Way too busy counting my loot!

Just got back from my buddy's place with a huge case of truck stuff.

We got (no, I got!!!):
1 RTR Losi XXXT (pretty much stock),
1 MF XXXT (w/ a Cyclone TC ESC and a Hitec 625 servo),
1 XR2i radio (27MHz w/ 3 spare sets of x'stals),
1 XR2 radio- 75MHz,
5 2000 battery packs,
2 3000 Ultra Metal battery packs,
3 Chameleon 2 motors,
2 Speed Gem 17T motors (the non-pro blue ones),
1 Indi 16X 3 charger,
1 Pirhana charger,
spare arms and hub carriers and lots of liittle bits.
AND because this IS the Stampede page, we got 2 traxxas wheel wrenches!

Grand Total? $153! I think I did OK! I figure I could sell the RTR with the XR2i radio (basically as it came) for $150 and then the rest is gravy!

Funny part: Jess had one of those blue Speed Gems long ago- right about when we were racing with my bud, Scott. Jess's motor disappeared. He jokingly said Scott had stolen it since he turned up runninng one in his truck. Well, today, we found 2 of them in his box. Yup, he had Jess's. :rolleyes: Still a junky motor compared to the Chameleons.

nice pick up chris. let me know if you want to sell the 16x3 charger. need to pick one up for micro racing. trying to down size the amount of stuff i nedd to take.


peter
:)

Might be willing to do that. I am trying it out right now. Seems to work fine but the batts we got have been sitting for over a year so they are being finicky. :rolleyes: What would it be worth to you? I sure don't need 5 chargers but that would be my second best now (I use the 16X7).

The trucks run great! The Mf needs a diff rebuild but even with the old Chameleons they scoot. Jess challenged me to a race and although his tiny little buggy is fast, it wasn't THAT much faster.

Brushless, brushless, breathless! :devil:

i also use the 16x7!:) i love it, but is a bit larg to always take to the track. what other chargers do you have? i need one that is nicd/nihm. i will look them up new.

peter
:)

is it the version3?

version 2.5.

Sean will be turning 10 in a couple weeks and he is all over me to give him one of the XXXT's :rolleyes: . I just wish I thought he would actually drive it. He never runs his pede at all. I am thinking he will "probably" get the XXXT sport (the RTR version) and I will sell the Matt Francis to pay for stuff. The MF has lots of nice features (aside from being all graphite..) but it is a bit rough. The diff barks much more than I would like and it was put away wet so it has some rust on the CVD's. I still think I could get a good price for it. Especially if I include the Cyclone TC2. :thumbsup: Ready to run with the XR2, who knows what I could get for it? Any ideas Tom?

Speaking of Tom,, You are so right about that rear diff on the XXX4. it is getting really nasty. I think it is a perfect 1st test for Jess on tearing down and rebuilding. Just wish we had a Losi-carrying LHS around here.

Hey Tom, while we are at it, what ESC did you have in thae XXX4? Jess has an Intellispeed 8T reversing but he hates it. The Cyclone looks too big to fit- especially with that power cap! I keep telling Jess he really wants reverse for bashing purposes and he keeps asking what I would sell the Cyclone for... Whatever ESC he uses it has to be pretty darn small.

Wow Chris, thats like finding a 30's Ford in Grandma's barn!

Peter, I use a Pirhana charger (if it's the same modle?) and like it. $50 new.

Well, I left Jess to his own devices on the diff last night. Or tried to. :rolleyes: He did get it out and get started but it is clear he needs a bit more experience. We cleaned regreased and reassembled it. Still major nasty! jess swears it is hugely better. Not having seen the original I can't say but.. We have new carbide balls and diff plates. Just need the thrust bearing rebuild kit... I guess Stormer will get an order. he needs a new lid anyway.

Not quite a '30's sort of find but pretty sweet. I think Sean WILL be getting his XXXT. Just need to sell off enough other stuff to cover the cost. Shouldn't be too hard. He says, typing with fingers crossed. :p

Chris, I ran an old Tekin G12 it the 4wd, it fit perfect in the square behind the motor.

As for the rear diff, I never could figure that thing out, I rebuilt it last spring (MIP thrust bearing, diff balls, and rings) but it only seemed smooth for about 10 runs. I probably messed it up by not paying more attention to adjustments as it got "broke in" and everything seated properly.

The new MF put away wet & has rust on the CVD's??? Sat it ain't so! Who would do such a thing???:freak: (don't look at the XXX4!) It is fairly easy to clean them up though with a variable speed drill, a scotchbrite pad, and a little black spray paint! Re-selling it? that's a little iffy now since the new MF2 is out, there are alot of 1st gen MF trucks out there for sale. I was considering selling mine since I got the new truck but after looking around I may not. Currently a nice 1st gen Francis truck will go for about $100 as a roller, the more wear & tear on it the less you get. The cyclone will sell for more on it's own. Your best bet might be to do the RTR for $150-180 with 2 of the 2000 battery packs (If you can wake them up) and a cheap charger to sweeten the deal. Of course your best return will be on E-Bay, probably $180ish with the batteries & charger.

Oh yeah, Stampede forum.... My Stampede (nicknamed "mean joe green" by my oldest & his friend) is sitting in my pit room waiting for it's next jaunt!

Well, technically it isn't even a MF. It only has about half the red stuff on it. All graphite 'cept for one arm (I remember when he busted it.:rolleyes:). I got on eBay and saw how cheap they were going for. Might just have to keep it. Sell off some of the other stuff maybe to cover some costs. Jess REALLY wants that TC2...

I had to chuckle just a bit with the diff. I have rebuilt more than I care to remember of those. Jess was bitching that it wasn't "just like a XXXT diff" as I was contending. He was all baffled by the washers and stuff. He started to get all "I can't do this" on me and I pointed out that it was exactly that job that got me out of the Losi game! And then I told him He was the one who wanted back in and he darn well better get used to working on them. He laughed and got back at it.

Once (if) our track reopens the guys there can help out with the diffs. They had it dialed and were having no problems with theirs at all. It will work better as it is and we haven't used any spare parts yet. it can't hurt anything but itself. Might have to invest in a spare diff to just toss in.

Well, I left Jess to his own devices on the diff last night. Or tried to. :rolleyes: He did get it out and get started but it is clear he needs a bit more experience. We cleaned regreased and reassembled it. Still major nasty! jess swears it is hugely better. Not having seen the original I can't say but.. We have new carbide balls and diff plates. Just need the thrust bearing rebuild kit...
Chris.... on those Losi Trannies..... the THRUST balls wear SOOOOOO easily... your BEST bet are to move to CERAMIC BALLS from rc4less.com .... its 8 bux a package ... and u will need 1 package for the thrust balls and one package for the diff balls... 16 bux total... the ceramic balls last 20 times LONGER than the shatty carbide balls....and also, DONT PUT BRAND NEW PLATES IN w/o Scuffing them w/ some EXTRA FINE sandpaper!!!!! the new plates SLIP VERY VERY BADLY on new balls.....

my .02 on diffs......

-Tone

Once (if) our track reopens the guys there can help out with the diffs. They had it dialed and were having no problems with theirs at all. It will work better as it is and we haven't used any spare parts yet. it can't hurt anything but itself. Might have to invest in a spare diff to just toss in.
ROFL..... Chris... building diffs arent hard at all... just a little challenging... use the tips i just gave you above, and you shouldnt have any issues.... also... DONT use the LOSI grease..... use the ASSOCIATED Black grease on the THRUST BALLS, and the Clear Diff Lube on the DIFF balls.... i've found that the ASSOCIATED stuff works better - i dont know why, it just does.... and dont try to be conservative on the grease and lube! Load the bizznotch up w/ the Diff Lube!

-Tone

ROFL..... Chris... building diffs arent hard at all... just a little challenging... use the tips i just gave you above, and you shouldnt have any issues.... also... DONT use the LOSI grease..... use the ASSOCIATED Black grease on the THRUST BALLS, and the Clear Diff Lube on the DIFF balls.... i've found that the ASSOCIATED stuff works better - i dont know why, it just does.... and dont try to be conservative on the grease and lube! Load the bizznotch up w/ the Diff Lube!

-Tone
Thanks for the advice! I never really found it hard to rebuild them except between heats at the track in a pit area covered with dust. A nice clean work bench makes life so much easier! I hear you on the "don't spare the grease" thing. Our trouble is that we had just a bit left. We went lighter than I would have liked. I have a set of ceramic balls for the diff but none for the thrust yet. I will give those guys a try. Especially if I am going to have three Losi trucks again.:freak:

Tom, the outdrives on the front and rear of the buggy are different. The rear ones also don't match the Losi drawings. They tell you to press in a bearing on the outside but clearly that doesn't work while it fits nicely on the inside. Comments?

Yup, Composite outdrives on the front with the Blue Aluminum savers, & the normal steel outdrives in the rear. The Diff is actually the exact same as the XXXT diff except for the pully instead of a diff gear. So all the parts should be assembled the same as a XXXT diff, without a manual in front of me I couldn't say what's up with the bearing. I never used the Losi grease in them either, I used Ronnie Grease on the thrust & AE clear Stealth diff lube on the rings.

I can tell you that the Diff on the new BK2 & MF2 are diffrerent, Losi got rid of the bevel washers :thumbsup: & replaces them with a AE Stealth type spring. Also the outdrives are different so they don't "crossover".

I can tell you that the Diff on the new BK2 & MF2 are diffrerent, Losi got rid of the bevel washers :thumbsup: & replaces them with a AE Stealth type spring. Also the outdrives are different so they don't "crossover".
Yeah, the diffs on the new Losi MF2 & BK2 are different and, in my opinion, more fragile... they made the Diffs smaller... a lot of the guys at my clubs track are blowing their new MF2/BK2 diffs faster....
Tom, have you cracked any tranny cases yet on your MF2? our top driver had gone thru 3 on his MF2, and 1 on his BK2.. 2 times the thing broke by the top shaft, once by the outdrives, and the latest time, it split in 4!

there is also a place that makes MODIFIED pieces for the Losi Diffs.....
Here it is:
http://www.skipgear.com/

Peace out!

-Tone

I like the blue covers!:thumbsup:

Yeah, that bearing is bizarre. the instructions say to put it in from the diff ring side but there clealry is not enough room. It does fit in the other side though. I will have to look into that. For all I know, that may be the problem. There is also a very thin large diameter washer in there with the thrust bearing that is not in the drawing.. Regardless, it is WAY smoother than it was though. We have the technology, we can rebuild it! Need to find grease.

What is the best site to find Losi parts. I find Stormer's page infuriating!

What is the best site to find Losi parts. I find Stormer's page infuriating!
Stormer..... thats about it... horizon's site is kits only for the most part (as far as LOSI goes) in my experience....

But Stormer is the way to go! the BEST way to do it is by PART #'s from the MANUAL!

-Tone

What is the best site to find Losi parts. I find Stormer's page infuriating!

my lhs carries alot of losi parts. email the part numbers and i can prce them for you.


peter
peter.ronbeck@comcast.net

Yeah, I guess going through the manual is the way to do it. Without the part numbers it means scrolling through some 1200 listings. Just a bit frustrating.

Chris, if you get the part numbers you're looking for you can call my LHS and they would hook you up, they are just starting to go full scale mail order & carry ALOT of parts at real good prices. They most likely have what you need. Check them out at:

www.larrysperformancercs.com

Tell them I referred you, it won't get you a discount or anything, but will let them know you're not just window shopping. Their site isn't quite fully operational yet, but does work.

That thin large diameter washer you're talking about is supposed to be in there (refer to Bag A instructions, steps A-10 thru A-19 for the rear diff, I think you have been looking at the front!) specifically step A-16.

I'm giggling at the thought that you have been looking at the instructions for the front composite diff assembly when you should have been looking at the rear...... Crazy dude! :freak: All the things you have been describing are included in the assembly of the composite diff, not the steel one.

That is what you get when you tell a 12 yr old to pull out the manual. Honestly, to the casual observer, they DID look identical. I asked Jess about that and he simply said "they want you to make the same thing twice- that is why it is there twice". Can't wait to give him some grief on that one! :p I will look and make sure I got that washer etc in the right place.

I will go through the manuals and get some numbers together.

Thanks.

glad to be of assistance! :lol: Anything to allow a Dad to rib a child!

I got yhe info from the online manual at Losi's Website

You sent the manual with the XXX4 and one of the trucks came with one- I think it was the Sport. I will check it out.

Well, How did chastizing Jess go? Did it all make sense in the end?

:thumbsup: I had him read the first sentence in that section. The one that says "steps A-1 to A-10 refer to the front differential. A-11 to A-19 refer to the rear differential..." he was appropriately sheepish.

I figured out that I did indeed put that thin washer in the wrong place and that it will be a bad thing to run it like that. I told him to refrain from running it until I got it right. I was thrilled that he actually cared WHY it mattered!

YAY! He's learning! "Sheepish" :lol:

And he wasn't that ba-a-a-a-a-d either. Sorry couldn't resist. ;)

WHEEELIES!!!!


This message is brought to you as a 'Pede related comment.........

Boy, 3 days..... We must be a busy bunch!

Went racing yesterday with both my sons, had a great time. We all ran good.

I've been out of town. Still am, actually, up in northern VT. The fall colors are awesome! :D

Trying hard to sell off Jess's Clod. One guy expressed interest in parting it out and made a decent offer on parts but got all upset when I honestly told him the condition. Maybe I should just sell him a bill of goods? You would think he would appreciate my telling it like it is. Oh well. I will send off a ton of photos and we shall see what happens.

Glad you had a good time racing Tom! I sure wish I had time to even run my trucks... Now, after all the time I spent making links and setting up Jess's truck I get to tear it down to do a photo shoot. :rolleyes:

Upset when you told him actual condition??? I don't understand, you told him it was in excellent condition and he was mad? You told him it was used but in good condition with new parts? Maybe he was just depressed because your description let him know he wasn't gonna get it for as cheap as he was hoping. Where are you "Advertising" it at anyway?

I found your ad here on HT.

since we are speaking of ads here on HT... i got a few... one for a novak dually, and one for an XXX Kinwald buggy.... if you know of anyone interested, point them in my direction.

as for stampede talk.... i am bringing it back out for the final race of the season. i am gonna run it offroad, and see how bad it possibly could be! gotta redo the shocks.. i'll try and get pics of this.. it should be great!

-Tone

I was completely honest with him. it is a used truck in perfect working order. I just mentioned it has a couple extra holes drilled in the chassis and told him about the amount of use the other parts had. I will send him photos of everything and let him decide. :rolleyes:

I think Tom is right that he thoguht he was getting a screaming deal. He still is getting a good deal. Just not screaming I guess. I don't get why he doesn't want the whole truck for $80 more. I mean, a used set of axles alone will go for $100. And then there are the wheels and all the electronics. go figure.

Has this hobby ever seen a sellers market?

I don't think it's ever been a sellers market in RC unless you're an OEM. Used stuff will always be a buyers market, people will only pay what they will pay and no more. Problem is most want to pay 5 cents for the $5 when new item, Something for nothing. & then when they do make a deal alot times they want to P&M about it because it looks more used than they were expecting. Gee, you paid $30 for something you cant buy new for under $75..... There could be a reason for that!

I think you were wise to be completely honest with the guy in regards to the condition. Different people have different opinions as to what "Fair", "good", & "Excellent" condition is. The XXX4 I Sold to Chris was in "good" condition in my opinion, not excellent. I could have described it as "Very good" had I wanted to clean it up more and show it a little more "love", but I didn't fell like it and priced it that way. Now Chris, be honest here, I can take it & you won't make me mad, what was your opinion of the condition of the car?

What? That POS with the blown diff? ;) It is exactly as advertised and expected. :thumbsup:

I think the world would be a better place if people would just be nice and be honest with each other. Sure it would be nice to get a bit more money for something but if it means having somebody bitching and moaning how they got screwed, right or wrong? Why bother. Life is tough enough without adding to the pile.

I have a couple other people interested in Jess's truck. No, I wont make nearly the same money as I would by that guy who wanted me to part it out but I will get rid of some of my old stuff (the radio and ESC are mine) and it will be out of the house. If he still wants it, it is his but I will give him one day... He got his extra photos last night when we got back from VT and if that doesn't satisfy him, no skin off my nose. A deal isn't a done deal until it is DONE. People can offer whatever they want and until the money is there, it is all talk. One guy offered me a Revo for the Clod! I couldn't believe it. I got lots of offers for nitro trucks but how bad can the Revo be? I mean, it has been out for a couple months. Of course he never wrote back when I asked about conditions. All talk until it is done...

I read that about the REVO in your thread, I thought - What?? And then they guy goes on to say "you could easily sell that for more than you're asking for the clod".... Again I go WT*??? If it's that easy to sell, sell it & buy the clod! I think he wanted to trade an imaginary truck in a "you ship your 1st since mine is worth more" or a "you ship Monday and I will too then we'll get them at the same time" scam. Neither of which I would ever do (pretty sure you wouldn't either, unless it was Bill!).

Well, not having fallen off the turnip truck last week, that was my first assumption as well. He has now posted that it is a Revo he bought for his wife and only ran 4 tanks through. Still sounds pretty darn fishy to me.

The thing that makes me uneasy about that guy (Revo) is the low number of post. Sign on, make a couple of quick deals and then he is gone.

Hang in there Chris. The truck is well worth what your asking.

Chris,
i wish i knew people into rock crawling. i'd direct them to you! rock crawling isnt big here, unfortunately. if i do, however, realize that i DO know someone who is into clods, i will steer them your way.

-Tone

Well, the "parts guy" bailed. No surprise. But I do have a buyer for the asking price so all is well IF he comes through...

I suspect my crawler will also be on the market real soon. If Jess isn't around to crawl with there isn't much point in having one. I will keep the racer (loosely speaking- more of a fast basher) just for a project truck. I have all sorts of chassis concepts in mind for the dead of winter games. It is cool to have a truck that large. Just to run over Jess's little buggy if nothign else.:p.

Decided that Sean will be getting the XXXT Sport for his b'day. I will probably give him the 75MHz JR XR2 as well. That way we can jettison all of the Futabas we have. Right now it is always a question of how many tranmitters you need to haul to cover all the trucks. If he goes JR then one FM and one AM will cover them all. Still have to decide which lid he gets though. We have three to choose from. He will probalby get the stock lid which is a cool yellow!

:thumbsup: Cool.

OK, I get really pissed when I screw up and last night was a prime example.

Decided to put the brushless into the XXXT just for the fun of it. The old motor wires were running through the shock tower which kept them safe and looked cool so I figured I would do the same. Unsoldered the wires fromt he ESC and threaded them through. Carefully noting which wires went where I easily resoldered them in. UP-SIDE-DOWN. I was braindead I guess. No, it wont work that way because of space restrictions. So, I just unsoldered them and I could not get them back in. I was using this huge tipped soldering iron and I just made a mess of the ESC case. Lots of burn marks. :rolleyes: And I only have one done. I got so upset that I jsut walked away after yelling in the air in front of Jess for too long. I guess I need my smaller tipped, less hot ESC for the job. The main problem was two fold. First, I should have unsoldered from the motor which has lots more room to work and No plastic to mess p. Second, I need to come up with a much better system to hold the ESC still. A clamp for the es and the wire in one hand, iron in the other in a way that lets me see what the heck is going on. or wrong as thecase was... :mad:

No doubt it will still work but....

What is it they say at this point? Oh I remember... "Well at least you tried"

Sorry it didn't go well.

Hhmmnnn..... Been there, done that.... In the immortal words of Bill Clinton, "I feel your pain".

It was one of those things where I should have just thought about it that much longer. I was especially pissed because until I get this fixed, I ain't got squat!

I know that now my problem, other than a lack of "set-up" to get it done, is a need for an external flux. The old solder has been heated enough time that it just wont flow again.

At least Jesse got his rebuilt diff back in... It needs new everything but now the washers are in the right place. I think that was what set me off last night. I started with his diff and dealing with those little thrust bearings drove me nuts. And it wasn't much smoother when I got done. So I then went on to the job that matters more. Wrong, wrong, wrong. Well, I had no plans to sell the brushless anyway so the fact that it looks horrible doesn't matter.

Yeah, the uncaged losi Thrust bearings are a pain sometimes. I had just installed a new MIP diff kit - diff rings, balls, thrust washers and balls this last spring, I guess my 10 turn took it's toll. Sorry about that.

Well, Jess had the XXX4 out and it runs real well. he says the diff is way better after the rebuild. I will accept that for now!

I decided I was going to get the 5800 ESC rewired and I did! Lots of time and energy, trying different irons and such. finally drilled out the old solder and just started over. The ironic part? I wired it wrong!

This time I unsoldered from the motor end. had them switched in about 30 seconds... I DID learn something.

Then. I went out and toaqsted the old diff on the XXXT with one pull of the throttle. It had been barking but it seems GONE now. Seemed pretty quick on that one pass though.

Maybe it's just a good time to ride your bike.