Time BOM

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

All the clever names for BOM threads were taken, but I like... I like mine. My wife likes mine. My customers like mine. 'Cause I'm the real article.... This won’t add much to the GMADE forum but here goes!

For the past 5 years I’ve just been faffing about with “scale” crawler builds but never finished one or even crawled before. I decided I’m gonna buy something capable, durable, with a lexan body that looks cool to thrash on while I learn the basics. So you guys sold me on the BOM....

A few months ago I hit the rocks & trails for the first time and EVERYTHING I’ve been reading on here for years makes sense now. For example I now know what “torque twist” is. Also I never payed attention to things like steering angle, electronics setup, OD/UD... list goes on.

If it wasn’t for the cantilevered suspension I would have kept up with some serious trucks. It would do AMAZING until it didn’t LOL. I even tried the “new2rocks spread” but it still launched right off the rocks w/o warning. After a while the NYC folks with their ‘tude’ made me feel no one was interested in hearing “who and what” a GMADE BOM is... So next time out I want to show them what I know this rig can do.

The - what I used to think was “boring stuff”:
HW 1080 (amazing)
Apex 21t motor
Power HD 20k 6.6v w/pitbull servo arm
Venom 2S 5000 20c
Old futaba 3pl

ON TO PHOTOS THAT HOPEFULLY EXPLAIN TITLE (in stock form)

Then as the silver paint was drying I found MCI sticker guy who sells TYCO Bandit stickers online. It would have been nice to find this beforehand so I could of painted it black :-/ So I just switched the decal colors...

ANY child of the 80s & 90s will understand the following (and even older RC folks “taking their kids” to Kaybee & Toys r Us)

Then I went for my first crawl.... NYC is tough and not having any RC friends I was thankful a local but rowdy FB group accepted me. Here’s the proof lol

As I mentioned above I could keep up with some petty serious rigs or even took some lines they had trouble with (OK OK they may have pointed a line or two out for me). However, once the torque twist kicked in, literally jumped off the rocks...

Either way the inevitable happened and:

“UPGRADES”

TRX 4 GTS 90mm shocks x4.
Bowhouse SCX10.2 solid servo/bumper mount.
SSD SCX10.2 shock towers.
SSD SCX10.2 knuckles.
SSD SCX10.2 brass weights.
Chanquish 1.9 wheels.
Custom rear shock mount canted forward. Junfac aluminum rear frame brace with aluminum cage mount.
Junfac aluminum frame brace.
Junfac aluminum shock tower brace.
Stretch WB by approx. 12mm
- Jato end links in rear (+8mm)
- Spacers in front links (+4mm)
GRC SCX10.2 inner fenders
eBay SCX10.2 front guard thing
Proline roof rack
Tamiya High-Lift Hilux “lights” from rollbar.
RC4WD Baja Rey billet spare tire wingnut thing

I’m trying to go for a “pre-runner” look

The Bowhouse SCX10.2 solid servo/bumper mount is awesome btw. The overly complicated, rubbery, and fiddly servo mount HAD to go. That w/the SSD shock/panhard mount eliminated all the flex caused by the servo.

Clearance is microscopic but I have plenty of room to space it still.

Auxiliary receiver box (weight holder) goes on roof. I like it...

The TRX4 GTS shocks feel so smooth I don’t want to open them and mess them up. I’ll have to try them first as is. I was able to get it lower with the canted rears and just the softer nature of these shocks.

The OEM tires will rub at the new ride height...

“STANCED YO!!”

Sorry bout that Maloo...

SOOO this is how it’s sitting currently but I haven’t been out since I’ve upgraded. I’m planning on taking out this weekend so I’m sure I’ll have plenty of questions.

Thanks for looking and I hope this post works (using my phone cuz I can’t get it to work on my pc)

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[soze]

Very nice! I'm actually still running the cantilevers, but you really need the sway bar. It's actually a pretty darn good performer when set up right. Which reminds me that I need to get back to this project!

 

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Very nice! I'm actually still running the cantilevers, but you really need the sway bar. It's actually a pretty darn good performer when set up right. Which reminds me that I need to get back to this project!

Thanks man, your build was a huge help. Eventually if I make it a flat bed or something I’ll try out the cantilever set up again.

On another note my passenger side CVD or hub has this squeak/creak sound when I try to manually turn my wheels with the servo connected. Same with stock and SSD knuckles.
Anybody else have this?


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[OSRC]

Great to see another BOM build, mine was straight up dialed with just a few mods. Great truck!

 

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Great to see another BOM build, mine was straight up dialed with just a few mods. Great truck!

I can’t wait to get it out now with the mods I’ve done. I’ve only crawled once ever, and it was this truck in stock form. It performed better than other trucks that shoulda wiped the floor with, especially w/me behind the wheel [emoji1787]




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[VR6 BeelzeDub]

OSRC - thank you also btw for your build, a lot of useful info!


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[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Went crawling this past Sunday at a local spot called Orchard Beach to test out the upgrades and had a blast. Also wanted to check out how these RC4WD Goodyear Wrangler A/T Adventures work since I can’t seem to find any reviews on them?

The details are amazing and the proportions remind me of old school Baja/pre-runners, which is the look I’m sorta going for. I totally meant to switch to stock for comparison’s sake... But I couldn’t put the transmitter down.

Stock 1.9s vs RC4WD 1.9s (both stock foams)
Current ride height after Taxxas GTS shocks + 12mm lengthened wheelbase:

Stock setup:

I had no idea how, and if, they would work appropriately as this isn’t a “scale” rig. They worked great though... Course sand, finer sand, and even on wet rocks they hooked up great. I really have no experience to base this off of lol.

I found this cool gorge/canyon and took some establishing shots in poser mode, forgetting to attempt any action shots as I got carried away #tinytruck-ing (apologies for breaking protocol)

Some post-action shots exposing the fact I left my undies at home. This most amazing save is ruined by the fact I forgot to put on my inner fenders and left all exposed... forever.

Met some strangers with similar interests and had a blast

It was a good day and I’m officially hooked
This was only my second time crawling and w/the mods, I can honestly say this rig only gets better.


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[1SLWMoFo]

Hey VR6,
The truck looks amazing! The mods you did will definitely work great for you. The almost completely eliminate torque twist and the rig will become way more predictable and easier to drive. I’ve been running the majority of those upgrades for a while now, mostly on comps and challenges, and my Bom outperforms almost everybody (except those purpose built C2 rigs with light as F, low CG flat plate chassis with no scale items...). Up front I run a regular 10.2 style alu servo mount and the stock battery box and regular brass wheel weights with Gmade alu knuckles, sitting on the same Traxxas GTS shocks (amazing stuff). They’re mounted to 10.2 style alu shock towers and using the Gmade front tower brace as well. With these , and a few other non-critical upgrades, my Bom became soooooo much better handling and fun to comp.

Two questions with regards to the BH battery plate. How do you like it and does it really stiffens up the front of the chassis? Does the servo mounts securely and, if removed, will the material still holds a thread properly?

Drive yours a bit more and let us know you’re experience.

 

[JacktheRipper]

"thumbsup"I like , NY-tude ........ lmao:lmao:

Pep

 

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Hey VR6,
The truck looks amazing! The mods you did will definitely work great for you. The almost completely eliminate torque twist and the rig will become way more predictable and easier to drive. I’ve been running the majority of those upgrades for a while now, mostly on comps and challenges, and my Bom outperforms almost everybody (except those purpose built C2 rigs with light as F, low CG flat plate chassis with no scale items...). Up front I run a regular 10.2 style alu servo mount and the stock battery box and regular brass wheel weights with Gmade alu knuckles, sitting on the same Traxxas GTS shocks (amazing stuff). They’re mounted to 10.2 style alu shock towers and using the Gmade front tower brace as well. With these , and a few other non-critical upgrades, my Bom became soooooo much better handling and fun to comp.

Two questions with regards to the BH battery plate. How do you like it and does it really stiffens up the front of the chassis? Does the servo mounts securely and, if removed, will the material still holds a thread properly?

Drive yours a bit more and let us know you’re experience.

Thanks man! Your build was another crucial go to for advice, especially regarding the GTS shocks (they really are flawless). I was able to buy them for $40 second hand but never used.

Bowhouse battery/servo mount:
It combined with the aluminum shock towers/panhard mount eliminated all the flex caused by steering.
However, because I used magnets to mount the body I couldn't fit the battery and the strut brace which I forgot to post lol. Without it I can still manually "pinch" the tops of the towers but I don't THINK this is a problem.
So far it seems to hold threads but I only removed and re-installed the servo once.

This rig makes quick work of obstacles. I think the tires im currently using reduce its performance but I just have to be clever about my lines. I cant imagine how well it would do with some of the more proper tire choices. TOO EASY!

 

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

"thumbsup"I like , NY-tude ........ lmao:lmao:

Pep

LOL. Yeah its just... exhausting.

 

[VR6 BeelzeDub]

So this thing is a BEAST of a machine that continues to amaze me...

Recently my buddies pushed me to take lines that I thought were impossible but I was wrong...

That day as the group thinned out, we were left with: 2 heavily modded rigs, myself, and a Capra. As seen below on our way to “Two Tree Island” (I want to call it Cape Dead Rock though)

The contenders:

Cape Dead Rock has one section with 3 nearly vertical drops that the big boys were lining up for. After studying possible lines they started down and made it (after a few attempts). Mind Blown lol, so they told me to stop being a ***** and do it... so I did, and I ALMOST made it. Radio/ESC setup was to blame and will post in electronics forum for help lol.

Pic found online of spot:

And just cuz I’m so proud of this local spot:
Two Tree Island - Pelham Bay Park, NYC (AKA Cape Dead Rock ;-D )

Some earlier pics of me pushing my way to the front with the big boys lol!

I really do love this hobby...
(I’m the fat red one below)

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[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Last weekend I joined my friends at the LHS indoor course they built and, as usual, this thing kicked ass...

Just posing with my new bumper before taking a crack at the course

This setup stays so planted and even allows for some pretty significant adjustments and “roll backs” for multiple attempts on seriously steep obstacles. The only thing holding it back were my tires (sadly... though expected)

I borrowed my friend’s Pitbull Berserkers and loved them... Hopefully I can upload this video via Tapatalk:

https://youtu.be/yaCx8t_7dZo

When it’s less busy I’ll get some proper videos showing how much correcting can be done with this setup. The thing just didn’t want to give up, flip, nada...

The Pitbull Berserkers just tearing sh** up!

I loved them so much I just spend a small fortune on a set:

SGT Reese checking for clearance... or something

My friend swore his Pitbulls were 1.9 but I think they were 1.55 on 1.7 wagon wheels. Mine look bigger right?

Anyway next time I’m out in the real world I’ll be doing a comparison with my RC4WD tires (which look much better IMHO...) I’m hoping the Pitbulls don’t wear out so fast.

Any opinions on foams for these tires?


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[VR6 BeelzeDub]

Tested both tires on Sunday.

Conditions were COLD and dry.
Both are using stock foams.
Both are 110mm (although when mounted the RC4WDs are taller?)
Both are considered “scale” tires
Both on same exact wheel type.
NOTE****PBs were NOT broken in in anyway while the RC4WDs have some time under their belt.****

PBs immediately caked up with clay making them almost useless while the RC4WDs still had tire contact in the same exact spot.

PBs did good on wet rocks but RC4WDs did even better.

The RC4WD’s design and foams are much softer so tend to (REALLY) fold over and “push” out while side-hilling (especially when side-hilling & turning). The PBs are more stable in this situation as they’re much stiffer.

Again, PBs were not broken in and I’m NO expert... (as seen below with the Pitbulls)

#### 2 MANY LUGS ####

I truly enjoyed Tinytruck-ing more with the RC4WDs...

Eventually I think I got salt water in my HW1080 on/off button and lost drive :-/

A little bummed the tires didn’t do better but I’m sure it’s cuz I didn’t break them in. Any tips????


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