Silver Specter

[TownsendTdi]

I got one of Jim's 3d printed Specter chassis' shortly after he started selling them last year but never got around to finishing it. (Specter | Lynx Micro Tech) I was so excited when I got it that I just made some super quick links that were bare threaded rod, which gets hung up bad on rocks. The electronics were just stuffed in the back, and would occasionally get ejected during a rollover, as well as the battery. The main reason I got lazy about finishing it is because I wanted to use the quick charge battery from the SCTE/Rally X (I use them on all of my micros if it fits), and I couldn't get to the balance plug/"charge port" because of the sub-chassis, and making new sub-chassis plates seemed like a pain. Other projects got put ahead of this one, but this weekend I gave it some love.
Made some new sub-chassis plates from aluminum that have a little more room near the balance plug so the charge cable fits for charging. I also wasn't using the mounts on the sub-chassis for the shocks so I left those off. Each plate weighs just over 1 gram more than the delrin plastic ones. The stock plates are indestructible, I did this strictly so the battery I wanted to use fit where I wanted it.





I whipped up some panels out of thin sheet aluminum using the plastic panels as a guide. The sides wrap around the bottom side bar of the chassis for protection and sliding over rocks. The front of the side panel extends towards the front more (for aesthetics).






The motor is a PN racing 130 can, 70 turn with neo magnets and silver brushes. 11/59 gearing. The motor is mounted "backwards"- on the other side of the motor plate. If your not familiar with "big block" motors in these, your stuck with a 16t pinion (pretty much), which isn't bad, but I like crawling....slow. This way, the tranny isn't in the way, allowing any size pinion. 11t is the lowest for a 2mm shaft, and the HR 59t rally spur is the largest that fits- so slow as you can gear it with a big motor.
Great source of pinions, like brass .3m pinions with a 2mm bore: Mikroantriebe by KK Produkcja. Microgears, Wormgears, Micromotors and RC Equipment.



Made a shiny new steering linkeage out of m2 rod ends and threaded rod, sleeved with aluminum tubing. The servo horn was blue anodized, I stripped that and polished it to match. Hi Tec HS-5065 servo.
Electronics are tucked under the rear deck- tight fit with the larger Sumo shocks but just enough space.

Some quick videos before I put the panels on:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytY7KM8fgEU
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn4ijexT2cQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCo0-DP6kY4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6BVmwl78rA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RONH-jUG9wc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiIcH4j2gAg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zze1vNi0rTg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Fwfftg2qog

[cleanandserenesteve]

BEAUTIFUL! Where dod you get that aluminum servo horn? I could use a couple for mine..

[1tuffmj]

Wow looks killer.the time you put in that was well worth it.great job

[TownsendTdi]

Originally Posted by cleanandserenesteve

BEAUTIFUL! Where dod you get that aluminum servo horn? I could use a couple for mine..

TAROT 65MG METAL SERVO HORN TL2290-01 - FLYING MODEL AIRPLANE

[TownsendTdi]

A video of some of the natural lines at my crawling area. Rocks were super-slick! And some spills at the end.

[TownsendTdi]

Some of the man-made section:


And the racetrack around the perimeter

[TownsendTdi]

Took a few pics over the weekend.

[TownsendTdi]

Trying out the new scrambler tires.

[TownsendTdi]

Scrambler tires in action

[cleanandserenesteve]

Where'd you get ur M2 rod ends?

[TownsendTdi]

Originally Posted by cleanandserenesteve

Where'd you get ur M2 rod ends?

Ebay, out of China, I looked to try to link them but couldn't find any at the moment.

[TownsendTdi]

Took the foams out of the Scramblers. Overall, I like it better. A few more unpredictable rolls than before, and when leaning hard the tires fold. Better traction and it looks a little more realistic, I think because it bounces a little more.





Also, after running these big tires for a while, and crashing a lot , the front c-hubs screws won't hold onto the axle anymore, making the front end loose as hell. I put some micro "Beef tubes" in the axle case:

I used a 13mm long piece of 3/16" thick wall tubing.


Ream out the center of the axle so the tube is a press fit. Be careful not to damage where the bearings sit.


Use a vice or clamp to press it in.



If you press the tube in far enough for the outer bearing to fit, the holes you'll need to drill are at the very end of the tube. To avoid this I used a bearing that is .5mm narrower. You could also use a micro t wheel bushing and file a bit off.



Drill holes in stock location with a small (1mm-ish) bit. Or to clock hubs and spindles, file the tabs off and drill new holes. I tapped the holes with some cutting fluid and a fresh screw.
The screws will now bite into aluminum and plastic instead of just the plastic axle housing. Way more secure, no more wobble.

[TownsendTdi]

Got a tire hooked over this ledge, made for a cool line.

[Shape_Shifter]

Very cool build!

[TownsendTdi]

Scavenged those wagon wheels so put on some old BWD wheels and miclaws I've had stashed for years.

[TownsendTdi]

Originally Posted by Shape_Shifter

Very cool build!

Thanks!

[pyranahryder]

how did you have find the scrambler 1.0" tire compared to the micklaws,the specter was looking great with them but the miclaws still hard to fight.and what is your spur gear number tooth????

[TownsendTdi]

Originally Posted by pyranahryder

how did you have find the scrambler 1.0" tire compared to the micklaws,the specter was looking great with them but the miclaws still hard to fight.and what is your spur gear number tooth????

It's a 59 tooth Hot Racing spur for the Losi Micro Rally/SCT.

I don't have a lot of time on the miclaw tires, 5 minutes on my indoor rock pile, but they seem comparable to the scramblers. If your on Facebook and looking for miclaws, someone is selling new sets on the Trail Trekker Army group page.

[pyranahryder]

i dont have a facebook

[TownsendTdi]

I decided to turn this truck into a rock racer by leaving the losi transmission and swapping to some sumo axles. Using Jim's lockouts on the rear and swapped all bushings to bearings.



Picked up one of Dan's last set of wide offset wheels.



Whipped up some beadlock rings from some "toxic green" g10.



Assembled



Waiting on the glue that holds the back deck on to dry, then just need to tidy up the wiring, put the panels back on and test it out. Added a larger 300mah battery under the hood.