CASTLE THUNDERBIRD-36 User manual

THUDERBIRD-36
BRUSHLESS SPEED COTROLLER
Length:
idth:
Height:
1.5” (39mm)
1” (26mm)
.35” (9mm)
eight: .7 oz (20 grms)
x mps: 36*
x volts: 15 volts
3S LiPo
10 iCd/ih
BEC: liner regultor
3 mp mx
Cstle Link™Comptible
85 0 8 6 6 0 0 0 0 1 6
OF U.S. AND
IMPORTED PARTS
BRUSHLESS SPEED CONTROL
NO PROGRAMMING NECESSARY
3S LIPO MAX
36 AMPS CONTINUOUS
This product is MADE IN THE USA of U.S. and imported parts.
Castle Creations, Inc. warrants this product to be free from manufacturing defects for a
period of one year from date of purchase.
*Current rting for full throttle opertion with  5 mph irflow over the controller.
Safety First!
Castle Creations, Inc., is not responsible for your use of this product, or for any damages
or injuries you may cause or sustain as a result or its usage. An electric motor that is con-
nected to a battery and speed control may start unexpectedly and cause serious injuries.
Keep the propeller away from your body and others at all times. Always observe local laws
regarding the operation of remote controlled aircraft.
This product may contain chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and or
birth defects or other reproductive harm. Do not ingest this controller, it may hurt you.
™
™
™

© 2007 Castle Creations, Inc. Revision date - 3/2007
Couldn’t be esier! Auto-Lipo detect nd no
brke for 3D ction right from the pckge!
1. Connect your Thunderbird
You will need to solder connectors on your Thunderbird
controller. Plese refer to the digrm bove. Double-check
your bttery polrity nd connections before plugging 
bttery into your controller. There is no polrity for the
three motor wires. If the motor spins the wrong wy
when power is pplied, swp ny two of the motor side
connections nd it will then spin properly. You my lso
use progrmming function 3, described below, to reverse
the rottion vi the controller’s softwre.
OTE TO FUTABA TRASITTER USERS – You my
hve to reverse the throttle direction of your rdio.
Plese see your rdio’s instructions on how to mke
this chnge.
2. Fly your Thunderbird
Your Thunderbird comes redy to fly with Lithium
Polymer type btteries. o settings chnges re needed.
To fly, turn your trnsmitter on before connecting your
Thunderbird ESC to the motor bttery. hen you connect
the motor bttery to the Thunderbird ESC, you will her
n initiliztion tone from the motor nd  series of beeps
telling you how mny Lithium Polymer cells in series re
in your bttery pck, nd the servos will be ctive. ke
sure tht the number of beeps mtches the number of
cells in your pck. If it doesn’t, mke sure your pck is
fully chrged. The Thunderbird will not rm unless you
move your throttle stick to the lowest position. hen the
Thunderbird receives the low throttle commnd, it will
rm nd ply  double tone through the motor, indicting
it is rmed nd now redy to run. If this is the first time
you re running the controller, dvnce the throttle slowly
to ensure tht the propeller rottion is correct. If it isn’t,
correct s described bove.
Chnging Optionl Settings on your Thunderbird
You my chnge the Thunderbird’s settings for BATTERY TYPE,
BRAKE BEHAVIOR, nd OTOR DIRECTIO. e recommend tht
you use the Cstle Link (sold seprtely) to mke these chnges
using your PC. You my lso chnge these settings using your rdio
nd receiver.
To chnge settings with your receiver, strt with the motor bttery
unplugged nd the trnsmitter O.
1. Put the throttle stick in the full throttle (up) position.
2. Connect the Thunderbird ESC to  bttery pck.
3. You should her the first multi-tone ring upon plug in, nd the
bttery count in beeps if set for Auto-Lipo. After 2 seconds,
you should her  second multi-tone ring, indicting the ESC
sees full throttle.
4. Bring the throttle stick down to the middle position, nd you
will her nother ring.
5. Bring the throttle stick bck to the top position, nd you will
her nother ring.
6. Bring the throttle stick to the middle position gin, nd you
will her 4 rings ll in  row. Then the Thunderbird will mke 
single beep tht repets. This is setting question #1.
ht bttery type?
• For Lithium Polymer type btteries (defult setting),
move the stick up to full throttle nd wit for the rpid
beeps
• For iCd nd iH type btteries, move the stick to
low/o throttle nd wit for the rpid beeps
The rpid beeps tell you tht the controller hs now stored
tht nswer in its memory.
7. You cn now move the stick bck to the middle position for
question #2 Brke O or OFF. The Thunderbird should strt
beeping two repeting beeps. This is setting question #2.
Brke O or OFF?
• For Brke O move the stick to full throttle, nd wit for
the rpid beeps
• For Brke OFF (defult setting), move the stick to
low/o throttle, nd wit for the rpid beeps
The rpid beeps tell you tht the controller hs now stored
tht nswer in its memory.
8. You cn now move the stick bck to the middle position for
question #3 Rottion direction. The Thunderbird will strt
beeping three repeting beeps. This is setting question #3.
Rottion Direction?
• For rottion forwrd (defult setting), move the stick
to full throttle, nd wit for the rpid beeps
• For rottion reversed, move the stick to low/o
throttle, nd wit for the rpid beeps
The rpid beeps tell you tht the controller hs now stored
tht nswer in its memory.
After the lst setting is mde, the controller will exit progrmming
mode, nd will rm when the throttle is in the low position.
For troubleshooting, wrrnty informtion, or technicl support,
plese contct us t: [phone] or cstlecretions.com
ATTENTION LIPO FLIERS - Always follow your
battery brand’s safety recommendations. Your
Thunderbird is set at the factory to use a 3.0
volt per cell cuto voltage. You may change this
voltage setting using the Castle Link system (sold
separately).