Outcast Did I break it already?

[jaatus]

Did I already break my shiny new truck? Second ever session of what I would call some very mild bashing. The first session I mainly just ran it around on the 50% throttle setting the whole time. No jumps or craziness. Second session, I eventually brought the throttle to 100%, but still no big jumps. I had a couple of medium speed tumbles but nothing to write home about. Mainly the second session was just stretching it’s legs. I got it home, sat it on a trash bag and came back to it a few days later to notice a dime sized puddle of what I can only call dark grey axle grease. But I see zero evidence of it on the chassis or inside under the center diff. Am I being paranoid or did I already maim my new shiny truck?

 

[D3MON]

not that i am experienced yet with the 6s, i would check your diff, the one where the puddle resided under. its a good idea with these to check the all the diffs anyways and make sure they are shimmed correctly, and filled with fluid (so i am learning anyways.)

 

[calebgilmore]

Did I already break my shiny new truck? Second ever session of what I would call some very mild bashing. The first session I mainly just ran it around on the 50% throttle setting the whole time. No jumps or craziness. Second session, I eventually brought the throttle to 100%, but still no big jumps. I had a couple of medium speed tumbles but nothing to write home about. Mainly the second session was just stretching it’s legs. I got it home, sat it on a trash bag and came back to it a few days later to notice a dime sized puddle of what I can only call dark grey axle grease. But I see zero evidence of it on the chassis or inside under the center diff. Am I being paranoid or did I already maim my new shiny truck?

The diff fluid will turn a gray color after a few runs. sounds like you have a leaky diff. You can order some better gaskets on ebay under tekjo or tek_jo or some form of that. It will be worth pulling it and seeing where the fluid is coming from. Take off the spur and fill it back up. There is a little grub screw that screws into the side of the case as well that helps get the bottom pin out. make sure it's snug in there too. I know tekjo is out of canada so the lead time on his gaskets might be a little longer, so i'd stock up on a couple arrma ones til you can get those in. I throw the stock ones away as soon as i get a new diff and put the tekjo's in. I run 60k/1m/30k in all of my rigs. Upping the center diff fluid will def make throttle input snappier as well.

 

[jaatus]

The diff fluid will turn a gray color after a few runs. sounds like you have a leaky diff. You can order some better gaskets on ebay under tekjo or tek_jo or some form of that. It will be worth pulling it and seeing where the fluid is coming from. Take off the spur and fill it back up. There is a little grub screw that screws into the side of the case as well that helps get the bottom pin out. make sure it's snug in there too. I know tekjo is out of canada so the lead time on his gaskets might be a little longer, so i'd stock up on a couple arrma ones til you can get those in. I throw the stock ones away as soon as i get a new diff and put the tekjo's in. I run 60k/1m/30k in all of my rigs. Upping the center diff fluid will def make throttle input snappier as well.

I’m still working on replacing the “essential” stuff like servo mount and such. The Tx it shipped with is absolute trash. I have my eye on one of the Flysky touchscreen models. I figure I’ll get it to a point of disassembly where I’m going to say “well I may as well upgrade some stuff since it’s apart” pretty quickly. Slowly but surely I’m putting together a pit station the will travel well. Thanks for the info on the gaskets. That type of insight is exactly what I was hoping to find on this on this forum. On a side note, am I crazy or are parts for Kraton and outcast interchangeable to an extent?

 

[Notorious J]

I’m still working on replacing the “essential” stuff like servo mount and such. The Tx it shipped with is absolute trash. I have my eye on one of the Flysky touchscreen models. I figure I’ll get it to a point of disassembly where I’m going to say “well I may as well upgrade some stuff since it’s apart” pretty quickly. Slowly but surely I’m putting together a pit station the will travel well. Thanks for the info on the gaskets. That type of insight is exactly what I was hoping to find on this on this forum. On a side note, am I crazy or are parts for Kraton and outcast interchangeable to an extent?

So many of the parts are exactly the same. Only parts that are different are chassis, rear chassis brace and rear dogbone. Not sure if there's any differences for V5's but older models were practically identical except for those three things

 

[SrC]

The diffs out the box sometimes are built too loose and leak, are generally underfilled at the factory to begin with and even the diff screws can be stripped from the factory so that can also cause a leak. The Factory gaskets are not the issue in most cases. It is from being too loose to begin with. And the plastic diff cups loosen with regular use over time also.

 

[calebgilmore]

I’m still working on replacing the “essential” stuff like servo mount and such. The Tx it shipped with is absolute trash. I have my eye on one of the Flysky touchscreen models. I figure I’ll get it to a point of disassembly where I’m going to say “well I may as well upgrade some stuff since it’s apart” pretty quickly. Slowly but surely I’m putting together a pit station the will travel well. Thanks for the info on the gaskets. That type of insight is exactly what I was hoping to find on this on this forum. On a side note, am I crazy or are parts for Kraton and outcast interchangeable to an extent?

I've had great luck with the dumborc remotes and at $35 you can beat them. I don't need a super expensive one, and i can't run one for them all since i tend to loan cars to friends when we go out to drive them. I also run the 35kg $35 servo from amazon. I have a max6 in all of my 6s rigs and run the bec on 7.4v. hinge pin blocks, center braces, and towers are always a great start. the ackerman bar is a good idea and servo mount. All of my rigs get those and a chassis. m2c makes a 4mm shock standoff, and some better droop screws as well. I check my diffs to make sure the shims are adequate and up the fluids. I run the hobbystar 4092 1480kv in my kraton and notorious, and the others got the 1730kv. I know that's still more torque than stock but i figured the added ass behind the bigger tires will help. Most of my rigs are frankensteined with parts from the other rigs. The kraton and notcast are the only ones that are pretty much still what they should be from the factory minus being hopped up with aftermarket parts. Jim's bearings are great, and you can get a whole pack and replace the bushings in the steering with small bearings too. (rambling but it's all popping in my head as i type hahahaha)

 

[jaatus]

I've had great luck with the dumborc remotes and at $35 you can beat them. I don't need a super expensive one, and i can't run one for them all since i tend to loan cars to friends when we go out to drive them. I also run the 35kg $35 servo from amazon. I have a max6 in all of my 6s rigs and run the bec on 7.4v. hinge pin blocks, center braces, and towers are always a great start. the ackerman bar is a good idea and servo mount. All of my rigs get those and a chassis. m2c makes a 4mm shock standoff, and some better droop screws as well. I check my diffs to make sure the shims are adequate and up the fluids. I run the hobbystar 4092 1480kv in my kraton and notorious, and the others got the 1730kv. I know that's still more torque than stock but i figured the added ass behind the bigger tires will help. Most of my rigs are frankensteined with parts from the other rigs. The kraton and notcast are the only ones that are pretty much still what they should be from the factory minus being hopped up with aftermarket parts. Jim's bearings are great, and you can get a whole pack and replace the bushings in the steering with small bearings too. (rambling but it's all popping in my head as i type hahahaha)

I appreciate any info. My last exposure to rc was a nitro revo 3.3 like 15 years ago. Burned through like 4 motors and eventually sold it. Brushless wasn’t even on my radar at that point.

 

[calebgilmore]

I appreciate any info. My last exposure to rc was a nitro revo 3.3 like 15 years ago. Burned through like 4 motors and eventually sold it. Brushless wasn’t even on my radar at that point.

Right on. ask away and we'll help as you go. if you can catch a t bone bumper in stock they are pretty nice as well. If you go aftermarket towers be aware that aftermarket wing arms won't fit. I've tried tbone and rpm both and they don't clear the openings. M2C and JBI closed the holes down on their towers to add strength to them.

 

[jaatus]

Right on. ask away and we'll help as you go. if you can catch a t bone bumper in stock they are pretty nice as well. If you go aftermarket towers be aware that aftermarket wing arms won't fit. I've tried tbone and rpm both and they don't clear the openings. M2C and JBI closed the holes down on their towers to add strength to them.

If I’m being totally honest, I don’t even know which dealers and suppliers are even considered reputable at this point. Seemed like the big thing way back then was to upgrade stuff to billet as completely as possible. I’m getting that it’s not so much that way anymore but I’m sure I’ll figure stuff out as i go along a well

 

[calebgilmore]

If I’m being totally honest, I don’t even know which dealers and suppliers are even considered reputable at this point. Seemed like the big thing way back then was to upgrade stuff to billet as completely as possible. I’m getting that it’s not so much that way anymore but I’m sure I’ll figure stuff out as i go along a well

m2c and just bash it are the go to's. Basherqueen has some nice carbon fiber bits to save weight. rpm arms are nice. Vitavon makes hubs and diff cases if you want to get crazy. I have no problems with plastic diff cases and hubs. I'd do the above 3, then hot racing, and skip integy/gpm. If you see something on active powersports when nobody else has it, they don't have it either. avoid them for any purchase. they aren't totally scammers but they order from someone the same as you would and then ship to you. I got burned on 3 items in 2019 and never got anything but "it's still on backorder" from them.

 

[jaatus]

I think I’ve got it figured out. I got a little defacto bench set up and once I got a few things out of the way and some decent light on it, I can see clearly now that the grease is coming from the center diff for sure. Would it cause much, if any harm, to give the back half a quick blast from low pressure power washer with a compressed air dry quickly after? I really shouldn’t have procrastinated about cleaning after that second run. I’m fairly certain the grease on the motors gear is just carryover from the diff.

 

[calebgilmore]

That’ll be fine. Avoid a shot at the motor and esc. I hose mine down with a garden hose

 

[jaatus]

Ok so I got the center diff out of the truck, which is definitely leaking. It almost looks like the grub screw was insanely cross threaded from the factory and it also looks like the gasket may not have been properly seated. In the manual, it says the center diff runs 100kweight but I’m considering stepping up to somewhere in the range of a 200-300k. I’m definitely replacing the stock diff carrier before it goes back together. It’s already got gouges from pebbles being trapped and that to me just looks like a failure waiting to happen. Does anyone have any thoughts on the Hot Racing’s stuff regarding it’s quality and lasting power? And lastly, does going to a higher weight fluid in the center diff require adjusting viscosity accordingly for the front and rear? Any and all critiques, criticisms and gentle flamings welcome. Don’t sugarcoat it if I sound like an imbecile

 

[calebgilmore]

Ok so I got the center diff out of the truck, which is definitely leaking. It almost looks like the grub screw was insanely cross threaded from the factory and it also looks like the gasket may not have been properly seated. In the manual, it says the center diff runs 100kweight but I’m considering stepping up to somewhere in the range of a 200-300k. I’m definitely replacing the stock diff carrier before it goes back together. It’s already got gouges from pebbles being trapped and that to me just looks like a failure waiting to happen. Does anyone have any thoughts on the Hot Racing’s stuff regarding it’s quality and lasting power? And lastly, does going to a higher weight fluid in the center diff require adjusting viscosity accordingly for the front and rear? Any and all critiques, criticisms and gentle flamings welcome. Don’t sugarcoat it if I sound like an imbecile

I run 60/1m/30 in mine. It def seems to keep the front and rear power even. I’ve had good luck with plastic diff cups and have never tried an aluminum one

 

[jkflow]

I'd avoid the pressure washer, one wrong move and you have a bad motor (not waterproof) or you hit the ESC at the wrong angle.
Fairly easy to remove the pinion and clean it manually. In general avoid water on electronics and bearings.
Keep WD40 away as well. Those 2 have killed more rigs than bad driving

 

[jaatus]

At this point, I’m most likely just going to strip anything electronic off it beforehand anyway. I may or may not have started unscrewing stuff before I really ACTUALLY knew what was what. Fingers crossed I don’t end up with extra stuff afterwards. This thing is going to turn into a rabbit hole something quick. I’ve already got a wishlist I’m working down. I’ve been jotting down reputable suppliers I see folks mention on here and I think I’m getting a decent grasp on what’s good and what to avoid.

 

[olds97_lss]

Water/soap has little effect on silicone oil, fyi. Naptha/mineral spirits will break it down though.

I used to have a heck of a time rebuilding a diff with heavy oil in it until I found that naptha breaks it down. Now I just let the bits soak in some of it, then hit them with a toothbrush under the surface of the naptha and they come out nice and clean. Sit them on a paper towel after washing and a bit of compressed air to remove the residual. You don't want the naptha in/on any of the parts when you reassemble or it will thin out the oil you do put in.

It's also a good idea to not get much naptha on the silicone seals/gaskets if you can help it. I usually remove those as I disassemble and smear the goo off on a paper towel, then reapply a bit of lighter silicone oil on the o-rings while assembling.

I run 100k/300k/100k in my outcast on 6S. The longer chassis of the kraton would probably work well with 500K in the center. Too thick in the outcast and it just wheelies constantly.

 

[Notorious J]

I clean my dif cups with a bit of break cleaner after scooping up as much of the heavy stuff as possible. Wipe it down quick afterwards and use a small screwdriver to get out some left in the crevices. I stopped worrying if there was still a bit of the old fluid left behind. I wipe the gears with paper towel and let them sit for a bit for the fluid to drip off. The dif fluid breaks down pretty quick if you bash a lot. Making them spotless at each repair or maintenance interval started feeling like over kill after a while. Would be different if it was setting up for competition, but for bashing, whether the fluid id 100% the weight you put in or off by 10% because it mixed with a bit of old fluid, shouldn't have noticable impact.

 

[olds97_lss]

I clean my dif cups with a bit of break cleaner after scooping up as much of the heavy stuff as possible. Wipe it down quick afterwards and use a small screwdriver to get out some left in the crevices. I stopped worrying if there was still a bit of the old fluid left behind. I wipe the gears with paper towel and let them sit for a bit for the fluid to drip off. The dif fluid breaks down pretty quick if you bash a lot. Making them spotless at each repair or maintenance interval started feeling like over kill after a while. Would be different if it was setting up for competition, but for bashing, whether the fluid id 100% the weight you put in or off by 10% because it mixed with a bit of old fluid, shouldn't have noticable impact.

Lacking a garage, I used naptha out of a tin can. Brake cleaner is a bit unwieldy to spray in my office, so I never tried it. I did find out a long time ago that it eats through lexan in a few seconds. Nearly destroyed a brand new body with that stuff! Since then, I don't use it on/around RC's anymore.

The most cleaning I do is run my truck through some damp grass, then shake it off...