4NJBOYS

Contacted Redcat about problems I had with The Blackout SC. Was on phone for some time no rush to put me off. The Rep. JC spent what it took to answer all my questions.
Told him about cracked and broken chassis said they have had other calls about the same subject and took care of that 4 me. We talked about Shocks, Suspensions, and what modifications could be made to protect the Chassis from bottoming out in the future, I told him I was replacing shocks with the Aluminum ones he suggested replacing shock oil with 50 WT Oil. and adjust them firmer.
We also discussed reinforcing front end and a Skid Pan was suggested made out of thin metal with 1/2" strips running length of chassis one on left and right side. Like the Baha Cars have. That I am doing will post the picture when installed.
We also discussed upgrading some front suspension with the Aluminum upgrade parts. He did not recommend that I agreed by adding a stronger part to the front end suspension in one place would only break other plastic Parts in line. That left the question about the Full Aluminum Upgrade Kit I did not bring that up because of $$$$. I do not want to put out now.
All and all was a learning experience for just another Curve in The Hobby.
I see so many other members asking about shocks and other parts. In my searches, I have found Amazon has a vast selection even the Colored Shocks one member was asking about.
Hopefully be out with Grandsons this weekend. Will be trying a Rollerblade hockey rink in town that has like a rubberized plastic mat surface as the basketball courts also have. Unless we get chased

Suggested they send out builtins about issues and upgrades to Manuals he said that is something in the works as they get up and running.

krokodyl

I'm glad the service has worked out to you. "Upgrading" to the aluminium kit is not a good idea IMO, because it would add lot's of weight and significantly reduce performance. Upgrade the shocks and stick with the plastic. When something breaks, buy 2 replacaments. If it breaks again, you can think about aluminum. The rep was correct, adding aluminum usuallly puts more stress on other parts, so it often doesn't result in less breakages.

Hubert

4NJBOYS

I guess one could say most parts are sacrificial as a shear pin to prevent further damage. Thanks for your reply Hubert
Bill

4NJBOYS

Right now I am only upgrading the shocks and adding 50wt oil to all shocks to prevent bottoming out of the front end. found another hobby shop that has a vast selection of parts, And so far they are very helpful even tho they do not handle Redcat, He explained that many parts are interchangeable. The oil was a lot cheaper there also. I also noticed many replacement parts on Amazon for The RC Blackout SC are not part of RCs inventory. such as Alum. chassis Carbon fiber Chassis and the aluminum upgrades. The skid pan I want to add to the front end was on some offroad trucks standard equipment so I will make and install similar on grandsons trucks will post pict. when done. Will be working and upgrading this weekend new truck comes Friday from Amazon. It is taking time but slowly but surely things are coming togeather. Bill

4NJBOYS

Received New Blackout SC Friday and the upgraded Shocks today. Adde 50wt oil to existing shocks and will soon add to the upgrades. I was surprised at the Quality of the aluminum upgrades very good sturdy. also surprised at the difference in the weight they are a lot heavier. for the Grandkids, that should not matter but to a serious RC hobbyist that maybe a problem. If you added the Aluminum upgrade kit it would add up. But they R years away from that portion of the hobby.

alan_r

Over time you'll find that certain parts are OK to upgrade to aluminum. Suspension hangers- FF, FR, RF, RR, shock towers, anything that the ball studs attach to, rear hubs, chassis braces,steering bellcranks. Anything beyond that is personal choice but not really necessary. Some like to do the front C hubs and knuckles, nothing wrong with that but it's OK to have some give there. A arms are a big no no. You want give here to absorb shock.

As far as your shocks go, I ended up swapping in Team Associated shocks on all my Redcats. The Hurricane got RC8.2 16mm shocks and the Tornado got RC10B44.3 12mm shocks. Pistons are readily available to adjust pack, which is the issue you are having. Thicker shock oil is one way to increase pack, a more effective way is to install pistons with less or smaller holes.

Anyway, enjoy the truck, they are not that bad considering what they cost. With a few thoughtful mods they can get surprisingly good. Also keep in mind that many high quality parts from other brands will fit on these vehicles. For direct replacement parts, both Exceed and especially HSP can save you lots of money. Keep an eye on your servos, they are known weak points as are pretty much all servos that come in RTR vehicles. Even the servo that comes with the $600 Team Associated RC8.2e is weak. It's just the way it is. Of all the Redcat servos, the Hexfly HX-15 is the only one with any value. When the servo gives out, check out Hobbyking.com and look up Turnigy Metal Gear servos. You get a lot of performance for a surprisingly low price. Good luck and have fun!

4NJBOYS

[QUOTE=alan_r;12297627]Over time you'll find that certain parts are OK to upgrade to aluminum. Suspension hangers- FF, FR, RF, RR, shock towers, anything that the ball studs attach to, rear hubs, chassis braces,steering bellcranks. Anything beyond that is personal choice but not really necessary. Some like to do the front C hubs and knuckles, nothing wrong with that but it's OK to have some give there. A arms are a big no no. You want give here to absorb shock.

As far as your shocks go, I ended up swapping in Team Associated shocks on all my Redcats. The Hurricane got RC8.2 16mm shocks and the Tornado got RC10B44.3 12mm shocks. Pistons are readily available to adjust pack, which is the issue you are having. Thicker shock oil is one way to increase pack, a more effective way is to install pistons with less or smaller holes.

Anyway, enjoy the truck, they are not that bad considering what they cost. With a few thoughtful mods they can get surprisingly good. Also keep in mind that many high quality parts from other brands will fit on these vehicles. For direct replacement parts, both Exceed and especially HSP can save you lots of money. Keep an eye on your servos, they are known weak points as are pretty much all servos that come in RTR vehicles. Even the servo that comes with the $600 Team Associated RC8.2e is weak. It's just the way it is. Of all the Redcat servos, the Hexfly HX-15 is the only one with any value. When the servo gives out, check out Hobbyking.com and look up Turnigy Metal Gear servos. You get a lot of performance for a surprisingly low price. Good luck and have fun![/QU
Thank you just, printed out your post for servos reference.