Flux Driver

Oh here's an important one. I'm looking at getting metal castor blocks. The stock ones always bent on me. Well the pins did and I guess kept the blocks bent. I used to have blue metal ones for the XL5 Stampede I had but I don't remember which brand. I don't think it was Integy, pretty sure it wasn't. I checked my towerhobbies.com shopping history and only saw the RPM plastic ones. I don't recall how well those worked. I think I stuck with the shiny blue metal ones I had and never had a problem. I also used the stronger pins inside.

Anyways, which metal or aluminum castor blocks would you recomend?

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXRTT1&P=7

Are these good? I know it's the Integy brand but castor blocks are a simple part compared to others.

TIGER76

Trust me the first 2 parts i broke on my vxl pede from flipping were both the c blocks lol
they are there to absorb impacts and break instead of doing more damage to more parts.
I havent used the rpm plastics ones or the integy alloy ones i bought the trx alloy ones and havent had any breakages with them after bashing for 5 months and no sign of cracks or damage either.

Ive heard alot of bad things about integy parts bending and snapping but ive never owned any so...

fusebmx13

Yea get the TRX ones or FLM ones. STRC also makes some nice ones, they are all equal in quality and are very great. I have the traxxas ones on both my slash and rustler and they have not broken or bent. My brother has 2 sets as well on his rustlers. My friend also has a set for his truck. Trust me DON'T BUY INTEGY!!! there aluminum is recycled aluminum cans....

fusebmx13

HAHAHA are you serious??? Maxamps the best... ask anyone on this forum and they will tell you they are the worst cells made, cost wayyyyy to much and puff on the second time out. There ratings are bogus, a couple people i have read about with the MMM system puffed theres the first run.
Your esc is overheating cause you either A: have to big of tires, B: geared way to high and a combo of tires size, and C: don't have any ventalation leading to the esc. Cut a hole in your body and be amazed at the difference. VXL fan is to expensive for what it is. I have a motor fan that you can get from thetoyz.com for 6 bucks. The fans are flipped though and you will have to flip so that it blows toward the motor. Who cares, 4 screws easy fix right? for 8 bucks shipped...
Thank you very much. Um I can give you links to stuff but the whole truck is modified so let me know what parts you want and i can lead you in the right direction haha.

Flux Driver

Well that's settled, I'll get the Traxxas alloy castor blocks. I forgot they had those. I got the Stampede VXL today along with a 7cell NIMH battery pack, RPM arms, RPM claw wheels, Masher 2000's, RPM bumper, and tire glue. Not sure when I'll be able to start setting it up but it should be soon. Maybe in a couple months I'll have a VXL Rustler too. That will complete my ideal RC set up. I also want a radio to use on all the vehicles and get started on using Lipo.

fusebmx13

Nice, sounds like you will be having some serious fun...

Flux Driver

Ran into a mishap. I was gluing Masher 2000 tires to RPM claw rims. I did the front ones right. But I accidentally made two right rear wheels instead of a left and right. Meaning the tire tread is pointed forward with the face of the rim on the right side on both of them. So I'll get another pair of rear rims and Masher 2000's and make sure they're both left and I'll just have a spare rear pair. I'm not gonna bother boiling a tire to remove it from the rim.

fusebmx13

Yea I would just use it and if it bothers you enough get a new set. I can never have good luck boiling them, not worth ruined a new set.

Flux Driver

At least it happened with the rear wheels since I would think they would wear out faster since the truck is a 2WD. It'll be fine, I'll pick up a rear set today at Hobby People on the way home from work.

fusebmx13

Yea that is true. Although with mashers I have never worn mine . They don't wear at all haha, you get so much traction that you can't really slide out much. They are a great basher tire though, kinda balloon a lot if you are not carefull.

Flux Driver

I got another pair of Mashers and rear claw rims. I set up one of them, making darn sure it's a left fit this time. My set of Mashers is ready to use but I'm gonna stick with the stock tires for my first run. A nice easy run on a parking lot. I'll be showing someone at work.

-I readjusted the slipper clutch closing it all the way and releasing it counter clockwise a full turn, and just a teensy weensy bit back to clockwise.

-Lowered the body cover by one notched on the rear mount. I cut the rods off the front mount, trimmed them short by the same amount, drilled thru them and screwed them back on the mount. I'm sure there are better ways to do that but I did this for now.

-Reinforced the holes on the body cover and applied duct tape on the parts that touch the ground if the truck flips over.

-RPM bumper. Other RPM parts can wait for now.

-I set the ESC to keep it on Profile 1 Sport mode with the Lipo cut off turned off.

-Charging a 7cell NIMH pack right now.

-Made sure the gear mesh was good. It came a little tight out of the box.

I'm very impressed by all the hex screws replacing the Philips Head's.

Flux Driver

Photo 1: My table in my room. Yes that's a beagle sleeping under it.

Photo 2: A pair of Mashers comes in handy to stand the truck up to set the ESC.

Photo 3: A box to carry parts. There will be at least a couple more boxes like this to come.

Photo 4: The holes reinforced underneath with plastic sheet from a Ziploc disposable box(has some firmness) and duct tape.

Flux Driver

Of all the f***ing mishaps to happen. I was about to switch the wheels to the Mashers. I found out that the front rims I got is for the Nitro Stampede. Doesn't fit the hex thing. That's another $30 down the drain. Looks like I'll need another pair of Mashers and front rims. I'm paying twice the price for one set of Mashers. At least I get an extra rear pair.

I did a run today with stock tires. Excellent run, although with my Orange County California 'screw you, your soul belongs to this industry' job I didn't have time to run it til the battery pack is done. I just barely got like 5 minutes in my 10 minute break and a bit more later in the day. It will wheelie from a stand still.

Other than that enjoyment, today's been frustrating. The Masher mishap is my fault. Still, frustrating. $60 down the drain.

fusebmx13

Wow you really have a lot of parts for that thing already. That sux about the rims man, kinda late notice but I usually put all my rims on the truck before i glue them . Sorry forgot to tell you. I guess you can try to boil them off and pray that it works. Just boil them for a good 20 minutes and it should work.

Flux Driver

I know I could boil them but I wouldn't want to rely on the tire itself after being boiled and the rim where the glue has to adhere to it. I did put the rims on before gluing. I just for some reason didn't realize I set up two right rear tires. And I didn't check the fit holes or label on the packaging. I was in a hurry when I got them from the store(thanks again to my job). Had to buy and run. Fortunately it's a temporary work assignment, a really ridiculous one with only one day left. After work I get the stuff I need and will be able to have some peace of mind when I glue the front tires knowing I can finally take my time and live like a normal person.

The battery is charging for what it's worth but I dunno what I'll be able to do tomorrow since just about every moment with sunlight is spent indoors at work. I was about to stop by a bash spot today after work but because of traffic I couldn't make the lane change to get there. Another frustrating event today. It's a nice dirt spot with slopes and open space. I walked there once to scope it out(was dark at the time of course). I park in a parking lot and actually walk under the road through a tunnel to get to it. Nice because someone would have to figure out the same to bother getting to where I am. I'll be visible from the road but not really accessible. The tunnel is nicely hidden. This way I'll have some alone time. That will be my non social leave me alone bashing spot. [8D]

fusebmx13

If you got front rims you can probably get them to work. They are nitro ones so they will have bearings. You just get another set of bearings and put in them then use some pliers to hold the back of the axles while you screw them on. Kinda a pain to do but it is possible if you have to. You don't necessarily need the hex in the front cause it is not four wheel drive.

Flux Driver

Did a full bash today. Another dirt spot, mostly flat dirt. Hard ground but with loose dry dirt. Stock tires couldn't grip well. Couldn't steer well. Really need Mashers. Got the tires at the LHS but they didn't have to front Claw rims for the electric Stampede. So I'll have to order them and wait. May as well order the Traxxas alloy castor blocks and extra pins and e clips while I'm at it.

I got plenty of run time with the 7cell 5000mah NIMH pack. On an ordinary flat surface it's more run time than I need. I was over it well before slow down. Even had enough power left over to do wheelies in the Home Depot parking lot.

Flux Driver

For the Traxxas alluminum castor blocks, should I get the rods that use eclips? That hard chrome 26mm one?

fusebmx13

No you don't need them. The stock pins work fine with the traxxas aluminum casters. They are threaded for them. Just don't forget to use some lock tite and you are good.

Flux Driver

Okay cool. I noticed that the stock pins are threaded at one end and I wasn't sure if they aluminum castor blocks had threaded holes for them. I just remember on the old Stampede I had long ago where I used the pins with the E clips. Would be nice to not have to deal with those eclips for a while.

fusebmx13

Yea mine came with those e clips also. I changed them though cause it is so much easier to work with the screws. The casters are threaded though so you will be fine.

Flux Driver

And metal on metal calls for a dab of threalock [8D]

Despite the setback with the Mashers I still have a good feeling about this. Once those are ready it will be like it was before but with more power. It's just a bummer to have a delay when I have a vehicle that's new. When it's one I've had for a while and a repair causes a delay, it won't be so bad since the brand new novelty will be worn off. And I don't know why the two Hobby People locations near me have front Nitro Stampede RPM Claws and rear Electric Stampede RPM claws. Are people using the front Electric ones I need for something else? Or are the rears the same for both Stampedes and they just bought up all the front ones I need?

Flux Driver

Had a fantastic run today, even with stock tires. The tires made traction kinda suck and it was hard to not overturn. But it was still decent and I got at least 18 minutes of run time. Some stop and go and some consistent throttle. Sometimes full throttle and I was pushing it kinda hard for the dirt area I was in. But it was fun seeing dirt and dust shoot from behind the rear wheels. I'll start posting in the official Pede thread here from now on.

yaleforscale

take fusebmx13 , advice he is the only one on this forum that knows what he is talking about .. ,,

Flux Driver

Totally. Traxxas or Tower Hobbies(the merchant I ordered from) should give him a cut since I ordered the aluminum casters. The final decision was pretty much based on his advice. As for using an adapter or something for the Nitro Stampede rims, that's okay. I already ordered the right rims and already tossed the mistake wheels.