1st build - Sporty

[AWDPete]

A while back I picked up my first crawler:

It came with some good parts like a Tekin FXR and 35t motor, HiTec 7954SH servo, Castle bec, G-made crawler shocks and these weighted ProLine wheels with TSL tires. I believe the metal chassis is from Integy. I used it a couple of times but wasn't pleased with it's abilities so I got rid of the chassis and replaced it with a stock SCX rails:


It performed MUCH better in this configuration and I was able to go 90% of the places that my buddies with there crawlers could go! The Nano-Tech 850mh 3s batteries really woke it up and the Rovers put the power down. However the big Losi JRXT body was limiting my progress, so apart it came again!

With the help of TotoRax I built a Margouillat SportsMann "copy" Although I changed a few things like making aluminum lower chassis instead of Delrin stiffened it up so I didn't need to make the cross bracing. I also used a Gatekeeper skid which is narrower so had to alter the cab side for motor clearance. I built some "beef" tubes out of carbon fiber and machined the ends from an old Mauser rifle barrel and added Vanquish XR10 C-hubs and Wraith knuckles along with some Axial XR10 universals. Also just recieved some of BlueMonkey RC's knuckle weights which fit like a dream (THanks Matt!) with the Vanquish SLW and 325 hubs. Overdrive gears up front finally came back in stock at RPP but still no underdrive gears - what's up Axial?????? I'm on my third iteration of servo/battery mount on the front axel - version 4 might be coming...


So far so good, it seems to work pretty well compared to my buddies rigs

[Hittman]

That looks awsome man. I really like that chassis I do have to ask though, what knuckle weights are those? Blue monkey i know but which ones?

All i could see was the ones for the xr knuckles... even in his wraith section... IDK maybe i am missing something???

[rob5059]

That looks greats. How do you like the chassis?

[AWDPete]

Thanks! These are brand new specifically for the Vanquish Wraith knuckles, he doesn't have them on his site yet but he had 5 or 6 sets made up ready to go. Send him a pm.

Originally Posted by Hittman

That looks awsome man. I really like that chassis I do have to ask though, what knuckle weights are those? Blue monkey i know but which ones?

All i could see was the ones for the xr knuckles... even in his wraith section... IDK maybe i am missing something???

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by AWDPete

Thanks! These are brand new specifically for the Vanquish Wraith knuckles, he doesn't have them on his site yet but he had 5 or 6 sets made up ready to go. Send him a pm.

Cool man, Pm already sent earlier tonight. Thanks

[AWDPete]

Thanks! to be honest I don't really have anything to compare it too other then the two others that came before it . I think the my shock setup is the limiting factor right now, the old Associated fronts are limiting the articulation. Once the front gets over the rear follows nicely. The Crawler Innovation dual stage foams work Great but the Rovers need some cutting I believe.

Originally Posted by rob5059

That looks greats. How do you like the chassis?

[TrailDawg362]

That looks like a top-notch crawler you have there, way to go . Must be nice living so close to some really great crawler spots (from what I've seen in postings and pics).

[AWDPete]

Thanks! While I do have a milling machine and a lathe this rig was built almost entirely with a hacksaw, file and drillpress Yah the North shore entrance to Devils lake is literally 4 minutes from my house! There are also some other excellent areas 15 minutes east and west that also offer some great trail running - you gotta work pretty hard to get board around here! I just got a Contour GPS video camera that I plan on shooting some vid with that will allow you local-ish guys to hit all the same good spots we found

Originally Posted by TrailDawg362

That looks like a top-notch crawler you have there, way to go . Must be nice living so close to some really great crawler spots (from what I've seen in postings and pics).

[JeremyH]

Nice work! Watcha got covered under that servo mount next to the servo?

[AWDPete]

Thanks, I've got a couple of big capaciters for the Tekin FXR stashed under there.

Originally Posted by JeremyH

Nice work! Watcha got covered under that servo mount next to the servo?

[JeremyH]

Very smart!

[AWDPete]

One thing I wanted to try was some fairly short front suspension links to shift the "cab" forward and thus the balance point. This is where it is at the moment but I still need to add more weight to the knuckles.

[NewToThis]

Nice ride.

[AWDPete]

Thanks

Originally Posted by NewToThis

Nice ride.

[AWDPete]

So I sipped my front tires today.....


but my question now is: do I cut the same pattern in the rears or something differant????

[AWDPete]

Made a couple of changes today, I swapped out the shocks front and rear to lower the ride height. It was sitting at 3" at the lowest point on the skid and with the shock change it's now sitting at 2.5" - BIG change in how the truck climbs now! Even though I am running shorter length shocks I am actually getting more suspension travel and the thing just flat out works MUCH better! Still more tuning to come.......

[AWDPete]

A little more about my shock setup; I am using Kyosho plastic bodied shocks from my short course truck, the only change I made was to add Traxxas rod ends to both ends of the front and the just the bottom of the rears. While these are actually pretty decent shocks they are well used! The top cap of the fronts won't stay on with the bladder installed and won't seal without it :-( I will have to pick up a new set now that I know how well they work - and they are a wopping $12 for a set of 4 :-) This new setup has really transformed this rig! I still want to try some differant weight shock oil to see how affects it and try moving the rear links around a bit. So far I am VERY HAPPY with this rig!

[AWDPete]

Oh yah, forgot to mention I need to replace the lower front links - I made them out of 1/4" delrin and one of them has a nice curve in it now! I have some 5/16" delrin - let's see if that is strong enough!

[AWDPete]

Here are a couple of pics of the shocks and beefy lower links installed:



The next thing on the list is to widen out the upper axle end of the links so I can get the speed control mounted lower, I can then put the front most spredder back on the cab

[Hittman]

This chassis has some really nice lines to it. Lookin really good