Thread: DC Motor Control

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I need to control the speed of a couple of small wiper type motors, actually power window motors but the same sort of thing.

I don't know squat about this stuff but I can solder and I found a place to order kits. Could one of you electro Gurus give me a recommendation on which one of these would do the best job, or perhaps which ones to avoid? I'm looking a the cheap ones

QKits Electronic Kits


Thanks
Don

I haven't used it but the MX033 looks like it will do what you want.

are you going to set the speed and then not touch it, or are you going to be constantly adjusting the speed?

Wiper motors have a low speed contact and a high speed contact on them, as well as a lot of people drive them with 5V instead of 12V to lower the speed.

Monster guts also has a pre assembled power supply / speed controller as well:

Electric Motors for Props - Pacemaker Wiper Motor Controller - Halloween Prop Building Supplies For The Home Haunter - Monster Guts

I recently bought an MX033 from Quality Kits and hooked it up this week. It seems to do a good job controlling the speed of my wiper motor. However, at very low speed, it does make the motor "sing" a little. Nothing that some good music or screams can't cover. I have not put a load on the wiper motor yet, so the controller has not been tested under haunt conditions. It was $20 preassembled. So far, I am very satisfied.

Perhaps this from Monster Guts would work.

Originally Posted by McScreamin

I recently bought an MX033 from Quality Kits and hooked it up this week. It seems to do a good job controlling the speed of my wiper motor. However, at very low speed, it does make the motor "sing" a little. Nothing that some good music or screams can't cover. I have not put a load on the wiper motor yet, so the controller has not been tested under haunt conditions. It was $20 preassembled. So far, I am very satisfied.

Cool, I can live with a bit of noise. I will just be setting the speed and leaving it, but I need full torque so running at lower voltage is not an option. The Monster Guts unit is a bit too pricey for my purposes and if these units work fine, I will likely be using several of them on different props.

Thanks a million
Don

Originally Posted by JonnF3

Perhaps this from Monster Guts would work.

I took a good look at those at the Midwest Haunters conv this year.
First impression is that the box is way too big for just a 5 amp PWM control.
That's a lot of money per amp. I bought several 15 to 20 amp PMW controls on ebay that are nice and small (pre-assembled boards) and cost was always less than $20 with shipping.

The basic kit you are looking at will work as well. Throw it in a project box from Radio Shack and you're set. PMW controls can make a little noise at lower speed settings as said, but it is normally not bad.