My new crawler!
 

It's official- I finally bought myself a rock crawler kit! :yipi::yipi:

I was going to buy a Kyosho Rockforce solely based on the fact that it had worm drive axles. However, I went on to Amainhobbies and put it in my shopping cart and by the time I clicked "continue" it was showing out of stock! I could've back-ordered it, but then I couldn't use the 10% off code(?).

So, I bought this instead. It includes everything pictured except the tires, which I have.

http://images.amainhobbies.com/image...nr-berg-22.jpg

And two of these:

http://images.amainhobbies.com/images/large/csesdw.jpg

I think I got the last two Sidewinders... Sorry guys! :lol: Now all I need are the two motors/pinions and a good steering servo. Oh, and a body!

Do you guys have any suggestions? As I am COMPLETELY new to crawling, I'm open to all opinions! I was thinking of using two HH Crawlmaster outrunners, since I just got one for my Blizzard and it's great (thanks JRH)! The Sidewinders are limited to 3s (right?) so 3s it will be. The HHCm's are 1000kV, so it'll be ~11,000 rpm WOT. The trannys have a 36.67:1 ratio which makes it ~300 rpm at the wheels. With a 4.5" tire that means a 4 mph top speed. My only question (right now) is: How are the Sidewinders at low speed compared to the MM, or, the MMM?

what crawler is that.

Enroute Berg....

The sidewinders are great for crawling. I run one with an 833kv outrunner on 3s in my 2.2 rig. It is geared 16/54 (32p) and still has great startup despite the tallish gearing and lower motor speed. The sidewinder is very smooth. I will suggest to run a ccbec and remove the red wires from the sidewinder. The bec is a bit weal for a crawler servo, plus you want at least 6v going to the servo.

A brushed motor would be better suited, since the motors are easily hit by rocks on that kit. A 55t motor on 3s works very well with stock gearing.

Nice.

Do you think a 1000kV would be too fast? I suppose I could go down a tooth on the pinion... I have a CCBEC that I can use, but I was thinking that the combined force (lol) of both of the SW BECs would handle the servo(?).

I reeeaaallly want to run brushless! :smile: I was going to make up some SS skid plates to cover the motor up. I'd probably do that even with brushed motors. I might get a couple of cheap brushed motors just to test with first.

I know... :lol:

1000kv is just right, many guys run faster motors still. I run 1800kv motors on 3s (brushed).

Do you think I would benefit from running 4s with an ~800kV motor? More torque obviously, but any better control? Can the SW FETs handle 4s if the internal BEC is bypassed?

Looking at the side view of the truck, and after watching some videos of it, I have determined that a major performance increase can be seen if bent lower links are used. Anyone know where I can get some? How long are the lower links?- I can't find the info anywhere... If I knew that I could go on RC4WD and buy some bent links right now.

What is the advantage of running the dual motors on the axle? I am just looking at getting a crawler and confused by a lot of things.. The whole dig things confuses me and worm axles??? I need to find a newb explanation sight.. I really like the look the wrekluse chassis..

Dual motors:

1: The obvious one, MORE POWER!
2: More weight. Better traction.
3: Having that weight ON the axles, even BETTER traction due to lower center of gravity.

DIG:

1: Allows the rear axle to lock completely, so that when you turn the front wheels while on power the truck will pivot around the rear tires.
2: This lets you turn very sharply to get through tight spaces.

Worm Gear axles:

1: Awesome.
2: Smoother than standard gear driven axles.
3: Cannot be back-driven. (If you stop on a hill, and have no brakes, the truck wont roll back down.)
4: HIGHER gear redution ratio in a MUCH smaller package compared to standard gears.

I hope that answered some of your questions. :smile: That Wreckluse tube chassis is pretty sweet!

Thanks for the explanations.. All of my friends have AX10's..

Would I better off getting a berg or something in comparison with dual motor the for the lower cog and power?

I have some bent links that work on the berg.

The sidewinder takes 4s I know. You won't have any advantage over 1000kv on 3s, just more battery to deal with.

How does a dig work with a berg? Is it all electronic? turning off one motor? So many questions.. LOL I wish some had one around here i could look at and ask endless questions

Dig depends on what type motors you run.

If you run a pair of bl motors and escs the dig is controlled by the radio settings.

If you run a pair of brushed motors and a pair of escs the dig is also controlled by the radio settings.

If you run a pair of brushed motors and a single esc you can control the dig with a microswitch and a servo. You still need a 3rd channel on the radio, but it is cheaper than a full option 4-6 channel stick radio.

A couple pics:

Proline M2 Flat Iron tires with saw-cut foams.

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...d/DSC00219.jpg
http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...d/DSC00220.jpg

JRH: I don't see those bent links on your site, are they yours personally? 'Have any pics of them?

in the axial section. http://holmeshobbies.com/product.php...&cat=16&page=1

Oh, ok. :oops: Do they have the same "straight line distance" as the stock Berg links, or will they alter the wheelbase slightly?

:surprised: WOW you got the Enroute Berg!!! :yipi:

That’s an outstanding wheeler (so I’ve been told and have read) :intello: congratulations Sir.. Great buy!.. :great: I like the foam stars, they take for ever to cut!.:whistle:. Please keep us updated on the progress, I’ll be watching this post!.. :wink:

Outstanding buy!..


P.S. :whistle:
I love that game Rainbow 6! :wink: The Vegas 2 is great!.. Call of Duty 4 and Crysis are two other outstanding games too.. Sorry I'm a nerd!..:intello:

Thanks TDC57! My order shipped yesterday, so it wont be long now! :yipi:

I do have R6V2 (awesome). I'm looking at either Fallout 3 or COD 5 as my next purchase...

Lucky they have been out of stock for a couple fo days... I wanted to get one with the coupon... Instead I just read on rccrawler hopefully trying to figure how to wire the dig so when the do come in stock I will be able to figure it out..

What radio are you going to run? I have been reading about the 4pk and dual esc/dig setup.. it may be a little much for my first build... but will see Muahahaha

Fall out 3 looks promising for sure, I’ve not heard of the COD 5 (need to look into that).. DONT GET!! I just wasted my money on FarCry2! Nothing like #1 huge disappointment!..

Anyway…
I'm looking forward to see this baby being unwrapped IE (LOTS of pictures SIR) :diablo: when you get it!..

I think they extend the WB a few MM depending on how the shocks are set up.

Thanks JRH!

I have been looking everywhere to get the same price Amain was selling those kits for, and they are all sold out or over 350..

but I found this place.. think they are legit? I wonder how much shipping is.. http://www.ridestoys.com/index.php?p...emart&Itemid=3

I sent them an email.. we will see what they say..

That is less than wholesale- same for every other crawler kit there. Seems very fishy to me. Why would somebody want to lose money on such an expensive kit?

They want you to do a wire transfer, to make the purchase... Hmm let me think about that....

Hahahahhaa! NO. :no: They're in Indonesia... WTH? The least they could do to seem legit would be to get a PP account.

Well I have been emailing them and they said they would do PayPal but they never have... Do you think it is worth a shot? Just might take a while to get my money back.. I called my credit card company and asked if I bought something online and if it fraud I am protected.. so if I went through paypal and my credit card I should have double protection..

I also double checked the prices are US currency..

Do you think it is worth a shot?

So they have a PP account but never used it? I think it's worth a shot. You would have "double protection" in that case. Those prices are too awesome not to at least give them a chance. :smile:

You can give it a shot, but there is no way that it isn't a total sham. Just about everything there is below wholesale prices, so they couldn't even buy the kits for as cheap as they are selling them. On top of this, prices are in USD and not rupiah. Why would an Indonesian hobby shop sell in USD?


I say you will be wasting time, and thus money.

Maybe it's "HOT" merchandise??? :surprised:

I've been burned TWICE!!! this year! I wouldn’t do it unless it's through PayPal!..

My two cents..

Hey- You'll never guess what came in the mail yesterday...

I'll give you a hint: I was up until 3:00 AM building it!!! (I started at 11:00 PM) :lol:

Check it out! http://s52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...view=slideshow

A couple points:

->It came with the bent links, a nice surprise. :yes:

->The articulation pictured is about an inch less than maximum.

->I "discovered" that new chassis layout when I took the screws out of the top plate and it swung down! :oh: The SWs will go at either end, the battery goes in the center, and the Rx goes somewhere else... :neutral: Probably on the side of the chassis plate. I'll have to make a little cage for it...

Nice!!! Keep us posted with some more pictures once you get the electronics in.. I am still planning on ordering one when they come back in stock.

I will. I need to pick up a couple 45T motors (or whichever are closest to 1000kV) and the 3s battery pack.

What capacity should I look for? How many watts does a "typical" crawler setup use? Would this pack be sufficient? http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXVKS9&P=7

More changes!
 

I think I'm going to run NiMH with this one... I just came up with another layout that I think is PERFECT! :yipi:

My camera is dead right now, so no pics until tomorrow night (work AM). I hate to leave you in suspense, but believe me it is worth the wait.

Let me see.. let me see..

Here you go! :party:

New chassis plate position:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...g/DSC00261.jpg

Everything fits so nicely with this setup. With the plates the way they are, they serve as a full-length skid plate as well.

Battery pack on-board:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...g/DSC00260.jpg

The pack is going to be an 8 cell NiMH (those cells are mock-up only) in an offset 5x3 configuration.

Modified Futaba radio:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g4...g/DSC00264.jpg

Modified, in that I turned the right stick 90* CW. I had to extend a couple wires and do a bit of dremeling inside. All is well and I can switch it back without issue if need be. The 6EXA has some nice wing mixing programs built in. I plan on trying to set this up so that I can have front OR rear dig- while moving forward OR backward- all just by moving the stick. The SWs go on separate channels. Vertical travel controls F/R throttle. Horizontal travel controls proportionality of throttle to the F/R motors. Also, only moving the stick horizontally makes the F/R wheels spin opposite, so I should be able to crab-walk too! Now I just need that 4WS upgrade!

SO if the stick is moved into the:

Top- Forward on both F/R.
Bottom- Reverse on both F/R.
Top/Right- Forward w/variable rear dig.
Top/Left- Forward w/variable front dig.
Bottom/Right- Reverse w/VRD.
Bottom/Left- Reverse w/VFD.

Cool, huh? :smile: I hope it works! I plan to use a Futaba S9156 for the steering servo.

:gasp: Wow she's a thing of beauty!.. :intello:

:whistle: It will be shame for you to go through the agony of scrapping it up for the first time so you better send her my way for a week or two! :yes:, I'll send it back nice and broken in.. :lol::lol: