46&2's 1 ton Hilux (WraithLux)

[fortysixandtwo]

Here is my original thread for this rig when I bought it in 2013. I decided to just start a new post for it since photobucket trashed that one.

46&2's Poison Spyder Wraith

Homecoming 2013, with my SCX10 gen 1 Honcho, and original AX10 Scorpion buggy. Wow how times have changed



I've had this Axial Poison Spyder Wraith for 8 years now. I never really modded it that heavy, just some aluminum links and steering, cut foams in the tires, weight, and upgraded some of the electronics as it failed. At some point in the mid twenty teens it started collecting dust.

Come 2019, I revived it. Slapped a new servo in it, put in a new Spektrum STX2 receiver and transmitter, replaced some broken wheel hubs and put on an aluminum servo horn. Drove it pretty much like that for the next two years.





Starting in 2019 I began stockpiling parts just to basically overhaul the Wraith. But never got around to it. After COVID19 hit, rebuilding the Wraith from the ground up as a Wraith Hilux (Wraith Lux) became my quarantine RC project. I had a Tamiya Hilux cab from a long time ago, and decided it was the perfect time to finally build my dream Toyota Hilux RC.

Poser shot with some but not all of the new parts:

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Some pics from the last outing before the Poison Spyder Jeep was no more.



Here it is with my two SCX24s.

[fortysixandtwo]

This project was drawn out over a really long period. I tried to save money where I could. And utilized some parts I already had.

My vision was to integrate the Tamiya Hilux cab as closely as I could with the Wraith tube chassis. 15 years ago I had a build idea for a 1980 Toyota Hilux I wanted to buy. I never ended up with it, but this is basically what I wanted to build in a 1:1 truck: A 1 ton Toyota Hilux on 49" M/T Baja Claws.

I wanted the truck to be as scale as possible but also perform well as a hardcore trail rig.

I started stripping down the old Wraith Jeep, and test fitting to see how I would mount the cab.





Basic build plan:

Wraith tube chassis
AX10 Transmission
Built AR60 axles (aluminum c hubs, knuckles, dif covers, Axial OCP universals, all new bearings & grease, still need beef tubes)
Tamiya Hilux cab, grill, lights, etc
Truggy style bed via AMF Racing side and rear panels
110 MM King Shocks
Gearhead RC Wraith droop shock towers
2.2 Mickey Thompson Baja Claws
Axial Trailready IFD beadlock wheels with Vanquish aluminum wheel hubs
Aluminum links, steering
JunFac steel driveshafts
Spektrum STX2 receiver/transmitter
Axial AE5 ESC
Hitec 7955 servo
HeyOK BEC
Axial 55T motor
Tamiya USAF Tan
RC4WD scale accessories
Home built bed deck
Home made stinger bumper
Wraith interior

[fortysixandtwo]

I had to dremel some of the rear of the Tamiya cab to get a flush fit on the Wraith cage. I am also running the full tinted windshield and windows, so I had to buzz some of the excess off of the window piece too.



I initially tried using the last hole on the Tamiya body at the back of the cab, and bolting it to one of the rearmost lower side panel Wraith mounts. But the fender gap seemed too large to me. Looked a little off. Either way, I was going to have to come up with my own mounts for at least one body hole on each side in order to have it screwed on in two places per side. Could only ever get one hole on the cab lined up per side with the Wraith body panel holes.

I decided to mount it as far forward as I could while still utilizing the front Wraith mount, and fabricated my own rear mount for the rear of the cab using parts from the parts bin.









I never really cared for the Wraith tube bumper with hoops so I cut them off to see what it would look like and really liked it. Now the Hilux has a stinger!

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I had hoped going into this I wouldn't have to narrow the grill or cab and could just get away with fender cuts. But no matter how much I tried the tires wanted to grab the grill.

So I made about 5 different increasingly larger cuts until I found the clearance I needed.







Then I narrowed the grill by removing one single grill segment. From 4 "squares" to 3 "squares.







I was worried I would mess this up but I think it came out pretty good. Just needs turn signals.

[fortysixandtwo]

Now to make the bed deck.



I made it out of styrene. I will admit I am not the greatest at free handed dremel work but I am pretty happy with how it came out. The holes are for mounting and accessories.

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As you could see the Kings were on in earlier pictures but I hadn't put fluid in or tuned them yet.


I started off with 80WT and the soft springs from RC4WD on the bottom, middle range stiffness up top. So far I like it.





These are really nice looking shocks.

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Putting the guts back in.












Starting to look like a vehicle again.

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On to paint! I went with Tamiya USAF tan.

It is a throwback to my very first Axial I built waaay back when the AX10 originally came out. Its kind of funny to look at now because it looks goofy compared to modern RCs, but RC crawling and the industry was a much different place in the late 2000s. The Tube body AX10 Scorpion in the first post is the vehicle I am referencing and was always desert tan, so I decided why not stick with my old theme.



I did 2 coats of Tamiya white primer, 4 coats of Tamiya USAF tan, and 2 coats of clear coat. I don't know if that is overkill, paint isn't really my thing, but I think it turned out great.

[fortysixandtwo]

Mounted up the 2.2 Mickey Thompson Baja Claws on my Trailready IFD beadlocks. Running full foams that came with the tires. Also installed the Vanquish IFD aluminum wheel hub kit. No more stripping out those crappy plastic ones. I went with the standard kit and it appears to be narrower than the narrow plastic stock ones. I kinda like the slight decrease in track width. So down the road if I decide its not wide enough I might have to go to the wide kit. But for now its fine.





My initial impression of these tires is that they are really soft and the tread is deep. They feel and look like they will do really good in mud, snow and on the rocks. I always liked these tires on 1:1 trucks, and their height/width is exactly what I was after. Looking forward to seeing how they do in the snow and rocks.

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Getting there.

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Got some RC4WD scale accessories to spice up the bed.





What I love about this ice chest is that it will make a perfect storage box for trail spares! The lid secures very solid. I will add more stuff to this but for now I threw in some axle pins, body screws, wheel nuts, and extra long screws to start my trail spare kit.

Put it in a bag so it won't make a bunch of noise and its easier to work with. Any other ideas for good parts to throw in a trail spare box? Its got plenty of room.

[fortysixandtwo]

More paint and body. I had wanted to do bed sides and a tailgate on this truck, but have not been able to find the Hilux beds for quite a long time. So I had to go a different route. After looking around, I decided the AMF bed sides looked like an ideal alternative that I could still do some stuff with.

[fortysixandtwo]

Basically done. I still have a few things to do. Mainly just fine tune the shocks and build some inner fenders.

[fortysixandtwo]

[fortysixandtwo]

[o0wiz0o]

Love it. Great looking truck Sir.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using Tapatalk

[fortysixandtwo]

Originally Posted by o0wiz0o

Love it. Great looking truck Sir.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using Tapatalk

Thank you! Appreciate it.


Recent updates are I added some rear aluminum lock outs for the axle, as well as stainless steel axle tubes to both axles.

[fortysixandtwo]

I took the stock rock sliders off of my first gen SCX10 Honcho and put them on the WraithLux. I forgot about these. Wish I had remembered them before. I think they fit great.












I also had to move the cab backwards a little bit due to clearance issues with the grill. At full stuff the Baja Claws still wanted to nip at it. I don't want to narrow the grill or hood anymore, so I am hoping this adjustment fixes the issue. So far it looks good, but the real world test will prove if I have to further modify the front clip of the Hilux or not.

[fortysixandtwo]

This is my first gen 1.9 SCX10 Honcho. I'm currently rebuilding it. Probably going to do a Toyota Extra Cab or 4Runner on it.