jebster's tonka truck rc conversion

[jebster]

Auto parts stores have a brush-on paint that you apply directly to a rusted surface, that turns the rust to primer, I don't remember what it's called. Everything else that's bare metal, you can apply a self-etching primer, then I would recommend a damp proof primer over those before you do your finish coats.

I used the rust treatment on the frame of my '40 Chevy. When dry, it turns the metal black. After it dried, I used a damp-proof red primer before finishing it in gloss black.

Nice job on the actuators"thumbsup", my only question is did you check how low the bucket will go, once you have the tires on? When the bucket was lowered, it raised the front up a bit, but it didn't look like it would be low enough with the running gear.

i'll have to check out those paint options. I like that idea better than wire wheeling everything because I want to get the insides of everything painted too to prevent further rusting.

as for the actuator height I did the measurements with the tires on originally (have them mocked up on the dump truck now). in the video I have the front of the loader propped up a little, which make is look like the bucket doesn't come down as far. with the tires on the bucket lays flat on the ground. (if I need to dig a little I can just tilt the bucket.)

 

[jebster]

Finally had a little time to work on the loader. Got all the actuators installed and working. While hydraulics would obviously be stronger I'm pretty happy with this setup.

https://youtu.be/bThRuOFNBxY

Now it is time to tear both rigs down so I can get them painted. After that it will be playtime!

 

[RootBreaker]

Wow thats killer!!!!!!

 

[jebster]

Wow thats killer!!!!!!

Thanks. This is a fun project.

Next thing to tackle is the bulldozer. The challenge for that one will be finding an appropriate drivetrain. Been looking at tank drive kits on ebay.

 

[Mike Flea]

Check Shape_Shifter's "Tracked FPV Build", a couple threads below yours, he recently found one on ebay

 

[jebster]

Check Shape_Shifter's "Tracked FPV Build", a couple threads below yours, he recently found one on ebay

I took a look. I could go that way but I'm hoping to keep the orginal track system in place. What I was looking into was the following.

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/222540080439

Only issue is I don't know it it is narrow enough to fit under the tonka dozer.

 

[jebster]

DONE! It took a long time but I got them painted and reassembled. I really like how they turned out. Now I need to get them out in the sandbox for some fun.

I'm looking forward to getting the bulldozer running now.

https://youtu.be/R1RkGL5ZlI0

https://youtu.be/vjb7_1g_UEw

 

[Mike Flea]

The linear actuators give your equipment a more realistic action than the servos would have, well done "thumbsup""thumbsup"

 

[calcagno45]

Very cool! Both trucks came out great!

 

[jebster]

Very cool! Both trucks came out great!

The linear actuators give your equipment a more realistic action than the servos would have, well done "thumbsup""thumbsup"

thanks. it has been fun and gives me flashbacks to a kid.

 

[Gula]

I think a lot of your steering issues stem from the axles being locked and the vehicle weighing quite a lot. Almost like holding a steering axle and expecting the rear end to sweep left and right.

As far as your track drive: check out the Blizzard drivetrain, that had a single motor and applied the brakes to diff driven axles.

 

[jebster]

I think a lot of your steering issues stem from the axles being locked and the vehicle weighing quite a lot. Almost like holding a steering axle and expecting the rear end to sweep left and right.

As far as your track drive: check out the Blizzard drivetrain, that had a single motor and applied the brakes to diff driven axles.

Funny thing about the steering. I agree the locked axles causes an issue but it is turning better now that I have the bucket on. When I was doing my original testing I didn't have that on and the front was light so the back just pushed it along. Now with weight up front it is turning better.

I had been considering the blizzard. I had the original nitro with a diff/brakes setup and currently I have the dual motor version. I am leaning towards dual motor with a sabertooth esc. The drivetrain is in my head so I just need to start mocking it up.

 

[HumboldtEF]

Great job on the paint, thats quite the transformation!

 

[jebster]

Great job on the paint, thats quite the transformation!

Thanks. It was pretty straightforward. All spray can work. A primer made for rusty surfaces then CAT yellow. Had to order the CAT yellow because I couldn't find it in any local stores. Good thing about that is I only used 2 of the 6 pack I had to buy so I have plenty for future tonka projects!

 

[JatoTheRipper]

Awesome builds! "thumbsup"

 

[jebster]

Started mocking up the drivetrain for the bulldozer. I have some bevel gears 16t / 32t I'm going to use for a simple gearbox. I'm thinking about a direct drive with a pair of brushed motors controlled by the saber tooth esc. I like the saber tooth because I can mix the steering and throttle and use my pistol radio.
The real question on the direct drive is what turn motor to get. I was thinking something in the 80t range but haven't done the math yet.
For the drive wheels I have a simple solution on how to engage the tracks. I'm going to install hex standoffs (16 total) around the outer edge of the wheel.

 

[jebster]

Got some work done on the drive wheels. They should work out fine. Also got my motors in the mail today. Looking forward to fabricating the mount.

 

[jebster]

really nice what you've done. what did you use for a primer? POR15 is really tough, if you plan on using these in the dirt and rocks. they look so nice, not sure I'd want to get them dirty if they were mine. been thinking of doing a dump truck for my son, and you've inspired me enough to start one soon. (won't be as nice as what you've done though)

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G920A using Tapatalk

Haven't got them dirty yet. I have a fear of that first scratch!

I didn't do anything special for the paint. Just a primer and then the color. Here is what I used.

 

[jebster]

Making good progress on the bulldozer. All painted and drivetrain installed. Still need actuators for the blade so that is work to go. And the short actuator on the back will be for a ripper blade I plan on adding. I know that isn't original but I thought it will look nice.

Took it for its first drive in the basement and it works as expected. It is a little slow but that is running on a 2s battery. Hopefully 3s gives it a little more.

I have ran into one problem. The tabs on the tracks that engage with the drive wheels are just a fraction closer than I measured. That means every couple rotations one of the tabs lands on top of a standoff and causes the belt to stick out. I tried removing every other standoff and that helped a little but it isn't perfect. I think I'm going to just switch over to some long bolts with no standoffs. That would limit the area a belt tab can land on top of so I hope it just slides to one side or the other of the bolt. You can see what I'm talking about in the second video.

I'm also excited because I picked up some trucks for future projects. Have a bunch of ideas on how I will make them work!

https://youtu.be/D9-CTJHbKgU

https://youtu.be/efxIIVCk56M

 

[Mike Flea]

You're going to have the Tonka Construction Co. complete soon. Still need the Road Grader and the Crane yet "thumbsup".

Great job on the Crawler "thumbsup""thumbsup", works well even with the wobble.