Long time, no see! Updates on my Sonoma....

[MAXXMASHER]

It has been far too long since I have posted on here. Reading some posts by Dan (Danally) and Jim (Fungi) on Facebook pretty much prompted me to do so.

So, here goes.... I built my Sonoma scaler using Losi micro running gear, but ditched the stock chassis. I have found that I really like making my own chassis from square brass and did so with this truck.

I pretty much got this truck perfected, sitting just right, but something was not right. That, (as I should have known) was the poor stock motor. The added weight of the model body along with the brass chassis and full interior was more than it could handle. I could run it for only a short time and it would get hot as the sun! I drove it here and there but never got around to getting a proper (DDT Predator) motor for it. This was mainly because I built a brass tuber micro. That truck sports a DDT motor and MiClaws, and just crawls up everything!







Time for the neglected Sonoma to get some love. I got a 90T Predator motor installed last week and had been having a blast with it. That is, until the servo gave it up. I had done some research on Servodatabase.com and decided to go outside the box (Hitec 65MG) and try out some lesser known brands that were cheaper, but had similar specs and construction as the Hitecs. In the truck was a Corona CS-929MG servo. Just wasn't up to snuff. A week of crawling, and it is not right. Doesn't seem stripped out; it just goes to one side and stayed there. Put a new horn on it, and after a bit, same thing. Time for something else. I also had in my stash of micro servos, a Cirrus P-CS401MG. This thing seems really stout!! Just a hair wider than the stock servo, though. No problem. I took off the servo mounts and flipped them around. (They are indented so they sit just inside the width of the servo bottom mount.) This opened up the width of the servo mounts to just get it to fit.

Kinda hard to see. I also ran the ball stud in the opposite side to accomplish flipping them. Nice that they are threaded all the way through.



I squeezed the servo in the opening, but I had one problem. The stock servo is made to be held with four screws, and the new one only mounts with two. Not a big deal; the holes on the servo lined up upper mount holes, so I decided to use just the two screws. With a rig this small, I think it will be alright. This is a stout looking servo! For one thing, it appears to be ALL metal gears. Another thing that surprised me was that it uses a servo arm made for 1/10th scale trucks! Pretty beefy. A little work with the Dremel on the arm pared it down to work properly on the little Sonoma.







Mounts flipped and in place. Easier to just take the whole axle off to affix everything.



Quite a difference after the Dremel work!



Mounted up. This thing really whips the linkage back and forth!!



Sorry for the ultra-long post; guess it's just been too long! Gonna do some more work tomorrow night...... stay tuned!


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[RootBreaker]

Originally Posted by MAXXMASHER

... Reading some posts by Dan (Danally) and Jim (Fungi) on Facebook pretty much prompted me to do so.

nice writeup... and I too read that post. I just havent had time to come here and now if I do I will be spending money and got other real projects to finish. like how i just grenaded my 14bolt full floater 10.5" ring and pinion... guess 40" hawgs, detroits and lost of skinny pedaling lately...

[MAXXMASHER]

I've been kind of the same way. Been putting my time, money, and effort into my other favorite hobby....





But I feel like I've been bitten by the RC bug again. Got an Orlandoo Datsun project in the works and I'm ready to do some work on my Slash. I really wanna do a 6WD micro, too!

Just added some final touches to my newest micro section, too.










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[DANALLY]

Good to see you back...good to be back...and I hope to many more back. Rig looks great. I don't know for sure why but that body style never struck me as one I would do but man I really like it! I think I might have to look for one. My last truck was a Toyota build and I really miss having a truck. Keep up the great work!

[MAXXMASHER]

Originally Posted by DANALLY

Good to see you back...good to be back...and I hope to many more back. Rig looks great. I don't know for sure why but that body style never struck me as one I would do but man I really like it! I think I might have to look for one. My last truck was a Toyota build and I really miss having a truck. Keep up the great work!

Yeah, in stock form, the Sonoma isn't exactly a truck to get the heart beating. Somehow in this desert racer look it just seemed to be perfect for a scale build. The Lindberg 1/20 scale kits always lend themselves to be perfect for micro building anyways. Just liked that it had a roll bar and a brush guard and other little touches. The fuel cell in the bed actually hides where the shocks poke through to give it the ride I desired. I originally got a Jeep kit, but it was so small, it would have taken mountains of work to get it right. The wheelbase is even shorter than an Orlandoo! I actually remember someone on here making it work, but he fabbed up his own transfer case using watch gears for internals!! That's a bit more than I could muster....


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[MAXXMASHER]

Got a bit more work done on the little Sonoma tonight. I had gotten as a gift, from my bro Tim (TGH117 on here), a set of Fungi's lockouts for the rear axle. Have had them sitting in my parts box for a long time. Might as well throw those on there!

What I didn't realize is that these parts are not made to work together. Correct? After studying Jim's post when he came up with the lockouts, it seems the link mounts are to be used with the lockouts that don't have mounts for the shock ball studs. Not a big deal. My truck is configured to sit properly with the lower shock mounts in the stock position. Since the upper shock mounts are soldered to the brass frame, I'll just use the stock upper link mounts. Not as tidy, but why mess with what works.



Unlike my bro, Tim, who seems to flourish with every bolt and part in a big pile, I like to be very organized when undertaking a project. I don't know how, but he always works faster than me and always seems to know just where that needed piece is located. LOL!!




Not as tidy as it could be, but better than before. I figured while I was at it, I'd take the whole axle apart. I cleaned all the bearings, gave them a drop of bearing oil, and re-greased the worm gears. Nice and smooth!





Tim also sent me my old Roc-Loks that I had mounted on Gear Head wheels when he sent me a new motor for my Slash. He won a nice cheap auction for two motors and we split the cost. My Slash VXL motor just won't stay put after too many trips to the local skate park!



Truck is all sorted and looking good. All the wires pair up with connectors, the front secures with earth magnets, and the rear with a strip of Velcro.



Walter (the scale version of my dog) is ready for a ride! He's a passenger in all my micro builds.



The Sonoma is working better than ever!









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[tgh117]

Yea I can't remember if I cut the mounts of my lockouts or I had a set of bare ones so I could run the brackets. Looking good.

You never know what I'm cooking up over on this side of the state...


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