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Sevastra 04-15-2014 05:49 PM

Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 

So I've had a blast the last year or so building the Bullhide Wraith as a starter project, and finally decided that I wanted to tear it down and rebuild it as a competition rig. Problem is.. I wanted to do so much that there wouldn't be much left of the original rig, so why not start with a new build all together using the old as a base.

I've been collecting parts for a little over a month now, and as of this post the rig is much farther along than I'm letting on. However, more parts are being ordered, and some parts already installed are coming back off till the new ones arrive.. Now I've been struggling to decide on a name for this, and I've recently been able to do a test drive with some of these new goodies installed using the old Wraith Chassis from the last build. This thing crawls like a freaking goat.. Wait, why not call it a goat? Sure, its been done before.. but my.. hrm, what do you call it? Ego? Vanity? Little gremlin on my shoulder? Whatever it is, it wont let me go the route other people have gone before. This thing is going to be a monster when I'm done. Ah, thats it! the Monster G.O.A.T! (What is G.O.A.T.? Go Anywhere At Throttle. Make sense? ...doesnt matter. :flipoff:)

Now I've decided to take a note from one of Harley's builds and apply the same here. I'm setting aside $50 a week to put into this, not including the money I've already sank so far.

Which brings me to what I'm calling Package One:

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/Package1.jpg

Look at those goodies! I should note, Package One is actually a couple seperate orders. But for time's sake, I'll count it as one.

The List:
RC4WD: D44 C hubs & Knuckles, XR3 3-Channel 2.4Ghz Transmitter/Receiver Radio, Aluminum Servo Horn, AX2 2 Speed Transmission, Extreme Duty XVD Axles
Hot racing: Sway Bars (Front & Rear), Lockers (x2), Differential Covers (x2)
Axial HD Bevel Gears 43T/13T for rear
STRC Aluminum Chassis Servo Mount + Panhard Kit
Tekin Pro4 Brushless Motor, 3300kv
Mamba Max Pro ESC
RC Screwz Stainless Steel Screw Kit
Robinson Racing Slipper Unit GEN3 56T Slash
Associated Pinion Gear 32P 15T 5mm Shaft

More pics:
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/speed.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...ferentials.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/handling.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...er/gearing.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...er/control.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...ansmission.jpg

IPT 04-15-2014 09:51 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
cool, looking forward to seeing it come along.

Sevastra 04-19-2014 03:49 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
So, big update. Ready for alot of pictures and not much progress? :lmao:

New goodies have arrived over the past week (or so..)!
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/Goodies.jpg

We've got a Wraith V3 Scoop hood & drop bed box from Dinky RC
Front Inner fenders, side panels, and a Crawler innovations electronics tray from Carter Fab & Machine
10a Bec, Castle Link, 200mm Sensor cable, and a Hot racing steering link from RPP.
I love getting mail other than bills. :mrgreen:

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...o/plastics.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...mgoodness2.jpg

The BGR Sliders I forgot to mention I ordered..
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...bgrsliders.jpg

Earlier today I had started trimming my R35 Ripsaws for better grip..
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/tiremod.jpg

Finished trimming the small lugs from the tires, then spent another hour or so dismounting them from the factory Axial wheels in prep for another order..

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...dismounted.jpg

I had forgotten about this little repair I did on a course. Stripped the center of the wheel, so ended up glueing in the hex. Will have to do something about that..
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...gluedwheel.jpg

New lockers mounted to the ring gears
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...erentialfr.jpg

Look, shiny!
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/axles.jpg

One front truss mod later.. I forget who I saw do this. Works well tho!
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...Auto/axle1.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...Auto/truss.jpg

New tie-rod installed. The VP one in the previous pics had to be modified pretty good to get the toe close with the new knuckles. Still, it wasnt enough.. so a Hot-Racing tie rod fixed that issue.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...Auto/axle2.jpg

I'll have to get a spacer so the wheels dont rub against the D44 knuckles.. Since I have to replace the hex's anyway, it's not that big of a deal.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/tirerub.jpg

My beater chassis.. Told ya'll I've already tested the setup. This is what I used. And no, it wasnt pretty.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...beatercage.jpg

Pro4 and the AX2 might be a little much for the plastic chassis.. Fortunately a solution for that is on its way. Ya'll catch the hint in the side panels above?
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...eatercage2.jpg

Took the shocks from the Bullhide Wraith.. These have seen better days..
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/shocks1.jpg

Cleaned them up. Topped off the 30 weight oil, and tested for active leaks.. Sooner or later they'll get replaced. But they'll do the job for now.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/shocks2.jpg

Couple comparison shots of the RC4WD AX2 Transmission and the factory Axial Wraith trans.. I'm quite happy with the AX2. It has an all aluminum housing, and steel internal gears. The Pro4 mates up to it quite nicely, and it shifts smoothly with a neutral gear space in between.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparrison.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...mparrison2.jpg

When I pulled the skid I noticed one of the pinss on my MIP drive shafts was working its way out. I attempted to push it the rest of the way out, but it only moves so far in either direction before stopping. Will have to look into this issue a bit more.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...o/shaftpin.jpg

I'll be waiting for the new chassis to arrive before I trim any of the new Dinky panels or fit the CFM Panels. Took a chance and purchased one of the Cappu Engineering chassys off of evil bay. Havent seen anybody else use one yet. Guess I'll play test mule and let ya'll know my opinion of it once it arrives.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxNj...TTNwQ/$_57.JPG

Sevastra 04-19-2014 03:57 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Hrm.. noticed I'm missing a picture, camera must not have saved it. This is being powered by a Venom 3s 5000 mah 20c lipo battery, hence the Onyx 150 lipo charger in the first post. It'll get up and scoot in high gear, and seems to crawl well in low.

Sevastra 04-21-2014 08:47 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
I received an unexpected package today. My Cappu chassis arrived from RC mall. Unfortunately it was damaged during shipping.. Nothing too major, but still.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...sisdamage2.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...sisdamage1.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...sisdamage3.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...sisdamage4.jpg

I believe a little bit of heat will help bend this straight without any issues aside from paint. I'll probably end up sand blasting this and having it powdercoated.

Pretty sure this wouldnt have happened with a Mattzilla chassis. But, what do you expect? You get what you paid for. I'll get some better comparison shots tomorrow with it next to the stock chassis and BGR skids.

I should note that RC Mall on e-bay didnt even hesitate to fix this problem, great service on their end. "thumbsup"

Sevastra 04-23-2014 08:26 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/repair1.jpg

So the chassis is repaired. Now to clean the shop sand blaster.. I swear, the guys at work dont care how long it takes to get something done when using it. I tried to take the paint off the steel chassis, ended up embedding more dirt than anything else.. New sand going in tomorrow, then I'll finish stripping the chassis so I can do some mods to it.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...mparison10.jpg

Bought some goodies I'll be needing soon. 3/16 & 1/8th rod, .025 thick aluminum sheet, and a couple steel shelf holders I've got planned to cut up and use for supports / bolt on plates.

Now for some comparison pictures with a well beaten plastic wraith chassis.. The Cappu engineering chassis is steel, and is made of a combination of 3/16 and 1/8th rod. The joints are welded, not brazed.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison1.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison2.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison3.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison4.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison5.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison6.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison7.jpg


Here's a shot with the BGR slider as a size comparison.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison8.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...omparison9.jpg

I have not attempted to bolt the axles and such up to it yet, but it appears to position the skid and everything else farther forward than the stock chassis. Of course with the plates the skid bolt to you will not be able to bolt / unbolt the axle links to the chassis without first removing the skid.

The rear shock mounts are slightly off position from another, one is about a hole farther ahead towards the front of the chassis than the other. It's not much, but I cant live with it like that.

Overall I'd give the Cappu Engineering chassis a rating of 6(ish) out of 10. Not perfect, but a good improvement over stock if your on a limited budget. Just dont expect to be able to use any wraith goods you've collected for the body without some work.

On a side note, my digital camera isnt saving all my pictures for some reason.. Missing about 5 other comparison shots I had with the BGR goodies and the skid. :|

djjiz 04-23-2014 09:26 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Thank you for the pictures. It might not be perfect but it looks like it's worth every penny. Really digging the servo clearance.

Sevastra 04-27-2014 04:23 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Lazy Sunday afternoon.. I made progress! :flipoff:

Borrowed a welder from my father, then dug out the dremel and proceeded to attack the new steel chassis.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod5.jpg

Knew friday I was going to do this, but I forgot my welding helment at the shop. :cry: Turns out I cant weld very well without it. The rear bars dont look half bad, but I'll probably cut the windshield bars out and re-weld them. It's all pretty stout tho.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod3.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod1.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod2.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod4.jpg

I plan to fabricate and weld in a chassis servo / panhard mount, but I wont start that today. My other hobby (Elder Scrolls Online) becons!

Sevastra 04-28-2014 06:58 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Little more work finished tonight..

Can you tell what I did from this pic?
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod6.jpg



























So if not, here's some close up's of my butchery.

I wasn't happy with the rear shock mounts on the new cage. They were welded un-even from the factory, had to space the top of the shock towers out away from the bars for clearance, and the Dinky rear tray I ordered would not fit.

The shock mounts were cut off, and moved forward / towards the outside of the chassis. This will allow me three things.. 1.) A make shift droop setup. 2.) Clearance for the shocks. 3.) Plenty room for a custom truck bed with lots of scale goodies.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod7.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...r/cagemod8.jpg

90Finder 04-28-2014 07:13 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
What's that chassis weight?

Sevastra 04-28-2014 07:26 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by 90Finder (Post 4760530)
What's that chassis weight?

Good question...

According to the digital postal scale it weighs 24.6 oz. So 1.5375 lbs at the moment. I still have some fabrication work to do for the front chassis mounted steering, but it wont add too much more.

Sevastra 05-06-2014 05:54 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Minor update..

Chassis is going out to the powder coater next week. Just have to tack on the body mount tabs and finish a little clean up work.

Ordered some Integy Aluminum beadlocks, a set of aluminum hex adapters, and some Crawler Innovations Double Deuce foams with the 4.5 Closed Cell tuning disks tonight.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTAzNFgxMD...TY7SF/$_57.JPG

Going to try and have this rig together and tested before the 23rd, planning on heading down state with it and thrashing it about at a planned get together for memorial weekend. :twisted:

djjiz 05-06-2014 07:50 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Those look really nice. Looking for a 1.9 tonight.

Sevastra 05-07-2014 04:59 AM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by djjiz (Post 4768542)
Those look really nice. Looking for a 1.9 tonight.

Yeah, I like them. Was a tough decision between those or these tho:

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/ODE5WDkyNw...TY7SW/$_57.JPG


And as a side note: Sandblasting paint off 3/16 steel rod SUCKS. Attacked the chassis with some automotive paint stripper which helped alot, got it about 80% clean at the moment. Will see if I can get the rest of it blasted off and finish tacking on the body mount nuts tonight.

Odd-M 05-07-2014 06:58 AM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Here's a proper goat:

http://www.heatworld.com/images/1242...lery/goat1.jpg

Sorry, couldn't resist when I saw your title.. :mrgreen:

Sevastra 05-07-2014 03:30 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Ha! Love it! :ror:

Dad,Canyoufix? 05-07-2014 07:48 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Quote:

Originally Posted by Sevastra (Post 4768805)
And as a side note: Sandblasting paint off 3/16 steel rod SUCKS. Attacked the chassis with some automotive paint stripper which helped alot, got it about 80% clean at the moment. Will see if I can get the rest of it blasted off and finish tacking on the body mount nuts tonight.


Sandblasted a friends Monster truck chassis at work once, put on a set of old trashed welding gloves and full leathers that were about ate up. Duck taped the hell out of my wrists and went at it. Still had that Black sand in my skin for a week or so. lol. Felt kinda silly when my wife asked me why my skin was all effed.

Can't wait to see it start to come together! I liked the green wheel set...

Sevastra 05-07-2014 08:27 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
I'm lucky, I've got access to a cabinet style blaster. :mrgreen: I work at an auto-repair shop, which is where it's at.. Naturally it see's all kinds of abuse. Rust, dirt, grease, etc.. And with the air filter system being down on it it quickly becomes a dust bowl as soon as you start using it.

I am having second thoughts about those green wheels as well, but the ones I got are more scale looking with the caps and etc, not to mention I havent seen another set like them yet either. May end up picking up the green ones later on, they're cheap enough.

Dad,Canyoufix? 05-07-2014 08:32 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Could always pic up a set of hubs and paint them to match later also!

Sevastra 05-14-2014 02:47 AM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Got a package in yesterday, couldnt resist opening and mounting one of 'em up before I dug out the camera. :mrgreen:

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/wheels4.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/wheels1.jpg
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/wheels3.jpg

So shiny..
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/wheels2.jpg

Knew I needed a winch, and while this isnt the strongest out there it was cheap enough. Will give it a shot and see how it does.
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...to/wheels5.jpg

Sevastra 05-18-2014 09:17 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
So, spent the whole day sunday putting the goat together in preparation for next weekend. Got pretty far, knowing I wont have much time this week to tinker with it.

Went out for a test run around 8pm, and guess what I broke? (Hint: Wasnt even crawling anything, just cruzing around on the grass...)





Give up?








Lets see if your right.

I sheered off the front output shaft on the AX2 transmission. :evil: Looks like the front bearing seized up and caused the damage. Spent another hour or so afterwards taking it all back apart and inspecting the transmission. Gear internals are fine, sent RC4wd an email to see if it's under warranty or not.. Doubtful.

So I swapped in the origional wraith transmission for this coming weekend. We'll see how long that lasts...

On the bright side, this throws some nice dirt roostertails in two wheel drive. :flipoff:

I will have to do some more fine tuning sometime soon.. Doesnt turn to the right very well. Will do a left turn on a dime.

Suspension needs tweaking. Loving the ride height, but I believe it's bottoming out the rear shocks under throttle.

Rear sway bar links need to be longer.. Some allthread will fix that.

djjiz 05-18-2014 10:20 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Rc3wd part failure? I don't believe it.

Sevastra 05-19-2014 07:41 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...roketrans3.jpg

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...roketrans1.jpg

Yeah.. I dont think I can glue that together. But on the bright side..

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/goat1.jpg

The goat is together in a temporairy config for this coming weekend! Got to trim up the new panels and configure a better way to mount 'em up.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/goat3.jpg

Lights all work.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/goat2.jpg

Got my steering all sorted out. Full turns from lock to lock. "thumbsup"

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...wler/goat4.jpg

I really like these crawler innovation foams, they broke in quick and do an excellent job. How did I live without them before? They handle bumps and jumps as well, and I've got another broken part to prove it!

Since my AX2 is down, I'm running the stock axial trans with hardened gears. Using the 15t pinion, and the plastic 60t spur the AX2 came with. Decided I wanted to do a speed run off the road, through the ditch and ramp the other side. Here's the outcome:

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...ripperspur.jpg

The Wraith flew off the road just fine! It nose dived into the ditch, hitting the far bank where it left a nice indentation in the dirt. Thinking I could save it as I saw the nose dive I goosed the throttle, hoping to drive out of it. See my mistake? Tires hit first, the foams kept everything from breaking on impact, and the wheels immediatly stopped spinning while the motor did not. Bye bye spur gear teeth..

djjiz 05-19-2014 07:59 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Props for being so hard on shit.

Not saying that's why a 3wd part broke though. I've seen too much junk from them to blame drivers.

Sevastra 05-19-2014 08:06 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Thats the problem tho.. I was much harder on the previous version. Hell, I havent even been rough on it yet when I broke the trans output. :| Eying the HD output shaft at the moment, along with some new bearings. I really think the front one seized up and thats what snapped it off..

As for the plastic spur, had the slipper too tight. :ror: So no, this wont be a beauty / shelf queen. But I had really expected to break one of the plastic axle housings before anything else went. 'Course I could be looking for an excuse to upgrade those, but at this rate I dont think that'll be in the budget for awhile. :mrgreen:

djjiz 05-19-2014 08:31 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
When you do end up snapping a housing contact dlux for a truss or two.

What brand spur were you using? I've seen traxxas stuff take a pounding.

Sevastra 05-19-2014 08:39 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Not sure on the spur. It's the one that came with the AX2 tranny. Already got a Robinson Racing slipper / 32p steel spur setup, but it's a 54 tooth and I dont want to use it on the stock axial transmission. Bad ratio for the single speed..

Eying the differences between the standard AX2 output shaft and the heavy duty one. The standard shaft sheered off at the c-clip groove. The HD version eliminates the C-clip all together and uses a shim in its place. Kinda wish they had installed this from the factory knowing it was a weak point. Still, I do like being able to choose between speed and crawling without compromising for a bit of both.

djjiz 05-19-2014 08:52 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
They've released 6 cvd, uni, and xvd setups for one axle and they still sucked.

Sevastra 05-20-2014 04:19 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
So I'm pretty happy right now. RC4WD has went out of their way to help me out, I'm expecting a package in the next couple days in preparation for this weekend. :mrgreen:

The hotel & rental car are booked and paid for, and the parts are ordered.. Whats left to do?


...Time to attack the chassis / axle screws with locktite!

Sevastra 05-22-2014 07:31 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
If it's not one thing it's another..

AX2 Transmission is repaired and back together. Just took it for a quick test run around the yard, trans is working flawlessly. On the down side, during a speed run across the yard my front MIP drive shaft came flying apart. The cross pin at the flare came out, didnt find it in the grass. Found everything else..

I've got the Hot Racing sway bars sitting here, and they happen to be the perfect diameter. Since the arms are useless and the set screws strip out so easily I'm going to cut them to link and use it as my new pins before heat shrinking over the pin holes for extra security. Just gotta wait till tomorrow, my dremel and heat shrink are at the shop.

djjiz 05-22-2014 07:43 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Same problem. Used red loctite. MAP gas is part of the toolbox now.

Sevastra 05-22-2014 08:37 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Half tempted to just throw a tack weld on both sides of the pin and be done with it. Problem is breaking one of the pins if I do, especially since I seem to break something every time I drive it. Eventually I'll get to the point I can be rough with it before breaking it. :lmao:

Hey Winnerone23! You have the same problem with "Crunchy"? :mrgreen:

djjiz 05-22-2014 08:38 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
A cutoff wheel will clean the weld up. That's a great idea actually.

Odd-M 05-22-2014 11:47 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
MIP has to be mounted correct. Notice there's a little groove in the cross pins for the grub screw. Use Locktite on the grub screws, and you're good to go. This must be the strongest drive shafts available. I've seen pics of split female bones though..

Sevastra 05-23-2014 04:46 AM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Wasnt the grub screw that came out. ;-)

Odd-M 05-29-2014 01:49 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
The pin comes out because you've not got the grub screw (locktited) in to the groove. I've done the same thing a couple of times.

Sevastra 01-18-2015 08:17 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Wow, been a long time since I've updated this. Reason? I've moved, and had put the RC hobby on a back burner for awhile. Damn thing kept staring at me from the back of my closet, so I've dug it out recently and started re-familiarizing myself with it.

So, thing's I've done to it since the last post.. I attended a gathering sponsored by Super Shafty last spring. That was a blast! Rig really handled itself well in areas others had problems with. I was impressed.. and then it stripped the front ring & pinion half way through the day. At first I thought it was the stock housing flexing under the torque that did it. Replaced the ring & pinion with a spare stock set and finished the day, tho it started clicking at the end.

About 15 minutes ago as I finished re-assembling the front dif I found the culprit. I'd moved my front axle closer to the body, and hadn't lost any suspension. When I re-assembled my front diff after inspection I put a small washer between the MIP drive shaft and pinion bearing to keep it from walking forward and back so I can limp the front diff by till I order a new set of gears. Now I see when I compress the suspension the MIP shaft is slightly too long, they bottom out and jam the pinion gear forward into the ring gear. With the washer there the pinion doesn't move forward, and my suspension won't fully compress.

So.. I'm either going to have to shorten my MIP shafts slightly, or add a little length to my front 3-link setup so I have adiquate clearance. Haven't decided which yet..

On another note, the Hot Racing tie rods suck. Love the look of them, and the bends are nice and tight to the axle.. but the press in brass fittings pop out under load and leave alot of slop in your steering. Temporairy fix? Nitro RC fuel line. Cut small bushings of sorts to cap the top and bottom of the tie rod ball to keep them from rattling around and retain some measure of equal steering.

Went ahead and put my Vanquish tie-rod back on, and did the fuel line trick to it as well to keep the steering servo from twisting it too bad when it turns in either direction. I forget why I replaced it, but I suspect it's because I couldn't get the toe equal with the rest of the setup I'm using..

Ah, almost forgot. I killed my 3s Lipo battery somehow. My charger sets off an alarm every time I go to charge it up. Tried it on a friends charger and it did the same. Time to replace it.. Atleast I kept the old 6 cell Nimh battery, so I can still run it till the new ones arrive.

Next thing on the check list? Find some crawling partners out here in West Texas. Plenty of canyons and etc to explore. :mrgreen:

Sevastra 02-28-2015 09:29 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...yworkbench.jpg

Guess it's time I clean off my workbench and get back to work on this, eh?

Placed an order with RPP today for a bunch of much needed goodies to remedy some of my previous problems. Some of you already know what I've been leaning towards from my responses to other threads, but for those that dont:

http://www.gmade.net/image/product/s..._shock_103.jpg

4 Gmade XD Piggyback shocks are on their way. Opted for the 103mm length. I also ordered a set of dual rate springs from the Slash Proline Powerstrokes, thought I'd try them on it for a better ride height adjustment. Only concern is if the spring diameter is the same as what the piggybacks use. Brief forum and internet search didn't provide any answers, but even if they dont I've got another project in mind I'll use them on.

The 3Racing shocks I've been running have been leaking from day 1. While they did a decent job, I really like the looks and added tuneability the Gmade piggybacks offer. I never really tried to prevent them from leaking, all they ever received was an occasional bleed & refill, with 1 cleaning the entire time I've owned them. Might tear them down and try sliming the o-rings for use later on.

http://www.beadlok.com/product/image...ont%20Axle.jpg

RC4WD D44 Wraith length axle set for the front and rear are on their way as well. I likely could've gotten a set of Currie's for the same price, but I haven't seen anybody else running these yet so I figured I'd give them a shot. That and I like the looks of them. "thumbsup"

Ordered the matching steering link set for them as well.

http://i1308.photobucket.com/albums/...ps10ppjnd8.jpg

A pair of Gripfab lockers are on their way. I've read some fantastic reviews on them so far, and nothing negative. While the HR lockers I bought haven't given me anything to worry about yet I'm not satisfied with the amount of slop they have. Will save them for another upcoming project.

The 43/13 Ring & pinion gears I put in the rear so no wear whatsoever, so I'll be moving them to the new D44 housing. But the stock 38/13 I've been running in the front is done for.. No teeth left on it. I did find the cause tho, when the suspension was compressing it was jamming the pinion gear in. Solution? I grounded the male and female MIP shafts down (Rather crudely at that) to shorten their lengths.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...veshaftmod.jpg

All I had available to do this at the time was a hand held grinder. Will purchase a better sander in the future for cleaner work. But, it serves it's purpose and gained me the clearance I needed.

A set of the thrust washers SuperShafty sells are on their way to prevent this from happening again with the new housings. Too much money invested not to take precautions against this. I've also got a set of 36/14 overdrive gears coming for the front. I know there's been issues with the gear mesh on that set, but I'm going to give them a try anyway. If I'm not satisfied I'll get the heavy duty 38/13 for the front again.

Aside from ordering parts I've also began some panel work:

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...raith22815.jpg

Nothing fancy. Battery tray / splash shield, side panels, and you can't see it but there's a flat panel under the Dinky dropbox as well. I relocated the panels the chassis came with to use as inner door panels. Because of the servo for the 2 speed trans I'm going to have to make a custom interior. Haven't quite figured that one out yet on what I'd like to do.

Speaking of the 2 speed trans.. I ordered up a set of the HSP throttle linkages.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTIwMFgxMj...Ub~i5/$_35.JPG

My servo horn on the shift servo stripped out. Too much throw was being applied from improper setup. Saw another forum member use something similiar, and realized it's the perfect setup for what I need. Will put a spring on either side of the shaft, so it'll allow full throw of the servo horn in either direction without putting too much tension on it and stripping anything out.



Future planned upgrades:

Better radio / receiver. The 3 channel I bought from RC4WD just doesn't have much range on it. A thing made painfully clear when I was at HonchoForever's gathering last year.

Another 3s lipo battery. The Venom I've been using refuses to charge anymore, and is less than a year old. I'm convinced this is my fault tho, that I didn't set my lipo cutoff correctly and ran it down below what was needed. Still looking into getting it revived.

Benjamin at HobbyTown USA in Lubbock offered to try and revive it for me, I just haven't taken the 70 mile trip yet. Some people might say that's too far to drive, but look at it this way. Lubbock has the nearest Walmart to where I live in the little town of Spur, Texas. It's an hour drive for me, and a trip I take atleast once a month for supplies, and etc.. So really it's not that big of a deal to go. I just don't want to go to Lubbock for that reason alone.

Speaking of which, if anybody is in the Lubbock / Abilene area and want's to meet up sometime, shoot me a PM. "thumbsup"

Another upgrade I plan to do is a new set of links. My front upper 3 link is kinda cobbled together. Would like to find something cleaner and stronger, I'm half convinced it'll break off if I have a half decent fall.

Sevastra 02-28-2015 11:44 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Another minor update thanks to not being able to sleep. Shouldn't have napped so long earlier today..

I've been eying the Blue Monkey trailing arms for a few days now. Think I'll add a set of these to my to get list. I do have a question tho, anybody converted the trailing arms to run without the upper 4 link bars yet? I'd be interested in seeing how it was done.

Oh, and I weighed the wraith in it's current setup. 9.8 lbs.. Will see what it weighs when the new axles are installed.

Sevastra 03-03-2015 08:17 PM

Re: Sevastra's Monster G.O.A.T.
 
Got the chassis stripped down for the next round of upgrades.

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2...hassisredo.jpg


Can you guess what these are for?

http://i89.photobucket.com/albums/k2.../material1.jpg

I'll give you another hint. I got the idea from one of Szczerba's awesome builds. "thumbsup"


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