The Wild Lady..... Mercedes G500 Project

[xagoras]

Not much to do while waiting for the new body to get here, so did some work on the chassis instead.

Got a Yeah Racing rear bumper and LCG Battery Tray and installed them.




The bumper sits a bit lower than I would have liked it on the lower mounting position. The higher position requires some inner fender trimming. The stock bumper has to be removed as well.








The battery tray sits nice and low. Actually lower than the one I installed on my other TRX4. It keeps the battery almost flat. The plastic bit between the rails, had to move a few holes back to accomodate the longer 5000MAh battery.

 

[OnTheTrail]

Be careful of that battery tray. I got one and it limited the rear axle travel significantly compared to stock tray or the Bowhouse.

 

[xagoras]

Be careful of that battery tray. I got one and it limited the rear axle travel significantly compared to stock tray or the Bowhouse.

I noticed that. At first I thought it was hitting the battery, but it seems that it hits the metal plate. I'll have to do some tests to see if it's an issue.

 

[JCM5]

The bumper sits a bit lower than I would have liked it on the lower mounting position. The higher position requires some inner fender trimming. The stock bumper has to be removed as well.

Easy fix is cut the top of the YR bracket that way you can use the lower mounting hole and you don’t need to cut the inner fender.

 

[xagoras]

Easy fix is cut the top of the YR bracket that way you can use the lower mounting hole and you don’t need to cut the inner fender.

Hmm, I was thinking about it today. It's a permanent mod, but I'll probably do that once the new body is painted and mounted.

 

[ScaleLifeNewbie]

I noticed that. At first I thought it was hitting the battery, but it seems that it hits the metal plate. I'll have to do some tests to see if it's an issue.

I have that same exact battery tray on my TRX4 and compressing the rear axle all the way it actually hits the battery, not the tray. I am running an even bigger battery then you though(Traxxas 2S 7600mAh), so maybe that's why. But, it's not a big deal because the only time the rear axle compresses all the way up on both sides is landing hard on jumps-which my truck doesn't do(at least in my hands!)

Anyways, carry on"thumbsup"

 

[xagoras]

Well, the limitation of shock travel because of the battery tray was significant. Maybe 6-7mm.




I tried to put some washers to raise it a little bit, but it didn't do the trick. The lower mounting part of the tray was hitting the links.




So I ended up turning the mounting bracket by 90 degrees and now the tray sits around 10mm higher on the back side.




It raised the CG a bit, but it's a compromise I'm willing to make if I want peace of mind that it will not bang into my Lipo battery all the time






I had a couple of runs on my homemade test board, and there's a lot of clearance now "thumbsup"

 

[xagoras]

OK, new body and colors finally here





This time we went with Tamiya Fluo Pink PS-29 and Bright Silver PS-41. Time to hit the paintshop :lol:

 

[Phildirt]

Team Pepto Bismol!

Excited for this one...what are the plans for the other body?

 

[xagoras]

Team Pepto Bismol!

Excited for this one...what are the plans for the other body?

Team Pepto Bismol? :lmao: I should have gotten some yellow too.


I have some ideasa about the other one. I'm probably going to turn it into a pure crawling body. I'm thinking to cutoff the top and turn it into a truck. Not sure yet. Just thinking stuff.

 

[xagoras]

The paint job is progressing slower than I expected because of the weather. It's been windy and rainy almost all day. I painted black some rear lights guards I got the other day from Yeah Racing.






The Dremel got busy and cut the top part of the rear fender. It now sits around 6mm higher, without trimming the inner fenders






I was thinking of a way to move the battery to the front, without raising the CG. I'm thinking to utilise the stock battery tray and some typical L shape magnet holders. I think it can be mounted on the inner fender's light holes with the L shape holders and then screw the stock holder on the back to hold it in place.

I need to shave off the little battery's area to make it sit lower. If I make it sit in the right angle, it will probably clear the sub servos movement without problem. The idea is to move the CG a bit to the front. It's probably on the same height as the current tray, or perhaps just a bit higher.






What do you reckon? Is it worth the trouble? Should be an improvement, CG wise, right?

 

[Phildirt]

I’d think with the motor where it is you’d be fairly balanced with the battery in the rear and it may be the photos but it looks a little on the high side how you have it sitting.

I’ve found on my Enduro that too much front bias is not optimal, I’m actually looking into a way to transfer some weight rearward.


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[xagoras]

I haven't cut any plastic yet. The bottom part of the stock tray will go away, and it will sit much lower. I just placed them on top to get the idea of what it will look like. I'd think that moving the battery to the front would improve performance.

It doesn't affect any other component of the car, so I might as well give it a try to see what happens.

 

[xagoras]

BOOM! Finally there...













Of course the glitter couldn't miss the party






The rear bumper sits perfect and the departure angle is not affected much either.




And of course I lost the arguement with my daughter about the chrome parts, so they are back. Her rig, her rules she says :lmao:




This time it came out perfectly. Fluo pink was the right choise for this. The Transluscent Pink was a great color and have much potential, but didn't quite fit this project.

In case someone is interested, I did 3-4 thin coats of pink, then a couple of coats RC Car Silver Glitter RCC924, then backed up with Tamiya silver. The fenders, same process but black instead of pink.

The little one is happy with it, so I'm happy with it too.






Now it's stickers time :lmao:

 

[smc-93]

BOOM! Finally there...



























Of course the glitter couldn't miss the party













The rear bumper sits perfect and the departure angle is not affected much either.









And of course I lost the arguement with my daughter about the chrome parts, so they are back. Her rig, her rules she says :lmao:









This time it came out perfectly. Fluo pink was the right choise for this. The Transluscent Pink was a great color and have much potential, but didn't quite fit this project.



In case someone is interested, I did 3-4 thin coats of pink, then a couple of coats RC Car Silver Glitter RCC924, then backed up with Tamiya silver. The fenders, same process but black instead of pink.



The little one is happy with it, so I'm happy with it too.













Now it's stickers time :lmao:

That is violently pink now, huge difference from the first body. It still looks really good though. I hope your little one will have a blast driving it

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[Phildirt]

Looks fantastic. Glad my daughter doesn't have forum access although a pink Deadbolt might look kind of cool.

 

[xagoras]

I'm sure it will make heads turn down at the beach. Especially if I'm the one driving it :lmao:

 

[xagoras]

Little girls and unicorns go hand in hand, so...

 

[JCM5]

Oh gosh, I hope my daughter don’t see this lol, pink and unicorn are her favorite too haha. This turn out beautiful!!

 

[xagoras]

After a long waiting period, more parts arrived. Mainly the 25kg Power HD servo and the front bumper. Some small scale bits as well.




Took the rigs out to a nearby canyon for a test run












This little pink crawler drives beatifully on the trail and can handle the rocks extremely well. Especially with the modified Canyon Trails fitted. It gave me ideas about turning the other body into a more crawler biased rig.

There's still the mounting issue to be sorted, because these body clips get on my nerves everytime. Magnetic body mounts are on the way here.