Kraton Chassis braces and maintenance

[Tutur74170]

Hello, has you may know, i bought myself a kraton 6s blx, i'll receive it in the week.
I saw a lot of people bent the cassis and that the solution was aluminium chassis braces. I don't plan on bashing it hard, like little jumps but nothing more than 1 meters i height. Are the aluminium chassis braces a must have or will the plastic one hold up just fine for my driving? Also, i will never jump it on concrete.
Also, can anyone that has the kraton give me an estimate of the typical cost of maintenance per year? It would really be helpful.
Finally, a rookie question from a rookie driver ahah, i will run it with two lipo 3s, as it will be mounted in derivation will it add up the MAH? Like let's say i run it with 2 lipo 3s 5000 mah and 50 C, will it be the same as if i ran it with a 6S 10000mah 100C? Sorry for this dumb question? .
Thanks a lot, i am looking to learn from your experience and knowledge!
Arthur

 

[SrC]

No questions are dumb. Its the questions you don't ask that are dumb.
Regarding batteries. You will be connecting the 2 3s lipos in Series by default as wired by the ESC. That will double the voltage. The Mah capacity will remain the same. (Connecting lipos in parallel will keep voltage constant but double capacity and does not apply here)
Regarding tires, the wheels will have two holes in them. The tires will balloon with high speed driving. (mostly the fronts) Not a good thing but throttle control will develop as you learn how to drive your new rig. Taping off the wheel vents does two things. 1) prevents water and dirt from getting into the wheel and ruining the foam inside of them. 2) if you tape off the wheel vents and place two holes through the tire at the center of the tread 180 degrees apart, it keeps ballooning to a minimum slightly and allows for better shape and tread contact to the surface This will also prevent the tire from blowing out and off the wheel to some extent. Everyone has their own method and different tires. But,doing this will also keep dirt and water out because centrifugal force will expel it outward as the wheel spins. The foams are open cell and will degrade over time with dirt and water. (normal)
Maintenance varies. After 20 packs or so, expect to rebuild all 3 differentials and replace most of the bearings. How clean where you are and rough you are at driving will vary this.
The shock towers may bend or tweak. But they can be removed and hammered back into shape. The chassis may bend. It also can be hammered straight. There are option parts for all of these. But only you will know what is necessary after you drive it for 20 or so packs. Out the gate, to prevent chassis bending, Front and rear aluminum chassis braces may be in order. Hot Racing, M2C and others make them. Worth the money out the gate. That's all. When new out of the box, check Steering Endpoints using the Radio(controller) Calibrate the radio also. Its supposedly done at the factory, but most would not take a chance on that. Read the manual carefully every page. Check all screws for snugness. Take your time . I would invest in a quality set of hex drivers. The small Allen wrenches that are supplied are not all that and may strip the hardware. There's a lot to take for granted in the manual. But good reading for any newcomer to Arrma rigs.
Good luck. I love my v4 6S Kraton. you will too. Treat her good and she will do the same for you. This is high end stuff for sure. And remember Arrma has a great 2 year warranty. And Arrma Forum is only a click away. Enjoy.
Edit:
Food for thought... You can run the rig on 3s to get used to it first. 6S is no joke and will be a handful at first. Sometime I run mine on 4S and I have a blast too. Alternatively the Radio will have a power limiter. You can adjust it. The rest is just a learning curve. You will probably want to upgrade the radio and receiver and add stronger parts and break some as you progress. That's just ineveitable. Part of the hobby. It should be fun and relaxing. That's the goal of RC.

 

[RCBro80]

Out of curiosity, what is the main reason for the diff rebuilds? Inspect? Fresh fluid? Shim? I had my first diff break but I hadn't touched them prior to that (4 months of use, didn't count the packs, lots of runs were short - from storage voltage due to it being winter and awful out)

 

[SrC]

20 packs seems to be Arrma's average. Not a hard and fast rule at all. Just a guide. Some diffs have been known to be not completely filled at the factory. Low fluid will accelerate wear and diffing out which causes other issues. But V4 diffs are generally shimmed properly. When the diffs fail, you will hear that clicking sound on braking and throttle. The rig wont drive straight. When one diff goes, its best to open them all, start with the broken one. A diff can leak out and that will be obvious at the center with a trail of fluid near the diff and motor mount. The F/R diffs are not visible. So they must be removed to examine for leakage. I find that the center goes out first. At least the original ones for me. So I usually rebuild al 3 while I have the oil out and the cleaning gets all done together. Have fresh shims on hand. You may need new sun gears and pins also. The manual is your parts guide. Good luck. There is a learning curve. But this is RC and fun to do. Fresh rebuilt diffs make the rig feel nice. Upping the fluid thickness is important. Stock weights are 10kF,100kC,10R. I upped mine to 60kf, 200kC,30kR. Upping the center is the most important for sure. I plan on going to 500k center next rebuild. Others have differing weights. But everyone goes thicker fluid than stock and mostly at the center. Less ballooning of the tires, less power bleed from the rear wheels. Others will hopefully chime in. There are many ways to tune the diffs based on how and where you drive.

 

[Yas]

Out of curiosity, what is the main reason for the diff rebuilds? Inspect? Fresh fluid? Shim? I had my first diff break but I hadn't touched them prior to that (4 months of use, didn't count the packs, lots of runs were short - from storage voltage due to it being winter and awful out)

There's two necessary upgrades before you go wild with it

You'll want to upgrade the radio as the STX2 is just not good enough. The poor range and noticable lag is actually pretty dangerous for a 6s capable truck!

DEFINITELY get some alloy chassis braces in there. Of all the 6s chassis, I'm sure in saying that the Kraton has the highest likelihood of bending. I have these from GPM, they've held up perfectly for 2 years and only a week or two transit time from China to the UK:

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

Diff rebuilds are mostly to check the teeth and top up any leaked oil. Gears break in over time, so new or extra shims need replacing/adding. There's few YT videos and threads on here mentioning the Mugen and Kyosho shims used for rebuilds as well as their part numbers

Here's some other useful threads if you're new to RC. Before you run your Kraton follow these steps first:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/out-of-the-box-checklist.2761/

And here's some upgrades may want to do later:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/recommended-arrma-kraton-upgrades-2020.819/

 

[RCBro80]

I went 1M in the centre on my Kraton and what a difference. Backflips are easier, it's quicker off the line and the thing wheelies like crazy.

 

[Ken1Legobil]

Is chassie bending really an issue if you don´t bash? Like take your car flying to the moon or above? ;-) If running at a track with few jumps etc, and above all taking it a bit easier, would you really bend the chassie then?. (I´ve got the V4 Kraton)

 

[Yas]

Is chassie bending really an issue if you don´t bash? Like take your car flying to the moon or above? ;-) If running at a track with few jumps etc, and above all taking it a bit easier, would you really bend the chassie then?. (I´ve got the V4 Kraton)

Definitely still get the alloy braces. To put it simply - the top, red tower to tower brace works against and breaks the plastic braces. Aussie RC Playground explains it in more detail at 8:36 in the video:

 

[Tutur74170]

No questions are dumb. Its the questions you don't ask that are dumb.
Regarding batteries. You will be connecting the 2 3s lipos in Series by default as wired by the ESC. That will double the voltage. The Mah capacity will remain the same. (Connecting lipos in parallel will keep voltage constant but double capacity and does not apply here)
Regarding tires, the wheels will have two holes in them. The tires will balloon with high speed driving. (mostly the fronts) Not a good thing but throttle control will develop as you learn how to drive your new rig. Taping off the wheel vents does two things. 1) prevents water and dirt from getting into the wheel and ruining the foam inside of them. 2) if you tape off the wheel vents and place two holes through the tire at the center of the tread 180 degrees apart, it keeps ballooning to a minimum slightly and allows for better shape and tread contact to the surface This will also prevent the tire from blowing out and off the wheel to some extent. Everyone has their own method and different tires. But,doing this will also keep dirt and water out because centrifugal force will expel it outward as the wheel spins. The foams are open cell and will degrade over time with dirt and water. (normal)
Maintenance varies. After 20 packs or so, expect to rebuild all 3 differentials and replace most of the bearings. How clean where you are and rough you are at driving will vary this.
The shock towers may bend or tweak. But they can be removed and hammered back into shape. The chassis may bend. It also can be hammered straight. There are option parts for all of these. But only you will know what is necessary after you drive it for 20 or so packs. Out the gate, to prevent chassis bending, Front and rear aluminum chassis braces may be in order. Hot Racing, M2C and others make them. Worth the money out the gate. That's all. When new out of the box, check Steering Endpoints using the Radio(controller) Calibrate the radio also. Its supposedly done at the factory, but most would not take a chance on that. Read the manual carefully every page. Check all screws for snugness. Take your time . I would invest in a quality set of hex drivers. The small Allen wrenches that are supplied are not all that and may strip the hardware. There's a lot to take for granted in the manual. But good reading for any newcomer to Arrma rigs.
Good luck. I love my v4 6S Kraton. you will too. Treat her good and she will do the same for you. This is high end stuff for sure. And remember Arrma has a great 2 year warranty. And Arrma Forum is only a click away. Enjoy.
Edit:
Food for thought... You can run the rig on 3s to get used to it first. 6S is no joke and will be a handful at first. Sometime I run mine on 4S and I have a blast too. Alternatively the Radio will have a power limiter. You can adjust it. The rest is just a learning curve. You will probably want to upgrade the radio and receiver and add stronger parts and break some as you progress. That's just ineveitable. Part of the hobby. It should be fun and relaxing. That's the goal of RC.

Thanks a lot for this response! You cleared a lot of dark points for me! Let's say i break a diff after 1 week (wich probably won't happen bu wwho knows) will arrma take it into warranty and replace it?

There's two necessary upgrades before you go wild with it

You'll want to upgrade the radio as the STX2 is just not good enough. The poor range and noticable lag is actually pretty dangerous for a 6s capable truck!

DEFINITELY get some alloy chassis braces in there. Of all the 6s chassis, I'm sure in saying that the Kraton has the highest likelihood of bending. I have these from GPM, they've held up perfectly for 2 years and only a week or two transit time from China to the UK:

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

Diff rebuilds are mostly to check the teeth and top up any leaked oil. Gears break in over time, so new or extra shims need replacing/adding. There's few YT videos and threads on here mentioning the Mugen and Kyosho shims used for rebuilds as well as their part numbers

Here's some other useful threads if you're new to RC. Before you run your Kraton follow these steps first:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/out-of-the-box-checklist.2761/

And here's some upgrades may want to do later:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/recommended-arrma-kraton-upgrades-2020.819/

I have an arrma fury with a tactic radio, can i swap the tactic onto the kraton?

There's two necessary upgrades before you go wild with it

You'll want to upgrade the radio as the STX2 is just not good enough. The poor range and noticable lag is actually pretty dangerous for a 6s capable truck!

DEFINITELY get some alloy chassis braces in there. Of all the 6s chassis, I'm sure in saying that the Kraton has the highest likelihood of bending. I have these from GPM, they've held up perfectly for 2 years and only a week or two transit time from China to the UK:

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

https://www.gpmracing.com.hk/en/pro...&cat=1-8-KRATON-6S-AR106005-AR106015-AR106018

Diff rebuilds are mostly to check the teeth and top up any leaked oil. Gears break in over time, so new or extra shims need replacing/adding. There's few YT videos and threads on here mentioning the Mugen and Kyosho shims used for rebuilds as well as their part numbers

Here's some other useful threads if you're new to RC. Before you run your Kraton follow these steps first:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/out-of-the-box-checklist.2761/

And here's some upgrades may want to do later:

https://www.arrmaforum.com/threads/recommended-arrma-kraton-upgrades-2020.819/

Thanks a lot, I will buy them right now! however your first link says "ALUMINUM FRONT STEERING SUPPORT MOUNT-3PC SET", is it a front chassis brace?

I went 1M in the centre on my Kraton and what a difference. Backflips are easier, it's quicker off the line and the thing wheelies like crazy.

Do you know where to buy good quality oil?

 

[Yas]

You're right, and I do drive my servos usually off the built in bec of the Max6, this entire build is overkill. And once the season starts again the 1211sg will go back in, the 2292sg will go back in my buggy (or a new truggy ?) as I already have a futaba 9352 in the buggy right now. The bec is really only being used to kick up the 7.2v to the top end 8.4v. just to see how fast is fast. ?

Thanks a lot for this response! You cleared a lot of dark points for me! Let's say i break a diff after 1 week (wich probably won't happen bu wwho knows) will arrma take it into warranty and replace it?

I have an arrma fury with a tactic radio, can i swap the tactic onto the kraton?

Thanks a lot, I will buy them right now! however your first link says "ALUMINUM FRONT STEERING SUPPORT MOUNT-3PC SET", is it a front chassis brace?

Do you know where to buy good quality oil?

You might if it doubtedly breaks on it's first couple of runs, possibly from a build issue from factory, but normally, no. It will be most likely be considered wear and tear and may not be covered by warranty

Yes, if it was me I would be swapping the Fury and Kraton radios and receivers ASAP. Remember to set end points for the servos again!

GPM lists the hardware with the part. It's 3pcs because the items included are the aluminium brace plus the 2 screws to install it (you can still use your own stock screws in some cases, most of Arrma's hardware is hardened and GPM's is stainless)

I personally have a range of Team Associated oils. Others use Losi, Traxxas, Fastrax, Core RC... there's plenty of options out there but these are popular brands. I would recommend 60/200/20k front/centre/rear for a Kraton. I use 100/500/30k in my Notorious

 

[Tutur74170]

You might if it doubtedly breaks on it's first couple of runs, possibly from a build issue from factory, but normally, no. It will be most likely be considered wear and tear and may not be covered by warranty

Yes, if it was me I would be swapping the Fury and Kraton radios and receivers ASAP. Remember to set end points for the servos again!

GPM lists the hardware with the part. It's 3pcs because the items included are the aluminium brace plus the 2 screws to install it (you can still use your own stock screws in some cases, most of Arrma's hardware is hardened and GPM's is stainless)

I personally have a range of Team Associated oils. Others use Losi, Traxxas, Fastrax, Core RC... there's plenty of options out there but these are popular brands. I would recommend 60/200/20k front/centre/rear for a Kraton. I use 100/500/30k in my Notorious

On the spectrum there is a th rate nob wich more or less change the power of the vehicle, there is not this nob on the tactic, is the throttle rate to max by default?

 

[Yas]

Remove the wheels and full throttle the transmitter. Your ESC should flash green to indicate full throttle.

Otherwise you can try re-binding your receiver to the transmitter (some radios, probably the Tactic one too, allow you to recalibrate the throttle during or after binding). Remember to set your throttle rate and steering rate to 0/centre before you re-bind.

 

[SrC]

On the spectrum there is a th rate nob wich more or less change the power of the vehicle, there is not this nob on the tactic, is the throttle rate to max by default?

The Throttle Limiter sliding button(50%,75%/100%) on the remote has been known to be finicky for some and myself. But not for everyone. Range check the radio before driving it. Interference between two of these identical radios has been observed. Two people bashing together with same radio. Not good because loss of control is inevitable. So radio interference in general may or may not be an issue for you. With info in mind just enjoy . I upgraded to a better radio. Also have Tactic TTx300 radio on aniother rig and is suberb. Yes max TH always. The TH limiter on the Included remote is just a gimmick. IMO. A flawed one at that. And Arrma/Horizon Hobby is aware of this. Some have called HH and got a revised/upgrade radio.

 

[Tutur74170]

Thanks a lot everyone for your replies, you helped me a lot! So cool to see that everyone is so willing to help everyone even a newbie that's just getting started!!
Does anyone know a vid where someone fills up the differentials with the oil? I plan to open mine, when i will open them will oil leak a lot?
I have a full pack of lithium grease that i use for my trx4, should i put some on my kraton 6S? If so where?

 

[Yas]

Thanks a lot everyone for your replies, you helped me a lot! So cool to see that everyone is so willing to help everyone even a newbie that's just getting started!!
Does anyone know a vid where someone fills up the differentials with the oil? I plan to open mine, when i will open them will oil leak a lot?
I have a full pack of lithium grease that i use for my trx4, should i put some on my kraton 6S? If so where?

I would buy at least one pack of diff gaskets before you open your diffs in case they split! They are fragile. Otherwise you can't really put the diff back together and you'll be stuck with it disassembled. Take care not to overfill them. Tighten the diff cup screws back up tiny turns for each screw at a time without overtighten them, whilst not leaving them too loose either, or they'll leak. The manual explains how to refill the diffs (see picture)

Whilst you're at it I would replace the shims behind the planetary gears (the two larger gears inside the diff, beneath the pin) with Mugen shims. This is optional but it does help to bulletproof the diff. The video that helped me out is here:

Lithium grease should be used on the two external gears around the diff. These are the input pinion, and the ring (crown/bevel) gear. Some don't bother with this grease but if you've got some slap it in there ?