Down the rabbit hole

holybinch

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So, 2 weeks in, after my recent acquisition of a circuit 2wd and an Amp DB, we've had our first incident.
DS popped a shock, so first repair was needed.
We've also joined a local club, and while at the track, I was not happy with the steering on my circuit.
So, here we go, removing trying to figure out how the servo saver works, loosening it a bit, and in the process, replace all the philips screws i removed with hex.

But, obviously, that got me thinking. And here I am, a week later, waiting for stuff to arrive from the US.
I went the whole hog on the RPM stuff: front and rear arms, axle carriers, caster blocks. (thanks i_r_beej)
Also ordered the hot racing steering knuckles.
In for a penny, in for a pound, found more stuff in Germany to sort out my steering, off the shelves came the ECX alu servo saver, and some traxxas rods.

And I wasn't finished. Work was slow, I was bored, so I started browsing servos, and tyres.
Once again, following the excellent advice on the forum, I got a hi-tec servo on order and some pro line (hole shot) tyres...

Aren't I glad I followed WoodiE excellent post when I first joined and acquired a full tool box, a magnetic mat, a stand... all these are going to see a lot of use in the coming weeks.

Now, you're all reading this and nodding to yourselves"yep, seen that happen before, it was to be expected" but I know it's just the beginning. Cause when the boy sees how much better my car is, I'll have to re-do all these mods for him. What have I done!

PS: Obviously, I will report on how things are going, how much hair I've lost due to me being clue-less about installation, and how it eventually performs on the track.
And while I'm doing it, every bearing I find will get replaced by Fast eddie's best.
May this post be a warning to all beginners... or a handy list of threads to read avidly :)
 
Right, so this weekend, the first real upgrade was done.
Simple, but efficient, the switch from NiMh to LiPo made my truck sooo much faster my son is absolutely green with jealousy.
I was waiting for my lipo bags to arrive, because
1/ i want to be safe
2/ I want to set the right example for my boy

Practice run was interrupted when the low voltage alarm rang.
It was a false alert, I bashed the truck so much it had moved, and disconnected a bit, then reconnected, sounding the "start up" sound.
Oh well, it's now fixed in place with double sided tape.

More to follow sooon!
 
Now, the car steers so much better (well, I'd hope so)
well. Steered!
Because, I put off putting locktite on the shoulder screws "I want to ensure that it works fine first"
And then I forgot. And of course, I went bashing. And I lost the shoulder screws. And I have no spares.
So the car is immobilised and I'm now waiting for screws.

Side note:
The boy is so jealous, he badgered me into ordering him the upgraded servo saver. And since I am going to do that, I also ordered him all the RPM aftermarket pieces (no aluminium for him, unless he pays for them! Importing from the US is quite costly!)
So, stay tuned for the next pics.

Oh, and I've also ordered myself an alu front shock tower... the rabbit hole, I'm telling ya!
 
Front shock tower installed.
I've got the following waiting to be installed:
New receiver set (found a 4pls cheap 2nd hand) plus new hobbywing exrun combo.
Obviously, it means new metal gears, too.
Waiting for the steel driveshafts to arrive, and we should be good to go. Again.
This never ends...

In the meantime, my son's amp has had all the RPM aftermarket pieces installed. No more wobblies for him, he's delighted (until he sees how fast my upgraded car goes, obviously :|)
 
Looking nice. How do you like the tbr rear bumber? Does it act as a wheelie bar? Supose I might be asking prematurely, as you've haven't run a brushless system yet. It'll be lifting the front tires almost too much once you get your brusless system in.
 
Looking nice. How do you like the tbr rear bumber? Does it act as a wheelie bar? Supose I might be asking prematurely, as you've haven't run a brushless system yet. It'll be lifting the front tires almost too much once you get your brusless system in.
Nope doesn't act as a wheelie bar, but offers a good protection for the motor.

Installed the new receiver, esc and motor, and the steel driveshafts today.
First, had a face-palm moment. Hadn't placed the pinion in the right place and it slipped.

Then, I forgot to use loctite on the screws of the drive shaft. As a result, the shaft moved, destroyed the screw holding the camber link on the shock tower. Managed to recover the link, the shaft isn't damaged, but half the screw is stuck in the aluminium shock tower. Duh.
So, back to the plastic shock tower, and here we go again.

All that was tested with a NiMh battery, to not add too much strain on the system. Fortunately...

Well, once happy I didn't mess anything else, I put the LiPo in.
Oh. Mah. Gad.
Car is literally taking off.
Really have to be gentle with the throttle, I've bashed it more today than in the 3 months I've add the truck. But even with light finger, it's very hard to control.

My son was desperate to give it a try, and promised to be gentle.
He was just as gentle as me, with the same results. The front lifts sooo much, it takes off. And poor lad, his first crash was also his last. The pin holding the left rear arm popped out of the socket, the pin is bent, and for a hole I thought I'd need a new chassis.
Thankfully it doesn't seem to be the case and all is back in place.

Now I'm looking for a way to add weights to the front, and/or a wheelie bar
 
Which brushless system did you get? Should be able to adjust punch control, though it'll still be pretty crazy. Another possible way to help some with wheelies and general front end lightness, is swapping the rear a arms from side to side. Pushes the rear tires back about 1/4" or so. Only pain is, you have to make some kind of shock mount on the A arms, since the stock mount will be in the rear now. I can take pics of how I did it if you ever choose to do it.
Have you popped off those steering links yet? I spent a good 20 minutes looking for one once in a field, since then I put yellow and white tape on them to make them more visible on the ground. Mine are quite old though, some new ones probably would help.
 
Which brushless system did you get? Should be able to adjust punch control, though it'll still be pretty crazy. Another possible way to help some with wheelies and general front end lightness, is swapping the rear a arms from side to side. Pushes the rear tires back about 1/4" or so. Only pain is, you have to make some kind of shock mount on the A arms, since the stock mount will be in the rear now. I can take pics of how I did it if you ever choose to do it.
Have you popped off those steering links yet? I spent a good 20 minutes looking for one once in a field, since then I put yellow and white tape on them to make them more visible on the ground. Mine are quite old though, some new ones probably would help.

I got myself an Ezrun Combo MAX10 SCT3660SL-3200KV.
I'll adjust the punch, sounds like a good start. The default is out of this world.

Steering links have behaved so far, I've upgraded them to ae ones with rpm ends. They're actually really hard to pop, I've had the pleasure to realise when wanting to readjust my servo saver.

Pretty steep learning curve,but having a lot of fun. The wife, not as much, as she wishes I "left the damn thing alone for a bit"
 

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