My Evolving SCX10

[n_d_fox]

Hi all

I've been a member for a while but spent more time lurking and loving builds rather than contributing. I thought it was about time i shared my rig

September 2013 and i bought a 2nd hand SCX10...



Completely stock chassis, running gear with a New Bright LR3 body shell.

It also came with a Honcho shell that had been "customised" but i didnt like it and couldnt save the front end... i stripped what i could off it and trashed it.

I ran it in this form for a little while, i did however change the steering link and made some links. 4 link in the rear and 3 link up front.



I then decided a change was needed so got a Proline Silverado body...





Added some decals, a rack and some bits n bobs...

[n_d_fox]

Shortly after i decided to upgrade the motor and ESC...

Novak Eiger Pro esc and 35T combo



All installed and moved the lipo over the rear axle



I also added a Savox 0231mg servo and a Novak BEC to help out with the juice.



Next up was tyres...





Played out and got the LEDs all working at the front end..

[n_d_fox]

First big run out... took a roll and totalled the light bar



Replaced it with a RC4WD item



New front bumper and winch...





and some home made sand ladders



Changed the bumper out again...

[n_d_fox]

Decided to try and protect the electronics a bit more, so using a plastic box from Maplins (electrical store) i managed to enclose everything into that. Also made a battery tray to mount the lipo across the front low down.



Also swapped the shocks for TopCad 105mm remote res items... mounted these with a lift kit upside down so the chassis doesnt sit too high.



They arent the best shocks but for the money they are very solid and very smooth... they really do control the truck nicely off road.

Added JunFac shafts and made up the front upper links including a STRC Y piece for the 3 link.



This setup certainly helps with articulation...

[n_d_fox]

New 3D printed sand ladders...



Then pulled the plug and bought some RC4WD raceline monsters...



Fitting the pit bulls was a pain but got there in the end and love the results

[n_d_fox]

After a UK Nationals event held by RCCi magazine i decided i wanted to change the body on the truck again... I also learnt quite a bit about driving in comps and the abilities of the truck.

At the moment i am focusing on the body but before the next comp i will have changed the CVDs and knuckles for Axial items (high clearance). I'm also going t upgrade to HD gears out back and OD up front as well as new lockers.

Anyway... this arrived...



Trying on for size ;)

[n_d_fox]

I've had a plan in my head from day 1... cut the bed off, mount it on the chassis, do something with the rear end for now then at some point later on get a cage made for the rear.









Skinned the hood in the end...



On the chassis for size



Detailing the rear of the cab

[n_d_fox]

Due to the flipped and mirrored trans the clod shell wouldnt sit down far enough so i needed to flip the trans back around. At the same time i took out the home made lipo tray and used some Axial parts to make a new one...





Bit of mock up...





Grille arrived as well as a new insert from CustomCuts.de

[n_d_fox]

To mount the body im playing with ideas at the moment...

I've made these panels for now...



The idea is i can use either plastic rod or axial alu threaded tube from these to the sides of the shell and then screw onto them from the outside a la TF2 / Yota body.

I've had to cut some of the back panel out to slot over the trans / motor and wiring from the electricals box...



This is the shell sitting flat down on the chassis at the moment, it will be circa 5mm higher than this when secured.



Up to where i am now... I've been playing with ideas for the rear end... using card i came up with this



I'm not convinced though, im thinking i should try and move the electrics box as close to the cab as possible and try to make it look like a tool / storage box or fuel cell, then mount the spare infront of the shocks rather than behind them. Then just run a flat piece of styrene to the end of the chassis to make it look boxed in.

thoughts, comments and suggestions most welcome

Thanks, Nige

[D_nicepumpkin]

If i were you, i would get water resistant electronics, then you can cut down on the bulk of the box. Its easier to hide the components separately than it is to hide a large box


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[n_d_fox]

The esc (eiger pro) is quoted to be water resistent but im not sure it could take a complete dunking... I could use corrosion x or plasti dip or even balloons I guess and move everything up front again.

[n_d_fox]

More work done on the Clod body, although the pace has slowed since im super busy at work...

So after a bit of work on the mounting brackets for the body i finally got it in place...







Black lines on the front arches are for trimming so the tyres dont catch on full compression.

Trimmed everything up, tested and happy with the results and that i havent had to butcher too much of the arches away.

Then onto under coat. Id got an idea in my head that i could use a red primer topped with a silver before the end colour, that way when the shell got scratched it would hopefully show through the colours underneath and the scratches would look a bit more realistic.

Primer



Bit more filer on the bonnet



Then my plan flipped a little... after putting down 2 coats of silver on the shell, i wanted to flat the finish down slightly before the top colour. I rubbed a bit too hard in places which pushed through to the red primer, but i really liked the look... after a little while longer and some smoothing of the finish i have this...









I'm now tempted to just apply the matte finish lacquer to the shell and run it like this, a sort of patina'd out silver... i'm not sure though yet, i might still cover it in gun metal then the matte finish.

Ignore the electrics box as well... ive got hold of a Yeti radio box with seals so the Rx, BEC and winch controller are going in there under the bonnet. I'm then going to bathe the ESC which is supposedly water resistant in corrosion x before mounting that behind the cab in a tyre mount / box type of thing i'm going to make from styrene...

Thoughts?

[n_d_fox]

Bit more work done on the shell over the weekend,

3rd coat of lacquer on, grill insert glued in, light lenses glued in and glass fixed into place...









I can start work moving the electronics around etc now.

Thanks, Nige

[Postclanker]

I think the patina look is great...leave it as is...

[Tbrown]

I saw that you are using a steel like cable on your winch. I gave it a shot on mine and noticed that every time some slack was given it all just spooled out. How did you conquer this dilemma?

[n_d_fox]

Originally Posted by Tbrown

I saw that you are using a steel like cable on your winch. I gave it a shot on mine and noticed that every time some slack was given it all just spooled out. How did you conquer this dilemma?

I wouldn't say i have conquered it, just that it hasn't yet happened to me. There seems to be enough breaking in the winch motor when working off a channel on the Tx to stop the winch spooling out under load (or when winching out line).

Only other issue i have read about with steel line is kinks or twisting happening... i haven't experienced that either yet.

To be honest, i don't use the winch very much, i always installed it with the intention of using it as a last resort to driving round / over obstacles.

[n_d_fox]

Slight change of direction on the clod body build... Was looking at options for making a box section to hide the electrics which are now sitting in balloons on a battery plate in the rear end. I wanted to be able to mount a spare wheel, sand ladders and a few others bits n bobs etc. After playing around with card i remembers the chopped off bed secton from the original body, which made a donation... still to tweek and fettle but im liking it so far









It will be mounted to the chassis and separate from the cab section, at the moment im thinking the side panels will be painted the same as the cab, not sure about the bed section yet

[n_d_fox]

Thanks buddy...

I havent had much time to get any real work done on the rear end since the above... i have glued the side panels to the bed section and added to bracing to keep things in place and strong. I need to bend the sides in now so they taper in at the tail, fill in the gaps in the bed and paint.

I did manage to get some time yesterday for a drive though, really happy with the way the rig is handling and working right now. The DIY waterproofing held up perfectly too which is a bonus

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xZDYv4ISic

Thanks, Nige

[n_d_fox]

Got time to focus on getting the bed section done last week in preparation for the M.R.C.C 300 gate challenge on Sunday.

For the time being the body work is now "finished"... there are a few little things to do, mainly some way of holding stuff down in the back while trailing but aside from a cage on the rear of the truck at some point in the future, it'll do for now.









On one of the hill climb sections on Sunday...



Still need to source a connector for a 9v battery for the headlights. Also need to get my Novak Rock Star rebuilt as it smoked a bit then died, my RC4WD 35t also died (none rebuildable so binned), ended up borrowing a 45t can from one of the guys to run...

Gearbox is also making some funky noises so im waiting for a aluminium case, full metal gears etc to come... have new HD overdrive gears for the front axle, brass beef tubes front and rear and Axial HD lockers to install, oh, and on the look out for high clearance knuckles... it never ends but its all good fun !

[n_d_fox]

Been an absolutely age since i updated this thread... a lot has been happening away from the scene, we've moved house and been busy with DIY and landscaping, work has been mental busy too so unfortunately the clod build aka Red Neck, has taken a bit of a back seat.

From the last outing, i managed to smoke 2 motors and pretty much destroy a gearbox so during the last few months when i have had time, ive sourced a new motor (well 2, but i'll explain in a mo), sourced and replaced the transmission and done a few other small changes.

First up was the the motor and trans... i sourced a full alu casing with hardened metal gears from eBay and slotted a sensored 17.5t Trackstar motor onto it. I didnt even run the truck out with this motor installed, i hated it, it was too fast, had little torque and zero breaking / hill hold. After a bit of research i decided on a Tekin 30t pro motor and at the same time swapped the pinion down to 17t and stepped up to a 3s lipo (was 2s previously).

I could probably go down on the pinion further as with the stock 87t plastic spur (keeping this as a cheap and easy to replace weak point in the drive line), its got plenty of wheel speed but crawls beautifully and has loads of torque. Happy with this change.

I've installed the brass beef tubes front and rear, the HD lockers and the overdrive gears up front. I've also installed a super shaft steering link from RC4WD (just for giggles) and spent a bit of time fine tuning the ESC since swapping back to a brushed motor.

The brushless can i hated ive managed to swap for a Tamiya dirt tuned can. This is currently bolted up to a 2nd alu / metal geared trans as a ready to go spare unit for when i am out on the trails... i figured it would be faster and easier to swap the entire trans / motor unit than take out the trans, remove the motor, swap in a new one, get the mesh right and re install ;)

Few pics then... from the garden / building site !







I also have a new to do list... the winch has died... looks like a motor failure or seized gears. I have a spare 3Racing winch but im not loving the look of it so have held off swapping it out while i look for something else. I'm running a 3Racing controlled from a channel on the Tx, has anyone ran the RC4WD Warn 9.5ci winch from one of these controllers? I didnt want to have to buy the entire kit if i only needed the winch.
I still havent sorted the lights out either... simple job, just need a 9v battery and a connector wired in but its one of those jobs i always forget about when at the LHS getting bits.

Anyway, hopefully it wont be so long before the next update, thanks for looking, Nige