Percymon

Checked the manual for my ansmann, it can cope with 5s lipo although no balacing function. Looks like an add on balancer might be ok afterall.

Have a look at the lrp gt4 or similar on modelsport. Although a 19x2 might be a tad rich for you esc?

Yeah racing blue alloy servo mounts (so so much better than the Tamiya plastic ones) and my paint masks have arrived.

The ESC is the top Traxxas one, EVX2, and has built in LVC. Turnigy lipos look great value on eBay too, just need to sort charging options before I press the button.

I have the 5 light version and to be honest it's very poor quality, flaky chrome and connections to two LEDs came off whilst assembling it. Not sure how the Pro-line light bar compares but it can't be any worse and you could fit any cheap led set. Another option may be the backs of the hotshot 'lights' with some clear fronts and again LEDs added. These might allow you to hide wiring too by using the led metal legs and resin as the mountings.

Dan - you'll ideally need a lower turn rating for any future ESC, so look at the modelsport/mtroniks sport auto 20, or the RV12 which have 20 or 12 turn limits. Double check their input voltage range though, as you are at 8.4V now and thw way you are going you;ll be higher still soon lol!

Yes sorry, 2s = 7.4V - don;t know why i put 3S but apologies once again and thanks for pointing it out Lipos with traxxas connections are a bit pricey, and the choice isn;t that great (presumably marketted to Traxxas users). Far better to go for corelly type battery connections and a corelly to traxxas convertpr lead in the car i think ?

I rang Modelsport this afternoon for some advice - in fairness they were very good, but didn't answer all my queries (some is down to me eg connectors etc) They recommended the Fusion LX41 charger, which has the balancer built in and comes with some external boards as well. I could use correlly type battery connections and buy a traxxas to correly lead for use in the Clod to the EVX-2 esc. Seems OK, relatively simple and keeps battery options wide open (those prewired with trx connectors are a bit pricey). I have a better picture of the set-up now as a result of their descriptions. Then i came across the Fusion Balancer which would sit between my current Ansmann charger and the battery packs - wouldn't give the same detailed information on cell status but might be an option dependent upon the operation of my Ansmann's lipo setting (will have a look tonight). Its not much cheaper than a new lx41 charger so perhaps its false economy saving £10 for less information during charging/discharging.

Rather than continue the debate on the 8.4V vs 7.2V thread from yesterday, i thought i'd start again ! I'm ruling out 8.4V due to limited shape and space for two batteries on my chassis. So i'm left with good old NiMH which i understand and know, or Lipo which i'm more confused about as i look for information and read threads - too many pictures of electronics labs for charging stations hasn't helped So to keep things simple i'm going to restrict this to 7.4V, 3 cell lipo information. I'll be running two packs, so 14.8V. Ignoring the Traxxas connectors of my ESC for the time being , is the below kit correct for an introduction to Lipo... Imax B6 or similar charger with integral balancer Mains power supply to feed 220-240V AC to charger 3S Lipo hard case batteries, 3000mAh or better 25C discharge or better Connection leads Charging sack / case I assume with the above i don;t need any external balancers or balancing boards - just hook up the banana leads from the charger to the battery pack and another lead from the battery pack to the charger unit to monitor charging conditions ? If this is correct what is the best way to integrate Lipo packs with my traxxas esc - do i fit banana type male sockets to the esc leads or buy a ready made conversion lead (Traxxas female one end, banana type the other). I'm guessing swapping the battery plugs over to traxxas is pointless as there are virtually no traxxas type charging leads.? Sorry to go over old ground, but ui really need a simple explanantion and guidance. Cheers

Well after a bit of reading, and getting my head straight i've realised my Ansmann xbase charger will do LiPo, but only 1 cell as it has no balancer - bit rich saying it'll do Lipo IMO but there we go. Going Lipo is going to be a nightmare for me, unless soemone would be good enough to list out some kit for me.. I need a balanced charger that will run off AC 220-240V mains (Turnigy Accucel 6 ?, Imax B6 ? but both need power supplies) Wiring harness for Tamiya plugs (NiMH packs) and Traxxas plugs (if such cables exist for lipo packs ?) If Lipo packs and charger cables aren't available with Traxxas connections, then what connections to go for (Deans ?) as i'll need to change connectors on the EVX-2 ESC Recommendations on 2 cell Lipo hard case packs (Turnigy ones mentioned below look OK, what else is there ?) There are some very cheap Turnigy chargers on ebay that will do Lipo 2 or 3 cell, albeit at 650mA charge rate per cell. Now if i went with 2 cell 7.4V packs, i'm guessing this charger would put our 1.3A charge rate and therefore charge a 3700mAh lipo pack in about 3 hours. I could live with that, especially given the safety of a low charge rate ?

I run mine off a Vapextech 5000mAh NiMH and have had no issues with its ability to deliver sufficient power, and get over 30 minutes run time even on wet grass. LiPo will be lighter, so you will get longer run times like for like capacity, and your power will be more consistent apparently through the battery life. You'll need a hard cased lipo to offer some protection to the exposed battery.

Good point Mike - looking a ebay there's not much in the price of 2200mah 7.4v lipos to 4600mah 7.2v nimh, but then i'd need a new charger and a mains power supply. So imax b6 at £25 and £20 for a 100w/8A power supply. £40 for nimh vs £85 for lipo (and sell my near new ansmann charger for £25 ?)

Lol Pete my bad , 27 tooth pinions lol! 27 turn motors and 13 tooth pinions. I'll look into the cost of lipo but think I'll stick with NiMH this time. By keeping to 7.2v I can use packs in my other cars; it's not like I have loads of battery packs for them anyway.

No point in anything beyond 8.4V, as 2 x 8.4V packs (ie 16.8V) is the limit of the ESC. LiPo not an option - i charge in my garage which is detached from the house and therefore out of sight. I'd need new leads, a balancer and charging bag to add to my Ansmann charger (Lipo charging option in the menu, but not balanced). The whole Lipo thing doesn't fit with my occassional usage and non attendant charging regime, despite the well documented advantages they give in power delivery. I also have to think about how good the Tamiya gearbox internals are - they are designed for 27 turn silver cans running 27teeth 13 tooth pinions, not uprated power, so caution may prevail.

Look the same as these Reely wheel/tyre combo - interesting tread http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B.../shopping99-21/ Cheap at £7 a set from amazon too ! http://www.amazon.co.uk/TYRES-BUGGY-OFF-RO...6798&sr=1-3

Not much choice when you have such a long wheelbase, 1/10th shells look stupid (although i'm still continuing to repair the original Clod shell), and there's not that much in 1/8th that is long enough whilst not excessive in width.

I am pretty much done on my Clod project, just needs some paint.. http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?...mp;#entry405496 Its equipped with twin Traxxas Titan 550 (21turn) motors, 13t pinions and EVX-2 ESC which can run up to 16.8V. I'd like to get some more NiMH stick packs with Traxxas connectors fitted to avoid the low current rating of the Tamiya plugs i currently have (need the batteries for other Tamiya models so converting plugs isn't an option) Question is whether to go for 7.2V packs, or 8.4V packs - the devil in me says go for the bigger voltage and more speed, but on a more cautious note i don't want my 9 yr old mashing the gears or smacking the whole truck into a fence post or pile of rocks at speed ! The 7.2 packs fit my Spider chassis perfectly, the 8.4v packs will fit but will need a bit of packing under the bottom one to lift it clear of the 7.2v sized tray. What's your thoughts ?? (PS - i have no intention of going LiPo, although may put a twin brushless in it at a later date where i guess 7.2V packs would be more suited ?)

What a frustrating weekend ! New F650 shell arrived Saturday morning, set to work trimming the worst of the mould off and cutting the wheelarches (tough going on 0.060" lexan !) Then turned my attention to the electrics, wired it all up and went through programming controls. First test, wheels off ground and a horrendous sound from rear gearbox ! No choice but to remove all the links, rear steer lockout and split the gearbox . All looked fine on inspection, tried it again off the chassis and same grinding noise . Pinpointed the noise to the pinion gear. When I built this one up I dropped the supplied Ansmann grub screw for the pinion into the unknown depths of my study carpet, so I put a Traxxas grub screw in. Turned out the Traxxas one was a few mm longer than the Ansmann one, and with such a small pionion was contacting the spur gear!. Found a short Tamiya grub screw and fitted that, rebuilt it all and did a shakedown test in the house. Sounds a lot better now, thank goodness. I spent probably 6 hours on it Saturday with litlle to show for my efforts Didn't get as much done as i'd hoped Sunday either (washing 3 1:1 cars took a bit of my time!) , but finished cutting the body and sorted out the body post length. Routed the wiring a bit better and took off the front bumper/servo mount ready for the arrival of some alloy servo mounts to replace the Tamiya plastic ones i'd used initially. Should be able to start paint in the next few days, just waiting on some paint masks to arrive. Next i need to decide what batteries to buy, as i know the Traxxas to Tamiya convertors are not ideal (even in the lower power training mode of the ESC). Not sure whether to stick with 7.2V packs, or go for two 8.4V ones (NiMH only). No idea how much difference there is with the higher voltage, but certainly don't want to mash the gearbox internals , or worse have my 9yr smack the whole thing into a post at 30mph !

Ordered an alloy servo mount - hopefully the last item for my Clod project. Routed and secured the wiring, and cut out the bodyshell ready for paint (waiting on some paint masks)..

A NIB went for about £80 on eBay last week but you'd need to add esc and radio fear to that so another £80. Most used ones (including twin detonator and dual hunter) sell for around £60-70 on eBay in various conditions with and without radio. There aren't many upratedmotors that have both normal and reverse directions so check what's fitted. Shouldn't be too hard to get a new body n decals for under £40 delivered if you want to return to boxart.

I looked for ages then stumbled across kingcobradistribution which is a partner to rossendale models (rossmod). I just got some rc4wd hub adaptors from them.

Pro-line Ford F-650 shell - the 1/8th scale version 2 tins Pactra paint - Chezoom Teal & Fiery Orange

Cheers Pete, spotted those earlier this week, the ones at adrcracing are rather nice too!

Collected my 12-14mm hex adaptors from the post office, still can't believe they cost £30 ! Good news they'll increase track by 4mm per side

Its not likely to see many rocks, unless its smashing through them lol! Its more for bashing , and with the weight in the wheels it should keep it upright most of the time.