My Rig.

[SleptOver]

I have a uhm.. 2? year old Silver TRX-4 Defender.


Its got a light kit, metal roof rack, with lights, dual motor front winch, rear hitch, and a 2 axle trailer. Metal gearbox, Metal gearbox mount. Hot Racing Front CV axle shafts (spring steel) front/rear axles in aluminum, brass weights front rear, front has brass outer portal covers. And the front bumper mount is also brass. Front and rear bumpers are aluminum, with aluminum shackles. Various other parts include all three high/low/locking servos upgraded, and I fitted a high voltage BEC for the servo.



I've fitted a Hobbywing Fusion Crawler 1800kv Motor With Built In ESC.

eTronix Digital Metal Geared Waterproof - 30.3 kg steering servo



hm..



There is probably more, though I have 4 new rims/tires on order.

 

[high plains drifter]

Welcome to the forum. Nice looking trx4. "thumbsup"

 

[DirtMerchant]

Looking good! I like the red on that winch you've got up front. I've always liked the way that Defender body looks. Welcome to the forum.

 

[B-MOW71]

Good looking Defender! Welcome to RCC!"thumbsup"

 

[SleptOver]

Thanx guys Wintertime is here, so time to fit my plow

 

[SleptOver]

Well, I got the new rims today, so new wheels are on the thing, I was pleasantly surprised of the quality of them china beadlocks, "GRC Racing" branded, model G02.

China tires, with two stage foam. They are Ok, super grippy, even on snow, but they feel like they will perish due to UV exposure relatively fast.
Installed a few other pieces, metal grids over the rear windows (Those tiny screws+nuts was a pain), some skid plates, though some did not fit due to the metal axles.

I also ruined my servo, I knew I forgot something, and setting the endpoints was one of those things.. It's got a lot of slop in it now as it's actually slapped the frame on full left lock... Oh well, you learn something new every day.

Happy with the look and heft of the new wheels.. I think it will look a lot better with the 5 mm wider portal half-shafts I have ordered.

 

[SleptOver]

I also found a home for my old tires

they are bolt on on my Savage XS Flux Kinda big, but hell, if it fits... lol

I know the wheels are not on the right way, I am just testing at this point...

Also, Holy heck that stock HPI servo is slow..

 

[SleptOver]

I suppose when I get my other TRX-4 build on the go, I can tow IT around... for now, my Savage XS Flux gets the free ride over bumpy roads

 

[high plains drifter]

Very cool. Any details on the trailer? Wondering what brand and if you're happy with it. I've been looking at buying one.

 

[SleptOver]

Very cool. Any details on the trailer? Wondering what brand and if you're happy with it. I've been looking at buying one.

This is a KYX branded trailer: https://www.ebay.com/itm/223658795329


It's got a few weaknesses, I think the tow bar itself, could have been made out of profiled metal, not just a flat piece, as I feel it could potentially bend, and it doesn't look quite right in my eyes, though so far it's been plenty strong.



It did not come with a powersupply for the lights, and there is no good way to route the wires in a concealed manor. Perhaps using metal tubing on the underside, it could be done cleanly, with a battery box on the tow bar. I chose not to mount the LED's themselves, but the colored glass is in there.


The suspension works, and it can take an extremely heavy load. It does articulate over rocks and stuff, that being said, I think it's a bit too stiff as it requires a hefty load to actually have the springs compress, we're talking maybe 20 kg, not that it would mind having such a load..



The front stabilizer bar, is a screw, it takes forever to lower/rise, and it's in the way when you are doing tight corners, especially when backing up, so I tend to have it removed while driving. It interferes with the spare wheel on my Defender.



I also mounted a functional ball hitch on my trailer in stead of that "balljoint" style it came with..


I have been thinking of modifying it more to my liking, but haven't done so yet.

Mainly making a new tow bar, possibly out of 6mm round stock.


It's of a durable design, hard rubber wheels, and uhm.. Overall, considering the price, I like it.

 

[high plains drifter]

That was a great review. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts. Nothing you mentioned would steer me away from it so I might put this on my holiday wish list. If the tires could be replaced with something softer, that would really make me want to pull the trigger. Thanks again.

 

[SleptOver]

Doh....

Well, I ordered myself two new servos, one for a project, and one for this thing...
As my servo had failed.
Well...
It hadn't...
Goddamned servohorn screw came loose, I thought the gears where stripped.. lol

Anywho, after I made this discovery, I fitted the servo to a brass front bumper mount I have from Ebay, To get more space around the body mount, and to make it a bit more accessible, it also shifts the weight somewhat towards the front, and lowers the CG as the servo now sits a bit lower in the chassis.
My next task was to setup the new servo location. Thankfully that's super easy with the stock Traxxas radio, so I reversed the channel, did the basic trim, and set new endpoints... I also put blue Locktite on all the screws.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/403602612645

I originally bought that mount because I have a snowplow for my TRX-4 and I wanted something more solid for it in case of sudden stops..

 

[SleptOver]

Well, I got these today...

Turned out they where not a direct fit, at least not if you have an aluminum gearbox - in that case, the front driveshaft, will hit the body of the gearbox due to the uv joint is larger than the OEM one, and it sticks out further when the truck articulates..

I used a dremel and a tungsten burr, to carve out more room, I used a black pencil to stain the spot I cleaned, and ran the driveshaft again to see if more had to be taken off, I ended up removing perhaps 1 mm at the most.

They do feel smoother than the oem driveshafts, and they are very beefy vs the stock ones.

 

[SleptOver]

I got the bluetooth module for the Controller today, I figure I might as well test it out...

In the process of updating the firmware now...

Scared the hell out of me when it suddenly took off on the stand ... lol

I wonder what exiting new features this might bring.. lol