🧰 Motor Break-In
Running a new brushed motor gently for the first several minutes to seat the brushes properly before running it hard — mostly a brushed-motor concern, brushless motors don't need it.
What it actually does
Break-in is running a new motor gently before working it hard, so the parts bed in under light load. It genuinely matters for brushed motors, where the brushes need to wear to match the curve of the commutator. For modern brushless motors it is largely unnecessary — there are no brushes to seat.
In practice
The classic brushed method is running the motor at low voltage with no load for a few minutes, sometimes with the can partly submerged in water for cooling, then letting it cool fully. For brushless, simply take the first pack gently and check temperatures rather than doing anything special.
Worth knowing
What always matters, brushed or brushless, is a first run at moderate throttle with temperature checks afterwards. That is when you find gearing that is too tall or a mesh that is too tight, while it is still cheap to fix.