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The Truck-Cat; RC snowcat-truck-thing
Topic Started: Apr 1 2015, 08:53 PM (529 Views)
Greyryder
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The Make it Work thread is getting a bit cluttered, and I never really meant it to be a build thread.

So, got in my latest order from RC4WD, it included, a new 55 turn motor, and a 10 tooth pinion. I've been wanting to slow the truck down, for better crawling over obstacles. The old 17 turn modified motor I was using didn't really like going slow. Not enough torque, on those high RPM motors. (more turns = slower, but more powerful)

The pinion doesn't fit. The Blizzard's motor plate just doesn't have enough adjustment for the tiny pinion to reach the spur gear. So, back to factory gearing. At full tilt, with the 55 turn motor, it move slower than I'm comfortable walking. It's great for crawling over things, as long as you don't need much momentum. But, I'd like to take the thing trailing some time, and it's got to move faster than that. So, out came the old Tamiya can motor, from an old TA-02 chassied touring car I used to have. (still don't know what ever happened to that thing) As I understand it, these Tamiya silver cans are 27 turn motors. Perfect. It crawls great, with good low end, but can still move at a fast walk. Clearly not as fast as the old 17 turn motor, but I mostly only want the speed when I'm playing in the snow. Seasonal motor swaps are a trivial matter. Probably, eventually get a nice modified 27 or 25 turn motor.

I've done more tweaking on the brakes. I got some longer bolts to replace the ones that keep the brake assemblies together. This let me put one of the original stainless brake shoes in behind the inboard Formica shoes. The reason for this is because the way the brakes work, those inboard shoes were flexing a lot, and only putting pressure on the disks near the edges. I was worried this would cause the disks to saw through the shoes, shortening their lifespan.

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The black plastic bit in the picture, that the blade of grass is laying on houses a small brass piston. It pushes on the outboard brake shoe, which pushes against the disk, which pushes against the inboard shoe. The inboard brake shoes are only stopped by two nylock nuts. The factory metal brake shoe keeps the Formica shoe from bending. I Shoe Gooed the metal brake shoe to the Formica shoe. Fewer pieces rattling around, that way. While I had things apart to do all that, I took care of some binding in the mechanism in the right hand assembly. I thought I'd taken care of that once, but it's fixed, now.

I've been meaning to build a rear bumper-stinger-slider-thing, (I'mma just call it a slider, from here on out) to protect the back of the body, when the truck drops off of things. That was built the other day, from 1/8" steel round bar. I brazed on mounting brackets, cut from the same computer case panel as I've been using on the roll bar. I bent them 90º to create gussets, making the joints stronger. Part of the RC4WD order were two Mad Dog RC D-ring tabs. Those were brazed onto the kicked up section I'd bent into the back of the slider. King Kong mini-tow shackles have been bolted into the tabs. The slider still needs to be painted, but it's in place, and it works. Barely fits with the current Lexan body, but I sized it for the hard body I'm working on. If, I can ever get the gorram thing painted....

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I'm genuinely and pleasantly surprised by how strong the silver solder I'm using is. Even small joints are very strong, so long as I make sure everything is properly clean, before I start. And, I can get everything hot enough to melt the solder with just a butane micro torch.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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Gonna have to make a whole new slider bar, for the back end. I finally got the rear bumper for the body mounted, and it sits a little closer to the slider, than I thought. There's enough flex in the slider (actually the chassis piece it's mounted to) for it to hit the bumper, and it makes it hard to get the back section of the body on and off. The new one will have to mount lower, and stick out a little farther, which means the kicked up section will have to be a little bigger, too. That means I should be able to get the shackle mounts further from the bottom of the slider bar, so the shackles won't take so much abuse.

On the other hand, I've finally had a chance to run a full battery pack through the truck. I'd heard that the modern radios use less power, and I believe it. I get about an hour's run time, out of a 3000mah pack. This gave me a chance to beat on the slider bar a little. Plenty of drops off a thick branch that's laying in the yard. No sign of damage.
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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Sounds like you had fun while finding where things need work, Grey
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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Of course. B)

Took two attempts, but the new bar is bent and cut. Just gotta get brackets made.
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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Good work, then.
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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Thank you.
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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So, that close up picture of the brake mechanism up there? That big silver cylinder? One of those was out of place again.... For some reason, it didn't want to slide up to where it needed to be, so I had to hammer the end of the shaft it's on. Marked up the cylinder where I was prying against it with a small flat head screw driver (the one that is my dedicated E-clip remover) Finally got that situated, started putting the drive sprocket back on (that had to be removed as part of accessing the drive shaft that cylinder was on) start to tighten down the axle the sprocket rides on *SNAP!*

That axle tightens on to a long grub screw, that's in the aluminum bar that runs across the front of the chassis. This is that upgrade I bought last year, that led to me over tightening the drive sprockets. I wasn't even putting that much force on it, and the thing snapped off. Luckily, only the hollow part of the end broke, and I could get it out of the axle, with the Allen key. Pliers let me remove the other section from the chassis.

20mm long, M3 grub screw. It might not be obscure to the point of not being able to source them, but it's not like people just have these things laying around!

So, I had a package of ten of them, from RC4WD. That part of the project they were bought for didn't go together quite the way I had planned. The new grub screw was installed, and all was w.... *SNAP!*

Twice now, I have invoked the name of Neo America's mobile fighter. (somewhat related, the vice grips that were jamming up the drawer and keeping me from getting to tools that I needed, discovered that this hand of mine burns with an awesome power. :ph43r: )

See the problem with buying parts from newer versions of things than the one you have, is that there's no instructions. Apparently, the grub screws should be installed into axles first. Who knew?

Paint is curing on the new slider-bar/stinger thing. And, swampin' is still fun. B)
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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Grey, remind me to NOT have you work on anything of mine, okay? ;) :P
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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WHAT!? There weren't any craters.















....this time.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Cryptic
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Explains a lot doesn't it?
Grey, you sure you're a wolf and not a polar bear?
[align=center]Currently:
More then a little stir crazy
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Greyryder
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I hate the cold, my place does not blow up on a regular basis, I'm not into paintball, and I don't have a debilitating caffeine addiction. :P
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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New slider bar is finished, I gave it a few coats of satin black Rust-Oleum. The rear cage will be getting the same paint.

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The body is painted. I just need to make a few decals for it, then I can clear coat it, and start putting things back together.

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This was originally going to be 3-tone gray, but I didn't like the way it looked with the third, darker shade on it.

Decided to get a shot of it, as it currently sits.

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It's the current body, (wish Parma still made it) after my most recent run swampin' in the low spots in my back yard. This is after I dug all the leaves out of the undercarriage. Most of the mud is from climbing the burn pile, which is currently a mound of dirt, with twigs and branches on top. It's not a big climb, but it is an interesting challenge. (little traction on wood; slight overhang at the top; always ends up in a precarious spot, to turn for the descent....)
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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Looks like a good concept for a vehicle, actually
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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I've been fascinated by tracked vehicles, since I was little. I'm just not real big on the typical snowcat body, especially when it doesn't even have a plow. So, putting a trail truck body on it, just seemed right.

Check out Bill Feeley's Extreme Hagglunds, either on the internet in general or on YouTube. He's put Chevy pickup cabs on a few of them. I've actually thought about building a scale version, using two of this style Blizzard chassis, an SCX-10 transmission, some RC4WD steel drive shafts, and a quarter scale servo. But, that gets expensive, real quick.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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Rains had submerged a larger area of the back yard, yesterday. I slightly underestimated how deep it was. It's never a good sign, when you can pour water out of your electronic speed control. The truck stopped moving at that point, for some reason....

The ESC might have been okay, but in the deeper parts, the tracks would kind of climb the water, dropping the back section a little deeper than it would have been. The electronics live back there. There was no smoke, and it was still sending power to the radio. So, that was a good sign.

Finished out the run using my backup speed control, which apparently needs a setting adjusted. It was giving me no low speed control. Lowest speed I could get out of it was too fast for good crawling.

The first speed control is fine today. I blew as much of the water out of as I could, and let it dry, overnight. Most of the water's drained out of the yard, and there was no problem running around in what was left. That is the second time I've had water in that thing's case. The fist time was shortly after I bought, back in '94. It never flinched that time, but it was getting splashed then, not submerged. Nobody was making waterproof RC components back. The fact that this ESC has shrugged off water twice now, is impressive. Mad props to Novak.

Conformal coating has been ordered, and is supposed to be here, Wednesday. So, I should have all the electronics waterproofed, in the next week or so.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Cryptic
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Explains a lot doesn't it?
Sounds like you need to make a remote control duck boat.
[align=center]Currently:
More then a little stir crazy
[/align]
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Roguewing
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Definitely sounds like you got some good stuff, Grey
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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Cryptic,Apr 10 2015
09:55 PM
Sounds like you need to make a remote control duck boat.

I've thought about trying to make it amphibious, but buoyancy in the front would be problematic.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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More modifications: The wheels all ride on shoulder bolts. The rear pair keep tightening down, as I'm driving. The holes they bolt into go all the way though the swing arms, with a lot of unused space, past the ends of the bolts. I tapped out the back sides of holes for M3 threads, and screwed in some 10mm long grub screws. With the axles jammed against the grub screws, I'm hoping it will keep them from jamming up the wheels, anymore.
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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Apparently, what's causing the rear wheels to jam up, is the bearings working their way out of the wheels. I'll have to get that taken care, before the night's out.

Found out one of the front suspension springs is broken. Thankfully, springs for the older model Blizzards are cheap. Ordered two sets, since one would have cost more for shipping, than for the parts.

*screams into a pillow*
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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That bearing issue sounds like trouble.
Bad design?
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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With the bearings, all I can figure is that they just don't fit into the wheel tight enough. It's an easy enough fix.

The springs? Yeah, bad design. They're made from wire, with a very tight 180º bend in them. A set screw pinched them into place from the side, right at that bend. All of this is inside of a tube, with both ends partially blocked off. You've got a stress/fatigue point, with a space that's going to hold water, in an assembly that's going to hold water. Surprisingly, the only rust I saw was surface rust, and I think that may have actually transferred over from the set screw.

I made a couple of attempts at temporary fixes, but they didn't work. It's back together as good as it's going to get, for now. I'll just have to limp it along, until the new springs get here.
Posted Image

They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Greyryder
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After waiting a week, mostly for the place to ship them, the post office says they delivered my springs, this morning.

They Did Not. :angry:
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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Roguewing
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Sounds like a call may be in order, or a check with any neighbors
"What would Kara Thrace do? She'd kick my @$$ for acting this way.
Sunswords, form on me."
--Haleanar "Roguewing" Donovan, CAG, BSG-47 Solaria
~~~~~~~~~
"You cannot play God, then wash your hands of the things you've created.
Sooner or later, the day comes, when you can't hide from the things you've done anymore."
--William Adama, CO, BSG-75, Galactica
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Greyryder
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If I don't have it by Tuesday, I'll be getting in touch with the place I bought the springs from, so they can file a claim with the post office.
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They got this boogie band blowin', that's bound for hell
When they get to movin' they never stop
Just keep on playin' that down home beat
Just keep on layin' it down hot
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