JimK's TC8 Marksman EDTT

[j.krug]

I picked up a Marksman the other day.....it's gonna be my Every Day Trail Truck. I plan to keep this rig pretty much stock other than new rims and makingthe usual steeringand suspension improvements. I've been wanting a truck to keep in my Jeep that will always be ready to toss on the ground and go for a little rip. This is going to be that truck.

Pretty box.

Pretty Marksman.

A quick test run at the local park before work. This is a big beast and I really like how it moves. I was only running a 2S battery pack so I'm excited to see how it does on 3S.

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[j.krug]

I had new wheels waiting so they went on right away. The new wheels had less offset and didn't clear the knuckles by much so I installed a set of brass hexes that had more offset....problem solved.

Nice and shiny for now.

Injora brass wheel hexes. Quite a bit wider than the stock ones.

The silver wheel nut looks pretty slick with these wheels!

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[j.krug]

Not much clearance with the new wheels....almost touching.

Much better with the wider brass hexes. Track width is just slightly wider than stock now.

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[j.krug]

I moved the steering linkage out to the end of the servo horn for a little more steering throw. Going to do a couple other steering mods but this one was fast and easy so I did it right away.

Original position.

New position.

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[j.krug]

I got out for a bike ride on some local trails last weekend and brought the Marksman along for a little trail run too. I had so much fun with this big truck. The trails are pretty rooty but other than that they aren't terribly challenging. There was a few steep sections and a creek to play in too. The first part of the run was on 2S and that was pretty good....then I put in a new 3S pack and man what a difference!! I've never used a 3S pack before and I was pleasantly surprised by the difference. Ordered a second 3S pack right away
...lol. Here's a few picks out on the trail.

Got the bike locked up and it's time for a little trail run.

Lots of roots a ruts on these trails but rocks are few and far between.

Heading down the bank to cross a dry part of the creek bed. My little Gladiator is dwarfed next to this behemoth!

Made my way down to a different section of the creek near an old railway bridge.

You can actually drive all the way to the other side of the bridge here as the water is only a few inches deep under the bridge.

Made my way across the creek and up the other bank.

Over the bridge and down the trail we go.

One of the few rocks on the whole trail....crushed it....lol

Heading back over the creek on a long foot bridge on my way back to the parking lot.

I was out on the trail for about an hour and a half and I must say I had a lot of fun with my new Marksman. The big truck moved and swayed nicely over the roots and ruts. Running a 3S pack for the first time really put a big smile on my face. The steering needs a bit of work but that was to be expected. The servo was strong enough for what this trail had to offer but I found it didn't return to center very well. If a made a sharp left turn the truck would veer slightly to the left until I made a sharp right turn and then it would veer to the right. I ordered a 45kg digital coreless servo that should resolve that issue. The suspension worked fine as well but I plan to tweak it a little to get the body sitting a bit lower and angle the shocks a bit too. I also plan to pull the stock tx/rx and bind this to my DX5 Rugged for more adjustability and reliability. Thanks for looking and I'll keep you posted on any changes I make to the Marksman.

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[OSRC]

Very nice. Love the size of these rigs, surprised there are not more "1/8" trucks on the market.

 

[j.krug]

Very nice. Love the size of these rigs, surprised there are not more "1/8" trucks on the market.

I agree...it's a lot of fun watching these big trucks make their way down the trail!!

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[j.krug]

Upgraded my electronics last night. Put in a new steering servo and installed a 5 channel Rx which I bound to my DX5 Rugged Tx. I also installed a led switch in Aux1 so I can gets some lights working on the front of this beast. New servo seems strong and it's very fast. The stock servo wasn't returning to center properly and when I removed it I discovered there was a bit of play in the output shaft. While I was tinkering around I also moved the shocks to the upper/inner locations on the shock towers. This lowered the body and chassis a bit and put the shocks at more of an angle. Hopefully i can get out for a little test run this weekend.

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[Logan’s RCAdventures]

What is the item next to the black servo box? I think its a BEC but I've never bought / owned one before so I don't know. That is a really sweet place to take the Marksman out. I wish we had more stuff like that in my area.

 

[j.krug]

What is the item next to the black servo box? I think its a BEC but I've never bought / owned one before so I don't know. That is a really sweet place to take the Marksman out. I wish we had more stuff like that in my area.

Sorry for the slow response. That's an led light switch that I will use to turn the headlights on and off from my tx once I get the lights installed. Hopefully I can install them one day this week.

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[Logan’s RCAdventures]

Oh cool! I'm cheap so I just wired a switch that takes power from the receiver and takes it to the back, so I can reach under the rear bumper and turn on the lights! I normally turn them on or off while putting in the battery. That remote looks sweet!"thumbsup"

 

[JimK]

Nothing wrong with a good simple system like that for your lights. I have the capability with my tx so I picked up the switch off Amazon for $12 cad. Now I just have to scrounge around in all my parts bins and find a couple sets of led lights.

 

[j.krug]

Got a set of new tires for this beast. I'm a big Hyrax fan so that's what I'm going to mount on the new wheels. I'll put the stock tires back on the stock wheels. These are the Hyrax Rock Terrains in G8 compound.

A bit taller (5.75") than the stock tires (5.25") and slightly wider to.

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[j.krug]

All mounted and ready for the trails. These tires look really good on this rig I think. They sure fill up the wheel wells. I may have to change the shock positions to raise the body slightly if tire rub is too much of on issue....we'll see?

I also painted the fenders and the driver's head. Need a second coat on the fenders and still need to paint the driver's body. Got some recovery boards mounted too and I've got a jack and a few other accessories to mount in the back. I might take the lights and winch off of the front bumper for a cleaner look or I might remove the front bumper all together?

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[j.krug]

I decided to take the lights and winch off of the front bumper. I ordered a 3" led light bar to mount on the bumper instead....it will fit perfectly there and look nice and clean.

I also added a couple scale accessories in the bed and on the back of the truck.

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[j.krug]

I soldered up a set of led lights to install in the headlight buckets.

A couple small lengths of heat shrink tube to cover the solder joints and keep the wires organized.

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[j.krug]

Well, I was able to get the lights installed tonight. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. Just waiting now on the light bar for the front bumper. It should arrive this weekend.

I pulled the light buckets out of the grill and painted them silver to better reflect the light of the LEDs.

A quick test to make sure the new switch and my homemade light harness works before putting it all back together. Good to go!

Got the LEDs installed in the buckets and I'm ready to put everything back together.

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[j.krug]

Got the grill back into the body and I like the look of the silver headlight buckets even when the lights are off. Looks a little brighter and more realistic.

Here's a shot with the lights on. They appear to be nice and bright but I'll have to test them outside later to see how bright they actually are. I have them set up so I can turn them on and off with my transmitter.

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[OSRC]

That body is growing on me. I run my Wendigo body still and it's nice, but I'm coming around to this one. Looks good!

 

[JimK]

That body is growing on me. I run my Wendigo body still and it's nice, but I'm coming around to this one. Looks good!

Thanks! I was a fan of this body right from the start. That old "Jeepster" look is pretty cool looking to me.