Upgrades really needed?

[Calderwood]

Originally Posted by Wade

My sons rig is a wraith kit so it has the metal linksSo far here is what I am going with
1.9 axial 8 hole beadlock w/ proline super swampers
Solar d772 servo----- great torque for the price
Traxxas XL-10 and Integy 55t lathe motor-----until he gets the hang of driving he is only three
Stock trans
Stock scx10/ax10 axles


Wroncho
Ax-10 with x trail chassis
Trans- most likely RR steel gears
VP knuckles/chubs for wraith axles
Axial honcho body--- going Tacoma style
And either Tekin fxr/35t or brushless ROC 412 3100kv
I am looking at Mechanics Wroncho for inspiration


Cheers
Wade

The aluminum lowers in your son's kit are great but the supplied rod ends are junk. You can drill and tap the links to m4 and use revo rod ends. Cheap, simple and effective.

The stock trans cases work fine but I always heli-coil the mounting holes since they wear out quickly. Again cheap, simple and effective.

[WHITE-TRASH]

Originally Posted by Crank

That's kind of the reason for aluminum trans cases, no more stripped holes.
I wouldn't call that a "fanboy" upgrade.

Originally Posted by Calderwood

The stock trans cases work fine but I always heli-coil the mounting holes since they wear out quickly. Again cheap, simple and effective.

Alloy trans cases don't eliminate stripped holes they just last longer before they strip.

I have threaded inserts for my next stripped trans. As of now they all have 6/32 screws holding them in the rigs. Those threads grip far better than wood screws or 3mm.

[Wade]

Originally Posted by Calderwood

The aluminum lowers in your son's kit are great but the supplied rod ends are junk. You can drill and tap the links to m4 and use revo rod ends. Cheap, simple and effective.

The stock trans cases work fine but I always heli-coil the mounting holes since they wear out quickly. Again cheap, simple and effective.

Good idea, I am making links for the upper's, using all thread and the revo links, but I didn't think of doing the lower's with revo ends.....thx.

I will have to look into the heli-coil method or 6/32 route
I really like the bullet proof trans by super shafty.........but I can't justify spending 200 on it......and needing 2 of them for two rigs

[GraniteBandit]

Originally Posted by 67mustang

It is all about how and where you run your rig and what you expect from it. If you dont really have much rock in your area and its not very far from you...then you dont need much upgrades.

It sucks to go with a bunch of people, break your rig, leave the group, end your day and carry your brokenness for a mile(s) to your car.

this

[Crank]

Originally Posted by WHITE-TRASH

I have threaded inserts for my next stripped trans. As of now they all have 6/32 screws holding them in the rigs. Those threads grip far better than wood screws or 3mm.

Never considered inserts to fix my stripped cases, are you going to use 6/32 inserts or would a 3mm insert work?

[WHITE-TRASH]

Originally Posted by Crank

Never considered inserts to fix my stripped cases, are you going to use 6/32 inserts or would a 3mm insert work?

I use 6/32 screws in the stock holes, no inserts needed so far. I do have 3mm and 4-40 inserts in the bolt tray at the ready for next time I rip a trans off the mount though.

[Wade]

Calderwood, do you have a link for which heli-coils you use? I looked on their site but not sure which ones, definitely interested in those. Thanks

Cheers,
Wade

[Calderwood]

Originally Posted by Wade

Calderwood, do you have a link for which heli-coils you use? I looked on their site but not sure which ones, definitely interested in those. Thanks

Cheers,
Wade

I use m3 stainless heli-coils. I buy them in bulk on eBay. You don't need heli-coil brand. You just need them to be compatible with the heli-coil tool. You may find them cheaper if you search "thread repair" or "thread insert" on eBay. Its been quite a while since I have bought any.

[Wade]

Ok, thank you, I will definitely look into these

Thanks again

Cheers,
Wade

[ssdub33]

I'm a firm believer in upgrade as u break unless u only break the part because it's been on your truck for a year of abuse. With my rig I HAVE upgraded literally every single part. This is because I HAVE broke just above every single part at least once. My most current upgrade was pretty much out of necessity. After breaking my plastic axle cases again, the 5th time on the front and 3rd on the rear. I felt is was time to stop spending $13, about every month for another plastic axle case, and buy some metal axle cases. I CHOSE TO DO THAT and spend almost $500 for currie axles and links. All the parts on my truck have been replaced by upgrades after the previous part was broken, usually more than once. The only exceptions are aesthetic parts I.e. beadlocks. When I first got into crawling I was a idiot and threw money at my first scx thinking it was the $h!t. I can tell u it was the biggest p.o.s. ever lol. Just because your truck is fully upgraded does not make u a better driver. Upgrades don't make a big difference, experience does

[WHITE-TRASH]

These are what I have for 4-40. The 3mm are the same with a different thread of course.

[Calderwood]

Originally Posted by WHITE-TRASH

These are what I have for 4-40. The 3mm are the same with a different thread of course.

Have you tried those in a trans case? I don't think I would want to take that much material out.

[WHITE-TRASH]

Originally Posted by Calderwood

Have you tried those in a trans case? I don't think I would want to take that much material out.

No I haven't but I know people that have and it worked. So far the 6-32 stainless allen flat heads have worked perfectly. I drilled the skid plate holes a bit larger so the screws would pass through without threading themselves in and it's been great ever since. The inserts are my backup/backup plan.

[Wade]

These are some great suggestions guys, they will help out a lot of folks. Keep'm coming. But dam it, I keep eyeing up that super shafty trans


Cheers
Wade

[Olle P]

Originally Posted by Wade

... don't buy "X" brand because you are buying cheap stuff, and will have to upgrade this and this. I only have axial based rigs, but still read you need to upgrade this and this . So then whats the difference if you are replacing most everything on both brands? ...

I advocate "replace as needed".
The "need" can be because a part is broken or it can be because it performs worse than desired (servo too weak, for example).

The main differences between "X" and for example Axial are:
1. The number of parts you eventually need to replace. (Unless you abuse the truck beyond intended use.)
2. The amount of spare and optional parts available. There's plenty of original and 3rd party options available for Axial, but upgrades for the "cheap" brands are just about not available.

[Odd-M]

Really like the inserts, never thought of it myself. I don't find any M3 on Ebay. Any help will be apreciated.

[Calderwood]

Originally Posted by Odd-M

Really like the inserts, never thought of it myself. I don't find any M3 on Ebay. Any help will be apreciated.

I just searched "m3 heli-coil" on eBay and got 87 results. That doesn't happen for you? Like I said above you could also search "thread repair" or "thread insert" instead.

[Highmark]

I tend to overbuild my rigs because I fly to comps. Spending another $40 to get a quality part is cheap compared to flying 2000 miles to have something break on you during the first course. If I was building a rig to play around with close to home I'd use the fix it if it breaks method

[C*H*U*D]

I also believe in upgrading as you break things, but I also believe in learning from your experiences.

For example, if you own multiple AX/SCX based trucks and have broken your C's and Knuckles multiple times on one, it's probably safe to say you will eventually break all of them. I won't waste time building a new axle without upgraded C's and knuckles because I know they will break on me.

It's not worth it to be the one who goes home early, because of a broken part that I know is going to break.

[K.O.M.]

In my experience, beyond the requisite knuckles & c-hubs--which break when you breath on them, front universals, and upgrading the linkages, I haven't really upgraded very much on my rigs.

Even when I did comps, my ancient Sportsman AX10 didn't really get much other than what I mentioned above, and everything except the links on that rig went on to an Eclipse tube chassis and Bastard tube chassis (remember those?!), then back to a BWD SSS-R torsion chassis, and finally became an SCX10 before it got sold off. That was about 2 years without any breakages other than what I mentioned.

My SCX10s never got anything beyond metal linkages if they didn't come with them already. But I do tend to drive those trucks in a "scale" fashion, reversing as many times needed to clear an obstacle, not giving it full throttle when I clearly see it is wedged between rocks, and *gasp* winching my way out like I would if I were driving my real Jeep. I remember doing a scale run on a trail where we spent 10 minutes rigging up a complex winching system using the flimsy bushes that were around, and then a kid rolls up and says, "why don't you just pick it up?"

I've seen the most breakages to date with TTC style comps, Ultra 4 style rock races, and FOFF builds.