RyantheRed

I would like to aquire a baldre body kit at some point because this is just a runner body. But im not paying the prices people are asking for those. I also found a double slipper clutch for it but i never opened the shiny package. Didnt have the heart to

Here is the finished product. I am definitely sad the build is complete but it really is a good car to drive. Hope you guys enjoyed my share. Thanks!

I dont know much about traxxas. Is that like a slash with a late model modified body? Looks just like my neighbors race car. Looks really cool.

A few buggies got a refresh. One for Alex and one for me. Alex approved. Then we raced them to see which was faster.

Body and wing. After the shake down runs, i really loved the way it drove so i decided id like to run it. I opted to switch to the disposable durga deck and save this chassis motor mount and heat sink. That way i could run square lipos as well. Then i fitted it up with Hobbywing electronics and put a set of runner wheels and tires and called it done. Ill post final pics in a few.

Mock up electronics installed for testing and some wheels and tires for now. Ill did a few shake down runs then made a few changes/adjustments.

Arms and shafts. I used the wide operating angle ones front and rear. I think i like them the best. Some Trf hubs from Tamiya USA. I tried to buy from Tamiya when ever there prices were good. Some times they have close outs and sale prices.

Mock up test motor and belt. Installed damper stays and belt covers.

Steering arms and DB02 link that was modified to fit. I ended up settling with the stock cross link. Its actually a solid piece and the geometry is better. But it was a fun excercise.

Built ball diffs and slipper clutch. I love ball diffs. They are fantastic when they are built right i used ceramic balls that are very round (i forget the grind number) and inexpensive. Not tamiya. Also for this build I used TC diff screw and diff nut set with a better thrust bearing to hold them both together. A little added strength for brushless set up.

Motor plate, heat sink, suspension blocks and steering posts fitted. Used a hex hardware set

Carbon Chassis. That heat sink was actually the hardest part to find. I almost had to make one from blue anodized aluminum blank (which I bought) then one day on ebay that was actually the final piece I needed for the build.

I love this chassis. I believe its actually the best buggy chassis Tamiya ever created. This turned out to be a fun but challenging build. The build was strait forward enough but acquiring the correct parts required a lot of determination and patience. In the end, it was lot of fun. This build had no budget so I wouldnt neccessarily recomend doing what i did unless your mind is made that you have to build one. I could have easily bought and outfitted several competitive race buggies for what this build cost or even bought a new in box TRF501x off ebay and set it up with high quality electronics. Ultimately I had a vision and a desire for this car and I wanted to do it the way I saw it in my minds eye. I think I got close but there is always some level of drift that takes place. It took me more than 9 months to collect the right parts due to availability. But thats to be expected when your 10 years late to the party. I started with a new Durga kit from Japan that i got for a great price. I could have just built the Durga and had a good car for a bargan but whats the fun of that? For me i think that is what this hobby is all about.

Oh man the short course bodies! I have one in the cart but the website is so clunky... dont know if i want to put my credit card info in there. Lol.

I think a better question is what is your favorite runner. I dont know how many runners i have but its like 20+ and about that many projects. Cars we actually drive often is more like 10 or so. My favorite runners are exc torment 2wd trophy trucks. I have 2 and me and my son bash the living snot out of them. They are brushless and very fast and extreamly robust so we dont be carefull at all. Parts are cheap and plentiful. Here is Alex's. This is a rare site, Its usually flying through the air end over end at my face. The wife and dog run from us when we pull them out to "play" 🤣 the wife usually runs the mad van when she is brave enough to play. Me and the boy dont get to play with the mad van very often, the wife has that one pretty much claimed. She calls it her "raper van". The koysho mad van is an amazing runner in total stock form. (The brushless version) the consistent tamiya we run all the time is the DT03. They are robust and hard to break as well. We live in the desert so most of what we do involves sand rocks and dirt. Touring cars are shelfers here. Even our asphalt is too rought for them sadly.