skid plate and battery relocate

[tyrod_emmons]

ok guys im not at all trying to take credit for this idea bur being only two weeks into crawlers im proud of my mods haha. first i starcut the foam wich you cant see but i loaded the wheels with large washers and the beadlox hold them in place so no rattle (thank The Kreepy Crawler for the idea)




next i bent the stock links (very easy to do) just apply pressure with wrench loop heat slowly with butane torch, to take the side to side slack out i debated on washers but didnt like the thought of that much tension so i made some bushings out of rubber gasket material so if in a bind they can move if needed.





i bought a polly cutting board at big lots for 5 dollors to make the skid plate, i dont remember who i saw doing this but a great idea, i used a di grinder to cut but you could easy cut it with a hand saw, hacksaw, dremel etc. the key part is useing the stock screws to mount it, its very easy to do, just get a drill bit a size smaller then the screw and drill it a lil longer than the screw in the side of the skid as str8 as you can makeing sure not to punch through the top or bottom. then simpley thread the screw into the hole you just punched since you screwing into plastic the screw will cut threads for you, and it holds GREAT!!!!! TRUST ME









now after the skid plate was made i shortend it and still had the battery hanging off the skid where i had had cut off wich seemed kinda pointless when i looked at it, but thankfull i had plenty of polly left so i made a battery tray and used the tabs on top to mount it and the same straps to get it about 1 inch above the skid plate. i dont know how much you can tell from the pics.







im amazed at all the cheap mods you can do to these rigs. im not a stranger to nitro trucks have been in for years but i found my new favorite.

[redrokin00XJ]

I did the same thing just last night. I found a cutting board (I stole from my wife) Made from Delrin and I'm sure she wasn't happy I turned her Pampered Chef cutting board into a skid plat..... But I dig it.

[Xcrawler]

Pampered Chef? Man, she ain't putting out for awhile!

If I can find some "me" time this weekend, I'll try bending those links myself.

[cumminsontherocks]

hey man the new skid looks good and i see you bent your links. quesion.....ever think of redrilling your lower link mount holes higher on the chassis cutting the bottom off and raise the skid? probably get you 1/2 to 3/4 inch more ground clerance! worked like a charm on my stock chassis plates. just a sugestion.

[WarHog]

To add to what cumminsontherocks said, make notches on your skidplate for the rodends and put your lower links inside the chassis instead of them hanging out and getting caught on stuff.....looks good to me though

[cumminsontherocks]

Originally Posted by WarHog

To add to what cumminsontherocks said, make notches on your skidplate for the rodends and put your lower links inside the chassis instead of them hanging out and getting caught on stuff.....looks good to me though

thought of that as soon as a hit submit! lol. good call WarHog

[tyrod_emmons]

i love both of these suggestions, i got a good idea how to fo this but just to be sure any chance you guys could post a pic or two to let me see how you guys did this, i have wanted to cut the belly for a while but since im new to modifying i hesitate, but damn im eager to do this

[WarHog]

Damn I hope cumminsontherocks has some pics......cause I dont have any

[tyrod_emmons]

eh thats ok i still needed the suggestion, a guy here in my town did the belly cut and said it helped a LOT

[cumminsontherocks]

On my phone right now. I'll post some in the morn for ya.

[cumminsontherocks]

Clicky linky...scroll down to the rebuild pics. This is where I got the idea!
lipo incident up in flames

[WarHog]

I dont see that he inboarded his lower links cumminsontherocks.......maybe some how my eyes are failing me ? Just make 4 notches, one on each corner, big enuff for your ball ends to just fit in between the skid and side of your chassis Tyrod

[tyrod_emmons]

yeah thanks warhog i dont have a problem with that if i mess up i can make tons more skids till i get it right i have always been paranoid about cutting the chassis, cause if i dont like it or it doesnt work out you cant quite put that back, haha, but it sounds like a good risk to take thats where im heading now wish me luck

[cumminsontherocks]

he didnt inboard his links here it just a cut chassis.
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5289/...ee3101d6_m.jpg

[WarHog]

If you mess up and cant use your stock chassis after cutting it.......I have 2 sets of stock chassis sideplates

[tyrod_emmons]

ok guys here is the finished product, i managed to squeeze just over 3/4 of an inch in clearance, i had to fight with the shock mount on the chassis to get the bottom reatainers away from the motor, i hope i got it right..... so what do you think.. first try dont be to brutal on me haha

[cumminsontherocks]

HELL YEAH man! looks awesome! i bet you just doubled the capability of the rig! 3/4' is huge!

[tyrod_emmons]

haha you should have seen me man i was like a surgeon, i was so paranoid i was gonna mess up to be quite honest i had somewhat of a fail safe i drilled the wholes and mounted the shocks before i cut to make sure i could make it work. so once again thanks for the advice guys i think this is gonna help out....

[cumminsontherocks]

Originally Posted by tyrod_emmons

to be quite honest i had somewhat of a fail safe i drilled the wholes and mounted the shocks before i cut to make sure i could make it work.

haha i did the same thing! dad always said measure twice...cut once!

[WarHog]

Have you tried turning your lower links around so the bent part is closer to the axle ? It just looks to me like they are picking up your chassis and then it drops a bit. I guess theres nothing wrong with it I was just wondering if you had tried them the other way also ?