Losi JRX Pro SE Racer build

[Lavigna]

There seems to be a lot of SE builds lately, and here comes another. I was inspired by RogueIV's modern SE car. I decided that I wanted to build a modern SE myself. It will sport both vintage and modern upgrades and modern electronics.

I'm starting with a pristine chassis. Very minimal shelf wear. Thanks to Jeff Malar from Factory Works for the great parts. I will be using their towers, brace, and steering kit to start with. I modified the hex on the FW posts to key into the slots in the SE chassis. I figure this should be a bit cleaner and more secure. Hardware has been upgraded to titanium and aluminum.

[fastback]

nice setup . Clean se build you have started. your running the ball studs that far up or upside down like the design. ?

[Lavigna]

nice setup . Clean se build you have started. your running the ball studs that far up or upside down like the design. ?

Thanks. The ballstuds are placed on top in the manual. I don't think I've ever seen them upside down on a SE.

[Frankentruck]

In the manual figure, the cross link with the ball studs is below the bell cranks. Right now, the cross link and ball studs are on top of the Factory Works bell cranks. I'm not one to pick, I've had my bell cranks backwards. I think this is just the observation that was being made.

[Lavigna]

The FW steering kit places the link on top. I figured I would stick everything where it's supposed to be, and then make adjustments once the tie rods go on. Maybe things will align better with the ballstuds upside down.

I'm always welcome to input. Thanks.

[RogueIV]

nice setup . Clean se build you have started. your running the ball studs that far up or upside down like the design. ?

Thanks. The ballstuds are placed on top in the manual. I don't think I've ever seen them upside down on a SE.

Factory works setup was intended for the ballstuds on the rack to face downwards but really depends on your front link geometry. Up top might work better for you if running lower ride heights or different knuckles and hubs. really just need to adjust stuff to see how it affects bump steer or if it binds during travel.

[Lavigna]

I have to admit I didn't even notice the ballstud in the FW image. I somehow totally missed the ballstud in the image. That's why I went off the SE manual ballstud location.

Thanks for the heads up guys. Looks like upside down it will be. Any pictures out there of a SE with a FW steering kit?

[Lavigna]

I've been looking into this steering setup further since you guys brought it to my attention. Thanks for that by the way.

Since I modified the FW posts, they sit lower than they normally would, which is mounted on top of a nut held in the SE chassis hex recess. Because of my modification placing the posts lower, there isn't enough clearance for the CF drag link to be mounted on the under side of the arms. I'm not sure there will be clearance for the ballstuds to be mounted upside down. I think the rod ends would hit the chassis at full droop and full turn. However, I will have to confirm this once further along.

I found a picture of a beautiful SE with a FW steering kit. This kit was mounted standard. This places the posts higher. To my eye, the net height of the ballstuds between this car and mine are about the same.

I've gone down a bit of a rabbit hole on this small aspect of the build. Now, I think I have a good understanding of it. Thanks again for spotting it.

[RogueIV]

Mine just barely clear the chassis at full droop full turn shocks mounted to outside arm holes. If I ran more droop it'd certainly hit but I am running the Jammin' knuckle setup and the belcranks mounted the normal way and not recessed like yours so you're right it may hit the chassis. On my setup I'm going to raise the drag link slightly mostly to eliminate a little bit of bumpsteer I currently have but flipping the ballstuds would be too extreme in my case.

[Lavigna]

RogueIV - Thanks for the pictures and info. That is very useful. The standard Losi ball cups should be thinner than RPM units and provide a bit more clearance. I may look into that.

[Lavigna]

I have been dragging my feet in getting this build done. Part of the reason has been the inability to find front TLR Gen 3 shocks. Every place has been out of stock for awhile. I guess all of the TLR resources are going into designing the 22 6.0.

Fortunately I pieced everything together by using these Avid 13mm bodies. They have a Kashima like coating, and look great.

[Lavigna]

I liked this shot of the two chassis and their different steering setups.

I need to get this car built.

[Charlie don't surf]

I run the MIP bar on my 21.5 buggy, with the bar on the top of the Losi ball bearing steering arms, and the ball cups upside down to correct the bump steer. The instructions said to run the bellcranks upside down and mount the rack on the bottom, but this made the servo position better imo

[RC10th]

It's a race car, it's aways fun to modify and make stuff work that technically isn't "correct".

[Lavigna]

Finally getting some work done on this car. The transmission is together using 64p Thorp internals for ultimate efficiency. I'm trying to use a modern TLR 22 slipper setup, but I'm having a hard time getting everything to work properly. I think I may need to find a longer slipper spring.