--- Crawler Innovations "White Lightning Wraith" ---

[Nova's Ark]

It seemingly took forever to get this rig, but it finally arrived yesterday. I have a number of plans for this rock buggy. I haven't done a themed or named build thread in a long while. After some thought about the direction I want this build to go, I decided to name it "White Lightning". I use to collect die - cast cars and Johnny Lightning has a series of die cast cars called "White Lightning".

I am going to make this more of a basher - trail rig. I have plenty of rock crawlers and want something light weight with a lot of speed. It's also time to add a white rig to the fleet which should be interesting since so many of the parts on the truck and available after market are every color but white .

I don't often buy new, and it's so odd to buy a brand new RTR only to strip it right away and never even try it stock. I don't own any 2S batteries and I'm afraid to risk 3S right out of the box, so my apprentice mechanic (my son Gavin) is stripping the truck down as I type this.


Here are some pictures of it stock just to provide a starting baseline.

Everything you get when you buy it new, minus the box:

[Nova's Ark]

One thing that did surprise me (and the other local club members that have already seen this) was the overall size. I knew it was big and had seen it pictured next to a honcho here on RCC but... wow, it's pretty big. Here are some size comparison pictures.

My daughter's Class 2 1.9 Jeep and son's Class 2 1.9 Toyota truggy compared to the stock Wraith:







Compared to my Class 1 Bruiser Hybrid Yota:



2.2 comp berg on left and 2.2 sportsman truck on right:





1.9 Comp MRC on Left, 16.75" wheel base Super on right:







And just for fun, some group photos of the Crawler Innovations fleet (not pictured is the 6x6 and XR-10 since they are still under construction at the moment):

[Nova's Ark]

My Freq-E-Skinz will be here next week so we are gonna run the stock panels in the mean time.

Electronics being installed today:

- Castle Creation Mamba Max Pro ESC
- Tekin 13.5 sensored brushless in-runner
- 4S Lipo
- Hitec 7955 steering servo
- Spektrum DX3R system

[Nova's Ark]

Getting close for new parts

[Ramination]

I see you cut the tires...whats the plan???

[Nova's Ark]

Originally Posted by Ramination

I see you cut the tires...whats the plan???

Since this rig is so big, I have some tires I made months ago I saved for it. Plus I have a lot of testing to do with new foams and tires because I need to be able to suggest quality recommendations to customers. I have had a number of people asking about foams specifically for the Wraith and I didn't have an answer because we've never built foams for rock racers YET. So this rig will see a lot of different combos over time.

[Chaotic Crawlers]

That's a nice fleet you've got there!!!

Can't wait To see where you go with this!!!

[Nova's Ark]

For me, this rig needs to be seriously lower. So now that it's stripped, we can begin the rebuild.

- Front Axle - still stock (for now, have Vanquish Products goodies already on there way for it)

- Shocks: Traxxas 3.5" Big Bores with the shock cap mod. Three hole pistons, 30 weight oil, Losi Gold Front Springs with two coils removed.

- Front Lower Links: Crawler Innovations Low Clearance white delrin links. The axle side has a Revo rod end and the chassis side has a Jato rod end with 1/4 cut off. The Skid Plate had to be clearanced slightly at an angle to allow for bind free movement.

- Front Upper Links: Crawler Innovations Low Clearance white delrin links. These have Revo rod ends on both sides.

[Nova's Ark]

For those of you that want to keep your Wraith stock height and replace the links with something the same angles, here is an option for you:




Pictured below is a Crawler Innovations high clearance link placed on top of the stock Axial Wraith upper link. They are nearly a perfect match:

Pictured below is the stock Axial Wraith upper link on top of a Crawler Innovations high clearance link. They are nearly a perfect match:




Pictured below is the stock upper and lower Axial Wraith link stood up on the end with the Crawler Innovations high clearance link laying down. The C.I. link has revo rod ends on it. It's not exactly an exact match length wise. The way the Axial links curve at the ends make it difficult to get an exact length. They are close though and with one Jato rod end, you could get an exact or custom length.

[Benzbuildr]

Originally Posted by Nova's Ark

Getting close for new parts

Tear it down build it back up.How's my Little buddy Gavin doing?

[Nova's Ark]

Originally Posted by Benzbuildr

Tear it down build it back up.How's my Little buddy Gavin doing?
[/CENTER]

He's doing good. He smiled from ear to ear when he read your post. He's super excited to play with this Wraith.

[chicklet]

Awesome! Let the foam tuning begin! I'm sending you an email now.

[binaryterror]

Originally Posted by Nova's Ark

I have had a number of people asking about foams specifically for the Wraith and I didn't have an answer because we've never built foams for rock racers YET. So this rig will see a lot of different combos over time.

Most likely they will need to be much firmer than stock. Main issue I'm having is less about the springs (lightening springs as people say will NOT fix improper foams, just band-aid the issue) and more directly about the tires stock foam.

For racing you want little bounce from the foams to allow the suspension to handle the work it was intended.

[2JSC]

Those tire carcases look like PL Trenchers... always thought those would make a good looking crawler tire.

[kasper]

Look forrd to watching this build and nice looking rigs.

[dubAron]

Your off to a great start Eddie this is gonna be a sick build up.

[Nova's Ark]

The VP goodies arrived Saturday so I was able to get these parts mounted:

VP titanium Tie Rod
VP titanium Drag link
VP Wraith aluminum knuckles
VP aluminum C hubs
I got the servo mounted

The VP tie rod has a lot of toe in with it. It had more than I wanted so I cut 1/4" off a Jato rod end and used it on one side instead of a revo end. Everything else was straight forward.

[Nova's Ark]

- Rear Axle - still stock

- Shocks: Traxxas 4.0" Big Bores with the shock cap mod. Two hole pistons, 30 weight oil, Losi Gold Springs with no coils removed. They are limited internally using a 1/4" spacer on the shock shaft.

- Rear Lower Links: Crawler Innovations High Clearance white delrin links. These were a direct fit using revo rod ends. The Skid Plate had to be clearanced slightly at an angle to allow for bind free movement.

- Rear Upper Links: Crawler Innovations High Clearance white delrin links. These were a direct fit using revo rod ends.

- Flipped rear upper shock mount 180* to allow for lower ride height

Just unbolt the upper shock mount from the chassis and flip it 180* to lower ride height:

[klabeaume]

Looking good Eddie, keep the updates coming.

[Nova's Ark]

I made a pattern and cut an electronics tray from 1/16th thick black delrin sheet for the front on my Wraith. This way I have plenty of room to mount my 4S battery, Mamba Max Pro ESC, Wraith Receiver, and Light controller. I used a heat gun to heat the interior panels to move them out of the way of the electronics tray. The tray is drilled and counter sunk for two 3mm bolts that use the factory mounting holes. I had to trim down the steering wheel tube as well.