Two Hard Body TH builds

[gvngoheavy]

Been very slowly collecting parts and used kits to build up a TH 1.9 rig.
Ended up with 2 kits and plans for two hard body builds.
One a more mild Scorcher body baja bug build.
The other a little more aggressive Hilux body cab only trail rig.
While I need to finish building two different TRF801s before I really get into building these Twin Hammers,
I wanted to start this thread as motivation and to get a little bit of input on what Im thinking.

Acouple pictures of where the Baja Bug sits right now:

Body obviously need some trimming and other work but I want to keep it as complete as possible.
I will be trying my hand at fabricating a custom cage to sure up the rear shock mounts, and provide some magnet and cup body mounts.

I have a HobbyWing XR10 Justock esc with a 21.5t bandit brushless motor in the Baja bug at the moment,
but from what I have been reading seems like I will have to go to either a 17.5t or 13.5t motor in this build

The Hilux Hammer is much more speculative than anything else, but I do have a quick sketch of what I will be going for with that build.
The KR2 tires off the Baja bug would be going on that build. K02s would be going on the Baja bug so I dont have to trim the fenders quite as much.
Have a 2900kv vanguard set up that will probably end up going in the Hilux.

Really have to get em running in a preliminary form to see how they handle then I will make a decision.

Also been playing with these autonomous vehicle design ideas, which would really focus more on optimizing performance over any kind of scale decisions.
More exploration is needed for these though.

 

[1tonblazer]

That's awesome, can't wait to see the end results

 

[Sr.Irie]

Very interested to see your builds, big fan of the air cooled VW's. Maybe it will even give some motivation to get back to my build

 

[gvngoheavy]

Little bit of an update. Mostly just that parts have come in, and a little bit of shock rebuilding.

The KO2's came in for the Baja Bug. Much bigger fan of the smaller K02 tires on this build.

And the hilux body and parts came in for the Hilux Hammer

I havent taken measurements, but I have a feeling that trimming+pinching
the front end by just one grill square will be just right for the twin hammers chassis.

The chassis fits very nicely within the tamiya hilux body

Also rebuilt a bunch of shocks too. Determined to figure out the laid down TH front shocks,
which may eventually involve playing with the suspension plate and rockers a little bit.
Maybe a closer to 1:1 leverage ratio rocker along with longer travel shocks.

For the moment Ive built up three sets of front shocks: 2 sets with hot racing threaded
bodies and 70wt oil. The third set a stock threaded body set with 80wt oil. One set of stock
threaded body rear shocks with 50wt oil. And lastly I tried to build up a set of gmade xd
shocks with 100wt oil but for whatever reason cannot slow the rebound.

Current state of the Hilux Hammer chassis... Seems like the to do list on these is just
growing longer and longer.

Got the TRF801XT-e running and ripping just in time for some snow fun. Probably THE worst paint job I have ever done.

<a data-flickr-embed="true" data-footer="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/135874471@N07/32673981492/in/datetaken/" title="Feb rc uploads"><img src="https://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2372/32673981492_24cb95b048_b.jpg" width="1024" height="576" alt="Feb rc uploads"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Just need to get the TRF801X-e SCT buttoned up:
Need to mod some AE SC10 bumpers and Proline slash body mounts onto the chassis
then paint the body. Then all my attention can be on getting these builds going.

 

[gvngoheavy]

WOAH its been a while.

I figured it would be a little while time I got this stuff really rolling but wow has it been a while! Lots of life happening and lots of other projects taking time and priority.
A new puppy has been one of those!

First things first. Where do the builds currently sit??

Right about here:

The Baja Bug Hammer:
Fully operational- just working on the body- 2 spd trans working well - HobbyWing Justock esc and 21.5t bandit motor with stock gearing makes for a perfect speed crawler trail rig for my wife! After I get everthing trimmed up and smoothed out I think I am going to get a couple parts from Junkyard stance on Shapeways to wrap up the aesthetic and then figure out how to attach the body to whats left of the stock twin hammers cage.

Either I use the magnetic body mounts and rely heavily on flexing the sides of the body to get it on and off or I fix the body permanently to the cage and make the frunk operational to access the battery. Yes there is enough room under there for a 143mm length 2200mah 2s battery! Flexing the sides seems like the easier route in both fabrication as well as daily function. But something is kind of pulling me towards the operational frunk idea. Very open to opinions!

The Hilux Hammer:
Fully Operational as well. Just working on the body. 1 spd transmission- Axial Ae-3 with vanguard 2800kv motor. I think eventually this fig will get a Mamba X with a sensored castle motor because low speed controllability in this is impossible compared to the baja bugs sensored 1900kv...

Similar dilema on this body for attachment but much further down the permanent attachment to the cage side here as the hood is going to stay bigger and I have to cut it off anyways to get the nose pinch to work well. Also I have to close off the back with the rc4wd back panel I have but that doesnt really work with the cage and tubular rear end. We shall see, we shall see. Also two of the mounting holes on the hilux body line up perfectly with the stock cage panel mounting holes... The cage is going to get heavily modded tho so that its got a taller cab section while still bracing the shock towers and mounting in a stock fashion to the chassis. Pictures will explain better once I get into it.

 

[gvngoheavy]

The thing that Id really mostly been working on with these was my own bellcrank shock plate. I just wasnt really happen with the one I had bought and want to at least for now try and retain the IFS since I still kind of think it so cool- Although the more I get into it the more I want to run a Scorched Parts Bellcrank and suspension set up so that I can relocate the steering servo and have all that room on the left side of the chassis!

Here are the parts I am running right now in both of the trucks: 5mm aluminum tube that the slash bellcranks fit onto. The aluminum tubes have been glued into the printed trusses

Then here it is with all the parts installed:

I really need to get these done before the summer is over. Walking the pup through the local park is a really good motivator!

Another side project Im playing with is hydro-dipping. Primarily I will be dipping my controllers. The wifes gt2b is going to get this oil slick dip with an undercoat of white with the spaz stix holographic sparkle. Excited to see how that turns out in the sun.

 

[gvngoheavy]

I got a couple minutes the other morning to cut into the hilux build a little bit more. After this I need to shelf it for a minute to pay attention to painting the Laja Bug. Laja because I call my wife Lala and this is her rig.

I was kind of hoping that I could mayyybe get away with just scoring and bending the fenders in to pinch and eek out enough clearance for the big-ish 1.9 kr2's.
Kind of like this:

Bit It just doesnt look like that will work without trimming off more of the fender than I care to. So the front end got chopped up even more. I will be cutting and re-assembling the fenders towards the cab side so that they will provide better clearance as well as mounting the cab further back than I originally wanted to. Just need to do a bit more planning and acquire a bit more patients to get this figured out, which is the reason for the shift in attention back to the Scorcher build.

I cant stop staring at just the cab on this chassis though. The cage is going to get chopped up and rebuilt so that it is taller and tucks properly into the cab of the hilux body. Have been debating what I want to do about battery placement to plan for a scorched parts steering set up with the battery relocated to the left hand drivers side. maybe the door can open instead of the hood? Not sure yet. TBD

 

[IVIaarten]

Really nice stuff. Looking forward to how they both end up.

 

[gvngoheavy]

Chipping away little bit by little bit.

Laja Bug:

Fenders got trimmed a bit more.

Roof got measured and curves taken for maybe a 3d printed roof rack and light bar set up? Not too convinced on whats out there. Also not a huge fan of the Shapeways prices when I have two 3d printers on hand. (Ok fine, one 3d printer- my solidoodle is the never ending frustration box)

Also played around with this thermoform plastic stuff my folks got me a while ago and managed to fab up a wonderful body mount solution for at least the rear! Playing around with solutions for the front but leaning more and more towards some kind of magnet set up.

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/135874471@N07/36580905612/in/datetaken/" title="IMG_0337"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4410/36580905612_61b10a9f3b_b.jpg" width="1024" height="576" alt="IMG_0337"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Extended hexes are on the way to try and keep from having to trim any more of the fenders as well as some magnets for that body mount. This one is feeling like its getting close and definitely on the right track.

Hilux:

Spent a while staring at the stacked cages deciding on what was to stay and what was to go. Heres a little time lapse of me trying to line things up and mark out where to cut.

<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/135874471@N07/36750634765/" title="IMG_0283"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4354/36750634765_03d29081b1_b.jpg" width="1024" height="576" alt="IMG_0283"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Finally went in on it and chopped it up and CA glued it back together. Contemplating how hard-core to go on this cage. Should I carbon wrap the joints? How about just a little bit of structural epoxy here and there? Just the CA glue with a little bit of filling then sanding here and there? Input and advice very much welcome here.

Side note - Dog nail clippers are awesome for chopping up these nylon cages. They give super clean buts that arent pinched.

Im at the point where I have to decide whether or not to just use hex extenders for right now or to hack the body up more than I had wanted to? Or to dump some money into the b5m front arm conversion? note to self: need to get my three trf801's sold...

Battery setup for Hilux:

SOOO with the scorched parts steering and front suspension set up decided on for the near enough future Ive started to play with ideas for the battery mounting. Ive resolved that he body will just come off as a unit using the same thermo-plastic stuffs to hold magnets here and there. Its the simplest and cleanest solution and at this point thats sounding really really nice.

This mini-project is in the baby stages right now but the idea is to integrate a water-tight RX box into that battery holder. Im going to be using o-rings to hold the battery in like the scorched parts battery holders. Also going to use a second o-ring to seal the RX box.

I really like the idea of running a 4000mah-5000mah shorty lipo:

At the moment though, ducket$ are tight so I will be running the small 2200mah 2s lipos I have on hand. Those also make the possibility of the RX box much more likely.

 

[smog]

Great project man! Both body choices are tres cool. I especially am enjoying your efforts with the Hilux body.

I wish I could give you solid advice with plastic cage welding, but I haven't a clue. I do know that CA glue has never worked for me. You might try asking the question in the paint and body section. I would be curious to know if there is an effective way.

The Scorched Parts front suspension setup is great. Nice choice.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I never had any interest in the TH until I saw your Beetle. That thing is awesome! "thumbsup"

 

[nosser]

Wow looks great! I'm thinking about a TH too now

 

[gvngoheavy]

And like that, just over a year later Im back at it! Its been a while.

Updates:
Hilux-
A lot has happened with this rig, and the path to completion has taken a couple twists and turns along the way.

At one point the front driveshaft from stock vaterra trans to the front dif decided to start slipping and I lost fwd. I thought I have blown up the front dif and resolved to just run a spare metal geared scx10 trans I had sitting around as 2wd with the wider buggy front arm conversion. Eventually ill collect all the parts and figure out a front center drive shaft to restore 4wd with the baja rock rey - x0-1 drive shaft swap. Ultimately I would like to put a hurtz-dig unit on this rig reversed, but thats a bit further down the line and would involve fabricating a lot of new stuff. The idea of having switchable 2wd-4wd with burnout front locked wheels is a crazy motivator though. Eventually.

Converted to scx10 trans and swapped in a HobbyWing Xerun SCT Pro ESC matched to a Novak Ballistic 13.5t motor. This combo is magic with better servo performance thanks to the better esc bec, and smooth creeping thanks to the sensored combo.

Tried this plastic welder epoxy that unfortunately only comes in cream color. So far the parking lot bashing and roll over testing has proven this to be a decent option for modifying nylon cages. It files and sands well and with more work than im willing to put into it right now could look pretty decent when painted.

I also got over my anxiety of cutting up the hood and slapping epoxy and fiberglass mat over the inside of the Hilux body. Ive finally mounted a couple magnets to mount the body. In a single weekend I was able to get the fenders attached to the cab, align the fenders with the grill and make up a little radiator core support kind of piece that holds magnets for the front grill and probably will hold magnets for the hood if I decide to make the hood openable.

I also fabbed up a half done little aluminum skidplate that will tie into the cage in the newer higher position in front.

One morning when I was hoping to solder up the ballistic motor I stripped out one of the cage mounts so now I need to fabricate a new way to mount the cage to the chassis tub. I have a feeling that will be complished through some cut down and shaped aluminum angle thats tapped for larger bolts. The current plan is to screw it to the chassis tub like stock, then screw the cage into it so that if I strip it out in the future it can be replaced without having to cut up the cage anymore.

Baja Bug-
Other than finally getting out and running this rig not too much has changed on this set up.

I still need to get the front of the body mounted, then prep and paint this bug. At the moment the plan for paint is going to be tan base with some touches of tequila sunrise red-pink-orange messy fades. I also want to make a new front battery mount so that I can plop a small 3s pack in there for a little more speed. Eventually Ill also swap out these wheels for the sr-03 to add a little bit of weight down low, and run the rc4wd super detailed goodyear wrangler tires with one of the current wheels as a nice closer to matching spare. Then eventually this will include a 3d printed interior with bobble head figure and seats and lights and all the scale goodies, but thats further down the line when both of these have bodies that dont fly off and are totally mechanically sorted.

Anyways, sorry for the massive hiatus. Ill try and be a little bit better about that, especially now that Im able to find 15mins here and there to chip away at these two projects.

 

[Natedog]

Great project man! Both body choices are tres cool.

I wish I could give you solid advice with plastic cage welding, .... I do know that CA glue has never worked for me. You might try asking the question in the paint and body section. I would be curious to know if there is an effective way.

The Scorched Parts front suspension setup is great. Nice choice.

X2 "thumbsup"


Best way to do the cages I've found is cut, fishmouth 'tube', drill and use piano wire or setscrew to bridge the joint and glue with E6000.

Tried this plastic welder epoxy that unfortunately only comes in cream color. So far the parking lot bashing and roll over testing has proven this to be a decent option for modifying nylon cages. It files and sands well and with more work than im willing to put into it right now could look pretty decent when painted.

I also got over my anxiety of cutting up the hood and slapping epoxy and fiberglass mat over the inside of the Hilux body. Ive finally mounted a couple magnets to mount the body. In a single weekend I was able to get the fenders attached to the cab, align the fenders with the grill and make up a little radiator core support kind of piece that holds magnets for the front grill and probably will hold magnets for the hood if I decide to make the hood openable.

That plastic weld epoxy looks interesting. Best results with styrene seem to be acetone mixed with styrene scraps preferably of the same color plastic (although they will be lighter in color) and as close an initial parts fitment as you can get. This has great gap filling and layer building ability and is a quick strong bond! It's what I've been using on my RC4WD TF2 body.



Btw, two very nice Twammers! "thumbsup"

 

[rs10man]

Awesome builds, really like what you’ve done with them.
I built this one and sold it to a friend, but have a new one now and undecided to do another hard body build on it or not.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[theclimber]

Awesome builds, really like what you’ve done with them.
I built this one and sold it to a friend, but have a new one now and undecided to do another hard body build on it or not.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

what body you used on this one?
look awsome, I'm looking for ways to refresh my twin hammers look

 

[Shinchu]

Radical!
I have something very similar in mind. But involves somehow NARROWING the track width of a TH by an inch or so. Crazy? Maybe... But this thread of yours is very inspirational!