New (Used) Summit - Wheel Wobble

[MailManX]

I purchased a used Summit for a good price. It has a 14.4 Dewalt conversion and runs great. However, the original wheels seem to be bent, if that's possible. When I set the rig up on blocks and test run the wheels in the air, they wobble. Maybe that's not the right word. The hex nuts are tight. It's as if the wheels are bent, kind of like a real car that has been in a minor accident and hit a curb too hard. Since the original tires are worn out, too, now is a good time to upgrade.

I don't want the OEM replacements. I want something a lot better. Is it worth putting aluminum wheels on the Summit? I want strong wheels. Is composite a good option?

My Summit usage is best described as "Rock Runner". It's kind of an all-purpose light basher on my own property for my own personal fun. It gets used on loose dirt, small jumps, rock fields and the ocassional concrete driveway high speed run.

I'd love to get your feedback on strong wheels and durable but grippy tires for this type of driving on the Summit. Budget is not a huge concern, but I do look for "value".

Thanks!

[syp]

Perhaps there is water in the tires?

[MailManX]

Originally Posted by syp

Perhaps there is water in the tires?

Thanks for the suggestion. I checked that, but they are dry. The seller verified it's never been wet. Could just be that the tires are way out of balance from heavy use. It needs tires, for sure, but I want better than OEM wheels.

I'm open to suggestions from other Summit owners for a good wheel/tire combo for playing around my property with this awesome rig.

[Zrock]

Nothing wrong with the om wheel tire combo. They are great for crawling. Fast speed not so much. I run the stock summit rims with a set mud slinger tires. I love em

Your wheel wobble could be lots of things. Bad glue job, flat spots in the tire from sitting, foams going bad from lots of use or filling with water. Ya I know he said he did not run in water but hey its a summit need I say more. I doubt the rims are bent as they are pretty tough. Also your wobble could be hub bearings going out. I know I am on my 3rd set of inner in a year. The large one its hard to find them without lots of slop in them new. I ended up paying a little more for good ceramics.

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Tapatalk

[MailManX]

Zrock - Thanks for the great suggestions. I think that my plan of attack, for now, will be to keep the stock wheels but get new tires and foams. I'll see how that changes things. The next step will be to replace the bearings. Thanks for letting me know about the ceramics. I have no problem spending a bit more money for quality. I consider that to be a good value.

[Zrock]

If you search ebay u can get a good quality ceramic for not to much more.

Sent from my SGH-I337M using Tapatalk

[lostonthetrails]

This is common on many of Traxxas' offroad vehicles. My stampede has HORRIBLE wheel wobble beacuse...
-Water is filled in the tire and has destroyed my foams(which is also common with Traxxas)
-The tire are comming off and most of all
-It's beat beyond hell
It is a Traxxas. Go to proline and get some new wheels,tire,and foams. I am saving my pennies.
The trenchers are the best tire...

[lostonthetrails]

Originally Posted by MailManX

Zrock - Thanks for the great suggestions. I think that my plan of attack, for now, will be to keep the stock wheels but get new tires and foams. I'll see how that changes things. The next step will be to replace the bearings. Thanks for letting me know about the ceramics. I have no problem spending a bit more money for quality. I consider that to be a good value.

If you bake your tires in the oven for 30 min the tires will come off.
Just in case you didnt know...

[MailManX]

Originally Posted by lostonthetrails

If you bake your tires in the oven for 30 min the tires will come off.
Just in case you didnt know...

Thanks! I had read that on the forum about baking the tires off, but I haven't tried it yet. I decided just to run the truck for a while as-is to see how it held-up. That actually seems to have resolved the problem. I think maybe the foams were just out of balance. It's running pretty smooth now. It's also holding up quite well. As I posted in my "Grandson" thread in this same forum, my yard is taking a more severe beating than the truck is. That thing is a BEAST and I LOVE IT!

[BRICK57]

Summits are known for this problem. The hubs are wearing out. l have done all the tire and bearing replacements and the problem still exists. I have seen many fixes on this. Some people use aquarium tubing and place it between the axle and the hub to pick up the slop. You can buy replacement hubs which will work for a while Traxxas 1/10 Summit Splined Wheel Nuts - Summit - Traxxas or i did this HPP-Germany Factory Onlineshop These hubs are pricey but man do they do the job. If you order from HPP pay for it with paypal, way easier than a credit card. I think you said you had the mudslingers as do I and those tires are the best but because of their size the wobble is even worse.

[MailManX]

Originally Posted by BRICK57

Summits are known for this problem. The hubs are wearing out... I did this HPP-Germany Factory Onlineshop These hubs are pricey but man do they do the job.

Too bad you don't get a commission - I just ordered a set from HPP. I did use PayPal as you recommended. Pieces of cake. $63 shipped. Ouch! My wallet is a glutton for punishment.

When I registered on the HPP website, anywhere the word "number" was supposed to appear, it actually said "nummer". I can't say why, but it struck me funny.

[MailManX]

Gotta love online translators. I received an e-mail from HPP-Germany with an invoice attached. I basically knew what it meant, but I decided to put the e-mail verbiage into Google Translator to see what it said, exactly.

Here is what I received:

Sehr geehrte Michael,

Sie erhalten mit dieser E-Mail Ihre Rechnung Nr. RG-HPP-RC-202-2014 von der Bestellung Nr. 350 vom 19.02.2014.

Mit freundlichem Gruss

-----------

And here is the translation:

Dear Michael,

You will receive in this e-mail your invoice No. RG-HPP-RC-202-2014 350 of the Order # from 02/19/2014.

Best regards

[BRICK57]

You will love the HPP hubs. I don't understand why Traxxas or a hobby shop in America doesn't pick these up and sell them. I would also recommend when you change out the hubs to have new bearings to install at the same time. There is an inner bearing and an outer bearing for each axle 8 total. It is a very easy fix at that time. I used these Traxxas 1/10 Summit Wheel Bearings - Summit - Traxxas I have since started buying from Avid Bearings Avid RC Bearings and Accessories for radio controlled vehicles, your one stop shop for RC bearings, RC wheels, RC accessories, RC springs, and much more. and they are better bearings. You can get the sizes you need and go to Avid's website and order them. They have good, better and best, for this I would use the better or best ones. I think the Revolutions and Ceramic are their better and best. Post back and let me know how you like the HPP

[MailManX]

Originally Posted by BRICK57

I would also recommend when you change out the hubs to have new bearings to install at the same time.

I was thinking ahead (for once) and ordered bearings already. I went with Avid per lots of recommendations on this forum. I ended up ordering for all three of my RC's at one time so I could take advantage of free shipping. For most applications, I got the revolutions. But for the Inner and Outer on the Summit, I got the Ceramic Revolutions (ceramic with rubber seals on one side). For only $5 per ceramic, that's a steal! The rest are only buck. That's even more amazing!

I will definitely post back about the hubs (not here yet).