cbp27's Defender 90 Build

[Gimp]

Mud flaps are GAY

lol but otherwise looks good! Keeping the Traxxas/Axial shafts or going metal? How good does it go with 3s?

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by Gimp

Mud flaps are GAY

lol but otherwise looks good! Keeping the Traxxas/Axial shafts or going metal? How good does it go with 3s?

Haha It originally came with Tamiya mudflaps. But they were made of a really stiff plastic so I thought these would work well. I might trim them a little though. Thanks though! For now I'm keeping the plastic shafts until they break. 3s in it now is actually slow. I guess it's geared really low. Maybe this T1 0.75:1 Transfer case will help. Mine right now is the T1 2.18:1.

[Gimp]

Put a bigger pinion in and a smaller spur instead of a new t-case. 15/87 is going to be really slow with the tiny tires and a 2.18:1 reduction after being reduced by an Axial trans too. Use your current transfer case to your advantage.

[bayareaaxial]

keep the trans case for sure do exactly what gimp said it will climb like a mule and still have good wheels speed, I am surpised I really like the look better than when it was on 1.9s only thing I would change is the paint, did you see the 5 -1.55 landies for sale in the classifieds they would be perfect for this build.

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by Gimp

Put a bigger pinion in and a smaller spur instead of a new t-case. 15/87 is going to be really slow with the tiny tires and a 2.18:1 reduction after being reduced by an Axial trans too. Use your current transfer case to your advantage.

That sounds good. Now I just need a bigger pinion.

Originally Posted by bayareaaxial

keep the trans case for sure do exactly what gimp said it will climb like a mule and still have good wheels speed, I am surpised I really like the look better than when it was on 1.9s only thing I would change is the paint, did you see the 5 -1.55 landies for sale in the classifieds they would be perfect for this build.

The Trail Buster tires it originally had were just a little too big for my taste. And the knobby treads rubbed the fender flares a lot. I did see those wheels. I thought about getting the white set, but then I decided to go for a more "stealth" aftermarket look with black steelies. Did you mean the color of the wheels or the body?

[Gimp]

Originally Posted by cbp27

That sounds good. Now I just need a bigger pinion.

The Trail Buster tires it originally had were just a little too big for my taste. And the knobby treads rubbed the fender flares a lot. I did see those wheels. I thought about getting the white set, but then I decided to go for a more "stealth" aftermarket look with black steelies. Did you mean the color of the wheels or the body?

And spur. You could strip or sand, then paint the white wheels

[bayareaaxial]

the wheels , body looks good but you could paint the wheels whatever color you wanted and to me they would fit the build a lot better.

[cbp27]

I took the D90 for another trip in the "gully" and it does great!
Although, there is a lot of bump steer. Anyone know of a solution for the Gelande chassis? One of those "S"-shaped drag links?


These are on their way...

[Gimp]

Originally Posted by cbp27

I took the D90 for another trip in the "gully" and it does great!
Although, there is a lot of bump steer. Anyone know of a solution for the Gelande chassis? One of those "S"-shaped drag links?


These are on their way...

A different shaped drag link won't change a thing, may give you some clearance if it's hitting on something, but that's it. Bump steer is a geometry issue with the suspension links/setup in regards to the drag link location.

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by Gimp

A different shaped drag link won't change a thing, may give you some clearance if it's hitting on something, but that's it. Bump steer is a geometry issue with the suspension links/setup in regards to the drag link location.

I hope I can fix the bumpsteer somehow.


Working on the lighting. I think I'll replace the "cap" style lights with Axial's buckets. That way I can at least mount some LEDs into the tail lights.




I'm thinking of using the "cowbell" shaped Axial buckets for the light bar. I'll be using 4 though.



The headlights are nice and simple. I might put LEDs in the small white/clear lenses too.



And I've had this cooling fan around for a while that I've wanted to use for a radiator fan. Maybe two will look better. And since all of my electronics are up front they actually would be functional.

[Gimp]

Good idea with the fan. I would only use one if the 1:1's use a mechanical/clutch fan and run on fairly low voltage to make it look right. If they use electric fans, go for both and run at a higher speed

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by Gimp

Good idea with the fan. I would only use one if the 1:1's use a mechanical/clutch fan and run on fairly low voltage to make it look right. If they use electric fans, go for both and run at a higher speed

I found a reference photo for the radiator fan:


And I got around to working on the LEDs.





It's always hard to accurately capture the true light output in the dark. This is close to the true output, but maybe it was a little brighter.


Need to install the other light buckets when I get them.

[Landcruiser 110]

This is sick ass and also why dont you keep your class 3 JK, it's one of a kind, also why did you go with mud thrashers instead of micky t MTZs

[cbp27]

Thanks man! I really like my JK. But I just don't have enough time/money for two rigs. I've been wanting to build one of these D90's since I started crawling and now I finally have one. I decided on the Mud Thrashers because of their extra height. I might try the MTZ later.

As far as a build update, I have wheels, tires, winch, and driveshafts one the way. Pics up once I have them which should be within the next few days.

Originally Posted by Landcruiser 110

This is sick ass and also why dont you keep your class 3 JK, it's one of a kind, also why did you go with mud thrashers instead of micky t MTZs

[bayareaaxial]

looking good man like the details on the lights what driveshafts are you running that you are waiting for

[steelbed]

love the rover and the grille. i need to get lights in my rigs so i stop running into things when im out

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by bayareaaxial

looking good man like the details on the lights what driveshafts are you running that you are waiting for

Thanks! Right now it has a RC4WD plastic Punisher shaft up front and a Traxxas shaft with Axial yokes in the rear. I have a feeling the Punisher shaft won't last too much longer. I broke one during the first five minutes of driving this rig. I have MIP shafts on the way though.

Originally Posted by steelbed

love the rover and the grille. i need to get lights in my rigs so i stop running into things when im out

Thanks! Yeah I need to get my lightbar ready so I can go out at night too.


The D90 has a lot of torque with my Axial transmission (87T spur/ 14T pinion) and RC4WD transfer case (2.18:1) but almost no speed. So today I swapped the 35T Integy motor for my HPI 15T. It's a lot faster now and still has plety of low end power. Pecfect for my needs!
I took it out for a test and took some pictures. But when I went to review the photos they were gone. Dang smart phone! I hope my parts will arrive tomorrow. Then my D90 will be one big step closer to being complete.

[Gimp]

Originally Posted by cbp27

I took it out for a test and took some pictures. But when I went to review the photos they were gone. Dang smart phone!

Don't you have 3 or 4 nice cameras?

[cbp27]

Originally Posted by Gimp

Don't you have 3 or 4 nice cameras?

Haha yeah I should use my better cameras. The iPhone 4 takes nice photos, but they're still not great. A lot of my photos are out of focus but that's hard to tell because of the phone's HD screen, which makes any bad picture look great.

But great news! My phone was hiding the pictures until I imported them to my computer. So here they are!










And my new wheels and tires showed up in the middle of the week. Still a ways off from being finished. I need to hide the rat's nest of LED wires inside, finish the light housings, accessories, and other details. You might be able to see that the grill has been cut out for the fan.
Stay tuned!

[brazwewn]

Looks great.

Wes