RCCrawler Forums - NEW Chassis for Micro Crawler

So I got home from work this afternoon to find a package at the door from my good friend Javier from Driven Productions.

A new DP Torsion Chassis for the Losi Micro Rock Crawler for me to review for all of you.

One of the biggest problems with the Losi Micro Rock Crawler has been the shocks and springs. In stock form the truck sits too high and the springs are too stiff. Many have tried various methods to fix this problem.....but hand it to DP to come up with a solution that not only fixes the problem but ELIMINATES it completely!

http://img509.imageshack.us/img509/4391/1060352.jpg
Now this is the most unusual chassis for the micro crawler...it doesn't look like anything else out there. Perhaps the most outstanding feature of the chassis is the torsion bars extending from the chassis plate. These, as you will see in a little bit, will totally eliminate the need for shocks and springs on your crawler.
I know you are pretty skeptical at this point but hang in there and you will be very surprised at the finished product and the performance!

The kit comes with everything you need, two Delrin chassis plates and four screws to attach the torsion arms to the front and rear mounts.....simple.

This chassis/conversion kit is designed for use with the stock crawler and uses all the stock parts minus the shocks, springs, and upper arms.
Its designed to use the stock plastic mount for the battery, receiver and use the stock body.
You two lengths of 2.5 bolts, the shorter one lets you snug the bolts down with out pushing into the servo (less suspension articulation).
The longer bolts are so you can leave the bolts 1/8th of an inch from being tighten down all the way. What that does is gives the chassis more articulation since the arms can slide back and forth over the bolt with it backed off from sitting flush.

The chassis is designed to mount with the DP logo facing outward on both side plates.
(good for advertising but also necessary for the holes to align up correctly)
When bolting the chassis down get all the bolts started then tighten them down evenly.

That being said and done I dove right in and had the crawler converted in about 15 minutes....very easy. However for my review I did make a couple of changes simply because of the way I prefer to run things.

Change #1 I run my battery on the rear deck.....so no stock battery holder used.
Change #2 I run a de-cased ESC so no case or stock ESC tray used.
I did cut two cross braces to replace the stock parts, drilled and taped them and installed, the ESC is servo taped in place on a small styrene plate on top of the braces....these changes do not change the way the kit performs in any way except to change the weight bias and lowers the COG of the crawler.

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The chassis installed, with Lipo battery, Urethane resin tires, and wheel weights.

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Close up of the new suspension....no more shocks, springs, or upper arms...very clean and simple.

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With the body installed...very clean and simple look.

But does it work!?!?

The articulation is adjustable (as stated above), I set this one to the loose setting (more articulation) and it is better than the stock suspension set up with stock shocks and springs. The action is smoother and the DP chassis does articulate farther than stock chassis
http://img94.imageshack.us/img94/8706/1060342.jpg
The first thing you notice is that the DP Torsion chassis sits lower than the stock chassis and this lowers the COG (center of gravity). This allows the truck to tackle steeper hills and more radical obstacles with reduced roll overs. The new chassis reacts to the terrain in a very predictable fashion, however it is different from a chassis with shocks and springs (see my notes at the end for handling tips).

I did two battery packs through this new chassis tonight on my Abusement Park Course....one 7.4v pack and one 3.7v pack, to compare the differences in the performance at the different voltages.

7.4v 2S Lipo pack performance was very good, the DP Torsion Chassis really surprised me with it's ability to handle the track (my track is known for it's steep climbs, narrow ledges, off-camber rock passes, and other difficult obstacles) The new chassis made the complete circuit....this is no easy feat and is something a stock crawler has not been able to complete.

3.7v 1S Lipo pack performance is even better, slow this baby down and let the chassis do the work! This thing is even better at low speeds where the chassis has more time to react to the terrain.

I am very impressed And if a great looking chassis that works isn't enough then add the fact that this chassis is the CHEAPEST aftermarket Hop-Up chassis on the market at a suggested retail of only $15.00!!!!

This is a great way for a guy to step up from the stock chassis/suspension to a new level of performance at an affordable price.
The Dog has to give this his two paws up!

http://img714.imageshack.us/img714/9938/valueaward.jpg

Video coming soon!

NOTES:

Lower the COG as much as possible, de-case the ESC, move the battery to the rear deck.

Add wheel weights, I have found a front weight of 38-50g and a rear weight of 25-35g works wonders for making the suspension work better and smoother and adds tons of traction.

Store you truck on a stand so that the arms are flexed down, continuous weight on the arms may cause the to permanently bow upwards.

The Torsion bars replace the upper arms, since the torsion bars are farther inboard there is no more tire rub at full turn!