Homefab Hilux Truggy - Input Needed.

[ModTrialsRider]

Hola!

I need input if there are those here willing to give it. Very recently this rig came up on craigslist which I completely pounced on (the ad was only up for 10 hours,) and brought it home with full intention on being it's new proud, loving owner. I jumped on it because I never, ever see a custom hand-built Class-2/Truggy build for sale anywhere local, the exception being the last one I spotted almost two years ago on Craigslist. I certainly do not have the skills, time, monetary capital, equipment or location to learn and fabricate my own, and I have yet to find anyone willing to build me one. Needless to say I grabbed it.

From what I gather thus far, It's based off of a Losi NightCrawler (Axles, center frame, transfer case, TX/RX, ESC,) with custom links, Junfac drivelines, and what appears to be a generic Traxxas Titan 550 motor.

Unfortunately, it's riddled with small problems. Nothing that I wouldn't fix with the silliest grin on my face (I love building these things to the best of my ability,) with the exception of one singular item. The frame does not sit straight when viewed from the rear. Here's some birds eye views to give you a gist of what I have.

[IMG]DSC_0305 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]DSC_0306 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]DSC_0307 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]DSC_0308 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]

If you look closely, you'll see how the lower portion of the frame skews the axle towards the left giving it unevenly proportioned flex. The upper mounting holes for the shocks are also off by about .090" giving it uneven stance. This is the major issue I have that I cannot fix. I love it's uniquness in this regard (it is home-built after all,) but I am a totally unreasonable stickler for realism. I don't see this being something one would see on a 1:1 rig is all.

Other issues I will bring up:
(1) Front Junfac line is machined off center. Needs replacement for true rotation.
(2) Entire electronics need replacement, the exception being the RX. ESC is wonky, and the motor is unusable for slow movement. TX is original Losi and looks/feels off in my hands.
(3) Lower links or loose/worn looking esp. on the front. Upper links are plastic and flex.
(4) Mounting for upper links are broke/torn and unusable.
(5) Front servo is lethargic and weak.
(6) Suspension system requires complete rebuild. Two bent springs, all shocks leak fluid one of which you can hear the bubbles, springs are a hair too soft. (Also, lack of fluid reservoir lacks realism imho.)
(7) Body is just a bit over-hacked for the fitment.

Out of all of these complaints (and yes, I am nitpicking it too death,) the frame is the only real problem I have. It's not so much cosmetic as it a possible functionality issue. That and the axles, being worm-gear driven and prone to overheating and binding issues. A quick price check puts me at just over $450, which bring my investment up to $850, and this is not even regarding the material and accessories to the cab, paint, wheel/tire combinations, winch system, lighting, and possible coating for the frame. This is twice the investment I was intending to make on what was to be simply a "back-up rig."

The question that remains is whether any of you believe this truck has potential to be a true scale rig that would be worth the time and effort needed to get it up to snuff. Here's my impression. The man who built this truck loved it. In fact he loved it so much after I showed up with cash in hand the first day I could completely see he still wanted to keep it. I understand his view and the work he put forth into it, and therefore I was happy to walk away from it. Now that it has finally come into my possesion, I feel a tremendous responsibility to either build it right, or to not touch it and let someone else have a go. My wallet will exude all it can to make this truck the envy of the lot, but my question remains whether the issue of an unstraightened frame is enough to keep it from reaching a higher potential. After I had taken possession of this truck I also found it that it was not the ideal truck I had in mind. It's a bit, "too" good, but at a price. If that makes sense.

[ModTrialsRider]

More random pictures for posterity and entertainment value.

[IMG]DSC_0309 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
[IMG]DSC_0310 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
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[IMG]DSC_0312 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
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[IMG]DSC_0318 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]


After I had it towed to my home, I had my co-driver John come take a look at it and get his opinion. Since he helps drive my rigs, I value his input.
[IMG]DSC_0321 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
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[IMG]DSC_0324 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]
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He wasn't that impressed.
[IMG]DSC_0326 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr[/IMG]

[fried daddy]

Well I think if you could find out what is exactly bent , you may be able to heat it up and bend it back. On the otherhand its possible to cut out the bad and just replace it if you got a welder or know someone that has. If not maybe you should just enjoy it as it is. tell john fried daddy says hello

[old man 52]

Does it track true? If its just a cosmetic thing then i would worry about. If the rear axle is a little out of line you can always adjust the links.

[ModTrialsRider]

Originally Posted by fried daddy

Well I think if you could find out what is exactly bent , you may be able to heat it up and bend it back. On the otherhand its possible to cut out the bad and just replace it if you got a welder or know someone that has. If not maybe you should just enjoy it as it is. tell john fried daddy says hello

For all intentions as of this moment I am unable to weld it myself, and the welders I know have little free time for such trivial work. Welding is a last resort. If it must come to that I may just pass it on, as commissioning labor hours from someone else defeats the whole purpose of my rebuilding it. Simply put, I haven't decided whether I like this rig enough to invest in such labor hours. Oh yes, I told John you said hi.

Originally Posted by old man 52

Does it track true? If its just a cosmetic thing then i would worry about. If the rear axle is a little out of line you can always adjust the links.

Truck does not track true, but it's close enough that one could almost call it superficial. Being that this truck does not exceed 5mph (unless I threw it,) an untrue drive track is irrelevant, this issue is the flex in suspension is unequal. I like the idea of changing the linkage setup, but wouldn't this also change the suspensions travel abilities in uneven form as well? Or would it be so small I wouldn't notice it? To clarify, the reason this is such an issue is the rear suspension gets hung up when the drivers-side axle flexes upwards; The passenger side shock and spring contact the frame.

Good tips lads, thank you for them. Please keep them coming, I can always learn something!

[ModTrialsRider]

Well.... had some interesting turn of events. Turns out a John took a liking to the truck, or at least decided that it was worth spending time and effort and my money so...

DSC_0329 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0333 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

He took it apart and bought some party favors. Then he showed me what he wanted done to the suspension problem.

DSC_0332 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0331 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Had the frame sandblasted, then grabbed some calipers and started taking measurements and laying out one new over-sized hole on the suspension brackets. I also widened the holes for the lower links to accommodate the new angles. No pictures of that, sorry. Just take my word for it.

DSC_0334 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0336 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

So the following day we painted the frame. I chose gold. Not sure why. I think I was watching to many grand-prix races from the old days on youtube and kept imagining the green-gold of the Lotus's and the gold-red of the Ferrari's...

DSC_0339 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Safety first, John.

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Next we mounted the brand new Tamiya motor on and cleaned the gears and transfer case to a lick-able sheen.

DSC_0346 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Oh crap John! Really? How much did all those Vanquish links set me back?? Where did those even come from????

DSC_0350 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Oh my goodness John... you're killing me. Really. Really killing me...

DSC_0351 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

[ModTrialsRider]

Fast forward a few days later and we have the main portion of the frame rolling. Got the links on and some suspension bits. Also finally have matching hardware everywhere. (The red nuts would be changed out later on.)

DSC_0355 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0356 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0357 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0358 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Ran outta hardware by this point. John was not pleased. The next day we came home to find we missed a special package I ordered from Hong Kong.

DSC_0364 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

The day after that they showed up.

DSC_0366 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

It took John and I almost a week of nit-picking here and there cleaning out the axles. We disassembled those babies, de-shimmed the worm gear, rebuilt the bearings, and loaded these mothers with Marine Grease and slapped on some aluminum goodies. Not really our style, but blinging out this rig was kind of fun.

DSC_0367 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0368 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0371 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0374 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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DSC_0378 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Then we got the RC4WD boing-boings on. Love the mounting position on the axles! Took me a while to figure out that's where they sat when I disassembled it.

DSC_0372 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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DSC_0379 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Mounted the servo just for giggles. Aluminum servo arm to come later, cheap Axial one will have to do for now.

DSC_0375 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

And there she sits...

DSC_0369 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

[ModTrialsRider]

Present day and John has gone to pieces on the electronics. Pieces.

DSC_0383 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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So we (...he) called in a professional, a recent friend of mine. "Uhm... John? Wrong number buddy..."

DSC_0391 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Didn't take him long to arrive.

DSC_0392 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0393 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

"Hi!" John, Danboard. Danboard, John.

DSC_0395 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Observing the tangled web we weave.

DSC_0398 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

"Okay! John? Pay attention, gonna throw you out a hard concept here."

DSC_0400 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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Must. Not. Cut. Red. Wire.

DSC_0405 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Calibrating in the ESC...

DSC_0407 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

"All set buddy!"

DSC_0408 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Now pay the man. Wait? That's my gas money for the month!!!

DSC_0409 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

[ModTrialsRider]

So after a two week hiatus, RC4WD FINALLY decided to send me my package. I mainly bought some ends and odds and bobby bits that really don't mean much, but these Raceline Monster 1.9 Beadies in all silver was what I was waiting so desperately for. I spent countless hours looking at RCCRAWLER at the different wheel combinations available. It was staggering.

First I wanted Vanquish wheels, cause they're the sexiest wheels in existence and I could come up with all kinds of color combos and the price was HOLY GOD MY WALLET ON FIAR. Yeah.... I gave up the on Vanqies pretty quick. $240 for wheels was just much to much. I loved the creations from Locked-up, and I was really digging the Axial 8-holes but I mean... pft. The're plastic. No bueno. Then I remembered that this truggy is more top heavy than anything and plastic wheels wouldn't keep daudly squit on the ground, so I priced up some Axial wheels with Locked-up bits, beadlock rings and Axial wheel weights and sadly, price for price, the chromies from RC4WD ended up being the cheapest wheels I could get at $100. Seriously. But I'm not complaining, they look good. (Actually yes I am, I wanted the all-black Racelines but RC4WD and RPP were both out, so I tried buying them as spares and neither had enough quantity between them and..... oh never mind. I bought these. Moving on...)

DSC_0410 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

I barely got a chance to get a picture of them before John was tearing them apart...

DSC_0411 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

He approves.

DSC_0413 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Time for install.

DSC_0414 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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DSC_0418 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

And that's why it's never a solid idea to use a high-lift to replace wheels on a rig jacked to the moon. Let this be a lesson to you kids! Stay in school.

And here she sits.

DSC_0419 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0422 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Next John and I started working on interior body panels using good ole' styrene. This will make the truck more scale by hiding unsightly electronics and/or framework, and gives the electronics a perch to sit upon. Despite what it looks like, the frame work although beautiful leaves very little interior room to work with. We killed two birds with one Kar-47 using this method.

So here's John cutting the styrene,

DSC_0423 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

And here's John cutting off his OMG WTF

DSC_0424 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Once things calmed down and he got back from the ER I took over cutting duties while he supervised.

DSC_0426 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

And here it is!!! With all the electronics hooked up and cleanly routed. Well, as cleanly as I could come up with...

DSC_0427 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0428 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
DSC_0429 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

More to come, cab is in paint.

[Derek Larsen]

Have you addressed the tweak? Do you know if it was built wrong or just crash damage? The frame is steel, no? No reason why you couldn't bolt the frame to something and just bend it. Steel is real, as they say.

[Derek Larsen]

[ModTrialsRider]

Originally Posted by Derek Larsen

[ModTrialsRider]

Last update, so here we go full bore.

Got the cab painted. I liked the original green scheme but wasn't cray cray about that matte green. So I chose something ridiculous and went with Brit Green courtesy of a rattle can of TS. Here's John bringing it in.

DSC_0433 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

"Hold it John, let me get a pic!!!"

DSC_0432 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Damn heavy...

DSC_0435 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Time to install the interior!

DSC_0436 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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Zip-tie door handles. Mwahahahaaa.

DSC_0440 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr

Mug shots!

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Since it's established this is a Class 3 rig now, no need for lights.

DSC_0450 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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AAAAAAAND, BAAAZINGA!!!!! The story ends here gents.

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And guess what? It's for SALE. ALL OF IT. Including the TF2. Any takers? Local pickups only... Will post official FS thread later. John may even go with you!

DSC_0459 by A+G vIsUaLs, on Flickr
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