Newb Questions?

[WBDISCO]

I am new to the RC Crawler thing. I have been fooling with big trucks for years and decided to dabble in the RC side of things. I just picked up an E-maxx for cheap and had a few questions. I realize this is probably not the best platform to start with, but since it is my first i thought i would go cheap in case i screw something up.

1st question. Where is the best place to buy parts? (spools, spur gears, pinions, etc.)
2nd question. Are there axle lockout kits available anymore? I read the maxx crawler thread and tried a few links, but they didn't work.

I guess that ought to get me started. Thanks for the help.

Brad

ps. i did search, but didn't have any good luck

[JamboreeTJ]

Keep searching, it does work. I found all my info by searching here.

Tower has the spools and all the parts you need. You'll make the lock outs yourself, but it is easy with some 96mm Traxxas links and using the existing spring/shock mounting positions. Use even shorter links if you don't want to use the shock towers on the chassis.

[justintime]

check out ebay

[goslo]

Instead of buying diif spools just lock the diff using hot glue. When you want to unlock the diff boil it in hot water and the glue will melt away.

[Toph]

If you look at the top of the forum there is a sticky that will help you out getting started. Before you lock out the axles you will need to make a custom chassis. But to start of I say to keep the a-arms. The best places to buy your parts are from your local hobby store and from vendors on here. To answer your second question no there are no kits made to lock out the axles. Look at the top sticky and that should answer all your questions.

[allgm1]

I also have an emaxx and have read all over the stickies here. the one thing I didn't see alot of info on was upgrading you driveshafts. If you lock your diffs and go out on the rocks you had better bring plenty spare driveshafts, cuz they will twist like pretzels. After replacing two sets of them I bought some rdlogics one from fleabay. I'm now in the process of building a maxx based crawler, got the axles figured out (locked out the susp., steering links and link mounts) the hard part is what chassis to build. heres a pic of what I've got so far

[WBDISCO]

Well,i have been playing with the truck for a few days now and apperently toasted a battery. It holds about 8 volts after charge but i am only getting about 5 minutes runtime. It isa v-maxx battery. I have a Dynamite Dual-e charger and it seems that the battery starts getting pretty warm after about 10 minutes of charging. I have a set of Speed max batts that seem to be holding up fine. Also, the stock suspension seems to be sagging quite a bit when driving the truck, is there a way to tune the shocks so it will sit a little higher and not squat so much? Like i said before i bought it used so i don't have any manuals for the truck or charger. I did download a pdf from traxxas but it doesn't seem to cover what i need. Thanks guys and hopefully after i play with this for a while and get used to tearing it down and fixing it, i will be able to build a decent crawler. Oh yeah, do they make Land Rover Discovery bodies for e-maxx? I would love to build a truck that looks like my trail rig.

Brad

[JamboreeTJ]

Move the lower coilover locations to the innnermost position to change ride height. If that isn't enough then switch to stiffer springs. I used these: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXHWJ7&P=ML . I removed one coilover from each corner and replaced the stock spring on the remaining coilover.

Changing the upper coilover position changes the spring rate, but not the ride height.

[WBDISCO]

if i remember correct, my a-arms only have one place to mount the coil-over. I guess i will have to check on that when i get off work.

[JamboreeTJ]

There should be 4 positions on the lower a-arm and 3 positions on the shock tower.

[TwistedCreations]

it depends on what a-arms you have.. the wide version have 4 locations.. narrow version only have 2

[WBDISCO]

i checked my truck and it only has two mounts on the bottom and one on the top. I guess this means it is an early model Emaxx. How much narrower are the early emaxxes then the new ones? Can i still do a Revo axle shaft swap?

[TwistedCreations]

yes it is the earlier version..its been so long since i messed with a maxx, but im pretty sure it is 1.5" narrower(maybe it's only 1" now that I think of it). In which, I feel is alot better for crawling. the wider version is just too wide. As for the revo's, yes you can. you may just have to cut the axles down some.

[WBDISCO]

cool, thanks for the help. I am slowly but surely soaking all the info in. I just didn't see RCs as being much different than big trucks but i was mistaken.

[WBDISCO]

well disregard the previous crap. I went out to run the truck and it won't move. I have steering and gear shift but no movement. I hooked straight batteries to the motors to make sure they weren't fried and they moved fine. I reprogrammed the evx and still nothing. I am guessing that the evx is fried. Is there anyway to test it or fix it. I am really not wanting to buy one for $140 when i only paid $125 for the whole truck.

[allgm1]

you could send it back to traxxas, they will fix it for a small fee, I have never done it so I'm not sure what they charge but it should be less than $140. Check their website or get a better esc.

[WBDISCO]

i will look into that i guess. I just bid on a used one on ebay so we will see if it holds up or even works. Does anyone know if there is a direct replacement esc? Preferably aftermarket. I did a few searches and didn't come up with anything but esc for brushless motors.

Brad