Twin Force 2.2 Conversion?

[MLambert19]

Hello, I'm new here (obvious) and looking for some help and insight. I live up in the woods in Maine, like to bash the R/C's around the yard, gravel pit, and in the snow... there isn't much for track racing or crawling competition up here that I'm aware of.

I just sold my Traxxas Slash, and want to have a (close-to) scale rig. HPI Jeep body is a must, and ideally 2.2's with Masher 2000's or similar. DOES NOT need to be a good crawler, but some speed, and hillclimb (gravel-pit sand) ability would be great.

I nabbed a Twin Force RTR w/ an EVX on eBay last week for $240 shipped. I've had 2 other TF's in the past, and sold them both off... regrettably (the last one was all setup with an E-Maxx 2-speed... will post pics sometime).

I really like the 1:8 drivetrain, but would like to have 2.2 wheels & tires. I know most of the folks on here that are running 2.2's have cut/glued them together... or are running expensive beadlocks from one of the vendors.

I really like the looks of the HPI F5 Gunmetal rims... they look a lot like what comes standard on Wranglers. Is there any way to adapt them, and have them hold up to 14.4v power? Or better still... I could get rid of the 14.4 system and go to a 7.2 or 8.4 with a single motor...

I don't have a shop and a bunch of tools readily at my disposal, just the basics... so please keep that in mind. I am, however, willing to spend a little bit to buy a few wheels and experiment, as long as the end result works.

Or am I better off just investing in an axial rock-racer or HPI WK?

Thanks for the time and input,

-Matt

[Bart bender]

A scale basher Twin based rig. Have you narrowed the axles yet? I personally haven't made my own 2.2 rims so I can't really help much there. Raptorman57 has cut and shut some rims, so you could search for some of his posts. He dosn't do to many build threads so you'll have to read through his posts to find what he used. I would say however that if you went single motor the only way to go would be a Holmes Hobbies Cobalt puller. They are worth every penny.

[MLambert19]

Bart: Nope, everything is box-stock as of right now. I will be ordering the Kyosho Helical Steel R&P and additional bevel/spider gears soon, along with a yoke to eliminate the front one-way bearing.

I'm wondering if a cut-down 14mm aluminum hex would hold up? I'm talking to some guys at work about it, and they seem to think the machine shop could pull it off... so, we'll see. HPI 14mm alloy hexes are only $5+ for 4, so it's not a huge waste if they don't work out.

-Matt

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by MLambert19

I'm wondering if a cut-down 14mm aluminum hex would hold up? I'm talking to some guys at work about it, and they seem to think the machine shop could pull it off... so, we'll see. HPI 14mm alloy hexes are only $5+ for 4, so it's not a huge waste if they don't work out.

-Matt

Be MUCH easier to get 12mm hexes and just drill them out. I had problems with the 12mm hexes breaking after drilling them to 8mm,but they were cast hexes. Billet hexes would be much better. You can make the 14mm hexes smaller. I've made hex bar out of round stock at work. Pretty simple to do on a mill. Drilling 12mm hexes out though could be done in a vise with a cordless drill.

If you got access to a lathe,a guy could get the Savage stubs since they are solid....and just turn them down to 6mm. That'd leave a little more meat on the hexes so they wouldn't snap so easy. 6mm stubs would hold up to some decent abuse as well,specially if your just running 2.2 size wheels/tires.

Axials are nice little rigs. My 2.2 comp rig is Axial based....Works great. Building your Twin will be custom and will require more custom parts and/or work building it. Custom built crawlers will always have more "coolness factor" to them. The Twin will most definitely have a stronger drive train and will handle more abuse. I'd highly recommend an Axial tranny though,loaded with CDW 6mm chromoly outputs and metal gears. Thats probably the best tranny option for a crawler right now.

If we ever slow down at work,I've got several parts sketched up that I want to turn down and build me a bomb proof 2.2 Twin. I built one a good while back. Although it was a cool little rig,fun to drive and it performed very well....I built the axles out of stock components and they were to wide for competition. Scale wise,running Twin axles with 2 short sides,if you used the right wheels,it'd look pretty close to full width 60's under that Jeep body.

[MLambert19]

raptorman: Think that RPM's stock plastic 12mm hexes would hold up to being drilled? I have a whole bunch of those kicking around.

What size stub does a normal 12mm rig have compared to a 14mm setup? Are you saying 6mm just to split the difference, or would 6mm work with normal hexes? I do have access to a lathe... the only problem I can see would be re-threading the end for the wheelnut...

I'm going to check into parts availability, and eventually, when I 4-link this truck, it will have the narrower axles. For now, I just want to get it "roughed up" and together, so that I can play a bit.

Got a part # for the Savage stub axles?

Thanks, -Matt

[MLambert19]

HPI86065? Can anyone confirm that these are solid stub axles?

-Matt

[Bart bender]

2.2 rigs run 6mm shafts. Cutting down Savage stubs to 6mm from 8mm would allow you to run 12mm(2.2) hexs. You won't have to rethread. Look on HPI Racing's sight and look in their parts break down for the pt#. They have right and left threads on those trucks also. You should only need right hand just to keep it simple. I don't think you want to run plastic hexs on a hefty rig like a Twin even with 2.2 wheels. Try it and see if you have a bunch of them laying around.

[Bart bender]

Yes. Tower #LXDLE5

[Reflection]

Originally Posted by MLambert19

raptorman: Think that RPM's stock plastic 12mm hexes would hold up to being drilled? I have a whole bunch of those kicking around.

What size stub does a normal 12mm rig have compared to a 14mm setup? Are you saying 6mm just to split the difference, or would 6mm work with normal hexes? I do have access to a lathe... the only problem I can see would be re-threading the end for the wheelnut...


Thanks, -Matt

I doubt the plastic hexes would hold up to a bigger wheel,but they might do it with a 2.2 wheel/tire. Might try them,I'd still try to get some billet hexes in there later on though. I believe all the popular 2.2 axles run 5mm stubs. I'm saying 6mm because it'd help with a little more meat on the hex,but still have stubs that are PLEANTY stout. I wouldn't go any smaller personally.

On the Savage stubs,like Bart bender stated,you probably wouldn't have to do anything with the threads. Savage stubs neck down at the threads. Does your lathe not have a power feed/thread cutting ability? Shouldn't be a problem,it's pretty easy to pick the threads up and chase them out again.