project "Draggular II"
 

i figure after looking at some of the threads here, it would be safe to post my project which shood be nearing completion soon.

some 1 1/2 to 2 years back....a buddy of mine came up with an idea to convert our haulers into racing machines...i was sold on that idea...even though i knew that i couldnt drive in a straight line to save my life!

....project "Draggular" was born.

"Draggular" (version one) was basically a lexan big rig shell dropped over the stock chassis of my king hauler, slapped on a big wing out back, gave it a paint job of a slightly different nature, removed all the chrome bits, just to save weight and also not to get them scratched when i flip the truck....i knew i would.

problem with "Draggular" version one was the tranny/motor and batt were all mounted high in the stock location of the stock frame rails....

i managed to flip the truck at least 4 times cuz i made a mistake by not dropping gears before making a turn....:019:


here's a pic of the stock tranny location in "Draggular" version one.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P4160055.jpg

here's a completed pic of what "Draggular" looked like
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...1/P6220075.jpg

"Draggular II" is a more indepth attempt at a racing hauler....with Z'd chassis frame rails, lowered and "laid over on its side" tranny, lowered batt mounting position.

and yes....my driving has not improved since then...:036:

here are some build up pics of Draggular II...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...gularII-Zd.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/PC210004.jpg

laid down tranny to lower CG further...
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5030029.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5030028.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5070085.jpg

after a little paint on the G10 chassis plate and its starting to look "factory" :005:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5090112.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5090121.jpg

Nice!

Reminds me of something I saw in a RCCA once. Wasn't the first version in Readers Rides some while ago??

That looks pretty awesome. Always been a sucker for the big trucks. Could you get a video of these racing?

Omg that is the coolest thing ever. My next project perhap's.

Very cool. How is the stock driveline? Cause you know you need a brushless in there...

wow keen eye dude.....but it was in RCDriver, not RCCA....
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...1/IMGP1476.jpg

i will try...once its completed......

thanks buddy.....yes go for it! these 3 speeders are great for custom work....

as a matter of fact i do have a BL in there now...nothing serious, just my humble SS5800....but i tried half throttle in 2nd the other day just to see if the shift servo was trimmed properly... and the two rear wheels balloned till they almost made contact with each other!!!:013: not good if that happens....

nice truck

Very cool truck. If you lost the rear axle and got a more agressive front tire you could have a race truck like the ones they race in Europe

Holy crap, I want one! I've never seen that Peterbuilt Maxx body slammed so low on a truck, let alone on a on road! Dang it, now I'm going to have to find out how much one of these would cost, just too frickin' sweet..........:cool:

Thats one of the sweetest looking things ever! Great work tiki!

wow! many thanks for the kind words guys!

then came major snag # 1! DOH!!!!
the original plan to use plastic batt holders didn't work out as the bent frame rails of the chassis were in the way so i could not slide the batt in or out of the batt holder^&$^%&^($%#%$*.......

so after looking around for ideas...i saw the batt retaining system that CRC uses on their 1/12 pan cars......O-rings!!!!
so chucked some 8mm alu rod in the lathe and ..

tadah!!!

not the pettiest but it works...:o
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5300266.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5300265.jpg

How does the trans mission work in that thing? Is it like the blazer and stuff tamiya had out? Is the middle 2nd and in or out 1st and 3rd.

then a good fren of mine pointed out to me that some form of bracing was lacking.....in case there's a serious frontal collision!!??!.
( yes he knows how "GREAT" a driver i am.....haha...)

original plan was to span a alu link between the front and rear ends of the chassis, but that wouldn't look "trick" enuf so.....after many rainy sundays where bashes were cancelled, i came up with this......the idea came from staring at some of the nitro helis that are hanging from the ceiling of the LHS and looking at my RC ducati one night....

its sorta like a "roll cage" to brace the front and rear ends....same function as a plain ol' link.. but way more "trick" looking IMO.

it a major plus....especially...

when i flip the truck over..(i know i will) this will protect the "guts" of my truck.


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5290255.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5290263.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P5290261.jpg

still need to paint the cage up and fab out some links to "hold" the two sides of the cage together...

yes its exactly as you described it....there's a "gate" on my stick controller that "forces" me to "off throttle" before shifting up or down, saves the gears in the box and the way the tranny shakes plus the sound it makes......really feels just like a real car with a manual tranny!!!.

That looks totally tight man. Like the roll cage frame stiffener. How big are them trucks. Length width height weight .
The look good size but pics can be deceiving.

hmm...now that you mentioned these things....i realise that i've never taken dimensions, weight etc!..haha...i'll go home and take some measurements tonight....cept for the weight...still havent gotten that bathroom scale from the in-laws yet..:007:

Very cool!

man does that thing look cool

very nice truck

Thats a very nice truck! Please do get the dimensions and weight:)

No idea what the dimensions are of this VERY nice looking custom truck, but the stock dimensions of a Tamiya King Hauler (according to TowerHobbies.com) are:
SPECS: Length: 23.62"
Width: 7.09"
Height: 10.04"
Weight (with radio installed): approx. 7 lbs
Low (1st) gear ratio: 1:32.49
Middle (2nd) gear ratio: 1:17.66
Top (3rd) gear ratio: 1:10.66

hey guys,
thanks....many thanks for the kind words!:027:

anywez,
dimensions of the current setup is as follows:

wheelbase: 20.078 inches
rear track width:8.661 inches
front track width:7.086 inches
height of truck:7.874 inches. (not including the rear wing)
weight: have to get back to you on that...

well, last night i managed to make 6 x 1.65 inch links to tie the two rear halves of the "cage" together....then walks in my daughter who demanded i read to her some story books...oh well, some form of slowly creeping towards some form of completion is better than nothing....i guess..

WOW! That is very cool. I might use the bat hold down idea on my FLM chassis.

May I ask what type of lathe you are using?

Thanks!

thanks bro.

hmm...good question...i dun think it has a brand....at least not a visible one...i got it from a friend of mine who's a reseller of these units here in singapore.

oh btw its a combo unit (mini mill and lathe) although the mill attachment is not visible in the pic.

Wow, looks better and better, any plans to maybe dye the G-10 black or something?

yes i intend to paint the cage black..just like the chassis plate..

have to tried dyeing G10 before? will it work?

Draggular II....
 

progress has been slow...

but i do have some minor updates....

finished the rear, mid sections of the "cage"...i've already have the rough outline of the front sections done, needs some finishing work, oh btw, these parts will then be painted black....then i'll be able to tie the whole thing together...

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6030357.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6030352.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6030362.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6030361.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6030374.jpg

Nice! G10 is pretty cool stuff, I'm doing some work with it right now. Just gotta make sure that it doesn't enter the lungs!

yeah..G10 rocks...and thanks for the warning bout the lungs bit...

i think this will be the last time i use G10 in such large quantities....i'm sticking to alu after this...:035:

Yeah, this stuff is like CF in terms of safety when it comes to your lungs.

Aluminum is usually my main thing, but G10 is lighter and different :).

What exactly is g 10 stuff? The aluminum is a no brainer. The g 10 is got me.

It's called Garolite.
http://www.spambutcher.com/parts/garolite.html

really!!?? is that its actual name?...GAROLITE!!!...cool........



now to go impress my friends!....hahahaha

LOL, thought you knew that :). I was just cutting some earlier, and will be cutting more. I do it with my shop-vac secured to my scroll saw, and cut with the shop-vac on so that it will suck up the dust from the garolite and not get into my lungs.
This stuff is rough. I can only go about 10" (254mm) (including turns) before the blade on my scroll saw is too dull to cut with! I've gone through 3 blades already!

wow! thats really quick man!!! yeah the shop vac route's the way to go ....after this oneis done, its back to alu for me

Overki11, how about carbon fiber?

CF is cool but hella expensive here in singapore....bout 50USD a A4 sized 3mm thick sheet!!!:026:

but even if it were affordable, i have to daughters ( 7 and 3 ) at home and i wouldnt want them to be exposed to any type health hazzard.

EYEBALL-O-METER once again does not fail me!!!
 

FINALLY!!! managed to cut the shell out to fit Draggular...not too shabby if i do say so myself! :dft012: :005:

good to know that my eyeball-o-meter came through again.....notice the contours of the shell nicely "clearing" the "cage" haha.

now just have to mask off and paint!!!!
i'm stumped for ideas.....ideas anyone????

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6070021.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6070019.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...I/P6070011.jpg