Jump to content
schlabinski

HPI Wheely King Bigfoot #1

Recommended Posts

I bought this truck in 2007, and in 2017 I started rebuilding it into something that would look and handle a bit better than the original.  The project is done, but I figured I would share some pictures of the build along the way.

SPOILER ALERT!  All pictures available here:  https://flic.kr/s/aHsm8mfyR8

Starting with some axle upgrades, I added the HPI sintered ring and pinion gears...

38533014386_0f799ea5c4_b.jpg

Front axles got the RCP Crawlers aluminum knuckles and clockable axle Cs...

37873177584_df3666745b_b.jpg

Rear axles got the Locked Up straight axle lockout and shafts...

38533026036_0c532b921f_b.jpg

Then I made an on-axle servo mount and upper link mounts...

38590203061_6656b3cfee_b.jpg

38557277732_e3dfa24e22_b.jpg

More soon...

 

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Looks pretty awesome. Did you get those parts recently? I thought most HPI parts had dried up...

Are you aiming for a crawler or more of a monster truck for jumps and speed?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
22 hours ago, smirk-racing said:

Looks pretty awesome. Did you get those parts recently? I thought most HPI parts had dried up...

Are you aiming for a crawler or more of a monster truck for jumps and speed?

Thanks!  Most of the stuff I bought 4 years ago when I started the rebuild, but it looks like the parts from RCP Crawlers and Locked Up are still available.

I'm just going for a little performance improvement over the stock Wheely King.  Longer wheelbase, lower, steering on axle, better shocks, and a slight bump in speed.  The diffs will remain open and I just plan to run it around the yard in the bumpy grass.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Next up is the transmission.

Bye-bye purple anodizing...

37873200204_813bc6159f_b.jpg

My first pass at the transmission included replacing the top shaft with one from the HPI Blitz so I could use a true slipper...

37873211444_ac8da561ae_b.jpg

Top shaft comparison (Wheely King on top, Blitz on bottom with a new hole drilled for a cross pin)...

24717712638_3c8e285251_b.jpg

Then I got the bright idea to eliminate the "clicker" side of the gears all together by getting creative with spacers...

37701993625_5f4a47fd51_b.jpg

Looking good...

38590238421_a308c040db_b.jpg

38557307552_303a4aff38_b.jpg

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Ultimately, something didn't work out right with my plan to reduce the gears in the transmission.  I'm not sure what I did wrong, but I opened it up months later and found shreds of black plastic and the gears were the shape of the dreaded shark tooth.

I ended up going back to my original plan of locking the clicker by screwing it together, which is a common modification...

37873205224_61d8533d04_b.jpg

37701969195_d3403afee5_b.jpg

Getting it back together...

37701971885_26ed675a51_b.jpg

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Moving on to mocking things up.  Since the Traxxas Bigfoot #1 body was pre-drilled, I made some hybrid body mounts consisting of HPI lowers and Traxxas uppers...

26160678198_21a6fc780b_b.jpg

For shocks, I rebuilt some Traxxas Big Bore 4962 with modified Tamiya 53573 pistons and 15wt oil...

50610407017_535e9287cf_b.jpg

Checking the stance with some home made links...

24931245977_3a4f00f030_b.jpg

25929180828_3010f802db_b.jpg

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Next up is the body work.  Painted with Tamiya PS-16 metallic blue and smoke for the windows...

25929186828_bea3837a4f_b.jpg

Instead of using the Traxxas dark window stickers, I used a silver Sharpie for the window trim...

39091657434_008d0e43de_b.jpg

With all the Traxxas bumpers and roll bar accessories mounted...

39769985442_1f3dae7d02_b.jpg

 

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

With the link length perfected, time to sleeve them.

Steering...

40411648211_ac3111d24f_b.jpg

Suspension links and Traxxas drive shafts (E-Maxx/T-Maxx I think?)...

40411653541_dc4be1b4aa_b.jpg

Underside...

40411666781_030bed7d3d_b.jpg

Made some aluminum chassis braces too...

40367111062_b62cd966a8_b.jpg

 

  • Like 2

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I really like that, though I’m curious what your power goals for it are?  I’ve got one I build that has more stretch, bigger rubber, same diffs, RC4wd trans gears in an Integy housing, 4WS,  and a grave robber body and have been thinking about flipping back over to more of a Crawler King front battery set up since the VXL system on a rear mounted 3s was overwhelming the rest of it. I’m just not sure to go with a milder brushless setup on 2s or maybe stay brushed with just a better motor......think I have the XL5 and 12t from my 4-Tec 2.0 in it right now, but haven’t driven it like that yet.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 2/5/2021 at 10:58 PM, BJoe76 said:

I really like that, though I’m curious what your power goals for it are?  I’ve got one I build that has more stretch, bigger rubber, same diffs, RC4wd trans gears in an Integy housing, 4WS,  and a grave robber body and have been thinking about flipping back over to more of a Crawler King front battery set up since the VXL system on a rear mounted 3s was overwhelming the rest of it. I’m just not sure to go with a milder brushless setup on 2s or maybe stay brushed with just a better motor......think I have the XL5 and 12t from my 4-Tec 2.0 in it right now, but haven’t driven it like that yet.

I originally installed a HW 1080 ESC with an old HPI 15 turn motor on 2s.  I liked the speed, but it lacked torque and braking power and the motor got too hot for my liking.  I just installed a Holmes Hobbies TrailMaster Sport 550 21T.  It has gobs of torque and braking power and runs nice and cool, but lacks speed.  I'd like to try it on 3s before I start messing with gearing.

Your WK sounds like a beast!  Let me know if you find a motor setup that you're happy with.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
42 minutes ago, schlabinski said:

I originally installed a HW 1080 ESC with an old HPI 15 turn motor on 2s.  I liked the speed, but it lacked torque and braking power and the motor got too hot for my liking.  I just installed a Holmes Hobbies TrailMaster Sport 550 21T.  It has gobs of torque and braking power and runs nice and cool, but lacks speed.  I'd like to try it on 3s before I start messing with gearing.

Your WK sounds like a beast!  Let me know if you find a motor setup that you're happy with.

Will do, I had been thinking of a Castle Sidewinder SCT W/3800 motor on 2s in it after flipping the chassis. Other than dustier, it still pretty much looks like this👍
20160307_182129_zpsbnekkqdu.jpg

20160307_182253_zpseo0sjacc.jpg

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
1 hour ago, BJoe76 said:

Will do, I had been thinking of a Castle Sidewinder SCT W/3800 motor on 2s in it after flipping the chassis. Other than dustier, it still pretty much looks like this👍
20160307_182129_zpsbnekkqdu.jpg

20160307_182253_zpseo0sjacc.jpg

Nice!  I don't think I've seen that body before.

  • Like 1

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
1 hour ago, schlabinski said:

Nice!  I don't think I've seen that body before.

Thanks!
It’s an HPI Grave Robber body made for the Savage, but fits the Crawler King and stretched Wheely King nicely. Sadly, they’ve been disco’d a while now and are expensive to replace, not sure what to replace it with.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I chose the JConcepts Midwest wheels and Rangers 2.2 tires.  The "silver" wheels were molded in gray, so I painted them with Tamiya TS-17 for more of a brushed aluminum look.  When I mounted the tire, it seemed too large for the wheel and I was worried I wouldn't be able to glue it evenly.  I emailed JConcepts and they were quite interested in seeing some pictures, so I shared the two below.  They stopped replying to my emails after that, so I just assumed that it was normal and did my best to glue them evenly.  The other bummer about the Rangers tires is that they weren't very round when I received them.  Maybe they were stuffed in a bag that was too small?  I hoped they would soften and return to a more round shape over time, but not so.  As a result, the tires bounce up and down at speed and look pretty silly.  I actually like how the tires look, but they have been a disappointment overall.  I also picked up a set of Proline 2.2 Destroyers and I like those much better, even if I wish they were a tad bigger.

44617422061_03a6678f2a_b.jpg

44617421941_03264cabf1_b.jpg

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I decided to paint the servo mount in an effort to draw a little less attention to the servo on the axle.

45783378562_b01c5fa415_b.jpg

30892898417_869089c4a6_b.jpg

45832568231_5aa04f8cc8_b.jpg

 

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

That’s why I used the brake calipers and disks for the V100 sedans, mostly hid the servos and added scale appearance too!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I added some piano wire front and rear swaybars and here are some glamor shots of it all together.  I'm quite happy with how it turned out and it's really fun to drive.  Thanks for watching!

45993998634_d7c48030c4_b.jpg

46665956992_6f15bc8289_b.jpg

32843668878_5c8409e4ee_b.jpg

39790643493_002c69153e_b.jpg

  • Like 3

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Looks great!

What diameter piano wire did you use, I need to do that to mine too!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

This looks great, awesome job.  I had the same issues with the Rangers/Midwest wheels and ended up going with the 2.2 Destroyers on the Midwest wheels instead, fit perfectly.  Shame they discontinued them, really nice tire.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 2/9/2021 at 5:25 PM, schlabinski said:

When I mounted the tire, it seemed too large for the wheel and I was worried I wouldn't be able to glue it evenly.  I emailed JConcepts and they were quite interested in seeing some pictures, so I shared the two below.  They stopped replying to my emails after that, so I just assumed that it was normal and did my best to glue them evenly.  The other bummer about the Rangers tires is that they weren't very round when I received them.  Maybe they were stuffed in a bag that was too small?  I hoped they would soften and return to a more round shape over time, but not so.  As a result, the tires bounce up and down at speed and look pretty silly.  I actually like how the tires look, but they have been a disappointment overall.

 

16 hours ago, 87lc2 said:

I had the same issues with the Rangers/Midwest wheels

I'm finding the exact same issues with the set I have on my SMT10. Guess those tires are going in the bin. Pretty disappointing and makes me kinda leery of buying any more Jconcepts tires in the future. Guess I'll have to pony up for some Axial BKT tires since the 2.2 Destroyers are gone.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
4 hours ago, Saito2 said:

 

I'm finding the exact same issues with the set I have on my SMT10. Guess those tires are going in the bin. Pretty disappointing and makes me kinda leery of buying any more Jconcepts tires in the future. Guess I'll have to pony up for some Axial BKT tires since the 2.2 Destroyers are gone.

Interesting, I thought it was just me until I saw this thread.  I did end up getting them to work with some glue & careful massaging, but they definitely weren't perfect and have since sold them.   I haven't had any issues with their Clod sized tires yet, but that experience still sticks in my head a bit.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
8 hours ago, 87lc2 said:

I thought it was just me until I saw this thread.

Same here. Mine weren't as loose around the rim as @schlabinski's example (but still were, somewhat) but were definitely out-of-round. I tried them on several rims and a couple different chassis before narrowing it down to a tire issue. Quite strange. Display use only I guess.:(

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 2/10/2021 at 2:34 PM, BJoe76 said:

Looks great!

What diameter piano wire did you use, I need to do that to mine too!

Thank you.  It looks like I used .078 (2mm) in the front, and 3/32" (2.38mm) in the back.  This felt perfect when I had the Traxxas shocks built with a 3 hole piston, 30wt oil, and 2.0 rate springs.  But now that I lightened up the damping and springs on the shocks, I might have to go up a size on the sway bar.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
On 2/13/2021 at 7:34 PM, 87lc2 said:

This looks great, awesome job.  I had the same issues with the Rangers/Midwest wheels and ended up going with the 2.2 Destroyers on the Midwest wheels instead, fit perfectly.  Shame they discontinued them, really nice tire.

Thank you!  I have many of your monster truck threads bookmarked and visit them regularly for inspiration.  Thanks for sharing your builds and attention to monster truck details.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
7 hours ago, Saito2 said:

Same here. Mine weren't as loose around the rim as @schlabinski's example (but still were, somewhat) but were definitely out-of-round. I tried them on several rims and a couple different chassis before narrowing it down to a tire issue. Quite strange. Display use only I guess.:(

Interesting that we had similar findings, that's disappointing for sure.  As @87lc2 mentioned, I have also had good luck with all other JConcepts products like their Clod tires and bodies, but the Rangers are definitely an outlier.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

×
×
  • Create New...