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How to Put a Fan on an ESC

Putting a cooling fan on your remote control vehicle's Electronic Speed Control, ESC, will help cool its heat sink to prevent overheating. The ESC is an electronic circuit that controls the speed and direction of the vehicle. An ESC is more efficient and smoother than traditional mechanical speed controls, which utilize a resistive coil. Installing a cooling fan will increase the life of your battery pack and reduce the chances of damage from overheating.

Instructions

- 1
  Open your remote control vehicle by unsnapping the body clips and placing the body to the side.
- 2
  Disconnect the battery pack from your vehicle's ESC.
- 3
  Attach the two mounting brackets onto the cooling fan. The plastic brackets shouldn't block any section of the fan opening.
- 4
  Position the fan so that its wires face toward the battery plug and the fan arrow points down toward the heat sink. Affix the mounting tape to the fan brackets and attach them securely to the ESC.
- 5
  Locate the female power connection plug on the ESC and connect it to the cooling fan's power wire. If the ESC doesn't have a female power connection plug, you will need to solder the fan's red and black wires onto their matching battery pack wires. If the vehicle has a Tamiya-style battery plug, use the pin removal tube to first pull the wires out before soldering. Fasten heat shrink tubing to any wires still exposed after you finish soldering.
- 6
  Stick the mounting tape onto the vehicle's chassis and mount the ESC along with the cooling fan onto it. Make sure there's at least a 1/2-inch clearance above the cooling fan.
- 7
  Reconnect the battery pack to the ESC.
- 8
  Place the body on the vehicle, and snap the body clips back on. Your vehicle and its ESC cooling fan are now ready to use.

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