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Thread: Just Another Honcho build-thread

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Old 04-21-2013, 10:00 PM   #1
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Default Just Another Honcho build-thread

This is just another Honcho build thread. It's for me to chronicle what I have done so far, and ask the questions that I have without starting a dozen threads.

At the time of posting this, my Honcho is still 100% RTR stock, I haven't changed anything, only preloaded the front springs. As such, I am not bothering to post any pictures, it's still just another Honcho.



I am trying to decide on a motor.. I'd love to be able to TRY a couple different motors.. Would I be better off to change the motor, first, or experiment with different gears, first? I would like to keep a range of speeds available without having to take the truck apart, because i am not always crawling with it, but sometimes just driving around the baseball park near my house.. I would kill for a 2-speed trans..

When I had XMods RC cars, the transmitter had a 2 position switch on it for Hi and Lo throttle trim.. when switched to Lo(w), it changed the rate of the throttle, so pulling the trigger 100% could only give you 75% throttle.. a very common mod on those transmitters was to remove that switch and bypass it with a push-button on the grip that when held would give you the full range of throttle again. This basically gave you better low-end throttle control, and a boost button, like having NOS installed..
I am curious about adding such a trim switch and bypass button to my AX-3 transmitter. I have very little fine control at the low end of the trigger and the slightest tug is enough to launch the truck, and do not want to slow the truck down overall, yet...

I am trying to decide on shocks.. again, I have no idea what length I want so would love to be able to try a shock or pair on my truck without having to spend, first >.< It sucks having no other crawlers 'close by'.. and i'm not enough of a regular at the LHS to have any connections there ...

I am trying to decide on whether it would be worth splitting my 6c stick into two 3c sticks and running them on the side skids.. I do not want to run them on the axles.. I think that looks ridiculous.. I do want to convert to Dean's plugs, because the tamiya are a pain in the ass to get the pins to line up.. also, wondering if I could run a 7th cell or even 8th..


All these ideas ...

DieCastoms.
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Old 04-22-2013, 01:55 AM   #2
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Just moving the battery pack up front and removing the bump stops from the shocks made my SCX10 a much more agile crawler...
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Old 04-22-2013, 02:03 AM   #3
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

the battery already is up front in mine, between the shock hoops and almost touching the inside of the front grill of the body ... but the truck seems top heavy to me, i'd like to get the weight lower since it's basically the heaviest thing in the whole rig ..

What bump stops do you mean, the black rubber pieces on the shock rod? Someone else actually suggested I ADD more stop there, because the front drive shaft rubs the lower links whenever the passenger's front shock is compressed.. I set the preload almost as much as I could and stiffened the front up and it doesn't rub anymore.. that's why I wanted to get some slightly longer shocks, maybe 80mm (since the stockers are 72mm and to end (not center to center))

anyways, I'm probably all wrong.. I don't have money for longer shocks anyway so will run it the way it is for now anyway. I do want to split the pack, though, just need a suitable wire for between the two saddles

DC
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Old 04-22-2013, 02:33 AM   #4
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

My drive shaft rubs the links but it not a issue that bothers me. I prefer the added articulation. I use 5000mah 2s packs and they are quite heavy but even so with that battery sat where yours is I have no issue with roll. I guess it depends on how you attack the obstacle. It would be better really to move the electrics to the back and have the battery sat low as it was on the rear but I have yet to do this. It crawls really well as it is and is as good as the modified Wraith I had...I'd say more fun as with smaller wheels and lack of offset pumpkins you really do have to plan a little more which makes it more fun and challenging.

My only gripe is the very cheap and poor quality stock shocks and I need to mod the side bars as the large gaps in them get me caught up on rocks.
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Old 04-22-2013, 09:23 AM   #5
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

I saw someone move their electronics to behind the motor and trans, and then put their battery across the chassis down where the electronics box was.. is that what you mean? Is there another place in the truck that the electronics box will 'lock in' like it does in the stock position? I like that it's nice and solid like that and not taped or ziptied..

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Old 04-22-2013, 10:21 AM   #6
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

I moved the electronics to the back and relocated the battery to the front. I had to lengthen the steering servo wires to reach the back. I mounted the battery between the shocks and noticed that the steering servo would make contact under full suspension compression. So I had to raise the battery some. Haven't noticed too much tipping but have noticed it climbs much better this way.
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Old 04-22-2013, 12:44 PM   #7
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

stole some ideas from cox in the Hawaiian build thread, going to remove some of the bump-stops in my stock shocks and use the material to cushion my body mounts, also going to re-arrange the electronics a bit, hopefully get the battery down across the chassis fore of the motor. looking forward to seeing the effects of these 'free' 'upgrades', and will post more as I know it.

DC
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Old 04-22-2013, 06:55 PM   #8
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Possible update:

I have the chance to get a 99% complete Losi Comp Crawler. It has no motor and no body, but is apparently otherwise complete... and it has a DIG transmission... I don't know all that much about it yet, but the price being asked for it is a no brainer!

So now I am faced with a decision...
  • Buy the LCC and strip it and put the wormdrive axles, dig tranny, shocks, links, etc in my Honcho
  • try to figure out how to keep my axles and just put the dig tranny, shocks, links, etc in my Honcho
  • or rebuild the LCC and have a second truck, with no body, and have two trucks I can't afford to upgrade :P

*makes evil-grin-face and greedy-grabby-hands . . .*

DC
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Old 04-24-2013, 06:31 PM   #9
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Drove the truck today and the ball on the Y-link failed. Tried putting another ball in but it seems to be the ring that is stretched out, not the ball..

Managed to get to the LSH and pick up a little hardware.. 4-40 x 1.25 socket-head bolts and matching locknuts, M3 X 8 buttonhead bolts.

Converted the front to 4-link, since the bracket was included with the truck.

Learned a few things in the process ...

There are A LOT of screws that are not tight in this truck ... I wish I had gone through it when I took it out of the box, just so I could know if they WERE loose or if the GOT loose ...
  • rear axle lockouts AND front CHubs
  • set screws in ALL FOUR wheel hex's
  • threaded pins at the axle-end of BOTH drive shafts
  • screws in the cover of the electronics box
  • 3 out of 4 threaded pins in the rock-sliders
  • possible worst of of all, one of the two motor bolts . . .
Keep in mind, I've run only three battery-charges through this truck so far .... so MAYBE 5 hours of intermittent run time... am I going to have to rebuild the truck every time I run it to tighten things?

I decided, randomly, to leave out the front drive shaft and the axle shafts, and run rear-wheel-drive-only, for the hell of it. This thing is a total piece of crap with only rear wheel drive :P couldn't get up the slightest hill in my sandy driveway, no matter how slow or fast I tried to go. Nothing but dust fans :P I didn't take time to try only front wheel drive but I am SURE it would be far better than rear, as all the weight is over the front axle..

Also, I bought a 17t pinion at the LHS.. I swapped the 20t out, but the 17t doesn't really seem to fit right. If the set screw is set on the flat of the motor shaft, it only meet half the teeth on the spur ... If the pinion is set far enough onto the motor shaft, the set screw lands on the round part, not the flat ... Is this common? I didn't think to look at how the stock pinion mated up with the spur before I pulled it apart, but the mar on the motor from the stock pinion's set-screw is on the flat of the shaft . . . The 17t seems to be centered on the shaft, and runs quiet, so I'm going to leave it that way, just wondered what anyone else's results have been.

Haven't tried driving on the 17t, yet... might post again after I do, but my battery is currently on the charger.

Anyways, that's all for the moment.
DC
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Old 04-24-2013, 08:27 PM   #10
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Went and drove it. To be honest, I never had a problem with having enough torque, anywhere I've driven it .. but the 17t is giving a lot more throttle control if nothing else! I wonder if they will let me return the 17 and try the 15? Can't hurt to call and ask, I suppose.

Also, softened the front springs up, since the y-link is no longer there for the drive shaft to rub on, and it's made the articulation better again. I will take the suggestion cox308 made and shorten the bump-stops on all 4 springs, and use the removed pieces in my body mounts.

Oh, also thanks to cox308, I lowered my body mounts the way he did, flipping the rear mounts upside down which brings the back of the body right down on top of the shock hoops, and lowered the front of the body either 3 or 4 holes, which brings the inside of the body right down against the top of the 6c stick, which is still in the stock location even though I wanted to move it...

anyways, I think that's all for now! Still too stock to bother with pictures.

DC
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Old 04-25-2013, 03:00 AM   #11
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Nice job DC! Thanks for the shout out but I can't take all the credit. I learned almost everything from this site!

Keep up the good work and post PIC's, pic's, pic's!!! If anything people enjoy seeing the terrain your crawling!

P.s. it is a good idea to go over all the screws on your rig after every good run. Some of the ones you mentioned are known for loosening up. Use blue loctite on all screws going into metal and up grade all those self taping type screws to M3 machine hardware. That will solve most of it but it is still good to double check every now and then.

Last edited by cox308; 04-25-2013 at 03:27 AM.
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Old 04-25-2013, 03:22 AM   #12
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

I just re-read your Op again and would suggest a couple things.

Don't worry about shocks for now. The RTR shocks are damn good and experimenting with different oil weights and spring tentions will get you pretty far. IMO it should be one of the last things to throw money at. I would stick to 90-100mm max when you do upgrade.

Before upgrading your motor you probably be better off beefing up your drivetrain. RR trans gears, and aluminum c-hubs and knuckles are a must. Then aluminum lockouts and metal driveshafts when you can.

Some other things I'd look to upgrade soon is to metal links, metal steering arm, and a metal steering horn.

Adding weight down LOW will improve your crawling more than anything else. Look for some real bead-lock type rims(metal is better for the weight and the strength) and put some lead in them. If you budget dosent allow for that yet at least put some stick on lead onto the inside of your RTR rims.

These are just some of the things I'd do.
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Old 04-26-2013, 06:51 PM   #13
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

cox, thanks for all your suggestions! I will keep them in mind!

Stock springs are about 70mm eye to eye. I unbolted the front springs from their hoops and found that I can only go another 25 mm or so before the drive shaft binds up from the angle, instead .. so 90mm will probably be enough, for now. I am going keep the stock springs and do this, for now (NOT my picture.. 'stolen' from tmaxxman80):



I want to get the Axial set that has the aluminum chubs (those are the clockable ones, right?) and knuckles, and the aluminum lockouts, and at the same time, get rid of the shpping-bag-quality tierod, steering link, and the servo arm..

I am going to order some 3mm rod ends from TH, some 8-32 all-thread (apparently the 8-32 is slightly larger than the 3mm and will bind more tightly into the rod ends and not need and locktite or anything) and some aluminum tube from Lowes.. I will make my own links, I am confident I can do so, and if and when I break or bend one, I know I will be able to just make a new one, instead of order and wait for a replacement.

I saw a pack of pinewood derby car weights at Lowes, they are peel-and-stick lead weights. Each pack is 8 ounces. I was thinking of buying a few packs but then decided against it as I didn't think I could get enough weight into the wheel to make a difference, before they started to rub on the knuckles or something.. I dont want to put weights inside the tires, yet, since I have only ONE set of tires and don't want to take the chance of damaging them while un-gluing them from the rims.. I eventually want bead locks, but I want some that actually look like scale rims .. I really don't like some of these bead locks that are available that have huge rings that extend to the center of the rim, they simply don't look realistic to me... I want these:



In other news, I spent a while tonight taking apart my transmission.. I was going to mirror it until I realized that the dust cover would no longer fit .. so for now, I put it back the way it was. I did discover that the clutch was so tight, for so long, that the shoe was stuck fast to the disk .. which means it wasn't slipping at all all this time .. It will now. How much SHOULD it slip? One post said you should be able to lock the output shafts and still be able to turn the spur with your fingers, but everyone has different strength fingers . . . . for now, I think I will put the truck on the carpet, against the wall, and adjust the slip loose enough that the links don't fold in half before the clutch slips . . . . don't know if that's the right thing to do, but at least the links would bend so much.

also, i'm blabbering now, because my battery has still not charged >.<

DC..
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Old 04-30-2013, 03:32 PM   #14
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

Got to get my truck dirty for the first real time, yesterday, on some hills at the local (HUGE) ball park (there are something like FIFTEEN diamonds at this one park!).

I SUCK at driving I am really glad i bought the truck I bought, though, because it tumbled rather quickly, side over side, about 40 feet down a 45-degree slope, after hitting an especially-stiff weed that I didn't see in the hood-tall grass. It was tumbling so fast that I couldn't count how many times it went over.. When it got to the bottom, and stopped on it's wheels, up the hill it went again without the slightest hint anything had happened.. I was kinda glad it had gone crashing down that hill like that, because when a kid asked if he could try it, I wasn't nervous about letting him (on a flatter hill), figuring there wasn't much more than that he could do to it..

I am pretty proud of owning this truck, now, as it turned quite a few heads! Even my best friend who told me I was retarded for spending so much on it had a blast driving it and sees where the value is.. she still thinks I'm crazy, but at least not retarded :P

In other news, I decided to look up the number on a parts tree that I didn't recognize the parts on ... AX80009 ... turns out it is the transmission parts tree, and has the necessary spacers for using the transmission without the dust cover.. which means I have everything I need to mirror the trans without cutting up the dust cover, but that still means I cannot run the dust cover . . . I am leery of open gears, since my battery wires are not secured, since my power switch fell off the side of the ESC and got hooked on something and ripped off, so I have to unplug the battery to turn the truck off.. I would likely have removed the switch once I waterproof anyway, so this isn't an issue for me.

anyways, that's all for now..

DC.
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Old 04-30-2013, 09:23 PM   #15
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Default Re: Just Another Honcho build-thread

It's disheartening to see your truck tomahawking down a hill! But they're so tough! We want pics in its natural habitat weather it's stock or not!
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Old 05-01-2013, 12:05 AM   #16
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maybe I'll try to get to the ball fields tomorrow, with a good camera.. might try for some video even. It's an awful long drive to the park, though .. it's JUST over 1 mile . . .

:P

DC
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Old 05-01-2013, 07:50 PM   #17
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Oh boy did I get muddy today! Gonna be fun trying to clean it . . .


I learned that I REALLY NEED SHOCK OIL and I really need to lower my CG . . . really . . . . I tried to keep my phone as level as I could to take these pictures.. this is about the max side slope without rolling sideways:




NOT posed, ALL my shots were driven to AND away from.. I'm not great, this is about the extend of my driving:


Looks like an alien planet . . .




Good articulation?


this ... alien goop was trying to absorb my truck . . . it was so sticky >.< and I wont tell you what it physically resembled ... (I dropped my phone in it and had to clean my phone . . .)



Full-speed was flinging mud high enough to get it on the windshield of the Mitsubishi Mirage I drive ... I didn't get pictures of that, though..



This piece of 'abandoned' road was once the pit road of the Augusta International Speed Way, which has been gone since the 60's..

The old wall is crumbling, slowly..

some of the washed'out spots were just right to get up with the truck, so I took a number of pictures on top of the wall and the earth that was behind it..
ALL my shots WERE driven to AND from..

The slightest moment after that picture was taken, as I was taking another, I found out that the drag brake releases slightly, each time the ESC chips, which is roughly once a minute... This picture fired off while I lunged to prevent a 2-foot fall to concrete....

another spot on the wall, driver's front hanging on for dear life!



This will be the new wall-paper on my cellphone


Also, I figured out that a bit of newspaper stuffed in the rack on the back of the truck would let me wedge my cellphone against the back of the cab and shoot video 'from the driver's seat', unfortunately the camera focused on the ESC wires so you can't really see much. I will experiment more, though.. Might post a few pieces of video if a friend will trim it up a bit with his uber leet video editing skillz..... ;)


I will be building a bed like this:


and another, like this:


Also, unrelated and just because, I saw this scary ****er in my rear-view, one day . . . .


DieCastoms

Last edited by DieCastoms; 05-01-2013 at 09:51 PM.
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Old 05-01-2013, 09:13 PM   #18
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Those pics are full of AWESOME!
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Old 05-03-2013, 04:33 PM   #19
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So..

Much to the disagreement of a certain few who shall remain nameless, I added some sheet lead to the front wheels of my truck. I have no way to weigh the addition, but I can tell you that it's 1/16th thick, and 5/8ths wide, and long enough to perfectly fit the inner circumference of the wheel, on the inboard side, with the edges slightly flared out to keep from rubbing the knuckle or steering arm. You can just make out the lead in the third pic, below. What looks like a bent rim at the top of the inboard-side of the tire, and the one shiny spot at the bottom is the lead.

It seems to have improved my roll-over stability a little, but I still need either more weight, or still need to lower that damn battery .. or both ..






Also, I took some video, for a friend, of how badly the rear 4-link collapses under the torque so he'll understand why I want to upgrade my 4-links.. I am going to try to get some stills out of the video to post here.

That's all for today..

DC.

Last edited by DieCastoms; 05-03-2013 at 10:17 PM.
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Old 05-11-2013, 11:11 AM   #20
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had a whole post typed up .... hit "post", and it told me to go to blazes . . . Refresh your threads BEFORE you use the quick-reply, or copy your entire reply before you hit post . . . .

Got to drive a bit, today, until my battery died.. apparently wasn't very charged..

I don't know if my driving has improved (I doubt that), the added front wheel weights (which I was told would not work, at all), or the improved approach angle (made possible by my custom (cardboard) front bumper, detailed over here), or a combination of all of the above, but I was able to drive about 100 feet along the top of the wall (first, and last 6 or 7 pictures in post #17 of this thread), and only rolled sideways down the hill in one spot where I pole vaulted over a log (twig) which jammed (poked) into the undercarriage somewhere....

The bumper worked really well for me. I do agree that it needs to be narrower, about 6 inches (a little more than a quarter inch on each side), but I think it will be a while before it will start getting in my way (rubbing the tire at full-twist) but I think I will contour the tailing edge to match/blend into the wheel arch, and possibly notch it out inside where it wont show, to give the tire treads just-a-little-more clearance.

I do know I want to add lights, and eventually a winch, and even though people keep telling me not to, I am more-and-more convinced that I want a 2-speed trans (even if I have to shift it manually, for now...)

I was thinking, if I can find two more servo-mount-posts, I would like to try doing this 'free lift kit' that I saw on Youtube where you screw the servo-face of the servo mounting post directly to the top of the axle (there's two empty holes there) and then screw a ball into the plate-face of the servo mount for your shock to snap onto.. but then again, now that I look at my truck, the 4-link mount is there already . . . . . hmmm.... Suggestions? I've seen several metal link mounts that go in those holes, would they fit under the 4-link mount without changing too much?

Oh, also, my local Lowes, in their hardware drawers, sell ERECTOR SET PARTS!!! Legitimate "ERECTOR" labeled parts, battery boxes, motors, and a decent variety of plates and brackets ... I don't know whether that's relevant at all, but it greatly amused me! They DID NOT have ANY 3mm nuts, bolts, all-thread, etc. at all... had to resort to the LHS for that.

anyways.. thanks for reading another DC update :P

EDIT: YAY, my links worked!!
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