"Redneck Dream" the black silverado....

[fla_cracker]

So I wasn't going to do a thread for this truck because it was going to be just a beater for one of my sons to drive. Well it kinda grew on me and like a stray puppy I just couldn't say no anymore.

The idea was originally to be a cheap beater. So I ordered an Exceed Maxstone in 1/18th. This would be the MRC clone for those not familiar. The RTR kit came in at like $98 shipped to my door thanks to some sale they were having.

Sorry I have no pictures of the original kit.

It ran well but was REALLY SLOW and pretty top heavy. The only other issue was a poor turning radius. But none of that mattered as it was destined to become a scaler.

So a few parts later....

TCS L-Trail chassis $25
Tacon 3000KV BL micro motor $13
Hobbywing 18A ESC $20
SlickRock 1.9 Swamper Tires $25
SlickRock 1.9 wheels $11
Solar full size servo $12
Misc. extra screws and link ends $12
NewBright 1/14th Silverado $5



This is what I have.... in progression


Mostly stock componants on Ltrail chassis. Really slow and very tippy...





Trying a droop setup for the first time in an effort to lower COG...

[fla_cracker]

Here is a video from testing on local mountain bike trails. In the video the truck has the stock motor and electronics. The suspension was 3 link front and 4 link rear with full droop setup on stock tires. Also of note, this is a cell phone video........sorry

Maxstone 16 Scaler test run - YouTube


In the video it looks like the truck has severe torque twist, but it's really a pretty good sidehill going toward the camera.

Not good but not horrible either. Needs more work. The rear 4 link needs lots of love. The link positioning was pretty poor and made for alot of flex steer from that axle.

[fla_cracker]

With alot of work I got the rear 4 link to a happier place. Took some serious studying of my SCX to get it working good. In the end I had to make an axle truss due to probly poor design/brittle plastic. Where the upper links attach to the rear axle cracked and sheered. In the pic you can see my slightly ghetto truss and where the break happened.



Next up was to tackle the incredibly SLOW speed of the truck. I ordered a Tacon 2320 3000KV BL motor and Hobbywing 18a ESC. Installing the motor took some finesse.... I had to open up the screw holes a little and shim up the motor. By shimming I mean that the motor has a raised center section acound the shaft output that does not allow it to be flush mounted to this plate. A quick trip to Tractor Supply and a couple of rubber washers fixed this right up. Now the Redneck Dream has a respectable fast walking pace with enough power to spin the tires effectively.

Here is a video of the new motor and ESC. I also added some weight to the stock tires although I'm not sure if I liked it or not.

Redneck Dream pt1 - YouTube


I finally ordered a set of Vaterra SlickRock 1.9 Swampers and rims. The reason I chose these is because of there size.....3.7" OD. This matches the stock tire size which I thinks pretty scale for the body. I am also running them WITHOUT foam. This is because of 2 reasons. 1 the light weight nature of this truck, and 2 the fact that they are not quite as soft a compound as more popular tires. On the bench they looked pretty good without foams.

Here is a really short video of the new tires in action.

More testing - YouTube

and a Pic comparing them to a set of 1.55 IROKs that I believe are 4.3" OD




I really like the Swampers but with a comp coming up this weekend I am going to use the 1.55 IROKs on the 1.9 rims. They give better ground clearance and better approache/departure angles. Here is a pic comparing my SCX10 and Redneck Dream. They have the same size tires but there is 5/16th inch difference in clearance!!!!