A Power Functions Beginner; General RC Vehicle Questions?

[The Deleter]

Building your own model is the dream of any kid who looks at Lego and just imagines. Building your own working replica of a vehicle with features and functions, that's the dream of those a little more immersed in the medium overall. But building a working replica of vehicles with features and functions that are all fully operational and driven via radio control? Now that is the dream of the truly hardcore. although really that's only how it feels on my end please don't kill me EB

I've always wanted to build RC vehicles out of Lego as early as I can remember getting my hands on it. Problem was most of the time early on, Lego's endeavors into the remote controlled either were highly restricted, such as when the sets just came with dedicated chassis and parts (8675), or too weak, such as with the Twin X-treme set. Mindstorms miight have been an option, but it always seemed a little too vague and techie to use for purely RC purposes.

So when Power Functions finally rolled around, it seemed like the next best thing and a fantasy waiting to become a reality. And now that I have the money to actually get enough for me (and anyone else in my family who wants to make one; LEGO RC RACING, YEA) to fully motorize vehicles as large as I want, I'm ready to jump headfirst into this area. A liiiiitle bit deterred by the fact that an official, fully RC technic set might already do a better job than I ever could when it comes out, but I still want to see what I can make with what I got as is, especially with my own ideas for vehicles and body types. I already tried building one from the ground up with what I have already, and I was super impressed with what came out of it, so I can't wait to give it my all once I get enough for anything.

That said, I have a few questions I wouldn't mind knowing the answers to before I do jump headfirst into buying $180 worth of Power Functions...

1: What is the safest speed for beams and axles, maximum?

Back when I first got a large technic set as a kid, I used to fantasize about making the coolest, and fastest RC car possible when I had the parts. Now, however, I notice in my simple 42009 set, the axles seem to be grinding slowly away at the beams in it's gearbox, as small bits of yellow dust were coming off onto the black axles when I took it apart. Now I'm a little more concerned than eager to get all the speed out of a vehicle as possible. So does anyone have any experience with such things, and have any good tips to minimize the damage and the like?

2: What amount of motors can be used on a single S Brick before losing current, and thus torque and speed?

By researching and observing PF overall I've found that speed-controlled receivers are a generally better option than on-off controllers, but also that the PF speed controller stinks, as does IR controllers for vehicles. So in the end, I found the S Brick, and I've decided it'll be the best option to go with in the long run.

However, I'm a little confused as to why it has four ports instead of the two the usual IR receivers have. Isn't the maximum amount of motors for a battery box 4 m-motors, 2 XL-motors, and the L motors somewhere in between? Does the S Brick allow more by allowing a higher amount of current going through it than the old IR receiver did, or does it hook up to 2 or more battery boxes for the power? Or is it just the same, with all those ports made for the sake of m motors only?

3: Is there any merit to the RC buggy motor?

I've compared all I can find on the PF motors and figured the ideal amount I'll need for my creations, but I keep seeing this motor pop up in "fastest" or "most powerful lego rc" vehicles on youtube. I can't find much on this motor, but apparently it has a clutch-gear inside of it, and requires a single PF battery box all on it's own? How does this motor compare to the PF motors, and can it be replicated/eclipsed with the normal PF motors, or is it worth checking out for merits only it has as an RC motor?

4: What's all this about a Power Functions 2.0 line?

As I said in the Porsche thread I was rearing to hop into the Power Functions scene fully as soon as possible now, but I kept hearing murmurs in the thread about the possibility of some Power Functions 2.0 parts possibly being used for the set. Obviously this is speculation for that set as-is, but do we know anything about a PF 2.0 line that might come out any time soon? I'd hate to jump right into PF headfirst out of enthusiasm, only to find that newer, better parts are on sale shorty after, with the possibility of the entire system not even being compatible with the previous parts.

I might have a few more questions later about other potential issues, such as whether it's wise to combine two different types of motors for the sake of getting increased speed and torque right out of the gate, but for now this is all I want to know before I confirm any sort of purchase. If you can answer any of these, thanks in advance!

[Vectormatic]

1) Generally speaking, you wont quickly wear out any axles etc.. if you stick to normal PF stuff, and dont daisychain a whole lot of engines together all through a single axle. The easiest way to keep things "safe" and fast is to keep your vehicle relatively light, as that will require less torque/strain on axles/bearings.

3) buggy motors are the highest performance motors we have at our disposal, and for really quick builds are pretty much a must, they eat a lot of current though, so be prepared to supply that. Also, the buggy motor has two differently geared outputs, meaning you can generally use them without having to put much gearing/axles between motor and wheel, reducing the amount of parts which might get damaged by too much load.

[Kelkschiz]

2) Depends a lot on the type of motors you use. However the weak-link is the power-supply. LEGO power-supplies have a resistor that cuts the circuit when a certain amount of current is surpassed. And I have noticed some differences between individual power-supplies. However more than 3-4 XL motors or 2 Buggy motors will likely get mixed results.

4) What I heard so far about PF 2.0 doesn't sound promising. It sounds like PF 2.0 will be less powerful. If that is true most of us will likely want to be using the current system over the new system. A bit like how many of us wish the Buggy motor was still sold...

Edited January 28, 2016 by Kelkschiz