Let's Talk Lunchboxes

[s howell]

i have a lunchbox and it needs to be better so am going to have a go at the 3rd shock and chassis strengthening first then when i can find the right parts i will do the front suspension modd.

one question though does anyone else have problems with front end bounce from the tyres, i added medium inserts to the fronts only and it has calmed it down some what but it is still to much 4 my liking what can i do next

[taliesin]

How serious is the chassis flex anyway, and is the brace necessary [or strongly recommended] for both front and back? Or is it only for those who are going seriously airborne?

First time VLB owner here and I'm trying to determine how much/many mods to do. The braces seem easy and cheap, but I'm wanting to start with the most effective mods first. [bearings and oil shocks for sure]

I guess what I'm asking for is advice on the order of precedence for upgrading.

[s howell]

i carried out the 3rd shock conversion yesterday and it has made a noticable difference

have now ordered some 3mm threaded bar so i can do the chassis stiffening then the front suspension will be tackled

[s howell]

bits arrived today to do the chassis strengthening so got this all done in about 45 mins. Just ordered my FX 10 frons suspension arm kit from CRP (hurry up mr postie) i want to go racing

[tpsolid]

any1 interested in alum motor mount and alum gearbox cover

[s howell]

FX10 kit arrived today just got to sort out some bits to go with it and some wider track wheels and tyres now

[stanni]

hi am wanting some of them yellow shocks on your lunchbox

could u tell me where u got them

[s howell]

super cva shocks look on ebay for them from a monster beetle.

[kernowmafia]

interesting thread,i'm awaiting the arrival of mine from ebay,its complete but an unfinished build.....i'm a racer foremost so my xray and xxx4 are all about the handling,i'm looking forward to driving a truck not designed to handle as it'll just be a 'toy' not a track weapon,pic's to follow when it eventually turns up...............

[D-man79]

Hi Guys,

Great thread. First post as I am now the proud owner of a Lunchbox after nearly 15 years of waiting. Anyway I bust my axle springs and was looking at the 3rd shock mod - I would prefer to go for the cheapest option as i'm just using this for bashing around the park. Some research has shown that the Tamiya short shock set (50305) or the CVA short shock set (50520) should do the job but ultimately I am only looking for 1. Can anyone point me in the right direction or possibly have one I can buy from them?

Thanks in advance.

[Blacque Jacque]

The Tamiya Short shocks were common to many Tamiya buggies, your best bet is to hunt for used parts on Ebay, as a new pair will set you back around £20

[D-man79]

Ok I bit the bullet and bought a set of CVA short shocks so I could get do the 3rd shock mod. Really happy with the result and will probably get the other 4 done as these really are great units. The problem is I now have a spare so if anybody is thinking of doing this mod let me know.

Also if your doing this mod I recommend setting the shock up with the "firm" spring and possibly the "stiff" piston. I ended up using the spring spacers to increase the firmness - I couldn't be bothered to undo everything and change the spring.

[Jonny Retro]

... The problem is I now have a spare ...

That's easily sorted - get a 'Pumpkin or another Lunchbox

[s howell]

this arrived at the weekend so do i do a proper dukes of hazzard finish or do i go for the deathproof charger finish

this is it cut out and placed on the lunchbox chassis

genaral lee finished lunchbox body with lights and a 3 racing crawler style front light bar

[s howell]

had a bit of an off with my dukes style body and that gave me an idea to really go to town on making the body look old beat up and rusty with odd pannels from other vans to add to the effect. whole body in grey primer and a couple of pannels painted ready to have a couple of light coats of white paint then its onto the finner details like rusty edges and old sighnwriting. pictures of progress to follow.

[emory70]

i have also thought about the lowered suspension idea to reduce steering problems, cause i just don't know if i wanna ditch the front suspension for the crp mod. as for the rear, i like the third shock mod, but have considered something else. my idea is to mod the rear suspension into something like a 92-02 camaro setup. attach a stout rod end to the axle where the third shock would mount and attach that to the chassis. then, make up a couple of upper link mounts that attach to the axle where the shocks mount, and then to fabricated brackets on the chassis.

[emory70]

well, got my new lunchbox re-re the other day, and also got the crp front suspension and hardware kit. in this day and age of rtr trucks that run 60mph, it sure is fun to build a truck and then modify it to make it better.

i think building is my favorite part.

[DIFFLOCK]

Some great LBs on here! Thought I'd dive in to this topic seeing as we have 3 LBs (and a pumpkin sometime soon!). My son's is stock, but I've got the Mystery Machine and Rollin Thunder, but that one's not completed yet. The only mods I've bothered with so far is the 3rd shock and little bits of rubber tube at the top of the shock shafts to stop them smacking the chassis as much when they rebound. I'll get some pics up soon.

EDIT - oops forgot - motive power is via Tamiya Sport tuned on Rollin Thunder and Ansmann clash 23t on Scooby's ride, all fully ball raced.

Diff.

[emory70]

ok, i have my crp front suspension arms mounted and the upper links pretty much figured out. still have to decide on shocks and of course steering.

even before i bought the lunchbox i intended to do the third shock mod. the more i look at it, the more i don't like it. just seems to me that the whole rear axle assembly will be able to hop all over the place; damped by shocks of course, but still too freely.

am i asking too much of the lunchbox? of course i am. but i don't want to get too far away from the original design. on one hand i'm thinking a blackfoot/monster beetle transmission and rear suspension swap. on the other hand, i want to keep the solid axle. my new plan is to try something (perhaps) completely different: a suspension like the 82-92 camaro or firebird. build a single trailing arm for the rear end, using a heavy duty ball end to secure it to the chassis, as far forward as possible. then make up a couple of upper links. i think these would have to be attached to the axle with a plate between motor and gearbox.

if i end up building a whole chassis, i'll know i have gone too far.

[s howell]

i like the sound of the suspension upgrade would be interested to see how well it works if you ever get it done. i have gone down the 3rd shock and chassis brace routes so far just got to sort out the CRP front suspension soon but as mine is only used for fun occasionally i have had no end of trouble getting it right think i need shorter shocks aswell.

[TA-Mark]

The CRP front end works well. I've had it fitted to mine for some time now. No more odd camber or toe angles and no more bottoming out the front suspension while reversing. It doesn't make it steer that much better as it's hard to turn when your front wheels aren't touching the ground but it is more predictable when landing the front wheels after a wheelie.

Putting a spacer inside the damper body will limit the length of the damper to get the front ride height correct. You need to do this also with the Tamiya recommended CVA damper hopup to fit them on.

I would expect quite a bit of torque twist with a multi-link stye rear suspension. When I put Li-Po and a more powerful motor into the CC-01, which has this type of rear suspension, the torque twist is quite dramatic when it wheelies.

[emory70]

the full custom rear suspension will have to wait. i have the front end geometry the way i want it, now i have to replace the threaded rods with aluminum links. rear suspension is gonna stay stock with the addition of the third shock. if i had the tools to make the parts i want, i would. since i don't, i have to know when to shut up and leave it alone!

now the only question is priority... the lunchbox or my ebay score clod with the crawford evolution chassis?

[TWINSET]

OK, it's rebuild time

Has anyone tried an EZRun brushless in a LB yet?

I took the motor out of this when my nephew trashed the one in his Rustler so it needs replacing.

It had a Venom 19x2 Fireball in before - is it as well to go that route again, or go B/L this time seeing as I can get a B/L setup for a similar price to a brushed

[berman]

Hope you are not going to use that orange lid again

[skip665]

I am about to drop my 9t (4300kv) eZrun into my Lunchbox just to see how it goes - I have tried it in most of my cars - I found it too much in the Bush Devil (Superstock RZ is better for me) and it just disintegrated my Thunder Dragon (you may remember that from Snetterton 2009!) - decent batteries are key though...

Actually pulled my Lunchbox out (oooerr!) and used my new RPM camber and toe-in gauges to set up the front end (CRP front end allows for camber adjustment) and took it for a run - it has a Reedy Stockstar 27t motor but wouldnt even wheelie from a standing start so I am assuming the battery I used is duff as it used to wheelie easily. It has however renewed my enthusiasm for the truck so I will make more of an effort to use it now