Build Thread RC10 B6.3 - Carpet racing?

[Spksh]

Try replacing the seals using a shock rebuild kit before you write the front shocks off. The seals are a consumable.

 

[CertifiedMike]

Jennysrc.com carries Associated parts now. I'd contact them about a replacement set of shocks. If you like the parts and the price but they are sold out, ask to be put on the waiting list.

There are other brands of shocks that can work but AE makes fantastic shocks IMO.

The orings inside should be a typical P3 oring. They are almost generic. You can get replacements. That should solve the leaking issue.

If you are set on replacing the shocks, at $130, I think AvidRC.com might have some great looking upgrades in the same price range.

This car has done a total 180° turn around!!! Nice save!!!

 

[Jerold]

Try replacing the seals using a shock rebuild kit before you write the front shocks off. The seals are a consumable.

The are not the factory shocks. Not sure what they are? can try to find a seal at a local store.

I was thinking Traxxas but the LHS owner thinks they are TA but lower end. They are not great, that's for sure.

The rear shocks look like TA buggy, but a bit long?

Jennysrc.com carries Associated parts now. I'd contact them about a replacement set of shocks. If you like the parts and the price but they are sold out, ask to be put on the waiting list.

There are other brands of shocks that can work but AE makes fantastic shocks IMO.

The orings inside should be a typical P3 oring. They are almost generic. You can get replacements. That should solve the leaking issue.

If you are set on replacing the shocks, at $130, I think AvidRC.com might have some great looking upgrades in the same price range.

This car has done a total 180° turn around!!! Nice save!!!

Good tip on Jenny's. Looks like they normally have RC10B7D shocks, which will work just fine. I will get notified.

And thank you for kudos. It's got some work to do, and I have a lot to learn.

 

[CertifiedMike]

The are not the factory shocks. Not sure what they are? can try to find a seal at a local store.

I was thinking Traxxas but the LHS owner thinks they are TA but lower end. They are not great, that's for sure.
View attachment 264874
The rear shocks look like TA buggy, but a bit long?
View attachment 264875



Good tip on Jenny's. Looks like they normally have RC10B7D shocks, which will work just fine. I will get notified.

And thank you for kudos. It's got some work to do, and I have a lot to learn.

I love learning new things. Different designs, chassis layouts... Its all part of the fun!

Jennys is pretty great! I'm glad you're going with them. The B7 shocks should be perfect!

My B3 has those same (looking) shocks as your rears. Yours might have truck shocks that makes them long.

I agree. I think the blue front shocks look like AE as well.

Restorations are a labor of love. The labor is usually more than the cars are worth, nevermind the price of parts and cleaners and oils...
Easier and cheaper to buy new sometimes but there is no challenge in that.

 

[Spksh]

The blue AE ones (v2 RTR) have a hex feature on the shock body that I don’t see on yours.

 

[Jerold]

The blue AE ones (v2 RTR) have a hex feature on the shock body that I don’t see on yours.

View attachment 264881

Good eye for details. I don't think they have the flat spot on the bottom either.

 

[Spksh]

Good eye for details. I don't think they have the flat spot on the bottom either.

I've refurbed a metric ton of these guys in the last few months, working on RTR SC10/T4 builds. I see them in my sleep . @CertifiedMike is right, even AE's RTR-level shocks are great; little details like those (e.g. flat spot + hex for tightening the caps) make a big difference when you're working on them.

 

[Spksh]

Restorations are a labor of love. The labor is usually more than the cars are worth, nevermind the price of parts and cleaners and oils...
Easier and cheaper to buy new sometimes but there is no challenge in that.

 

[Doom!]

I'm glad guys like you are in the hobby, I really enjoy your restorations. I'm also glad I'm not the one doing it!

 

[Jerold]

Did some wrenching this morning and dropped a dime or 6 on a new radio. It's cleaned up and looks much better.

1. Fixed servo horn interference
2. New Protek 130T servo
3. New FlySky FGr5B Receiver
4. New FlySky Nobel BN4 Pro+
5. Relocated On/Off switch
6. New gensacearespammers 2S 4600 mAH battery

Figured out why the factory servo horn is hitting Top Plate. It is not a factory servo mount and it was placed too far to the rear. I cut some tubing plastic and made some tiny spacers to push it forwards about 1 mm. The astute observer will also notice the servo is still blue, but now a Protek 130T. It's much faster and stronger than the other one. But I have place for that one.

It's dead center in the notch now. That one was a Scooby Mystery for sure.

The power switch was hot glued to the side of the ESC and was located between the receiver and the ESC. Which of course got hot, slopped around and made it a bit difficult to turn off when it's blazing hot.

I relocated that to the outside plastic rail. Still hot glue but it will be much cooler. Also decided to buy the FS Noble Pro+. I've been eyeing it for a while. It's very fast and I can use it some other cars too.

This the relocated switch, spaced servo, new receiver.

Didn't show the new battery, but ya'll know what a battery looks like. I figured I need at least 2 batteries after I ran for a while, then they called me to grid.

A couple of things I still don't like but they work, so I will fix them when I get to it. . . which may be never. We will see.

Shocks - The front ones are garbage. I can replace all 4 from Jenny's RC for $80, but they are out. There is a front only set on eBay for ~$65, which would solve the problem, but I'd rather have all the correct shocks. Still looking.

Transmission/Diff - There are two holes that don't match the chassis holes, which make me think it's not the right transmission. Also there are a number of screw holes that are stripped out. I've been able to work around this by using tiny strips of Lexan in the hole to take up the space. It's a bit of a wedge fit but it good enough for now. The case is cheap enough, but if I need to replace the inards it's gets a bit pricey and involved.

Spur Gear - Still has a bugger on it. it's functional but a bit noisy.

ESC/Motor - The motor is cool to the touch after some laps but the ESC is getting quite toasty. The ESC has a bit of a high pitched whine to it and I fear it's days are numbered. Pushing a 4.5T motor probably aint that good for it.

At some point I will need to get the swaybars and some decent tires. But for now it's not going to make any difference when I'm running 2x the fast lap.

 

[Spksh]

I love this kind of detective work! Well done. You’re going to know this car inside and out by the time you’re done.

 

[DavidB1126]

ESC/Motor - The motor is cool to the touch after some laps but the ESC is getting quite toasty. The ESC has a bit of a high pitched whine to it and I fear it's days are numbered. Pushing a 4.5T motor probably aint that good for it.

High pitched noise, not sure what to do with that but with it getting toasty, can you or maybe test it with a fan on it. By the looks of it can't plug it into the esc so maybe a spare port off of the receiver?

 

[RetroThutmose]

View attachment 262820

I think those are rear arm spacers, you can adjust the wheelbase a mm or so depending on where you put them.

The ride height is a challenge. It's MUCH lower and level-ish, but it's still about 6mm too high. Talking with the LHS it should be about 14mm and I'm around 20mm. I will run it as is and figure it out later.

Not sure how to get the rear lower? The rings are maxed and I angled them more. Also swapped the front springs to the back, the "seemed" a bit softer? Aside from shorter springs, is there another solution?

View attachment 263203

You can rebuild the shocks and add limiters inside the shocks. Very common for race rigs.

Question:
Looking a the rear control arms, it looks like they can be swapped R/L. If I could do that the wheelbase would be a bit longer. However, the angle creates rear toe in, which is good the axle is not centered, which means the wheel base may not actually change. So I would effectively remove the rear toe in.

Has anyone done this?

View attachment 263269

Rear toe helps the car feel planted on acceleration. I have never run carpet and I think some people prefer close to zero toe, but it depends on how you like to drive.

 

[sylentk]

Wow, well you've done a lot!

I'd get a different motor. Who puts in a 4turn motor into a buggy? Not anybody who races buggy. That would help with your ESC temp. And from the looks of the chassis, it has been chucked to flat, many times. And not on a race course. So yeah...

Carpet has way more traction than dirt. So stiffer suspension for sure. So heavier shock oil. Heavier springs. How heavy? That's up to you. A arm to shock tower angle is also a thing. Experiment is key.

For me? I usually set my rear ride height to where the dog bones are parallel to the ground. That's my starting point. But that's me.

Practice, practice, practice. Driving, that is. If the kids are beating you? Yeah. Practice. Like stand on the floor, in the corner. For example. Different perspectives help you drive. Practice a certain section, over and over until you can't get it wrong. (we have this saying in sports in my neck of the woods "amateurs practice until they do it right. Professionals practice until they can't get it wrong.")

Sounds like you're having fun with it! So have fun!

 

[Jerold]

I think those are rear arm spacers, you can adjust the wheelbase a mm or so depending on where you put them.
View attachment 265527



You can rebuild the shocks and add limiters inside the shocks. Very common for race rigs.


Rear toe helps the car feel planted on acceleration. I have never run carpet and I think some people prefer close to zero toe, but it depends on how you like to drive.

The spacer makes sense, I "think" it's in the back right now, which is the shortest option. I can adjust that. Coincidentally, I just saw a video and they compared the long and short chassis. It sounded like the short one is more nimble, but harder to drive too. Still no sway bars, which I will need to add some day.

I did find in the manual:
"Symmetric rear arm with improved geometry and stiffness can be flipped to allow a “split” for rear shock mounting position.
Arms are available in 73mm and 75mm lengths (73mm included)"

But that means the toe is set by the pins and I would keep the rear toe, it's helps keep the car straight. But since they are symmetric, I won't actually add any length. Not sure what the split rear shock is?

Wow, well you've done a lot!

I'd get a different motor. Who puts in a 4turn motor into a buggy? Not anybody who races buggy. That would help with your ESC temp. And from the looks of the chassis, it has been chucked to flat, many times. And not on a race course. So yeah...

Carpet has way more traction than dirt. So stiffer suspension for sure. So heavier shock oil. Heavier springs. How heavy? That's up to you. A arm to shock tower angle is also a thing. Experiment is key.

For me? I usually set my rear ride height to where the dog bones are parallel to the ground. That's my starting point. But that's me.

Practice, practice, practice. Driving, that is. If the kids are beating you? Yeah. Practice. Like stand on the floor, in the corner. For example. Different perspectives help you drive. Practice a certain section, over and over until you can't get it wrong. (we have this saying in sports in my neck of the woods "amateurs practice until they do it right. Professionals practice until they can't get it wrong.")

Sounds like you're having fun with it! So have fun!

The motor is a drag motor, so it's entirely possible they were drag racing or it's what they had to put in the Franken-Buggy.

100% agree, practice is key. To be fair the kids were pretty good and I sucked pretty bad. There is a learning curve to this and I'm at the bottom of it.

 

[CertifiedMike]

Slowing down a little might actually get you faster lap times.
Its the mistakes that cost time so too fast can 100% work against you. 1 crash waiting on a turn marshall and you're out of the lead.

If this were a drag car, 4.5 turn is prob great. For a track, I think its way more than I could ever use.

 

[RetroThutmose]

I would recommend turning your power way back. The only buggy i ever ran with 100% power every race, every track layout was 21.5 because they just don't have the torque. When racing 17.5 or 13.5 i usually dial down the power to 70-80% depending on the layout and turn it up from there once i learn the track, how my car is reacting to the track, learn how to take jumps and land them, braking points, etc. Also really helpful to walk the track and marshal any sections you have trouble with. watching other cars and drivers can help a lot with learning where to hit the jumps, brakes, etc.

 

[Jerold]

I would recommend turning your power way back. The only buggy i ever ran with 100% power every race, every track layout was 21.5 because they just don't have the torque. When racing 17.5 or 13.5 i usually dial down the power to 70-80% depending on the layout and turn it up from there once i learn the track, how my car is reacting to the track, learn how to take jumps and land them, braking points, etc. Also really helpful to walk the track and marshal any sections you have trouble with. watching other cars and drivers can help a lot with learning where to hit the jumps, brakes, etc.

Yup, one of they guys turned it down to 75%. He said it's way too fast and hard to control, which is kinda funny. Seems about right, I was making a few solo laps without any problems. Still slow but right side up.

 

[RetroThutmose]

Yup, one of they guys turned it down to 75%. He said it's way too fast and hard to control, which is kinda funny. Seems about right, I was making a few solo laps without any problems. Still slow but right side up.

I don't know if your running a mod class or novice where there's not really any rules but I know the mod guys aty track run 6.5 motors and they rip. They have years, decades of track time tho. I can't handle that much power. I rarely have an off-road car at 100%

 

[Jerold]

I don't know if your running a mod class or novice where there's not really any rules but I know the mod guys aty track run 6.5 motors and they rip. They have years, decades of track time tho. I can't handle that much power. I rarely have an off-road car at 100%

I have no class. . . ask my wife.

Probably rookie class cause I'm a rookie. But the car, as it sits it would probably be in a mod class and will get spanked.