Col_Sanders Builds of 2025

[Col_Sanders]

And she's ready to run! The winch mount was just a hair off so I had to figure something else out. I may tweak on the wiring a bit later but it's decent enough for now.


Weight is 4.66lbs with 55/45 bias. I have brass hubs on the way and the low profile brass portal covers sitting here in case I need them.

 

[Col_Sanders]

12mm brass hubs up front got it to 56/44 forward bias at 2116 grams. Looks like the low profile brass portal covers and the hubs would get me to 58/42 and total weight would be 2268 grams.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Holiday weekend with crappy weather so in my office i sit.

With the new build being done and my other comp trucks in good shape, I had a little time to screw around with the VRD Carbon. I was not happy with my suspension setup. The shocks just weren't right for this. I decided to throw on the 90mm Priceys I had in the parts bin. The BTA servo mount rubbed the spur cover so I backed off the upper link rod ends a couple turns. Then I ground off the steering stops and added a 27mm servo horn. Still gotta figure out winch mount.

 

[Col_Sanders]

I ended up putting the low profile brass up front. Played around a bit on the incline board and was a bit disappointed. My Exo build would run out of traction at around 65.5 degrees, where this struggled at around 62. It would torque twist and roll. Played with shock position and links and still wasn't happy. Ended up taking the rear priceys off the VRD Carbon and could get up 65.6.

Today I got about 45 minutes of testing in. These shocks are a bit stiff as they are meant for heavy brass, but this thing performed very well. The stumpy seems quite a bit more efficient than my Holmes 2250M. Runtime on the 550mah pack were pretty long.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Small update. Cliff Mccrawl bumper came in. The first one was the stubby, but it was too stubby. This one is the improved approach angle version. With a little Dremel action to get it to match up to the wonky Poizd bolt pattern, it's on. Pokes out just a hair past the body. Im not so fond of the square look with pointy body, but it will do. Next body will probably be pushed forward a bit so if doesn't stick out so much.

 

[Col_Sanders]

My wife took the kids to visit family, so ive got the house to myself for the next few days. Am i gonna go hit the strip club with my buddies and party? No I'm an old nerd so gonna play with toy trucks and my new switch 2 all I want.

First on the itinerary is some problem solving on the Poizd. I want to go to Apex scale challenge this year and they're not accepting bumpers as chassis extensions so I gotta shorten the wheelbase. Moving the rear upper link back one hole and swapping to Axial Pro rod ends got me where I need to be. I dont like the axle being tilted back like this, so I'll probably order some new shorter rear lower links and move the uppers forward a hole or two.



Next up is my skid. The Stumpy is a bit long and poked past the skid a bit. I have done this on other rigs with no problems, but I guess since this skid is at such an angle, I'm having a little problem with the motor hitting rocks.


Luckily, a guy on facebook (James Dicken) prints an extended skid. Got that drilled out and ready to go.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Just installed the heavier supershafty brass up front and didnt quite get the results i was expecting. Added only 57 grams and changed my weight to 59/41 forward, but i also moved my battery to the passenger side and now have a better 50/50 side to side.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Did a little traveling up to a comp near Fort Smith, AR Sunday. Since this doesnt count towards our series, i decided to run the new rig. Course 1 was a little rough, but i did great on course 2. Ended up in 4th place. Got 2nd with the Trail Class rig.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Saturday is comp 4 in the Hot Springs Scale Crawlers 2025 series. We'll be back at hot springs orv park. Since pretty much all the rocks in the man made course are softball to bowling ball size, sidehill and inclines are not a worry. Instead, there will be tight gates and tons of axle hanging rocks. Gonna narrow up the Modified class rig with some smaller hubs. Probably going to run the Holds again. I'll practice either Thursday or Friday. Not sure which truck i will use.

Turns out having my motor poke out was a problem. There were a couple times last week where I slowly dropped off a ledge and the motor hit and stopped. I ordered another skid and pushed the transmission back about 6mm. Luckily I had enough extra on the front driveshaft that I could use it.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Another tough day today.

I ran the old Exo with The Holds. Out of 14 class 2 drivers, only 2 of us had negative scores. I had a -50, first place had a -55 and 3rd had a 0. For the class 1 side, I was the only one to complete both courses. Everyone else pointed out or timed out on the second course. I finished with less than a second left.

 

[Col_Sanders]

After some thinking, I decided to change things up on the VRD Carbon. Out with the Rhino 80A and in with a 3 Brothers Beekeeper. Way smaller and lighter. Interesting that it did not come pre-programmed, but also didn't come with a programmer. Luckily I have a few.


I also swapped out the BMF1095L for the NSDRC RS650, added a Castle BEC 2.0, and Reefs IS300. This way the BMF1095L can be a ready spare for any of my comp trucks.

 

[Col_Sanders]

A couple weeks after I got the Thumper chassis, i saw that a V3 of the Poizd chassis was going to be released soon. I was expecting it to be a cheater chassis, but as it turns out, it was more comp oriented. Its an inch longer than the Thumper, has more clearance up front, and all the stuff from the Thumper will bolt right up. That's great because I was a little concerned with the Thumper failing tech. Let the swap begin.

 

[Col_Sanders]

The swap is done. I put the cliff mccrawl stubby bumper back on because the other one stuck out way too far. Also moved the esc over to the chassis by the slider and shortened the wires. Had to drill a new hole for the winch. The Chevy body is too short now, but the Boki Racing body is pretty much perfect.



I also installed the small brass in the rear portals. Last time I had it out, the rear was sliding too much for me. Brass knuckles are on order to hopefully get my 60/40 back.

 

[Col_Sanders]

I had forgotten about the DSM mount for the Carbon but it works good for the IS300. Ive had this BEC sitting in my parts bin for about 5 years so it was good to finally be able to use it.

Got my order in for Priceys shocks for the Carbon and the Poizd.

My Wheels of Fortune order should be here tomorrow. Hoping for some purple 2.2 Sierras with purple rings!

 

[bgredjeep]

My Wheels of Fortune order should be here tomorrow. Hoping for some purple 2.2 Sierras with purple rings!

I'm just hoping for anything .8 wide. Worst pull for me would be a wide non-limited edition wheel set. At least with a LE pull i could sell it and get what i want. Lol

 

[Col_Sanders]

Brass knuckles for the new rig came in and I got to work with the Dremel to get some better steering. Figured id rather hack up the cheaper part so I ground the knuckle instead of the housing.



This brought the weight up to 5.4lbs RTR. My original plan was to try and stay under 5lbs, but oh well...will get some testing in Friday.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Today was comp day. It was at a location that was new to me so we went out for a quick practice run yesterday.

The Poizd rig went into the creek and the esc started cutting out. Swapped to the Exo and a sudden rain storm popped up. The DX6 rugged got a little wet and the screen blacked out and the radio quit working. When I got home I blew everything out with the air compressor and left it all in the hot ass garage overnight.

Today everything was working fine on the Poizd but i ran the Exo. 18 competitors for class 2 and four in class one. The Holds weren't the best performing tire for this spot but they did good enough. Only 2 negative scores for the day in class 2.