I find it hard to believe that anyone could walk past a hobby shop without at least wanting to have a look, I personally love radio controlled cars, 1:10 Scale RC Cars to be exact. When I first got into remote controlled cars I found that the standard electric motor used in car kits is a silver can called the "Mabuchi 540 RS", "Johnson 540" or just "Silver Can". Regardless of what you call it, this is the same motor they use in stock racing, when you get to the event they will give you a brand new one, this is to ensure that no one has an advantage on the track during RC touring cars races.

Now the above statement is not entirely true as the Mabuchi 540 RS, a.k.a. The "Johnson 540 motor" can be improved significantly. with some minor and race legal tricks. You will need to check if dipping is allowed in your race class, I don't know of any races that don't allow it.

RC Johnson 540 Explained.

When your talking electric RC motors there are two kinds.

1. Rebuild-able
2. Sealed can motors

rebuild-able motors

You will only really start to see these motors when you get to super-stock, you can strip them down and replace certain parts, most importantly you can replace the brushes. The brushes are part of the motor that come into contact with the communicator. When you first get them they are square, some might have a small arc cut into them, regardless you will need to wear the brushes ii to get maximum performance out of your motor. Best method is to use comm drops which you can get at any hobby shop, a few drops of this and the brushes will soften, running the motor for a few minutes in a low voltage before you hot the track will ensure that you get the most out of the motor. I normally use 2 AA batteries which give me about 3 volts. I run this for about 2-3 minutes then give it a break and run it for another 5 minutes.

You can also change the timing for more torque or more top speed, you need to remove the little plastic lip which locks the motor in it's factory settings, then twist the bell end to find the right spot.

Sealed can Motors

These are not rebuild-able, as because you can't change the brushes they are incredibly hard, the mabuchi motor takes much ,longer to wear in, but also has a much longer lifespan than the softer racing brushes found in super-stock motors, nut wait there is a technique that the pros use when racing, it's called dipping.

Mabuchi Dipping Secret

Dipping is the process of submerging your motor under water and running it at a low voltage, I normally use 2 AA batteries which give me about 3 volts. The correct way to do this is to hold the motor by the two wires and submerge the entire thing in a glass of water. The first time I heard this I though "That will never work, the motor will sort out" Well it doesn't and this is the only way to prep a motor for the track. Do not use any spray on oils like Q20 or WD40 as these will burn and high temperatures, and trust me it gets hot in your motor.

I will connect a couple of AA batteries up to the motor and submerge it for about 3-4 minutes, I'll then leave it for a couple on minutes and do it again, using clean water each time as the water will be very dirty after this, each time you do it the water will be a little cleaner at the end.

What this does is this cleans out the motor, but more importantly it shapes the brushes to the comm

The super secret methods

The problem with any motor, doesn't matter if it's a sealed can or a rebuild-able modified monster, is that they are all used in some form of racing, now racers don't give away their winning secrets, but I've observed several different solutions being used on silver cans, the only way you can get this information is to experiment and speak to people at your local hobby shop. Some people have told me they use a little soap in the water, others have commercial products they buy. So as with almost everything in this bobby it just depends who you ask

A few of the super-stock and modified radio controlled motors come with a spec sheet, a lot don't. Even after e-mail the manufacturers of a certain motor I had they didn't give me any specific details, I was looking for the correct gear ratio to start with, but they just wouldn't give it to me. Guess they were also a rc racing team but still I found it a little strange. I don't take this hobby as seriously as a lot of other people for me it's about the passion

This is the only way to do it I'm afraid, you have to go our onto a track and see what works for you, practise, change something and observe the results. If you invest the time you will get results.

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