My Honcho/Dingo/Chevy... (updated 7/27)

[devestator_x]

So, I finally got my 1st crawler/scaler put together into something that was drivable. Heres what I have...
Honcho (I think? bought it wth no body on it)
Metal links upper and lower
CMS kit
Metal steering links
bump stops removed
Pro-Line Chevy C10 body
Trinity Midnight 2 brushed motor
XL-5 ESC
Hitec 658MG
Slash wheels and tires
87/23 gearing
7cell nimh battery

This is my first crawler/scaler and I must say I am hooked. I wish I had one when I lived up north as that would have been awesome to run in the snow and over the rocks.

Had great speed an plenty of torque. Enough to spin all 4 wheels in my driveway and powerslide 180s all day if I wanted to. Being in Florida, I dont have a ton of stuff to crawl over, but the culvert in my front yard was suddenly a lot more appealing to drive an Rc in.

Almost makes me think about selling off my brushless Slash to buy more parts for this! If I can find some good places to crawl locally, I just might!

[a2hill]

Sounds great! get us some pics

[devestator_x]

I posted up a "build" thread, but it didnt get any response...

How I got the truck and added the motor.


Pic of the custom Battery mount I made.



With the Slash wheels mounted up and the temporary mount plate for the rx box. Also shows the transmission flipped. I may end up keeping this plate as it helps keep the wires out of the spur gear. it was a front bulkhead from my old RC10T and was modded a little for my Trophy Truck experiment.

Little closer look. The Rx box is a Traxxas unit and will get a cover later on.


Went a little more non-traditional on the color. Tried to get the light to pick up the metal flake

Swapped the rims/tires out too. The Red beadlocks just didnt look right next to the purple. These 2 sets are all I have right now. This was originally going to be more of a pre-runner, but I couldnt pass up on this body. now its going to be more mud/tough truck. New rims and tires will be bought in the next month. Im thinking Axial Walker Evans rims with either Super Swampers or Micky Thompsons.



Next on the agenda will be a rear roll bar and possibly a hinged tonneau cover to hide the rear body clips and that 1/2" drop in the bed.

[juswin24]

Looks great! Good job and enjoy it.

[lonleycreeper]

Any pics out on the trail/ yard ? Getting metal flake to show up is very hard.

[devestator_x]

No outdoor pics yet... will try to take a few next time I run it (possibly this weekend) It had just finished raining when I went out and everything was wet, and I had left my phone in the house. I just cleaned the dirt and sand off it last night and started building my rear roll bar. Hopefully will finish it tonight as long as it isnt too hot in the garage. The roll bar will be plastic, not metal. Ive made one before for my wheely king and they are super strong without being heavy.

[devestator_x]

Little update... I have almost completed my plastic roll bar. For those of you who want to make NON-structural cage parts without brazing, this method may be your best option... it works great for me. Buy yourself some thick plastic coat hangers at Wal-Mart. Use a dremel to cut them up, they are great because they already have curves molded into them, just cut a little beyond where you need your curve to end, then sand it back to your exact end point. Use a drill to drill a very small diameter hole in the end and thread in a 3mm screw about half way... cut the head off with the dremel while trying not to over heat the screw too much. Thread on your next piece.

I did a simple hoop with 2 bars running diagonal to the bed, standard traditional roll bar. I made one like this before for my wheel king and it was strong enough to lift the entire truck up by it and it was only held to the body with 4 screws and nothign else.

I am also making an aluminum rear bumper out of some 3/8" x 1/2" C channel I have. Its about half done right now.

[devestator_x]

Got more work done! Roll bar is finished and installed...







This is being held up by a 2nd coat hanger... 100% of the weight held by just the roll bar.


Rear Bumper also 90% complete...









From underneath... used 2 3mm screws with 2 aluminum spacers. The bumper itself is 3/8" x 1/2" aluminum channel. The ends are a dense polyisocyanurate foam (aka urethane insulation) coated in Bondo spot putty. Still need to paint it... not sure if I want to spray it silver or go black.

[devestator_x]

Ok... so its been a little while since my last update... got some newer pics...

First some action shots in the front yard. Slash wheels and tires dont exactly crawl the best, but its what I have for now...

[devestator_x]

And now for even more pics... made a trade with Eddie from C.I. and got some HPI wheels with Trail Doctor XL tires and an RC4WD Tough Armor bumper. It was cloudy out so the pics arent as bright as the last ones. I have since "dirtied" up the bright rims and made them look "worn in" a bit. Used some bondo glazing putty to simulate some rust stains and some old artic sliver thermal paste to simulate grime and grease. Will snap some pics next time I run it.

Anyway on to the next set of pics...

[mitchr97]

Looking good man!

[bobd80toy]

i like it man! love the idea on useing coat hangers. those new tires/wheels look a lot better also

[devestator_x]

Well thanks guys. Eventually I want to get some 1.9 boggers and a Clod body for it... maybe some beadlocks that have less offset to get them sticking out a bit more. The wife will eventually inherit this body when she gets her own scx10.

The coat hanger roll bars were originally tried on my Wheely King a couple of years ago. Really strong, lightweight, and simple to make. Also great for those guys who are in an apt (or for the kids living at home) and cant braze rods together where they live. I had also made a tube front bumper and rear bumper on that truck, just screwed to the stock body, but just added that little bit extra to it. Only issues I found were I had to screw everything together as I didnt have any kind glue that would stick to that type of plastic and make sure you buy hangers that are molded in the color you want! I initially bought yellow ones and figured Id just paint them... well, even Krylon Fusion just chipped right off and looked like crap after the first roll over.

[devestator_x]

Went out for a short drive today. Really need to find a good crawl spot near the house. These shots sow the "old" look I put on the rims. Still want to do a little more on them towards the beads.

Flexing...




As the front yard slowly washes out, it gets a little steeper each time. Cool part is every week its a little different.




Playing in the sand in the side yard...




Max flex, not posed.

[devestator_x]

Built myself a quick little spare tire holder. Just some mild steel I bent into 2 L shapes. Drilled a few quick holes and they pinch around the roll bar. Took me all of 30 minutes to make. Going to eventually remake it with stronger steel and paint it black to match the roll bar.