Tommy's Big Willy

[ZoSo]

love the track bar set-up
I'll try that on the next Willys
very nice build thread

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by ZoSo

love the track bar set-up
I'll try that on the next Willys
very nice build thread

Thanks, man!

[rclife]

Great Build,
Where do you get the body?

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by rclife

Great Build,
Where do you get the body?

Thanks, I got it from a member here on RCC, but it's a relatively commonly available 2001 Hasbro Jeep. They pop up here and on ebay frequently.

[Big Mike]

Originally Posted by Tommy R

Here's the driver's side mount, which also mounts the front bumper (not pictured).

That should be very much in the ballpark.

I used aluminum for mine. Which had me doing a lot of creative cutting and manipulation. I even had to make a little jig to bend one part accurately.

Looks to me like you arrived at the same point with 1/8th the time and effort!! I should've used steel

Originally Posted by Tommy R

Ladies & germs, I'm proud to say that we now have a ROLLER!!

Hammer Time!!!!

Looking spot-on so far Tommy. Nice work on the front end setup.

The TSL's look pretty good! I came very close to going with them, but I was afraid they'd be too small...

[reddevildemo]

Man. lookin good....another great track bar mount.....I need to dig back into mine, dump the 4 link, add the track bar and move the servo....between you and Mike..your killin me !!

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by Big Mike

That should be very much in the ballpark.

I used aluminum for mine. Which had me doing a lot of creative cutting and manipulation. I even had to make a little jig to bend one part accurately.

Looks to me like you arrived at the same point with 1/8th the time and effort!! I should've used steel

Heh, yeah, the steel worked out pretty well. I knew from the beginning that I wanted to braze this track bar mount to the bumper support so I had to use either brass or steel.....since that's what I've got.

Hammer Time!!!!

Looking spot-on so far Tommy. Nice work on the front end setup.

The TSL's look pretty good! I came very close to going with them, but I was afraid they'd be too small...

Thanks, Mike! So far I'm quite pleased with it. The only thing I'm not happy with is the suspension up travel. The aluminum knuckle hits the track bar mount under compression. And because the shocks mount so far outboard, it limits overall suspension travel. However, I think the amount of articulation it has now is pretty realistic so it's all good.

I love the TSLs on this rig! I had some RC4WD Mickey Thompson Baja Claws, but they were too large. I wanted to make sure the tires tucked into the rear fenders nicely and the TSLs are a near perfect fit. They kinda look like 33's on a lifted Willys. Just what I wanted!

Originally Posted by reddevildemo

Man. lookin good....another great track bar mount.....I need to dig back into mine, dump the 4 link, add the track bar and move the servo....between you and Mike..your killin me !!

Thanks, Darin! I consider it an honor if I'm at all responsible for any improvements you make to your Willys. That think is truly epic!! Keep us updated!

[Tommy R]

I should've known I wouldn't be happy with a plastic bumper. I'm not done with this bumper yet, but you can see where I'm going with it. I need a place to mount my winch, right? And the shape of it will hopefully provide adequate clearance for more steering throw.

[Tommy R]

Well, that went kinda quickly. I may call it done. I usually run a stinger so I have a good place for the winch hook to attach to, but I think I may leave this one bare. Who knows, maybe I'll do more to it, but if I want to make this month's comp I think I'll leave it for now and move on to more pressing items.

[justinart24]

I like the bumper there Tommy!

BTW, you going to run this rig in C3 at your comps?

Oh yeah....I found your new driver, and its 1:6 scale.
Finally, A Realistic Steve Jobs Action Figure | Geekologie - Gadgets, Gizmos, and Awesome

[BigSki]

I like that front bumper, it looks like it would slide right past rocks on the sides and the tires won't get snagged on it. Do you have any issues w/ the front tires
rubbing against the shocks/springs at full steering lock? I got so annoyed at my Orange Jeep w/ the tires turning the pre-load collars that I switched to the internal white 'scale' shocks even though the SCX-10 shocks worked so much better.

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by justinart24

I like the bumper there Tommy!

BTW, you going to run this rig in C3 at your comps?

Oh yeah....I found your new driver, and its 1:6 scale.
Finally, A Realistic Steve Jobs Action Figure | Geekologie - Gadgets, Gizmos, and Awesome

OMG! Everyone knows Hammer wasn't anywhere near as greedy that that Steve Jobs jerk!!

This won't be my "real" C3 rig. I'm still working on my Wraith for that. But until I get the Wraith up and running again (been waiting on my warranty ESC for 3 months now), this will suffice. It won't be competitive, but it'll be fun!

Originally Posted by BigSki

I like that front bumper, it looks like it would slide right past rocks on the sides and the tires won't get snagged on it. Do you have any issues w/ the front tires
rubbing against the shocks/springs at full steering lock? I got so annoyed at my Orange Jeep w/ the tires turning the pre-load collars that I switched to the internal white 'scale' shocks even though the SCX-10 shocks worked so much better.

Yeah, the tires definitely get into the shocks at full lock. I'll either limit the steering, use spacers for pre-load (instead of the threaded collar), or look into different wheels. I also may pick up some of those machined rings for these wheels. The widen the wheel 1/4" and that will help pull the tires from the shocks. I really don't want to run different wheels 'cause this will go really well with the style I'm shooting for with this build.

[Tommy R]

Yeah, the tires definitely contacts the shocks/collars. It's worse when the suspension articulates.


Tires get into the bumper, too, but not as bad as with the previous bumper. A little more offset would help, but not sure I want to do that.


I mentioned this earlier, but here's a pic to illustrate. The track bar mount and axle make contact on the driver's side. It doesn't really limit the travel all that much, but it is something I wish I could've avoided. It just wasn't practical to do so. Yes, I know I need to also trim the plastic axle mount.


Overall look as it sits now.

[Tommy R]

I pulled the wheels/tires off the Wraith to check how the offset would work on this rig. They definitely provide more tire clearance and I have inserts to widen the track more if I need to. I really like the white wagon wheels, but they may simply not have the offset I need to work on this truck. This would likely have me considering a color change from my original plans if I stick with the Mayhem wheels. What do y'all think? And ignore the tires. This rig will definitely be running Swampers.

[yoda@4x4]

Looking good .

[Gougou]

Nice Jeep!

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by yoda@4x4

Looking good .

Originally Posted by Gougou

Nice Jeep!

Thanks, fellas!

[Big Mike]

Originally Posted by Tommy R

I really like the white wagon wheels, but they may simply not have the offset I need to work on this truck.

Damn! the white classic wheels look so nice. They have to work somehow.

Could you make or have made a thicker inside piece that would give you more track width? ? Maybe wide hexes with barrel nuts?

Kind of extreme, but those wheels really belong on there. No matter what color you pick, they look great...

[Tommy R]

Originally Posted by Big Mike

Damn! the white classic wheels look so nice. They have to work somehow.

Could you make or have made a thicker inside piece that would give you more track width? ? Maybe wide hexes with barrel nuts?

Kind of extreme, but those wheels really belong on there. No matter what color you pick, they look great...

Yeah, I agree. The wagon wheels just fit this rig so well. I've done a bit of research and RC4WD offers hex conversions for these wheels. They don't significantly increase the track width, but they would allow the use of wider hexes to get the width I need.

In addition, a vendor here is selling inserts for these wheels that increase the width 1/4". That would yield another 1/8" of clearance between the tires/shocks. I think I'll be picking up a set of those, as well.

I'm going to end up with the most expensive stamped steel wheels ever!

[reddevildemo]

WOW, lookin real good Tommy. I know I had issues with my stamped Steelies as well with the WK axles. I moved my shocks inboard more to stop the contact to them....I don't think I had bumper contact though.

I'll be posting an update to mine tonight, got the 3-link done ! Thanks again for the ideas.