flm brushless savage conversion
 

hey guys im starting to sell some of my misc stuff and came up on some money so i can start a new conversion! i want a beastly truck that would have an option to race. i think the savage looks badass so this is what im going to convert.

i dont have a nitro one or anything so i will be starting completely from scratch.

i plan on making this a VERY high quality truck so it wont be the fastest conversion but when it is done it SHOULD be sweeet:party::party:

here is a list i came up with so far that i will need.

savage ss kit 350
bl conversion 180
lst shock conversion 12
servo plate (does this come with the conversion) 15
flm shock towers 50
titanium arms (which is stronger. titanium or flms extended arms?) 300
lst shocks 100
3 speed kit? yes no? 75
what else is needed for chassis?
will normal savage bodies fit this?


here is electronics i plan on using.
6s evo30s 360
22418? 16024? lutach controller? 400
1521 1.5d? 1515 2d? 300
will be using spektrum with this.

i think this about covers it.

conversion comes to about 2100 so far

im planning around 2500 for the completed conversion so it should take me maybe 2 months to get it done.

anyways how does this sound guys?
if its not worth it you gotta let me know because the reason i want this truck is cause it looks sweet when its done.

like i said. ultimate basher but it can race if i take it to a track. thas what i want.

thanks for any help guys

sounds like a good list to me, i wouldnt go with the 3 speed trans though- adds rotating mass-which slows acceleration

If you have the money and the batts to turn a 1521 i would go for it- 1515 might get a little warm on that large of a truck :D

ok i figured 2 speed wouldnt be best but i just hadda throw it in there.

money isnt an option as i just want the best for this setup. i put the 1521 in there as this truck may weigh around 15lbs

if anyone has any parts that would help out this conversion pm me because i am on the lookout!

I have a 1521 1.5d, but it is going in my LST!!!

I have about the same setup that you are looking to do. From what I can tell the flm combo bulks/diff cases look like a good idea. I would stick to the stock arms, they are tough and it is better to break an arm than a bulk...

You need a gst size body to fit this truck, it is long. Not sure if it will be a good racer, may not turn too well. I have the 2 speed tranny and mech brakes, and will most likely stay with that setup. My truck will be heavy, as I have the cen 7.5" wheels...

or a savage xl body.. :D

whyd you have to tease me like that linc:lol:


im really hoping that the body i bought off ebay will fit but i dont think it will.

with the right tires, steering servo, and tweaking im sure it will race up to my needs.

i found a great deal on some flm extended arms so i am going to get those. have the stockers as backup.

every part on the truck will be upgrades so there should be no weak points.

except my driving:whistle::oops:

a 1521 will find something wrong, trust us :whistle::yes:

hope the arms are coming with driveshafts........ I love my extended widened savage, but I've told you that before, I think I may have told you to build this truck before??? I think you might save money by not buying the ss kit and just buying the parts you need from e-bay chop shops. But it's definately easier to have a whole truck. The servo plate does not come with the kit. Post pics!

it does come with the driveshafts. i too made sure of that.

also, i am sure you told me to do this conversion because i have wanted to do it for a while.

i was thinking about buying from chop shops but i am not exactly sure on what parts i need.

lets see...
diffs
2 speed tranny
steering blocks and steering components
bumpers
chubs axle carriers
drive shafts (assuming it uses dogbones)
hexs
screw kit


what am i missing?

flm kit comes with driveshafts (dogbones), and all servo mounts so the servo tray isn't necessary, you need diffs from an ss kit(extra spiders), hexes- get aftermarket 23mm, arms SHOULD come with turnbuckles, and you need all castor blocks/ steering knuckles etc. etc.. The only plastic on mine are the bumpers and mounts, skidplates and body posts. The rest is aluminum and just keeps on bashing. The plastic parts make a nice crumple zone, umm, 2 speed tranny, oh yeah, and an rc-monster sticker, good for 5mph on your top end. post pics!!

well considering i have nothing right now i can takea pic of my blank workspace:lol:

ill be ordering parts in 1-2 weeks. should get half of it then.
aboutta month later ill finish ordering everything else.
i usually get everything i want sooner than planned but we will see.

ive been looking at a bunch of forums and have found some of the parts i need so i wont be ordering the SS kit. that will save me a couple hundred dollars:yes::yes:

thanks for the advice on that paralyzed.

post some pics of yours so people will have something nice to look at while waiting for mine

i would step up to a 1527. yes it might be complete overkill but thats what most people aim for on here. go BIG or go HOME right!!!!

a 1527/1d is 2160 kv so on 6s you wold be spining 47k rpm. go consevative on gearing and you will have a rock solid setup

I was running mine last night on 6s with a feigao 11xl and the thing is a ballistic missile. It doesn't have the torque you normally expect from a brushless but it is stupidly fast. It needs to be geared down a bit as it just has way too much speed. The neu motors would fix the torque problem I would think. Personally I think a 1515 would be all you need. My 11xl seems to be running cool and it is geared for 40mph in second. I'll have to run a few more packs through it and see how it performs on the track. I am fairly sure it will end up getting hot on the track though with the continuous hard running.

i have no desire for a 1527. 1521 is already overkill and 1527 would probably kill diffs too much id guess right?

mtb only reason i say 1521 is because im worried the 1515 might overheat

1527 wouldnt kill the diffs any more than a 1521. Think of it like this. The diffs are obliterated and dogbones sheared when you try and pump 2kw through to the wheels from a stand still. Using a 1521 to hit it with 3kw or a 1527 to hit it with 4kw wont make any difference.

I run a 12XL on 6s lipo and the diff pinions and dogbones shear if I'm not gentle with the throttle, I don't know how anyones truck can survive with a neu! They seriously need to beef up the drivetrain on that thing if you want to run brushless. I think revo style driveshafts would do the trick, the torsional flex stops you drop shredding diffs and sheering those damn dogbones!

well if a 1527 would fit and it would provide more power why not i guess. i just figured the diffs wouldnt be able to handle it at all.

any way i could get spyder 8 emaxx diffs in it?

I'm running cen diffs which are cheap on ebay and I think they will hold up but it will take a few more packs to really tell. Dog bones will be a problem though.

I agree that a 1521 should be a good motor for a cool setup in the savage. 1527 will be unreliable due to drivetrain breakages and 1521 might be also. The crazy thing about the savage is it's weight. I'm scared to drive mine with other rcs cause i'm scared of what it will do to them if I hit them.

Hi,

I am also running a FLM conversion but using a feigao 8XL & BK9920.

1) Motor - I think a Neu 1515 motor should be enough for racing.

2) In addition, I had LST shocks but could never tune them properly. Finally, I switched to Jammin' Super Big Bores on FLM towers & I was pretty happy with the results. Note that this is for running on a track though

3) Shock towers - I use FLM towers. I got a pleasant surprise recently when I bought a pair of FLM towers. One of them have holes for mounting a wing already machined onto the tower. The holes are suitable for mounting a HB lightning wing stay. Ask for it :

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ling39/s09.jpg

4) esc - MMM is the way to go. I will be testing mine this weekend

5) Body - Losi 8ight T body fits well. It's narrow & long.

6) Suspension - go for the racing suspension conversion :

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ling39/s10.jpg

7) dog bones - go for CVDs all round

8) tranny - I think 2 speed is more than enough. Personally, if I can go fro single speed would be even better for going round a track

Good luck & show lots of pics !

Regards,
Joe Ling

No problem lah, others will have to avoid your truck if they want to leave in 1 piece at the end of the day. Then you'll be king of the track or hill depending whether u racing or bashing :lol:

Regards,
Joe Ling

That is sweet Joeling. I have had problems tuning the LST shocks for racing too. They are fantastic bashing but on the track they are a challenge. The next thing I was going to try is lighter oil. On the track with the 20wt my truck was bouncing too much and if I hit anything the truck tends to roll instead of the suspension absorbing the impact. I think I have the spring rates right now. This is all on the nitro though so I still have to work it all out for the electric but I think it will be fairly similar.

Joeling, any chances you could give us more info on how you have done your sway bars. They look like they should work well.

joeling- are there any cvds that will work with the extended aarms?

edit- joeling i found the suspension conversion. they only have them in purple?

Not sure about CVDs for the extended arms

Yeah, I think suspension conversion only available in HPI colours

cvds are weaker with those pesky little pins in them. the sav xl dogbones are the gear, but i think theyre so much stiffer (particularly torisonal stiffness), thats when you start doing your diffs.

I also got this info off savage central which in turn is from another site :

For my mod, I used some leftover bits of my retired sacker 1/8 nitro buggy & a couple of pieces of bicycle sopke as I cannot seem to find decent music wire in my part of the world.

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ng39/s03-3.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ng39/s05-3.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ng39/s04-3.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ng39/s07-1.jpg

Mine

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway1.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway2.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway3.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway4.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway5.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a.../saxysway6.jpg

Original

how well does the sway bars actually help as far as racing goes? you notice a big difference in handling?

instead of a bicycle spoke for the wire couldn't you use a revo sway bar wire or something?

I have not tried them yet. I will know tomorrow if there is no rain.

I will look into whether I can find some revo sway bars thanks for th info.

Regards,
Joe Ling

Bicycle spokes are actually a really good idea. You can buy different thickness spokes and they are about a dollar or two each. I actually have the blue groove set but they are expensive and I think your way is actually better.

And they make a massive difference handling wise. I have the sway bars on the front of both of my trucks and before the trucks would pull up the right rear wheel if I tried to corner at speed. That normally lead to roll overs or aborted turns.

Revo sway bars won't work I wouldn't think but I am sure there is something out there that would. I thought the baja ones might but after seeing them the front ones look too small and the rears are huge.

how do you get it at a perfect 105 degree angle? im guessing you have to do the bending correct?

get a protractor or something?

perhaps get a piece of wood, cut it to 105 on a drop saw, then bend around that OR just use a protractor. shouldnt be too difficult to figure out.

105 exactly doesnt matter, thats just to make it fit, and you want to sure its bent in one plane and to the same angle.

if the sway bars are the right size and are set up properly they offer a huge improvement in handling. Basically they reduce bodyroll significantly, ie make the truck sit flatter, reduce traction roll, and help even out the load on each side (ie won't pan the inside wheel as easily)

Sway bars also drastically alter the over/understeer tendancy of your truck so it will require some messing around to set properly.

interesting.

seems like it would be cheap so why not try it out?

i was looking into the lst shocks and the set i would like to purchase will be around 185 bucks for all 4. (i will be building it from scratch.... aluminum shock caps nitride shaft adjustable body) these shocks will be indestructible. just wondering if its worth it... i see a couple people on here not liking them for the track? since i will be primarily bashing should they work fine for me?

so far on this project i have the front/rear end aluminum shock towers the extended aarms and a sweet body.

once everything comes in i will start taking pics of the stuff!

thanks guys

t-maxx the 1515 is plenty with that truck. I have a conversion on a 1515 1y and it is ridiculous. It doesnt even get hot with 16/47 gearing. It is slightly warm to the touch but you can hold your fingers on it and it wont burn after 20 min of running so i know it is well below temps.

would there be any cons to buying a bigger motor than is needed?


this project may take a little longer than expected.
i go a little overboard sometimes on birthday presents n today was one of my best freinds birthdays so i bought him a ps3 and a game.....

this baby should be done by christmas if not a litttle after.

maybe...

anyways ill still be buying things slowly but the electronics will take quite a while.

more amps + weight. thats about all i think (and cost!)

I'd not worry about the amps. You'd need a higher kv motor than a lower kv, bigger motor to produce the same torque. You may even pull less amps.

so it sounds like a 1521 is pointless?