Any Ideas On Wheels For My New Chrome Beetle?

[mooter]

I started a custom project recently and I'm lacking inspiration for the wheels. I've seen some HPI's (2161 & 2125) but I'm not too sure about them, I'd prefer some dish wheels if possible. I'm sticking with a black/chrome theme throughout, so the original gold's are out, and I'm not sure what to do. I could grab a set of original blackfoot wheels and spray them up black I suppose?

Inspiration welcome

I'll need some nice shocks too, I was thinking of the Yeah Racing 80mm but it seems like there might be an issue with the top cap?

The more chrome the better really! I almost grabbed a servo cover and shock mount from ebay a while ago but the price went mental while I was asleep. I'd quite like a chrome motor cover but they just dont come up often enough

edit - would the chrome spots from a Midnight Pumpkin tree work on the Beetle spotlight bar I wonder? Can anyone confirm?

[duncank]

Have you thought about the traxxas satin shrome wheels for the sledgehammer?

They are dished and have the same fitment as the MB wheels on the back. There were none on ebay but i called traxxas UK as a last resort and they had them in stock. I payed £9:50 i think delivered for both front and rear so it was a bargain:)

[30cms]

How about Wild Willy 2 wheels?

[mooter]

Oooooooohhhh shiny!

Are they the same dimensions/depth as the Lunchbox wheels? I tried a set of Lunchies on my MB and while they fit OK on the back, the offset is too deep on the front and it fouls the steering rods. Be good if they did fit though... they look just the ticket!

[30cms]

i am not really sure!!

they look like lunchy wheels, but they have hex fitting on the backs.

these were a set I sold the other day.

I think they may be ideal for the job, if they will go on (or you can make 'em go on)

[WW-nut]

For inspiration have a look through the Monster Beetle showroom entries --> http://www.tamiyaclub.com/userrides.asp?id=60

I found a couple of members who have fitted King Blackfoot wheels on to their MB's --> http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...350&id=7011 , http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...973&id=4292 and another with Traxxas wheels --> http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...222&id=3109

[floppydisk35]

If you want a silver coloured motor, why won't you buy a worn second hand silvercan, open it up, and mount parts from another motor into the silvercan?

[Shodog]

I would second the recomend of the KBF wheels. they have a nice design and the quality of the chrome is top notch. But really if your going to bling, a polished set of aluminum wheels is the way to go.

[berman]

Open your wallet for some See's wheels Pete

[mooter]

If I could see any, I might

[mooter]

Have you thought about the traxxas satin shrome wheels for the sledgehammer?

They are dished and have the same fitment as the MB wheels on the back. There were none on ebay but i called traxxas UK as a last resort and they had them in stock. I payed £9:50 i think delivered for both front and rear so it was a bargain:)

We have a winner! Just what I was looking for, for now (until some nice alloy ones are doing the rounds!). Wheelspinmodels can "special order" them at a cheap price, so I guess they call Traxxas UK for me

Cheers.

I just spent a fortune on some nice bits for this project.... Ansmann shocks, 23x3 Raven Peak, MTroniks Sport Tuned 20, Metal Gear Servo, High Torque Servo Saver....oh and I thought I'd try out a set of "HD" steering rods/connectors from someone on ebay in the states, that should help tighten up the steering a little.

She's also looking more complete now, will upload some pics in a bit. New Frog underguard for more protection/better stability and also some Frog stopper arms. Still have to put the CRP chassis brace/rear mounts on but I'll sort that when the shocks arrive.

It'll be a mean beast that's for sure!

Now, do I spring for a CRA adjustable motor mount....?

[Jack_Truck]

We have a winner! Just what I was looking for, for now (until some nice alloy ones are doing the rounds!). Wheelspinmodels can "special order" them at a cheap price, so I guess they call Traxxas UK for me

Cheers.

I just spent a fortune on some nice bits for this project.... Ansmann shocks, 23x3 Raven Peak, MTroniks Sport Tuned 20, Metal Gear Servo, High Torque Servo Saver....oh and I thought I'd try out a set of "HD" steering rods/connectors from someone on ebay in the states, that should help tighten up the steering a little.

She's also looking more complete now, will upload some pics in a bit. New Frog underguard for more protection/better stability and also some Frog stopper arms. Still have to put the CRP chassis brace/rear mounts on but I'll sort that when the shocks arrive.

It'll be a mean beast that's for sure!

Now, do I spring for a CRA adjustable motor mount....?

Are you going to run this bug?

[mooter]

Yup.

I was thinking about this last night - do I run it and scratch up all of the chrome or does it sit on a shelf looking pretty.

I decided to run it. Hard. Hence getting some OK electrics for it. I would have gone silly but the gearboxes just aren't strong enough to take much more than a 23turn me thinks.

[Leethal Driver]

Just needs oldfrogshot's diff mod or a tasty Thorp in the back and away you go...

[mooter]

Agreed... I was looking for a Thorp diff yesterday but couldn't see any going, will keep my eyes peeled.

As for the frog drive shafts - I remember reading a thread on here where someone did a lot of experimenting and it turned out that it wasn't a much better solution than the original hex drives? IIRC the tranny would bind when the suspension was compressed and he went back to the original hex's in the end.

I think I have the bits at home, somewhere, to come up with a complete frog tranny with dogbones so maybe I should just give it a go and see. I've really not had any issues with the hex drives yet though....

A full Thorp setup would be lovely though

[Madmuz77]

I started a custom project recently and I'm lacking inspiration for the wheels. I've seen some HPI's (2161 & 2125) but I'm not too sure about them, I'd prefer some dish wheels if possible. I'm sticking with a black/chrome theme throughout, so the original gold's are out, and I'm not sure what to do. I could grab a set of original blackfoot wheels and spray them up black I suppose?

Inspiration welcome

I'll need some nice shocks too, I was thinking of the Yeah Racing 80mm but it seems like there might be an issue with the top cap?

The more chrome the better really! I almost grabbed a servo cover and shock mount from ebay a while ago but the price went mental while I was asleep. I'd quite like a chrome motor cover but they just dont come up often enough

edit - would the chrome spots from a Midnight Pumpkin tree work on the Beetle spotlight bar I wonder? Can anyone confirm?

nice looking project i've been thinking of building a chromed up blackfoot my self, anyway to answer you edit incase you didn't already know the the chromed spotlights from the metalic midnight pumpkin will fit the monster beetle spotlight bar as the pumpkin roll bar is the same as th blackfoots. But the spotlights themselves are smaller then the original monster beetles. I did take photos to show the difference but they to big to upload.

[mooter]

Cheers Madmuzz77 - roughly how much smaller are we talking? My nose cone is an original MB but it lost the spot mounts along the way. I've sanded it down so it looks good, but I've got a spare spot bar and I'd love to put some silver spots on.

Do I remember someone coming up with a guide for mounting them another way?

/goes to look

I just updated the showroom with new pics, more to follow here/there as and when the bits come in. I'm REALLY looking forward to finishing it, then going down the park and ruining it within seconds

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...=18112009202606

[Madmuz77]

Cheers Madmuzz77 - roughly how much smaller are we talking? My nose cone is an original MB but it lost the spot mounts along the way. I've sanded it down so it looks good, but I've got a spare spot bar and I'd love to put some silver spots on.

Do I remember someone coming up with a guide for mounting them another way?

/goes to look

I just updated the showroom with new pics, more to follow here/there as and when the bits come in. I'm REALLY looking forward to finishing it, then going down the park and ruining it within seconds

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...=18112009202606

Got around to resizing the photos for you today. I measured the spots the MB ones are 26mm across & the Pumpkin ones are 19mm, the mounts are exactly the same though so they will fit if you don't mind the 5mm difference.

Hope this helps, Muz.

sorry the photos a bit blurry my dodgy camera deosn't like to take close up pics.

As to your nose cone problem I've seen a couple of different ways to mount the spotlight bar. I read a post a while back about someone using pieces of mechano to replace the original mounts & I seen a threaded hook on ebay somewhere, both methods require some sort of modding to mount. I was considering doing one of these ways on my MB but I was holding off because i wanted to stay original then I was lucky enough to win a nib bodyset minus the body & decals on ebay.

[berman]

Agreed... I was looking for a Thorp diff yesterday but couldn't see any going, will keep my eyes peeled.

As for the frog drive shafts - I remember reading a thread on here where someone did a lot of experimenting and it turned out that it wasn't a much better solution than the original hex drives? IIRC the tranny would bind when the suspension was compressed and he went back to the original hex's in the end.

I think I have the bits at home, somewhere, to come up with a complete frog tranny with dogbones so maybe I should just give it a go and see. I've really not had any issues with the hex drives yet though....

A full Thorp setup would be lovely though

Leethal means the stainless screw through the hex's e.g here:

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=52667

Just dont tell Blaque Jacque I haven't gotten off my lazy bum and done it yet

[mooter]

They look like they'll be perfect, nice one I don't mind if they are a little smaller really, I'll have to pick up a parts tree! As for mounting the bar to the nose cone, I saw the meccano bodge and thought it looked alright to me too ha-ha! I'll come up with something.

So here is how she is looking now... (ignore the Blackfoot tires, got some new treads on the way)

I found myself having to move the rear aerial mount to the centre, but it's worked out OK, especially as I'm using a Blitzer shell - I can just route it through the sunroof hole. I'm waiting on an old CRP rear bumper for the ORV to turn up, I'll dye the nylon black and I think it'll help give the car a much more custom feel than the standard Beetle skid plate; hence the need for moving the mounting position.

New steering linkage, metal gears servo and a high torque servo saver - it's all nice and tight and responsive but I've yet to give it a proper run to see how she really handles now.

Here you can see the small mod to the damper mount and the upright body-post mounting hole. The tapping screws are OK but only for a while, then they tend to wear and/or crack the plastic. This seems like a much better solution, have to see how it stands the test of time though. Locking screw nuts and a washer on the body post one should keep that secure too.

I left the standard Ansmann springs on the front but switched to some stiffer springs at the rear to stop it getting saggy!

The traxxas rims are exactly the same as the MB/BF in terms of dimensions, just a nice satin chrome and cheap! Note the colour coded alloy nuts

The shell is coming along nicely, just waiting on some more paint as I ran out half way through lol! Good job it's gloss black otherwise I could have run into problems. I sourced some great "decals" for it too...

[Arcticfox]

It's looking good Mooter. I am following this one with interest as there are some nice touches added that I like.

It's good to see the wheel options work out well.

[mooter]

Thanks very much!

It now sports some Proline Dirt Works tires that have a slightly slimmer profile than the originals - they are great tires too, or at least they promise to be; very soft and sticky so should have some good traction properties. I've since added a nice EDIT alloy heat sink for the motor and I finally got round to fitting the spare CRP chassis kit that I had too.

Some nerf bars arrived today but they are gold (bought from fellow TC member skinned - thanks mate!) so I'm not sure what I'll do about that. Maybe I'll allow a little colour to creep in... I could always strip the anodising off the bars but it seems a little OTT and would leave them unprotected and potentially quite dull looking. A little gold can't hurt me thinks!

With any luck she'll be pretty tough and ready for anything I can throw at her by the time I'm through!

Oh, I'm also waiting for an adjustable motor mount to come through the post and I grabbed some extra long pinions for it too so I'll have some fun gearing it up (not too much) at some point. I'll be finishing the shell this weekend so more pics to follow shortly...

[Butler]

You need this to finish.

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...322&id=4964

[mooter]

/dribble

I'll have one of those, thanks Paul - put me on the list if you please! Be very interested in a shell/nose/p parts when you have them for sale.

I *almost* managed to grab a Blitzer chrome shell that was sitting in the trades section for aaaaaaages - I put in an offer and we were just about to close the deal when his previously interested party paid up and it was gone.

Loaded - MOOTER WANTS. REALLY BADLY.

Cheers!

edit - just had email from Paul and can see listing in trades - woop!

/impulse buy's

[mooter]

Some pics as promised...

I foolishly took her on a test run without a shell shortly after these pics, I couldn't wait any longer so thought a little run in the road will be OK. I learned three things.

1) the new Dirt Works tires are REALLY grippy

2) this causes the truck to roll instantly on a fast turn on tarmac

3) this in turn raises the probability of you breaking the front body post mount

It's OK, she's got a new one installed already.

The nerf bars fit perfectly and don't foul anything so I'm very pleased. The packet has a date stamp inside, 30 March 1988

A close up of the side body post mounting point. I ran two bolts through instead of the usual tapping screw. Initially I just wanted something longer thanks to the addition of the chassis brace, but I soon realised that they are a great improvement in terms of overall solidness. I could go for longer ones and put bolts on the ends but I'm not sure if it's needed, they are pretty snug in there. I'm also pleased to say they went through my custom G1 part no worries.

Rear end view with the 'edit' heat sink on the motor. I like the way that it's square in profile, in that the top and bottom are parallel. Gives it a sleeker look I think?

Shell next.... then off to the park!