Granite Brand new - shocks were empty

[vincentimes.69]

Hi. I just got a Granite Voltage and noticed right out the box that one shock was leaking oil. I blamed it on the factory filling them too much (too fast?) and i thought it was just a bit of excess oil. After the first run, all the shocks felt a bit weird. Making noise and not really dampening anything. I decided to open them all and check.

Bingo! The one that leaked was actually empty! The other three were 25-50% full. Well done Arrma! I know, it's a cheap model but still, if you advertise for oil shocks, I expect to get oil in them!

Anyway, ran to my hobby store but wasn't sure which oil to get. So I got 40wt and filled them all. Naw we're talkin'!

Shocks are way "harder" than stock and dampening is amazing. Truck goes straight and solid even in war zone kind of terrain. Jumps (landings) are piece of cake. No bouncing, no hesitating, no drama. Feels like a proper RC truck now.

 

[Funky]

I have to admit, Arrma have significant quality control issues. I'm new to the brand, have 3 of their cars thus far, and all had assembly issues out of the box. Leaking shocks, lack of diff fluid, loose screws, parts assembled incorrectly etc.

I just take it for what it is and expect to have to rebuild the car myself each time I buy a new one. RTR doesn't exist.

Be better if they offered a cheaper option for kit form cars and let us build them ourselves, the right way.

 

[Mainah]

Hi. I just got a Granite Voltage and noticed right out the box that one shock was leaking oil. I blamed it on the factory filling them too much (too fast?) and i thought it was just a bit of excess oil. After the first run, all the shocks felt a bit weird. Making noise and not really dampening anything. I decided to open them all and check.

Bingo! The one that leaked was actually empty! The other three were 25-50% full. Well done Arrma! I know, it's a cheap model but still, if you advertise for oil shocks, I expect to get oil in them!

Anyway, ran to my hobby store but wasn't sure which oil to get. So I got 40wt and filled them all. Naw we're talkin'!

Shocks are way "harder" than stock and dampening is amazing. Truck goes straight and solid even in war zone kind of terrain. Jumps (landings) are piece of cake. No bouncing, no hesitating, no drama. Feels like a proper RC truck now.

Did you do anything to stop the leaking or did getting more fluid in them stop it?

I bought one of these to give to my son and I took it out of the box to check it out and it looks like all 4 have leaked a bit and none of them sound like there is much fluid in them.

 

[Edough13]

Did you do anything to stop the leaking or did getting more fluid in them stop it?

I bought one of these to give to my son and I took it out of the box to check it out and it looks like all 4 have leaked a bit and none of them sound like there is much fluid in them.

May need to pick up some new O rings for it that should fix the issue.

 

[vincentimes.69]

Did you do anything to stop the leaking or did getting more fluid in them stop it?

I bought one of these to give to my son and I took it out of the box to check it out and it looks like all 4 have leaked a bit and none of them sound like there is much fluid in them.

Yes, i just opened them all, removed the stock oil and replace with 40wt. I bled them slowly (multiple times) to remove air and push extra fluid out, tightening down at the same time. Tight half a turn, move the plunger, wipe excess oil, repeat. I think the factory doesn't tight them enough. The seal was good, only that it wasn't sitting properly on the lip, resulting in leaking. Not sure if it's because they rush things or their procedure is wrong but a careful tightening (be careful, plastic parts!) should do it. And yes, the 40wt oil makes a huge difference compared to stock!

 

[Velodromed]

Yes, i just opened them all, removed the stock oil and replace with 40wt. I bled them slowly (multiple times) to remove air and push extra fluid out, tightening down at the same time. Tight half a turn, move the plunger, wipe excess oil, repeat. I think the factory doesn't tight them enough. The seal was good, only that it wasn't sitting properly on the lip, resulting in leaking. Not sure if it's because they rush things or their procedure is wrong but a careful tightening (be careful, plastic parts!) should do it. And yes, the 40wt oil makes a huge difference compared to stock!

I’ve been testing cheap shocks for my voltages. The surprise is currently on my way shortage. Fronts are five or 6 mm longer and jack it up a bit which doesn’t matter because there’s no drives shafts or dog bones on the front. The black socks are a few millimeters short so gives it that cool look up an old school Stadium truck look dragging ass around the circuit.
Another thing the shorter shocks did on the back is keep the dog bones parallel a little more. I realize that most of the cups were stripping when the shocks are fully extended or compressed and you’re on throttle. Since I put the shock sign haven’t had any outdrive cup issues.
I haven’t tested the other set yet. All are 90mm and I installed them but I’m waiting for a motor to arrive. I’ve also put these tires on and they are fantastic. They’re lightweight and have just enough traction but not too much. They are worlds better than the stock tires. Of course these tires with shred on for years because the plastic is very good but for the voltage it’s perfect.
The ZD shocks cost 21 bucks on Amazon. The Injora ones cost $20. Everything I’m doing on the voltage is budget minded so I can put real money into my granite

 

[vincentimes.69]

Thanks for the info!

 

[Velodromed]

Thanks for the info!

Yeah…sorry I didn’t double check my voice typing before sending lol

 

[Mainah]

Yes, i just opened them all, removed the stock oil and replace with 40wt. I bled them slowly (multiple times) to remove air and push extra fluid out, tightening down at the same time. Tight half a turn, move the plunger, wipe excess oil, repeat. I think the factory doesn't tight them enough. The seal was good, only that it wasn't sitting properly on the lip, resulting in leaking. Not sure if it's because they rush things or their procedure is wrong but a careful tightening (be careful, plastic parts!) should do it. And yes, the 40wt oil makes a huge difference compared to stock!

I finally got around to taking apart the shocks on my son's Voltage. At best they were maybe 1/8 full. Basically just enough fluid for the shocks to make a fluidy sound.

I put in some TLR 50 wt oil in the real ( I still need to do the fronts. He really wanted to drive it right away) and it's made a very noticable difference. When I get to the fronts I'm sure that will make an even bigger one.

 

[Velodromed]

I finally got around to taking apart the shocks on my son's Voltage. At best they were maybe 1/8 full. Basically just enough fluid for the shocks to make a fluidy sound.

I put in some TLR 50 wt oil in the real ( I still need to do the fronts. He really wanted to drive it right away) and it's made a very noticable difference. When I get to the fronts I'm sure that will make an even bigger one.

Put these on and it’s a different car altogether! Around $20 or so. So much better ride.
Use the battery try for a makeshift shock holder. Shocks rarely come fully filled so first thing I do is take em apart and make sure o rings are seated right, then fill with 50 weight

 

[lautri]

Put these on and it’s a different car altogether! Around $20 or so. So much better ride.
Use the battery try for a makeshift shock holder. Shocks rarely come fully filled so first thing I do is take em apart and make sure o rings are seated right, then fill with 50 weight

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Nice use of the battery tray as a shock holder!

 

[Velodromed]

Nice use of the battery tray as a shock holder!

Yeah, it just…worked

Nice use of the battery tray as a shock holder!

Man that seems like years back though it was only months.

 

[deathmachine76]

So since its been revisited how did everything fare? Tires still holding up? Which shocks would you recommend? I was about to pull the trigger but I figure I’d ask…

 

[Velodromed]

So since its been revisited how did everything fare? Tires still holding up? Which shocks would you recommend? I was about to pull the trigger but I figure I’d ask…

Well, the voltages do not get driven that much These last few months. I got 3S cards for everyone. Sick of dealing with the not so tough voltage differentials, It was time to move on to the next level.

Those cheap Amazon tires worked fantastic. They are late enough for the voltage and the tires are grippy but not too grippy so it’s easy on the differential. The ZD shocks were OK for the front but the back ones were a bit weak. They worked decent just were a bit weak. So I ended up putting the front stock shocks from my vorteks on the rear of my favorite Voltage and they were perfect. I also got a set of front shocks from a Losi Tenecity pro off Jenny’s and they are the right size for rear shocks and work well. Just a bit pricey at 20 bucks.

But like I said, two of the three voltages stripped differentials again months ago and one is just sitting. Id left that one with a brushed motor so the differential is still alive and I use it as it as a guest car occasionally. I’ll get the other two running eventually as I have two extra differentials still. It’s just a pain taking the whole car apart every time I have to work on the differential. I’m going to put brushed systems back in because they cannot take brushless power. They are fun little cars, just have pretty strict limitations.

 

[deathmachine76]

Well, the voltages do not get driven that much These last few months. I got 3S cards for everyone. Sick of dealing with the not so tough voltage differentials, It was time to move on to the next level.

Those cheap Amazon tires worked fantastic. They are late enough for the voltage and the tires are grippy but not too grippy so it’s easy on the differential. The ZD shocks were OK for the front but the back ones were a bit weak. They worked decent just were a bit weak. So I ended up putting the front stock shocks from my vorteks on the rear of my favorite Voltage and they were perfect. I also got a set of front shocks from a Losi Tenecity pro off Jenny’s and they are the right size for rear shocks and work well. Just a bit pricey at 20 bucks.

But like I said, two of the three voltages stripped differentials again months ago and one is just sitting. Id left that one with a brushed motor so the differential is still alive and I use it as it as a guest car occasionally. I’ll get the other two running eventually as I have two extra differentials still. It’s just a pain taking the whole car apart every time I have to work on the differential. I’m going to put brushed systems back in because they cannot take brushless power. They are fun little cars, just have pretty strict limitations.

nice thanks for the update! Syill going to pull the trigger on those same parts though. this truck is my 4.5 year olds so im sure the slight upgrade in the shocks will be better than nothing. definitely grabbing a set of those wheels too. thanks again!

 

[Velodromed]

nice thanks for the update! Syill going to pull the trigger on those same parts though. this truck is my 4.5 year olds so im sure the slight upgrade in the shocks will be better than nothing. definitely grabbing a set of those wheels too. thanks again!

Nice! Since it’s your boys I get that.