Can This Motor Be Saved?

VEX V5 Technical Support
#1

V5 Motor pretty much died and I have no idea why. I took out the cartridge and the actual small white gear driving the cartridge won’t turn at all. Took the whole thing apart and didn’t really see any anomalies, although when I tested the motor via the brain (while exposed) the motor produced a burning smell that probably is unhealthy to inhale.

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Although there are visible black marks on the white gear, there is no structural damage to the gear itself; it should be able to drive the cartridge just fine. It does not spin at all when given power from the brain or by hand.
Is it possible to save this motor, or should I just use a new one?

1 Like
#2

almost certainly kaput.
when the problem isn’t in the cartridge, there’s very little you can legally do to salvage motors.

3 Likes
#3

that motor is seized, you won’t be able to save it. the bin or an art project are probably the best place for it now.

1 Like
#4

There could still be usable parts in this motor.

First of all, you can disassemble this motor further. Take a look at the hi-res pictures of V5 motor internals: Pictures of Internals of V5 components [WARNING LOTS OF IMAGES]

You need to unscrew a couple of more small screws and then remove backplate to get access to motor mounting screws. Once you unscrew them you can disconnect the motor from PCB.

There could be several issues with v5 motors - broken brushes (of the brushed internal motor), overheated and burned out h-bridge chip on PCB, or a smart port burned by static electricity.

If the problem is is with the motor and not the PCB, then you can put it in the spare parts bin and later reuse it by swapping out a PCB zapped by ESD.

If you shake the motor and hear a rattling sounds inside it - then there is definitely a mechanical issue with that motor. Take a look here: Broken V5 Motor... Again

You should definitely swap this motor with another working one and see if ether motor or PCB still work.

11 Likes
#5

But note - swapping or modifying any internal components will render the motor illegal for use in VRC.

5 Likes
#6

Well, you let out the magic smoke…of course it won’t work anymore… :upside_down_face:

10 Likes
#7

correct, it would be illegal

but who’s going to know? is it really morally wrong to repair it to its initial condition instead of spending another $40?

1 Like
#8

“Knowingly violating a rule and hoping no one will notice” is not a great strategy, and it could be construed as violating the code of conduct.

4 Likes
#9

One definition on “integrity” is to do what is right even if nobody is watching or you can’t get caught. Loosing one’s reputation for integrity will cost you much more than $40 in the long run.

2 Likes
#10

I think you two are misunderstanding me. I’m not arguing that you should knowingly break the rules, im saying it’s a silly rule in the first place

Modifying motors is unfair, we all agree that that’s wrong. But repairing them to their initial working condition- there’s nothing inherently wrong with that in my eyes, regardless of what the manual says. I’ll still follow that rule, sure- I have enough motors to not have to worry about that- but not everyone does, and I think it’s silly to restrict simple repairs that consequently limit certain teams.

13 Likes
#11

You aren’t giving yourself any competitive advantage, and in my opinion, the spirit of the rule is not for preventing repair, especially when it is replacing a motor with another motor from VRC. Of course, I’m not a GDC member, or even a competitor at this point.

For some teams, $40 is a big amount, and I don’t think any reasonable person would hold it against a team to replace a legal broken motor with a legal motor from another legal v5 motor.

8 Likes