Granite Arrma Granite Voltage = money pit?

[Jens]

Hi everyone,

i'm quite new to the hobby (with my 10 year old son) and we got ourselves the granite voltage.
So far we have used it about 15 times (first with the stock batteries, now with 2s lipo) and i already had to replace the outdrives.
Now today it's already making strange noises again and it guess this time it's the spur gear (i hope i'm right i'm not sure if i can take the thing apart completely and get it back together).

Anyway, my question is, i know lots of people seem to have problem with the outdrives, but is it normal to also break the spur gear and other parts frequently?
Which parts should i get and how hard is it to get to the parts that are more on the inside and change them?

Should i expect to have to change something every 5-10 runs like it has been until now or is it just bad luck?

To be honest, this seems to be quite an expensive hobby so far and i don't know if i want to invest the time and money to change parts if something breaks every few runs (and it's not like we're doing crazy things here, more or less only driving it on the street and on grass, some jumps down 50 cm stairs).

Sorry if this all sounds too negative but i'm really disappointed so far...
I mean i know you have to expect repairs in this hobby because there will be accidents but shouldn't an rc car go through 20-30 runs with a 2s lipo without breaking apart all by itself?

I would love to hear about your experiences with the voltage and if they are as bad as mine perhaps recommendations what to get instead.
Can someone recommend other 1/10 cars that have an all metal drive train and don't break so much? If i had to spend 100 or 200 usd more and don't have to spend 20 usd on parts weekly i would probably save a lot in the long run.


P.S.: English isn't my native language, sorry for any mistakes.

 

[arrmadillo]

I would have recommended the Granite blx.
It would be harder to break on 2s. Truth told, they all break something sooner or later.

 

[Tom Buckley]

I have had the exact same problems, and the diffs are very common. Have you heard of the hpi diff replacement.
Check these links out

Part	https://www.amainhobbies.com/hpi-5x13x20mm-differential-pinion-gear-drive-cup-hpi103663/p158699
forum link	https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/voltage-series-diff-outdrive-issues.6205/page-3

For the spur gear, I found that the best way was just to buy multiple gears at once to prepare for the next breakage as they are easy to replace and quite cheap. Also remember to spray silicon spray on the new one or grease.

 

[DaMoot]

Really sorry to hear about your experience with the Voltage. Mine has been entirely been the opposite, and I drive in a lot of grass and gravel. But as someone else said, in this hobby stuff breaks eventually. We are encouraged to drive these cars/trucks hard and I think most of us do!

In over a year I've broken 1 part; an output drive cup. And I send this thing into concrete curbs full speed (not intentionally), cart-wheeling and flipping out of control. Really hard, gnarly hits that I'm confident would break any other vehicle. I tag things with the front wheels all the time and I'm just waiting to see a wheel/suspension set go flying one day, but it never does... (now it's going to on my next run! lol).

Geartrain has been rock solid, and I'm just now starting to hear a buzzing/ticking sound under throttle. But I also just upgraded to the next size up pinion, so that might be it too...

Very happy with my Voltage; I think you're having a rash of bad luck (Or I've been exceptionally lucky!). There are also things you/your kid learn over time with a hobby-grade car/truck that reduce breakage, like not landing jumps still pinned full throttle, especially high-traction surfaces like concrete. Not slamming from reverse to full throttle forward, etc...

Everything I run is stock except tires. I run a LiPo 2s 5200mah 35c hard case battery.

By comparison, in the month I've owned my Granite Mega 4x4 I've broken more than in the year+ of my Voltage. Including breaking both mounting tabs off of my ESC during a crash that broke nothing else! Bizarre.

 

[E-fanatic]

with the stock battery one of the helpers at my work hadn't broke a thing and he has had it for about 6 months. He was having issues with the stock batteries making a good contact. So I gave hime a 2s 6k 80c lipo. Well it stripped the outdrive in under a minute.
So I took it home and cleaned it up(it needed it badly) ordered him a set of kraton outdrives (front/rear diff outdrive for the center driveline) also ordered him another battery and lipo charger.

stuck a set of my wheels on it too. It looks great.

Is there an upgrade brushed motor for this to get a little more power?

 

[jondilly1974]

with the stock battery one of the helpers at my work hadn't broke a thing and he has had it for about 6 months. He was having issues with the stock batteries making a good contact. So I gave hime a 2s 6k 80c lipo. Well it stripped the outdrive in under a minute.
So I took it home and cleaned it up(it needed it badly) ordered him a set of kraton outdrives (front/rear diff outdrive for the center driveline) also ordered him another battery and lipo charger.

stuck a set of my wheels on it too. It looks great.

Is there an upgrade brushed motor for this to get a little more power?

Go with the 4S setup out of the Kraton or OC.

 

[E-fanatic]

Just looking for another brushed type motor. He cant handle the power of a brushless nor does he want to spend that kind of money. Also I don't think the 48p gears would handle that kind of power either. Lol

 

[jondilly1974]

Just looking for another brushed type motor. He cant handle the power of a brushless nor does he want to spend that kind of money. Also I don't think the 48p gears would handle that kind of power either. Lol

Sorry, I thought that was the new brushless Granite 4x4. Didn’t look close enough.

 

[DaMoot]

Drop a 550 12T or similar in (I used the spare from my Granite Mega I turned into a BLX) and go with the... 19(?) tooth pinion. On 2S it gives it a bit more pep, but you have to watch motor temps if running in grass. Consider getting a fan in there somehow.

Limitation is going to be your ESC. The Voltage has a pretty small ESC (30A (I think)), but then again, the Voltage is a really light truck so it might be plenty even for a bigger motor. I run a WP1080 on mine right now which is gross overkill at 80 amp.

Alternatively, upgrade to a brushless...

I know you said you don't want spend the money on, nor can the driver handle the power, but power can be tamed by either ESC or radio programming, and trust me you'll likely end up spending more money on brushed stuff (I did, chasing perceived problems that were inherent limitations of brushed on my Mega(heat and longevity, mostly)). Plus, you'll get comfortable with the small speed/power again and want a little more, and a little more, and a little more...

A Quicrun 3650 or 3656 sensored brushless motor and ESC will run you $100 shipped.

But, if you start adding power no matter what motor you'll be transferring stress other places. Main spur and outdrive cups will be vulnerable.