Redcat steering thread

[Overkel]

So after 2 hours of wrenching and congratulating myself for being such a creative genius....wait...wuts this? The steering arm hits the servo and doesn't allow full steering throw? #$%@&!!!

Well hopefully in my sleep tonight I can come up with something even more geniuser. (AND actually works too)

 

[Overkel]

Ok this pick has a couple things to talk about. First there's the D-lux servo mount. It would have worked just as well as the Bully one, but would have needed some drilling done and I did not want to go that far until I proved the concept.

Good thing I waited, since it didn't work the way I was hoping for.

 

[Overkel]

So what I wanted to talk about is the 2 high clearance steering arms.
First I will say that n my experience the cheap steering arm that is on this rig is way better than BTA mods and much easier. BTA is better than stock (IMO), but still gets hung up once in a while as you are cresting a rock. The high clearance rod almost never hits anything and is a clear upgrade in my experience.

Here's my problem with the one that is mounted in the pic. I shortened it for one set up and have needed it back to it's original length ever since. You can see where I have unscrewed the rod ends about as far as they will go in order to get some length back. I bought it on Z-no and don't know where to find another one now. The thickness of it works really nice with the shock mounts and I like that because it allows me to come up with new and innovative configurations. I could swear Axial made this high clearance steering arm, but cannot seem to track it down. Any helps would be appreciated.

Ok. Moving on to the new one. You can see that it is actually too long and much thinner. This is Ok because I want to do some custom bending and the extra length might just come in handy for that. It is titanium and I want some type of tool to bend it with. I have a vice, but that hardly seems acurate enough for what I want to do. Does any one know what tool to use and where to get it? I am hoping for something hand held and not too expensive. Whatever tool I get, I'll use to make links on a future build so it doesn't have to be super cheap... I just don't want to spend 10X what I spent on the part I will be bending if you know what I mean.

 

[Otis Fudpucker]

A stick of 8/32 all thread, 1/4" brake line and some revo rod ends
do well for high clearance tie rod or making cheap links. The shock
mounts fit tight enough they won't slip on the brake line.

 

[Otis Fudpucker]

They are stout enough you can bend them into shape in your vice without kinking them up.
It works out a lot easier than trying to use a tubing bender.

 

[sandyx]

Now that's a sick turn! Are you getting enough wheel torque at those extremes or getting a twist? There's much less Redcat left in that truck.

 

[Overkel]

There's no torque twist because it is not a shafty. I don't have issues with motor torque when turning at full steer, but I do run into issues with servo torque at the extremes. I also run into issues with the knuckles hitting the axle at full turn. If I can find just the right shape of arm on the knuckle I can get a little more angle. If I can get the right configuration I think I can get full servo torque at full turn both directions. I am still working on those 2 issues. These are not really issues other than the fact that I want to continue to try and push the envelope just a little more. Eventually I expect to have to trim my rims in order to get more angle, but I am not to the point where I need to do that yet.

The stock rims are strong, good looking, and light weight (once you get rid of those metal rings), so they will probably be one of the last stock pieces on the rig other than the axle cases. I always try to reincorporate old Redcat parts back onto the rig when it makes any kind of sense. Just for nostalgia.

Someday I hope to be in front of a large pile of Berg, Axial, and Bully gears to see if any of them can transfer over. I have no issues with my current gearing set up (Stock Redcat plastic in the rear and metal in the front), it's just something I want to do for the sake of science. That will be a ways down the road. For now I am still trying to perfect the steering.

 

[Overkel]

A stick of 8/32 all thread, 1/4" brake line and some revo rod ends
do well for high clearance tie rod or making cheap links. The shock
mounts fit tight enough they won't slip on the brake line.

Well I have the all thread and revo ends, but I want it to look nicer than that. It is right out front.

Do I just get a tube bender at an auto parts store, or is there a good place to shop for them online?

 

[Freitas118]

Hey I am wondering is there a way to fit differant axles/diff assembly onto the rs10?


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[cabron]

if you mean a complete axle/housing assembly then the answer is yes.
since most are held on by the four suspension arms it is no trouble to swap out
the entire unit. just have to have the proper length links to get the wheelbase you want
and the camber (or motor clearance) you want.

as a rule, the rig is defined by the axles, not by the chassis. so say you used a pair of bully axles
you would now have a bully not an rs10.

one of the nicer swaps is the rs10 axles on a gmade r1 chassis.

 

[Freitas118]

Do u know any axles that u recomend ?


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[cabron]

for serious crawlers or those with an eye to competing it is hard to beat the quality of the bull2 axles
for out-of-the-box performance. they do not need any modifications to be comp ready like say the bergs.

but for low cost tinkering it is hard to beat the rs10 to learn about moas and crawling at an affordable price .

if I was going to go with a shafty I would go ahead and jump into an axial since it seems that most other brands
seem to be able to use axial parts. haha and there are lots of aftermarket axial parts.

 

[Overkel]

Hey I am wondering is there a way to fit differant axles/diff assembly onto the rs10?


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You can get metal gears from ebay and use a shortened traxxas slash universal if you just want to strengthen the existing RS10 axle.

If you want completely different axles, I'd sell the Redcat and start all over. That super heavy metal chassis is pretty lame place to start a new build IMO. Outside of that, I'd go with what Cabron said about the Bully 2 axles.

 

[fleckofly]

What kind of angle do you think I have so far? I have no clue how to measure it.

i have no idea how the steering angle is measured but i'd have a guess that you're getting at least a 60 degree angle. A builders protractor might help you determine it better than my eye

BTW you're freakin awesome you've done a brilliant job. a link to this should be on the tips and tricks page. i'm going to do a few of these mods to my own.

P.S. the link to the DLUX FAB site is a bit confusing exactly what knuckles did you buy from them?

 

[cabron]

dlux sells several brands as well as his own setup.
his own setup run at about 100.00 a pair depending on which particular options yo want

plus he will modify them for your particular needs depending on his time and your money
dlux's knuckles can fit just about any c-hubs. they are made to fit the axles and stubs
that he modifies for extra steering but one of the options is the stock axial wraith/sc10 universals
which use the same bearings as the rs10.

right now I could put a set of axial universals using the dlux knuckles on my rs10 at a cost
of only 350.00 - 400.00 dollars and get almost 70 degrees of steering angle
as soon as I win the lottery it will be the fourth purchase I make. my 2 bergs
have been waiting 2 years for them. haha

 

[Overkel]

The exact knuckles I used were the ax10/scx10 knuckles. Those will work from any brand you use, although I did recently get a set of the Vanquish berg knuckles on close out for $21. The vanquish berg knuckle does not have any holes in it to add weights at a later time, but works great for the price. The Vanquish ax10 and the D-lux ax10 both have holes for adding weights if that is a factor. The vanquish ax10 knuckle is probably all anyone needs. It fits great, has holes for weights and cost about 1/3 of the D-lux.

The one thing that the D-lux has that none of the others have, is the 2 extra bearings per knuckle that makes them buttery smooth when turning, but it's not like that really matters once you've hooked up your steering tie rod, servo, and have a bunch of rocks and rubber underneath you. There's really no issues with the others as far as smoothness, so it might not be something that really needs to be paid extra for. The looks on the other hand....it might be worth stepping up for the bling factor more so than for the performance difference that you might not even notice.

You might want to hold up for a minute before you make any purchases. I just spent an entire day putting all 4 sets of after market knuckles on and taking pics. You will be able to see D-lux, hot racing, and 2 different Vanquish knuckles. Once you've trimmed off the steering tabs from the axle, it turns out that even the cheapest ones will get more turning than I can use.

The universal joint will start to bind at some point and the servo only gives you so much steering throw. It turns out that the knuckles aren't really much of a factor as long as they are a "high steer" knuckle that wont bang into the axle. Anyway the new pics will be up in a day or 2.

 

[cabron]

good one
thanks overkel it will be nice to have all the pictures close together to be able to
compare

dlux grinds on the universals to keep from binding as much, he claims 70 degrees
using a longer servo horn will get you more throw from the servo

when trying to adapt universals it is important to get the pivot pin aligned with the
bushings or the steering will also try to bind up. looking at the dlux knuckles, we can make
top and bottom plates to get the pivot aligned properly

 

[Overkel]

"right now I could put a set of axial universals using the dlux knuckles on my rs10 at a cost
of only 350.00 - 4000.00 dollars and get almost 70 degrees of steering angle"

Which axial universals? Can you post a link please?

Also, if you have any input into how to set up my servo and steering tie rods in order to take advantage of that much angle....I'd be all ears.

I have that extra steering tie rod that I haven't bent up yet. I could totally bend it so that it doesn't hit the bulge in the gear case under extreme turning angles.
I just haven't had a reason to do it yet.

On a non steering related note....do any of the Berg gears happen to be the same as any of the Redcat gears? At some point when the build is done, I will want to put it on a diet and try to push the envelope that way for a bit. Currently the metal Redcat gears I have in the front are a little on the heavy side. Sure I can drill them out, but they seem pretty hard
and I'm not sure my drill would be up to it.

 

[Overkel]

Lol you answered while I was typing. Man you are fast.

My main concern is length. I don't see any way to buy longer axles (of that type) and cut them.
Just going by eyeball...it looks like I'd need 2 Berg short sides. Do you have an Axial to do a mock up
by any chance? Just for length.

 

[cabron]

I bought some axial short side and they are longer that we need
I found some universal couplers that can be attached to the spur gear shaft and
will fit the trimmed axial shaft ( 4mm for the uni shaft - 5mm for the spur gear shaft)

I can post pictures if you want