82 replies to this topic

[Yello]

Building the Baldre right now, and I have to admit that despite the warnings and heads-up from various folk here, I still got it wrong the first time. But I wouldn't have caught the mistake if I weren't looking for it, thanks to this forum.

I am talking about step 3, the Differentials build. Pay attention to arrow that I encircled in red:



The arrow indicates that the diff is now turned upside down and that the side that the spring and locknut go into is the opposite side from the previous pic (what was up now is down, etc). Even in words that's not very clear. So it's no mystery why so many folk get this wrong. -- Or maybe it was just me, which is why I've set up the poll.

Nonetheless, Tamiya ought to have made that step clearer - if only by circiling the arrow in red! Or giving advisories about it as they have in their other manuals.

From what I've read, the reason that part of the diff build is important is that the nut loosens and undoes itself when it's screwed on the opposite side, which could lead to slipping, overheating, melting of gears.

--

Other notes: All the warning about the screws being difficult to torque in has turned out to be hype. I can see why they are relatively difficult to deal with and why they're not ideal if you're going to do a lot of maintenance - screwing and unscrewing- but I haven't had any problem dealing with them yet. Then again, I'm used to working on 1:1 cars and dealing with breaker bars and 5ft cheater pipes to get crank bolts and axle nuts off. I suppose having a good Phillips head screwdriver is key and keeping things absolute perpendicular when applying torque.

I'll add more notes as I continue the build, whatever I think might help others in the future.

And resource links here:
Durga Manual Online
Noob's Guide To Differential Setup
Hopups for the DB01 - Essentials list
Good video about setting slipper clutches
Another good slipper clutch video

Other build reviews with great overviews of hopups:
http://www.modrc.com/cars/db01/
http://www.modrc.com/cars/db01r

--

Other Specs:

Transmission ratio 2.055
Stock tires Overal Diameter (OD): 85mm.
Pinions, 48 pitch. Tamiya provides a 17t pinion and a 23t pinion.
Stock spur: 48 pitch, 91t.

Put the above specs to use at: Gearchart.com

Shock Lengths, eye to eye:

Front: 70mm
Rear: 85mm

Ball Bearings (Inner Diameter X Outer Diameter X Width (QTY)):

Wheels: 5x10x4 (eight)
Center shaft (Spur gear assembly): 4x8x3 (two)
Steering Joints (Stock kits comes with metal bushings): 5x8x2.5 (four)
Diff Pulleys: 5x8x2.5 (four)
Diff Joints: 10x15x4 (four)
Steering Bridge: 3x7x3 (two)

Get the ball bearing hopups you need at avidrc.com, at 1.00 US dollar per bearing. Shipping in the USA is 3.95. I'd recommend getting 8 sealed ball bearings for the wheels and sealed ball bearings for the center shaft.


==========

Favorite Baldre videos:

Baldrick
Baldre Cornering at High Speed
DB01 Slowmo
DB01 with 6.5 Novak Velocity motor
Baldre by Viruz- First Test Run

Favorite Durga videos:

Durga Speed Test
Boyz with Toyz Mad Jumping
Tamiya Durga
Sauts en Tamiya Durga


==========


My Recommended Hop-Ups (postedited in):

1) Gear Differentials. Surprise! The bulk of this post is about problems assembling the ball differentials. But you can BYPASS the problems DB01s tend to have with their stock ball diffs altogether by getting the gear differentials instead. Power delievery is much smoother and more linear; the gear diffs add composure and handling. Yes, the gear diffs are not just a power-train hop-up, they have proven to be the best handling hop-up I've installed on the Tamiya yet. Plus, they are supposed to be more durable, for brushless motor systems.


2) T Bone Racing bumpers - A nice, pure accessory item for less than 13 US dollars, shipped for the front bumper. Bumpers are wise to have if you're ever running your car in an environment where crashes are likely. Accidents happen, and the bumper will save your car even in the case of a higher speed crash. Big or small, even a little bump can nick or damage an arm or damper eyelet. With the bumper, you're protected. Plus, it looks great.

3) HPI pinions and Team Associated Spur gears. You'll get a lot better parts support for HPI and Team Associated stuff than Tamiya. The HPI pinions are low-profile and are useful if you're having trouble getting a good alignment between the spur and the pinion. For whatever reason, some motors don't allow for a good or even decent alignment, and that's no matter how the pinion is mounted (upside down, or right side up). Team Associated spurs for the SC10 etc fit perfect on the DB01. Aftermarket machined and alluminum varieties exist and are readily available.

4) The swaybar kit. If you're running the aero shocks with the softer springs, or if you're dealing with a lot of sway and rollover, then the swaybars make a night & day difference.

5) For strength and durability: Alloy suspension blocks, alloy suspension mounts, TRF501x lower arms, slipper clutch. These parts help fortify the DB01. 3Racing offers the the mounts paired with the blocks for a lot cheaper. I've been in many horrific crashes and the DB01 doesn't break. The alloy mounts bulletproof the buggy. The worst that happens to this buggy now in a crash is a tie-rod pop out. However, watch your slipper clutch settings. It's easy to strip a spur on the DB01 or wear down the belt.

Other notes: The one-ways (torque splitters) aren't recommended. They don't do a whole lot to improve cornering, although they certainly help. But it's what they take away and add: Stable, 4-wheel braking, 180 spin outs when braking.

OTHER TIPS: Using Amazing Goop or Shoe Goo, from the get-go. Plaster on a layer in the body. But also plaster on a layer on the underside of the wing. The goop strengthens Lexan significantly and helps to protect it from breaking or cracking. Also, the stock screws are not bad for the reason often cited by reviewers (they strip). They're bad because they rust. Team Associated make blue alloy hex screws. Get the sizes that you need. I have the DB01 fitted with a variety of them. I also have the TA05 carbon-fiber battery plate. The plate makes the use of thicker LIPO batteries possible and they also add blue bling to the chassis.

My DB01, 3 months later:

[speedy_w_beans]

It's nice to see you've started your build. Keep us updated on your progress and impressions!

-Paul

[lucasan]

This detail does seem to stick out for me, although now I can't remember if I've done it right. I've run the car several times at high speed with a brushless setup so I think I would have seen that there was a problem if there was one. One thing that solved the screw issue for me was to get the titanium screws, but any hex screw set would do the trick. Also I upgraded to the aluminum suspension blocks front and back, which were the parts that everyone seemed to have the hardest time with. This is a great quality car and I'm sad that mine is just collecting dust. I might have to get the Baldre body and breath some life into it. Enjoy the build. It is a good one.

[KalEl63]

Yep that got me the first time I did mine

[94eg!]

I didn't, but my friend did. He was having trouble with his new-built Durga and I discovered the mistake after a tear-down. I've never assembeled this kit new, and I always wondered if I would have made the same mistake.

[speedy_w_beans]

@Yello: By the way, if you enjoy the DB01 build and how the buggy performs, consider a $130 TB03 touring car build next... The Takata NSX is one sweet looking machine, and the TB03 chassis is so much more refined than a TT01E. Between a Lunch Box, Baldre, and Takata NSX you'll have a nice variety of toys.

-Paul

[Champ85]

I have not started my DB-01R yet, but I will be sure to pay attention when I do!

I will say that I agree with you that Tamiya should have made that flip more clear. Usually Tamiya is good about adding a star symbol and text nearby that says "Note: flip over" or similar. Maybe Tamiya felt adding the star and text would have made the page seem "too busy" with text, as it is fairly crowded already with notes.

[sosidge]

Building the Baldre right now, and I have to admit that despite the warnings and heads-up from various folk here, I still got it wrong the first time. But I wouldn't have caught the mistake if I weren't looking for it, thanks to this forum.

I am talking about step 3, the Differentials build. Pay attention to arrow that I encircled in red:



The arrow indicates that the diff is now turned upside down and that the side that the spring and locknut go into is the opposite side from the previous pic (what was up now is down, etc). Even in words that's not very clear. So it's no mystery why so many folk get this wrong. -- Or maybe it was just me, which is why I've set up the poll.

Nonetheless, Tamiya ought to have made that step clearer - if only by circiling the arrow in red! Or giving advisories about it as they have in their other manuals.

From what I've read, the reason that part of the diff build is important is that the nut loosens and undoes itself when it's screwed on the opposite side, which could lead to slipping, overheating, melting of gears.

--

Other things: There are 26 of those balls for the diff provided, that's two more than needed. Also avoid using all balls in every hole in the gear. There are three that are to be left empty.

Other notes: All the warning about the screws being difficult to torque in has turned out to be hype. I can see why they are relatively difficult to deal with and why they're not ideal if you're going to do a lot of maintenance - screwing and unscrewing- but I haven't had any problem dealing with them yet. Then again, I'm used to working on 1:1 cars and dealing with breaker bars and 5ft cheater pipes to get crank bolts and axle nuts off. I suppose having a good Phillips head screwdriver is key and keeping things absolute perpendicular when applying torque.

I'll add more notes as I continue the build, whatever I think might help others in the future.

And resource links here:

Durga Manual online: http://www.tamiya.co.../58395_db01.pdf

I'm a pretty experienced builder - and I confess to getting caught out myself. The car never turned a wheel with the diff built wrong, but I did need to take it back apart again when I put the driveshafts in. Tamiya have made the "diff flip" a pretty common feature in recent instructions but the Durga was the first one I came across.

The side that the screw is on shouldn't actually make any difference if the diff is properly lubed - the problem in this case is that you will end up with the screw sticking too far out in one of the outdrives which will make it hit the driveshafts.

As far as the screws go, a 3mm tap (Tamiya make one, or just a kit from the hardware store) and a proper JIS screwdriver (not Phillips, there is a difference) makes it a lot easier. It's not a case of force, it's a case of the right prep and the right tools.

[Yello]

@Yello: By the way, if you enjoy the DB01 build and how the buggy performs, consider a $130 TB03 touring car build next... The Takata NSX is one sweet looking machine, and the TB03 chassis is so much more refined than a TT01E. Between a Lunch Box, Baldre, and Takata NSX you'll have a nice variety of toys.

-Paul

I'm not the greatest fan of on-road vehicles. But thanks for the heads up. The Takata NSX looks very tempting. I wonder how SpeedtechRC are able to get away with the low prices. At 129.99, the kit is a steal. Very nice looking vehicle indeed.

--

Back to the Baldre build, so far the differentials were the most difficult. And I believe I'm almost done. I just completed Step 16, which involves installing the arms and the dogbones onto the chassis. -- Which felt like a balancing act considering the greased dogbones or the greased A2 cup or the A5 and A4 shims kept falling out. For this step, I recommend closely following the order as illustrated in the manual...

Ie,
1) Assemble the upper arms/rods.
2) Pop rods into place and onto both arms.
3) Place red bushings into place.
4) Grease and place dogbones into cups.
5) Finally place arms (A2 cups) into mounts and fasten M2.




Breaking this sequence almost guarantees something falling out, which here matters considering you're dealing with greased parts.

Also, I can easily see someone cutting those shims off the nubs and cutting into the shims. That would be bad. I would recommend caution at these steps.

----

Anyway, so far the build has been easy, more tedious than enjoyable but still enjoyable, and a labor of love, a hobby, in other words.

The reason the build has been a chore at all is all the tiny bits and pieces in the universe of the DB01 kit that one would have round up for each of the steps. But because the build involves discrete steps, it's logical and I've been able to get at it one session at a time and at leisure - and I'm suprised it's almost done. I was expecting a much more frustrating build considering some of the harsher reviews bemoaning the lack of labels on the screw parts and so on.

Here's the question though: Should I have done anything different up to this point? I wonder if all of the suggested mount points and all such things aren't the best? Should I have added those optional spacers on the A12 mounts for Step 2? Should I have used a different grease anywhere? Is choosing the basic setup here really the best option to start with?

---

Other decisions: I'm thinking of painting the wheels black to match the Durga's basic setup. I like the black wheels better. Or I might even paint the wheels gold on top of the black. It's tempting, but I'm still very much deciding on the aesthetics of the Baldre. I'm thinking of gold wheels with a clean, pearlescent white finish for the body. But I'm not sure if that's not going to be too plain. My LHS has all sorts of wild colors of (expensive, tiny can) Pactra spray paint, so I will need to keep an open mind. At the same time, I like the simple elegance of the pearl white. But if I go this latter route, I'll need to adorn the body at least in one additional way to make the white Baldre shell stand out. Any suggestions? Any inspirations?

Remember, I don't have the Durga. I have the Baldre. Durgas tend to look good when you paint them as if they were Gundamn mech robots, or something beautiful like this:



Baldres look more like ordinary jetplanes or like Formula 1 racing cars.

I'll have the EZrun 60a 8.5t 4000kv combo in on Monday. And I already have the soldering kit ready. I'll venture to convert my battery charger and NiMH batteries to Dean's to start. I hope that goes well. I won't have a slipper clutch. Is it really necessary? I'm thinking of buying the T-Bone front bumper before I get anything else for this vehicle.

Thanks for all the replies! - JIS screwdrivers? Interesting. Maybe that's the one I have considering how easy the screws have been to deal with.

[94eg!]

Personally I would say skip the bumper. All the damage will be done by cliping the wheel on something, and a bumper won't protect from this. It's darn near impossible to have a head-on with the wall or curb, which is what bumpers protect from.

As for assembling the suspension, there is a much more simple process to this. The very first thing you do is slide the pins into each lower arm and add the spacers/balls with sticky anti-wear grease to hold all them in place. Now with the chassis flat on the table, poke both arms into the sockets in the chassis and let them lay flat on the table. Next take the outer suspension mount and slip it onto the balls of both lower arms and fix it with the required screws. Now your lower arms and you have zero risk of anything falling out. Assemble the uprights onto the ends of each arm. Drop the driveshafts into place and snap on the upper links. Done!

[Yello]

Personally I would say skip the bumper. All the damage will be done by cliping the wheel on something, and a bumper won't protect from this. It's darn near impossible to have a head-on with the wall or curb, which is what bumpers protect from.

I believe the T-Bone bumpers give some protection from angled collisions. - But, I do sometimes crash head-on into things.

As for assembling the suspension, there is a much more simple process to this. The very first thing you do is slide the pins into each lower arm and add the spacers/balls with sticky anti-wear grease to hold all them in place. Now with the chassis flat on the table, poke both arms into the sockets in the chassis and let them lay flat on the table. Next take the outer suspension mount and slip it onto the balls of both lower arms and fix it with the required screws. Now your lower arms and you have zero risk of anything falling out. Assemble the uprights onto the ends of each arm. Drop the driveshafts into place and snap on the upper links. Done!

That's perfect. With the balls and spacers all secured you've voided the major part of the problem. Wish I had known that while I was getting the pages of the manual greasy.

I think I now know what Jang at UltimateRC was referring to in his review of the Durga when he wrote about the loosness n the arms.. Tamiya adds two metal spacers by the pins for the front arms, but they simply aren't enough. There's a lot of play there. The rears are OK, though.

--

I had actually skipped Step 11, the step involving the motor mounting, but have gotten to it now. I'm beginning to see why some people don't like the DB01. If I needed to dismount a motor, I'd have to go through a chore and a half to get to it, get it off, and then get it back on. There's got to be an easier way. A flashlight almost felt neccesary. Getting that screw and that washer through the gearing and into the motor without everything falling apart was another balancing act.

NOT TO MENTION!: There's an unused screw hole and an open slot at the bottom middle of the chassis exactly in the area where that motor mount and belts are, which would allow plenty of dirt to creep in. What the badword is going on here? I can always just duct tape that area but it seems to be the stupidest thing...

[sosidge]

I believe the T-Bone bumpers give some protection from angled collisions. - But, I do sometimes crash head-on into things.
That's perfect. With the balls and spacers all secured you've voided the major part of the problem. Wish I had known that while I was getting the pages of the manual greasy.

I think I now know what Jang at UltimateRC was referring to in his review of the Durga when he wrote about the loosness n the arms.. Tamiya adds two metal spacers by the pins for the front arms, but they simply aren't enough. There's a lot of play there. The rears are OK, though.

--

I had actually skipped Step 11, the step involving the motor mounting, but have gotten to it now. I'm beginning to see why some people don't like the DB01. If I needed to dismount a motor, I'd have to go through a chore and a half to get to it, get it off, and then get it back on. There's got to be an easier way. A flashlight almost felt neccesary. Getting that screw and that washer through the gearing and into the motor without everything falling apart was another balancing act.

NOT TO MENTION!: There's an unused screw hole and an open slot at the bottom middle of the chassis exactly in the area where that motor mount and belts are, which would allow plenty of dirt to creep in. What the badword is going on here? I can always just duct tape that area but it seems to be the stupidest thing...

I don't recall any unused screw holes on the DB01. The drivetrain is sealed. Are you sure you have built it right?

As far as the concealed screws go, some thick grease on the tip of your driver will help to get it in. I think Tamiya give you an extra long hex driver just for that job. Same with the diff/suspension arm assembly, a thick "assembly" grease will hold things together if they have a tendency to fall out.

[Yello]

sosidge,

Thanks for that. I made a mistake. I missed the part circled below, in Step 2:



I'll try using grease.

I've got the 13t Venom motor in it right now. I figure I should try brushed in the Baldre in order to appreciate the incoming brushless.

[speedy_w_beans]

With respect to assembling the arms to the main tub chassis, I follow a process similar to what 94eg! outlines.

When running a brushless system, especially something 4000 kV+, I would definitely recommend a slipper clutch for two reasons. The clutch can be tuned as a kind of traction control depending on what surfaces you're running on, and second, it can act as the weak link in your drivetrain so it limits the stress on the ball diffs.

If you built your diffs with synthetic rubber cement as directed, just a little bit of heat in the diffs will cause the rubber cement to lose grip between the plates and joints. At that point the diff starts slipping, but not catastrophically. The gears, balls, and plates will be fine, but the plastic carriers holding the plates and turning the outdrives won't spin as well as expected. I've had this happen before, and all it takes is disassembling the diff, scuffing the plastic carriers and diff plates with some fine grit sandpaper, cleaning everything, and regluing. After that rebuild I haven't had any problems. Some people upgrade to the optional TRF501x diff joints and then use ball diff grease between the plates and joints, but I'm too cheap to buy a pair of those.

For mounting and removing the motor, I always start by mounting the pinion to the motor shaft first, then holding the motor in place and checking the offset of the pinion versus the spur. I adjust the pinion offset on the shaft until the pinion and spur are lined up, tighten it up, then I start with the lower cap screw and washer for mounting the motor. I've not had problems with the cap screw fallling off the long hex wrench; you just have to work slowly and feel for when the threads find the mounting hole on the motor. I keep the chassis horizontal while doing this. Once the most difficult fastener is in place, the upper cap screw is easy. Adjust the pinion/spur mesh so there is only the smallest amount of lash between the pinion and spur teeth all the way around the spur, then tighten the cap screws to hold the motor firmly in place. There is a step in the instructions for applying some aluminum tape over the lower cap screw hole in the tub; that seals against dirt next to the battery tray.

At the end of the build if you have any spacers left over on the parts trees, that might help you with the slack you noticed in the front suspension arms. That, or some small washers from a local hardware store.

-Paul

[94eg!]

Yeah, running a lot of power without a slipper is really tricky. You need to be very careful in your build, maintenance and driving style. Keeping your diffs tight is super important. They will loosen during their first drive after just a couple minutes as they run in. Your driving needs to be progressive on the throttle (especially from a stand-still) and you never want to land a jump at full throttle. All of these will destroy your diffs. You can make it work. My friend was running a 12T in his box-stock Durga for a few years. I maintained that car. Actually it just sold from Las Vegas on ebay last month (orange & white).

As for the rear arms, yes the kit setup has a bunch of play. I did a detailed post on Oople about how to properly shim the entire car. I think I used a pair of the .7mm motor screw shims to make it work. Actually that is the trick. I just found the kit instructions for the DB01R and it features all metal spacers & shims. You can also try to shim your car with a stack of the kit provided .2mm shims. But these .7mm spacers (part # 19805645) will really help. Refer to the DB01R instructions when hopping up your own car:

http://mygadgetblogs...kit-manual.html

I would also recommend hopup 50994 for better suspension durability. The metal balls won't pull out of the socket so easily in a crash. If/when this happens, you will spend a lot of time trying to recover all those fiddly spacers.

As for your original questions about greases & shims, the kit setup is fine. You don't need to add those shims unless your tuning the car for specific conditions. And if your new to high performance kits, you won't even notice the difference. The greases Tamiya provides are also excellent. I use the same stuff on my race cars.

[Yello]

I used vulcanizing fluid for the diff build. Vulcanizing fluid is a kind of rubber cement. I hope it holds well but I'm not betting on it.

I don't plan on launching into any real jumps with the Baldre and if I do, I'll be sure to let off the throttle. I also plan on trimming the throttle response down a bit. I'm not a fan of wheelies and such and prefer smooth meaningful acceleration anyway, so I feel like my driving style will queue up with a DB01 without the slipper.

Anyway, I'll be adding two links to the Resources section of the OP.

Noob's Guide To Differential Setup
Hopups for the DB01 - Essentials list

[Yello]

Jeez. I had a 50/50 chance of getting the step in Step 13 involving parts E1 and E2 wrong. If I ever needed proof that I have bad luck there it is. The consequence of getting those pieces on the wrong sides is that that tierod piece will touch (and abrade) the inner wheel. I should have re-read and then re-reread speedy_w_bean's essential post about the DB01 build in my other thread.

I have made other mistakes too. I screwed the damper piston rods too deep into the bottom shock eyelet with the result that the rod "bubbled" through. At some point I wasn't using my common sense and was matching rod thread length with the illustrations instead. Stupid and the first "real" mistake I made considering it's lead to some parts damage. But no big deal. The eyelets are easy to replace. I have a few spares, and they work as is anyway.

But the wheels are in! And I'm done! (Well, almost, I still have to cutout, paint, and sticker the body.)

QUESTION: Is there supposed to toe-in for the rear wheels? For whatever reason the alignment back there just doesn't seem right.

Overall I enjoyed this build very much. 20 years from now, perhaps?, maybe?, I'll remember the Baldre and its build, and reminisce... remember the car that was built with the last traces of my youth. Building RCs is **** fun. Better than any video game.

And here she is:





Haha. Doesn't quite look right.



Notice the toe-in above? Doesn't seem right.

[sosidge]

Yes, there is supposed to be toe in. In the region of 3 degrees.

[94eg!]

Yes, there is supposed to be toe in. In the region of 3 degrees.

Yeah, rear toe in makes the car more stable on power and at high speeds.

And give it a little toe-out in the front too. Not near as much as you have in the back, but it will make the car handle very well.

And be sure to check & adjust your diffs. They WILL loosen in a very short time. You can also break them in and adjust them on the bench before you drive.

http://www.rccaracti...red-tebo-video/

[speedy_w_beans]

Don't worry about the mistakes -- we all make them! I did the exact same thing with a shock eyelet on my first build, the Dark Impact. I just kept installing it -- hmm, is that some resistance? -- and the next thing I knew there was a gray bubble of plastic. After that I became much more sensitive to feeling resistance and stopping. Last night I was finishing a model and forgot to install one of the servo saver parts. After installing the servo and connecting the linkage, I found the extra part on the table. Had I driven it the servo arm would have fallen off. Doh!

Yes, there is supposed to be some rear toe-in. It's there for stable handling.

I'm glad you enjoyed the build. From my point of view, the DB01 is what all the vintage guys will be talking about in 20 years. It's future vintage!

And finally, no, the Lunch Box shell won't fit on a buggy chassis unless you do this (note the double sunroof and triple side doors):

[attachment=14128:Stretch_Box.jpg]

(That's two shells cut and joined, side skirts made from lexan, brass tubing for body mounts, and a DF02 buggy chassis underneath...)

-Paul

[Yello]

^ The "Stretch Box" is positively awesome, and the first of its kind. Never seen that anywhere before.

--

I cut up the Baldre body, put that on, and ran the Baldre.

WOW.

It's not any faster than the Lunchbox with the 13t motor. Speed is about the same, but the handling and all that makes the DB01 a different beast altogether.

I like the LB because it's aggressive and simple. Its handling is not bad with good dampers and I love the trails of dirt it kicks up. It feels 1:1 scale. The rooster trails of dirt, the way it drifts and slides slightly when turning, and the tire noise makes the driving experience realistic in a way.

The Baldre, OTOH, is like a UFO with its handling. But I still almost crashed it into a wall and I almost crashed it into a curb on the street the very first run. Very nice. I can see why a brushed system is limiting for it. And I definitely want a proper bumper on it. The stock bumper is not a bumper. It's more like a skid plate, and it's already bruised. The Baldre runs rather low, which means larger rocks and debris will scratch the underside. The T Bone bumper would be good for this. I can see how it would protect the arms. Not to mention, the T-Bone bumper would double up as a carrying handle. LOL. The DB01 is rather heavy. It feels more like a machine rather than a toy like the Lunch Box. I'll need the handle.

Anyway, the gearing is off. For the cheap 13t Venom motor, I'll need to step down from the 23t pinion to the smaller one, as it runs hot. In fact, it got hot enough on the motor, maybe by the bell housing, for me to coil away after touching it. In fact, and I'm not sure if it was due to the heating or if something else happened, but the negative wire on the motor got clipped off. Maybe it desoldered itself. I'm not sure. The body of the motor itself was not too hot, meaning I could put my finger on it indefinitely. But I've never felt it so hot. On the LB the Venom barely got lukewarm even after over 25 minutes of runtime. Here, my test runs lasted no more than a few minutes at a time.

So now I'm down for the count until I resolder that wire or swap motors (a chore), or, better yet, since I have it in, until I get the EZrun's motor/ESC set up and all soldered in.

Anyone have recommendations for motor wires? Size or spec? The EzRun combo didn't even come with the wires. Should I use 4mm bullet connectors? 3.5mm?

Thanks again.

[speedy_w_beans]

I have a Venom 15d brushed motor and it wasn't the greatest of brushed motors -- it ran warm/hot just idling on the bench. It also ran slower than an Integy 19T single I had. A quality brushed motor or brushless system should work much better. Also, when I originally recommended the 23T pinion I was thinking about the kit silver can, not a 13d Venom! The 23T pinion provides about 8:1 final drive ratio, which matches the gearing recommendations Novak suggests for their 10.5 turn brushless systems: http://www.teamnovak...br_gearing.html. Other brushed motors or other brushless systems may require different gearing. If you want to be conservative, start with the 17T pinion which should provide around 11:1 gearing. The pinions are standard 48 pitch, so you can source pretty much anything needed to find that balance between speed and heat.

You might want to move the motor away from the spur gear and make sure the drivetrain itself doesn't have any excessive friction in it; that will cause any motor to heat up. I suspect you won't find any problems there, though... Make sure your pinion/spur mesh isn't too tight!

The EZRun system didn't come with any wires?! Boo to that. You might want to see if the documentation has any recommendations, but 14 gauge seems about right: http://www.shopatron...=5332/135.0.1.1 and http://www.shopatron...=5508/135.0.1.1.

The handling is amazing compared the Lunch Box, isn't it? It can get even better with different tires and a little suspension adjustment.

-Paul

[94eg!]

When setting pinion mesh on 48 pitch, it's easiest just to stick a small piece of paper between the two gears and mash them together tight (and tighten the motor screws). Roll the piece of paper out and you should have perfect mesh. Also make sure your belts aren't set too tight. They shouldn't be tight like rubber bands.

[Yello]

I've run the Baldre with the EZRun geared with the 17t pinion.

It flies. It's definitely awesome. It's a UFO compared to the Lunchbox, that's for sure. And in a way it sounds like a UFO too.

I'm just not crazy about my soldering jobs and also, as outlined in this thread, I've got some issues.

I will try the 23t pinion with the EZrun. Wish me luck there.

So far I've readjusted the rear differential. I made it a little tighter because I noticed that when I hold one wheel and the spur, I'm able to turn the other wheel. = Loose, right? Right. So I made it tight enough so that everything is locked when they should be and not so tight that the spur and both wheels are locked at all times.

I still haven't even painted the body or clipped out the wing.

I will be following speedy's advice about the wing's leading edge. I'll ream out the mount holes a little further down so that wing doesn't lay flat on the shock towers.

BTW, is there any easier way to adjust the differentials? I readjusted the rears by popping off a wheel and the dogbone in order to access that bolt etc.. But is there a quicker way?

Thanks again.

I kind of like the Baldre shell transparent but only because I get to see the change of lights on the ESC as it goes from neutral to full throttle to brake. It's a neat visual.

[94eg!]

BTW, is there any easier way to adjust the differentials? I readjusted the rears by popping off a wheel and the dogbone in order to access that bolt etc.. But is there a quicker way?

I might be a little easier to just pop off one of the upper ball cups to unfold the suspension and remove the driveshaft. This car was designed right before Tamiya started with their externally adjustable diff, so not much else you can do. Even if it did have this feature, people would cry that their drivetrain wasn't sealed.