My rebuild of the problem areas... with pics!

[Deluge]

Finally taking the time to fix this thing. The rear is all buttoned up. I replaced the snapped rear wheel axle cup along with the horribly grindy bearings. Of course I already had axles for the MT, not the XT (another poorly described Redcat part that I picked up from DDM before I knew any better) so I had to do yet more modding of the hub carrier to accept a longer axle. I also spent some time building a shim thick enough to take up the slop that my Baja to XT adapters leave when installed. They don't fit at all like the stock square hubs do. I also created a mod that takes the slop out of the area that supports the bearing. I happened to have a CV joint boot clamp for a real car that, when clamped around the hub carrier over the outer bearing using a special tool, tightens that sloppy plastic right up tight around the bearing. My rear wheels have very minimal movement now. I only had one of these clamps and finding the right one at a parts store is hard or impossible without buying the boot, too, so I used a small hose clamp on the other side. I did this before and it backed off so I CA glued it to the plastic and added red locktite to the screw.Now the front. My 3 wheel drive issue was due to a snapped diff cup, not just a pin like I was hoping. Not only had it snapped inside the case on the previous run day, but it snapped again on the outside of the case during my final run. I don't know the sequence of events but what I found was a loosened grub screw holding my cvd pin in. This in turn wiped out the hub carrier pivot nut, bent the axle, possibly broke the cup the second time, and may have also led to my newly discovered broken A-arm. I can't get a freakin' break! I now have to hope my local shopn has these parts or else I will be ordering stuff again. He has Rampage parts but its a mixed bag between the MT and the XT. I'm pretty sure I remember seeing the cups but iffy on the lower arms.

I have dumped so much time and money into this thing. I know if I just turn it into a backyard basher, it may never die. But the fact remains that I have a really fun track to drive it on and it has jumps that I refuse to roll gently over. This truck will be fixed, gently played with, and sold in the upcoming season. I have my mind set on the Losi 5ive. Its a great truck and handles the abuse with flying colors. But I'm gonna dump the 26 from the new Losi into the Rampage and keep my DogPile 29.5. So hey, it'll have a brand new engine in it for resale.

Awesome. Let us know how the 5ive does. I've been toying with getting one, as well.

Also, having the part numbers to the parts you need will save you some headaches.

 

[nitrohobbiest]

Awesome. Let us know how the 5ive does. I've been toying with getting one, as well.Also, having the part numbers to the parts you need will save you some headaches.

I already know that truck is awesome. Its one of those things that I wish I didn't want but I do. The price of them is a huge leap over the Redcat but I'm guessing I'll get more sleep at night, lol. And parts will be easier to understand for sure. There's only one 5ive to locate parts for. the best part is, the truck has been out for less than a month and several companies are already plugging away at hop up parts for it. Some parts are already released. But as of now, servos are the only parts to really keep in your toolbox at this point. It seems no matter what servo you have, a 4X4 truck really puts a beating on them. I now know officially of one steering servo and one throttle servo down in our club. But there are rumors of many more that have burned out.

But I can't wait to have a center diff. This full time 4x4, 1970's Power Wagon style driving is complicated around turns.

 

[cordy]

I read on another forum that thier is a losi 5t on the used market allready for $1300. I searched and searched but could not find it,probably snaped up allready.

 

[nitrohobbiest]

Yup. There was one. It sold real fast though. It was also listed on Craigslist. The guy really wanted it sold I guess. He must have been hard up for cash and bit off more than he could chew. An investment like that is not something you just wake up and say, "I think I'll go get one of those today and try it out." Well maybe for some it is but not for me. If I get one, it will be because I plan to keep it.

I'm hoping by spring a few will be available used. But I may just go new. The bodies are about $200+ to replace and I plan to line the inside of it to make it last so I don't want one that's already thrashed. One thing about those trucks is you pretty much need to get the heavier spring kit. They sag pretty good on a track with large jumps. The resulting sag means the bottom hits more often but also the fenders get rubbed back to clear by the tires within several laps. I plan to add Gorilla tape to the fenders and then shoe goo and fiberglass mesh other areas. Luckily for me, I can look at the other guy's trucks and take note of all of their cracks.