the northkona Ben Napier Bomber

[northkona]

After running and thrashing my Penhall rig for a few months I thought it was time to build a mate for it, this is what I had in mind . Its Bens other rig , a Randy Slawson Bomber.


I am using one of the first Wraiths I built as a donor, MMP, pro4 3300, built trans and axles . All good gear but very used , I'll upgrade and swap parts out as I go.
I started out printing out a heap of photos of Randy Slawsons rigs and made a scale template using the Wraith wheelbase as a reference.
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I am brazing with Map gas and using brake line . As its my first attempt at a chassis I am tending to rush it a bit and as a result it isnt perfect but its a good start to learn some skills.
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I have kept it to scale apart from the roofline I dropped a little bit just to keep it low and mean looking.
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My donor Wraith , very beat on and tired !
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I really liked the rear without the spare on it but for scale appearance I thought I'd better put it on. This is how it sits now with a fresh coat of etching primer.
I have put a few extra tabs in places so I have the option to put the battery up front in front of the dash or run 2 along the sides behind the door skins.
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[poop]

love these ultra 4's gonna have to build one soon..

good job

[northkona]

Mock up with paper panels, the interior will be just below door height to give plenty of room for elecs and battery. It'll be an alloy sheet with cut down Wraith seats screwed to it . I might try out a set of Proline sct shocks I have spare to lower the stance.
I'm pretty happy with it so far , just have to check durability ...........

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These wheels are cheap and nasty asiatees ones but the offset is perfect and gives a width of 290mm/11.4" a real nice scale look. All my other wheel hub combos are just a bit wider and dont look as good , any tips on a very narrow offset wheel / hub combo ?

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[ngward79]

Looking awesome ! Can't wait to see more of this !

[The Doc]

Good start nice job so far..

[halonine]

Thats looking really good! Wicked for a first attempt at this too, much better than my first one

I don't mind those wheels on there either, they look pretty decent on that rig

[warren]

very good start. keep up the good work.

[northkona]

Thanks for the comment guys, this frame looks pretty rough next to the work you do. (notice the lack of close up shots !)
I'm now looking at my other Wraith with full Vanquish axles and links to do a complete swap with , I may as well bling this thing up right away.

[northkona]

I couldnt help myself and stole the whole drivetrain off my other Wraith, it makes finishing this rig a breeze starting with a platform thats already sorted. The Wraith will now be mated with an SCX and be a 1.9 .

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Its starting to take shape and the SC shocks work out well even tho the fronts are a bit shorter . It reminds me of the old days of moto-x when they thought more travel was better. Its not , its better valving and spring rates that makes it better. ( well thats my argument so I dont have to steal the back shocks off my DESC410R ! )

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[Postclanker]

Nice stuff Kona, I've been eyeing one of these rigs since you built the original Penhall rig. Nice to see a modified wraith chassis going to good use.

Watching this build, good inspiration here

[northkona]

I made a couple of trays for the electronics and a box with a velcro loop for the battery. For the time being the battery will go inside the cab instead of up front.
I need to build a box to fill the gap where the 1:1 engine would sit (or find a nice scale engine)

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This was the first go at the interior , the seats need to go back more and I need to find a steering wheel , I think I'll make a trick stainless steel one.

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[northkona]

I had some more skins made up , the same as the Penhall rig. I made a small box out of .5mm alloy plate , the same as the panels, to fill the engine bay. Going on a camping trip this weekend so I'll get some good video and still pics.

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I just have a few more screws to put on the panels , attach some magnets for the battery access panel and make a steering wheel .
I cant wait to give this thing a trail run !

[warren]

great job! once again amazing detail on the finishing touches.

can we see some side by side pics like in the magazine?

[northkona]

Yeah ,for sure . pics this weekend !

[Chaotic Crawlers]

wow!

great execution for a first tube chassis.

I love the look of that truck. the really layed back A pillar setup looks pissed off.

[northkona]

Originally Posted by Chaotic Crawlers

wow!

great execution for a first tube chassis.

I love the look of that truck. the really layed back A pillar setup looks pissed off.

Cheers, I followed most of the dimensions of the 1:1 but just dropping the roofline a touch really makes it pop , its exactly the look I was hoping for.

[ngward79]

Looks great buddy ! Looks like it should be lighter than your other rig , so it should handle better too.

[Rockpiledriver]

Very nice I love the bomber chassis.

[northkona]

I managed to get a few still shots on the weekend ... Until it rained... And it's still raining.....

[northkona]

A few more pics from the weekend. And its still raining here.....bastard.
I want to give this rig a workout !