What was old is… still old, but a lot newer (Update 2/20/11)

[aeiou]

Thanks for the encouraging comments, guys. This has been – and continues to be (soon to be experimenting with some B44 bits ) – a fun project.

AEIOU I was wondering what else you have in the front. my buggy doesn't look like that I have the alu nose braces lik eyou but they go to the front of the chassis.

I'm assuming you must have the wide buggy front end. This project uses the front plate, bulkhead, shock tower, etc. from an RC10T truck.

... what else do i need for the conversion?

I don’t have an exhaustive parts list for this project, but if you read back through the post, you’ll be able to pick up most of what I – and others – have used. There are quite a few parts and I may put together a list if/when I finally stop fiddling with it…

Also i see you have a different tranny than the stealth why? & whats the difference? thanks

The main difference between the two is that the RPM conversion has a 2.65:1 ratio versus the Stealth’s 2.25:1. Plus, I had one sitting around on the workbench…

how did you use the t3 b3 slipper on the rpm conversion? i thought it took a stock stealth slipper?
also where can i get the parts to rebuild the stock slipper for my shelf buggy and truck

The T/B3 slipper setup is a direct fit replacement for the Stealth slipper. The original slipper plates for the Stealth have been discontinued, but the rest of the parts are still available.

[ericsp2]

thanks. i have 4 trucks to get parts from. just was wondering what i needed. waiting on the arms to come in and the rpm hubs. did you use mip cvd's or b4's

[aeiou]

Well, during another sandlot run and after a really high jump (with a very nasty sideways landing), I hear this comment from my 'driver':

"Daddy, I think something broke..."

And sure enough, the left-side rear hub had failed. The plastic piece in between the bearings had snapped and the bearings were just free-floating in the hub. Apparently, I over-drilled the bearing slot on that side. At first, I thought I'd just run some pins through the hub to secure the bearings, but I wasn't crazy about all that fabrication work. So, I put her up on the shelf to think it over a while.

While on a trip to Southern California over the past couple of weeks, my son and I stopped by the new OC R/C Raceway to watch a little electric off-road action (BTW, that has to be the nicest indoor off-road RC track I've ever seen). While checking out some of the rides in the pits - in particular the B44 buggies - I couldn't help but notice the rear setup. Anyway, a few measurements (and a TowerHobbies order) later and I've found the solution to my rear drive issue. The best part is that this setup uses bolt-on parts with no modifications required.

Using the B44 rear CVA kit and unmodified RPM truck hubs, the fit is perfect right out of the box! As you can see in the photos, the B44 CVA is shorter than the B4s CVD by just slightly more than the depth I was previously drilling the hubs.

More testing to follow...





The shorter B44 CVA compared to the B4 CVD.


Just as an FYI – also tried using the B44 rear hubs with the B4 CVD setup. It was a tad too short and the bone was right at the end of the out drive.

[scr8p]

ahhhh, so the rear works. i was thinking the front was gonna be the ticket.

well, i guess i just pissed away $25 on b4 cvd's last night. maybe they'll work alright with the losi carriers.................. i hope.

[aeiou]

Yeah, I don't have the B44 yet, so I haven't tried the front CVAs. They may actually work with the B44 hubs as they are longer…

While I'm rather obsessed with the RPM truck hub setup, the B4 CVDs do work with other hubs. And had I not taken too much material when I drilled them, the modified RPM truck hubs would be fine as well. I’m curious to know how those Losi hubs work also.

[scr8p]

I’m curious to know how those Losi hubs work also.

i'll find out in a couple days. if it doesn't work, there will be a new set of b4 cvd's in the bst.

[aeiou]

I took it for a quick test run in the yard last night and it worked great – very solid. Although the rear track is a bit narrower than I’d like, it still handles pretty well with this configuration. I hope to get it to the track over the next couple of weeks for some further testing fun and to compare the various setups.

Overall, this is a nice out-of-the-box setup and should be helpful for anyone experiencing binding issues with similar builds.

[MOmo]

Hmmm

Might have to look at my BJ4WE CVds as an option. nice work!



momo

[filou]

Whaou!!! It's very clean and nice, where have you found your shock Tower in graphite?

[ericsp2]

Hey aeiou while i was looking for the rpm 10t rear hubs i spied theses at tower hobbies.they might raise the shaft up away from the arm more. what you think. they are from a traxxas slash/rustler and so on.

[ericsp2]

here this might be easier to find.

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXNY90&P=ML

[scr8p]

well................ losi hubs + b4 cvd's = doesn't work

have you run the car with the b44 cvd's yet?

[scr8p]

it looks like i might have jumped the gun on my last post.....................

i spent a little more time on it, and the b4 cvd's DO work with the losi carriers. but, only if you use 3 degree arm mounts. i haven't tried it yet, but i don't think there'll be enough clearance in the outdrive if you'd want to use 1.5's or 0's. i try that out tomorrow to know for sure.

[aeiou]

scr8p - I'm glad to hear you are making progress with the Losi hubs. Funny, but I didn't think much about the rear mounts during all of this - I've only used the 3 degree mounts.

Yep, since the above report, I've run the car quite a bit more with the B44 CVA setup and it's working great. The deal on the B44 buggy fell through, so I won't be able to try the front CVAs for a while. Still hoping to get it to the track soon...

ericsp2 - Thanks for the tip on the Traxxas hubs. I suppose those would work, but I'm not familiar enough with the Traxxas axles/CVDs/etc. enought to find a match for the 5X11mm bearings those hubs use.

filou - Thanks! You can find the towers I used on the shelfer here: http://www.fibre-lyte.co.uk/

MOmo - Thanks as well. That's a great idea - let us know if you try this with the JConcepts parts.

[scr8p]

still playin' around with it, but here's a couple quick shots of where mine's at. losi hubs, b4 cvd's, b4 wheel/axle spacers, 3 degree rear arm mounts, 2 thin 3/16 axle shims (outside of hub), and kranzels wheel spacers. the kranzels spacers add 2mm of trackwidth per side.

IMG_3446.JPG (151.45 KiB) Viewed 1957 times

IMG_3446.JPG (151.45 KiB) Viewed 1957 times

this pic shows the outdrive with the suspension hanging.

IMG_3447.JPG (125 KiB) Viewed 1958 times

IMG_3447.JPG (125 KiB) Viewed 1958 times

and here's a pic with the suspension fully compressed, with approx. 3-4 degrees of neg. camber. it's very close, but it doesn't bind at all. not saying that it wouldn't under race conditions, though.

IMG_3448.JPG (126.76 KiB) Viewed 1955 times

IMG_3448.JPG (126.76 KiB) Viewed 1955 times

and one with a rim mounted.

IMG_3449.JPG (152.19 KiB) Viewed 1953 times

IMG_3449.JPG (152.19 KiB) Viewed 1953 times

on the front, i'm using the standard rc10 caster blocks and steering knuckles. but, for the b4 wheel to clear the arm during compression while turning, i had to use the wide rc10gt front axles. it only makes the front end a slight bit wider than a stock widetrack rc10.

IMG_3450.JPG (165.34 KiB) Viewed 1952 times

IMG_3450.JPG (165.34 KiB) Viewed 1952 times

IMG_3451.JPG (133.14 KiB) Viewed 1950 times

IMG_3451.JPG (133.14 KiB) Viewed 1950 times