1/10th Stadium Truck
 

Hello All,

I've just recently gotten the MGM 12012 and a Lehner basic 5000 from Mike for a 1/10th stadium truck. I'll be running either 6-cell GP3300 packs or 2s lipo packs. Initially I had planned on putting this in my Losi XXX-T MF (and I probably will still install it there to start), but I got to thinking...
Would this be better installed on a nitro-based vehicle rather than an electric? Are the nitro trannies sturdier? I'm finding different part numbers for them, so I assume they are different than the electric trannies.
I'm thinking either an RC10GT or a XXX-NT roller would give me a good place to start. I believe both have 32-pitch gearing while their electric counterparts are 48-pitch. That in itself should be better, yes?

Anyways, I'm looking for advice/feedback on this. Should I consider using a nitro base or just go on using the electric for my brushless 1/10th stadium truck?

Thank you.

The Associated trannies are the same (T4/GT), so the T4 would be my choice. Associated has much better/more durable diffs than the Losi trucks in my opinion as well. 48 pitch is fine for the 1/10 trucks as long as you have good gear mesh.

I run the lehner 4200 / MGM 80 in my xxx-t and it runs great. Never had any diff problems, but you're dealing with a tad bit more power. With boca bearings, Kevlar spur, and a Losi one piece top shaft it tends to run pretty smooth. But, associated is supposed to be great, never owned one. IMO I think associated designs look but ugly, but they perform well so i can't argue.

Either way you'll be having a blast. It's not worth the time to modify a nitro stadium truck, since they are so similar to their electric counterparts.

Sounds good to keep what I've got, then.
I'll tear the MF down and look at beefing up the drivetrain when I clean it and put it back together.
Thank you both for your input. If my XXX-T doesn't hold up, I'll see about trading it for a T4 roller :)
I am a fan of the stealth tranny, but I haven't had any problems on my stock MF with the Novak SS5800 so I hadn't even thought about it until Mike told me to stock up on diff parts ;)
I do have a full spare diff, so I'm ready to start at least, heh.

Thanks for the advice, and I'll be sure to keep updated here.

Got the controller and motor together in my XXX-T MF today. I put a 16-tooth pinion on the motor, got things lined up, put the battery in and let 'er rip.
At first, I wasn't very impressed...then I realized I had put in a battery that had false-peaked...DOH!
With a freshly charged 6-cell IB3600 pack it was fun watching the front end pull off of the ground at about 15-20MPH :)
The diff held up for the first pack, but I managed to break something else (see the attached pic). Needless to say, I'm pleased with the power so far ;)

A note for others that may get an MGM controller and use an M8 radio: turn off the ABS brakes BEFORE you try to enter programming mode. :rolleyes:
I was frustrating myself quite a bit before I figured that tidbit out...heh.

Don't worry. I have about 30 extra spares of those lol. After breaking a few from racing I replace them every once in a while. It hasn't been a big problem unless im jumping.

Did you get the Basic 5300 or Basic XL 5000?

I got the xl5000.

That's the first axle pin I've ever broken. It's one of the few parts that I don't have spares hanging around for. :)
I'll probably pull one from my TC4 just to play more until I get some spares.
I'm pleased with this purchase thus far!

xl5000, I bet that thing packs some power. Where'd you get your batteries. Im looking for a non-Lipo solution as Im fine with the power, and am just looking for about 2-3 more minutes of runtime.

I bought them on ebay a few weeks ago. I have 14 extra cells at this point. PM or email me if you're interested in them. They're un-matched cells.
Mike also has some of the IB3600 cells in packs in the store (as well as GP3700 cells) if you want matched cells.

You gotta run that motor with 8-10 cells.. 12 cells if you're insane. The motor is barely running with 6 cells.

BTW, with 12 cells, you should be around 60-70 mph!!!

Update...

I got to run the MF at my local track tonight. The truck was outrageously fast and I loved every minute of driving :)
I ran the whole time with a 16-tooth pinion. I made my friend, the owner of the shop/track, try it for a few laps. He's a great driver who normally only uses 10-turn brushed motors. Lately he's been using the new revolution motors from Orion. He told me straight out that my truck was too fast for him in a few spots of the track. I was very pleased to hear that from him :)

Three things worth mentioning about the MGM 12012 and basic xl5000 combo:

1 - Accelleration. When driving in my back yard, I didn't notice much of a lag, but once I got it on the track I quickly realized that the default .63 second accelleration delay makes the system/truck feel like a dog. I changed the option to the lowest, .13 second setting and it felt much more "natural". With the default setting, it actually felt like the delay was much longer than .63.

2 - Coasting. I read somewhere (I think on this forum, and maybe elsewhere) that the first MGM controllers had a "feature" that would make them brake when slowing down. It works like this - if you are running fast and let the throttle go to neutral, the motor will coast to a stop. If you are running fast and let the throttle off, but not all the way to neutral, the motor will actually brake until it reaches the new speed. My understanding was that this "feature" was fixed for the current controllers, but my controller actually does this. On the plus side, I actually drove BETTER with it doing the auto-braking. I was very happy with it and will definitely keep it. I just wish there was a way to turn it off if I wanted it to act "normal".

3 - Temperature. At the end of a good 10-minute run, the ESC was 120F and the motor was 195F. I'm really pleased with the controller temps, but I am concerned about the motor temps since this is the setup I need to run 15-minute mains.

One more note about the setup - when I was doing a couple speed runs in the parking lot, the truck actually pulled a wheelie when it was already travelling a good 30mph or so. It was a great sight :)
I also glazed my slipper pads quite bad during my fun this afternoon. Guess I'll have to learn the right tightness for that with this new-found power.

Lastly, anyone looking for new nimh batteries should seriously consider the IB3600 cells. I got my first good taste of them side-by-side with GP3300 cells today and the difference is EXTREMELY noticeable. More punch, more runtime (obviously), and cooler temps at the end of the run.

195 is a bit hot... You know, if you went with a slower motor like something like the Basic 4200 and made the pinion about 20 tooth, you'd have roughly the same acceleration, top speed, and cooler motor and slightly more run time and you won't need to replace slipper pads as often.

Mike and I talked about the 4200 vs. 5000 comparison and we came to the conclusion that I should experiment with different gearing before looking to swap the 5000. Mike mentioned that the motor may not have enough of a load at 16t, so I went higher.
I was running the 16t pinion when I noticed the 120/195 temps from above. I ran a couple packs with a 19t pinion today and recorded a max of 165 on the controller and 175 on the motor.
The manual with the MGM 12012 reads that the thermal fuse of the controller is set to 90C (194F), so I figure the 165 is pretty safe, but I'd like it lower still.
My next step will be the 18t pinion, which I expect to be the good all-around choice.

If it doesn't work out to be in the "safe" range after a solid 15-minute run, I'll look at going the 4200 route.