My new race car... and it's a V-8!
 

Ok, so it isn’t really a V-8, it’s a Hot bodies Ve8. But with the spelling of the E being small, I think it would be pronounced as a word rather that the letters V and E. At least that’s way I say it. I pre-ordered it a couple of weeks ago; it shipped yesterday and should be here Monday (pics to follow soon after). Yay!
Winter race season starts in less than a month and I will be getting serious this year since they now have electric class for 1/8th. Last year, Christmas weekend races, they quit letting me run with the nitros (Merry f’n Christmas), too many complainers.

So on to the power set-up:

MMM
Lehner 1930/8 (2613kv) configured as Y/star, for about 1500kv and increased efficiency over the D wind
RCM (C-Tech) 2600mah 6s 30c hard case lipo

I picked about the smallest and lightest battery and motor that will give enough power, since they are on the same side. The mains are only 10 min, so that should do it. I already had the Lehner and used it in my other 1/8th buggy and it worked well on 4s, should be even better on 6s. Only running motor brakes to keep weight low, but that may not help with the balance, we will see. If I don’t like the plastic chassis or the balance or whatever, I can always get a techno or stock D8 chassis and slap on the parts (and RCM motor mount of course).

I need your help/suggestions for a steering servo. I run a Hitech HS5645 in my other buggy; price is reasonable and it has worked well. I want a good fast servo that won’t break the bank since my RC budget is running low after purchasing car, batts, MMM, transponder, etc.

I will be getting some pics of the parts and build if I can stop building it long enough to take pics. I get so excited to build a new kit it’s hard to stop until you get tired. One of the reasons I got the HB was because it is a kit and I may like building more than driving.

More to come…

we run a 1350kv 1512 in josh's mp9 with the rc-m 6s 2500s and its cutting it close in a 10 minute main, you could consider him a pro driver he he really pushes it hard but most of the time in practice he can run 12 mins, im betting youll see 11-13 minutes of run time, depending on the track. its a good setup and very light

i run a 1512 1700kv on 5s 3300 and its almost the same weight setup as josh's (mine is 36grams heavier, which is not even worth mentioning really)


looking forward to seeing the build and how it turns out.

For a reasonably priced steering servo, get an Ace DS1015 (or Associated DS1015), or a Savox. Both are good quality digital servos that have a fast transit time and plenty of torque.

Be nice to see a Ve8 ready to go. They're a bit pointless in the UK as the electric class hasn't taken off yet, and larger batteries are not really an option with the Ve8, but in the US I bet it'll be brilliant.

rootar; good to hear that I am not too far off on battery size. Thought I may have to go to 3300 6s to get enough run time, but the weight is a bit more than I wanted to carry around.

Marvin; I will check those servos out, thanks.

So, I have been busy with work this past week and have not had much time to work on the new rig or get pics up. But, at least the overtime means more money for the RC budget!

Now for a few pics:

Step 1... make 2 modifications. The first step was to install battery straps... the ones they give you are just 2 pieces of velcro; 2 hook and 2 loop, no way to pull them tight (they just overlap). First mod was to use 8ight-e straps and second was adding a piece of servo tape under the clamps that hold the straps. I was worried that the straps could pull out from under the clamps without something else to help hold them. First pic shows my modded straps and you can see the straps they give in the second pic (sitting on table).
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...8&d=1254590408
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...9&d=1254590408

I have the chassis all together now; everything went well and fit up and quality seem very nice. I did have to loosen and retighten the center diff a couple times so it wouldn't rub. The clearances are very tight around the spur gear. Also, Hot Bodies screwed me on one part; got 2 front body mounts and no rear one...sent them an e-mail.
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591158
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591158
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591158

And a few more (the cat likes it... black like him, lol)

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591745

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591745

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591745

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1254591745

OK, one last pic, then it's on to building shocks and installing the power rrrrrr(in the voice of Tim the Toolman Taylor).

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...7&d=1254592019

Looks great!

still not to keen on the tiny battery tray

cool, i cant wait to get mine

My local track has 10 min. mains for electric 1/8th scale; don't need much battery.

So, The chassis had these 2 extra holes in the ESC area, but no screws or anything called out to go in them.

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255068847

Hmmm, looks like one of these will fit... sure enough!

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255068847

I had to order a whole bag of 50 screws just to get the 2 that I needed. I also had to cut the switch mount off as it stuck out past the side of the chassis.

All finished except for painting the body and the missing body post (on it's way from HB). Body post should be here tomorrow, and I will be painting the body tomorrow as well (hopefully).

Ended up trying an Orion Vortex VDS1409 servo; 14kg (195oz) @ .09sec. Local hobby shop gave me a great deal on it so I will give it a try. Weight is about 7.6 lbs... not too bad. Hb makes lots of light weight parts, so I could drop the weight some if I need to. The motor/battery side is less than 2oz. heavier than the other side. If I was running mech. brakes, it would probably be perfectly balanced:gasp:. I will start with gearing at 1:1 rollout; about 33mph. This may be plenty fast enough for the small indoor track I will be running on. Also, since the Lehner motors are rated under load for kv values, I may be a bit faster.

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255069860

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255069860

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255069860

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255069860

looks clean now get it dirty!

A few body shots
 

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255708012

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255708012

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...1&d=1255708012

I tried it out with the 16t pinion; seems way under geared. Motor spooled up way too fast, not much top speed (only geared for 33mph). Although this motor has always spooled up fast, it just seemed to go to max rpm almost instantly. Motor temp was 150 (about usual), but the esc (MMM) was only about 100 and lipo was 85. After 10-12 min run it only used about half of the battery capacity. I put in a 18t for the next try... about 37mph. Biggest pinion I have is 19t, which gives about 39mph, about the same as in my old buggy. If I need more I will need to place another RCM order.

1st Race Report
 

After trying bigger pinion on the lehner 1930/8, I got higher temps on the motor while doing some hard street running. Between work and the crappy weather filling my bashing spots with puddles and the local track being closed the last two weeks for new layout, I only tried it on the road. At the last minute I decided to try a Tekno Neu 1509 2.5Y (1450kv). So, i got new track and new car (only checked rotation on new motor) for the first race. The track is very tight so speeds are pretty low, and no insane jumps as in past layouts. They have a tricky "drive up the wall" corner; a couple sheets of plywood leaned against one wall with a divider so you have to get up high enough to go over the divider but not so high you shoot up the wall. So, after several practice runs I am getting the hang of the new track and the new car. The car handles quite well, a big step up from my old sportwerks buggy. It is the first qualifier, and I am still a bit slower than most people due to my driving, but finding my "groove". Near the end of the 7min qualifier, I land a jump on the rear end and hear a "crack", but managed to make another lap and finish. Grab the car off the track... rear skid plate is broken... crap. Starting to think the plastic chassis was a mistake. There were actually 3 Ve8's out of 15 cars running in the 1/8th electric class. Last year they could hardly get 3 cars to even make the class, so electric is really catching on, also evident in the fact there were like 11 or 12 cars in nitro class! SO, out of the 3 Ve8's, two of them broke the rear skid in the first qualifier (one mine) and in exactly the same place! I did not stick around the rest of the day to see if the third Ve8 made it all day, I was bummed out. My car also cracked the main chassis along with the broken skid plate, so a new chassis is needed now as well (F***)! I will give HB the benefit of the doubt and try the aluminum skid plates out with a new chassis, but I have a feeling that a stock D8 or Tekno D8 chassis is in the not too distant future! This also means a new body and a few other parts, so even more $. I may be selling a couple of my favorite nice cars soon to pay for all this, not to mention my balancer just took a crap and I will likely replace it with a balancer built into a new charger.

SOOO, long story short, stick with a D8 and convert it. Several guys in the nitro class running them since they came out with little to no breakage. The car seems to drive nice, and jump well, but I guess the plastic chassis isn't enough for 1/8th scale abuse, and we will see if the aluminum skid plates help any.

BTW, I loved the change to the neu 1509 motor, it ran great on 6s geared for 35mph, plenty of power (got full throttle maybe once on the "long" 50-60ft straight, lol), and temps were; 60 degree day, motor 120, MMM 110, batt 90...PERFECT.

i also have a ve8,sad to hear 2 out of 3 break their chassis.if this trend continues,i hope hotbodies comes up with an aluminium or carbon fiber chassis upgrade or something.

BTW.what i did with mine the first time i saw someone break was soak the corners of the chassis with diff oil.i dont know if it helps but mine has held up to some pretty nasty crashes.i used to soak my plastic parts with wd40(emaxx). hope it continues to hold up coz i love the way it handles with its current setup

I will be giving the aluminum skids a try... may have to try the soaking of the chassis too. The car handles very well so I would like to see it hold together longer. I may look into having someone make an aluminum chassis. If all else fails I will just go D8 stock or Tekno chassis.

i read from another forum that the difference between the d8 chassis and the ve8 was night and day.he used to drive the e d8 then ve8.the problem with aluminium skids is you may break the main chassis which means more money and a lot more work(i know,im lazy:lol:)

personally,i think ill start to do some lightening,it could prevent breakage.but of course the most important is better driving

What size is the battery compartment? What is the useable size (IE, you could always get rid of the battery strap locators)?

What size is the ESC compartment?

140mm x 49mm for batt tray, and esc area has room for a MMM with a little space all around

Thanks. Is that up to the battery strap locators, or including/over them?

It is to the edge of the straps/holder as well as to a part of the chassis that holds a nut in place. See the spot for the nut to the right of the straps in the pic.

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/atta...8&d=1254590408

Thanks!

2nd Race Report
 

Well, last race day I was bummed, this time I am stoked. The day went well save for the "normal" mishaps. The aluminum skid plates and new chassis help up well. I did manage to break a rear hub ("normal" mishap lol), but had a spare so all was good. Also saw a "high" temp on the motor... 125, but that was after the motor mount moved and the gear mesh got too tight. That one was my fault as I didn't tighten the mount as tight as normal. I was trying to avoid my normal over tightening of everything... oh well, back to over tightening, at least things stay put (if I don't strip out the holes,lol).

It was a smaller turn out in 1/8th electric this race. I still managed to qualify dead last in A main, but I did not finish last, yah! Not sure of final results (maybe 6th or 7th out of 8), as I left right after corner marshaling as it was getting late... results online in a couple days anyway. They had a biggest air contest off of the "wall ride" corner at the end of the main. I got the biggest air, about 20ft straight up! All in all a good race day (for me anyway), and I had a blast.

I am really liking this 6s set up with the little 1509 motor; every bit the power and speed of the bigger motors... at least on this small track. I ran side by side for a couple of laps with another Ve8 powered by a Castle 2650 system on 4s (much better driver than me). I could actually pull ahead of him on the straight. He figured he was overgeared as his batts were getting hot. No heat problems with my set up, lipo barely gets warm. I could also pull about even with some powered by the castle 2200 systems on 4s as well. Perhaps I am seeing less voltage drop or I am a bit lighter than the rest, IDK. It is just a sweet running set up and very cool as well, perfect on this small indoor track.

In the spirit of digging up old threads, I have a question: How do you like the HotBodies Big Bore shocks? How are they for durability, and ease of maintenance?