My "New" JRxPro SE Build thread

[JRxJoe]

Hi everyone,

I just joined today and appreciate having this be my first post of hopefully several. I have been in and out of RC since I was a young teen and now that I am 46, I feel like that young teen again working on my Pro SE. Long story short, I bought a JRx Pro in 1990 that I still have in the box, (Never been run) and in 1992 I spent all my saved money up on a 2nd Losi product, my Pro SE. I couldn't stand the fact that I had the "old" model. Well, that money I spent on the SE was supposed to be my money to be used on new electronics. Since my money was dried up, the cars sat, and sat, and sat in my parents' basement in their original boxes until I had the courage to open them up again and finish what I started....over 30 years later.

Here are some photos. I completely disassembled and reassembled everything...shocks, transmission, chassis, etc. I used Losi 30 wt in front and 40 wt in rear. Also used the original Jammin' grease to relube and adjust the diff assembly! Glad I did. The 15 year old me who assembled it in 1992 made a couple of errors that could have been catastrophic. Anyway, it's all original and basically NOS. Original tires, and bodywork too.

Speaking of bodywork, the template for the body was terrible. I don't know what Gil Jr was thinking when they designed the cutouts, but to clear the front shock tower took some creative thinking on my part if I wanted the body to go on and off easily.

I do have a like-new hydra drive that I also ordered a rebuild kit for, to maintain the period correctness. The rest of the electronics will be modernized to a brushless 8.5T motor and ESC from Maclan, but I will use an older form factor Gens Ace stick battery to fit on the location the old SCE/SCR pack once fit in.

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Also, the original shock cartridges with the o-rings....are they rebuildable? My guess is the o-rings are shot after all those years and I don't want to get aftermarket shocks since these are still new.

[JRxJoe]

A few more photos:

[RC10resto]

Hello and welcome.
Any thoughts of buying a used runner and Shelving your new builds?
Nice Buggy!

[JRxJoe]

Oh this build is a shelf queen. Sorry. Forgot to mention. I’ll get it running and dialed in but that’s about it. Too valuable to me to bash it to pieces.

[Lavigna]

Very cool that you still have your childhood cars, and in new condition. That is a huge bonus.

I too suggest you buy a used car to act as your runner, so you can keep this one in new condition. I also suggest you fit some period correct electronics. If you are patient, you can find those electronics you probably wanted for your car as a kid. They will look great installed in that car.

Welcome to the forum. Best of luck with your builds.

[JRxJoe]

Thanks a lot for your advice and welcome. I’d love a Novak setup I’ve wanted as a kid.

[RogueIV]

Rare to see in unrun condition!

Just a word of caution if you do decide to run it you might want to opt for a higher turn motor. The LRM transmission is a bit fragile.

[pedro]

I just finished rebuilding mine last week and painted an original body yes those body lines for cutting were terrible i think many a 15 year old would have ruined some lexan there, maybe that was the point sell more bodies?
Yes those shocks seals can be replaced you can pry the top off, its the top piece of the cartridge that's just under the piston that you can pry off, as for the orings boki racing sells sets of them and they are great to deal with.

Peter

[JRxJoe]

Rare to see in unrun condition!

Just a word of caution if you do decide to run it you might want to opt for a higher turn motor. The LRM transmission is a bit fragile.

Thanks. I agree. I intended to run a 13.5T brushless motor with peak power turned down. I noticed on the SE that some of the gears are off white but on the Pro they are all gray. What’s the difference?

[JRxJoe]

I just finished rebuilding mine last week and painted an original body yes those body lines for cutting were terrible i think many a 15 year old would have ruined some lexan there, maybe that was the point sell more bodies?
Yes those shocks seals can be replaced you can pry the top off, its the top piece of the cartridge that's just under the piston that you can pry off, as for the orings boki racing sells sets of them and they are great to deal with.

Peter

Hi Peter. Do you know if the original body had a film on exterior for peeling off? Mine doesn’t and I don’t remember if I removed it 30 years ago being stupid. I also agree on body butchering. I ruined my jrx pro body. Thankfully I didn’t mess with this one until now. The rear wing mounting then bending the bracket is kinda wonky too. Things have certainly changed in 30 years. Thanks for advice on shock cartridge rebuilding. I’ll surely get in touch with them.

[Dadio]

Wow what a nice time capsule ! I'd just ecko what others have said , an 8.5t brushless system would be criminal violence , max 10.5 - 13.5 but for the shelf just spend the time getting period stuff and have it right .

[BattleTrak]

Great looking buggy and story! I wish I still had my old cars.. Interesting that all the 8-32 x 1/2” screws look to be steel/silver. If it’s going to be a shelfer you should drain oil out of all the shocks and definitely install vintage electronics…a Slot Machine motor looks great in it. A RPM #7365 ESC shelf is mandatory on these.. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Here’s my ProSE..



https://www.rc10talk.com/viewtopic.php?t=47695

[pedro]

Here's mine just waiting for the decals to arrive before i can finish the body off.

And yes mine didn't have overspray film on the body either.

Regards

Peter

[JRxJoe]

Great looking buggy and story! I wish I still had my old cars.. Interesting that all the 8-32 x 1/2” screws look to be steel/silver. If it’s going to be a shelfer you should drain oil out of all the shocks and definitely install vintage electronics…a Slot Machine motor looks great in it. A RPM #7365 ESC shelf is mandatory on these.. Here’s my ProSE..



https://www.rc10talk.com/viewtopic.php?t=47695

Hi Brad. Yes I’ve been looking for an RPM shelf too. Hard to find. There’s one on eBay but wasn’t sure it fit the pro se. It only states “junior chassis” and for jrx2 and jrxt. Guess it will work for the SE.

Youre correct about the steel screws. I stole extras from my unfinished jrx pro because I hate the aluminum screws. The Philips slots are too brittle and look awful after a few installations. I actually got a stainless kit from rcscrewz yesterday because the originals started to rust from sitting 30 years.


I’ve been looking at vintage Novak escs released in 1992. I want reverse and I think Novak only sold the 610 model if you wanted reverse?

[JRxJoe]

Here's mine just waiting for the decals to arrive before i can finish the body off.

And yes mine didn't have overspray film on the body either.

Regards

Peter

Hi Peter, where did you get your reproduction decals? I’m having Steve Kovac from skg painting finish my body in the box art colors but I’m worried my decals are so old that they won’t stick well anymore.