thunder crawler.
 

i have a old duratrax thunderquake and it has planetary gears fr/rear. i would like to know for a crawler if their ok. also to make a solid axle i would like to use some square tubing, notching it in the center to accept the dogbones but stay solid underneath and the motor is going to be a old sears drill that has a gearing at 600 rpm. i also want to try making a 4 link susp but dont know where to bolt them. the reason im posting this is there is alot of knowledge here and would like to know if its even possible.thanks guys.

RE: please help, would like some info on planetary gears
 

well i figured i 'd just go for it. this is what i have so far and the donor truck. i need to get some l brackets and some longer rods for the steering. i locked the diff with some modeling clay it still moves a little but only when i force it.

RE: please help, would like some info on planetary gears
 

almost finished a set of axles. this is taking longer than i thought, at this rate i will be done by the summer. only 2 more axles to go then the fun really begins.

RE: please help, would like some info on planetary gears
 

so far the axles are done and now the placement of the tranny. the tq has reverse so i will use it, so there is no need for a reversible esc. i have seen other crawlers with the shocks on the 4 link or on the axles, is there a benefit for either or just pick one and see how it goes.

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

wow that looks great! It's really coming along! As for your question about the lower shock mounts, mounting the bottom of the shocks on the 4 link is only really used if you have a very tall chassis, tiny shocks, or you want a very high sitting chassis with a high center of gravity. I do think, though, that attaching the shocks to the 4 link will allow greater articulation since the shocks won't be able to bind, but I'm not sure if it is a big difference.

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

thanks for the answer, it would be alot easier on the 4 link than the axles. now i need to make some templates in the chassi desighn

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

i have just finished fabing some mounts for the steering servo and mounts fot the shocks and 4 link. i think i over did it on the steering rod its 1/4inch thick, it does looks nice and beefy though. the steering servo is a mgs with 160oz/inch.i am still waiting for parts so its at a standstill till then or till next week:D.

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

i just modified the quake crawler, i made some universals for the tranny. now i just added 1'' more clearance in the center. thats a total of 4 inches without the tires. i have a variety of tire choices, jumbo kongs , hpi savage tires , cen gennesis, or the moabs xl 40,or even the lst1. all the parts are in except the motor, i orderd it from harbor freight so it will be here maybe next week. i do need to say CUDOES to CUSTOM RC CARS AND KILLER HOBBIES for their 'FAST' turn around on the order i placed with them, thanks again.

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

started the chassi build and finally decided on a design. i am mounting up all the parts now so i have a template for the other side so i can just drill the holes in line. i am still undecided on the shocks, i like the cen shocks because of the look but like the lenth of the savage shocks. their only a 1/2 inch longer but makes a noticible difference.

RE: thunderquake crawler.
 

i was thinking on using some 17mm wheeles i had with the moab tire and i would need to use some modified axles i made a while back. i originally made them for the genesis because they would always brake axles. they use a 8mm axle spindle and since the bearings are 8mm they would workfor any vehicle with that bearing size.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

Man that thing is gonna be awesome, for one it will be a deviation from the norm and that is always good when you apply it properly. My problem is that I have the money but not the space to buy all the tools I would need to machine my own stuff. Keep the updates comming because I want to see this thing in final form!

RE: thunder crawler.
 

thanks for the compliment. i am making this for the average person that dosent have machining skills "ie" me.i love monster trucks and when i could'nt get certain parts anymore for this truck i wanted to make it into something else. all my tools are store bought and nothing fancy the bandsaw i used for a while is a 10 year old delta which is made for woodworking but they sold the metal cutting bands fot it. the only thing i did was use a bag around the motor so it would'nt short out. i also use the hacksaw and my favorite the dremmel. to make all my starter holes i use a drill press and a vise that is adj forward and back and left to right and some hand tools.there is nothing on paper except the cad drawing i did for the frame and that cad design program is free on the net.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

why?

i'm sure you have a reason, i'm just curious. i haven't had any problems with mine and i use basically the same set-up. my bandsaw is a 9" craftsman made for wood but i use the metal blade as well.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

on the motor housing there are holes and you can see the copper winds. i am afraid that if some metal shavings got sucked in it would short it out. what i put around the motor is a pre filter from a rigid vacume. it fits perfect around it.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

here is the drill and gear reduction, and the batt and speed controll.its a simple setup but now it all needs to be mounted. i also made this truck from a newbrite, i added a s400 rocket motor and a speed controll and a radio. the radio gear will be taken out and put in the crawler. with the sides up it looks like a steel plane, it will never fly but it will be easy to mount the servos with some blocks on the side of the frame.
btw the newbrite is a bit faster than before, its fun outside but dosent have a suspenion and flips easily at speed.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

i got the motor mounted and the servos almost set. the battery is over the front tires for some downforce weight and just recieved the tires that i will be using.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

i have a question, the motor i installed has a gear reduction of 500rpm and solid torque but its slow. what i mean by slow is it maybe goes 2 or 3 mph the zipzaps are faster than it. do i need speed and slow torque or just leave it this way slow and torque'ie.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

More reduction will typically yield more torque. 2-3 seems a little too slow, though.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

good job on the modifications. Any more updated pics?
That is a cool band saw from harbor frieght. Will it cut metal?

RE: thunder crawler.
 

sorry for the late update but i have been busy with other things . here it is almost finished, i just need to cut the sides and finish up the 4 link and install the radio gear and its done . i have the jumbo kongs on now with no foam in them but will go with a smaller tire later, its bigger than i thought but i could always shrink it down. its bigger than the nemesis if that gives you an idea how big it is (24 inches long and i dont know the width maybe 18 or 19 inches). the pics show it on top of the nemesis and i didnt put it there for the pic i drove it up there with no problems:D. it has the trigger speed controll from the grill and the 18v batt and i just pionted it at the nemesis and it drove right over it. cant wait till its done.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

Jombo how did I miss this build!!???!! good going very ambitious!! I was about to reply to the PM you sent when this thunder crawler link showed up in my mail!!

RE: thunder crawler.
 

dogman, thanks for the compliment. i really started this build last year in dec of 06 .i am finally with some time on my hands (very little ) and doing some work on it here and there. i am hopeing to finish it in a few weeks before it gets too cold here.

RE: thunder crawler.
 

i almost forgot i really need to thank you for the idea. when i saw you were building a genesis crawler i just had to see if i could build one with some spare parts i had with the thunder quake. i ended up throwing out or scrapping the whole truck except the forward reverse on the tranny and the 2 speed gears (converted it to a single speed), and kept the diffs.if i knew now that i had to built the whole truck from scratch i think i would of waited to get the ax10. but now after seeing this thing almost complete i am glad i did it and had fun and learned alot what manufactures go through in desighning these things

RE: thunder crawler.
 

lol,, I'm glad I inspired someone to build something different!!! I lke the idea of using the 18v cordless motor and gear..It funny because I am in the process of designing a new Stealth style tranny for the Wheely King tuber I'm building.