Connectors

lobstermash

Propaganda machine
Mentor
I've been sticking with Deans for a while now, diligently soldering new connectors on to batteries if they've got something else. I liked that they are very compact and not too hard to disconnect.

I've finally converted to XT60 now however, as I'm sick of soldering new connectors. I've decided it's too hard. So here's what I think:

XT60 are very easy to solder - much like a standard connector. And they don't need much heatshrink (I'm always running out!!!). One tip though, when soldering male XT60 connectors on, always insert the female in for the soldering job. I've had the connector move before due to soldering temps, and it's very hard to get back into place. XT60 are also a bit harder to pull apart. I find this a bit annoying and I reckon my wife or my kids would have a lot of trouble with it, especially with the newer ones.

What do other people reckon? Deans, XT60 or something else?
 

fred0000

Senior Member
whatever you prefer, any high amp connector will be just fine. I usualy recomend what is common at your race track or flying field.
deans is most common around here, and my preffered connector (I use the hobbyking ones, fully compatible with deans and other knock off t-connectors)
 

Burg

Never catch a multirotor
Lobstermash, I share your thoughts exactly! Since I learned that trick with the oposite XT60 some time ago, I never had any soldering problems with them. They are sometimes diff to pull apart, but I had a few times (with combat) that my lipo was wrecked out of the wing and it didn't fall down .. at least not faster then the remaining foam :cool:

I tried these (3.5mm and 4.0mm), as they come with the larger capacity nanotech lipo's.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/...mm_Gold_Connector_w_Protector_10pcs_set_.html
But you need pliers to pull these apart !!
Wrong choice ...

Mark.
 

jetpackninja

More combat please...
Mentor
Hey Lobster-

I've done the same mostly because I standardized on the xt60 when I was buying the zippys
I not only plug the female connector on(when soldering), I use one that still has the wire leads on (cut off a dead battery)
The leads act like a heat sink. Try it you'll like it ;)

Look at the pins inside the male connector. To make them easier to pull apart you can smash them together a little.
If you smash too much (too easy to pull apart) you can just stick something into it and open it back up a little.
Doing this let's you "tune" how tight they are.
I do this because I have arthritis in my hands that makes it hard to pull them apart and also it takes so much force sometimes that I am afraid that I may slip and rip the wires out.
 

colorex

Rotor Riot!
Mentor
Look at the pins inside the male connector. To make them easier to pull apart you can smash them together a little.
If you smash too much (too easy to pull apart) you can just stick something into it and open it back up a little.
Doing this let's you "tune" how tight they are.
I do this because I have arthritis in my hands that makes it hard to pull them apart and also it takes so much force sometimes that I am afraid that I may slip and rip the wires out.

I was going to suggest this too. I had the same problem and thankfully someone on this forum showed me the way, now my connectors are just fine :)
 

lobstermash

Propaganda machine
Mentor
Thanks guys. I'll definitely try the wires on the female for a heatsink! Great idea. And 'tuning' is in order to make them easier to disconnect. I was going to make up an adaptor for Deans but I didn't order enough connectors!
 

Newtown

Junior Member
PROBABLY TMI:
Using the FliteTest recommended electronic components list for Swappables plus connectors recommended and provided by my local hobby shop, I currently have a JST female connector with an 18 gauge pigtail that I soldered to my 18 amp ESC (which has 16 gauge wire leads). I soldered JST male connectors with pigtails to two 500 mAh 2S batteries so I could use them with the FliteTest Swappables. They seem to be working fine.

This last Saturday, while I was building a Delta and starting work on another Power Pod, my son Neil (16) built the Baby Blender Speed Build all by himself. (I’m quite proud of him. He just built the Nutball last month. His first Swappable Speed Build.) We already bought a Cruiser Speed Build that we'll put together after we get comfortable flying the Swappables we already have.

The Baby Blender recommendations list “1300 mAH 20C 3s to 2200 mAH 3s.” As it happens, I already have a few batteries in that range that we got to use on a 3D plane and a Parkzone T-28. The Chrome 1300 mAh 3s 35C battery currently has a Female Deans connector on it. My two 2200 mAh 3s 25-35C Turnigy batteries have XT-60 Male connectors that I was planning to change to EC3 Male connectors so we could use them on the Parkzone T-28. Now I’d like to use them (also?) on the Baby Blender.

WHAT CONNECTOR WOULD YOU RECOMMEND?
All of these different connectors are overwhelming me. Obviously, I’d like to somehow standardize my connectors, at least somewhat. Originally I was going to use EC3s since, up to now, we’ve been flying a lot of Parkzones. But JSTs seem to be popular with small foamies. Deans and XT-60s seem to be popular with larger electrical systems (see other postings in this forum). Should I use JSTs, Deans, ESC3s or XT-60s? Would it be easiest to just get a few adapters (from cheapbatterypacks.com or HobbyKing as suggested above)? Even then, which ones? I get that it's primarily a matter of personal preference but are there any guidelines or "rules of thumb"? A JST on a 2200 mAhm battery or a Deans on a small 500 mAh battery just doesn't seem right.

WHAT GAUGE WIRE SHOULD I USE WITH MY BATTERIES AND ESCs?
The existing wire gauges are also completely different. The wires on the 2200 mAh batteries are 12 gauge. The wires on the 1300 mAh battery are 16 gauge. Soldering the 18 gauge pigtails on JST connectors to the 16 gauge wires on the ESC and batteries was one thing. Soldering JST connectors with 18 gauge pigtails to batteries with 12 gauge wires just looks all wrong if not dangerous. What do you think?
 
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lobstermash

Propaganda machine
Mentor
JSTs are popular. However I don't trust them for anything over 10A. If you're using 3s on those little 24g motors, you're probably going to be close to that mark. I use XT60s now across the board, because that means I don't have to change the connector when I buy new batteries. I like the way they connect and ease of soldering, but I don't like their bulk. Deans are compact, but harder to solder and the connection's not as 'clean'. I wish there was an XT30 or something, that was more compact and suited the majority of parkfliers that rarely pull more than 20A...

My philosophy on wires is that they should never be thinner than the motor wires. Think of them like pipes rather than wires. If you stuff a large volume of water into a small pipe, it'll slow the flow and possibly burst.
 

Newtown

Junior Member
My philosophy on wires is that they should never be thinner than the motor wires. Think of them like pipes rather than wires. If you stuff a large volume of water into a small pipe, it'll slow the flow and possibly burst.

Thanks so much for sharing your opinion and info regarding wires. The "pipeline" analogy and focus on amps will help. It sounds like as long as the wire sizes are close (within a couple gauges such as 18 to 20) things will probably be okay. BUT I see I am going to have to resurrect my old physics equations (watts = volts x amps, volts = amps x ohms) and THINK about what I'm doing. Thanks again.
 

lobstermash

Propaganda machine
Mentor
Yeah, it's unlikely you're going to use the full capacity of the wires, so if the guages are close you should be OK. There's a bit of margin for error. Which is good, because the quality of the wires themselves varies too.
 

JimCR120

Got Lobstah?
Site Moderator
I initially got into EC3's because things we were buying came with them and it seemed like a good enough connector. Then for whatever reason our purchases came with XT60's on them which seemed close enough that I switched just to not have to undo the Zippy's we were getting.

The pins on each are identical but I like soldering the EC3's more as I can just solder the sockets and then insert them into the plastic casing. When soldering XT60's I found myself overheating and warping the alignment as has been posted. I too found the use of connecting it as a heat sink/alignment hold useful.

I think you can even cross connect between the two, at least one way.
 
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Montiey

Master Tinkerer
I have all EC3 stuff, but I have a master plan to convert to XT60. First, why? I think XT60 may be the "superior connector" (Quote, Peter). I also want these connectors simply because hobbyking puts XT60 on ALL of their stuff. Heres my plan: Any new ESCs or non-battery components- Use XT60. This will cleverly still allow the connection of EC3 batteries. Then in a couple months or years when all my ESCs have XT60s, start buying batteries with XT60 connectors.
This will slowly change the connector type, but also ensure that everything is still compatible.

XT60 "ESC" side connectors can connect with: EC3 and XT60 Batteries
EC3 "ESC" side connectors can connect with: EC3 Batteries
 

KRAR

Member
I use Deans on EVERYTHING. I have a 160 amp esc with deans on them... They are more difficult to solder yes, but I like the style more and I like the overall idea of the connector, two solid chucks of copper pushed together...
 

JLT_GTI

Member
I began with Deans and finally i converted to XT60s.. and never regretted it even a bit..


way easier to solder, way easier to plug and unplug.. compatible with 3.5mm bullet connectors , more secure contact and safer

also way harder to melt while soldering when things go wrong
 

KRAR

Member
I use deans on everything... Including a 200 amp esc in one of my heli's. I highly recommend not using the knockoff's for something that powerful and stick to deans ultra (3s 1000 mah - 12s 5000mah). I then use JST on smaller foamies(3s 450 mah).

Rule of thumb... use whatever connector you want and like, make sure however that the connector you are using is rated for the job. ie deans on a 3s 450mah will work but over kill... JST on a 3s 2250 mah will just melt apart.

as for wire gauges both the battery and esc should have a wire already on it. so just a matter of choosing a connector. In your case a 2200 with 12 gauge wire I would not be using a JST, it will just melt..... JST is maybe 5 amps max...
 

BoustropheDon

Junior Member
I have all EC3 stuff, but I have a master plan to convert to XT60. First, why? I think XT60 may be the "superior connector" (Quote, Peter). I also want these connectors simply because hobbyking puts XT60 on ALL of their stuff. Heres my plan: Any new ESCs or non-battery components- Use XT60. This will cleverly still allow the connection of EC3 batteries. Then in a couple months or years when all my ESCs have XT60s, start buying batteries with XT60 connectors.
This will slowly change the connector type, but also ensure that everything is still compatible.

XT60 "ESC" side connectors can connect with: EC3 and XT60 Batteries
EC3 "ESC" side connectors can connect with: EC3 Batteries

Sadly not true, just bought batteries and a charger from Hobbyking, guess what? The charger has leads with just about every connector I had ever seen but not XT60, the batteries have XT60 plugs.

Not chuffed.
 

Balu

Lurker
Staff member
Admin
Moderator
As Peter once said, never use adapter cables with a lot of "blind ends" when charging a LiPo. The chance of one of the unused ends being shortened by anything metal on your working area is way to high.