance); Plettenberg 290/20 at $290; Mega 22/20/… with Master Navy 77-3P - $305; and Hacker B50-L /Master $369.70 The most expensive setup, at $386 per annum, was a modified/gearbox/esc/lathe running in a hydro.

12 cell - Graupner 700BB 8.4v /esc - $122; Mega 22/30/../Jeti - $205; Plettenberg 290/20../Esc - $317; Mega 22/30/..Master controller - $336; and Hacker B50-XL /Master 77-3P – $437. The most expensive setup was a modified/gearbox/lathe running in a hydro, which came in at $535 per annum.

Summary
Picking the right motor and or motor/esc can save you hundreds of dollars.

Brushless motor prices have fallen to such an extent that purchasing ancillaries for a modified may push its cost to near that of a top of the line brushless with a fully programmable controller! If you want a brushed motor there are real savings to be made by selecting a more modern low wear design and having a shop do the maintenance, particularly on motors like the Mega Mini, Lightning Neo and Plettenberg

While total costs are similar the cost structure of motor ownership varies widely. If saving more than $60 is a hassle but being able to fork out $10-15 a month for motor maintenance is not a problem then a modified may be for you.

If you can start saving now for a better motor for next year go for it. Through next season you will enjoy the extra time available for running and the $-savings on maintenance which can go toward an “ultimate” setup.

For a total novice go 700BB 8.4v /Esc – at $140 (with 6 extra cells) this is cheaper than a novices’ next cheapest alternative of a shop serviced ROAR Stock motor $173.

For a more detailed analysis pleas look at: The figures and the charts