I was tempted to put this in the esc settings thread, but most of the information there is related to the Castle Phoenix series of controllers.

I have been experimenting with various settings on the rather basic Turnigy Trust esc I am using in concert with a KR timer and Eflite 32. This week I discovered that changing from the default "auto" motor timing setting to the "medium" setting had two very positive effects: 1. power under load increased (acceleration from corners is noticeably better) and 2. lower power consumption 2100 mah in 10mph wind with the "auto" setting decreased to 1975mah in absolute calm (It has actually been calm in N Texas the past couple days.). Both the esc and the motor are cooler at the end of a flight with the new settings, suggesting that less power is lost to heat...and a better match between timing and the dynamics of the rest of the power train.

I am not sure that I understand what is going on here, but I suspect it may be the nature of the motor run resulting from the governor and the relatively low typical load upon the motor. Though my previous experience with motor timing contrasts with this finding, it is what it is. I have no idea how many degrees of advance the "auto" "medium" and "high" settings in the Turnigy Trust esc represent, but it is apparent that my setup doesn't like the "auto" setting as well as the "medium" setting. The "high" setting produced more or less predictable results: more heat and more energy consumption (2300 mah). Your mileage may vary.

Bob

Speaking as a design engineer, this is the sort of product feature that marketing people cheer over, product designers dread, and good customers avoid like the plague.

There are some "auto tune" controllers out there in the process control industries; they have a similar reputation (except that the smart money knows that you can auto-tune to get in the ballpark, then start tweaking the numbers from there).

Jeff,

You can reset the timing in either of two ways: 1 (the way I do it) is to use the programming card Turnigy sells for the esc. It is very easy to use and you can set (or reset) any or all of the various adjustable parameters by simply plugging the card in as if it were the receiver (or timer) and powering it up. It uses jumpers and is very simple to set up and use. Method 2 is a pain in the neck and the reason I bought the programming card. Unless you already have one, you will have to borrow an RC tx and rx from someone and use the method explained in the instructions that came with the controller. I spent an entire morning sorting out the instructions and trying to make sense of the musical notations that comprise most of the manual. I did finally sort it out, but it wasn't my idea of fun. Once set, it will retain the new setting(s) until you change it (them). I think the programmer cost about 10 bucks and should be available from HobbyKing's USA warehouse.

Bob

My programming card took the SLOW boat but now that it is here it was well worth the wait.Switching the timing to the medium setting sure made a different animal out of the ship.Robert,Thanx for sharing the info.It makes an inexpensive E system that performs well plug&play even better.


   If you are using A KR timer and Turnigy Trust ESC try this out,You'll be glad you did.

Regarding the brake function....It seems that different folks need different strokes. I prefer the brake function on.

Bob