Hittman's El Niño III

[Hittman]

Time to get this build thread up. I was running that custom billet works chassis for a long time and it was working great for me. When I went to the AZ Shootout it had broke. It cracked on the fourth course and got completely destroyed on the 5th course. With the NM State Championships just two weeks after that I was nervous about getting a chassis in time. While in AZ I was truly impressed by the El Niño.. And being a Chaotic guy myself the decision wasn't hard. I got it ordered up and got building. Through all my parts I had I was able to get some usable links for it and got it together. I finished it the day before I headed up to the State Championship.. I had only run it for 10 minutes in my garage and that was it.. For not really knowing the chassis, I must say this thing crawls!

I ended up taking 1st place at the State Championship. I made it through the day with only one reverse and ended up with a -99 for the day. Second place finished with a -53 so I had a big lead all day.

I will stop boring you and give you some specs:


Chassis:
Chaotic Crawler El Niño III
Axial scx plastic bodied shocks (rear normal, front internally limited)
Front uppers - 4mm carbon links
Rear uppers - shortened axial bent links
Front lowers - T1e 60/40 Special Ops (yes the pro chassis) front lowers
Rear lowers - custom 7075 bent aluminum hc links
Dlux delrin sliders

Front axle:
Axial OD gears
Grip fab SS Spool
Vanquish xr knuckles and c's
CW Crawlers steering arms
Cut down xr universals
Custom 1/8" tie rod
Custom front Cf servo/batter plate made by me
Cut down Dlux knuckle weights with 1/2 .3" weight ring

Rear axle:
BWD carbon fiber rear link mount
Axial UD gears
Grip fab Al. Spool
Vanquish shock razors

Tires/wheel:
OTTSIX Voodoo's (Gold)
Ytown lw 4 post glue on wheels
BC-Brian Slim Shift hubs
Front - CI comp cut 6" inners, CI 5.5" soft outter, CI 5"/5.5" soft tuning ring
Rear - CI single stage medium, CI 5"/5.25" medium tuning ring

Trans/driveline:
Hot racing aluminum gears (lightened)
Axial steel out drives (lightened)
Lw aluminum middle gear shaft
Robinson racing 87t spur
14t pinion
stock case w/ brass insert mod
Axial WB8 shafts with insert mod

Electronics:
Smashed castle sidewinder micro
Castle bec set to 7.2v direct wired to servo
Futaba 2106 receiver
Hitec HS-7980 servo
Holmes 30t custom pro
Maxamps 430mah 3s lipos

Misc:
Shocks-
Front - plastic scx, losi mrc silver spring, AlexG cf spring cups, 9mm internal limiters, 2mm external limiters, 25wt oil
Rear - plastic scx, losi mini-t rear green spring, AlexG cf spring cups, 6mm external limiters, 25wt oil
Custom fiber motor guard
Custom fiber 7980 servo guard *coming soon*

Rtr weight - 3lbs 8.4oz



My fancy body I painted


Front shot


Body off


Bottom shot


Custom Fiber Motor guard


Overall side shot showing links and placement


I worked with BC Brian a while back and we came up with these Slim Shift hubs. They are equal to a 225 VP hub.


Voodoo on the Ytown wheels


Rear weight - 4.3oz


Front weight - 4.0oz

[Hittman]

Steering set up


Dlux knuckle weights


Front shocks


Rear shocks


Steering shot


Front width - 11 1/16"


Rear width - 10 7-8"

[Hittman]

I do have to say thanks to all my sponsors! I couldn't do it without you guys!

*The CW steering arms are awesome! They give just the right amount of steering and they are Über strong

*The Custom Fiber motor guards and servo guards help protect those expensive electronics.. We spend enough on them, why not spend a little more to protect them

*And the OTTSIX Voodoo's are just great. Going up there he set I had was brand new. I was a little worried but since we were comping on sandstone I wasn't sweating it. The new foam set is perfect for the weight. The right balance of support and softness. In almost every spot out there I could see where they excelled over the other tires ran.

On my pro rig, they were the only tire to make the tricky 10th gate on course 1. The other tires sat ther and spun.. Once I got the right line and my rear tires lined up, the Voodoo's just walked the gate.

On the sporty they give that little bit of added clearance. With this foam set up, they side hill like no other. Before states I was impressed with these tires.. After states, I am just astonished with them. I feel that they can be tuned for any terrain or environment. to you OTTSIX

[Crawling Calvin]

Thanks man! Appreciate the good words

I had someone ask if anyone had ever broken a 7075 arm. I said no but if it happened i'd gladly replace it

[TSK]

Don't like the drag link. Do like the rear lowers.

And I shaved off all the upturn tips of the shock mounts as I broke one and it's not really needed.

Looks good

[scomck5]

Solid Rig man and Hella driving at states....Way to drive Bro. Cool Truck.

[crawl-o-matic]

Originally Posted by Hittman

I do have to say thanks to all my sponsors! I couldn't do it without you guys!

*The CW steering arms are awesome! They give just the right amount of steering and they are Über strong

*The Custom Fiber motor guards and servo guards help protect those expensive electronics.. We spend enough on them, why not spend a little more to protect them

*And the OTTSIX Voodoo's are just great. Going up there he set I had was brand new. I was a little worried but since we were comping on sandstone I wasn't sweating it. The new foam set is perfect for the weight. The right balance of support and softness. In almost every spot out there I could see where they excelled over the other tires ran.

On my pro rig, they were the only tire to make the tricky 10th gate on course 1. The other tires sat ther and spun.. Once I got the right line and my rear tires lined up, the Voodoo's just walked the gate.

On the sporty they give that little bit of added clearance. With this foam set up, they side hill like no other. Before states I was impressed with these tires.. After states, I am just astonished with them. I feel that they can be tuned for any terrain or environment. to you OTTSIX

As one of your sponsors, let me say that it's an extreme pleasure having you as a team driver

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by Crawling Calvin

Thanks man! Appreciate the good words

I had someone ask if anyone had ever broken a 7075 arm. I said no but if it happened i'd gladly replace it

Np man. Thanks for the great products

Originally Posted by TheSCorpionKing

Don't like the drag link. Do like the rear lowers.

And I shaved off all the upturn tips of the shock mounts as I broke one and it's not really needed.

Looks good

Yeah me either.. But I works. And thanks.. They were a bitch to bend.. And the clearance they give is just stupid.

Good idea. I hadn't thought of that but I can see what you are sayin. Thank ya

Originally Posted by scomck5

Solid Rig man and Hella driving at states....Way to drive Bro. Cool Truck.

thank ya sir..

Originally Posted by crawl-o-matic

As one of your sponsors, let me say that it's an extreme pleasure having you as a team driver

Awe.. How sweet!

But seriously, thank you for the kind words

[Hittman]

Oh yeah.. I forgot this pic

[Crawling Calvin]

Originally Posted by Hittman

Oh yeah.. I forgot this pic

Now that's what I like to see

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by Crawling Calvin

Now that's what I like to see

Me too

[HARDKNOCKZ]

Rig's lookin good there Slim & congrats on the finish. You chose what I believe is the best sporty chassis available today but Im curious...why didn't you grab the Ti links from Chaotic? Or even a set of Ottsix Ice Links? I think the sporty platforms a great place for the slick surfaced links Ottsix has to offer.

Keep up the good work & practice. You'll see a whole new caliber of course & driver come September...even more so than the AZ Shootout

JD

[filotr14lsdude]

Nice work man.

Im really loving how my el nino is working for me. It still impresses me every drive

[Joshie]

Great build

What is your reasoning for staying with the standard width front housing instead of using long beeftubes?

Josh

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by HARDKNOCKZ

Rig's lookin good there Slim & congrats on the finish. You chose what I believe is the best sporty chassis available today but Im curious...why didn't you grab the Ti links from Chaotic? Or even a set of Ottsix Ice Links? I think the sporty platforms a great place for the slick surfaced links Ottsix has to offer.

Keep up the good work & practice. You'll see a whole new caliber of course & driver come September...even more so than the AZ Shootout

JD

Thanks man. I am happy with my decision.
When I ordered the chassis they were not in stock.. I needed a chassis within two weeks so I didn't have much of a choice other than use what I had. I have some ice links.. I might bend them up. Personally I think these work just fine.. The rear has stupid clearance and the front has a little added clearance. The geometry seems fine as well.. If I have something that I am happy with an it works great.. Why change it?

Originally Posted by filotr14lsdude

Nice work man.

Im really loving how my el nino is working for me. It still impresses me every drive

Thank you. So far this thing has impressed the hell out of me.

Originally Posted by Joshie

Great build

What is your reasoning for staying with the standard width front housing instead of using long beeftubes?

Josh

I did he xr mod before the wide tubes were even out.. I have been running it like this for over a year and a half now.. It works perfectly fine for me so I don't see any reason to change. Like I said in my above reply, if I am happy with it, and it works good, why change it?

Just personal preference

[winnerone23]

As with all ur builds slim jim, very impressive build and great driving! (In ur state) eww burn... lmao!

Seriously tho always a step up on ur custom parts and appreciating for ur rig and sponsors.

Keep up the driving. Some fresh Custom Fiber for nats is in order and on the works bench for ya.. :thumbup::cool:

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by winnerone23

As with all ur builds slim jim, very impressive build and great driving! (In ur state) eww burn... lmao!

Seriously tho always a step up on ur custom parts and appreciating for ur rig and sponsors.

Keep up the driving. Some fresh Custom Fiber for nats is in order and on the works bench for ya.. :thumbup::cool:

Thank you Wienerone..

[Hittman]

New wheels!



These are Dlux g10 wheels. They are light and the quality is second to none. I chose to get the wheels with 7/8" cross braces. A little narrower than I am used to but it isn't a huge difference so I should be fine. And yes, I am running three cross braces. I am sure Erik would highly advise against it but I think it's fine. There is very little flex in the wheel only using three braces.

With all six braces and aluminum hardware, each wheel weighs in at 18g.
My wheels with three cross braces and aluminum hardware weigh in at 14g.
Not a huge loss, but if there arnt strength issues, it is worth it in my eyes.

Backside



New tire shape. The front stayed the same, but the rears rounded out a little. This is with the same foam setup as before.
Front on left, rear on right.


I am unsure of the mounted up weight. I will get that, and a few pics of them on the rig tomorrow

[boostedg60rado]

Very nice build been looking at this chassis myself

[Hittman]

Originally Posted by boostedg60rado

Very nice build been looking at this chassis myself

Thanks. You really can't go wrong with this chassis. The guys at Chaotic nailed the geometry on this. The lines you can pull are amazing