Build Thread DIY TRX-4M Snow Plow

[ZaneC]

I'm in Kansas right now, and in the next few hours, it's supposed to snow (I overheard 10 inches!). The only RC I have at the moment is my TRX-4M. It could potentially get stuck easily. What do I do? Build a snow plow.
My materials:
-Soda cans
-Cutters
-Glue
-Baking Soda
That's about it. I'm getting started right now. If y'all have any plow shape ideas, please let me know. Updates soon.

 

[WickedFog]

If you get a half inch of snow, it may push it a few inches before she loses traction and stalls out. Even a 1/10 RC truck isn't going to push more than an inch or two a few feet, unless it has a bunch of added weight and power, and dualies all around for traction. The weight of pushed snow is just too much for them. Now if you get an 8S Kraton, with all the M2C upgrades on it, then you might move some stuff around.

People often forget, when you scale anything down, the environment needs to scale down accordingly to get the same results. A plow full of snow to a 1:1 is nothing. Scale that pile of snow down in volume and it's not the same due to a lot of variables. For example, our RC's don't weigh anywhere near what their scale weight would be. But the snow outside still weighs the same per ounce

Just don't want you to get your hopes up. But unless you get yourself a 100lb RC, you'll likely find pushing snow ain't so much fun.

Ask me how I know

 

[CertifiedMike]

Make it a 'v' shape if theres lots of snow to push. Should help keep truck straight. Make it heavy for traction and so it doesn't 'float' up over the snow.
Take videos and pics!!!

 

[WickedFog]

Make it a 'v' shape if theres lots of snow to push. Should help keep truck straight. Make it heavy for traction and so it doesn't 'float' up over the snow.
Take videos and pics!!!

That was one thing I failed to incorporate into my blade design - an angle to push the snow to the side. There is a servo in the linkage there that lifted the blade up and down, but you know how when you shovel snow and you see a big strip of snow in front of your shover slide away from you? That's what it did. It pushed a strip in front of it til it became too heavy to move it any farther. And that was only about 1/2" of snow. It made it maybe 2 feet. The tires were completely full of bb's for weight.

 

[ZaneC]

Make it a 'v' shape if theres lots of snow to push. Should help keep truck straight. Make it heavy for traction and so it doesn't 'float' up over the snow.
Take videos and pics!!!

That's what I was thinking.

 

[ZaneC]

That was one thing I failed to incorporate into my blade design - an angle to push the snow to the side. There is a servo in the linkage there that lifted the blade up and down, but you know how when you shovel snow and you see a big strip of snow in front of your shover slide away from you? That's what it did. It pushed a strip in front of it til it became too heavy to move it any farther. And that was only about 1/2" of snow. It made it maybe 2 feet. The tires were completely full of bb's for weight.

That BB idea... Hmmm... Gonna have to try it. Thanks man.

 

[ZaneC]

Got the general plow shape done.

 

[CertifiedMike]

That was one thing I failed to incorporate into my blade design - an angle to push the snow to the side. There is a servo in the linkage there that lifted the blade up and down, but you know how when you shovel snow and you see a big strip of snow in front of your shover slide away from you? That's what it did. It pushed a strip in front of it til it became too heavy to move it any farther. And that was only about 1/2" of snow. It made it maybe 2 feet. The tires were completely full of bb's for weight.

The roll of snow in the blade is called a drift. It behaves like water. The angle and speed that your blade is moving at plays a big part in making it possible for a half ton pick up to move 3' of snow more than a few feet.
It sounds dumb but there really is a tallent to good snow removal.

 

[WickedFog]

The roll of snow in the blade is called a drift. It behaves like water. The angle and speed that your blade is moving at plays a big part in making it possible for a half ton pick up to move 3' of snow more than a few feet.
It sounds dumb but there really is a tallent to good snow removal.

Yeah, I knew it needed the blade to rotate side to side. But this was more for looks and coolness with the blade movement than anything. And the plan was for my son to push legos around. But he never got into legos lol. The idea to add dually wheels and the bb's was just to see what it would do on our sidewalk. I really wasn't expecting much. And it didn't disappoint by delivering more than my expectations

Got the general plow shape done.

View attachment 213835

Sometimes, you just gotta occupy your mind

Get some bracing on there to hold the shape. Shoe goo a couple cans together. If you need more strength, shoe goo another on there and laminate you a decent blade.

 

[ZaneC]

Yeah, I knew it needed the blade to rotate side to side. But this was more for looks and coolness with the blade movement than anything. And the plan was for my son to push legos around. But he never got into legos lol. The idea to add dually wheels and the bb's was just to see what it would do on our sidewalk. I really wasn't expecting much. And it didn't disappoint by delivering more than my expectations



Sometimes, you just gotta occupy your mind

Get some bracing on there to hold the shape. Shoe goo a couple cans together. If you need more strength, shoe goo another on there and laminate you a decent blade.

Don't got Shoe Goo, but I got special tire glue that can bond to metals.
Just tested it, and BOY HOWDY is it strong!

 

[WickedFog]

Don't got Shoe Goo, but I got special tire glue that can bond to metals.
Just tested it, and BOY HOWDY is it strong!

Go grab you a few sodas, chug them so you have material and some extra hyperactivity fuel to get this done. I'm dying to see what you come up with

 

[CertifiedMike]

The BBs are a great idea!!!
I've seen ppl with sheets of plywood roped to the bumper do a decent job clearing snow.
Ppl on quad-plows doing 25mph into a wall of snow and vanishing!
I love winter! The antics are priceless!

 

[ZaneC]

Go grab you a few sodas, chug them so you have material and some extra hyperactivity fuel to get this done. I'm dying to see what you come up with

If I can get my hand stuck from this can.....
Got it!

 

[WickedFog]

 

[ZaneC]

Currently working on the chassis-too-plow braces. Three layers of soda can is SOLID.

 

[WickedFog]

Currently working on the chassis-too-plow braces. Three layers of soda can is SOLID.

View attachment 213863

You know, when you get this done, you're gonna have to put a Coca Cola themed body on it. Just sayin'

 

[Chubaka]

You know, when you get this done, you're gonna have to put a Coca Cola themed body on it. Just sayin'

This a white powder joke?

 

[WickedFog]

From way back in the early days of Coca Cola

 

[islandlife]

Tire chains! And lots of weight. I've never tried to push snow with an rc, but i imagine those two things wont hurt!

 

[WickedFog]

Tire chains! And lots of weight. I've never tried to push snow with an rc, but i imagine those two things wont hurt!

View attachment 213937

That was next on my list to try, but the truck I built was so incapable I imagined then it would make very little difference. But on bigger, heavier rigs, hell yeah that would help.

What would be ideal, and would likely work great on many different setups, because you're not pushing much snow, would be this guy, which you can find stl files for on the internet to 3d print.

This setup takes 4 channels, as the exhaust stack is also controlled by a servo