Let me introduce myself....Advice needed as well!

[AbSoLooT1]

hey guys!

So this is long time in the making... I have had plans to have a rally for along time now. What sparked it was seeing user All Aluminums ride, and talking to him.

As you can tell by my number of posts, I am in no way new to RCs, or Traxxas... However I am new to 1/16ths ride... But today on the local classifieds, I picked this baby up. BIG plans for her, and I test drove it with a battery barely hangin, and although it needs some TLC, everything is in good shape. I was even expecting to feel some binding/grinding, etc... But everything is flowing smooth. Drive train, front and rear diffs. Good thing...









Tires are worn, but wheels look good.





Came with the Flysky GT2... I was gonna sell it, but now thinkin im gonna use it with a loaner I got. Nice cuz I have two FSGT3Bs so I got several recievers of the same. Good thing.



Now came with a Proline Focus body! ooo and never driven! except.... lol. um ya... Wish he would have left it clear.






So I got ALOT of work to do, starting with a complete strip down, Dye, Re-grease/oil and rebuild... Im happy things like the foams and stuff are in good shape.. Than its gonna be a Proline Camaro body, gonna throw that on order tommorow, and likely some new wheels and tires. As cheezy as this sounds, the house here is big fans of Transformers. So il probably be doing a Bumblebee Camaro, and Tuned looking Focus.. (anouther one) Dont know if I really want to strip this one with brake fluid, and alcohol. Plus where are the stickers? lol.

So now that I got that out of way.... Here is alittle about me....See where I am coming from, and what this vehicle is got coming to it. Its finally found a happy home! lol. Nice thing is all my vehicles, are all upgraded minus the chassis. This thing is actually gonna stay mostly stock, probably... ha. except for the elecs are for sure gonna be upgraded. More on that shortly.

But here is me... So ya can see....

[AbSoLooT1]

Here is my Rustler... Only chassis stock (dyed of course)




My Ladies pede.... Which is about to all come together, and is looking sick.. Im jsut wrapping it up as we speak. All parts are in, just the work of getting it done on the spare time im not working, and painting up the H2 body going on. This thing is lookin whicked.





And Finally... My baby. My first one, that i actually originally got when I was 13, and pulled outta the closest, after ten years of not being in the hobby, than blew off the dust one day, near 2 years ago, and been full blown back in since, and RC numbers climbing.

Nothing stock except for the chassis which has been drilled, cut, modified, supported,.. etc..

Without going into the giant list, in short, STRC alum everywhere, MMP ESC, Tekin Pro4 4000kv motor (monster) ,Spektrum 278oz Servo, Proline protrac, RPM, Stainless screws, etc, etc, etc..













So question is... Whats the advice? Whats the must haves, Must does, Etc? Also, Considering electronics. The titan has gotta go Quickly.... Any bare bones advice, while I go back on the thread, and do my homework is appreciated.. Glad to join the Rally fellas!

[Petertje60]

Hey Loot, great to see you here too!

Make a list (if you dont already have one) and put Alu knuckles and RPM arms on it. You might get a 380 brushless can in it to keep a low COG. The little Velineon is a nice motor, but there are others that put a Neu 380 size in it.
I wont tell you about controllers except to get something better than the VXL-3m, because you know about those already.

Have fun with the tiny fella!

[AbSoLooT1]

hey brotha, Hopin to see u here ya ive started the list, but need some quick guidance cuz im itching to order! lol.. Where to get the alum Knuckles? HR? Strc doesnt have em right? But awesome man... It really wont get bashed, Just drifted...

Id also really like some adjustable Links. I saw a guy on ebay with a adjsutable link set-up, but of course couldnt just ask... Who has that goin on, do I need it? Etc.... Really see eneven wear on rear tires cuz of it... But excited to see this project come, plus compared to the others, its really not gonna be a high cost at all, since it will stay a stocker big time.

Drove it outside as soon as I got home from work, and it drove really well. Just needs a much better motor, and batterys. Suggestions on the ESC?

Also, which springs for straight just on road runs, some drifting?

thanks for the input !

[AbSoLooT1]

Should also mention, I picked this thing up for 125. Not to shabby for the fun I plan to have, and yet one more to the collection!

[prototyp]

hey guys!

That's a huge gap between the front skid and the center drive cover... have a careful look over the front chassis and bulkhead, something's not quite right there. (Typically the steering arm and servo arms are parallel to each other as well)

[Cipher_Jones]

Nice rides. I have seen your pede before.

So question is... Whats the advice? Whats the must haves, Must does, Etc? Also, Considering electronics. The titan has gotta go Quickly.... Any bare bones advice, while I go back on the thread, and do my homework is appreciated.. Glad to join the Rally fellas!

If you don't want to race, get the vxl-3m combo. If you do wanna race, find out whats "legal" at your track first. It varies from place to place, a lot.

You can find a ton of deals on brushless systems, but it depends on what you have for batteries already and what you want to get. If you have lipo's already you are set, if you have NiMh you will have to get 2/3A cells or go lipo.

If you want to run 3s lipo's or 12 cells, I would recommend a lower RPM/V motor If you did, I would replace the entire drive train.

If you want to run it on 6cells or 2s, a high RPM/V motor is better.

And yeah, it looks like the chassis is broken. That would be the 1st thing to fix.

[Petertje60]

I have knuckles and adjustable rods both from GPM. Dont get the alu rods, but the steel ones. As far as I can tell, they are the best. An extra set of rod ends is always handy, because if anything breaks, those are the ones.

The VXL motor together with the Sidewinder is a choice that I saw a lot of people happy with. I use a big block in my Merv (MMP/4600), but my Mustang just has the VXL set which works decent.

I agree with the gap, that looks weird.

[AbSoLooT1]

Great advice guys... Thank you.. Keep em coming! im taking high notes.

I actually got a VXL with Sidewinder, that is now getting ready to go in my ladies pede, or thatd be perfect. lol....

But okay, Couldnt even see that with my 1/16 rookie eyes. But I drove it out today, and now its getting ready for the complete tare down.. Im gathering a list of what parts to get, to place an order to put it back together right.... I dont want anything crazy, but I am not quiet sure on the VXL system. Castle 1.18?

As for batteries, Anouther option of whats good and can fit. Il plan on 2s or 3s.... I have been running SPCs, but open to whats up

What about tires?

[Petertje60]

My guess Castle 1/18 will be too light. I think the Sidewinder with the VXL motor is a real good start.

I have the SPC 2500 2S ones. Awesome batteries and the max capacity that you can find today and that even fits nicely. A set of those will give you run times you never experienced in your 1/10 scale cars

[AbSoLooT1]

NICE! Il pull the trigger on some of those asap Thanks man... What can I do to steal the VXL and Sidewinder I just gave my lady back. lol. hmmm..... I have the XL5 and eletrifly s600 that was going in, until I upgraded my own. lol.

What about the sidewinder combo in general? I wouldnt mind some good green action on this... I saw All aluminum had it on his, than went with a neu 380 motor.

[Petertje60]

If you want good green action.... you can just put a 4600Kv 4 pole in it. I did that with my Merv, but since I never became real friends with the Sidewinder, I will always recommend a MMP to feed that. It will be a bit crowdy under the hood, and that will be the thing you will have to get used to if you are going big block.
Nice advantage of the VXL set is that the COG stays lower, but that can be accomplished with a 380 size Neu motor too.

Take in mind that these little fellows are very cool, but less durable than the bigger brothers. That might be a reason to hold your horses a bit when putting a power source in it. Besides that they dont need too much power to get to insane speeds.

[Skitlerz]

I also run the gpm alum knuckles, and stainless steel camber & toe rods. the adjustable toe rods are great for really dialing in the toe. I also Have the rpm a-arms f & r, they bind a bit on the gpm knuckles but nothing a lil dremeling cant fix. For tires it'll depent on how you want to run it. For drifting i like the stock gymkhana's, for grip i like hpi xpatterns, and with them i run the center diff. I too have the 2500mah SPC's

[AbSoLooT1]

Great advice guys. Awesome... Ya I dont want to get all crazy. Especially cuz its not something il be driving so much, and such a main rig I want to dump to much cash into it... Il probably do the sidewinder thang for it.

Skits, Can u post pics, and what adjustable rods u use?

The alum rods sold for these by traxxas arent adjustable right?

[pavmentsurfer]

IMO, heres a good list of what you can do to really get the best performance out of the little guy without adding things you don't really need.

-Hot Racing Knuckles, they are great and they are black so they look nice.
-IMO you don't need RPM arms on a rally unless you really plan to beat on it. Its not a like a MERV that gets jumped... just stay stock
-I used GPM steel links and broke a link end almost immediately. But, they did fit nice and they do sell a full set for the rally...
-Ball bearings in the steering setup and all 4 rockers. IMO this is a must. Removes a TON of binding.

You can go alot of different directions with the motor/ESC combo. You want to stick with a 380 to keep the weight low. I hated my rally with a 540 motor in it. The VXL 380 motor is a good choice and with an Integy motor fan/heat sink can stay pretty cool. I had a NEU 1112 1.5Y in my rally for a while and ran it on 3S and it was insane, but not at all more useable than the VXL on 2S. The thing about a rally if you really want to drive it gymkhana style is that its not about speed... so don't feel ilke you need insane power. The VXL 380 motor on 2S is MORE than enough when geared to keep it cool.

I ran a sidewinder for a while and liked it. It fits pretty good and you can make a small ESC plate that still allows you to slide it on and off when you want to take the motor off. Or, you can run an EZrun 35amp ESC which also worked excellent and IMO fits a bit better. Either are very very good choices for this car. My preference, honestly, is the EZrun though. Here are some pics of the 2 setups:
This is my most recent rally with a Protoform Tornado body and the EZrun 35amp with the VXL 380 motor.




This was my last rally with the sidewinder and the VXL 380 body. You can see my little ESC mount solution.



This was my final setup with the sidewinder and all other electronics mounted in the one side battery compartment with a fan mounted above and the rest of the chassis shaved. This pic has the NEU motor as well. This setup worked excellent but I think it would actually work better with the EZrun ESC with the fan attached.


I did things like aluminum rockers, but they were just for looks. I did an Integy motor mount which did nothing but I did put on an integy heat sink motor plate and I think that helped with heat a bit...

The last rally i built I put in a centre one way diff... basically it allows the front wheels to get power when you use the throttle but they are able to freewheel when you hit the brakes. Its mostly for drifting but helps BIG TIME for getting the car sideways. Its worth a look. Its made by The Toyz

[AbSoLooT1]

Oh sick advice, Thank you.. And that first pic, WOW that thing looks SICK. Awesome, Its a shame I just barely installed the sidewinder on the ladies pede.lol. Il prob have to pick one up, But just got an idea of using my Venom 3300kv "540" size motor, only because its 540 size only because of the outside fins. Inside its WAY smaller... Actually like a 380. It was way to small for the Pede 2wd. But, I might have to try that out, and itd be a good use for it. But thanks a ton, I really dig the way your protoform looks. Amazing...

I was thinkn the same with the arms. I really wont be bashing it at all. Just allittle non-sense drifting fun, and one more toy to mess around with. Great advice thank you!

Heres a comparison between 540 VXL, but the difference is much larger, and more dramatic in person. Inside, its real thin, and the heat sinks are really thick. This may be a good solution across the board. Il give it a shot. But il put anouther sidewinder on order shortly





As for servos, noticed mine was pretty slow.... at least those were my initial thoughts. Any good options there before I begin my search?

Thanks again guys, and pave... Great, great advice. Feel like such a newb. lol.

[Petertje60]

I forgot to mention the bearings in the rockers and steering parts, but you got a sweet pile of great advice from Pave already.

Servo upgrade.... Im still waiting for my 2080 to die but it still holds up pretty good in this one. I have a Bluebird 390DMH (same as the ******* 390DMH) waiting as a replacement. Got the Hitec HS85MG in the Merv. Both are good (both not waterproof), but if I had to make a choice, I would pick the Bluebird/*******.

[pavmentsurfer]

Hitec makes the 5085MG thats a good, metal gear, digital servo. They make the 85MG but its not digital. ******* makes the 390 which gets stellar reviews if you can find one in stock and I know Bluebird sells a version of it as well. then there is a savox that will fit but I can't remember the model. I used the 5085 in a number of my 1/16's and it was great. You just need to fashion as servo horn from one of the ones that comes in the box with it. The servo in all 1/16s is a real weak point. The sooner you ditch the stocker the better. Another good steering upgrade is the aluminum steering post. I can't remember who makes it, hot racing, GPM or the the toyz... its a good piece to strengthen up the steering and remove flex.

[Skitlerz]

I will try to get some pics up of the gpm ss rods. I also have broken a rod end but only one.
I forgot about the bearings in the rockers and the steering! I Run the ******* 390 servo and love it! Much faster than the stocker, and its a direct fit replacment you just have to reverse the direction. just make sure you waterproof it if you plan on running in any wet conditions.

[DiggerPede]

Woooooooooh!!!! I like the new addition ole buddy!!! Now that you have 1/10 & 1/18 scale in the mix. Your next one will have to be the E-Revo or E-Maxx. LOL

I'm going to be following the build <<subscribed>>

I know you are going to make it an awesome look'n little ride to. BTW i'm a big transformers fan too!!

Hey Pave i'd thought about snatching that Rally from ya. It's a clean ride!

[Petertje60]

Woooooooooh!!!! I like the new addition ole buddy!!! Now that you have 1/10 & 1/18 scale in the mix. Your next one will have to be the E-Revo or E-Maxx. LOL

I'm going to be following the build <<subscribed>>

I know you are going to make it an awesome look'n little ride to. BTW i'm a big transformers fan too!!

Hey Pave i'd thought about snatching that Rally from ya. It's a clean ride!

Will you please state the correct scale on this part of the forum, sir?

[DiggerPede]

Will you please state the correct scale on this part of the forum, sir?

I did say 1/18 scale!!!!!!!! LOLOL

[YOLOer]

Its 1/16th LOL

[DiggerPede]

Its 1/16th LOL

What the heck was i thinking. Duhhhh!!! My bad......long days at work.

Thanks guys.

[AbSoLooT1]

Thanks again guys... Awesome... Okay, So size and number of bearings I need? I will likely place anouther orde from Fast Eddy bearings since I was very pleased with the first order I made. The Savox Servo horn is the same as futaba, which is the same as traxxas of course, so thats nice

Il definatly check into em, and thats funny how *******s servo is at the top of the scale. Its much different here in the 1/18th world. lol. My job requires way to much constant thought process, I feel ya there digger!

But thanks Digger man, Im excited... I feel like I have all these projects though. lol. Im about to pull the trigger on a MMM with Silver Revo motor this weekend for the Rustler. I will also be picking up a Sidewinder for the Rally, and starting the tare down, and re-build as soon as my ladies Pede is up and running.

[Petertje60]

Bearings for the rockers are 4x7x2.5mm (#5124) and for the steering 5x8x2.5mm (#5114).

And if you mention 1/18 again I will sue you

[all aluminum]

Subscribed! It looks like this is going to be another nice build. I didn't go too far on my Rally build compared to the MERV build that followed after. Honestly this car did not require much for a decent setup. I loved my 380 sized NEU motor w/SV2 setup since I did not like the top heavy feel of the 540 that I had installed previously. My goal was a low COG for drifts and also with tons of power for high speed runs on 3s.

Here's a picture of the 540 sized motor which is too high IMO.


Here's it is with the smaller 380 sized NEU motor...


Have fun with this build and don't forget to add a T-bone bumpers to protect it.

[AbSoLooT1]

Thats really sick man, And although I got this motor, I think im gonna be getting a Neu motor as well, based on your guys advice. But I got a SV2 today.. Funny. the LHS guy stated it was "smaller" than the original sidewinder. I was happy about that, and when I got home, the Sv2 is both longer, and wider than the original sidewinder. lol. So I may just have to put the Sv2 in the ladies Pede, and the original in the Rally...

But this motors weight is actually 540 size, so I think I may need to follow in those foot steps.

Also, my LHS had some GH Steering blocks in stock. Why does Red aluminum always seem to find me? I wanted to go in a different route on this truck, and not the same thing. But with the motor, I got red and though if I needed to I could strip the anodizing. i may just go return it for the silver now that I think about it again. But heres some of the new goodies. Guess this may just have to be my build thread, although the title is pretty lame for a build thread. lol.

[Petertje60]

Depending on the motor and ESC you may need two batteries in parallel to be able to feed the combo, so think before you rip up the chassis and mount the ESC lower. Running two batteries adds weight, but that weight is on a low level. Batteries weigh more than an ESC. There are tons of ways to mount the ESC, you can also check the mini E-Revo forum to find those.

I run my Boss with the stock VXL electronics and Im quite happy with those for drifting purposes. The newer Sv2 is maybe larger than the old one, but I think it can handle quite some more power.

[all aluminum]

I've been running my NEU motor with a single battery pack numerous times using "BOOST" 45c 1800mah and it hasn't struggled on speed runs. However when I used the same motor on my MERV with a MMP, I used the batteries in parallel due to the greater load. The SV/SV2 is a simple install above if you use the 540 sized motor. I picked up some soft aluminum at my LHS and just double taped my MMP sideways, however the SV/SV2 can be just laid flat due to it's smaller size and the Rally's wider body.

[AbSoLooT1]

Awesome. Thank man... I thought lots about what was said by you and pave about a high motor, and not liking it. The thing is I could try, and go that route, than If I didnt like it, itd be stuck with red parts. As u know my builds have to match lol. So I ended up picking up a VXL3m motor and switching out the GH red knuckles for silver ones.



Also, I was right about my thoughts. Although it doesnt look this way, cuz of the camera angles and all, The VXL is just as thick as the inside of the Venom motor. I see now why it got so hott so fast running the pede. To heavy for it. Im happy with this motor, but unuseable for any of my builds I think. Might sell it. Although I havent tried it geared really low, thats not how I roll. lol.



All Aluminum:
But ya, I got some Racers Edge kydex that I think may work well. Might try something similar to the snappy RC mount. Something like that would probably be good. Or like you and Pave have done. Your right that the SV2 is more powerful. Probably why its also better to stick it on my ladies (my 2nd) lol Pede. Cuz it will get driven alot more, and need it more. Plus the size.

Also, Which out of the Tbone bumper do you got? Lookin at the Mervs, Rallys, or Boss they didnt seem to match.. LOVE how yours is a flat plate in the rear.

Pave, if u read this. How did u make your white mount?

[all aluminum]

I picked up the center chassis and the rear bumper for my rally. I checked the website again and the rear looks like it changed because I have a solid piece vs the new ones with holes. The bumper set with the boost batteries were for my MERV (sorry to confuse you)

http://t-bone-racing.net/Brand-N-Z/T...B302-p492.html

[MooseSlash]

Subscribed! It looks like this is going to be another nice build. I didn't go too far on my Rally build compared to the MERV build that followed after. Honestly this car did not require much for a decent setup. I loved my 380 sized NEU motor w/SV2 setup since I did not like the top heavy feel of the 540 that I had installed previously. My goal was a low COG for drifts and also with tons of power for high speed runs on 3s.

Here's a picture of the 540 sized motor which is too high IMO.


Here's it is with the smaller 380 sized NEU motor...


Have fun with this build and don't forget to add a T-bone bumpers to protect it.

Cold you post a link to that Neu?

[all aluminum]

I purchased it from the link below since there is a long wait for Castle (made to order).

http://www.espritmodel.com/neu-1112-...es-motors.aspx

[AbSoLooT1]

I picked up the center chassis and the rear bumper for my rally. I checked the website again and the rear looks like it changed because I have a solid piece vs the new ones with holes. The bumper set with the boost batteries were for my MERV (sorry to confuse you)

http://t-bone-racing.net/Brand-N-Z/T...B302-p492.html

I thought so. I saw those holes, and I was like hmm.. Its possible that the Toys.com is still carrying the original style. Think il order from them when I order the GPM links. Funny... I cant ge the Rally size ones on their site. Only Merv, and Slash size links. but they are avail on the Toys.com

Also, I was gonna post pics but my battery died. I ended up taking back my GH racing knuckles all together. I cant get over the disc and rotor option with the HR ones. Thats just way sick, peeking through the rims, and that will make it look much more scale, so I pulled the trigger on those. Good news though is I got my Camaro body today!

[AbSoLooT1]

I purchased it from the link below since there is a long wait for Castle (made to order).

http://www.espritmodel.com/neu-1112-...es-motors.aspx

Its like 169 on their site. On Castle they were priced at 120-130. I think thats quiet alot, as great looking and smooth as they are. Also like that they are 4 pole. But for that price, One can get a Tekin Pro4 motor and those are high end.

One thing though, I cant get over how good they look, and love their neutral color look. If I was going further with the Rally, or better yet a MERV, id get that motor in conjunction with the MMP. With the currect set-up. Sidewinder and VXL will be nice. Shoot, it was a good combo for the Pede 2wd forever

I also picked up some STRC silver parts today, and a Hi-tech 85mg. Everyother servo I looked at, and the Savox Mircro I ordered was too small... That wasnt pimpn.

[Petertje60]

That is quite an amount of money for an amount of power of which I doubt you will ever use it in a drift car. Looking at the amount of heating up of my stock VXL set in the Boss, I should throw my Elogger in it to see how much power it actually uses. I expect that it wont be even close to what the Neu can do.

[pavmentsurfer]

Sorry for the long wait to answer your question. I used some .080 plastic I got from Towerhobbies for my little ESC mount. I just worked with it (it can be cut with scissors) until it fit in the same location, using the same mounts as for the VXL 3M ESC. Then I heated up the long side and bent it up when hot and let it cool. It slides in and out EXACTLY like the stock 3M ESC so you can remove it when taking out your motor. Pretty easy to make. I still have a ton of the plastic left as well and have been using it for other things here and there. Pretty handy stuff to have on hand.

Just for reference. The Rally and Slash links are the same length. Actually, the rally and slash arms are the same as well. The rally is basically just a slash with limiters in the shocks and different body mounts/bumpers. So, anything listed for the slash will fit the rally.

[AbSoLooT1]

Oh awesome. Thank you. Great explanation for the mount. Il try that for sure. And great to know on the links. GPM has it on their site for much cheaper than the Toys, but only "listed" Slash and Merv ones and serial numbers didnt match up so didnt wanna order wrong size.

I ended up returning the GH knuckles, again.... lol. Got red, went back, got silver, went back.... lol. I cant get over the disc brakes that one can attach to the HR ones, and I gotta have it. So i ordered some HR goodies, and got the one way diff, and links waiting to order from the toys.com.

Also got some other goodies.... Im debating on stripping the VX motor. Even though hard to bring myself to do that to a brand new motor.. Also, Camaro body came in.

[DiggerPede]

LooT keep up the good work. Im a fan of your awesome builds. Now to see it taking form.