New Associated Enduro Crawler - Free-Mods & Upgrades

[Browneye]

Earlier I mentioned the boat washed up on the beach...
Twin inboards, props, shafts and rudders buried in the sand.
It was gone the next day, so evidently they were able to float it back out on high tide.

[Browneye]

Here's Mike's custom Element Enduro, setup as class-1:



Mike is part of the development and testing team for the new Element Enduro. He's mostly active on intagram as Mike's RC Headquarters: mikesrch
Pretty much every time I've been down to CDM rocks he's there...

[Browneye]

On the SSD heavy hex hubs, here's the stock plastic, the standard SSD that comes with their wheels, and their heavy rotor hub:





They bolt up without mods, however they're a little thicker than the stock hub so less thread is showing on the axle once it's mounted on the truck. There was just enough thread to grab the center cap, but some have reported the could not get them to stay on. An option would be to lock-tite a non-nylock nut to reveal more axle thread.





I ordered another set of weights, will run them for awhile, but I can see a set of alloy bead-locks in my future...

[soze]

Why does your truck still look unscathed? LOL

[Topher Builds]

Nice! I didn’t mess with the hubs too much but I think some lock tite definitely could have helped.

Truck looks great! And unscathed. I like the stripe work.

[Browneye]

Maybe just three hours running or so...have only turtled a few times.




This is a vertical hop - Enduro made it just fine.

[CODYBOY]

Originally Posted by soze

Why does your truck still look unscathed? LOL

Haven't you seen Chris drive, it is with the precision of a surgeon!!! Right Chris?
Ernie

[soze]

Originally Posted by CODYBOY

Haven't you seen Chris drive, it is with the precision of a surgeon!!! Right Chris?
Ernie

I'll have to head out with him and make sure he's fully testing the capabilities of the truck!

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by CODYBOY

Haven't you seen Chris drive, it is with the precision of a surgeon!!! Right Chris?
Ernie

Sure. A drunk surgeon. LOL I drive like an 8yo.


There's some rash on top, you just can't see it, and nearly took the driver's mirror off, but them things are amazingly flexible. I've started folding them in on the rocks. I need a set for my Land Cruiser.

[Browneye]

Having converted a few Vaterra Ascender truggy bodies to flatbed I had some leftover roll-bar extrusion. It fit right in the bed with some trimming, screws in from the underside. Added bonus is that it really strengthens that flimsy body/box joint on the truck.
Did some custom paint work as well...

[CODYBOY]

Originally Posted by Browneye

Having converted a few Vaterra Ascender truggy bodies to flatbed I had some leftover roll-bar extrusion. It fit right in the bed with some trimming, screws in from the underside. Added bonus is that it really strengthens that flimsy body/box joint on the truck.
Did some custom paint work as well...

Nice find Chris, I was kind of wondering if that would work? This is turning into a great thread for everyone!
Hope to get my truck kit soon!!!!

Ernie

[Browneye]

Yup, post your best stuff.

[RABIDFOX]

I like what you did on painting the fender flares and rocker panels. I want to do the same and was thinking of using PlastiDip spray for durability. I currently have INJORA 1.9 beadlock wheels with 18mm SLW hubs on my Enduro. The wider stance is great for added stability.
I’m looking for appropriate suspension limiting straps for my rig. Anyone is them!

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by RABIDFOX

I like what you did on painting the fender flares and rocker panels. I want to do the same and was thinking of using PlastiDip spray for durability. I currently have INJORA 1.9 beadlock wheels with 18mm SLW hubs on my Enduro. The wider stance is great for added stability.
I’m looking for appropriate suspension limiting straps for my rig. Anyone is them!

I used Tamiya Polycarbonate paint, roughed the surfaces with Dawn and a scotchbrite, and masked with fine-line tape. The problem with plastidip is that it's very soft and will scratch off easily. IMO a second choice to the traditional lexan paint would be Krylon Fusion. Just know that it's not nearly as durable as the Tamiya paint either.

The fender lips got an overcoat of Tamiya flat-clear. If you look close the box and hood are high gloss, the fenders not so much.

In any case, externally painted surfaces are going to get scratched up if you run your rig in the rocks. It's just the way it goes.

[Shinchu]

nice touch on the fenders getting flat clear. gives it a good change in "texture" making them look like plastic add-on fenders.

i'm going to give spray-on bedliner a shot on mine, see how it holds up when that super thin lexan flexes...? i'll probably do the entire underside of the body with it. at best, it helps keep it from wiggling around everywhere, at worst, it cracks and flakes off. hopefully i can get to it this weekend. hardest part will be masking off the outside of the body and inside windows.

[HumboldtEF]

Originally Posted by Shinchu

i'm going to give spray-on bedliner a shot on mine, see how it holds up when that super thin lexan flexes...? i'll probably do the entire underside of the body with it. at best, it helps keep it from wiggling around everywhere, at worst, it cracks and flakes off. hopefully i can get to it this weekend. hardest part will be masking off the outside of the body and inside windows.

You'll likely have better results if you give it a base coat of lexan specific paint first. This should really help the next coat adhere and hopefully prevent chipping.

As for doing the underside, I'd guess thats likely to add a fair chunk of weight and you might only be able to admire it when you roll over on your lid, lol. Consider getting the inner fenders and painting them with bedliner if you want that look and to be able to see it.

If you're just looking for some body reinforcement theres also the sheetrock mesh/tape and E6000 or gorilla tape methods.

Sorry I'm not trying to tell you what to do Chris, I just didn't want to see you go to all that work and resign to "It might just chip off"

[Lashlee]

I really like the black bed/flares that you did Browneye. I just picked up mine yesterday so I haven't had much time to plan on upgrades but I see some paint in my future!

[rattmobbins]

Originally Posted by Browneye

Having converted a few Vaterra Ascender truggy bodies to flatbed I had some leftover roll-bar extrusion. It fit right in the bed with some trimming, screws in from the underside. Added bonus is that it really strengthens that flimsy body/box joint on the truck.
Did some custom paint work as well...

Just bought an Ascender cage for mine. LOVE the way this looks! I think I'll keep the spare tire carrier back there too though for some added scale realism.

[Browneye]

Thanks Nate, guys! I'm enjoying the platform - I really do think it's all it's cracked up to be.


I already lost a bead on the plastic wheel - and not from one I had disassembled. Seems this may well become a problem as well. If you look close at the rear wheel in the last pic above you can see a bulge where the bead has popped out. No problem re-seating it, but would not be convenient in the field.

I'm thinking a set of these are in my near future:




Or these:

[Shinchu]

nice sticking with the bronze.
i was watching a review of the endure on youtube last night and one of the weaknesses mentioned was the beadlocks/tires that are NOT vented. this could be contributing to your de-beading issue.
i will likely address this as well, most likely will drill a hole in the wheel to let the tire conform to surfaces better, even if i risk turning my foams into crumbly moldy mess if i run through water (not often but im not shy of it).
also worth a shot is what soze mentioned, maybe run a metal internal beadlock ring? rough up the edge so it bites the tire better?

but either of those wheels are REALLY nice! great taste sir!