DesertBoy 17 Brushless Build (big pics inside)

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i think your motor is much fatter than my motor but must not be as long...
 
hmmm ill check mine tomorrow for you... keep us updated with pics of the progress as it goes together... we like to see the progress of a build before its all together
 
i do not want to say, as i may be wrong, but they look right. can someone else chime in?
 
No mechanical brakes. They're 40c rated, so they should hold up OK. HK was all out of 5k 6s packs when I was placing orders.

Can they take the feed back of braking? I was told not to go with the MMM under 5K with ESC breaking. I went mechanical and don't worry about it anyways. But may be worth researching b4 you puff them. The 40C rating is just the go side, not the stop..

One of the center dogbones (rear, I think) was replaced with a CVD on the roller. Since it's too short for the DB17, I need a new cup joint on the bulkhead side. Is this the right one? http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXFYK9&P=7

The part number is wrong in the savage x exploded diagram.

don't use the HD cups they wear out super fast...
 
Can they take the feed back of braking? I was told not to go with the MMM under 5K with ESC breaking. I went mechanical and don't worry about it anyways. But may be worth researching b4 you puff them. The 40C rating is just the go side, not the stop..
They're rated for 2c charge rate. They should have no problem at all with the occasional bit of braking feedback.
don't use the HD cups they wear out super fast...
Do you know the part number I should be using? And why the heck are they called "heavy duty" if they wear out faster than the standard ones?


Finished the suspension stuff. Mostly. Turns out the sway bars are supposed to mount to a hole in the arms that doesn't exist. Can anybody point me to a pic of the arms with the hole so I know where I should be drilling?

It's not much, but here's a pic of what I got done today:
bulks.jpg
 
Thanks. I'll give it a shot.

Kershaw is going to make me a motor mount for $40. The bad news is that it's going to take about 3 weeks. It'll be worth it if it works out in the end.
 
Since I'm waiting on a motor mount anyway, I decided not to bother drilling holes in the arms and just order a new set of X arms with the hole in place. Also ordered some new skidplates, bearings (two were missing from the roller), and a few other odd and ends. Ordered these cup joints, which according to the flux manual, should be right: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXDLG0&P=7
 
yep, them will work. I just got a set of 4 X arms on the bay for 7 bucks shipped upper and lower .. I stock up anytime I get a deal.
 
I did the same thing. I think I paid $8.50 shipped for a set of four. Got all the other odds and ends from ebay too. Those guys that part out the new kits are quite a bit cheaper than tower.
 
nice1 on the mount... quite interested in what design he comes up with.

X2 on stocking up when a deal comes along! Arms, drive shafts & wheel bearings for me. The spi rims with the large offset wear the bearings very quickly...
 
I did the same thing. I think I paid $8.50 shipped for a set of four. Got all the other odds and ends from ebay too. Those guys that part out the new kits are quite a bit cheaper than tower.

lol yea they are ... Only way to fly.
 
Between the beefy servo and the extra-wide wheels, I'm concerned the stock servo horn won't hold up. The hitec came with one metal horn, but it's much too small. Any suggestions for a heavy duty horn?
 
Installed the servo and steering linkages. The holes for the servo mounts were off by a bit, and required dremeling. I suck at dremeling, which is why there now needs to be a washer under the one screw. Running out of things to do before more parts show up, so I threw all the main bits together just to see how it would all lay out. The ESC mounting is going to have to be one of two ways. Either on the side with the TRX bracket:
escside.jpg



Or on the tower with some zip ties:
escfront.jpg



Mounted on the side, the ESC is at the same height as the top of the towers. If I mount it there, I would never be able to drive the truck without a body or risk wrecking the ESC in a roll over. Mounted to the tower, it's pretty well protected, but I worry it will get pounded by the tower itself as it bends and flexes.

Either way, the battery wires won't quite reach. That really annoys me. I got an extra set of EC5 connectors to make an extension if I had to, but I shouldn't have to.

Next up is tires and soldering connectors on to things. After that, the only thing left is the body until I get some parts. Never painted a RC body before. Do you cut then paint, or paint then cut?
 
i wanted to keep my ESC high up, where there would be good air flow. I used a traxxas ESC mount you cna find most places and connected it to a cross brace with a couple of screws. Mounted in under the roll bar so it wont get damaged. Have had big crashes, roll overs with no body on and have had no damage.

Also it doesnt get any heat soak from the motor as its clear of anything that may get warm or hot like the motor, servo or lipos blah blah blah also means you wont need to extend any wires

http://i878.photobucket.com/albums/ab348/Jahay87/DSC00252.jpg
 
yea frddy...

remember when i was using mech brakes before i started the centre diff...
 
it will get pounded by the tower itself as it bends and flexes.
Either way, the battery wires won't quite reach.

Never painted a RC body before. Do you cut then paint, or paint then cut?

Yeah I wouldn't mount it to the tower, maybe try what Josh suggested and that way you wont need to extend the battery leads.

I cut then paint, that way I don't scratch the paint.
 
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Tires taped, mounted and glued. Shocks converted back to regular length and filled with clean oil. New Savage X arms, skids and bumpers installed. Aluminum roll bar installed. It's really starting to look like a truck now.

80pct1.jpg


80pct2.jpg


compare1.jpg
 
I'm really starting to think the gigante body is just too damn small for this truck. I'm considering the 1/5 redcat rampage body instead. It looks excellent on this guy's DB17 build.


Sick.
Picture001.jpg
 
It's been almost 3 months since Kershaw said the motor mount would take 3 weeks. After half a dozen broken promises of "It'll ship next week", I'm pretty much resigned to the fact that he took my $40 and I'll never see a motor mount. I'm sick of seeing $1500 worth of truck sitting 80% finished, so it's well past time to find another option. Does anybody have any ideas where else I might be able to get a mount that will work with the DB17 chassis plates and my oversized fiegao motor?

On a lighter note, I got a redcat rampage body in the mail yesterday. Hopefully I can get it painted up this weekend.
 
OH MATE I THOUGHT YOU HAD DISAPPEARED!

are you bloody serious! You still haven't got this done? i told you to stay away from Kershaw!!! and their products!

You should have got rid of that feigao motor and bought a neu motor in the castle sale as they were going for $65!!!!
You should have done your own centre diff conversion as many are doing this at the moment and it is much easier that you think!

I cannot believe you have been able to wait this long!
 

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