Zombi Posted October 9, 2014 Author Share Posted October 9, 2014 Also, even though I've updated the firmware of the Castle ESC it was still thermaling whilst crawling, and despite it being cold out today. So i've ordered a 12t pinion as I'm told that should take care of that. I'll lose some top end, but it'll give more torque and hopefully stop the shutdowns. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 11, 2014 Author Share Posted October 11, 2014 (edited) Some pics from the bash today with Mr. Banners Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banners Posted October 11, 2014 Share Posted October 11, 2014 Mellor? Well I never! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 11, 2014 Author Share Posted October 11, 2014 Mellor? Well I never! Dunno what you mean... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chewbacca Posted October 12, 2014 Share Posted October 12, 2014 That looks very Mad Max that does. Me likey very much. As for the Desperado/Badlands combo, I have them on my Carnage and they just GRIP! Great tyres. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 12, 2014 Author Share Posted October 12, 2014 (edited) And some more from today at Black Rocks Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evssv Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 The more I look at the yeti..the more I'm wanting one.......I'm not into rock crawling but I like its looks....hhmmm..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninjagaiden Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Zombi Mind if I ask what your total spend is standing at the moment (apart from the RTR kit itself) Cheers N Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 Sure no problem. So are we talking required upgrades or the optional stuff done just because i wanted to? I need to post up some more pics and do an update, especially after RRCi Nationals the other weekend. I'll do that shortly. I've upgraded a few more parts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 (edited) Recent upgrades: - MIP rear driveshaft - HD gears - front stock ratio, rear underdrive (used marine grease for the lot, including transmisison which was all but dry!) - 12t pinion to help with torque and thermal issues before i upgrade the electronics - Werty Made steel bumper with additional light mountings - Rear shock oil changed to 30wt - Lighting being worked on, managed to stash an 800mah 3S in the fuel cell. Rear lights done, buckets and vanquish stuff on order Various recent pics below. Decals done, cleaned up, ready for this weekend. Werty bumper and a grille added as you can see. Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jony nitro Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 Nice I'm no crawler, but for some 3s fun looks pretty good, did have a Exo money pit, still tempted though, but you did miss customs which was a saving in it self. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 It's great fun to drive. It's nowhere near as good a crawler as the Wraiths, but they can't race/bash like this thing can. And for the Nats, the Yeti was in a sepeprate 2.2 U4 class (as it should be), so didn't have to worry about the pesky Wraiths and their steering throw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noj Posted October 28, 2014 Share Posted October 28, 2014 I'm with Jony on this....really nice looking rig and it still tempts me...the amount of additional required expenditure still un-tempts me... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 28, 2014 Author Share Posted October 28, 2014 (edited) Well to be fair, the only thing you'll need to immediately upgrade are the the hubs, and at a push the wheels. The stock wheels are ok, but they loose their bead too often (for me). And as far as the hubs go, well look what i received today... Axial acknowledged that they messed up the design and have sent these replacements out for free. Included are two sets of hubs for front and back, the aluminium hexes with grub screws and pins. So if you get your free hub update, you're all good to run the thing with no upgrading. Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninjagaiden Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 Great info here. It seems I can get a roller chassis from the US for around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 29, 2014 Author Share Posted October 29, 2014 (edited) I guess it depends on what you want to use it for. Stock motor and ESC are great for general bashing and racing, high speed stuff. But for crawling they're not great due to thermal cutouts. The electrics get too hot when crawing, even with a smaller pinion. I'm with a 12t at the mo, and despite the cold october weather plus having flashed the firmware of the ESC i still got some thermals during the latter part of the 100 gate course at the Nats. Also, with the stock electrics you tend to get some degree of juddering at really low speed (again, crawling), especially with the stock pinion. Eventually i will upgrade the motor and ESC to a Pro4 HD and Castle MMP respectively, but for now i want to get some use out of the stock gubbins. Servo is ok though, not too bad at all considering it comes with the RTR. EDIT: Oh, and the stock wheels are pants, replace them with some beadlocks. Tyres are ok though. not the best, but they look cool Edited October 29, 2014 by Zombi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ninjagaiden Posted October 29, 2014 Share Posted October 29, 2014 That's helpful, thanks. I would be using it for bashing as I have an R1 crawler already. Sounds like it could do with a BEC to take the load off the ESC if you are getting twitching at low speed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted October 29, 2014 Author Share Posted October 29, 2014 I think it's more to do with not being sensored. All the BEC will do is provide extra juice where it's needed (IE if you were to upgrade the servo with more torque), but the AE-3 ESC has all the voltage it needs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 4, 2014 Author Share Posted November 4, 2014 (edited) Added some lights to the beast - dig it: Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 8, 2014 Author Share Posted November 8, 2014 (edited) This week I received my VP Rigid Industries Q-Series lights, rear trailing arms and diff cover. Slight issue with the trailing arms, but Vanquish dealt with it and are sending me a replacement. As for the lights, well goodness me, I can see why the put a warning about not looking directly into them on the packet. As you can see from the below, they're ridiculously bright, so much so they light up half my garden. I changed the way my lighting works and no longer use the battery in the fuel cell. Instead, I draw the power from the main battery using the balance connector. From that, the wire runs into the fuel cell where I've housed a 5-way JST splitter I made. The lights are mounted a on a purpose-made brass bracket, sent to me by a friend in the USA. They're placed there as they're nice and protected from damage and mud. No way I was putting a $100 set of lights on the bumper! On the top of the fuel cell I added a snazzy switch, so when i want to turn all the lights off I don't need to disconnect wires now. There aren't any pics of inside the fuel cell, but the switch and splitter are connected to one another by mini deans connectors. I wanted to use connectors as to make it modular and easily repairable should anything break. If I'd soldered the lot all together and something went it'd have been a royal pain to sort out. Anyway, talk is cheap... Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 16, 2014 Author Share Posted November 16, 2014 (edited) Some pics from today at Padley Gorge, below. My day was cut short though as I stripped the plastic gear inside the stock servo. Thus, i've ordered some replacements from the US. Savox SB-2270SG Castle 10A BEC Lunsford Titanium Turnbuckle Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 27, 2014 Author Share Posted November 27, 2014 (edited) Update time, which I'll do in 2 or 3 parts. I'll add some detail and pics, as when I was looking into Yeti/servo combos the info took some effort to dig up, and I want others to benefit from what I found. So get comfy... These arrived earlier in the week... ...so I got busy, and first up was the servo. I went for a Savox SB-2270SG which at 7.4v produces 32kg/cm (444oz/in) based on the reviews I'd read elsewhere of how it performed in the Yeti and other crawlers. The clamping servo horn is from Axial (25T) http://www.axialracing.com/products/ax30836 It was very easy to install using the brackets which attach to the tub, and it all fitted perfectly. For the turnbuckle I went with a titanium Lunsford 4x35mm along with Traxxas Revo rod ends (part #5347). Stock turnbuckle is 3mm, but because of the power this servo produces I wanted beefy linkage to make sure nothing stripped out. And as you can see, there's more beef here than you'll find in you local Toby Carvery! Compared with the stock turnbuckle... Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 27, 2014 Author Share Posted November 27, 2014 (edited) To power that ridiculous servo (which incidentally nearly tore off the front of my Yeti when i was setting my end-points!) I installed a Castle 10a BEC. It can handle up to 6S and has a max output of 9v. Rather than solder the BEC power leads directly to the ESC leads at the plug (as many do), and therefore hard-wiring it in, I decided I wanted a more modular approach. So I connected up a mini-deans in-line between the BEC and the ESC cables. This will allow me to detach or just unplug the BEC, useful for when I upgrade my ESC to a Tekin RX8 (which is currently on its way to me). Here's what I'm on about... For mounting it up, I considered several options. Fuel cell was a possibility, but I decided against it as it'd just be more wires up there along with my lighting and the switch, plus I'd need to lengthen the cable. Another option was within the waterproof RX compartment, but again decided against this one due to the need for keeping the RX away from electrical interference. Then there was the box beside the transmission which will be for the 2-speed gearbox servo if they ever get around to releasing it. This was a popular choice with some, but for me it was a big no-no, as when i've checked it before it's been soaked and full of muck. So the natural choice was to use a couple of cable ties and attach it to the underneath of the ESC plate. There's plenty of room and it's tucked away out of mischief. All that remained then was to feed the wires of the servo and BEC into the RX box through the slot - simples. Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zombi Posted November 27, 2014 Author Share Posted November 27, 2014 (edited) When I saw the skid plate on CKRC I had no choice but to bag one. After all, I didn't want my precious VP CNC machined diff cover destroying! Edited August 4, 2017 by Zombi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banners Posted November 28, 2014 Share Posted November 28, 2014 They've missed a trick on the diff guard, that hole should be countersunk so the bolt head doesn't protrude (assuming the material is thick enough to accommodate). Other than that, it's looking used and that is always good Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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