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HubSink motor cooling fins

Started by MagnumPA, April 05, 2022, 10:09:38 AM

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MagnumPA

Anyone here try these, or even know if they would fit on Rad bikes?  I'm not sure what style/size motor is used on the Rad Runner Plus.  Seems like they might be helpful climbing hills while carrying passengers.  What is a bigger cause of Ebike death, motor overheating or controller overheating?  I got a whiff of hot plastic smell while going up a hill the other day, and I remembered seeing this a while ago.

https://hubsink.com/

JimInPT

#1
Unless your motor runs quite hot for a fairly long period of time, it might take so long to heat up this heatsink enough to be effective that by the time it is, your motor is already cooling off.  I don't doubt their testing, but was it "real world" realistic?  Heat transfer was one of my engineering specialties and so I can sort of "see" heat move; fins work great, but they're not terribly effective until they've had a chance to warm up - the thinner (but more fragile), the better for fast response.

The motor and controller are mostly metal, so if you were smelling hot plastic, check your cable connectors to make sure they're fully seated and protected from moisture.

But frankly, on a Runner there's something I'd worry about more.  I have a MiniST2 with the same size wheel, and it's very difficult for me to attach my floor-standing hand pump to the rear valve stem as it is - the flip lever keeps wanting to hit the motor case before it reaches full extension.  With those fins on the motor it would be impossible for me to attach my pump to the rear tire.  Other pumps with different fittings may work better and of course the bigger Rover and City wheels don't have this problem.

Shucks Ma'am, I'm no "Hero Member", I just like to wear this cape.

Eric7

When my bike was new, less than 50 miles.  I smelled some burning.  But I have not smelled it and my bike is at 200 miles.  So sometimes it is just an initial thing.

I agree that the effectiveness of the heat sink will depend on how quickly it can soak up the heat in the wires. Might not work.

Altema

They do work well on direct drive motors, but most Rad motors are gear reduction, with a large air gap that inhibits heat passing from the windings to the motor casing.

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