Issues with the electronics
 

Anybody else having electronic failure issues? I think I may have around 4 hours of use on it. Servo failed and ESC was blistering hot, was only 15 mins into our trail run when the servo went out. Also noticed that it does not function in the 70/30 position. Anybody else having issues or know of these problems?

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Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Rtr servo's and esc's are mostly consumables. Steering and throttle can be demanding depending on driving conditions.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Pretty much. Just figured they would have lasted a little longer than this. Still running on my axial rtr Servo.

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Re: Issues with the electronics
 

The axial's are funny that way, seen a couple run fine on 3s with no bec. Then a couple let the magic smoke out under alot lighter conditions.

The rtr stuff is there to get us by for awhile.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Haha I know that all to well with my yeti xl. Rtr electronics were a joke. So far I'm looking at Receiver, ESC, and servo =(. Good thing it has a warranty, will get me by till I can buy a monster momba x ESC, castle creations 2850 brushless motor, and amain 500 oz/in Servo. Those are the next upgrades to come.

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Re: Issues with the electronics
 

No issues here. I did replace the stock servo for more strength/speed, but it was working fine when I pulled it. Still rolling the stock motor and ESC. Did 6 hours at an event the other day and the motor and ESC never really got very hot. Went through 2 7600mAh 2S packs without issue. And my truck is heavier than stock, lol.

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Re: Issues with the electronics
 

That's awesome :). While it did fail today, me and the gf got some good pics before it failed and had some fun

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Issues with the electronics
 

My esc is working fine. The servo on the other hand needed to be replaced, not because it failed, but because it was too weak. I threw a savox 2290 on with a castle bec and all is well.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Guess how I know you didn't read the manual or setup sheet that comes with the TRX-4:)

You can't use the 70/30 function without making some setup changes using the Traxxas Link or otherwise following the manual programing flow chart.

That sucks your servo broke. But it won't be too hard to replace or upgrade, but still now you can't drive it and that must be a bummer. I've heard temps as high as 160+ using 3s mine tends to run around 140 at its peak but driving styles and terrain and duration all play a part in it. It would be hard to tell the difference using your hand as 140F is like a hot cup of coffee already if you think about it they will both be hot which is why an infared temp gun is a nice tool to see where your at.

But I just put what must have been my 7th or 8th full pack of 3s through mine driving over some gnarly stuff and I rolled it down a hill repeatedly and I bound up my front servo many many times but it all still works. When my servo gets bound up on a rock while crawling I try not to let it sit there for too long while I figure out my next move and if it can't move I'll call in the hand of god and try the obstacle again, but I've read that's what kills em. Even just normal rock crawling use without being bound up I've had my steering servo go up to 120F which is respectably hot for a servo I think. I am waiting for it to break though because of threads like this. And no you are not the first to break it quickly so don't feel too bad about it

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

the servo is weak as heck... it wouldn't turn the wheels at stand still on my lawn. lol took that out after 1 battery and put in a Savox 1230... can never go wrong with them bad boys. waterproofed with some plastic dip, BEC installed and the Savox is killing it on the trails... other then that, the esc is doing well after about 14 miles of mud, sand, dirt, roots and rocks... i've been chasing my son around with his 2speed bomber and my daughter with her scx10. i only wish the crawl mode could adjust the drag brake... i don't want it 100%. i like the 50% but rather instant reverse... oh well, i'm used to traxxas so double tap reverse it is...

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

I had my cruise control stop working for no apparent reason, I was able to turn it back on though. Not really an issue, maybe I hit some buttons on accident.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

I've had some electronics issues as well. First, the plastic servo horn stripped while in the middle of nowhere Utah. I didn't have a spare, so it was done for the rest of the trip. After I replaced the horn, we took it on a trail in San Marcos CA that was all uphill and rocky. It was about 90 degrees and it started to slow down as if the battery was drained after about 45 minutes or so. I noticed stuff was very hot in there. A fresh battery did not help and had to carry it the rest of the way. That thing is heavy. Also, the transmission servo died at this time so it was stuck in high.

I have since replaced the weakish steering servo with a Hitec HS-5646WP. Not sure it's any better, but I haven't taken it out since then.

I just got the replacement sub-micro servo from Traxxas, no questions asked. However, getting access to the mounting screws for the transmission servo is near impossible. I'm thinking I might have to disassemble the whole damn chassis. It's mounted directly to the transmission case with the mounting screws for the servo pointed in all the wrong directions. And so far, there is no youtube video of this process I can find. I'm going to email Traxxas and see if there is a shortcut I'm not seeing here.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

I pretend mine was broke.

First thing I wanted to do was remove the battery tray so I did, well I flipped it up in the air. Only 4 allen screws two on the side you will see rear side and the other two are inside the tray itself on the motor side face up. all easy to access. remove it or flip it up and out of the way. from the motor side push up from the bottom and it will flip up in the air and be faster to put back in place when your done

now you have only two allen screws that are holding the servo in place and the arm that connects to it that actually shifts the gears. that is called the horn. they are easier to get to now.

it looks like they don't need to be removed entirely that they might be holding it by compression only but if you get them loose and the servo doesn't want to slide up and out just remove them entirely. righty tighty lefty loosey while looking at the screws in the direction they are going in. you should disconnect the horn 1st.

My tool is so worn I can't see the size but have 1.5mm and 2mm ready to use. some may have come with your TRX-4. If you have to cut one smaller to make it work for the screws that are hard to reach do it. or maybe find something that works at the hobby shop or hardware store tomorrow.
but in any case.. start there I think. its definitely not bolted to the transmission case you can do it.

if you get stuck here still I will continue with you lets have some fun. You try first haha. if you can't do it I'll keep going. or tell me where you stopped and i'll pick up from there after work tomorrow and make a video it won't take too long.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Wow, that was a pain. I found a youtube video for disassembling the transmission, that was the key to order of disassembly.

https://youtu.be/40vgrIPQuEI

First, battery tray as was stated before.

Then there are 3 vertical screws right at the gear mesh, that will remove the motor. There is a section of the video that addresses an assembly issue from the factory. An adjustment to the location of the pinion gear on the motor shaft may be needed to prevent rubbing against the mesh cover.

Then there are 2 screws on the sides of the transmission down into the skid plate, and 1 in the forward skid plate accessible from below. Disconnect one or both of the drive shafts and the transmission is free.

The shifting servo is attached to a bracket that is bolted to the transmission case. Replacing that is easy, but routing the servo wire along the original path requires dismounting the receiver tray AND the diff lock servo mount. Needless to say I had a lot of tiny screws all over my bench.

I have reassembled everything with the new servo, but the drivetrain is a bit grindy now. Not sure if I screwed something up. I'll keep messing with it tomorrow, I got too hot in the garage.

And I have an extra screw on the workbench! :shock:

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

OK I see the bracket.. but you have to actually remove that thing to get the servo out? Holy crap.. I thought it was just remove the horn, and then the two screws that appear to be holding the servo to the bracket not actually remove the bracket. Damn. My servo wiring snakes all around too, but at least its nice and neat. Good job if you were able to keep it like that after replacing it "thumbsup"

the extra screw is classic lol. save it. Thanks for the disassembly tips never know when I might come back here and read them

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

The servo is mostly fine. Everyone says how they don't turn well at standstill, they're for moving when the truck us moving and a whole lot less stress in them. I've ran traxxas stock servos for many months.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Maybe with general use, but if your out crawling in the rocks, there are times you need to be able to turn the wheels without actually moving.

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Pro Tip for TRX-4 owners..... If you ever remove the motor, don't get your screws mixed up. There are 3 screws that bolt the mesh cover/motor mount to the transmission housing, two on the sides and one in the middle. I mistakenly put a longer screw in the middle and it blew out the bottom of the hole INTO the tranmission gear cavity. There was a nasty buzzing sound on the test run. I took it apart and saw the long screw had pushed a chunk of plastic up against one of the gears. It's not an easy place to get to with tools, I used a dremel to clean it up. No permanent damage, but it was a major pain to fix (full transmission tear down while trying not to misplace a shim or cross pin).

Works fine now! :???:

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

My RTR servo died. I'm a bit disappointed there wasn't any smoke.

New tires should arrive next week so time to tear this thing down and check if there is any grease anywhere. Might do some other updates as well...

Re: Issues with the electronics
 

Actually that's false. That's a sign of power failure. Esc is going bad and needs replaced. I talked with a rep at traxxas about this same issue on my rig. Replaced servo due to it failing. My esc over heated as well. It needs replaced. These are known issues with the stock electronics from what he said. So now I'm going with a mamba X.

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