Oh How Original Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 That looks excellent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tug Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Looking good. How many of these do you reckon you can turn out per year? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 7, 2014 Author Share Posted July 7, 2014 Had another minor brainwave..... If I mount a small fuel tank at the rear on one side of the air filter...and put a radio box on the opposite side.... there is no reason not to put the steering servo right between them under the carb. I would have two long arms to operate the steering...but as they are purely push/pull .... it makes no difference at all. That would basically leave the front area completely empty apart from a throttle servo, which would really help the sandrail look. Would love to be able to make room for an Action Man sized driver Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tug Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 Not RC, but if you're in need of encouragement; 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 11, 2014 Share Posted July 11, 2014 Imagine having one of those as your daily driver lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 12, 2014 Author Share Posted July 12, 2014 Made a few steps forward during the week...then a few steps back..followed by some more forward steps. I still need to weld in some extra cross bracing, but that will wait until I have everything else sorted and I am ready to add in the top. For now, I wanted to finish the front. I had planned to have the stock brace plate fitted with some mounts either side. It would have simplified the assembly and allowed me to use the stock shock braces and tower assembly. Trouble was.... it didn't fit! I would have to cut away the front upper tubes to let it sit down in between....and as it was too narrow, I would need to bridge in from either side to support it. So, I binned it. A cross bar across the front rails, and some extra fore/aft bracing, and I would weld in some flat plates in between for the lower shock tower braces to bolt to. The front pieces go forward and bolt in where the front plate mounted. It also gave me an upper mounting point for the servo saver and steering pivot. They are just tacked on for now, but I will weld them up properly now I am happy they sit right and should do the job. I have started thinking about the upper works now. I want to get that straight in my head. I have worked out how I will attach the rear bracing on both sides. That will be a cross brace under the carb with mounting points for tie-rods or plate braces running back to the original mounting points on the engine and clutch carrier. Got a few ideas which I am working out with wire to see how it looks, but I don;t have anything I like yet. In the meantime....I need to buy a fuel tank, make up the servo mounts and source a tidy electrics box too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ant b 4 Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 Looks good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Was way too hot and humid to get much done today, but a few positive steps forward and it's looking a lot more finished! Step one was to properly weld all the bits I tacked into place yesterday. First, though, I had another look at yesterdays final design for the upper cage-work. It still looked good to me...so I will stick with that design. It's the best way to test whether you got it right. If it still looks OK in the morning..... And it did. The bodywork is minimal, which works for me....with enough bracing so it won;t just fold up in a crash. The rear section links into the stock rollcage, using the same links I used for the rollcage mod. This allows me to use any exhaust and also allows most of the engine to be stripped in situ. If I need to remove the whole thing...then I just undo the bolts holding the front and rear chassis together, and with the cage unclipped at the back..it will all slide out in one piece. It's easy to build a cage that causes problems...and I have tried to avoid that. If the plastic back end is too floppy...then I can replace the rear with metal and have a more solid link. So...having a design I liked...out with the tube bender Still a bit of cleaning up to do ( must learn neat welding some day... ) Also welded on some tabs to attach the rear braces which will fix up the back. Left to do: 1) Servo mounts 2) Fuel tank 3) Wiring 4) Radio box 5) Fill in the rest of the cage with extra cross braces etc. to get the look! Then drive it...see if it breaks...and if it doesn't...paint it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corbs10 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 (edited) welding small dia tubing with a mig is very had and you wont get it perfect , if you did want it perfect you would have to use a tig, tbh mate looks fine and paint and a grinder sorts any little imperfection out Edited July 13, 2014 by Corbs10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamiyacowboy Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 fuel tank, small'ish i would look at old lawnmower ones, they came in all shapes and sized from barrel hung, to small compact for weed strimmers. if you want smaller of something uprightish, look at the oil reserve / mixing oil tanks found on 2stroke mopeds and bikes. bottom feeders usually tall slender standup like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Fuel tank is sorted Using the same aircraft tank I run on the Shorty. Has half the capacity of a normal Baja tank, but is 60mm x 60mm and 114mm long. As it's square section, it is easy to tuck in out of the way. Filling is by pump, but for this one...I have bought a little connector plate that will allow me to plug in without disconnecting anything. Radio box will be courtesy of a spare Hyper one. Now looking for some small sized toggle switches for the dashboard edit: Just bought some tiny little 6A rated toggle switches. Should do the job! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 That is looking absolutely epic John, to see it go from a simple idea to the flesh, is really cool. Definitely looking forward to seeing a video of this running and more pictures when/if you paint it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Nitroholic Posted July 15, 2014 Author Popular Post Share Posted July 15, 2014 damn this heat....I can't deal with it...and today, neither could my welder! I have a bit of grinding off to do after the power supply got too hot and started to pack up. Not the welding current...the secondary supply for the wire feed. Had to leave it to cool down. Still made some progress though Actually don;t have a lot more to do. Started by lining up where the rear section would sit. I wanted the cage to line up with the rear section of stock rollcage using the 10mm ID tubes from the rollcage mod already in place. Makes the back half easy to pop off, and means the engine can come out the back if I need to remove it. Gentle bends in two tubes, and they slotted in to the tubes nicely. Then I could tack them in place and remove all the melty plastic bits! I've also welded in the front bars and a cross section for show. I found some quite narrow tubing which looks a treat in there. The rollbar sections have been properly welded up, and the roof braces tacked in. I have also done one side of the floor bracing. The other is still to do. two braces support the rear section from either side. I didn't go mad here, as I wanted the pullstart unobstructed. There will be a cross brace across the two top rear bars where the plug sits, plus some extra tubes welded in to cross brace the sides. My fuel tank has arrived, along with a plug in closable filler cap for the fuel pump. Neat! Also here is a hyper ST radio box, battery tray and servo tray set for the princely sum of 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Superb effort that John, really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HYPER-BOY Posted July 15, 2014 Share Posted July 15, 2014 Looking pretty epic to be fair! - Awesome.. How's the weight of it? quite light still or? Also, where the back plate is as it meets the chassis, looks like it could be a weak point. Heavy landing may see that bend you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 16, 2014 Author Share Posted July 16, 2014 The rear section has been beefed up quite a bit. The flat plates are not flat...but are U section, with thick weld fillets to beef up the sides. They are welded into the centre and cross beams at the back. This is rock solid. The cage also bolts to the 2 upper mounts the standard chassis uses with brackets. What I noticed was the rear chassis plate flexes a lot, and really needs the extra top braces to the engine. The cross bar at the back is threaded through the tabs holding the upper brace brackets, and is lined up for a direct line to the engine mount point. When it's all bolted up, it would have the same level of support as a stock chassis. On a stock baja...remove the two bracing plates either side, and you'll see what I mean! I may add an extra centre brace from the lower chassis up to the rear cross brace though. Weight wise, it's not too bad. A lot less weight than a full cage...but will still weigh in a bit more than a stock Baja I would guess. Once it's all there, I will pop it on the scales and see. Ultimately....as far as strength goes, there is only one way to find out 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmer7 Posted July 16, 2014 Share Posted July 16, 2014 Looki g good, or as my 8year boy would say Its Sick.....same thing I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kkppww91 Posted July 17, 2014 Share Posted July 17, 2014 Been a while since I checked this thread. what can I say, its coming along very well mate. Finished product will be a custom beauty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 17, 2014 Author Share Posted July 17, 2014 Got the rest of the tubes welded in, and now I just need to tidy it all up a bit. I still need to add in servo mounts etc. but I want to bolt the chassis back up before I do that so I can get everything properly lined up. I want to put the throttle/brake servo much further back than stock, which should shorten the rod needed. I also need to decide exactly where the fuel tank will sit and the radio box. I have tried a few options...just got to see what works best. I think a windscreen might be in order too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 17, 2014 Share Posted July 17, 2014 You know the Forum rules well enough by now... PICTURES lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 17, 2014 Author Share Posted July 17, 2014 pictures, pictures, nag nag nag Did a lot of tidying up on the cage, and sorted out where I want everything to go ... apart from the throttle servo....which I am in two minds about. All the tubes were in, and I tidied up the worst of the blobby bits! The fuel tank I am going to place centrally at the back, so it sits under the air filter. There is room to mount the hump-pack behind it in the space over the mounting bolts. A frame will drop over the 4 bolts, and the battery will be cable tied on to it. The radio tray will go up front....as will the steering servo. I will weld a strip of steel between the rails and bolt through this to fix a mount front and back. This will make a rigid mount...and protect the servo from muck from below at the same time. Throttle servo could go front...or back.... I would prefer back, with a short throttle linkage....but front would be easier. Just sits the servo right in the middle of nowhere. Main thing for me is the overall stance of the thing looks how I wanted. The pullstart is unobstructed, and everything is accessable, so it should be easy to live with. Just got to fabricate and attach the servo mounts, rig up the battery tray, wire it all up and make the tie-rods for the rear mounts. The rear end will have a wing...and use the stock wing mounts. Paint the chassis a nice bright yellow....and I think it will look a treat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
(-:AD:-) Posted July 17, 2014 Share Posted July 17, 2014 looks great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 17, 2014 Share Posted July 17, 2014 In a word, that looks perfect. If that's strong enough to take a good pasting, all credit to you for putting that together. IMO it looks even more scale than other sandrails on offer. Do you have any plans for the back of the sides, or just leaving them as is? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nitroholic Posted July 17, 2014 Author Share Posted July 17, 2014 As far as the back goes..... less is more This was the area that gave me the most trouble. I came up with lots of ideas, but things either looked horrid...or got in the way of the spur gear, the pullstart, restricted pipe choice or just plain got in the way of working on the thing. I wasn't going to have that. I have left the back end 100% as HPI intended, so bumpers, pipes, etc. will all fit. As will stock rear plates, shock towers etc. The first thing you will notice if you look closely at a Baja back end, is that it's very compact .... and that if you want to run tubes around it...you can't have them symetrical because the motor is heavily offset. So...if you clear the pullstart...the other side sits over the spur gear cover. Make something that clears the spur gear cover, and it won;t fit the other side... What Tubedigger did was to make the whole car a touch bigger, so he could build right round the motor/spur gear and have it look balanced. I wanted to do something different. I have gone for a 'sketch' back end that gives the impression of a cage with a bare minimum of tubes. Focuses the eye on the front...which is more cagey...saves weight....and gives it a fairly neutral front/rear weight distribution Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oh How Original Posted July 17, 2014 Share Posted July 17, 2014 Well I think it looks fantastic bud can't wait to see it all painted up and really finished, going to be one very special looking RC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.