JimK's Shiny Red Gladiator

[JimK]

Still waiting on some parts and accessories to arrive but I have enough goodies here to get started on modifying my shiny red Gladiator.



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Parts List

CLUB 5 RACING:

Crawler central Bar Fenders
Crawler Central Headlight Guards
Crawler Central Metal Gladiator Emblem Set
Crawler Central Black Hinge Set
Crawler Central Lighting Induction Sensor Switch

Tires/Wheels:

Proline Hyrax G8 Compound
Proline Dual Stage Foams
Proline Denali Bead Lock Wheels

Weight Down Low:

SSD fr/rr Brass Diff Covers
SSD Brass Steering Knuckles
Samix +8mm Brass Wheel Hexes
SSD Front Portal Overdrive
Bowhouse RC lower Panhard Bracket
7RC (Amazon) Aluminum Upper Panhard Bracket

Bumpers:

Injora Metal Front Bumper with Stinger
Injora Metal rear Bumper with Trailer Hitch
RC4WD 1/10 Warn 9.5 cti Winch + Wired Controller
King Kong Orange Tow Shackles

Miscellanious Scale Accessories:

RC4Wd Maxtrax Recovery Boards
RC4WD Hi-lift JackRC4WD Sleeping Pad
RC4WD ARB Fridge
RC4WD ARB Tow Strap
RC4WD Slicer Chainsaw
RC4Wd Fuel canisters
Yeah Racing Metal Shovel

Electronics:

Spektrum DX5 Rugged Tx
Dynamite ESC Programming Card


I also plan on painting and detailing the interior and exterior of the truck. Change the shock oil and springs for a bit of a stiffer set up and swap out the stock pinion gear for a 12T Axial pinion. There's probably a couple other things I'm forgetting but I think I got most of it.

So let's get started......

[JimK]

Bumpers installed. Both went on without any issues. I did have to file a couple areas on the front bumper mount to clear the winch mounting screws. King Kong tow shackles, winch and led's are installed. No wiring has been connected yet.









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[JimK]

Was also nice that there was lots of extra fasteners and pins included with both bumpers. Haven't decided yet if I'm going to install the rear LEDs?

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[JimK]

Rebuilt all 4 shocks using green slime. Went with 50 wt oil and extra firm springs on the front. For the back I used 55 wt oil and firm springs. I'll use that as a starting point and see how it is once I hit the trails.



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[JimK]

This little gem just showed up. I'm going to use it for the Gladiator and put the DX3 from the rtr into my Barrage that I'm going to hand over to my son in law so we can go crawling together.



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[JimK]

Got the Hyrax tires mounted to the Denali bead locks. 32 screws per wheel...all disassembled and then reassembled by hand...fingers are feeling it. The stock rubber isn't too bad but I don't care for the chrome wheels.



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[JimK]

Working on detailing the interior and the body tonight. I've never painted an interior before and it's actually pretty fun!



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[JimK]

Got the interior finished and ready to go back in the truck. Looks just like a much younger version of me heading out on a hunting trip. Gave the interior a light mist of matte clear before painting it to knock that shine down a little.





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[JimK]

Got a lot done tonight. Finished the interior and got it back in the truck and got the body put back together.



I had to put the stock wheels on for now, mounted on Impulse wheels, as the Hyrax tires on the Denali bead locks would not work. The inner bead lock ring of those wheels interfered with the portal covers even with wheel spacers in place. Unfortunate cuz I really like those wheels. Ordered a set of aluminum wheels off Amazon tp put the Hyrax tires on. Should have then tomorrow.



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[JimK]

Got all the Club 5 Racing details mounted tonight.

Headlight gaurds and front bar fenders, narrow version.



Side view of the door hinges and rear bar fenders.



Rear quarter view of the hinges and rear fenders. Trying to decide where to mount some scale accessories. Those items are just sitting there for now.



Another shot from the front quarter showing some of the details.



Very pleased with how it's turning out so far. First time I ever painted a face....and I think that's pretty apparent...lol
Lot's of tiny screws and fiddly details tonight but I'm happy with the results.

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[B-MOW71]

The JT is looking great!

Great job on the interior! Paint details look great! I ended up painting my driver to look like a much younger version of myself!

All of the Club5 Racing details look great! I see you survived putting all of them micro-tiny screws in the hinges! I think the hinges are a must have to make this body look even more scale!

Great job and looking forward to seeing more! Subscribed!

[twade984]

I agree with B-mow, the club5 parts really take these bodies to the next level. Look forward to more progress, thanks for sharing.

also, what are we working with, .30-06, .270, .308... something more exotic?

[JimK]

The bead locks I ordered from Amazon came in today so I'll be able to mount up the Hyrax tires and get them on now.



My SSD goodies and a couple other doodads I ordered from A-main made their way safely across the border. I'll pull the axles tonight and get that all installed.
Going to be a fun night tonight at the work bench.



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[JimK]

Originally Posted by B-MOW71

The JT is looking great!

Great job on the interior! Paint details look great! I ended up painting my driver to look like a much younger version of myself!

All of the Club5 Racing details look great! I see you survived putting all of them micro-tiny screws in the hinges! I think the hinges are a must have to make this body look even more scale!

Great job and looking forward to seeing more! Subscribed!

Thanks B-MOW. Ya those little screws are a test of ones patience for sure....especially with big clumsy fingers like mine. The hinges really do add a detailed finishing touch to the Gladiator body. They really stand out nicely on the red body too.

[JimK]

Originally Posted by twade984

I agree with B-mow, the club5 parts really take these bodies to the next level. Look forward to more progress, thanks for sharing.

also, what are we working with, .30-06, .270, .308... something more exotic?

Thanks twade. I'll be posting up some progress pics later tonight. Have to check a couple things off the honey-do list first to keep the balance if you know what I mean.

And 30-06 for sure. My go to all around rifle!!

[JimK]

I got the bead locks assembled and the tires mounted to them. Going to look pretty good on the truck I think. These are Que T wheels that I ordered off Amazon. Fit and finish was very good and they went together without too much fuss. I also like that they pulled the tire bead in nice and even and I didn't have to mess around at all to get the bead to seat evenly. Very pleased especially for the price I paid.







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[JimK]

Getting ready for some front axle goodness!!

SSD Brass Knuckles
SSD Brass Diff Cover
SSD Portal Overdrive
Bowhouse RC Lower Panhard Bracket
Aluminum Upper Panhard Bracket



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[JimK]

I got the axles done. I only took pics of the front axle as the rear only got cleaned, regreased and a new diff cover. I was a bit nervous taking these apart but it wasn't too bad once I got going.



Finishing up the second side....almost done.



Back together and ready to go back in the truck. I didn't realize it but I had put the steering link on the wrong side. I should have weighed it before and after.....this thing is HEFTY!!



This is the upper aluminum panhard bracket. Looks real good but I think the servo horn is going to hit it at full turn. Nothing a little clearance with a file won't fix but I won't know for sure until I get the electronics installed and cycle the steering. I also put the panhard bar in wrong....about three times...lol
Luckily I was able to swap it around without completely taking everything back apart.



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[JimK]

I finished up last night by binding my new Tx to the receiver and got the electronics all sorted out. I set the dig function to trim switch G....right under my thumb where it's easy to use. I set the winch to trim switch D for now. It works but I'm not sure I'm going to keep it there because it requires both hands on the radio to use it. That leaves no hands free to manage the winch line. May end up moving it to trim switch F so I can manage the radio with one hand and the winch line with the other. I also programmed the esc with a Dynamite programming card. The programming card was very easy to use which was so nice.

Also, in an earlier post I mentioned concerns about the steering servo horn hitting the new aluminum panhard mount. Once I centered the steering servo and cycled it back and forth at 100% this turned out not to be an issue and there was no interference.



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[JimK]

Got this nifty induction switch from Club 5 Racing. It eliminates having to plug/unplug the LED lights every time you remove the body. No instructions with it or on their website so hopefully it won't be a to difficult to figure out the installation process.

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