Vintage Nylon Parts Durability

[Dirtburner]

Are nylon parts on the early RC10's durable enough to use for a runner?

Are the later black nylon parts the same composition as the white parts?

I have a 1992 TRX-1. A lot of the original nylon parts had to be replaced as they were very brittle. Would the Associated nylon 66 (?) be the same composition as the Traxxas nylon?

[morrisey0]

Old AE nylon has to be rehydrated as it loses moisture and gets brittle over time. Once hydrated again, it is plenty strong to use on a runner.

[jwscab]

Right, boiling the parts for 5-10 minutes works well, or you can throw in a container of room temp water for however long you want.

This applies to associated parts and some Traxxas parts. DO NOT boil yokomo bulkhead caps or Traxxas trans halves.

Throwing in room temp water for longer is safer if you don't know for sure what the part is made of.

[Dadio]

Looked in depth at this a while ago , warm water is faster 4-6 hours , cold water 24 hours , best not to boil as they may warp , pretty much all nylons are the same in this respect , the thicker the part the longer you soak as it takes time to fully penetrate , only instance where it won't help is if the nylon has started to powder and crumble .

[Dirtburner]

I tried the boiling method on the Traxxas nylon parts. As soon as I showed the buggy a jump the suspension parts just cracked. Thought maybe the Associated nylon could have a different composition?

I'm looking at options for a pre-89 vintage race buggy and don't want to go through the same thing again.

[juicedcoupe]

Don't boil them but warmer water is better. And they need time to rehydrate. They have been drying out for 30 years, its going to take more than 5 minutes to undo it.

[Frankentruck]

When I dye nylon, I get better color transfer above 140 deg F. So warmth does open up the nylon structure to fluid absorption.

[Dadio]

Warming the water is best but it's still 4-6 hours , boiling for hours would still be needed and 5min boiling is worthless , the only plastics that require boiling for just minuites are the PB Mini Mustang / Maxima arms and it's not for hydration but to de-stress the plastic, it's probably where the idea of boiling comes from.

[Dirtburner]

I bought this. I'll strip it and soak the nylon parts in warm water for a couple of days. Hopefully it's all good. My second RC10, sold the last one in 1993. Using it for racing.

s-l400-2.jpg (25.66 KiB) Viewed 2699 times

s-l400-2.jpg (25.66 KiB) Viewed 2699 times

[LJPete]

I just got a new to me Cadillac A stamp and plan to do a runner as well. After reading this post, I planned on soaking the suspension and mounting parts to rehydrate them. Should I also do the gear box and rear bulkhead pieces too?

This place is an amazing resource.

Thanks in advance,

Pete

[Dadio]

Yes I'd do all of it , only takes a day and it costs nothing . If it's got screws in it or under any load it's worth it .