Frederik

Thanks Nitroholic! Yes I like how it is not too extremely fast! Well I don't really let it build up all available speed from the motor either 😄 I drive it like I don't want to crash it, which is scale driving I guess lol! Yes tail happy that's for sure! Thank you Stormbringer!! It's a blast to be able to drive it and not have anything waiting to be done on it, just driving it! No more tape holding the body hahahah Fred

Hey Tom, I'll see what I can do, not sure what is the quick way to correct that. In the meantime here is a slightly better quality video than the previous one, and the first one where the car is actually painted and mostly complete 🙂 I put a bit less torque limit on the ESC (Castle) so now it has more starting power than the last (not filmed) run, but when the power comes in it can go sideways pretty quick! There is also a gyro in this video, helps a bit for the fast slides over this uneven terrain! This is the terrain I like to run, very fine gravel, but there is a bit too much pine needles lol Hope you like it! Fred

Then I made some door handles and side mirrors. Actually I made only one mirror lol but please don't tell 😆 Did these actually had mirrors on both sides from factory? https://i.imgur.com/yc2RqXM.jpg [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/o5ZOMdM.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/paIRaeX.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/q1U6tEIl.png[/IMG] Yeah figured I needed to do the second mirror 🙂 And that second pics makes me think I need to put just a bit wider hex in the rear and make that wheel a bit closer to the outer edge of the fender. Easy tweak! [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/SUc7uPt.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/qyY5ePF.jpg[/IMG] And the other new thing, I just bought an RC helicopter project for cheap, and it came with a gyro. Decided to try it on the steering 🙂 Seems like it will work nicely. I put it behind the dash. Also I tried to run the wires as hidden as possible. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/WlEWL2I.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/TYTeOxV.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/KhPmxy9.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/ctmtd7h.jpg[/IMG] It looks like it reacts nicely, can't wait to try it outside 🙂

Not much new except I adjusted the wheel hexes for proper fender fitment (offset), and snapped better pictures. To me, the new wheels are night and day in final looks compared to either of the previous setups! [img]https://i.imgur.com/TYG5bkc.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/ABot7RJ.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/507zyPb.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/RgjazQE.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/sgn9yAk.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/p0F8m69.jpg[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/xB9SMsI.jpg[/img] And a small walkaround video showing the new wheels 🙂 and the newly cracked grille, since I drove it this morning and ran into the kitchen island lol Engine brake is not very good, being only on the rear wheels. Will need to make the front disk project operational! I will see if my son can take a good video of the car running in the living room and post a driving video. It is very nice seeing it run and drift now with the body detailed!

So since the overall tire diameter on the 4 spoke was bugging me (quite a lot) but I liked the wheels, I decided to try modding them to fit the smaller Tamiya M tires. Hacked some Fiat Abarth wheels to keep only the ring, and cut another wheel of different model but same construction as the ones I am using, just in case things go bad, did not want to scrap the good wheels... Spoiler alert, it worked 🙂 so I switched to pics of the real wheels because the pics were better 🙂 [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/vnUtmVh.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/q8mecD7.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/n0rCleN.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/dbEAyo9.jpg[/IMG] Placed the wheel center on a drill, using some Ikea kitchen cabinets angle thingy to check for 90 deg angle periodically. Stopped sanding when the insert was fitting just tight enough. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/cm9X8Yl.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/VyWP83J.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/3y1kL9J.jpg[/IMG] Tried a drag racing setup with some bigger Tamiya M chassis truck tires 🙂 just for fun. Meaty :drooler: Neat looks, maybe for another build. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/9S3rMbi.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/GeRhjgV.jpg[/IMG] And a comparison of the too large tires before, and the modded wheels with Tamiya 60D M chassis slicks (60mm diameter) [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/tbf2QxB.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/va8alSZ.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/9lfTofu.jpg[/IMG] Pretty happy with the result! But the M chassis wheels scales up to 14", not 13" like I would have liked to, but I think I'll have to accept that lol 14" still makes sense for these Escorts, just a bit less classic I guess. 60mm tire diameter scales up to about 22" which also makes sense (it is the diameter Simon McKinley used in the rear on his White MK2, but on 13" wheels though).

View of the dash, steering and shifter nicely I think. Seats were out since they are stuck to the battery. And a second pic showing how the clear is not holding good at all on the paint! To make sure it would stick ok with the gorilla glue, I peeled it off, it was very easy, much like a sticker backing lol [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/tVOHj3h.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/b4IT4T0.jpg[/IMG] So I worked on body mounting some more, found a place to put the magnets, just under a new part, the rear dash lol, not sure about the name, the panel that goes at the base of the rear window. Here are top views before and after, and third pic you can see the 3 thin magnets, they just stick to that steel cross brace. The body is already very snug and just needed something to prevent it from slightly lifting. The panel is glued to the body, and magnets glued to panel: [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/NBI9QJC.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/zuAzE4k.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/md07Y81.jpg[/IMG] Now in that last pic you can also see a gaping hole, leading to the trunk. So I wanted to block that like on the actual car so I made another sintra panel for that. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/dD1oUfh.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Cpaf4ip.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/xTovheE.jpg[/IMG] Also I shortened the shifter a bit, not visible in those pics. Now that the body is mounted, I am nearing completion I think! Some paint to finish up that interior, but I am actually not sure it needs paint since the parts are already the right color (the sanded black dash looks a bit like alcantara), but I might just give a coat of textured black anyway on the dash and seats, and paint the steering wheel.

I am tackling on some of the last details now with the dreaded steering wheel... Looking for something proper size and shape, but recently I came across a post here (I will have to find it again for a big thank you to him for giving me the idea!), he just cut a piece of PVC pipe and sanded it to shape. So I picked what looked about the right size at the hardware store (a PVC joint), cut a slice, and started dremeling around: [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/WHCDnhq.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Djh2xJB.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/JORt8je.jpg[/IMG] In retrospective I think it is a bit thick, but I think I'll leave it like that. I made the calculations and since the body is 1:9.3 scale, the steering is an equivalent 310mm (12.25") so it is a smaller steering wheel, yet I was able to find 310mm racing steering wheels, so it is still within reason. It is 1/8" thick also, so that scales out to about 1 5/32" (29.5mm) so it is thick, but I guess that also kind of makes sense. Once the shape was proper I found my reference steering to try and duplicate, and I of course chose the Simon McKinley (RIP) white Escort, the reference pics are from speedhunters article on his car, here is the link: [url]http://www.speedhunters.com/2014/02/warrior-comes-play-maximumattack-escort/[/url] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/uJEwziK.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/rcHLZiH.jpg[/IMG] So I started cutting aluminum sheet to shape, not very easy it is so thin! Started with scissors and then I carved it out to final shape with the exacto knife. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/wJydYGb.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/z6ITpQP.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/rAVbxtF.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/1HLF1SP.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/ZSLK6BN.jpg[/IMG] I worked on the steering column and shifter. For the steering I used a short piece of steel brake line as a spacer just behind the wheel, and the remaining parts in sintra from a block I already glued together, out of 4 layers of the material. The shifter is done with a guitar string wrapped in shrink tube, and added some kind of ball to it, out of sintra. The shift boot is a section of pull rod boot made for planes and boats. It currently holds there with just a small magnet, not fixed yet, should be glued with the last layer flat against the transmission tunnel so the fitment will be nicer later. The shift knob looks a bit larger than I'd like, again lol but I'm ok with it. That's another case of good enough lol Edit: well looking again at the pics, it is as large as the steering wheel center lol it's way too big. Definitely going to re-do that one lol [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/EfkfezM.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/EZSi7wN.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/oKijc51.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/qT1oi7A.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/1UsZf2N.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/w29iKPU.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/jlyoosz.jpg[/IMG]

Then I finalized the lights with some warm white LEDs, made a simple harness that can go through the small firewall hole and disconnect from the body in the engine bay. I'm kind of a 1:1 automotive lighting geek, retrofitting projectors in my cars, so I like that it actually has a scale light pattern! It has a cutoff at the right place lol It even has a proper drop at the scale 25ft distance 😆 Only thing is the right headlight is aligned a tad low. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/heLOTpn.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/rWsRzRy.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Th1TTnc.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/pk7AMX3.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/21K63iI.jpg[/IMG] Some aluminum tape inside the car, so it looks more like metal, and also block light from bleeding through 🙂 [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/iD2hZcr.jpg[/IMG]

Hey guys sorry I spent so long away from the thread! Thanks James, appreciate the nice words, I'm glad I took the ridiculous amount of time, I like the result! I ended up using a clear that did not stick very well at all... I'll post some updates. I think it might peel of from the rocks hitting it when I run it outside... Thank you buddy! Appreciate it 🙂 So I tried to apply an automotive clear (regular spray can, not 2K type) as I read it was pretty neutral and could probably go without reacting. It did not react, but my problem is when I tried to remove the masking, the clear very easily peeled off from the paint along with the tape... So I had to cut along the tape edge to be able to remove the tape without pealing the clear.. Seems like it just did not stick at all. In retrospective, it seems the paint I used is just about the worst ever. Craft paint with a somewhat powdery texture that likely explain the non-sticking. The only thing maybe is somewhat my fault is I had to sand the paint a bit since the can nozzle sprayed a bunch of dried up paint bits out of the nozzle and onto the body, and after sanding I did not clean it with something wet, I just wiped off the dust. But it was already powdery before sanding.. So I don't know how well it will hold up after fully curing. I doubt it will survive the first gravel encounter, we'll see. Here you see where it peeled of, it did not tear off, it still had a rubber texture and just stretched so I stopped pulling. You can also see along the cut line, cutting with the knife was enough to pull off the clear slightly... [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/BBTGxdW.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/nGsLBsT.jpg[/IMG] I reattached the bumpers and wing, and snapped a couple pics. Now just need to add the black trim around the windows, and do something about the rear lights too. And put the LED in the lights. And a steering wheel/column too lol [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/CyJc1qs.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/LAeuk2c.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/f7pOqQW.jpg[/IMG]

Thank you Redback, there is snow here currently so it will be difficult to find a place to run it.. But I am thinking of making some studded tires out of stock tamiya M tires and put a bunch of stitches from inside 🙂 Maybe that would work for some ice run. Because the car is pretty small, and heavy, it tends to have a realistic behaviour, not like any RC car that can easily jump 3 times its height without issues lol But I did actually run it many times but in various states of non-completion lol Can't wait to be able to do a final good video with body finished and all.

Not sure why the clear did not stick, I did sand in some places, and did not sand in some other places. It seems like it is the same everywhere, I think it is because the white paint was craft paint (from Michaels craft store) and was very chalky. That paint was definitely a mistake, we'll see how it does when I run it 🙂 Maybe I'll try some other clears on it lol (after peeling it off) So I worked on body mounting some more, found a place to put the magnets, just under a new part, the rear dash lol, not sure about the name, the panel that goes at the base of the rear window. Here are top views before and after, and third pic you can see the 3 thin magnets, they just stick to that steel cross brace. The body is already very snug and just needed something to prevent it from slightly lifting. The panel is glued to the body, and magnets glued to panel: Now in that last pic you can also see a gaping hole, leading to the trunk. So I wanted to block that like on the actual car so I made another sintra panel for that. Also I shortened the shifter a bit, not visible in those pics. Now that the body is mounted, I am nearing completion I think! Some paint to finish up that interior, but I am actually not sure it needs paint since the parts are already the right color (the sanded black dash looks a bit like alcantara), but I might just give a coat of textured black anyway on the dash and seats, and paint the steering wheel. Thanks for looking! Fred

I am working on fixing the body now, I put two flat magnets just at the base of the windshield, and also glued the front and back half body together (no screws now). There are still holes in the body, when I drilled them I did not think I would end up focusing that much on scale body! I was mostly on the mechanical part. Not much to show for now, just a quick cool top view! It shows the dash, steering and shifter nicely I think. Seats were out since they are stuck to the battery. And a second pic showing how the clear is not holding good at all on the paint! To make sure it would stick ok with the gorilla glue, I peeled it off, it was very easy, much like a sticker backing lol

Now I worked on the steering column and shifter. For the steering I used a short piece of steel brake line as a spacer just behind the wheel, and the remaining parts in sintra from a block I already glued together, out of 4 layers of the material. The shifter is done with a G string (I'm talking about the larger string on a guitar, you perverts. 😆 ) wrapped in shrink tube, and added some kind of ball to it, out of sintra. The shift boot is a section of pull rod boot made for planes and boats. It currently holds there with just a small magnet, not fixed yet, should be glued with the last layer flat against the transmission tunnel so the fitment will be nicer later. The shift knob looks a bit larger than I'd like, again lol but I'm ok with it. That's another case of good enough lol Edit: well looking again at the pics, it is as large as the steering wheel center lol it's way too big. Definitely going to re-do that one lol Now on to a few pics, thanks all for looking! Fred

I am tackling on some of the last details now with the dreaded steering wheel... Looking for something proper size and shape, but recently I came across a post here (I will have to find it again for a big thank you to him for giving me the idea!), he just cut a piece of PVC pipe and sanded it to shape. So I picked what looked about the right size at the hardware store (a PVC joint), cut a slice, and started dremeling around: In retrospective I think it is a bit thick, but I think I'll leave it like that. I made the calculations and since the body is 1:9.3 scale, the steering is an equivalent 310mm (12.25") so it is a smaller steering wheel, yet I was able to find 310mm racing steering wheels, so it is still within reason. It is 1/8" thick also, so that scales out to about 1 5/32" (29.5mm) so it is thick, but I guess that also kind of makes sense. Once the shape was proper I found my reference steering to try and duplicate, and I of course chose the Simon McKinley (RIP) white Escort, the reference pics are from speedhunters article on his car, here is the link: [url]http://www.speedhunters.com/2014/02/warrior-comes-play-maximumattack-escort/[/url] So I started cutting aluminum sheet to shape, not very easy it is so thin! Started with scissors and then I carved it out to final shape with the exacto knife. Next will be the steering column, hopefully that will be easier! Also need to think of a shifter, not sure how I'll do this, especially the shift boot. I'll search for reference pics and find the easier type that I like ha! 🙂 Edit: now that I look at it, about the thickness, I should have made it thinner on the lateral dimension, and leave it thicker only in depht.. Fred

Small update, I finalized the lights with some warm white LEDs, made a simple harness that can go through the small firewall hole and disconnect from the body in the engine bay. I'm kind of a 1:1 automotive lighting geek, retrofitting projectors in my cars, so I like that it actually has a scale light pattern! It has a cutoff at the right place lol It even has a proper drop at the scale 25ft distance lol! Only thing is the right headlight is aligned a tad low.

Well, while I do like that body, it has some wrongs in some places that are bugging me a bit. So if I were to go through the work of molding, I think I would make it different. Maybe mold it from the inside and work the mold a bit before doing copies. Who knows, maybe someday! If I don't trash the body too much hahaha It is already a bit modded and not sure how it would do for modling. So I tried to apply an automotive clear (regular spray can, not 2K type) as I read it was pretty neutral and could probably go without reacting. It did not react, but my problem is when I tried to remove the masking, the clear very easily peeled off from the paint along with the tape... So I had to cut along the tape edge to be able to remove the tape without pealing the clear.. Seems like it just did not stick at all. In retrospective, it seems the paint I used is just about the worst ever. Craft paint with a somewhat powdery texture that likely explain the non-sticking. The only thing maybe is somewhat my fault is I had to sand the paint a bit since the can nozzle sprayed a bunch of dried up paint bits out of the nozzle and onto the body, and after sanding I did not clean it with something wet, I just wiped off the dust. But it was already powdery before sanding.. So I don't know how well it will hold up after fully curing. I doubt it will survive the first gravel encounter, we'll see. Here you see where it peeled of, it did not tear off, it still had a rubber texture and just stretched so I stopped pulling. You can also see along the cut line, cutting with the knife was enough to pull off the clear slightly... I guess it will look nice at least until I ride it in gravel hahahha 😆 Or maybe that will just seal the deal that this body is the shelf queen, and I'll paint the Mk1 body as the runner. Now because pics, I reattached the bumpers and wing, and snapped a couple pics. Now just need to add the black trim around the windows, and do something about the rear lights too. And put the LED in the lights. And a steering wheel/column too lol l always found the retroracing body I has something wrong about the shape of the windows and windscreen, looks like it is a bit too high or something, and the body is a bit too rounded in a few places. But it will all have to do lol! Fred

It is only one coat but I had to mock it up on the chassis I'm sorry I should probably wait until more is done to show you, it is not very opaque at all and just a first inside coat, but it's pretty exciting to finally put some paint And the opened window is kind of cool to see the inside better. The paint is definitely very matte on the inside... Not sure what I'll to to give it some shine. What clear coat has chances to work with water based paint, and not chemically react? Guess I'll do some testing on the scrap windows.

The front windows always bothered me with how they had a huge window trim at the bottom, making the window look much smaller than what it should, so I took the knife and removed what I did not like. I will see later if I keep it windows down look, or if I glue some new windows from inside. And then I proceeded to mask it and give it a first coat of paint from the inside You can see how I trimmed the window, and while at it I also reduced the width of the B pillar which was also too chubby. Once the inside dries a bit I'll re-mask the windows from the outside and give the outside coat.

Thanks mates! Appreciate the nice comments. Last progress, was getting excited too for painting, I got a bit closer by actually installing the bumpers and wind with bolts instead of tacky dots 😆 I just used M2 bolts all around, had to shim to get the right angle. And I put a small block under the hood to prevent the grille from going inwards, so I have bolts only at the bottom. Also this summer I noticed the car was sending a whole lot of gravel inside the car (from around the fenders and mostly at the back, since the bumper area acts as a shovel to catch everything flying). So I used some pieces of foam cut to shape and superglued them at the right spots to make a tight fit with the body. And in the rear I used an old bike air tube piece. Not pretty but you can't see it when the body is on And a couple shots with the bumper and wing properly fitted: Now need to find proper paint that is not chemically too harsh on the plastic. It is not lexan, I think it is soda bottle type of plastic, PET or PETG not sure how they call it? I read you should not paint these retracing bodies with lexan paint or they become very brittle. Looking for some water based but I'm not sure where I can find water based spray paint? And clear coat I could apply on top of it? I don't aim for a super shiny perfect paint, I just don't want it to be flat looking like house walls latex paint lol Edit: I have just found water based spray paint at De Serres (craft supplies place in Quebec) so I ordered 2 cans of white and one can of black. Just noticed they are only 100g, hopefully that's enough for the whole body in white. There was nothing like clearcoat in that series so I hope it is going to be somewhat shiny! [url]https://www.deserres.ca/en/dsaero?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI37GFvfe_7QIVAeOzCh1B-wOUEAYYASABEgJIEvD_BwE[/url]

Thanks buddy! Much appreciated. I'd like to be able to paint it soon and call it almost done and then keep doing improvements. But at the same time I like the fact we can see through the body. One idea I had is to paint only say the right side and keep the other half transparent (except for the window trim and other details). Kind of like the see through views you see in encyclopedia Tanks for looking! Fred

Shortly after I decided the grille really needed the small pieces on the sides, glad I put them it looks nicer! And I put a small blank oval to mimick a ford logo.

So now that I have a gaping hole in the front of the body, I thought I'd do something nicer out of it, so I cut the whole thing more precisely: And started with a properly shaped blank and drilled some eyeballs, cut a grille opening: Searching for a material for the grille pieces, I found tie wraps just about the right size, but realized the plate was not deep enough to add a grill surrounding that would not poke out (tie wraps were just a tad wide). So I shimmed with an additional layer. I also used the same black tie wraps to do the headlight surround, glued and held with another tie wrap And then glued them to the thing, and added a center post to help hold the grille pieces later on. Then started adding tie wraps one at a time, wait for the glue to set enough to do the next.. long process, but at least I don't have to cut each stripe manually! I'm pretty sure I could not cut the stripes even enough for a nice look. It's a shame the tie wraps are not a tad longer, I'll have to add small pieces at the top to make the surrounding pieces meet in the center. There is a slight angle pointing forward in the grille so each piece is cut at the center. So I completed the grille pieces, and added vertical reinforcements in the back (3 each side). So now it should be a bit sturdier. I am not sure I'll try to do the small sections of grille on the outer side of each headlight.. I should though if I want it to look closer to the real thing, but that will be a lot of small loose pieces lol We'll see I guess. For a second I thought I could cut the hood and start making the body panels separate, held by magnets.. I really like the idea of being able to remove a fender or the hood, or a door. But that opens a whole can of worms hahaha So the grille has some white traces of glue drying, but I'll shoot a coat of textured black paint on it anyway. I usually put the parts on a vent blowing constant air so it does not fume like that but there are a couple times I could not because the parts were not holding yet.

Small update! I did some sintra work, I wanted to try doing some good enough seats. Since the batteries are two 1s cells one each side of the transmission tunnel, I am making seats that will somewhat hide them. The batteries are a bit bigger than ideal scale wise to hide under the seats, but the seats are not completely out of proportions I think. Maybe just a tad too high and small. I formed a bit with a propane torch lol now that's some precise heat modulation (not!) Then glued double thickness sides roughly cut to shape And started carving a shape in the double layer to make it a bucket: Now looks pretty good in there I think! And then I realized I forgot the holes for the seatbelts, as in the reference Sparco seat I found on Google I enjoyed it, not too much waiting on the glue to set, and more carving with the dremel. Doing an interior on the Hilux, it gets long waiting for parts to cure. I am using Gorilla glue gel which was recommended for this material here, but it does not dry all that fast. Maybe I'm using too much of it? I feel like if I put less it will be too weak. It would be cool if the glue would set quickly and be ready to work, cut and grind few seconds layer but that's not the case. So I glue a piece and then go work on something else. Next should be a steering. Not sure what I can use for the actual steering with proper diameter (don't really want to make one out of a sheet of sintra lol) Thanks for looking! Frederik

Thanks for the tip on insterting the images! Are the pictures still linked to imgur when I do this (the Other media function, insert mage from URL) or are they now hosted locally? So now that I overheated the Tamiya sport tuned motor, I installed the castle 3400kv 4 pole motor. I had to drill a hole through the firewall to pass the motor wires and also the servo cable while at it. Much cleaner! The motor wires used to run under the car along the transmission tunnel, and back up in the car behind the bumper (there is no actual bumper yet lol). It is pouring rain now so I can't really go try it out.. But I also have a problem setting up the current limit on the castle ESC. It needs to perform a kV test before I can activate the torque limit, but the test does not run correctly.. I will try some more today. Edit: I also added a heatsink I had laying around, and I am pondering the idea of cutting away the grille and making it functional, not sure from which material. I have some grille material but it is not the right type for this, Escorts have grilles with horizontal lines, mine is diamond shaped... Also by the way the MK2 body is now cracked, I think my son hit me at some point with the lunchbox or with the other Tamiya truck. With metal behind the body, you can't really hit something hard haha So I guess it is now set that the MK2 will be the beater body and the MK1 will be the display one! Edit 2: I was just able to do the torque limit test, I had the theottle epa not set to 100% and it is required for the test. I set the torque to minimum as a first test. Also I cut the two small openings below the grille, but then thought it will not be sufficient, so I went and cut the whole grille off. I think it did not look very scale at all anyway, at some point I can remove what is left and put a complete grille with working headlights. Now air should flow pretty good! With that and the brushless with torque limit, overheating should be solved.

Edit: not sure why the pictures are not showing?? So I finished mounting the 380 sized motor, put batteries in and took it for a ride at the park See how small compared to a stock motor. [img] It did not go very well, it overheated severely after a few minutes drifting in the gravel. I was not really surprised, I thought for the 6$ they asked for the motor I could just try it. It did not actually burn in flames, but it overheated so much that the magnets got very weak and loss a ton of power. It had decent power for drifting in the gravel initially, but could not handle it for a long time. So I undid the front half to extract the motor, and put back the Tamiya Sport tuned. [img][/img] And while at it I actually attached the tranny with nuts instead of just a bolt with tape Went for a ride with the Sport tuned, and I overheated that one too! Maybe I was just a bit to eager on the throttle. I have undone the front half again and I'm in the process of installing the brushless Castle 3800kv, I plan to configure a limit torque to try and avoid overheating. What do you guys think? The car is probably near 4.5 lbs currently. Is the 3800kv able to handle this safely? I'm on 2s lipo saddle packs. Video of the ride with the Tamiya motor: