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CC02? My little winter project

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Hello again friends and welcome to my most recent build. I was going to name this one "What Tamiya could have and should have" just because of my disappointment when this model was originally  released. 

OK, so let's start. When Tamiya first released the Volkswagen Amarok, it was on the WT01 chassis, and it was meant to emulate this truck:

IMG_0112.JPGIMG_0116.JPG

In my opinion, Tamiya completely missed the mark when they released a 2wd WT01 version of this vehicle:

IMG_0118.JPGIMG_0117.JPG

It's not even the right color! 

 

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So, I had an idea. What if I built a vehicle that would be closer in realism to the 1/1 version? I had my eyes on a few chassis kits, and decided to give the MST CMX a try. They do use Tamiya bodies on their kits, the size proportions are just like Tamiya's, and I have never built one of their kits...so it got the nod. 

I first picked up an Amarok body and trimmed it up. Now, I'm at a bit of a crossroads here. The WT01 and CC01 use the same Amarok body, but have different areas to cut-mainly to accommodate the larger WT01 wheels. I haven't cut them completely or painted the shell because this build can go one of two ways. Like the one originally pictured, or maybe a stock-ish semi-modified one that one may see on a road nearby. 

Body trimmed:

1AFEAA2E-2CEF-461B-8BCA-36C2F05E15E3_zps

Once trimmed I started trying on some wheels. 

Alloy TLT wheels:

D8101843-96B2-43FA-B249-02C346EEB7B8_zps

CR01 wheels with some aftermarket tires:

98184ACC-1B2F-42A3-912F-B21D606E38FF_zps

Gmade bead lock wheels with TSL super swamper tires (these are the ones I would really like to use):

5AF36FF9-ED20-409E-8BD2-2AD03ED80527_zps

 

 

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Looking forward to seeing your progress on this. The MST chassis should be a good match for the shell, and of course for the drive line of the fullsize.

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Been considering an MST CMX for a long time now, but the weakening of the £GBP has meant I've put it off (£160 delivered for a bare chassis) however I could still be tempted in the new year if I get a Christmas bonus. 

Look forward to the build. I built my Amarok on the CC01 platform, it's still good fun and with a few tweaks to address the stock "issues" it works well enough for some trail running. 

_20161118_202334.jpg

_20161118_202211.jpg

Watching the build with interest. Do you have a CC01 in your fleet you can cross-compare it with? 

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Both chassis have their merits for an Amarok build. The CC-01 is a good chassis for a realistic stock Amarok, as it replicates the live axle rear and wishbone front suspension of the fullsize vehicle. However the MST is a good base for a replica of the heavily modified Sochi rigs with their non-standard live axles up front.

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2 hours ago, ChrisRx718 said:

 

_20161118_202334.jpg

_20161118_202211.jpg

Do you have a CC01 in your fleet you can cross-compare it with? 

Looks great Chris! Which roll bar did you go with in the bed?

I do have a CC01 Race Touareg which I upgraded quite a bit. I too am curious how the two compare. I will definitely keep you posted :)

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OK, so on with the build...

Unboxing:

36D5A477-C973-40EC-B51B-F0603F790C12_zps

Everything package very nicely I must say:

01426C3F-507D-437F-877F-74DC65A2FFD6_zps

AA6E9A9C-2480-4B79-9617-588F789E17FF_zps

BD6FE41C-31BC-4C99-ABC8-5980C7D27092_zps

195D5ABF-19D7-4224-8D8E-2D9DF57BACF1_zps

Like the majority of my Tamiya builds, I wanted this CMX to be the best it could possibly be using as many genuine parts..so I gathered as many MST hop-ups as I could get my hands on:

7D0103F0-F606-4B71-83A2-450B204DD0C7_zps

 

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First impression is a great one.  Instructions are clear and easy to read/understand, parts and hardware are packaged conveniently, and the plastic parts seem very durable.  Also worth mentioning is how the parts dettach from the sprues effortlessly and with a clean break.

First steps were to assemble the suspension links.  Kit links are plastic, hop up pieces are alloy:

DA81AB81-0D16-4B01-BDC7-9FD34B3EDB04_zps

49C32066-24E5-49E2-B864-839D9272C22A_zps

8DFCBE96-0412-4E0B-8714-49C1944CF192_zps

Some more alloy hop ups; cross members A, B, C, D:

E5EB81A0-33AA-473E-867D-31F311D1EF5F_zps

9EE306EE-FCDD-4997-A077-1BF48E18C32B_zps

7A65CEAE-5AE5-49F4-BED1-AC764AA9B1E7_zps

FB314FFB-9313-413D-B041-6E2F505A09D1_zps

Chassis coming together:

13EF4A43-1263-434A-A969-C77261BC8E55_zps

Links attached:

53CD2D74-02DE-484E-948B-C0F9A9D7ADC1_zps

 

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Like the majority of Tamiya's kits, the CMX does not come with ball bearings.  So that was an essential hop up.  I jumped ahead a few steps as I waited for some gear box hop ups, so next I started assembling the axles.

12CADB5B-162C-421E-BBEC-BF599F4B2023_zps

First, the front:

656CD85B-337F-4139-B0B0-4C8D09FEB682_zps

There's no option to have an open front differential, this truck means business! :)

746E57B6-7195-4628-8BCC-D7BE4C95FBFA_zps

Metal gears are always a bonus:

ED611A63-086A-4E06-AD6D-D73A70CAE78E_zps

1F864BA0-6541-4CCB-A064-027A3A047721_zps

1B5DC10A-4146-4B67-A3CD-2AF046138040_zps

Hop up king pins, CVD axles, alloy steering knuckles, alloy steering servo mount, and alloy suspension link mount:

BC03D17D-C02F-4B67-BC89-ECFD1849292B_zps

DC5C7382-9B25-476C-BD0E-0605E52C89D3_zps

D40AFECD-B622-420B-B337-45A830C118EB_zps

Savox waterproof servo:

CE89799C-EF6F-403C-872B-F673E6C997F4_zps

Steering links fitted temporarily until the turnbuckles arrive:

D25F04A9-E3A2-415E-8074-E1DF409F421F_zps

Temporary fitting:

EF0A9CDF-501B-49B4-BF22-5CF1E4B9D0AB_zps

On to the rear axle:

94079197-3829-4997-B2A2-8334881C9FEA_zps

D2392D22-671E-48AD-B25E-CE6B95E1E44F_zps

F57DC41B-3879-4692-B358-89F82F0D24D5_zps

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I chose Holmes Hobbies for the electrical duties:

E52620AD-E727-42BA-A7F7-EED7E85CEB60_zps

02431FC7-5A2B-40CA-9664-643A627ABA9A_zps

The HH ESC is set up via a Castle Creations program.  I had one, so set up was very easy.

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This looks awesome, I'd not really seen anything about an MST CMX before. 

It's also making me reconsider what colours to paint my Amarok. That white combo from the promo pictures looks great, especially with the high lift wheels :wub:

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I've never heard of this manufacturer or kit before. Looks great though. Looking forward to the rest of the build. :)

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I've accomplished a lot to this build since I last posted, and am pleased so far.  I'm nearing completion, and looking forward to running it.  The only dilemma  I'm having is getting the proper looking wheel/tire combo.

MST's hop up turnbuckles:

B9AC1EC5-936C-4F76-BC1E-CC52327B2CCA_zps

I also swapped out the Savox servo with a Hitech waterproof servo I had. I painted it black to match:

A5CBC0A7-5E2D-4298-AE11-A2803E5766A9_zps

Assembling the gear box with some hop up parts:

4A8D01E3-4748-434D-BE34-BDD7C663F03E_zps

CD95D9CC-429A-48DF-8690-87F10F460DB1_zps

0831AF40-99A6-4F45-BE42-80BC207F9D95_zps

EFD4ED99-0002-49D7-ADFF-856854B9315B_zps

7471CC97-482B-4BED-B19C-AAF44B4D78B9_zps

68B4839C-6FFE-47C0-848A-2E3787FFA816_zps

52B78E3E-80D7-4CB1-9100-A494F9F1E66E_zps

128CDA66-7103-4A1B-9F02-1BCA5ECAB21A_zps

Gearbox fitted to the chassis:

7C305943-DCD4-4723-83BD-8DD0E956B1F4_zps

MST hop up prop shafts:

C1F8B421-97C5-457D-B1D5-EBA0B1AFEAF4_zps

Starting to look like a proper chassis:

A1FAF103-7CC1-4C50-97C8-2F4ED0BAF9D0_zps

Fitting the hop up skid plate:

22584D6C-96D6-4F85-88A8-5CDCBC160EF3_zps

14EDEE49-04F1-4D81-8301-2FBA6D708406_zps

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On to the suspension..I originally picked up a set of Boom Racing internal spring/external reservoir dampers, but it turns out that I purchased the incorrect ones.  They were 30mm too long :wacko:  So I continued the build with the standard kit shocks, and ordered MST's upgraded shocks.

What's really nice about the standard kit's shocks is that you have a choice of 3 different stiffness springs.  I went with soft oil and medium springs.

CE91F0BD-EA72-4D80-B6AB-9EDACC3DDB11_zps

8ADA4C19-DAF7-473E-A878-D64185AAA0B2_zps

F2625DF1-6A15-4BAE-8232-E9959C88DA7C_zps

Front bumper and electronics box/battery tray:

DEAB37AB-2CBA-46DA-80C5-4A99C2CC3BD1_zps

I did not fit the receiver in the e-box, I found that running the wiring as per the directions caused the wiring to rub on the front prop shaft.  So, I mounted the electronics towards the rear and ran the wiring as neatly as I could:

68F275C9-C408-4903-83DA-031819C7D94D_zps

23114D50-AE56-4C32-A98A-46F2A8C5AE8B_zps

I picked up MST's hop up alloy wheel hexes:

B0E68572-02FF-4549-9999-7EDB673D859B_zps

And also picked up their brake rotor and caliper hop up:

C396EEF3-4411-44F3-B2A7-A0644FF4DBD5_zps

I think they look great!

4245EA1C-A8EC-481D-9173-AC4DA1E8674D_zps

B6770C3A-8B66-4614-9FB8-C74D64EDA610_zps

And the TLT wheels fit without any issues :)

55C16FAA-D364-46DA-9778-02D6E36D303C_zps

D6F3B9A2-B400-49E5-8F21-38DCFC0CEA4E_zps

D4B9F4B0-571D-486E-A0F7-FC0B30916B5F_zps

Trying on the body:

F669B581-23CC-4527-A204-0087FDAA69FE_zps

F153771B-9A8B-41F1-86D3-02E841131124_zps

Even tried on my Blackfoot body.  If I went with the shorter wheel base CMX, it would have been a perfect fit:

D693A547-937E-4ED3-B599-F2F2E8000AAE_zps

With the Gmade wheels and TSL Super Swamper tires:

DD8C0124-2466-4E36-A163-F092CB5EE3DB_zps

Trimmed the remaining portions of the body, as I decided to go with the Sochi winter olypmpics theme:

A974FF48-229B-46F4-A329-56335ADED824_zps

But now these wheels/tires kind of look too small:

10446D63-2A3C-4F8B-9205-1CB1B427D92C_zps

A3DD4773-A58B-4CEF-B48B-D5C7CAE662F2_zps

466A226D-7CA0-4E2F-917D-8A00B20F09DE_zps

The hop ups I've fitted thus far:

:)

9D24B587-1969-40E5-9EDF-6B7CBB9B824A_zps

Naked TLT wheels:

39DA029A-753D-499D-9C1D-D605F6D6358E_zps

After a few coasts of Plasti-dip:

59F36707-0867-41CF-8E16-DB4C509A1148_zps

All masked and ready for paint:

F1E3152A-A2CC-4324-A8D6-60FBD7971F58_zps

I masked the lights, maybe down the road I'll fit some lights:

A7A1A245-38B1-4D1E-9F90-3D0023FC0546_zps

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3 coats of PS1 white, backed with PS12 silver, and finally backed with PS5 black. Additionally, windows sprayed with PS31 smoke:

7405DB09-CECF-49A2-99F0-EBC3755D186C_zps

F6EC5BFC-8614-4394-ADA3-4D6AD401A4E7_zps

85B7607E-204E-4877-A056-A57D94E644A4_zps

I picked up another set of wheels, this time 2.2 sized from Alientac.  I thought to stretch the 1.9 Super Swamper tires to give them a puffier look, to look closer to the 1/1 version of this truck.  I had no luck using the CR01 wheels and tires, they were just too big.  Even tried spacing them out.  First I tried 17mm, and then 20mm.  Neither looked right.  I tried a set of Proline Masher tires I have on my High Lift, and they were even worse than the CR01 tires.  What would have been perfect would be a 1.9 Proline Masher, but those do not exist unfortunately.  The TLT wheels would have been great, if only a tad bigger.  But, I think these will do for now..

Alientac 2.2 wheels (left) and Gmade 1.9 wheels (right)

ED08898B-71C8-4A2B-9CC7-84009B26BC5E_zps

And with the decals:

C50A2BDD-183F-4B90-8EF2-4B34FEF97DCD_zps

ABEF2626-DC0D-48A6-9D62-640EA8163113_zps

3A8D94D1-0564-4D56-AD91-4E4F9BE13313_zps

The width of the TLT wheels are perfect, just not tall enough:

DA99FBBE-690D-48BD-B3B7-BA4350CE39CD_zps

And a parting shot of some suspension flex:

3E12C542-8AC3-4269-BBCD-926486E8CBFB_zps

Next I plan to add some scale items, lights, and the new shocks. Thanks for viewing!

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The new aluminum shocks arrived yesterday, and I wasted no time getting them on. 

FB8708E2-4CEF-49F7-8D24-BFF7CB554761_zps

And just like the stock dampers, these come with 3 different spring rates. I chose medium. 

53376048-81BD-406A-BE85-34A8DF31C878_zps

Before (front):

187DDED4-C29A-44D6-B2F7-B71A7A2CF058_zps

Side by side. The hop up units are alloy and have threaded bodies for adjustment. They are also thinner in diameter, I assume for better clearance with wider tires. And finally, they come with stainless pivot balls at their mounting points, rather than the standard plastic:

8FDB3417-A18C-46AC-9DC1-2C111C64680F_zps

After (front):

B1323F8A-D97B-4395-9906-0BCF0D3A9C31_zps

Before (rear):

220A01B6-E90E-4ABB-99D3-1CAD5EA64935_zps

After (rear):

61F77975-F236-4EBF-9AF4-91243BBED35A_zps

That's it for now but there's still some more to come, stay tuned :)

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Looks very good. I'm sure it will be way more capable than the CC01. I notice there is a company now selling body mounts for the CMX which allow you to fit the Tamiya hard bodies (Wrangler, Pajero etc). I'm seriously tempted! I'm kind of pooped about the USD / GBP exchange rate though, makes this an expensive purchase.

Also spotted the MST CFX - is this an evolution of the CMX? To the untrained eye (that's me) they don't look that different - and certainly the price-point is much the same?

Spot the difference?!

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Aren't they pretty much the same apart from the motor location? Mid in the CMX, front in the CFX?

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Those hop-up shocks look great with the rotor/caliper parts.  Like the others who have already replied, I've never heard of MST either.  Looks like a truly viable option to an RC4WD chassis.

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On 12/21/2016 at 10:49 AM, ChrisRx718 said:

Also spotted the MST CFX - is this an evolution of the CMX? To the untrained eye (that's me) they don't look that different - and certainly the price-point is much the same?

Spot the difference?!

Thanks Chris. I do believe it is an evolution. Figures it gets released right after I purchase the "older" version.

I noticed they changed the battery location and went with a transfer case style transmission while putting the motor more towards the front of the vehicle. Not sure about the axles and prop shafts, but I did see that the CFX is available in 1/8th scale. 

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During the last couple of days some little bits arrived and I was eager to get them on. I am trying to replicate the Sochi Amarok as best as I can so I realized I needed a roof rack and a roll bar in the bed. I wasn't sure of what size roof rack would fit so I took a chance with the roof rack that comes standard on the Gmade Komodo. 

8C192095-1BD8-4728-A397-A60E268E2710_zps

It's a nice little kit, and comes with some accessories like a shovel, tie down straps, and some plates to lay down under a tire to increase traction:

EDFE17E0-EF66-4971-B3B8-871380C70054_zps

All assembled:

8F2726AD-18BD-49AB-9A6A-9A4F46652319_zps

After a mock up test fit, it was perfect. So a little bit of XF-16 flat aluminum:

D9A75F1F-611D-42F3-A7C6-A9B98F5B54D6_zps

32DB844A-32C4-44FB-B4DD-456F3269C487_zps

9EAF36B3-329D-490E-9C60-7338C5B3D6C3_zps

62ACAD44-1614-40EC-B3C7-3574A38371B4_zps

Some paint on the shovel, and the roof rack is done:

08124FD4-0495-41D5-A44D-B9DB5C1A1547_zps

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Next was the roll bar. Again I had some uncertainty about which to use. In my search, I came across the G parts from a Bush Devil II. Price was reasonable, so I ordered it in hopes of completing the look I am after. 

I especially liked that the bar doesn't have provisions or cut outs for roof lights, since I won't be mounting any:

DF1D03EF-DF23-4C30-A0CA-C92C748F9FD6_zps

Test fit, and success:

8A1F2812-4DBC-4D17-8B56-9E92B0193640_zps

First coat of XF-16 flat aluminum:

7C5D0805-B99B-4393-8D69-21AC07BE9FA1_zps

And mounted:

B4DD0A31-77D1-4E39-9869-CD38D2B6C5FA_zps

85E12385-6E4D-448D-B987-AD96F146F5A9_zps

Although neither the roof rack or roll bar are identical to the Sochi Amarok, I am pleased with the outcome. Just waiting on the door mirrors and I think I may be done. I would really like to add some lights, but the decals don't really allow much light to travel through them. I may give it a shot anyway, we'll see. 

 :) 

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I don't suppose there is any scope for lengthening the front links at all,possibly with some Gmade or Axial spacers? One of the distinctive features of the Sochi Amarok is the extended wheelbase achieved by moving the front axle forwards relative to its stock position. Could this be replicated on the model? 

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7 minutes ago, TurnipJF said:

I don't suppose there is any scope for lengthening the front links at all,possibly with some Gmade or Axial spacers? One of the distinctive features of the Sochi Amarok is the extended wheelbase achieved by moving the front axle forwards relative to its stock position. Could this be replicated on the model? 

I suppose I could. There is plenty of length to be used on the front prop shaft. But I may end up contacting the front bumper with the tires if I did. But thanks for the idea. Could be something I could try in the future. 

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