m4inbrain's slightly less reasonably priced Reve D RDX

[m4inbrain]

Hey there, long time no see. 

 

Been busy with all kinds of stuff, enjoying the RMX 2.5 i built a while ago etc - but thought that now the season for boating/crawling comes to an end (eew cold and wet and urgh), it's time for another build. 

After reading into the Reve D RDX, i went onto a research spree looking at twelveteen different chassis', to then in the end land back at the RDX. 

 

Now, reason to go for the RDX rather than hopping up the  RMX (which performs beautifully, i want to add - hasn't missed a beat), is rather simple.

 

A: i want something new. That's the main reason. 

B: decided to go from entry level with the RMX 2.5 to "mid level" with the RDX. 

C: my wife wants the RMX 2.5 since she started to enjoy drifting too. Which is the hidden main reason. 

 

Now, shopping list - in typical fashion, much like the previous build, everything is ordered and nothing has arrived yet. Though, this time everything is ordered in the UK, so shouldn't take forever. 

 

Here's what i ordered: 

 

A Reve D RDX. Didn't opt for the drift team upgraded decks etc, i'll run it out of the box for now and see what the hype is about, and then go through it as i have time (and more importantly, money). 

 

Motor and ESC:

 

 

Hobbywing combo, Xerun XD10 Pro with D10 10.5t motor. Does all the fancy bits that i haven't touched at all yet (boost, turbo and whatnot) - i just fancied something more bling, there's nothing wrong with the more budget oriented setup that i installed in the RMX. This one here is for future proofing. 

 

Next would be Servo and Gyro: 

 

 

Not much to say with those two - got both in the RMX 2.5 and can't see how, at my "drivers level", anything could be improved. They're literally performing perfectly. Maybe at the ragged edge of uberdruber 360 entry sanpatsu drift god capabilities they won't do for some reason, but where i'm at (and beyond for a while) they're just spot on. 

 

I did opt for a set of nice wheels:

 

 

These are Tetsujin Bowlers, adjustable offset. Of course, i'm pretty sure that they're not to everyone's liking, but i've seen enough 5 spoke wheels now, as well as BBS style wheels. These are rather different, i like them. They will be replaced eventually, i'll explain why in a minute.

 

Lastly, shell. 

 

 

Here's a caveat though. This shell is just a placeholder, because i'm lazy - i had good experiences with the Killerbody shell i already have on the RMX, so i didn't mind going for another one. The reason it's a placeholder (and also the reason why the wheels are only temporary) is that i found a company that builds shells professionally on commission, and i've put an order in. The problem is that a conservative ETA would be around 6-9 months though, so until then, i had to have something. And this one's good enough. 

 

Of course there's other bits that i won't go into here now, like magnetic body posts, tyres etc - but i should have everything i need to build it from start to finish in one go. Which of course won't be the case, i am still probably £100 behind in stupid stuff like connectors and everything else i've forgotten. 

 

But yeah, here we are, yet another drifter. I'll update once parts arrive, should be between Monday and Wednesday for everything. 

[Stormbringer]

Looking forward to the build thread 

[m4inbrain]

Looking forward to building. 😉

 

[Kpowell911]

Looking forward to this, one day Ill have to try a drift build!

[m4inbrain]

13 minutes ago, Kpowell911 said:

Looking forward to this, one day Ill have to try a drift build!

 

Definitely, they're fun to build (and drive). 

[m4inbrain]

Well, would you look at that. Thanks to Asbo RC, ordered yesterday at like 3:30pm, just arrived. Can't argue with that, first time i've ordered something there, not going to be the last lol.

 

Just had a quick peek at the kit, turns out this is actually JDM - made in Chiba, Japan. Didn't know that. The manual, as far as i can tell, isn't quite as quality as the RMX 2.5 - which, to be fair, was the best manual i've ever seen in terms of print quality, pictures etc. That doesn't mean it's bad, it's indeed very good with "tips" or "hints" sprinkled around where applicable, as well as 1:1 part display for the smaller stuff. I'll take a few pictures later, gotta sort out shopping etc now (just as a side-rant, screw the 20mph welsh speed limit, thanks for listening) - then i'll get stuck in for a bit.

 

Don't think anything else arrives today, but i don't think i'll get to the electrics anyway today/tomorrow, so no worries there. Happy days.

 

[Stormbringer]

At least you can make a start on it 

[m4inbrain]

36 minutes ago, Stormbringer said:

At least you can make a start on it 

 

Very certainly,  just gotta cook now and then the evening be me, AC/DC and a screwdriver. 🤩

[Stormbringer]

Lol have fun mate 

[m4inbrain]

2 hours ago, Stormbringer said:

Lol have fun mate 

 

Boy do i.

 

Did get stuck in for half an hour now, can give a preliminary opinion on quality now, the manual etc. Lets start with the start. 

 

 

Always makes me giggle to think that this is an RC. Eventually. Not much to say here, it's bags, numbered. With stuff and things. 

 

Now, this is where i was impressed for the first time.

 

 

It's of course kind of impossible to tell via picture, but this is part of the bell crank assembly - and there's absolutely zero play vertically. It runs horizontally smooth as butter with no friction whatsoever, and without exaggeration, there's not even a micrometer movement up and down. I think in terms of precision for plastic parts, this is the best one i've ever seen. 

 

 

Finished bell crank assembly. Also, Deus Vult, for the meme-lords amongst us. Next, this is what the manual looks like.

 

 

In the beginning it was a little confusing, due to the Katakana before English, makes it a little awkward to just glance at a picture/text - but in the end turned out to be advantageous, because it makes you look at the picture longer - potentially making less mistakes. The manual is very precise, any potential question mark in terms of orientation for example is made crystal clear, like in this example (i couldn't tell the orientation of the lower front mount from the exploded view - they knew i'd be that stupid and provided an extra picture). It also mentions potential deviations from the standard build (mounting the arm upside down for droop/load shift setups) straight at the source. 

 

In terms of print and paper, it's good. Not outstanding, but absolutely good. Not that it matters that much, but i personally do think that details matter, and having a quality manual is a big plus. 

 

Lastly:

 

 

Bell crank assembly installed with front bulkhead and servo. Take note MST, both short and long links were provided to suite both servo orientations. The manual also made very clear what position the servo horn is to be mounted (slightly offset to the right), again via picture. 

 

That's how far i got for now, need a new bloody chair at the desk - my back's already killing me lol, age ain't helping i guess.

 

Conclusion so far, the plastics are good - close to Traxxas quality. No stripped screws, and you can get screws proper tight. The tolerances/precision of the parts, especially considering they're plastic, is amazing. Beating companies like Axial by a few orders of magnitude, as well as Traxxas by some margin. Also beating the MST which in itself went together nicely, but this is a level or two above, at least so far. Incredibly happy with it. It goes together quick and smoothly, partially due to parts just magically lining up, partially because the manual doesn't leave room for interpretation or confusion. 

I'll have to go out for a bit, certainly hope i'll get a little more done today. 

[James.S]

This all looks fantastic mate, really looking forward to watching it take shape 

 

On another note, that is a very cool mug! 

[m4inbrain]

21 minutes ago, James.S said:

This all looks fantastic mate, really looking forward to watching it take shape 

 

On another note, that is a very cool mug! 

 

Cheers bud. 🙂

So, did get a bit further, so might as well do another update. 

Starting here.

 

 

Rear arms mounted, went together well - zero issues, just nothing to report. Bit like Lego, stick together and put a screw in, everything lined up spot on so no difficulties.

 

 

The spool, as well as the explanation for a load shift setup by pushing more droop on the suspension arms after assembly. I opted not to go for a load shift setup, not yet at least. I might give it a go eventually, but for now i just want to run it bone stock, no faff. 

 

 

Spool installed in the gearbox housing. Now. Here's where i'm conflicted, a little bit - everything is plastic. Spool, gearbox, gears - no metal at all. It runs very quiet, very slick - and there's not going to be much torque on anything since the wheels obviously are spinning free (albeit locked through the spool, my RMX has more of a limited slip kinda setup), but.. I do like metal gearboxes. Yeah, completely pointless in a drifter, and much louder too - just preference. Plastic, regardless of how well made it is (i think two gears are delrin?), just feels a little cheap. Subjectively. 

 

That all said, it all lined up, all fell into place with nice reinforcing clicks. 

 

 

Here's the first major deviation from my RMX in terms of setup - the motor sits higher. You get two options for the motor plate, either mount it like this for the "high cg" setup, or rotated 90 degrees counter clockwise for the more "traditional" setup, with the motor slightly further forward but lower. That's how the motor sits in my 2.5 - on this one i thought i give a higher CG setup a shot.

 

 

Top deck and battery guides installed, and that's the other main difference in terms of setup. I'll get to that in a second.

 

 

One second later. Gearbox etc in, and this is how the battery sits in my RMX. 

 

 

This is how it's going to sit in the RDX. I'll explain the idea at the end of the post, including one more "deviation". 

 

 

Battery lock installed, interesting system. After posting the picture just now i thought that there was a hairline fracture in the hinge, double checked, all good, just a small mark - must've slipped with the blade when i was cutting out the pieces. Anyway - i'm not 100% sure yet, but i might be able to throw Gyro and/or receiver on there while keeping it tidy, that would make space to mount the ESC on the top deck rather than the back (most, but not all RDX have the ESC hanging from the back on a dedicated plate). I kinda want to keep the weight between the wheels, due to our track layout i "need" fast transitions, and having all the weight out back leads to a pendulum effect. Which is desired on some tracks, not so much on others. I'll see how it feels, it's all reversible anyway.

 

 

Friendly warning for butter fingers like me. So far, haven't stripped any threads whatsoever, very chuffed with it. 

 

 

And that's how it sits right now, with the chassis braces installed - this is sadly also as far as i can go at the moment until more stuff arrives. In the next step the rear body mounts have to be installed, and they have to be installed in this step since the screws get obstructed later down the line. Since i'll be going magnetic again, i have to wait for the magnetic mounts to arrive before i continue. Which i might as well, since i also ordered (bloody finally) shock shaft pliers. No more faffing about with some naff grips that i tried to wrap in heat shrink (and then wrapped in tissue) to not scratch the shafts. Should make things much easier. 

 

So.. No idea when more stuff arrives, until then it sadly went back into the box. Even sadder, i'm basically almost through the build already. It went together so easy and smooth, with no backtracking on my part (because everything is crystal clear in the manual, no trial and error/guesswork/doubts required) that, if you have the parts, you can finish that kit in less than three hours from a bunch of bags to actually driving. Sucks, i'm already browsing for the next kit lol (the then "the very unreasonably priced Yokomo SD2.0", probably lol). 

 

Cheers for reading so far, i'll be back once more things arrive. 

 

[Stormbringer]

Your really cracking through it and i am really enjoying the thread 

[Lone-wolf]

coming on nicely , my work is having a HUGE new warehouse built and i fancy having a play with a drifter once the floor is laid but not buying a drift just for one run

Edited September 24, 2023 by Lone-wolf

[m4inbrain]

10 hours ago, Stormbringer said:

Your really cracking through it and i am really enjoying the thread 

 

Thanks, glad to hear - and yeah, sadly. 😞

[m4inbrain]

3 hours ago, Lone-wolf said:

coming on nicely , my work is having a HUGE new warehouse built and i fancy having a play with a drifter once the floor is laid but not buying a drift just for one run

 

Yeah that don't make much sense lol. 

 

Could always see if there's a track/club somewhere reasonably close to ya. 

[m4inbrain]

So, tiny update, or rather a reminder to everyone.. 

 

Read, before you order. The body mounts by Reve D that i ordered? Yeah.. No magnets. And further, the front mount doesn't pivot, which leads to fitment issues if the bonnet isn't straight/slightly curved. 

 

I've continued building, it's basically almost done - just waiting for the electrics now (just got DPD email, arrive tomorrow). Built (not mounted) the shocks, most of the chassis etc - most of the other stuff arrived, will post a proper update post either tomorrow evening or the day after - gonna take some time to properly route the motor cables, have to run them in a length that allows ESC positioning both centre chassis and rear plate. 

 

And of course i gotta wait now for the new set of body posts - bloody £55. 

[m4inbrain]

[Stormbringer]

Looking smart mate 

All it needs now is purple underbody lights

[m4inbrain]

It does buddy, looks pretty mean. 

In terms of lights, i've dug out my MyTrickRC Attack light kit, meaning front lights, rear lights, brake lights, maybe marker lights if i can be arsed - and exhaust backfire LEDs. I'm not sure if there's space on the controller for additional underglow, gotta check - it would indeed look cool with purple underglow. 

 

Just fitted the motor and am now trying to figure out where to mount the electronics, neatly. 

[Stormbringer]

Yeh wirings always a problem to keep it neat 

 

[m4inbrain]

11 minutes ago, Stormbringer said:

Yeh wirings always a problem to keep it neat 

 

 

Even got a clamp for the motor wires to space them evenly lol.

[wolfie1]

I think you need to cancel your custom body as that 1 on there just looks absolutely awsome

[m4inbrain]

27 minutes ago, wolfie1 said:

I think you need to cancel your custom body as that 1 on there just looks absolutely awsome

 

It does, super surprised by the quality of the body considering it's relatively (and comparatively) cheap. I do have another Killerbody shell (orange GR86), but that's not even close in terms of details and even thickness, that 2000gt is sturdy. 

 

Buuut... more bodies is more better. 😛 

[wolfie1]

1 hour ago, m4inbrain said:

 

It does, super surprised by the quality of the body considering it's relatively (and comparatively) cheap. I do have another Killerbody shell (orange GR86), but that's not even close in terms of details and even thickness, that 2000gt is sturdy. 

 

Buuut... more bodies is more better. 😛 

well if thats your thinking a black FD RX7 with gold Enkei RPF1 wheels would look amazing 😜 but then again im a wee bit biased, i can certainly give you some inspiration for this project