I have a Temper!
- Thread starter Tyork_tex
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Juanmarteen
Well-Known Member
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- 112
- Location
- Renton, WA
Welcome!
I will give you my impressions but first here is some background info:
My only experience with R/C is having several toys as a kid and 1 Traxxas Rustler when I was about 20.
In my mid to late 20's I caught the Jeep bug and at one time had 8 of them ranging from a 47' to an '05! I loved tinkering with them and taking them to Barnwell Mountain in Gilmer, Tx. to wheel.
Fast forward to today and I'm now 31 and kind of starting over in life. I still have 3 Jeeps, but don't really have the cash to fool with them right now and have other priorities to worry about. I had been eye balling these R/C crawlers for a long time and finally decided to pull the trigger on one this last Friday. Being this close to Christmas, the boss (my fiancee), like to have had a fit lol!
I walked into my LHS with the intention of purchasing a Losi 1/24 Trail Trekker, but the RC tech had one of these perched up on a rock on the counter. He told me that for the price it couldn't be beat. The only thing that made me leary was that I hadn't heard of ECX before and Losi had been around for a while. I liked what I saw, and made an impulse buy without doing much research. So far I haven't regretted it. I think I probably would have made the same decision had I of researched it. From what I can tell for a sub $150 entry level crawler this thing is feature packed and upgrade friendly!
My only experience with R/C is having several toys as a kid and 1 Traxxas Rustler when I was about 20.
In my mid to late 20's I caught the Jeep bug and at one time had 8 of them ranging from a 47' to an '05! I loved tinkering with them and taking them to Barnwell Mountain in Gilmer, Tx. to wheel.
Fast forward to today and I'm now 31 and kind of starting over in life. I still have 3 Jeeps, but don't really have the cash to fool with them right now and have other priorities to worry about. I had been eye balling these R/C crawlers for a long time and finally decided to pull the trigger on one this last Friday. Being this close to Christmas, the boss (my fiancee), like to have had a fit lol!
I walked into my LHS with the intention of purchasing a Losi 1/24 Trail Trekker, but the RC tech had one of these perched up on a rock on the counter. He told me that for the price it couldn't be beat. The only thing that made me leary was that I hadn't heard of ECX before and Losi had been around for a while. I liked what I saw, and made an impulse buy without doing much research. So far I haven't regretted it. I think I probably would have made the same decision had I of researched it. From what I can tell for a sub $150 entry level crawler this thing is feature packed and upgrade friendly!
Ok now on to my impressions:
As the above post mentions I am no expert and this is my second Real R/C vehicle.
The good:
Low price
Aluminum construction
Feature packed
Pre-drilled for four wheel steering
The bad:
Not presetup for aftermarket body shells
Wheels wobble somewhat out of the box
Torque-twist which may just be the nature of the beast
To firm stock tires
High center of gravity
No tools included, and not much of an instruction manual. (Mine was a display model so if I'm wrong and someone else wants to chime in.)
This may apply to all R/C Crawlers but something I love is that you can run them ANYWHERE! You can turn a thrown living room into an offroad course full of variety. I had a R/C stock car once that I never messed with because I could never find a smooth enough surface to run it on. Even my Rustler that I mentioned earlier was somewhat limited in where you could run it. This thing? Tall grass-sure, mud-sure, sand, rock, clay, dirt clods, have at it, the more the merrier!
Today I took it to an old gravel pit with clay mud, a variety of rocks and lots of iron ore gravel. It handled everything well except for the gravel. On steep gravel inclines it would just slide and spin. I think some wheel speed from a better battery, or motor would have helped and definitely some stickier tires, but all in all it handle most everything I threw at it. There were a few inclines it couldn't handle but honestly I'm kind of glad cause now I have something to shoot for. I found when fooling with real 4x4s that the biggest improvements can be had from tire choice. Stickier taller tires ultimately are the best upgrade for any 4x4 big or small.
Center of gravity needs to be lower, and I have some plans for that to be outlined later. Also the torque twist is kind of out of hand. I found out quickly to try and use the twist to your advantage and minimize it by climbing with the driver side front tire first. This too hopefully will be sorted out shortly. The only other small thing is the front and rear bumpers tend to hang up a lot. Removing them and fabbing up something better is in the works as well.
As the above post mentions I am no expert and this is my second Real R/C vehicle.
The good:
Low price
Aluminum construction
Feature packed
Pre-drilled for four wheel steering
The bad:
Not presetup for aftermarket body shells
Wheels wobble somewhat out of the box
Torque-twist which may just be the nature of the beast
To firm stock tires
High center of gravity
No tools included, and not much of an instruction manual. (Mine was a display model so if I'm wrong and someone else wants to chime in.)
This may apply to all R/C Crawlers but something I love is that you can run them ANYWHERE! You can turn a thrown living room into an offroad course full of variety. I had a R/C stock car once that I never messed with because I could never find a smooth enough surface to run it on. Even my Rustler that I mentioned earlier was somewhat limited in where you could run it. This thing? Tall grass-sure, mud-sure, sand, rock, clay, dirt clods, have at it, the more the merrier!
Today I took it to an old gravel pit with clay mud, a variety of rocks and lots of iron ore gravel. It handled everything well except for the gravel. On steep gravel inclines it would just slide and spin. I think some wheel speed from a better battery, or motor would have helped and definitely some stickier tires, but all in all it handle most everything I threw at it. There were a few inclines it couldn't handle but honestly I'm kind of glad cause now I have something to shoot for. I found when fooling with real 4x4s that the biggest improvements can be had from tire choice. Stickier taller tires ultimately are the best upgrade for any 4x4 big or small.
Center of gravity needs to be lower, and I have some plans for that to be outlined later. Also the torque twist is kind of out of hand. I found out quickly to try and use the twist to your advantage and minimize it by climbing with the driver side front tire first. This too hopefully will be sorted out shortly. The only other small thing is the front and rear bumpers tend to hang up a lot. Removing them and fabbing up something better is in the works as well.
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I plan on moving the battery to the front servo and adding some weights to the tires. I've read that on crawlers this makes a big difference.
I love the 4ws maneuverability, but I'm planning on putting a scale style Jeep body on it, and want it to be somewhat realistic. I guess I could always put a Unimog body on it they were offered with 4ws lol!
I love the 4ws maneuverability, but I'm planning on putting a scale style Jeep body on it, and want it to be somewhat realistic. I guess I could always put a Unimog body on it they were offered with 4ws lol!
Ok, so tonight I swapped the top plate around giving me better weight distribution and better access to the on/off switch (thanx BliZZard911). I also removed the foam inside the tires and put some BBs in them for weight.
On my first test I found that I had put WAY to many BBs in there and the truck barely had enough torque to spin the tires on a mild grade. Also the steering servo was working pretty hard just turning the front wheels some times requiring the truck to be moving just to steer!
I pulled the tires back off and removed 3/4 of the BBs and performance was better. It was still working harder than normal but now at least I didn't feel like I was working it to death. Also the BBs tend to make it lunge as they roll around. This is just a stop gap because I had them laying around, my plan is to eventually get some sticky lead wheel weights.
Performance climbing wise was better, with that extra weight down low it is less likely to tip over or fall back. It didn't help much with the torque twist which is a bummer. I wonder if I should just weight the front tires, or perhaps just the front passenger? Tomorrow hopefully I can get down to the gravel pit and see how well my mods really work. Its hard to tell in the house because honestly in here it has to much traction!
Stay tuned - Travis
On my first test I found that I had put WAY to many BBs in there and the truck barely had enough torque to spin the tires on a mild grade. Also the steering servo was working pretty hard just turning the front wheels some times requiring the truck to be moving just to steer!
I pulled the tires back off and removed 3/4 of the BBs and performance was better. It was still working harder than normal but now at least I didn't feel like I was working it to death. Also the BBs tend to make it lunge as they roll around. This is just a stop gap because I had them laying around, my plan is to eventually get some sticky lead wheel weights.
Performance climbing wise was better, with that extra weight down low it is less likely to tip over or fall back. It didn't help much with the torque twist which is a bummer. I wonder if I should just weight the front tires, or perhaps just the front passenger? Tomorrow hopefully I can get down to the gravel pit and see how well my mods really work. Its hard to tell in the house because honestly in here it has to much traction!
Stay tuned - Travis
r8derhed5150
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 151
- Location
- Oakland, Ca
Sweet. Another Temper tweaker. You sound exactly like what happened to me. Went in looking for a trail trekker, but in my case they didn't have any. We'll I'm glad they didn't. I think I would have gotten bored with such a tiny crawler. It just doesn't look as fun that small. But this guy is the perfect size. So perfect I can't keep my tools off of it. I've done pretty much everything you mentioned to my rig.
I've even lowered mine by about 3-4 mm's by changing the top shock mount location, as well as shortened the wheelbase by the same (result of triangulating the lower links). My biggest gripe was the torque steer. The lowering, along with my 4 link mod, I now have zero. Even on high traction, no pile carpet where the rear wants to keep going straight when you're trying to turn and all it does is twist up? Gone. Wheels stay planted and the ones that need to break traction to turn actually do. I'm pretty sure that I did not loose any articulation either. In fact, I might have gained just a tad more. i can put a wheel flat on the ground and there is no impact anywhere between the tires and suspension components or drive shaft. The shock is the only limit now and they feel noticeably softer when compressing all four. I really want to say my suspension is like butter now.
I can talk all day about this stuff but I already have for several days and I gotta let you guys have some fun around here too. Looking forward to seeing your mods come to fruition just like @Juanmarteen 's custom made, literally from the chopping block, transmission mount/skid plate that he is working on. We both got started on this because he moved his lower links inward at the tranny, and I had to follow suit because I had added 4 wheel steering to mine and my back tires were rubbing on the lower links due to power flex/slop in the hubs.
I gotta try this BB thing. Good idea! Does it make a bunch of extra noise?
Oh yeah, no tools included except for a plastic 4 way nut job.
I've even lowered mine by about 3-4 mm's by changing the top shock mount location, as well as shortened the wheelbase by the same (result of triangulating the lower links). My biggest gripe was the torque steer. The lowering, along with my 4 link mod, I now have zero. Even on high traction, no pile carpet where the rear wants to keep going straight when you're trying to turn and all it does is twist up? Gone. Wheels stay planted and the ones that need to break traction to turn actually do. I'm pretty sure that I did not loose any articulation either. In fact, I might have gained just a tad more. i can put a wheel flat on the ground and there is no impact anywhere between the tires and suspension components or drive shaft. The shock is the only limit now and they feel noticeably softer when compressing all four. I really want to say my suspension is like butter now.
I can talk all day about this stuff but I already have for several days and I gotta let you guys have some fun around here too. Looking forward to seeing your mods come to fruition just like @Juanmarteen 's custom made, literally from the chopping block, transmission mount/skid plate that he is working on. We both got started on this because he moved his lower links inward at the tranny, and I had to follow suit because I had added 4 wheel steering to mine and my back tires were rubbing on the lower links due to power flex/slop in the hubs.
I gotta try this BB thing. Good idea! Does it make a bunch of extra noise?
Oh yeah, no tools included except for a plastic 4 way nut job.
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I took a bunch of pictures and a few videos while I was out wheeling yesterday. I'll hopefully get the chance to post them up soon. You can definitely here the bbs, and on level ground it makes it lunge as the roll around, but they did help with performance.
I bought some sticky weights at my LHS the other day I just haven't isntalled them yet.
You'll see in my vids where I'm wheeling has a lot of iron ore gravel making it hard to crawl. Honestly a lot of times wheel speed is your best friend taking some of the precision out of the equation. This drives me crazy because when I used to wheel my real Jeeps I made a lot of people look bad by crawling up what they couldn't because they were applying WAY to much throttle. Stickier tires will probably help with that.
I'm going to have to read back over yalls suspension mods, I wasn't sure I wanted to delve into this thing quite that far, but ur performance sounds awesome! That torque twist is driving me nuts. At the very least because my Temper looks silly hunched over crooked while driving and rubbing the body alot. I still want to mount the battery on the front servo and see if that makes a difference, but I'll either have to get a smaller more compact pack or some wheel spacers. Have u taken any vids since reworking the suspension?
I bought some sticky weights at my LHS the other day I just haven't isntalled them yet.
You'll see in my vids where I'm wheeling has a lot of iron ore gravel making it hard to crawl. Honestly a lot of times wheel speed is your best friend taking some of the precision out of the equation. This drives me crazy because when I used to wheel my real Jeeps I made a lot of people look bad by crawling up what they couldn't because they were applying WAY to much throttle. Stickier tires will probably help with that.
I'm going to have to read back over yalls suspension mods, I wasn't sure I wanted to delve into this thing quite that far, but ur performance sounds awesome! That torque twist is driving me nuts. At the very least because my Temper looks silly hunched over crooked while driving and rubbing the body alot. I still want to mount the battery on the front servo and see if that makes a difference, but I'll either have to get a smaller more compact pack or some wheel spacers. Have u taken any vids since reworking the suspension?
r8derhed5150
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 151
- Location
- Oakland, Ca
Haven't done any video because I keep forgetting. Been having too much fun and I finally remember when I'm packing it up after the fact. I'll get a quick little carpet video just to show how planted it stays. I used to get twisted on this carpet as well..
Edit- been trying for an hour to this. First my son was doing the video but insisted on pressing the pause/rec button over and over. I finally found out after I processed the video because I only had it in fast preview which only shows the video in a strobe like fashion. Anyway the video was useless so I'll try again in the morning.
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Juanmarteen
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 112
- Location
- Renton, WA
Looks great @Tyork_tex! I think some stickier/softer tires will give you the crawling performance you'looking for. The stock rims aren't quite 1.9 size, but they'll fit (I think the stockers are about 1.7).
I have a couple vids in the Temper section on my indoor rockpile.
I have a couple vids in the Temper section on my indoor rockpile.
r8derhed5150
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 151
- Location
- Oakland, Ca
Okay after today, I'm gonna try and dedicate at least a couple hours to shooting video and pictures tomorrow. Landed at a place that I forgot all about. Its like heaven for our Temper Tantrum. The place is called "The Rock Wall". It's a composition of different types and sizes of rock, asphalt refuse, sidewalks and concrete surplus put in place as a breaker in the bay for the old Navy base. We barely walked the shore and found hours of possibilities for gates. Its a huge fishing spot and boat launch. Walking trails and a stones throw to the USS Hornet, the carrier responsible for fishing the first man on the moon out of the Pacific. Might catch a glimpse in my video I will post later this evening. In the meanwhile, here's the view...
This is just a little cove area, but this wall must at least a half mile long and starts at the far end of the little beach there. I really need to take more pictures. Am I really being selfish with my Temper time? Kinda seems like it. Part of the reason is I want to get my crawling in before my son calls it quits. One of these days I'll steal it and sneak out alone for some multiple video shots so I can throw together aa better video.
This is just a little cove area, but this wall must at least a half mile long and starts at the far end of the little beach there. I really need to take more pictures. Am I really being selfish with my Temper time? Kinda seems like it. Part of the reason is I want to get my crawling in before my son calls it quits. One of these days I'll steal it and sneak out alone for some multiple video shots so I can throw together aa better video.
r8derhed5150
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 151
- Location
- Oakland, Ca
+1 on the tires. These things hold up great on rock or anything made of it, or textiles. Sand, pebbles, anything loose forget it. Ive been holding off trying to remain content, but I want to be able to do some trail tracking and these tires are just wrong for it.
Yeah, I need to find a sure nuff rock pile lol. My fiancee (who, like I said, was against me buying this thing) had a good point, in that environment a toy rc with good wheel speed and momentum would've probably made it up the hill faster taking a different line.
Edit: Or build a rockpile! I think that will be a great project for me and the younguns next weekend, great idea @Juanmarteen !
I really like what these kids did:
Edit: Or build a rockpile! I think that will be a great project for me and the younguns next weekend, great idea @Juanmarteen !
I really like what these kids did:
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Fast forward to now- Well its been a long and crazy winter and spring and I haven't gotten to tinker with my truck much. The kiddos came down for the summer so I decided it was time for some upgrades.
First problem I wanted to address was the lack of run time from the factory Nimh battery so I pulled the trigger on a Opr2 Venom charger and a Lipo 2000 mah Venom battery. Some how I managed to get out of the store without a Low Voltage Monitor, so every time we ran it I brought along a multimeter and checked the battery every couple of minutes LOL!
Next was traction. The guy behind the counter at my LHS convinced me that 1.9 Pro-Line Interco TSLs would work with the factory rims, he was wrong :https://ecxforum.com/threads/im-bummed-out-factory-rim-problems.513/
So yesterday the kids and I loaded up and ran into Tyler (45 min one way) to my LHS and I bought some RC4WD black wagon wheel 1.9 rims to go with my tires, and a Low Voltage Alarm/Monitor.
First problem I wanted to address was the lack of run time from the factory Nimh battery so I pulled the trigger on a Opr2 Venom charger and a Lipo 2000 mah Venom battery. Some how I managed to get out of the store without a Low Voltage Monitor, so every time we ran it I brought along a multimeter and checked the battery every couple of minutes LOL!
Next was traction. The guy behind the counter at my LHS convinced me that 1.9 Pro-Line Interco TSLs would work with the factory rims, he was wrong :https://ecxforum.com/threads/im-bummed-out-factory-rim-problems.513/
So yesterday the kids and I loaded up and ran into Tyler (45 min one way) to my LHS and I bought some RC4WD black wagon wheel 1.9 rims to go with my tires, and a Low Voltage Alarm/Monitor.