Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Land Models / August 2004

Well, the ESC you need depends on how powerful a motor you get. In
general, the fewer turns a motor's wind has(like a 10 turn over a 19
turn, for example), the more power it will put out(hence more speed) &
the higher the amp load it will place on the batteries & ESC. And if
your ESC can't handle that many amps, then it'll either burn up or its
thermal shutdown mode will stopthecar & protect itself from damage(if
your ESC has thermal overload protection, then it would shut itself
down until it cooled off sufficiently, & then it'd work normally
again). Because of that(& the confusion over just how many amps a
motor can pull), most ESC manufacturers now print a "motor limit" on
their packages, basically telling you how powerful a motor that ESC
can handle without a problem. And if someone buys one with a
particular limit & then tries a motor more powerful(say, a 12 turn
motor with an ESC with a posted 15 turn limit), then they're also
voiding the warranty of that ESC by doing so.. And ofcourse, the one
that's right for you will also depend on if you want to just play, or
race, & if you're thinking of both, if you want one that has reverse
or not(but in general, forward-only ESC's can handle more powerful
motors & are more efficient than ones with reverse, & most if not all
racetracks do not allow reverse to be used at all, so that's another
thing to keep in mind).....:)

You need this:

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/models/rc-cars/newbie-guide/

Are you on a budget of any kind? If so you need to choose an ESC based
on how many turns your motors will have. Generally speaking, the less
turns a motor has the more expensive the ESc will be that you will need.

What do you plan to do? Race or just bash? If you are racing, will you
be using modified motors or stock motors?