So, What Have You Done Today?

[bRIBEGuy 3376]

Started designing some stands for a few of my cars to keep the tires from flatting.  Starting with an ascetically similar stand for the Thunder Shot, DT-03, and Frog... these will "key in" with the bottom chassis features for alignment, and will be 3D printed...

[svenb 3924]

2 hours ago, bRIBEGuy said:

Started designing some stands for a few of my cars to keep the tires from flatting.  Starting with an ascetically similar stand for the Thunder Shot, DT-03, and Frog... these will "key in" with the bottom chassis features for alignment, and will be 3D printed...

That's a good idea, look forward to seeing them 

[Pylon80 3456]

6 hours ago, bRIBEGuy said:

Started designing some stands for a few of my cars to keep the tires from flatting.  Starting with an ascetically similar stand for the Thunder Shot, DT-03, and Frog... these will "key in" with the bottom chassis features for alignment, and will be 3D printed...

Do you mean to say that you leave the tires on the cars? 😲😉

I must share with everyone that I have "tires-loosing-their-magic-anxiety" and I always keep the tires in ziplock bags.

[gogsyfinnie 638]

Tidied up the M08 wiring (still far from perfect but a big improvement on the previous mess!)  Soldered ESC straight to motor and managed to find better locations than before, especially for the large Futaba receiver.

New wheels and tyres also ready for next club run, managed to get a few more stickers on the Fat Fox and mudguards fitted

[nowinaminute 3336]

Well this is odd.

Just doing a bit of post run examination on the Nikko.

I just went to test each motor and esc combination separately, started with the rear end.

I took off the battery Y harness, so only the rear ESC had power.

Hit the power switch and BOTH ESCs turned on, and BOTH responded to the throttle, despite the front one having no battery plugged in, the front wheels were still spinning!!

I made sure to disconnect the red wire from the servo plug on the front ESC (a must with dual ESCs), so it only has the signal and earth connected....one BEC for the whole system.

I'm assuming it's not an issue when the main battery is plugged in, otherwise something would have gone very wrong on that long test run/thrash the other day, but is this normal?

I don't think I've ever replicated this scenario with dual ESC systems before, so I don't know.

I just assumed the BEC and main motor power circuits were entirely separated, and an esc wouldn't attempt to drive the wheels when it only has BEC power?

Again, I have to assume it's not an serious issue when both ESCs are plugged into the main batter, because otherwise, something would have gone up in smoke within seconds, so I probably shouldn't obsess over it.

Head scratcher, though!

Maybe when one motor runs, it sort of sends voltage feedback through the system into the other esc somehow? I know with the stock circuit board, if you span one axle by hand quickly, the motor on the other axle would spin, too,  but in that instance, everything was attatched to a common circuit.

[nowinaminute 3336]

Turns out it was because I spliced the power switches together!

Who'd have guessed that!?

I mean, maybe someone who has a clue lol

But I didn't realise it was possible to an ESC to draw power for the wheels through the power switch circuit?

Is that just how they work? Are they in the same circuit as the main power, and usually its not an issue because you're not inadvertently splicing the power switch from an ESC with a battery connected with an ESC without power?

I guess when they both have battery power, that is by far the path of least resistance, so they wouldn't be truing to pull power through the switch circuit. 

I guess it's probably not an issue as long as both are powered up simultaneously, but I should be able to fix it and keep a common power switch anyway, as the switch has 2 parallel rows of contacts. I currently have them bridged together, as that's how it was left over from the stock setup. 

Should just be a case of using separate contacts for each esc.

[nowinaminute 3336]

All sorted. Was just a case of removing the solder bridges to keep both power switch circuits seperate. 

Will tidy it up tomorrow, but it's confirmed working.

Kind of crazy that one ESC can draw power for it's own motor purely by being spliced to the power switch of the other one.

Maybe it's like I suggested, and main power and the power switch are the same circuit, and in this unusual situation, the ESC without the battery plugged in could only draw from that high resistance switch circuit, but when both are plugged into the battery, the battery instantly becomes the path of least resistance for the "slave" esc. 

I guess it wouldn't have been an ussue unless I tried to drive it with only the master ESC plugged in, then the slave one would have tried to feed it's motor through the power switch circuit of the master ESC!

Still, it can't happen now, each ESC will only power up when it has direct battery power, even with the common switch set to on.

[PoD2k2 99]

Not done today but finished my Manta Ray last week. Went out of my comfort zone and went non-boxart for the Manta Ray but was influenced by the Neo Scorcher. Bit miffed the masking around the windows went wrong but happy with it overall.

[alvinlwh 7069]

Installed more bling bits onto the WR-02G. 

Replaced the Flysky RX with a HotRC one.

And finished up the chassis.

 

[nowinaminute 3336]

I've been trying to sort out alternative wheels for my Nikko project. I like the stock wheels and tyres, but they aren't getting any younger, and the only source of spares is parts doner cars, which isn't ideal.

Also, the outer axles/cups need machining to work with proper bearings, and I only have one set of machined ones to go around 4 different vehicles and I don't know anyone with a lathe to get any more modified. 

But you can easily swap them for Tamiya tl-01 type cups and fit normal 12mm hex wheels....

The stock tyres are about 102mm diameter.

I know the wheels and tyres from the Cen ME16 and mini madness monster trucks are and ideal size, but they are long discontinued. I have two sets but they are both in white, and I wanted silver.



I then discovered that a few places still have the silver rims in stock, but without tyres. The tyres are impossible to find, and the ones I have are glued to the rims! Doh! 

The silver ones really appeal because the design of them is very reminiscent of the Nikko Super Dictator which is essentially the same platform as my project.

Cen silver wheels:



Nikko Super Dictator wheels:



But if I get those rims, I have to find 2.2 tyres that are big and chunky but only around 102mm diameter...

So I found these on Aliexpress. They are 104mm and the rims are 2.2" 



I just got a set today and the tyres aren't glued, so it seems perfect!

Only thing now is, I think they might look pretty good with the black rims! I guess I could always get another set.

While we're on the subject, if anyone knows of any 2.2" wheels that look like the stock Nikko ones, feel free to share! they need to be quite wide (52mm or more) to look right.

[bRIBEGuy 3376]

16 hours ago, Pylon80 said:

Do you mean to say that you leave the tires on the cars? 😲😉

I must share with everyone that I have "tires-loosing-their-magic-anxiety" and I always keep the tires in ziplock bags.

Ya, probably 99% of the time tires get left on.  I have typically been pretty good about "rotating" the tires by hand to try and ward off flat spots, but with recently deciding to pick up a 3D printer, I figured I'd make some display stands to keep the weight off them entirely.  The cars are in a basement away from UV exposure, so I'm not too worried about them degrading otherwise.

[Ferruz 12616]

Weather has been not that great, but good enough to keep enjoying the beach RC wise. Here's a selection of photos, more will be in the gallery 

[gogsyfinnie 638]

An evening of stickers, lots of stickers!  Fat fox done though, primed and ready for next visit to the track.

Alas the bumper stickers overlooked, got them done after the pics but was a bit dark to re do them so you can take my word for it they are now on!

[nowinaminute 3336]

5 hours ago, Ferruz said:

Weather has been not that great, but good enough to keep enjoying the beach RC wise. Here's a selection of photos, more will be in the gallery 

A man after my own heart! Great stuff!

[alvinlwh 7069]

Finished up the WR-02G for the model club meet next week. The driver/farmer had mud pigment powder dusted all over him to give him the 'just worked in mucky look.

While waiting for the paint to dry, I tested rhe chassis and zeroed/trimmed  the steering.

Pop the cab on the body and body on the chassis.

Now going to try and find more bling to throw at it before the model show.

[Kowalski86 4078]

I tried to do some puddle runs today but yet again I drowned a receiver, at least my back-up PUBG truck is fairly water proof.

Both RCs were dried quite a bit, since the PUBG truck saw the most water I hit it with a fan on high for a while, then WD-40'd some of the metal bits.

[Pylon80 3456]

F189 Bits-A-Build

It's way too hot to spray the body, but I couldn't resist going for a test run. Without a body nor a rear wing it certainly looks like a weird contraption!

Handling was asymmetrical to the point that it wasn't really drivable; which surprised me as it's 95% the same chassis as my Group C, which drove like a dream on the first run. It'll be an interesting challenge to tune it properly and I know it can be made to perform extremely well.

 

[alvinlwh 7069]

Sun is finally out.

The boy approves.

[alvinlwh 7069]

On 7/17/2024 at 4:58 PM, Ferruz said:

 

 

Too bad it is not sitting on a Frog.

[Gun Slinger 393 164]

I made some purchases, 

[Gun Slinger 393 164]

I wasn’t totally truthful, I made 2 purchases 

[JimBear 865]

4 hours ago, alvinlwh said:

Too bad it is not sitting on a Frog.

It's a Road Toad.

(or maybe it really is a frog?)

[Nikko85 3774]

I did a little more my CR12.

Having been a trail truck and then a monster truck I explored the idea of it going back to a crawler. Brushless motor out, 390 motor in. Still quite zippy and needs locked diffs if I really am going down this route, but it works quite well! I am running 96 mm tires to get some clearance, these are borrowed from the Jeep (hence the green paint) but if I like this route I will get some more. I can't get the body to sit much lower, so bigger tires stop that "on stilts" look.

The servo was lowered allow the body to fit low enough which involved rotating the mounts 180 degrees. Still needed is a bumper, some way of locking up the diffs a little (blue tack) and explore a lower pinion, as it's still really sparky on 2S.

You'll notice the wheelbase is slightly off. This truck was taken from 240mm to 210mm by shortening the links, as I'm not sure I can drop it any further without the angle being a little too extreme but I may have a play tonight.

 

[AG100 121]

Currently restoring an Original 80’s Monster Beetle for a good friend, taking the opportunity to add a few bits to improve it too (in my opinion)

Picked up a nice 3d printed interior for it, so removed the original driver figure and painted it all.

3d printed parts from 3dprintedrcstore on Etsy.

[Ferruz 12616]

23 hours ago, alvinlwh said:

Too bad it is not sitting on a Frog.

Another guy went for it again yesterday. Still not a Frog, but a Hornet is at least closer.

P.s.: I swear I didn't put the little fella there! They just seem to have a knack for RC. He even let me take all these photos undisturbed