how much spark should there be when connected to batteries?

[h00vy]

I have 2s batteries, and when I connect the second battery, it sparks a decent amount. Is that normal?
Also, the on / off switch is very finicky. When I power it off, most times it stays powered up for quite a while. Why is that? Are the speed controllers super sensitive to moisture?

 

[Jam Racing 1]

You should not be getting any sparking when plugging in batteries, well unless the switch is still on anyway..... sounds as though your on off switch is having a problem, as for moisture some of the early XS models were not moisture resistant, what model is the speed control??

 

[h00vy]

For reference, it's a model # 104240. One of the later models.
There clearly seems to be a problem with the switch / ESC. Yesterday it was working half the time, but last night, I was working on it, and the ESC seemed to have died on me. I noticed earlier that sometimes when I turned it off, the ESC stayed powered up for an unknown amount of time. When that would happen, I simply set it up on a box to get wheels off the ground. But now, with switch on or off, it sparks when batteries connected, the fan may or may not run, and the lights may come on, sometimes not, but mostly they are very dim. I don't know what is going on.
I wonder if this is related to my previous problem, where intermittently, all four wheels would absolutely lock up on me while driving at lower speeds. It seemed like something was being jammed in the gears, but both diffs are fine, and the gearbox gears are fine (I opened it up last night to have a look see)
What's the best way to troubleshoot the ESC or a switch issue?

 

[X]

Sounds like the ESC has issues. Only way to isolate it is to grab another ESC and swap it in. I've never seen a schematic for those ESC, so I'm not sure if they are out there for the public to see. Switches are easy, take a multimeter to the wire on either side of the switch. With the switch closed it should be short, with the switch open it should read open or "OL". I highly doubt you have a switch issue though.

Also, as to the waterproof thing, no electronics...even if they say waterproof are waterproof. That being said, your ESC has been subbed to a newer version that is claimed to be waterproof (yours was not).
http://hpiracing.world/en/part/113126

 

[h00vy]

I noticed the Mamba Max 2 claims to be water proof (but not submerged & fan must be removed) Also I noticed that the Mamba Max 2 is a LOT cheaper then the original HPI unit! I'm gonna do some testing and also talk to the hobby shop about it, to see if they have any info. I bought it lightly used, and I only have 10 minutes run time on it yet (just enough to really want to run it!)

On a slightly different note, I saw a kit to move the ESC behind the motor on the XL conversion. I would love to do that for lower CG and hopefully better protection. Any suggestions where to find something like that? All the kits I found were back in 2011 or so, and are no longer available. I suppose I could make something if need be, but generally parts are so cheap (if they're available)

 

[h00vy]

Just an update if anyone cares, the ESC was bad. I replaced it with a Mamba Max 2. That took care of most of my problems. It still sparks a little when battery is plugged in, but not as much, and no more finicky behavior with the on/off switch.

 

[Jelle318]

Castle's switches have always been dodgy. I just cut it, then solder the -/+ wires together. When I plug in the batteries I do get a small spark.