A Juggernaut 2 Re-Build

[Mouc-RC]

Hello!

I create a topic to document my Jugg 2 re-build that I started this Week-End. Got the truck approx. 18 months ago from Germany (nice place to buy Juggernauts), and it's a lot of fun. I'd say it is even more realistic than the iconic Clod in its movements (not as good performance wise, and maybe more fragile from the transmission point of view - true Tamiya complexity ). But overall I love this "Scale Monster Truck" (links to some videos if you click - 3 body-shells were mounted during these 18 running months: the Ford one, a Toyota one from my Bruiser and a Vaterra one finally) .

The truck was in good shape when I got it, "never run", but after some good use I'd like to change the two Silver Cans for Torque Tuned motors, add ball bearings, some "grease filled" shocks, and redo the paint job (has been painted by hand by the previous owner).

First pic, after some sanding

The cab has some putty patches on the hood & roof, but it's been done properly by the previous owner. 3 different paints for the cab (black primer, then red, then blue), and the bed also:  grey primer I guess, then black, and finally blue. Maybe the parts are from different sources?

Thanks for reading

 

 

[Mouc-RC]

First layer of primer. I'm not finished with sanding!

 

Wonder if, after the painting, I should design custom side-plates for the chassis or not. At work, I have access to some sheet-metal laser cutting, and maybe it could be cool to have some steel plates that would mimic a tube-welding job for the chassis... Instead of the original plain aluminum side-plates of the Jugg 2.

 

Took the picture on HPI website, just as an example. What do you think, Gentlemen?

 

 

[Mouc-RC]

"I'm still sanding"

 

 

Elton John said that too, once. Not sure he was into R/C, though.

[JimBear]

16 minutes ago, Mouc-RC said:

"I'm still sanding"

 

 

Elton John said that too, once. Not sure he was into R/C, though.

Elton John is the patron saint of the RC car hobby, didn't you know? "Goodbye yellow brick road, on to the tarmac we drive" I think?

[Mouc-RC]

I'm such a disaster at painting. But it will be a runner, doesn't need to be perfect. In short, only the tailgate was usable after sanding & priming. The smallest spot of remaining blue paint everywhere else is creating weird things with the red primer. Ordered some chemistries to try to get back to the white plastic.

Oh, I hate painting.

And now you know the theme I chose for the paint-job :)

[Mouc-RC]

48 hours later, a entire can of oven cleaner with sodium hydroxide, and lots of scrubbing with a stainless steel sponge, here's the result:

Not bad, but a bit exhausting for a lazy man like me. Tuesday, I should be able to test "The Glanzer". Including ammonia. A little scary, I confess

[Mouc-RC]

Well, the cleaner with ammonia didn't make it really better. I'll give another try maybe next time, but starting from the beginning.

But I saw this, on the internet.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

[urban warrior]

On 11/17/2024 at 6:45 PM, Mouc-RC said:

48 hours later, a entire can of oven cleaner with sodium hydroxide, and lots of scrubbing with a stainless steel sponge, here's the result:

Not bad, but a bit exhausting for a lazy man like me. Tuesday, I should be able to test "The Glanzer". Including ammonia. A little scary, I confess

Well, oven cleaner does not always work well on every sort of painting. Some folks use brake fluid to remove paint from polystyrene bodies (something that really scares me), I tried "Dowanol" (Methoxypropanol) by Kremer, which is equivalent to Carson Paint Killer but a lot cheaper. The latter does not work on automotive laquers, what some people use to paint their models. So it's always difficult to get old paint off from models, unless the pre-owner has used some common modelling paint. When I used Dowanol on a Wranlger body with automotive paint (solvent based) it dissolved the body between the paint layer and the polystyrene where the laquer solvent has bonded to the body and made the whole body very brittle. A quite nasty surprise. So, to choose your "weapon" requires to know your "enemy" very well, for it can ruin the whole work.

[Mouc-RC]

Agreed, I think there's no miracle anyway. Elbow grease will ever be needed to have them back . And yeah, brake fluid may work, but it's so aggressive to the human skin! Even more than those caustic soda/ammonia based agents - they're diluted somehow... I think I won't try this kind of chemistry.

Otherwise, a friend of mine designed this for me...

And another one has started 3D-printing it... Fingers crossed, I should end having a very custom JuggerTonka II

 

[Mouc-RC]

It is bed time. I mean, truck-bed.

 

Yeee, that roll-bar is huge. Mistake in the scientific calculations

 

[JimBear]

Not a big deal with the calculations, make another one - the bed looks good. Perhaps sligthly larger rear wheelhouse?

[Mouc-RC]

Leaf Springs style Baby! Those wheel arches will never rub tires - flex is overrated

 

First rough fit. Tons of work left to get to something nice, but there's potential I think.

[JimBear]

I mixed things up in my head - I was thinking something like Bruiser and not Juggernaut big tyres. Of course there's no rubbing of tyres there.

[Mouc-RC]

3D-Printing is fantastic when a good colleague manages it for you

The new Roll-bar has arrived.

[Mouc-RC]

71 coats of yellow, 31 hours of sanding & 2 minutes of "decal-ing" later,  I declare the paint-job done. Good enough for running.

Now we can tackle the mechanics. Always keep the best (who said simple?) things for the end

[JimBear]

71 coats indeed - you are a perfectionist, sir!

(looks really good - do I love yellow? You bet!)

[MadAnt]

Looking good!

[Mouc-RC]

Thanks Mates!

1st outing with my Brother. I mean, not the Jugg brother, despite the TXT-2 could be considered as a brother for the Jugg. I mean with my real Brother, who drove the TXT-2. With its brother the Juggernaut 2. Oh...

 

[1RCdude]

Wow I want one.

[OldSchoolRC1]

Beautiful Jugg! Love those tires too, it has a perfect stance. 

[Mouc-RC]

The Juggernaut "Tonka Edition" in the snow!

On Christmas Eve.

[Mouc-RC]

Time to dismantle. Quite handy, the "radio deck":

Transmission (making a suspicious noise by the way  ) holds up everything left:

Will the History remember that Juggernaut has been defeated by Mouc  ?

 

[urban warrior]

On 12/3/2024 at 6:49 AM, Mouc-RC said:

Thanks Mates!

1st outing with my Brother. I mean, not the Jugg brother, despite the TXT-2 could be considered as a brother for the Jugg. I mean with my real Brother, who drove the TXT-2. With its brother the Juggernaut 2. Oh...

 

That's looking real cool. I always prefer those tires with the "finer ribbing" over the quite coarse looking originals. But what are yours exactly? They look more round and not so "squared" like Clod tires.

[Saito2]

2 hours ago, urban warrior said:

But what are yours exactly? They look more round and not so "squared" like Clod tires.

I'm going to guess Jconcepts Golden Years tires. They look great too!

[Mouc-RC]

Absolutely true, Sir @Saito2. After an advice from Sir @87lc2, thanks to him once again because they are very nice tires, quite "light" compared to OG Jugg ones, with clearly a vintage look. Also they slip much less on the OG Jugg rims (but I still love the Jugg tires with their super-mean chevrons, like the MT "Alien", back in the days)

On these tires walls, it's written: "Gold Year", but on the internet you find them under "Golden Years". Not that important, anyway

Transmission fully ball-raced, and "Mighty + 10%" Torque Tuned installed . Kept the cheesy aluminum pinions, as I honestly never had a problem with those on any Tamiya since 1992