Tiny Terror - 1:14 Scale TJ Class 2 Rig

[monkeyracer]

Start of my Class 2 entry (only because it's illegal for C1) for our local scale series, I'm calling:



Specs (updated 11/15/12):
Body: Fast Lane RC Jeep TJ 1:14 scale body w/interior and (soon to be) hinged hood
Front Axle: Losi MRC with Losi CVDs
Rear Axle: Losi MRC with aluminum lockout
Chassis: Custom chassis designed specifically for this build.
Shocks: Losi Mini Crawler Aluminum with Mini T cartridges and pen-spring droop set-up with 30wt oil.
Transmission: MRC trans with 12/62 gearing
Motor: Traxxas 380 Titan motor
ESC: Castle Sidewinder Micro
Servo: HS-225mg
Winch: Also unsure, maybe a mini servo winch or 3racing winch
Battery: Sky Lipo 1300mah 2s 40c
Radio: Modded FlySy GT3B
Wheels: 1.7" Exceed Mad Stone 16 beadlock wheels (12mm hex)
Tires: Cut and shut Mad Stone 16 tires only reason they are cut n shut is they were poorly molded - These tires are illegal with the SORRCA rules because of that, so for "sanctioned comps" I have some ridiculous looking 1.9's. Eventually, I might get some 1.7" RC4WD tires.
Lower Links: Delrin links with Axial rod ends/steel balls.
Upper Links: Stock MRC lower links with Axial rod ends/steel balls.

Pics:







Driver:



Passenger:









The plan with the build is to first make something capable, and competitive against the larger SCXs that will fill the class, then once it's capable, I will start working on the body to make it look a little more post-apocalyptic-ish (Not to a Mad-Max extent, just something a little rough around the edges maybe. Think faded flat black paint, and accessories that you would want after an apocalypse)

Right now, the body is basically just sitting on the mock-up chassis. I will have the chassis plates cut soon, and will get started on the wheels and tires, mounting the transmission, figuring out the servo and winch, etc.

There's a lot left, but this is a good idea of where it starts and where it's going. There's a comp coming up in March, so the intent is to have the first stage of this done by then.

Comments, questions, suggestions?

[TheSkunkBuster]

awesome Jenz cant wait to see it up and running scale series is getting ready to start get on it

[monkeyracer]

Ya, I'm going to try and have this and my C3 Hummer up and running by this weekend, but probably not in enough time for this weekend's GTG.

I've done a few things for this, but not a whole lot. I figured out what to do for steering, but even with a mini servo, I don't know where I am going to put the winch in. The steering set-up is definitely out of the ordinary. It's chassis mounted but not in the same way most do it. I guess this whole build is a little out of the ordinary for this class, so it will be interesting to see how it does against the other rigs.

I'm still undecided on the wheels/tires for this. Here's the dilemma;
because of the scale, 4.2" Flat Irons (which everyone will be running at a minimum in C2) are just ridiculously large, but they work. The 3.6" Cut-n-Shut Hammers are better scaled, but illegal because of being cut-n-shut, and the 3.5" stock Fastlane tires are not a great compound.
I'll probably run the Flat Irons because they work, and they are legal, but I have a couple weeks to decide.

I've decided to run the MRC transmission with the Titan 380 motor, since it all fits under the interior. Now I need to figure out how to hinge the hood and where to mount the battery and all the other electronics. It will be a tight fit, but I think I can do it.

I'll have some pics to accompany an update very soon.

[vipxj]

Nice little TJ , cant to see it running.

[monkeyracer]

Light update:

Borrowed the wheels and tires from the SCX to see what it looks like with 58" tires.





Doesn't actually look too bad, but definitely large for the scale.

So, for the steering, I went with a bell crank mounted to the axle:





The servo will be mounted a little further back in the chassis so the tie-rod runs fairly parallel to the 4 link to prevent any bump steer.

I still need to trim a little here and there to get the chassis to sit level.

More updates soon...

[monkeyracer]

Damn, almost a year since the last update... There's not been too much done with this since the last update. I got new wheels and tires and ordered some Fubar Crawler custom rings for the new wheels (they are 1.7" wheels).
These tires are 3.5" tall, which scales up to about 50" tires. Not sure how they will perform yet though.

I still need to figure out how to mount the servo, as well as where to mount all the electronics, and get some body work done (including the cage) to it before I can call it done.

Got the tires mounted, but the fubar rings and my custom chassis are sitting in the post office waiting to be delivered tomorrow.











The drivers have changed though, now John Connor and Marcus will be manning the rig, although they are the same scale as the other drivers, they still look kinda smallish.

More updates very soon. (I promise it won't be 9 more months before the next update...)

[monkeyracer]

So here's the inspiration for this build:









Obviously that's a JK, and I have a TJ, but the paint will be inspired by the Terminator: Salvation JK since that's where the new drivers are from. It won't be to that extent though. I plan to start off with a flat black base, add some OD green, and sporadically spray some flat black, rust and some tan over it for the grime and dust. The lower links and axle housing and maybe the wheels will probably get some similar treatment.

[King James]

thats sweet ive had that same jeep waiting to get a mrc to use the body with, did you try with the stock mrc frame or just custom build from the start

[monkeyracer]

Originally Posted by jimmy23jordan23

thats sweet ive had that same jeep waiting to get a mrc to use the body with, did you try with the stock mrc frame or just custom build from the start

I bought the mrc local used with an aftermarket chassis, but knew I would go custom for the body I have. No other frame would work that well for it. Also, since this will possibly see a scale comp, I wanted to be legal, so a scale frame was the only way.

[King James]

cant wait to see it finished, looks great, i really like the wheels and tire package

[monkeyracer]

Originally Posted by monkeyracer

(I promise it won't be 9 more months before the next update...)

well, how about a year without more updates? Well, here's a long overdue update...

Got some items on the way to get this thing moving along from some of the great RCC vendors, to name a few:

Eyeball Engineering - MRC D-Mounts
Billet Works Design - MRC bomb proof link mounts
Fubar Crawlers - Custom beadlock rings and chassis
Harley Designs - HD Hardware kit

I've also made some parts for this as well; new skid plate, lower links, and started on the chassis braces.

In order to be running, I need to finish:
- Chassis braces (includes body mounts, electronics mounts and servo placement)
- Steering link
- Installing the items above, electronics, etc.

In order for me to call it done though, I need to finish:
- Cage work (with bumpers, sliders, etc.)
- Paint/body work (considering the Terminator theme still)
- Finding/making a winch (probably a small servo winch)
- Fine Tuning (shocks, ESC settings, etc.)

So, looking at it like this, it's not too far away from being done. I can't wait to get this thing out on the rocks! (pictures coming as soon as the vendor purchases show up, probably tomorrow or Monday.)

[monkeyracer]

Crappy teaser cell phone pic:

[monkeyracer]

Well, while looking at toys for the nephew and niece, I saw the 1:15th scale New Bright TJ, and figured it would be a better body than the Fast Lane, so I picked it up.

After some measuring and calculating, it seems this body is closer to 1:12.5 scale.

Right away I got to modifying the body, stretching it to LJ wheelbase, and trimming the interior to clear the trans and rear shocks.
Here's where I got to after a while of tweaking:





Ride height is slightly high and will come down just a bit more. Fenders will get comp-cut and I'll need to make some flat fenders for it. Interior will get filled in and the seats will cover all the holes. Still planning a full cage. The damn mud paint will actually look ok with my apocalypse theme, but I'll need to add some OD Green and Flat Black to it.


For the chassis, I got the Eyeball Engineering D-Mounts installed, along with all the links, and cut/drilled the chassis braces:











Also got some flat head screws for my beadlocks:





I'll have another update soon: More body work, modifying the braces to mount the servo and clear the bellcrank, and I'll get started on the cage work.

[Szczerba]

Clean little Jeep so far.

Where did you get those wheels? Able to buy them separate? I'm looking for a cheaper option 1.7" beadlock.

[monkeyracer]

They came from this:


Exceed Maxstone 16

And the wheels can be found here:


Maxstone 16 Wheels

Although, they are out of stock, but they do have the full wheel set that includes the beadlock rings and tires:


Maxstone 16 Wheels/Tires

I haven't run these yet, but it looks like they might not hold a bead very well, so I would still recommend gluing them. Maybe different tires would be better? Also, the tires are molded kind of weird so the ones I had needed to be modified to fit the rim better, but they seem like a good compound.

[Szczerba]

Thanks. I found them on NitroRCX just now too. I saw you sourced them from the 16 from your first post. Might have to order some, cheaper than the $119 set I'm eyeballing.

The newer Jeep body looks good too.

[monkeyracer]

Originally Posted by Szczerba

Thanks. I found them on NitroRCX just now too. I saw you sourced them from the 16 from your first post. Might have to order some, cheaper than the $119 set I'm eyeballing.

The newer Jeep body looks good too.

1.7 wheels are hard to come by, for sure. RC4WD's look great but $119 is a lot compared to what I've spent overall on this thing. Are you planning on using the 1.7 iroks?

I've been eyeing the New Bright bodies for a while, but never took the time to measure everything to make sure it would fit, and I wish I would have picked up a non-mud slinger version, but with my theme, it won't be that bad, and I won't have to sand forever (have enough of that planned with my IFS Silverado.)

[Szczerba]

Originally Posted by monkeyracer

1.7 wheels are hard to come by, for sure. RC4WD's look great but $119 is a lot compared to what I've spent overall on this thing. Are you planning on using the 1.7

Was going to put some 1.55 Desert Kings on them for the IFS SCX.

[monkeyracer]

Originally Posted by Szczerba

Was going to put some 1.55 Desert Kings on them for the IFS SCX.

I was going to recommend stretching some 1.55s, so... good choice... I was looking at the Mickey Thompson MTZ's a while ago, but would have to justify the $50 for them.

[Szczerba]

Originally Posted by monkeyracer

I was going to recommend stretching some 1.55s, so... good choice... I was looking at the Mickey Thompson MTZ's a while ago, but would have to justify the $50 for them.

Can't speak for the 1.55 MTZ's but I have run the 1.9 MTZ's on my F-Toy and the on IFS SCX. They are a good tire if you are needing a little smaller diameter 1.9 tire. Like the compound for sure.