RCCrawler Forums

Cloak · 01-21-2007, 10:14 AM

I wanted to make some changes to my rig:

Before: SW2

After: BMVii

body off

I've been watching fansubbed eps of Naruto lately (great anime show btw, I highly recommend watching them on cartoon network and once you've caught up to the current english dubs I highly recommend watching the fansubs). Anyway, I made my kids a Naruto themed crawler with the Hidden Leaf Village logo on top. I need to make my silver Sand Village logo for the roof. I'll post updated pics when I cut the vinyl this week.

I still have a mamba 25, outrunner (v1) in this rig. I played with it a little bit yesterday and I'm going to have to work at redistributing the weight on the rig. It is very much a different beast from before. I will probably take it out today and see how it drives. The most stark change is how light it is rtr. I have more weight in the rear tires and it is still lighter (subjectively, I don't have my scale and I didn't weigh it before) than my sw2.

Updates 02.27.2007:

Rear axle is clocked up. Pretty extreme but I can fix it by squashing it down more.

1.5" angle aluminum

4 screws to the axle and 4 to the mounting plate

Top view

7 cell pack I custom made

Glam shot with the new tires and wheels. I need to do a better pic after I move the body down a little.

Norcal crawler · 01-21-2007, 10:25 AM

I like old one better because its a jeep but im sure the new one performs better. I just don't like the bug bodys very much.

Cloak · 01-21-2007, 10:40 AM

I really like my Jeep bodies too, my wife still has hers. This new setup just didn't feel like it lent itself to being a Jeep though. It is going to be odd getting used to since I've run that Jeep for the better part of last year.

Plus I already had a theme going with the other bug body, so I'm kind of stuck with bugs for now.

dezfan · 01-21-2007, 11:13 AM

Looks great Cloak!

MNorby · 01-21-2007, 11:47 AM

Maybe a noob question but does it help running the tires opposite directions like they are?

toyofast · 01-21-2007, 11:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MNorby

Maybe a noob question but does it help running the tires opposite directions like they are?

Depends on terrian and the conditions at hand. Most of the time, reversing the tread direction does allow for a bit more "bite". It's all about trial and error method when building your crawler.

Cloak · 01-21-2007, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MNorby

Maybe a noob question but does it help running the tires opposite directions like they are?

I tend to run them like this when I have some loose dirt, snow or anything else like that. As toyo said, it really just depends on what you're doing with it at the time.

Natedog · 01-21-2007, 12:12 PM

Nice paint job and colors...looks great, but I'd tilt the pinions up out of the rocks...front and rear. How's the wheel hop with the torsion chassis compared to the SW2?

EDIT: Running the tires reversed on all four wheels or any combination of such is another tuning option...all depends on terrain and what works for you.

RAM2500 · 01-21-2007, 03:14 PM

O.K., this is probably a newb question, but what did you use for the tint on the bug windows? It looks great. Is it a film or a transparent paint? I used some film that I got from Hobbies N' Stuff years ago (like 12 years!!!!) on a build, but I have not seen anything like that lately. I still have that body, but I'm getting ready to paint a new one.

Nice beadlocks as well.

Cloak · 01-21-2007, 04:50 PM

My ugly beadlocks keep holding up, so I can't really justify getting new ones or making new ones yet.

The tint is Pactra RC5315 Acryl Transparent Smoke. Best thing ever for tint, although I did those windows a lot darker than I intended. You have to be patient with it so you can actually have it still be transparent. I knew better but it was getting late and I was tired.

Natedog: I'm planning on doing that, gonna make that wedge dezfan and I forget who else are doing. After working on some tuning today, I can't believe how much more weight I have to put in the tires/axles to get it to have some droop. I mean it makes sense since there is no spring/shock to push it down, but it was hard for me to get my head around that and keep adding in weight.

RAM2500 · 01-21-2007, 04:58 PM

I like the tint dark. It looks good. I thought it was paint at first, but it has enough transparrency to let some light though.

I was going to take a stab at building some beadlocks. I have all the parts and just needed to spend some quality time with my friend's drill press, but then those new Axial 2.2's came out. I don't know if I'll bother making them with the Axials priced so low. I still like the look of the reducer washers, though. I'll probably glue those to my other set of wheels for a different look.

JeremyH · 01-21-2007, 05:25 PM

That is an awesome paint job on the bug! Any tips on how you did the fade??

jebs · 01-21-2007, 05:40 PM

looks great

Cloak · 01-21-2007, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeremyH

That is an awesome paint job on the bug! Any tips on how you did the fade??

I used an airbrush. It was my Iwata, but you can just as easily use a cheapo walmart one and get great results.

Basically just do a real light layer up to the farthest point you want the secondary color, then just keep doing light layers and stop sooner and sooner before you get to that point. In this case, I did a light layer right before the air intake on the top then the next one I did an inch back and I kept going until I got to the top of the roof. After that point I just laid in the solid color up front and on the doors.

Then when you put the other coat on you just spray it normally. I laid out the idea in my head but once I got started on it I changed it up a bit. You could get really accurate and draw up lines on the outside of the body if you'd like. I highly recommend using an airbrush over a rattle can. Mostly you get much smaller paint particles and it lends itself to blends much better.

RAM2500 · 02-06-2007, 09:48 PM

Hey, your tip for the window tint worked great! I'll get some pics up soon. I need to get some good crawling pics first. I keep forgetting the camera! Too much fun driving!

Cloak · 02-07-2007, 07:21 AM

Cool, glad it did. That stuff is great.

venom*one · 02-07-2007, 09:15 AM

I love the paint... reminds me of coffee!!! Want to get rid of the SW2 chassie??? LMK and great looking ride!!!

patrick_b · 02-07-2007, 03:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by venom*one

I love the paint... reminds me of coffee!!!

I was thinking the same thing...looks like a latte! That's one of the nicer paint jobs I've seen. I've always liked the understated look but it can get boring. You've done up that bug to look very classy and not at all gaudy, excellent, excellent job!! While I've never been one for flames and the like, even the flames on your jeep look pretty damn good. But I'm just loving the fade on the bug. Again, it looks terrific!

Unimoger · 02-07-2007, 05:32 PM

[QUOTE=Cloak]My ugly beadlocks keep holding up, so I can't really justify getting new ones or making new ones yet.

[QUOTE]

Cloak, your NEW beadlocks ship out this week, thanks for the order.

ColquittCustom405 · 02-07-2007, 05:52 PM

The rubberband chassis is fun to drive guys,you got to learn how to feel the rig.Again nice one Cloak....

01-21-2007, 10:14 AM	#1
Cloak I wanna be Dave Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 2,206	Cloaks crawler revisited - BMVii I wanted to make some changes to my rig: Before: SW2 After: BMVii body off I've been watching fansubbed eps of Naruto lately (great anime show btw, I highly recommend watching them on cartoon network and once you've caught up to the current english dubs I highly recommend watching the fansubs). Anyway, I made my kids a Naruto themed crawler with the Hidden Leaf Village logo on top. I need to make my silver Sand Village logo for the roof. I'll post updated pics when I cut the vinyl this week. I still have a mamba 25, outrunner (v1) in this rig. I played with it a little bit yesterday and I'm going to have to work at redistributing the weight on the rig. It is very much a different beast from before. I will probably take it out today and see how it drives. The most stark change is how light it is rtr. I have more weight in the rear tires and it is still lighter (subjectively, I don't have my scale and I didn't weigh it before) than my sw2. Updates 02.27.2007: Rear axle is clocked up. Pretty extreme but I can fix it by squashing it down more. 1.5" angle aluminum 4 screws to the axle and 4 to the mounting plate Top view 7 cell pack I custom made Glam shot with the new tires and wheels. I need to do a better pic after I move the body down a little. Last edited by Cloak; 02-27-2007 at 12:47 PM.

01-21-2007, 04:50 PM	#10
Cloak I wanna be Dave Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 2,206	My ugly beadlocks keep holding up, so I can't really justify getting new ones or making new ones yet. The tint is Pactra RC5315 Acryl Transparent Smoke. Best thing ever for tint, although I did those windows a lot darker than I intended. You have to be patient with it so you can actually have it still be transparent. I knew better but it was getting late and I was tired. Natedog: I'm planning on doing that, gonna make that wedge dezfan and I forget who else are doing. After working on some tuning today, I can't believe how much more weight I have to put in the tires/axles to get it to have some droop. I mean it makes sense since there is no spring/shock to push it down, but it was hard for me to get my head around that and keep adding in weight. Last edited by Cloak; 01-21-2007 at 04:53 PM.

01-21-2007, 10:25 AM	#2
Norcal crawler RCC Addict Join Date: May 2006 Location: California Posts: 1,361	I like old one better because its a jeep but im sure the new one performs better. I just don't like the bug bodys very much.

01-21-2007, 10:40 AM	#3
Cloak I wanna be Dave Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 2,206	I really like my Jeep bodies too, my wife still has hers. This new setup just didn't feel like it lent itself to being a Jeep though. It is going to be odd getting used to since I've run that Jeep for the better part of last year. Plus I already had a theme going with the other bug body, so I'm kind of stuck with bugs for now.

01-21-2007, 11:13 AM	#4
dezfan I wanna be Dave Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Happiness is a warm AK. Posts: 12,563	Looks great Cloak!

01-21-2007, 11:47 AM	#5
MNorby Rock Crawler Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Northern Wyoming Posts: 904	Maybe a noob question but does it help running the tires opposite directions like they are?

01-21-2007, 12:12 PM	#8
Natedog I wanna be Dave Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Corruptifornia Posts: 12,107	Nice paint job and colors...looks great, but I'd tilt the pinions up out of the rocks...front and rear. How's the wheel hop with the torsion chassis compared to the SW2? EDIT: Running the tires reversed on all four wheels or any combination of such is another tuning option...all depends on terrain and what works for you.

01-21-2007, 03:14 PM	#9
RAM2500 Rock Crawler Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 499	O.K., this is probably a newb question, but what did you use for the tint on the bug windows? It looks great. Is it a film or a transparent paint? I used some film that I got from Hobbies N' Stuff years ago (like 12 years!!!!) on a build, but I have not seen anything like that lately. I still have that body, but I'm getting ready to paint a new one. Nice beadlocks as well.

01-21-2007, 04:58 PM	#11
RAM2500 Rock Crawler Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 499	I like the tint dark. It looks good. I thought it was paint at first, but it has enough transparrency to let some light though. I was going to take a stab at building some beadlocks. I have all the parts and just needed to spend some quality time with my friend's drill press, but then those new Axial 2.2's came out. I don't know if I'll bother making them with the Axials priced so low. I still like the look of the reducer washers, though. I'll probably glue those to my other set of wheels for a different look.

01-21-2007, 05:25 PM	#12
JeremyH I wanna be Dave Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Houston, TX Posts: 16,952	That is an awesome paint job on the bug! Any tips on how you did the fade??

01-21-2007, 05:40 PM	#13
jebs Rock Stacker Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: some where Posts: 55	looks great

02-06-2007, 09:48 PM	#15
RAM2500 Rock Crawler Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 499	Hey, your tip for the window tint worked great! I'll get some pics up soon. I need to get some good crawling pics first. I keep forgetting the camera! Too much fun driving!

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02-07-2007, 07:21 AM	#16
Cloak I wanna be Dave Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 2,206	Cool, glad it did. That stuff is great.

02-07-2007, 09:15 AM	#17
venom*one Pebble Pounder Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Trevorton Posts: 152	I love the paint... reminds me of coffee!!! Want to get rid of the SW2 chassie??? LMK and great looking ride!!!

02-07-2007, 05:32 PM	#19
Unimoger I wanna be Dave Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: G6'N Posts: 7,391	[QUOTE=Cloak]My ugly beadlocks keep holding up, so I can't really justify getting new ones or making new ones yet. [QUOTE] Cloak, your NEW beadlocks ship out this week, thanks for the order.

02-07-2007, 05:52 PM	#20
ColquittCustom405 I wanna be Dave Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Orlando Posts: 7,420	The rubberband chassis is fun to drive guys,you got to learn how to feel the rig.Again nice one Cloak....

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