20 miles each way... You could greatly reduce that lard bud of yours doing that, eh? At least that is what I keep telling myself. Doesn't really work. I'll stick with it being cool just because I am outside.

Speaking of which, it is 62 degrees and very sunny so I am out of here!

Chris

it got up to 77 here yesterday! 2 degrees from a record! man it was nice. too bad I spent so much time diagnosing a bad battery connection on my cycle and not riding it. I did get in a small ride after I was done though.

As for pedaling a bike to work 20 miles one way, it would be a good thing there's a hospital 1/2 way because I'd be needing it or the Morgue!!!!! Maybe one of those motorized scooter things....

I was home today with a sick kid (nothing bad- just sick...) so i didn't get a chance to enjoy the second glorious day of spring around here. Somehow I didn't get to work on my trucks either. Too nice to be sitting n the basement.

Here is a picture of the latest bod on my stadium truck. It is awaiting decals from my American Lung Association team: Team Mohawk. These are the guys I did the three day ride with last fall. We got to ride through a hurricane! A bit damp but still a blast.

http://home.comcast.net/~c.t.harris/losi/mohawktruck.jpg

And here is the back of the jersey I sort of modeled this after.

http://home.comcast.net/~c.t.harris/mohawk/mohawkjersey.jpg

Taking all donations by the way! Awesome cause if a bit Massachusetts centric!

Looks like a nice paint job! I see your pic is Sans Body clips and with the antenna tucked inside..... Quick pic huh? :lol:

:) Yeah, you could say that! I was posting a shot to my team so I just grabbed the camera. I don't want to mark the body up with ANYTHING until I all the decals on, get some nice shots etc.

I hadn't even remembered that I hadn't done the antenna hole yet. Oh, and Jesse wants everybody to know that the fade into the flames was his idea! I had a really bad idea including a yellow front that just didn't work and he came up with this transition. I think it worked well.

I think I posted, last Fall that a buddy of mine had lost his 10' wingspan r/c plane. He flies gliders and he had recently bought one that took an electric motor. He used the motor to get it to height for gliding. He had basically used up the batteries and then found that the thermals had taken him way down wind. His whole club cheered him on as he futiley tried to get it back and then watched it drop below the treeline. They had a compass bearing but there was little that could be done.

The following weekend he, my guys and I all headed into the woods combing high and low for the plane. He had estimated it at about 1/2 mile out. We searched up to .6 miles out by our USGS map. No luck.

This week, he got a phone call! The plane had come to rest ina huge oak tree in somebody's back yard. 1.2 miles from the field!!!! The latest winds and rains brought it down where they found his address on the plane. The plane is toast- all soggy balsa, but all the electronics: servos, receiver brushless motor and ESC all survived! If that is not amazing enough, on rechecking the map, he found the plane was only 500 feet off the compas bearing taken last fall! And that is at 1.2 miles away! That was a pretty good bearing!

What I don't understand is how you can even SEE a 10 foot plane at that distance!

Great story Chris.

I was out yesterday flying... felt good to use the third eye again... been way to long.

You have to get out more! I "dragged" the guys out this afternoon for a bashing session. Took the pedes, Jess's XXX4 and my XXXT. We found a couple of HUGE dirt piles to play on, as well as dirt, gravel and grass. the smaller of the two piles was 8-9 feet tall. I couldn't get the Pede up it but the stadium truck smoked right up and over. Of couse that meant a 9+ foot drop! Surprisingly it lived. Over and over again!

Tons of tumbles and very little damage. Waht more can you ask? I think Sean busted a ball end and we lost two wheel nuts and a handful of body clips. That's my kind of day!

What's the third eye?

That is what I call the third eye in your brain that can see what it looks like while driving/flying your vehicle from inside the vehicle. With RC wings more than cars using that eye instead of your two regular ones helps tell you where your vehicle is in relationship to the earth. Helps operate in the third demention.

Know what you mean about draging the kids out to use the trucks. Kev is working on his quad right now and spends most of his free time working on it. Asked how his Maxx was and he said I don't know.

It actually wasn't that hard to get them out. As long as I did all the prep. It was like pullng teeth to get Jess to even charge up the batts. We have 4 chargers (!). He plugged two of them in. Sean was actually thrilled to be invited. Especially after he found I had rebuilt his truck for him, put on the wheels, charged his radio, chosen a less trashed body...

We had a great time and that was all that mattered. I am willing to do the work. I don't really see how we will ever get racing though until Jess shows more interest in the "process".

Hi guys. Just back from Baltimore for the weekend visiting my oldest Son. Went to DC for the Cherry Blossom Festival, saw sights I haven't seen in years.

I didn't have a problem getting my kids interested in racing, but I was already doing it on my own when they started & I did do everything for them, all they had to do was drive.

I hear both of you. My RC interest has gone toward flying so I have stopped doing the work on the trucks, so they sit. I'm tempted to make Kev sell some of his RC stuff so he can spend it on the quad, his current intrest and the one that gets most of his time. The good news is that the skills he learned doing RC maintenance has been very useful in his work on the quad. Take care.

Yeah, working on R/C's will increase mechanical aptitude.

Things change...

It broke 70 degrees this last weekend. Glorious sun and all that.
Monday I rode to work, it was 40 degrees but still sunny. I was a bit underdressed but OK. Yesterday, I didn't check the thermometer. I just grabbed the same 40 degree clothing and headed out. Half a mile into the ride i was pretty sure I had misjudged and I was cold. Not many people on the bike path either and they were pretty bundled up. Then my feet went numb and the ears fell off (figuratively). Fighting a HUGE headwind all the way to work I headed straight for the hot showers! I couldnt' believe how cold I had gotten. I am usually careful and even hot from the exertion.

It went all the way to 50 during the day but got real cloudy. I decided I had better head out before it got cold again. No such luck. As soon as I got on the bike I coudl tell it was a bit warmer but not much. The wind, of course, had switched 180 degrees with the flags pointing straight out- into my face again. And then it started to snow. Big wet flakes. Nobody on the path now. I wonder why? 35 degrees when I got home. At least my feet didn't freeze this time.

I'm driving to work today. :p Enjoy yoru weather Bill!

:lol:

I hear ya man... No snow here, but cold! mid 30s in the morning and mid 50s in the afternoon. Still riding the Motorcycle though, saves too much money. I was pretty cold when I got to work this morning, for some reason it seemed colder this morning than it did yesterday. Luckily I'm one of those guys that has a pretty good internal furnace (along with the extra "insulation") that keeps me warmer than alot of people, so it didn't take me too long to warm up once I got to work.

I find myself in a terrible istuation with vacation time to burn. If I don't take it by next week it goes away. so, I am home today, on a sunny Friday, sipping my coffee and NOT at work! (and I have 1 1/2 more days to use next week!)

We plan to head over to the track this afternoon for some bashing and actual practice. I have a bit of work to do on the trucks but generally we are good to go! I STILL haven't gotten the sedan ready. Just not motivated really.

The track just instituted a 19 turn truck class last night (and I wasn't there) which is pretty cool. My motor of choice has always been the Chameleon 2 and I always felt out gunned in mod class. Now, if they do that on a day I actually get over for the races, i will just be smoked by better drivers/set-up/batteries etc. But not the motor! :p I am tempted to toss the brushless into the XXXT just to see what it will do but I con't imagine wanting to race it without much practice! Just too much for me to handle. So, for now that stays in the Pede. I am getting somenew rims/rubber for that to match up with the tires the stadium trucks use on our track. Looking forward to seeing how differently it handles without the M2Ks.

Then, tomorrow I will head over there with Jesse to help them rework the track. So all our practice goes to naught with the new layout. It will be fun to help out though.

Hope everybody is well.

any pratice on a track is good practice. but you do get a edge with running the same layout. but it does get boring after awhile.

finally have my tscR-10 built, with the body mounted anf trimmed! felt good to get it up and running. the best part i thought my esc had been going bad but it was just a radio glitch with the stock alloy chassis.


crawled on the retaining wall with some hill climb action last night. it was fun! i get over a hour of run time with my T-600 motor, 93/12 gearing and venom 3000mah pack. my friends proto p2300 truck a novak Bl 93/12 and matched 3300mah batts. he gets 20 minutes of run time. but his struck will still get up and scooot!


weather wise we have shifted to more "normal" spring conditions, off and on ran and winds, highs in the high 50's to the high 30's at night.

well last day of spring break. everyone is a bit under the weather and it's dark and cloudy out. but will try to post a pic of the newly mounted lid.


have a good friday all!

Wow, that was a lot of track time!

We went out yesterday afternoon for a fun bash session and then spent 4 hours today rebuilding the track into a new layout. I am beat! I don't remember the last time I shovelled for anything like that long.

Driving was fun but frustrating. As usual, the Pede had zero problems! I can't imagine a more bullet-proof truck. The body gets trashed because I don't land jumps quit eright sometimes. :rolleyes: Well, OK, I crash a lot. Something about big triples that cause rolls. Funny though how the Pede tends to land on it's wheels more than any other truck I have seen. Must be the high body or something. The M2K's were real bad on the track surface. I was spinning out all over the place. I will definitely order up some rims and tires to better match standard race truck rubber.

The XXXT was a non-starter. I guess our bash session blew the oil out of the rear shocks because I had zero damping. The thing would bounce and flip on everything. Very frustrating. Then there was Jess's XXX4. He was feeling very 13 (can yous ay hormones? :) ) and when he busted a shock shaft he lost it. I was able to calm him and then rebuilt both rear shocks and he was a happy camper from that point on. And now I have the shock oil to do mine as well!

When we took breaks from the track building today we got to watch some on-road racing. Both sedans and 1/12th scale. Very impressive! I couldn't believe how fast those guys go through turns. I just have to get my sedan going to see how hard it is. Shoudl be humbling. I'll do it when there isn't a large crowd!

Went out and Bashed the Pede yesterday, Man do I need some tires that get better grip on it! I hate how loose it feels with the stock tires. I don't know if M2K's would be all that much better though.... are they?

Hi Tom,

Please take this with a big grain of salt, but when I was running the stock tires I could not keep the truck on the ground. With out the electrical tape on the outside edge I was flipping the truck in turns most of the time. With the M2K's on the truck I was much happier with my set up, driving ability, and the truck's overall handeling. I was just bashing with it, no track time with them at all.

Tom, what were you driving on? I generally love my M2Ks but on pavement I find it flips all the time. Or grass, for that matter. Sean's Pede has the stockers up front and it actualy doest much better. M2Ks for get-up and go but LESS grip up front. I dont really understand why the M2Ks helped Bill's issues. I would have thought the opposite. :confused:

Just got back from a day at the beach. Very nice! N ot "warm" but not cold. Jackets were plenty for a good long walk. Sunscreen was left in the car. What putzes! We are all pretty fried. At least it is only the face... I am SO glad spring is here.

The place across the street (Construction side, new housing going in, my property value going up!) is alot of dry dirt with the occasional lump here and there, piles of dirt, 1 pile of pure sand, stuff like that. I try to get a good run at the huge pile of dirt & it won't accelerate without some major throttle feathering and then if it even hits one of the small klumps it will start sliding and fishtailing. This is a pile of dirt about 6.5-7ft tall that a few motorcycles and bicycles have been riding over, when I do get some speed and hit it right there is some major air! I managed to do it a couple of times & it was just way cool!

I could put on the race tires and be hooked up but i don't want to use those for bashing (besides they're small!). I'm going to take it up to the campsite this summer and play alot so that means sandylight grassy surfaces & treated roads.

When you say it fishtails, is it always starting in one direction or is it pretty random? I ask because both have happened with me. At Monster Jam last year any time I got on the throttle (and we are talking carpet here) the truck would spin to the left. Turned out I had something binding on the left side of the truck- perhaps an over tight wheel nut or a tweaked bearing. That extra drag allowed (forced?) the right wheel to unload causing the spin. I took the whole thing apart and when it went back together all was fine. No more spin. Now, on dirt- especially looser dirt, I have the same problem but it is fishtailing. I am guessing the diff is unloading randomly with one tire breaking free. Yes, like you, I plan to run race tires to see what happens but I also want to put that heavy Losi diff glop in and see how much I can slow down the diff action. if it is tight then that wheel spin should be eliminated. That wa swhy I was aksing about the ball diff a couple weeks ago. Just haven't had the chance to tear it down and try the fix.

I don't think I got a bind in it because if I put on the race tires (M3 Holeshots) it doesn't do it. I'll double check the wheel nuts though. The fishtailing is when I'm making a run at the hill & hit an imperfection in the run up, it really upsets the truck. I know it's not because of the suspension, I really believe it's those icky stock tires, they look good but function poorly. I'm gonna stop at the hobby shop on the way home and see what they have in stock for replacement rubber. May end up with M2Ks.

Without a doubt the stockers are way too stiff! They are like undamped shocks. You will find a huge improvement in that particular situation with M2Ks. Make sure you drill some holes in the rims to vent the tires. Once they are glued on without the vents they will bounce almost as badly.

It took me awhile to understand your comment Chris. But after thinking about it I get your point.

But. For my driving skills, having the softer rubber tires on the truck gave me more time to react to the trucks action.

For example, with the stock tires I would go into a turn and just about the time I notice that it is going over, it does. With the softer tire that same action would not happen so fast and I would be able to correct in time to prevent the roll over. The same was true just driving down one of my roads. As the truck took on speed each time the Traxas tire hit a small rock the whole truck would bounce in the other direction. With the M2K's the tire would take most of the impact of that small rock and the trucks reaction, if any, was much less, which maded it easier for me to stay on line.

And I get yours! The softer tire- especially vented work with the susension to keep the truck on an even keel. With stiff tires it is all up to the shocks and unless you have lighter weight oil in there than most people do, it gets bounced. The sidewall flex is a good point. My probem is that the side lugs grab too much, flipping the truck. Of course your Pede has probably never seen concrete or tar eh? Or grass, for that matter!

Of course your Pede has probably never seen concrete or tar eh? Or grass, for that matter!

Probably not, just buffolo chips! :freak:

You guys......

The only concrete it drives on is the little patch behind our warehouse and thats where I take it everytime I want to ware off some rubber:lol:

I remember that patch. Traction stinks there. No Buff pies to grip into.

Well, I bought a set of Imex All-T's..... Even though they are large (very large!). They do work well though. Just have to adjust my gearing a little more to get it right, I dropped 1 tooth automatically with the stock I have in it but I think I need to drop 1 or 2 more. I would have dropped 2 teeth but I didn't have a 17 tooth pinion available so I got a 18 on it which is a little too high for it.

What motor are you running?

Well, I bought a set of Imex All-T's..... Even though they are large (very large!). They do work well though. Just have to adjust my gearing a little more to get it right, I dropped 1 tooth automatically with the stock I have in it but I think I need to drop 1 or 2 more. I would have dropped 2 teeth but I didn't have a 17 tooth pinion available so I got a 18 on it which is a little too high for it.

how do you have your all-ts mounted? i didn't even bother with mine. i just tossed them in the wheel/tire drawer.

Got a stock in it now (a blue endbell handout) but thinking of going to a stockified. My "stockified" is a Paradox stock can with bearings and a 18x2 arm. fast little motor that way... Probably have to go down to a 15 tooth or larger spur. Don't even know what size the spur is I have on it. :freak:

Peter, I just mounted them up on some stock Pede rims. A couple of them are WAY out of balance though. I was playing with it last night and taped weight on the light side of the tire, got 2 1/4oz lead weights & 4 stainless screws later it is still out of balance!! :( I just taped the weights in to see what it would take, but jeez!

I Glued them so on the way out of balance ones I may cut them off and try some weight inside the tire. You could see the out of balance tires shaking the truck on the pavement when I had it out running full speed.

Other than the balancing issue & rather large size, they are soft rubber and hook up well. I may end up looking at an extended chassis & plop a Maxx body on it.... might be cool

I can't believe they would even try to sell tires that weere that badly made. Very disappointing.

I have been playing with the TLT today. Well, working on it. Not playing. I have a receiverlined up for it but for right now, I think i am going to take the FM out of the Pede so I have the three channels I need. That might mean I go back to glitch city with the Novak though. I hope not! I do like running that truck.

Well, I got the worst balanced tire somewhat balanced out last night. I played with it a bit and when I took one 1/4oz weight and taped it to the tread it was slightly heavy. I played with it a little and found the right weight if I had it taped to the tread. So for the size of the tire I need to increase weight if I want to have the weight on the rim, but I can get away with less weight if I get it out towards the treads. I took it off the rim & removed the foam (not a real easy task on these tires!) took my exacto and cut small slits in the foams outer edge and inserted my weights (4/40 cap head screws) into the slits and glued them in with rubber cement. I put the foam back into the tire (even harder task!) mounted the rim and checked balance, had to adjust the position of the foam in the tire a few times but I got it close enough for me.

It was quite a process, but I can't say I'm unhappy with the tires, just wish they were slightly smaller. If the sidewall was 3/4 what it is now they would be perfect.

tom,

i am so unhappy, i contacted imex about a refund on them. twice and never got a response. i love my imex clag dawgs but i don't think i will buy another set of their tires. to a point you get what you get when you get a 1st version of something, but to get what i got is baffling.

but glad you go them sorted out. i ripped one foam trying to remove it. i have never seena tire foam that dense. even when i was looking for TC foams.

would like to see pics of them mounted up when you get a chance.

hello everyone! :)

I'll get some pics, just have to clean up the body (gotta be pretty!).

Aarrgggghh! 6+ inches of snow yesterday! Even the weather channel was here doing stories.... 83 degrees last Tuesday, 6+ inches of snow Sat/Sun..... Jeez.

Still gotta get the Pede pics w/all-T's taken.

Ouch! That stinks. I saw a photo in our paper today of a guy in Michigan at the driving range in the snow. I thought about you! I feel better about the rain we got!

Had high hopes for truck time this weekend and it just didn't happen. Fiddled with the TLT and the sedan (wiring that GM V12 is a pain in the butt!) but didn't even touch the Pede. That needs a diff slowing! Hopefully time will miraculously appear to let me play...

Well aren't we gabby!

shhhh. we is sleeping.

Got pics of the pede yesterday after I took it out and bashed a bit.... Much dirtier than before! I think I really like the All-Ts!
I have to move the body back to the factory mounting position (I have it set too low) but the tires work great. They seem to have real good traction & dig in the dirt well. It will take some gearing adjustments though!

I'll clean it up a bit and take some "clean" shots and get them hosted & posted for ya this weekend (I hope!)

Well. It is about time. Now we have something to talk about.

I have not spent enough time on the trucks. Lots of rain to prevent runnng and lots of enertia to keep me from actualy getting them ready to run. Seriously though, I got the new grease into the Pede tranny and have been awaiting good weather. I found that both front and rear body posts are busted though. The local shop doesn't have them and Tower is out. Why is it that Tower makes you order THREE of something if they back order it for you? I think I can make them usable for a bit. Just have to stay off the lid. Like that will happen.

finally ordered up some rubber for the sedan. I have foams but I don't want to ruin tem on the pavement. Now I will have a chance to run this thing somewhere other than the track.

Try a pic.... My dirty Pede with my "race trim" body

http://images.snapfish.com/3437%3A54%3B23232%7Ffp63%3Dot%3E2344%3D%3C4%3B%3D5 99%3DXROQDF%3E23238385%3B%3B28%3Bot1lsi
Meaning the body is lowered & set back a little

Side view:
http://images.snapfish.com/3437%3A54%3B23232%7Ffp64%3Dot%3E2344%3D%3C4%3B%3D5 99%3DXROQDF%3E23238385%3B%3C84%3Aot1lsi
And then clean with stock body mounts:
http://images.snapfish.com/3437%3A54%3B23232%7Ffp63%3Dot%3E2344%3D%3C4%3B%3D5 99%3DXROQDF%3E23238385%3B%3C464ot1lsi

Up for a tire size comparison shot? The All-T's on the truck, Stock treads, & regular 2.2 race tires.

http://images.snapfish.com/3437%3A54%3B23232%7Ffp46%3Dot%3E2344%3D%3C4%3B%3D5 99%3DXROQDF%3E23238385%3B%3C465ot1lsi

Went out and destroyed my wash job tonight, This truck is alot of fun with these All-T's on it! It does work better with the body riding on the stock mounts and a fresh cut motor in it too!

I like the tire comparison! I can't imagine running tires that big though. Gearing must be a bear. It probably runs over pretty much anything in it's path though. And that is always a good thing.

Finally got some shop time in! Got the TLT going pretty well. I picked up a couple of FM receivers so I can run all my trucks without having to carry multiple radios! That gives me the glitchfree pede AND the 4WS TLT! Happy happy.

Got the XXXS together as well. I have some street tires on order as I don't want to kill the foams so it was jsut a bit of driving on the cement in the basement. Not nearly enough room for that! Especially without reverse :rolleyes: . I went to plan out the lid and that was when I got frustrated! I had read that isopropyl will remove charpie from lexan. Fiiguring that I had iso wipes for cleanign glasses I marked up the outside of the body. Didn't like what I had done and found the wipes don't work! ARG! So, I have to take a run to the pharmacy for a real bottle of iso... Seeing as how I really didn't have a great plan for the body I figure that will happen some time soon but not jsut now.

Rain rain go away! It has finally stopped but now the ground is all wet. Good for cleaning the tires but not much else. *sigh*. Hope you all are having great weekends!

I did. Found myself out Bashing with the pede more, those big 'ol tars make it a very capable off roader with very few places I couldn't go that my son could with his E-Maxx. If my pede was 4x4 it probably would have went more places! The construction area right across the street is just too inviting!

The only bummer is that I lost a chunk of the body somewhere yesterday. I knew about the crack in the rear corner, but somehow the rear quarter came up missing during the bash session...:confused: . Oh well.

Real racing next weekend, My XXX Kinwald 1 and XXXT MF2 will get their work out.