Made my own Baja 5T boot protectors, mudguards & carb filter *w/pics*

Ok, as much as I have enjoyed my new 5T this last month, its become apparent that these things can cost some serious money to help make them more "bulletproof" outa the box in stock form. Lately, the first thing to come to my attention was the amount of punishment the dog bone boots take and how quickly they wear out, rip and need to be replaced. Don't think I need to tell you how annoying this is after just a few runs and cleaning up grease throw all over the chassis after they fall apart in mid ride. I've already replaced two stock HPI sets and it was getting really old and even aftermarket ones will only last so long.

Another thing that came to my attention was the possible damage to the carb diaphragm as a result of intaking dust/dirt while in usage. Their is a small intake hole near the fuel bulb that over time according to other peeps, will suck enough dust to require repairing the carb. Well that just plain sucks....

I was also tired of looking at these huge gapping holes in my front fender wheels where basically anything could get in or thrown in by the front tires. Not only did it look terrible, but it allow every single rock and dust particle easy access.




Of course, some smart, business people have discovered these faults and have made products to help reduce or prevent all this premature wear and tear on our Bajas. For a price. Team Chase's diagram filter and boot guards are a very nice in their own right as is ATX' products for front and rear mudguards for the 5T.

However, after seeing the total in my cart at DDM for all this stuff, I was somewhat sickened, thinking to myself "I should haven't to shell out this kinda money just for basic protection" True, good stuff costs but I'm on a budget like the rest of you and even though I really enjoy my Baja, some hobby fun stuff just arn't justifiable in comparison to pay off life's other obligations.

After seeing other peeps make their their own mudguard, and boot protectors, I saw no reason not to make my own, come out money ahead and hell, even make a better product custom made for me needs! With that, I set in motion this weekend to collect the few materials I would need. Everything I got locally at my local ACE Hardware and only cost me less then $14 and a couple of hours of work. Hmmmm $125 vs $14 with some work? I rest my case....


I had some tin snips and a drill already with me, so I purchased some appropriate sized wood screws, nut and bolts and some kinda stair/wall protection panel that was made out of a thick rubber that was nice and stiff, but still flexible. I also had a spare filter element and plenty of zip ties, so no cost their! With that, I went to work this weekend.



Measure three times, cut once!!!! *learned the hard way*
I did a rough outline of what I wanted with a pen and then cut out each boot protector plate for each side




After cutting out the panel, I had to trim a little at a time to make sure the cover would not bind up the suspension arm. this took awhile for the left side with the spur gear assembly in the way. I also had to test the suspension to make sure the boot guards would not prevent the suspension from articulating all the way. Again, trim, check. Repeat as necassary.




After being satisfied with the trimming, I then processed to SLOWLY drill four small holes into the cover and lower arm. Again, Measure, check, measure check, repeat as necassary. Afterwards I used 4 screws to attach the boot guard cover to prevent any flexing during heavy usage.






That should take care of my boot covers ripping now!




With the rears done, I had plenty of material left over for front mudguards. Again, it was pretty much measure, checking the fitment and trimming as necessary *with a few mistakes* I wanted to be sure I covered as much of the wheel wells as I could without causing rubbing on the body and taking off the paint.




After making sure of basic fit, I drilled two holes on each side of the undercarriage guard to attach the mudguards. This way, I can remove the carriage and mud guards at the same time.




I attached the mudguards using small nuts and bolts. To keep the nuts from loosening off during hard bashing, I little blue loctite should take care of that.




Those guards arn't going anywhere

Afterwards, it was a simple matter of putting on the body and trimming as necessary for the proper fit. Once again: Cut, check. Repeat






That looks pretty dang good if I do say so myself!






The muguards will help reduce the dirt and dust into the chassis as well as the air filter while still allowing of plenty of airflow inside for the engine.





For the carb diaphragm filter, it was a simple matter of cutting up some spare air filter foam to the right size then holding it down with a zip tie.








This took a fair amount of trial and error to get enough foam to cover the intake hole while keeping the foam firmly attached so it wouldn't fall off with a zip tie in the right place. in the end, I wrapped it around the carb neck and looped it over the foam and the end result was this. Simple but effective and free!





Now that looks pretty damn slick for a DIY, a few hours work and less then $14! I feel proud doing this all myself, a little ingenuity, creativeness and hard work goes a long way to saving some bucks and really making your rig unique among every elses! I had alot of fun and looking forward to my next DIY project!

[lincpimp]

Looking good. Always nice to make stuff. Save money and have that great feeling of accomplishment when you step back to admire your work. Best part of rc in my opinion. Only problem is that once you make those first few parts you get addicted and end up with bigger and bigger projects!!! All good fun!!

[rchippie]

Looks good.

Looks nice, especially the ones in the front :)

Update: Right after posting my initial mods, I figured since I was already in the mood, had the time and energy, I went ahead and completed my custom rear mudguards as well! Another trip to ACE hardware for some more stair protector, nuts and bolts and were ready to finish this project!


As you can see the engine and clutch area is pretty exposed to stuff getting throw at it from the rear tires, especially my the Hostile MXT's. Were gonna fix that!








Get our tools and supplies setup once again and were off....





Start by getting a rough idea of how to align and cut the mudguard material. Once again, its measure, cut, check. Repeat!





Were going to once again use small nuts and bolts to hold the mudguards to the body. Drill time again!






Because this rubber material was pretty stiff, I needed to bend it to keep it in the proper placing. Using a lighter and slowly pressing it into position I got it bent how I wanted it





To make the mudguards look good on the undercarriage, I also attached a second piece to the rear of the body with nuts and then attached the separate peices with another bolt. Repeat for the other side

The pull start is easily easily accessible through the rear. The best part of this mod, it can easily be moved to my new body with just a few simple drilled holes!




And wallah! The rear of the Baja is now nicely protected from dirt, rocks and anything else for a fraction of the price of buying ATX's guards! It also looks more like a real truck now!