The Defenestrator, aka "durok does a Defender"

[durok]

Arrived yesterday, along with wheels and foams - SSD 1.9" steelies and CI 1.7" Lil' Novas (comp cut inners and firm outers) wrapped in RC4WD 1.7" Interco Super Swamper TSL Bogger "Siped" tires, spare is mounted on a Vaterra plastic wheel - on the way are a HobbyWing 1080 ESC, a Holmes Hobbies TrailMaster Sport 550 21t motor, SSD bumpers & hexes and servo horn, a GoldBat 3S 55C 6000mAh LiPo, a Traxxas smartphone transmitter mount, and some detailing paint.

I suppose I will finally try out the JX BLS-12V7146 brushless servo I picked up ages ago (before we found out it was a shameless HH SHV500 v1 copy) that will be powered directly off of the balance lead of the main battery pack. I also have a set of 1.9" LockedUpRC Trail Readys that I am changing out the rings from Command rings (with widener rings) to plain black oxide steel LURC Agile rings - they are wrapped in 1.9" RC4WD Interco Ground Hawg IIs.

I already have 2 more wheel and tire sets for occasional use, 2.2" RC4WD Dune T/A tires mounted on Chanquish beadlocks and broken-in and then soaked in "b*tches brew" Vaterra TSL Super Swampers mounted on Injora beadlocks.

Pics of the first setup:

[Shinchu]

FOUND IT! you dirty traitorous...

the 1.7's look GREAT!
looking forward to seeing the rest, and what kind of trouble you can find with that rig.

[mewalsh100]

Looking good man! can't wait to see where you take the mods/build!

[soze]

Looking good!

[Frank211]

So.... You did, just do it......LOL
SAWEET !

[durok]

Oh, local hobby shop, how do I hate thee?

Let me count the ways...

So, against my better judgement I decide to just try it nearly bone stock as only my LiPo arrived so far today in addition to what I got yesterday...

It's got a Deans connector, and I haven't owned a Traxxas vehicle since prior to my apartment fire 8 or so years ago - and will NEVER buy a Traxxas battery.

So - give the LHS (a chain that most everybody has heard of) a ring, ask them if they have a TRX to Deans adaptor - or even an XT60, as I have a little Deans to XT60 plug as well as a handful of other batteries using XT60 connectors.

They say "Yep, sure do", the guy even goes off and then comes back from checking...

... and I get there and they don't.

They call their other stores and none of the 3 in my area have any.

Meanwhile, they're oohing and aahing over the SSD/RC4WD combo installed on the rig - never even heard of SSD before.

I leave in absolute disgust.

Back home, gonna bide my time and do some other stuff for now. Gotta change up the beadlock rings on my LURC wheels (groan, SO many bolts!) and will be getting the remaining parts over the next couple days - I suppose I can wait a little longer before I drive this thing!

It has just quit raining after several days of seriously soggy and cold weather, so I suppose I won't get it as muddy when I do go out - but this is the one rig of mine that was gonna be the "all-weather" rig, so I really didn't care.

Ah, no big deal - I'm not gonna let the fact that my LHS has (yet again) failed me bring me down - I should have known better. They NEVER have anything I need or even want. It's been about a year since I decided to drive to each one of the three and do an in-depth browse of their shelves for useful stuff - all I picked up were some extra washers if I recall correctly. To think I once actually worked there... many, many years ago - right as Axial was releasing their first crawlers - I remember seeing the Scorpion with the Baja Buzzard and B-17 Betty bodies come in. It was right after the big tech industry downturn happened and I had left D-E-double hockey sticks and right before I became a locksmith for several years. Crazy...

Onward to bigger and better things!

[JatoTheRipper]

Looks good!

Why not cut off the TRX plug and put on an XT60?

[durok]

Sigh... I hate having this discussion all the time (just kiddin')

I have major issues with soldering, even after asking for (and getting for last Xmas) a very nice adjustable soldering iron and a bunch of accessories to make it easier.

Some problems with tremors in my hands and also with looking at things close-up (so boring, whining about getting old, etc.)

Only get things right about every 3rd try when I solder.

I've got a HobbyWing ESC and HH motor on the way and a different servo on hand, so don't really need to do this unless I really want to run it on stock electronics first.

Also, I'm unloading the RTR servo, motor and ESC as quickly as possible - and would rather they be in untouched condition to make it easier to sell them.

May as well have them be brand new...

[mewalsh100]

Makes me feel so lucky to have a good guy that owns the LHS in my town. Lot's of spares and parts in stock, and if he doesn't have it on hand, he'll usually have it for me in 2-3 days. 10 mins door/door to boot. Sorry durok, I realize this is probably some salt in the wound............

[smog]

Seriously, no Deans connectors?" That isnt really supporting the hobby. Ideally a hobby shop is run by people who are engaged in the hobbies they sell

Edit: got lost in your story and forgot about the rig, which is very cool. That defender body is a killer. I

[Tmaxxed]

Originally Posted by smog

Seriously, no Deans connectors?" That isnt really supporting the hobby. Ideally a hobby shop is run by people who are engaged in the hobbies they sell

Edit: got lost in your story and forgot about the rig, which is very cool. That defender body is a killer. I

I agree, all my rigs have deans connectors. What’s so bad about them? I just cut off the xt60 on a few new lipos and soldered on deans. Seriously wondering what is so much better about xt60? Serious question by the way...


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[HumboldtEF]

Originally Posted by Tmaxxed

Seriously wondering what is so much better about xt60? Serious question by the way...


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IMHO the deans is too tight making unplugging harder than it needs to be, I think they also carry less amperage due to having less surface area at the connection.

I started with Deans and EC3's but after I got an Arrma that used XT90's I was sold on how easy they are to connect (Arrma has switched to deans due some ownership changes) after that I converted everything I had to XT60's

Looking good Durok, just needs more scratches. If you were nearby I'd be happy to help with soldering, Blasted Traxxas plug!

[Tmaxxed]

Originally Posted by HumboldtEF

IMHO the deans is too tight making unplugging harder than it needs to be, I think they also carry less amperage due to having less surface area at the connection.

I started with Deans and EC3's but after I got an Arrma that used XT90's I was sold on how easy they are to connect (Arrma has switched to deans due some ownership changes) after that I converted everything I had to XT60's

Looking good Durok, just needs more scratches. If you were nearby I'd be happy to help with soldering, Blasted Traxxas plug!

Ok, my Deans all plug in easily but maybe I’m just used to them. I’ll have to check out the xt60s. Maybe I’ll be switching....?


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[durok]

The store did have loose connectors, but I was in need of an adapter. I made it very clear to the guy on the phone that I had a new TRX-4 RTR and a new Deans-equipped LiPo pack - and he said "Yeah - We got it", then said he'd better check to be sure, went away, came back and said he'd confirmed it.

Like I said, I should have known better. My one local crawling buddy (and co-worker) has a spare, and will hook me up on Monday.

I gotta work Saturday anyways, more stuff is expected to arrive. I'm off Sunday, may be just doin' some tweakin' or installing stuff - depending on what actually shows up.

[durok]

Originally Posted by Tmaxxed

I agree, all my rigs have deans connectors. What’s so bad about them? I just cut off the xt60 on a few new lipos and soldered on deans. Seriously wondering what is so much better about xt60? Serious question by the way...

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Originally Posted by HumboldtEF

IMHO the deans is too tight making unplugging harder than it needs to be, I think they also carry less amperage due to having less surface area at the connection.

I started with Deans and EC3's but after I got an Arrma that used XT90's I was sold on how easy they are to connect (Arrma has switched to deans due some ownership changes) after that I converted everything I had to XT60's

Looking good Durok, just needs more scratches. If you were nearby I'd be happy to help with soldering, Blasted Traxxas plug!

Originally Posted by Tmaxxed

Ok, my Deans all plug in easily but maybe I’m just used to them. I’ll have to check out the xt60s. Maybe I’ll be switching....?

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Listen - I understand wanting to discuss connectors 'til the cows come home...

... but the point is they had no TRAXXAS to Deans or XT60 connectors!

I would have been happy with either - I have 6 LiPo packs with XT60 connectors, and 2 new ones (one is a 4S I bought for my Associated Nomad 1/8th buggy) with Deans.

I also have a XT60 to Deans adapter that works great - made by Venom, allows me to connect any of my XT60-equipped LiPos to my Deans-equipped Nomad.

So - like I said, either way was fine - but they only had TRX to Tamiya (ferchrissakes!) and TRX to EC3 (useless as tits on a boar)...

EDIT - while we're discussing which type is better - I dislike Deans because if they get tight they can be very hard to separate and also "prefer" (shudder, if that word can even be used here) if I HAVE to solder, to solder on XT60s - I find them easier.

[WHITE-TRASH]

#xt604lyf


I don't trust the dumb bastards at hobby clown to look things up, I look things up on their website directly or at least call with part numbers and have them put their hands on the part. Saved lots of frustration.

[durok]

Is that the part number?

xt604lyf?

I'm trying a search, no bueno...

AMain has "Common Sense RC" brand adapters in both Deans and XT60 that would be perfect.

I may just get one of each expedited shipping or somethin'...

Gotta get to bed, up at 4AM.

[WHITE-TRASH]

No, that's my "hashtag" for xt60 for life.


Hobby clown stocks venom so this is a good place for part numbers.

https://www.venompower.com/collectio...ads-connectors


Edit:

Here are a couple adapters to xt60 and the bottom is traxxas to Dean's. I don't recall what brand the traxxas is but its factory made.

[durok]

I ordered this:

https://www.amainhobbies.com/common-...sdtfdm/p845559

and this:

https://www.hobbytown.com/common-sen...sdtfxm/p772975

[durok]

Got my other parts in today, SSD bumpers & hexes & servo horn / HH TrailMaster Sport 550 21t / HW 1080ESC / Traxxas smartphone transmitter mount (Hell, yeah! I can finally video while crawling without holding the damn phone in one hand!) / Tamiya PS accent paint / Molotow 1mm fine-tip detail paint pen / RCCrawler.com bumper stickers / and...

...somethin' kinda cool, that I mentioned elsewhere a long time ago - Nord-Lock washers for the axles, to allow for all the wheelset-swappin' that I will be doing. These are used in many applications usually in large sizes, extremely resistant to vibrating loose - but I actually found them in the M4 size to slip under the axle nuts on the TRX-4.