Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (Full Version)

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Foxy -> Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/8/2008 10:07:40 PM)

Smartech Thunderbolt arrived today. All I've done is taken it out of the box and raised the antenna. This is all you guys are gonna get out of me until the review is done in a couple of weeks. Sorry they aren't the best quality, the sun was setting behind the house, and I had forgotten that the cam was in macro mode.

Couple of comments at this point... Too much to list, so I'll stick with the key points...

The chassis has a surprisingly clean and uncluttered layout. As you look at the body off shots, I expect that you will observet he same thing I did, that it is basically a scaled up 1/8th nitro buggy. The only real difference is that the radio box is in front of the throttle/brake servo. Other than that, the layout is almost identical. Even the balance of the car is almost in the center, as with a nitro buggy. The shocks are very large, with thick shafts (no chance of bending here), and work very smoothly. I agree with Hellya that it seems it could do with a bit more damping, and perhaps a slightly lower spring rate. I'm guessing these are the same springs from the Titan, which would explain why they are a little bouncier than ideal. Thick alloy steering post holder, and attached to that a nicely machined alloy chassis brace. Turnbuckles all have a proper reverse thread and a fat adjusting hex in the middle. Twin brake discs (1 on each driveshaft - front/rear) for front/rear bias adjustment, exactly the same as a nitro buggy. Gear cover supplied stock to cover the all metal drivetrain. Power is transferred from the engine to the center diff through a helical pinion, driving the main helical centre spur gear. I like the wing a lot. Wish someone would produce one like that for the HPI Baja. Lower arm/hingepin braces are all the same fat blue alloy. Nice package, I must say I'm impressed, a lot of stuff which is an option on other cars, is supplied stock. Can't wait to see how it drives.

EDIT: Almost forgot... Wheel squares look the same size as FG, but haven't measured yet, and the front hubs are alloy (cast).

[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/1.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/2.jpg[/image]
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[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/7.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/8.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/9.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/10.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/11.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/12.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/13.jpg[/image]
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[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/16.jpg[/image]
[image]http://members.freezone.co.uk/jonfox/tb/17.jpg[/image]



hellya -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/8/2008 10:37:40 PM)

Nice pictures Foxy .......[:D] looks fimiliar......wait n til you drive it you will be surprized by the excellent handeling



clubin -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/8/2008 11:00:14 PM)

Holy krap, are those shock shafts ever THICK! I can't wait to read a unbias review done by somone who knows what they are talknig about. So would you say that the drive train has any interchangable parts with the MCD. Have fun with it FOXY.



Foxy -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/8/2008 11:18:02 PM)

Thanks Hellya.

Clubin, I'm 99% sure there are no interchangeable parts with any non-smartech cars (except the givens, like clutches, bearings, wheels, etc). This is a completely proprietary Smartech design. The shocks are great, really smooth. We'll seea bout an oil change, but that's down the line. I already have some ideas how I'm going to mod it, but that will all be post-review.



Slammed -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 12:11:00 AM)

awesum cant wait for the review please also post where you purchased it thanks



TurtleRacing -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 12:43:06 AM)

I really like that, I hope it holds up well. Can't wait to read your review. The ONLY thing I don't like so far is the phillips head screws everywhere. Minor complaint, I know a guy that sells screws :)



sheograth -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 1:04:38 AM)

looks good, the spark plug "bump" is a bit funky though [&:]



fourwheeler -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 2:55:42 AM)

Looking good Foxy, what sort of tools did it come with? I see the turnbuckles have a hex on them, did it come with the proper tools to make adjustments such as that?



hellya -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 2:57:41 AM)

quote:

what sort of tools did it come with


None.... didn't mean to answer for Foxy[8|] but mine came with no tools ...they did send a extra set of tires and rims



RCnut80 -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 3:41:31 AM)

Wow!! Great pics Foxy. This is exactly what I was looking for. Those tires look like their race worthy. Can't wait for your full report.



Cal-Torque -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 3:57:29 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Foxy


EDIT: Almost forgot... Wheel squares look the same size as FG, but haven't measured yet, and the front hubs are alloy (cast).




Yes, they are. On my Titan, I'm replacing with the double width FG to get a slightly wider stance.
Your comments mirror my initial thoughts on the Titan. I compared it to a "super-sized" Ofna Dominator, which was basically a buggy with big tires.
I hope that with more and more credible reviews, the large scale Smartech will get the credit they deserve.
Note that FG diff carriers will also fit, but you need to change the end bearings. [;)]



Dale Gribble -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 4:03:13 AM)

That really reminds of the old Traxxas Monster Buggy. I will be interested to read your review.

[image]http://www.rctech.net/events/chicago2003/pics_400/chicago2003_traxxas_buggy_400.jpg[/image]



DIABLOTAC78 -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 4:10:34 PM)

damn man you didnt even tell me you got a new rc lol . nice if you need my help for the video just call me okay.



Foxy -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 4:31:41 PM)

I got it yesterday night man!! I will definitely need your camera skills next weekend. We'll probably go to Aspropyrgo. [8D]



DIABLOTAC78 -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 4:43:59 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Foxy

I got it yesterday night man!! I will definitely need your camera skills next weekend. We'll probably go to Aspropyrgo. [8D]



man lets bash the hell out of that car lol... okay call me next week



fourwheeler -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 5:57:17 PM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: hellya

quote:

what sort of tools did it come with


None.... didn't mean to answer for Foxy[8|] but mine came with no tools ...they did send a extra set of tires and rims

I'll swap a spare set of wheels and tires for the tools you usu[8|]ally get any day.



Troopermanaic -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 6:18:58 PM)

clean parts, will be dirty soon =)



Foxy -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 6:21:50 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Slammed

awesum cant wait for the review please also post where you purchased it thanks


It's not available to buy yet, as far as I know. I guess final tweaking might be done based on our reviews, but it should be available soon after.

quote:

ORIGINAL: TurtleRacing

I really like that, I hope it holds up well. Can't wait to read your review. The ONLY thing I don't like so far is the phillips head screws everywhere. Minor complaint, I know a guy that sells screws :)


It's growing on me, and yeh, the philips screws issue will definitely be raised with Smartech.

quote:

ORIGINAL: sheograth

looks good, the spark plug "bump" is a bit funky though [&:]


Sure does, that roof plate will be the first thing to go when I'm free to start cutting and shutting.

quote:

ORIGINAL: fourwheeler

Looking good Foxy, what sort of tools did it come with? I see the turnbuckles have a hex on them, did it come with the proper tools to make adjustments such as that?


As Hellya said, no tools were supplied with our cars, but this is a pre production model, I'm not surprised. I'll definitely ask smartech if they plan on supplying at least a cast turnbuckle wrench and a couple of allen drivers. The spare tires are definitely not going to be included with the RTR car, they're for our testing. We'll make a bunch of recommendations, for sure. Things like stiffer shock oil and slightly lighter springs, the philips screws, the pin that comes out that Hellya experienced. That's half the goal of this exercise for Smartech I believe. I must say I'm really impressed that Smartech has come to the busiest RC forum on the 'net, and asked real influential hobbyists for their reports and opinions, instead of bunging some magazine an advertising contract in return for a good review. Way to go Smartech.



hellya -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 9:09:37 PM)

+1[:D]



splcrazy -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/9/2008 11:51:03 PM)

such a piece of junk [:D], i dont like it looks ugly , and i can see alot of things going wrong with that thing as soon as it hits the dirt and jumps , dont like how those gears are exposed , dont like the axles reminds me of some cheap 1/10 scale road car , it is very similar to the old traxxas buggy its like a re birth of the traxxas model lol , shocks look very good , shock caps do not , shock suport front and rear not strong enough , i can see broken shock screws on this soon , dont like how the roll cage is held together with body clips , there is the front steering suspension plate with a flat thin bolt and no thread is coming out further the bolt is just flush could easily come undone , this thing would need alot of thread locker on all the bolts just before you can take it out for a bash lol



Cal-Torque -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/10/2008 4:45:08 AM)

Yikes, the Grinch that stole RCmas...
[:)]



splcrazy -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/10/2008 5:35:43 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: Cal-Torque

Yikes, the Grinch that stole RCmas...
[:)]

LOL[:D] im just saying it how i see it , this thing as they say is still a concept , so any kind of negative feedback on it at this point should be welcome so that the final product can made how we want it to be made and improved upon the day it properly does go into production . Thers no point saying that its perfect now only to hear the bunch of you all complain about this buggy after its been made .



Cal-Torque -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/10/2008 5:45:30 AM)

It's way more than a concept... It's basically the Titan (already in production) with buggy conversion. I would bet that only minor tweaks may be incorporated in the final design.
From my perspective, this is a great gesture of good will from Smartech, and will go a long way towards building their brand.



gunner221 -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/10/2008 8:25:48 AM)

can we just have the one thread for this. so everything is together



Dave ESPI -> RE: Guess what arrived today. Thunderbolt pics... (5/10/2008 8:44:22 AM)

At the rate of time it takes FOXY to drive ANYTHING, it will be xmas before we get a review... [:)]

Hopefully he can pull himself away from " HIS JOB" to go play for an hour and take a few pix or a short video.

(just bustin' on ya bro) [:D]

I almost dropped my IRS return check on one of these, but I'm still having a blast with my Baja and FG (cept I need a layshaft gear) so I will hold off, but it looks like a fairly solid car sofar.






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