Its not so much the shafts as the hubs themselves. If you have a look on this link, scroll down and check out the hub set up. Reckon that'll go into the CEN arms? http://www.three5models.co.uk/hyper_7_pbs.htm
The only reason I ask is, I've just got another FF from ebay and I am planning on using it for the big block. Just figured may as well try the big wheels to match!

they look like they might go on the cen, but, ur gonna need shafts to fit the bearings that the hubs use! u hoping the tmaxx shafts will work? surely not sticking with the cen shafts are u!?!?

those hubs have the offset at the top that the tmaxx ones dont have. so that should give more adjustability than i have on mine - well spotted mate, looks possible.

If they go on, I was thinking about getting some 'custom' shafts done. They look promising because they will allow me to continue using the stock FF arms.

as always mate, keep us updated on ur progress. especially the prices of custom shafts...

Here is what I've got so far. Power Racing Swift CVJ's, nuckles, and the associated hardware.
The Swift CVJ's are approximately 1mm longer that the stock CEN CVD's and the pillow balls will screw into the CEN arms with some effort. So far every thing is lining up ok with one exception, diff cups. I modified the Swift cups to fit in the CEN diff but the cups a 12mm in diameter versus the CEN's 10mm. They are also considerably longer. So the arms have very limited movement and they would be to weak if I clearanced them.
What I need to do is find a diff cup that I can use that will allow full movement of the arms with minimal clearancing that the Swift shafts will fit in.
The reason that I am going this route is so I can use Romulins without the hex adapters and have a choice in buggy wheels and widening options.

It might even be possible to use Ofna shafts and nuckles but the same diff cup problem will have to be sorted out.

When I have it sorted out I will try to get pics and write some clearer details of the process.



rolland

Here are some pics of my big block .21/.28 Fun Factor. It has an Ofna engine with Savage header, cut U MT2 manifold, Pirate 10 pipe/fuel tank/tires and Cen big block engine mounts. I ran it today for the first time and actually did not break anything. All I can say is that the .28 fun factor is a wild ride when it hits top speed.

lookin very nice and tidy digout. out of interest what clutch and gear ratios are u running in there? 2 speed?

word of warning - i had the rear mounted battery box, and i founs that wheelies would sometimes rip the lid off, leaving the batts dangling out the back!

yea, its all a bit quick with a big block eh?

The gear ratios are 11/14 for the clutch bell and 44/47 for the spurs. These gears work well for the tall Ofna Pirate P10 tires. I would rather use the single speed set-up knowing how the 2spd shift pin break so easily. You are right about the wheelies and the battery box. I may have to reinstall the all-in-one P10 battery/receiver box. If things start breaking, I plan on going back to the .15 rear exhaust big block or OS 18 CVRX set-up for cvas/axle longevity.

rolland, there may be a solution. I am currently trying to get CEN part number USPS13 to fit through the FF diffs. The part comes from one of the on-road cars I think and it is big enough to accept Savage drive shafts. It is also the exact same design as stock FF diff cups. The only small snags that I have are that the need to recess further into the diff casing and also, they require a bit of trimming of the upper hinge pin mount and the very bottom of the shock towers. This is to give clearance for free movement of the diff cup. All I can say is that it is a VERY close match. I am also looking at the possibility of one of the on-road diff gear housings may fit, thus allowing the diff cups to recess fully.
EDIT...Don't know why I didn't check on this before. It would appear that the part I have is discontinued so availability is sketchy at best. Gutted really, these things are really close to solving the diff cup problem. Ah well back to the drawing board.[]

digout - surprised to hear u stuck with the standard ratios, must be very lively off the line! i have been running the genesis spurs - 43/39 with either a 14 or 15t pinion, single speed only ie 1st gear. unfortunately the resistance/weight of the tmaxx wheels means my .28 eats the plastic spurs too easily. alloy pinions die quick on those spurs too. how are u getting on with the plastic spurs?

is the 2nd gear pin a real problem for breakages? i havent tried 2nd yet with the .28, but that point did concern me, as i was planning on using some steel 11/14 ofna pinions for the time being, see how they go.

as for the cv shafts, did u see what i did with mine? seem to be holding up reasonably well with the .28, but are showing some signs of wear now.

aye, same here, but only the 18 is available to me. ah well - it will have to do! oh - and how does the .15 rear exhaust compare to the .18?

still cant believe how clean and tidy ur truck is, mine has had a hammering!

scouser: maybe worth asking cen about stockpiled discontinued parts..?

I shortened the Swift diff cups 4mm and rounded over the cut ends. I also had to clearance the bottom of the shock tower. The slot in the MT2 diff cups is about 7mm and the one on the Swift cups is 12mm so I made the slots in the Swift cups the same length as the ones for the MT2.
After the modifications to the diff cups and shock towers everything works and has plenty of clearance.
So, now I have 17mm hexes on the front with cvj's and diff cups that will not break as easily, if ever. Now I have to do the rear.

Poor Judgement, your half shaft solution is great and I was going to do it until I found the Swift parts. Now I don't have to use the adapters for the Romulins or change the lower shock mount. Also, have you seen the amount of buggy tires available?. I also can get different wheel hexes in different lengths to change the width of my truck by using off the shelf Ofna parts. For somebody that is not really interested in seriously modifying some parts or have the tools to do so I highly recommend you mod.

Scouser, CEN posted awhile back that they will always stock parts for discontinued kits.


rolland

sounds very nice rolland - any chance of some pics and a run down of what u did?

thinkin about it, my lhs had a couple of swifts in... so he must be carrying spares...

keep us informed on this one - need pics! - my plastic shafts aint gonna last forever!

I will post a more thorough report when I have it completed, but so far everything is working really good.
I read on another forum that the Swift can use Ofna and Kyosho buggy axles so those might be a possibility also since the Swift might be discontinued.


rolland

my ho bao pinions and c/b arrived today... hmmm wheres my dremel?

the gear pitch is spot on with the cen gears btw, i believe its 32dp for reference...

running an 11t is gonna cut the life of my plastic half shafts down a bit i reckon - cmon rolland lets see those shafts finished mate! man i hope they work out for u, cos then i can copy em! ha, hope thats ok!

got the pinions to fit and work, well pleased! now its properly run in, its pretty spectacular with these ratios, not enough space to try for 2nd gear, will try to take it out this w/e and get some vids

Fingers crossed mate, have you checked your failsafe?

lol - my what?

All I need to do now is get the wheels and run the truck to check the turning and suspension setup. I still haven't gotten around to doing the rear yet. Thinking about using dogbones for the rear if I can fit them.
The only problem that I have encountered so far is the down travel of the arms. The upper arm contacts the cup when the arms are relaxed down all of the way. I am pretty sure that I can clearance everything enough, there is more than enough material (almost 3mm thick) on the cups so I can shave them down a little and I don't want to remove material from the arm if I can help it.
I will get the part numbers to what I am using this weekend and post them. But I cannot recommend this mod until it is complete and thoroughly tested which unfortunatley won't be for a couple of weeks because the kids need school supplies.

As far as pictures I am still dealing with the missing digital camera.


rolland

Instead of shaving the diff cups, you could always try the old zip tie to limit down travel of the arm. One end through the upper arm, the other end through the shock tower and adjust it til it stops the movement just before contact with the diff cup. Might be worth a try before the Dremel comes out!

With this mod the dremel has already come out. I am not worried about shaving the diff cup a little because it is twice the thickness of the MT2 diff cup.
This does require the use of a dremel or other similar tool because of the need to reshape and shorten the diff cup to fit.

Limiting the suspension is an option that I might have to do either with zip ties (thanks Scouser) or spacers in the shock bodies, but at 9$ for replacement cups I can play around with them and see what is best.


rolland

sorted the shell position out, and added some elastoplast, i mean stickers, to cover up some nasties and make it look a bit prettier... awww int that nice[8D] also moved the rx and failsafe to on top of the steering servo - ballooned up.

didnt get to take it out today tho... will try tomorrow for vid.. itll happen... one day...

oh and have u seen [link=http://www.fastboy.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/rc18.htm]this?[/link]

PJ, did you paint those balloons gold or did you go looking for ones that would match the paint scheme? Oh and that mini RC18, that thing is going to fly, going to embarrass much bigger competition with that.

lol paint em? nah, i needed some so kept my eye out, spotted a selection in tescos and got some pearl effect ones - well yknow if they are there then u get em - dont want u thinkin i hunted em down. they are loads thicker than the cheap balloons so dont split easy.

took it out, cam ready, halfway thru warm up tank the clutch bell bearings die on me... another dead 11t, steel hobaos this time. gonna see what modelsport uk, where i got the bell, bearings and gears have to say about replacing foc as this shouldnt happen.

gutted... again...[&o]

You might want to run a tighter mesh on the pinions. I know that CEN said that the tight mesh idea was posted as a fix for the Genesis but I don't think they realized that you were running a .28 in your MT2, which will cause chassis flex and vibration more so than the Genesis. The bearings might be over heating because of the clutch slipping but they still should have lasted longer.
Ask Auto2 about how he managed to get his pinions to survive. I don't remember him complaing about them. He might of been using a single speed though.


rolland