WPL C14 - pimp my ride!

[Stollenritter]

My WPL C14 kit showed up, yeah!
Quality is, well, kind of low. As is the geometry. Mostly the steering. And suspension.
But hey, it has a really cool Cab!
So lets refine the steering, drivetrain, suspension, chassis (with its ugly downhanging link-hangers) and what ever else we find to replace

Some goodies:

1/24 punisher shafts, Mini-T shocks

Stripping down the axle shafts:


Lots of bushings:


Which will be replaced with propper bearings:


Open bearings inside:


Flanged and sealed bearings outside:


May the force be strong with this one. And the will to complete this build

[Brake Weight]

Solid start.

[Brake Weight]

What size bearing are those? All the same size? I ask because I had considered doing it myself then talked myself out of it. I’m out of town currently and wouldn’t mind ordering some slowboat China fleaBay bearings for a lot less coin than a set of FastEddies. I doubt these axles will hold up for long under some mildly decent power anyways.

[Stollenritter]

Originally Posted by Brake Weight

Solid start.

Thank you.

To be honest, these bearings aren`t a direct swap. The end of the axles are knurled and the hexes, pinions and crosspin-drives are a press fit. The knurled ends are slightly enlarged to around 3.1 to 3.2 millimeters. So we first have to turn (grind or file) down the shaft ends to 3mm in diameter.
The bushings are all 3/6x2mm, the bearings in the same size don`t have sealings, which is ok for me inside the axles, but the outer diff bearing should have a seal. Therefor I got a flanged bearing, which is 3/6x2.5mm.

Numbers of items:
4 bearings for each axles shaft, 2 for the diff pinion (one regular and one flanged)
Overall for two axles is 10pcs 3/6x2 and 2 flanged 3/6x2,5.

Dimensional drawings for the bearings:




Preview for a 3d-printed, ball raced high steer BTA knuckle (which will use flanged bearings as well):


If someone is interested, I will post drawings.

[Brake Weight]

I wonder how well those nylon gears would hold up in a more solid 3D printer axle.

[Stollenritter]

Originally Posted by Brake Weight

I wonder how well those nylon gears would hold up in a more solid 3D printer axle.

Yes, that is a very good question.


If my 3d-printed parts will work out fine but lack in therms of strength, there is always the option to print them in nylon at shapeways. That would be plan B. Despite that the press fitted gears and dogbones will always be the limiting factor. On the other hand, it is a lightweight rig. At reasonable speed and with a adequate power plant it should last a while.

Cross section of the modified front axle:


As the drive cup diameter is only 5.7mm, the 6mm bearings are hard to fit. I have choosen 7mm bearings now and printed a sleeve to adapt from 5,7 to 7mm. As you can see the penetration of rim and bearing, the offset of the rim has to be corrected by 1mm to keep the stock track width.

Corrected offset:


Dimensional drawing of the flanged bearing for the knuckles:

[Brake Weight]

Would it be feasible to use 3mm rod and slid the bearings onto it. Then make a knurl on the ends of it to hold the parts in place.

[Stollenritter]

Originally Posted by Brake Weight

Would it be feasible to use 3mm rod and slid the bearings onto it. Then make a knurl on the ends of it to hold the parts in place.

Yes, that would be possible. But you would have to knurl the center of the shaft for the ring gear as well.
I suppose I will epoxy the hexes back onto the shaft. Easy to do and no risk to break these small parts

[HugoBiermann]

Banggood’s got them steel axles now...


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Stollenritter]

Originally Posted by HugoBiermann

Banggood’s got them steel axles now...
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

They look a little bit bulky, but good to know! Thanks for sharing!


Progess is small, or at least, not visible. I am re-modelling parts and turn them into printable parts, as well as re-designing parts.
I want to build a CMS with proper panhard geometry, which is hard to achive when having a long travel setup.

[PileDriver]

Did the build die off?

[ToyotaKing88]

I am curious also I have been working on a custom C14 myself. I built a frame for mine with rectangular brass tubing.

[Brake Weight]

Figured I'd leave this here if anyone wanted to keep the stock wheels while they were pimping their ride.

https://store.rc4wd.com/12-Tires_c_964.html