When I first converted my EV, I got my motor from Bob Batson. He was
definitely steered me towards the older, simpler designs.
He was a pleasure to deal with but we weren't quite on the same page about
performance.
I ended up with an auburn kodiak controller and SCS-225 batteries. The
batteries were a nightmare and the silly combination posts were tough to get a
good connection to. A few of them ended up melting and having to be recast.
It was a good starter pack for me though because as a lot of new EVers do, I
destroyed it in a pretty short time.
I do agree, many New Englanders are a bit baffled by EVs. More so when I first
converted the car in the 90's. All of the auto parts places around thought I
was nuts and getting it inspected was always a hoot. The NAPA store guys down
the road liked to reminisce about James Worden coming in a buying stuff and the
crazy things he was doing. I think this was before solectria, when he was
working on solar vehicles.
So, we've had some cutting edge stuff going around here, it just seems to be
mostly at MIT and the like.
-Jeremy
On Apr 12, 2013, at 12:48 AM, Lee Hart <leeah...@earthlink.net> wrote:
> On 4/11/2013 10:48 PM, Ben Apollonio wrote:
>> Seriously, how come everyone out here in the northeast builds
>> curtis-controlled lead sleds?
>
> Maybe because of pioneers like Bob Batson and Bob Rice? They are/were old
> hands at working with older simpler designs.
>
> Money may also be a factor. The west coast guys I've met have all been
> willing/able to spend a lot more cash on their EVs than the midwest or east
> coast folks.
>
> Another factor is harder to quantify. The west coast seems to be much more
> "open" to the idea of EVs than the rest of the country. When I worked out
> there, it was common for folks to say, "You're building an EV? How
> interesting! Go for it!" But out east, and in the midwest, the comment is
> more likely to be, "You're building an EV? What a stupid idea! Give up; it'll
> never work!" So, it may be that it's hard to get "psyched up" to put a lot of
> time and money into a fast EV when you get less reinforcement or appreciation
> from those around you.
>
>> As to your little mystery, my 914 does something similar: whenever I
>> pass through a certain current range, the wind shield wipers go off!
>> I thought it went away when I swapped out my T-Rex for a Zilla (after
>> the former exploded), but it came back this spring whens I made some
>> changes. Someday I'll have time to fix it...
>
> Recognize that an EV's power system is controlling a huge amount of power!
> The controller is doing hard on/off switching, the motor has arcing brushes,
> and the high power wiring is often spread out in the open and even bundled
> right next to low-power 12v wiring. It is very easy for noise from the
> propulsion system to get into the 12v system. The car's designers wouldn't
> have taken that into account.
>
> Bundle your propulsion wires into pairs that are kept close together. Put the
> batteries in a grounded metal box. Ground the outer metal case of the motor
> and controller. Don't run 12v wires right next to high voltage, or run them
> through the same holes.
>
> --
> For every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, obvious,
> and wrong. -- H.L. Mencken
> --
> Lee A. Hart, http://www.sunrise-ev.com/LeesEVs.htm
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