Fireteam Fireteam...Well I thought I would get one, and give my Opinion and how I set mine up. Staying very stock'ish.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

SrC

RC is a lifestyle choice
Lifetime Premium!
Premium Member
Excellence Award
Hospitality Award
Build Thread Contributor
Messages
22,472
Reaction score
30,848
Location
Queens, NYC
Arrma RC's
  1. Fireteam
  2. Infraction
  3. Limitless
  4. Kraton 6s
  5. Mojave
  6. Notorious
  7. Outcast 6s
  8. Typhon TLR
Like many recently, I got mine for 4 bills. ( sale)
HH got it to me within 3 days.
Is it truly Ready to Run?
Will it even run at all?
This will end up being my "light" out the box Build Thread. Nothing Fancy going on here.

Initial impression/observations right out the box:

-One motor lead wire was disconnected. No biggy.
-Many screws stripped. Many loose. Mostly the body/Cage screws. Typical of Arrma.
-All 4 shocks low on oil. Can easily hear the air inside them. I've rarely seen this before with all my other 6s rigs. Oil all over. Yet no apparent leaks. Just sloppy assy. Underfilled
-Both F/R Sway bars in their center mounts loose. Not even remotely close to being adjusted. One grub screw barely seated into it's threads.
-Motor Mesh backlash is Non existent. The Pinion is "Slammed Tight" against the Spur gear.:rolleyes: (n)
- Used a torch as usual to loosen both Motor mount meshing screws. One hex screw stripped anyway. Not coming off. Will dremel and use a Large flat screwdriver for this. Nothing new with 6s Arrma's here. They use tons of RED Threadlocker. Been there. Will source proper 3mm socket heads as usual.
- All 4 Droop screws are bottomed out with one washer placed under each head. Obviously, they wanted these droop screws bottomed out. Using a washer to predetermine a fixed amount of droop screwed all the way in. Like barely any shock droop at all. Makes no sense to me. I Need 4 upgrade proper droop screws. I believe @Engineer had some DS's bottomed out and stripped out in his FT arms. I'll soon find out if this happened here.
-Front outer BB's need a shim or 2 . Much end play slop. Nothing new. Rears are fine.
- Rear Hubs are missing a .5 mm shim at each of the lower Arm/Hub hingepins. Both sides. Not the first time with Arrma 6s rigs.
-Both Front Upper arm Hinge pin screws were not snugged tight. The upper arms were loose as a result. Causing sloppy Castor angles. Typical. Just tightened them up.
- Wheel alignment all jacked up. Nothing new. Typical. They all need attention out the box. Most any new RTR rig.
- Pivot balls at the Fr. hubs need adjusting. Some were tight , others way loose. Adjust them with the servo link detached before you align the rig. Best way.
- The ESC mains and aux leads were all loose and floppy. Commonly seen. Best to Zip tie as needed. The Cap Pack wires, zip tied to the mains leads are known to break. Secure all. Typical with all Arrma rigs.
- Many complain of the Firma ESC switch cracking apart. I see how impacts may cause this, The switch is mounted to chassis' Side plate and too close to the body.
I might mount the switch to the ESC mount next to the ESC. Hole provisions are there on the ESC mount for the switch. Might prevent switch damage better in this location. IDK.
- Motor's B-phase lead has Heatshrink in 2 hap hazard places, the other leads not. Not sure why??? Just sloppy motor assembly. No attention to detail. Is what it is.

I will update what else I find to keep note of.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Following are some positive observations specific to the FT:

-The Directional FT tires/wheels are well glued and have very beefed up hex hubs. Can't see treads lasting long however. But nice and large. They do have foams in them. I thought they did not as one reviewer has stated. They need to be balanced. Just part of my personal regimen. Many don't.
-FT is the only 6s rig to come with the Metal center diff carrier/case. Nice touch. I use them in most of my 6s rig center diffs.
- The Hand Brake is what it is. Fluff. I know full well, I'll yank it out soon. After I play with it. Just to see how much it sucks. I don't RC with bloated fluffy stuff.:giggle:
I like a Radio's Trigger and Wheel to drive my rigs. Nothing more.
-Black anodizing throughout does make it look nicer than the common Arrma Red that we are used to seeing. My TLRT Typhon the same. Black makes it look like a serious model.
But that is just aestetics.
- Comes with a Black EXB Steering Top plate. A plus. Mounted with the EXB orientation and a larger Front brace screw. Unlike the TLRT, which was upside down, using a smaller Fr. brace screw. EXB branding was not visible.
- Another Bonus was the optional "X-Hard" chrome Servo saver spring is included. Not sure yet if shimming will be needed at all.
Some EXB rigs didn't even come with the X-Hard SS spring. I know my TLRT did however.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I need a few upgrades:

-Fr and R alloy braces. Not sure which ones to get. I think the EXB ones are not a good choice for FT. And the H. brake might cause clearance issues with some beefier Rear braces out there. HB will be tossed anyway.
-DS3235 35 kg AMZ servo. As usual, all my RC rigs. Maybe even the Pro version this time around? (not gambling on the S652 stocker frying the ESC) I don't want to be one of those guys.
- Legit proper Droop screws. Arrmas OE ones will be fine. Avid Ti ones are overkill for this Basher, IMHO.
-CF sleeve over the T2T brace. What I always do. T2T's do bend, unsleeved. And cheaper than buying a BQ CF upgrade one. This is a budget rig for me. Like the price it was....
- (4) 6x10x3mm Sealed BB's for the Steering belcrank. Every 6s Arrma rig needs these. OE Brass bushings suck. The TLRT is the only Arrma that gets them as standard, installed out the box. All other 6s rigs need them as upgrades.
-I'll use the RTR SLT3 Tx for a bit. Checking out the silly Hand brake.... Then I'll use my Spektrum DX5C for this rig. Taking advantage of the pre-installed SR315 DSMR capable Rx in there now. Not my favorite radio however. But will be good enough for bashing the FT.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

-I need to pull all 3 diffs to Check, change oil and shim ( shim F/R).
My go to oil is 60k fr/500k ctr/30k Rr. My Kraton loves this combo. I'll stay with it.
- Need to pull the motor and bench test it's KV rating on my BLX motor analyzer, check timing and BB's.
Then rebuild it, adding my own synthetic BB lube. I won't chance them being dry BB's from the factory. Been there.



This is a simple inexpensive build for me. Hope this helps someone new to the FT or any Arrma 6s rig.
The many well seasoned guys here can surely do better than this. Wallet permitting, we all do RC differently. I I hold this rig to a budget. The best way to enjoy RC IMHO.
As you can see RTR rigs are not truly RTR. Sure you can drive them out the box. But some Pre-Run wrenching makes for a better experience and way less frustration down the road.
No RTR Rigs will be perfect. If you want that level, buy a Kit Brand like Tekno. And build it your self. I always preferred kits years past. But RTR's are the norm now. And best bargain for the price.

I'll post pix here and there as I proceed.
Enjoy.

20221202_202732.jpg


20221202_205548.jpg

Out the box, one motor lead was disconnected. As Seen above.
20221202_205645.jpg

X-Hard SS spring does have 2 Shims installed below it already.
20221202_205645.jpg


20221202_212119.jpg

Above shows how I always place my Shock spring perches. Slots angled down. For dirt Egress. Arrma does it opposite. And this only builds up dirt in the perches. I just reverse them. All my 6s Arrma's shocks.
20221202_211814.jpg


20221202_213902.jpg


20221203_133839.jpg


20221202_220938.jpg

Outer Motor mount screw hex stripped out. Arrma uses too much Red TL used. Despite using my torch it stripped. Is what it is. Been there before. Using "Socket head" 3mm hex screws to replace. Blue TL used only. And any where else on my rigs. Red TL is overkill for these small fasteners, IMHO.
 
Last edited:
That’s quite the laundry list. I didn’t count loose screws or missing shims. Just did it all as part of normal prep work.

I noticed the EXB spring and second shim on the steering tube but upgraded (or downgraded) mine to a V3 adjustable one right away as well as ball bearings and an m2c Ackerman.

Haven’t looked at the body yet - I probably should. Was going to reinforce the screws on the body panels with flat washers.

To their word, Horizon replaced all the jacked up parts:

6707710F-7EDB-430C-8EAA-F2182D4CDD9A.jpeg


EAEF5036-0165-4233-82D6-1574DA2D7A80.jpeg


Interesting to see a “MAP” listed on the parts.
 
Last edited:
The only thing that stuck out with mine was f/r diffs a little low , and motor mesh to tight as you said . Also, I used HR aluminum chassis braces from my Talion , they DO have the keyed pegs that "lock" into the chassis , AFAIK , the red EXB ones do not ???? Maybe someone can verify ???
 
HMM..... the Tally EXB braces Are in fact Keyed?....???
I want the cheapest Keyed option out there.
@parcou linked me an EBay site that had "keyed"generics. He said they fit well on his FT.
Inexpensive as a pair.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/2345548425...pid=5337696215&customid=&toolid=10001&mkevt=1

Talion EXB braces are not keyed. I went with m2c because they were on sale and I figured this was a 1/7 scale vehicle so might as well get the best chassis braces possible.
 
No , the ones I took off my Talion are Hot Racing , not EXB .
Pics
 

Attachments

  • AEDA9AA0-7385-4E3F-A755-13B253866BE8.jpeg
    AEDA9AA0-7385-4E3F-A755-13B253866BE8.jpeg
    422.3 KB · Views: 57
  • 44D1D384-ED49-4A23-B03D-1BDD74728A3E.jpeg
    44D1D384-ED49-4A23-B03D-1BDD74728A3E.jpeg
    352.2 KB · Views: 65
Like many recently, I got mine for 4 bills. ( sale)
HH got it to me within 3 days.
Is it truly Ready to Run?
Will it even run at all?
This will end up being my "light" out the box Build Thread. Nothing Fancy going on here.

Initial impression/observations right out the box:

-One motor lead wire was disconnected. No biggy.
-Many screws stripped. Many loose. Mostly the body/Cage screws. Typical of Arrma.
-All 4 shocks low on oil. Can easily hear the air inside them. I've rarely seen this before with all my other 6s rigs. Oil all over. Yet no apparent leaks. Just sloppy assy. Underfilled
-Both F/R Sway bars in their center mounts loose. Not even remotely close to being adjusted. One grub screw barely seated into it's threads.
-Motor Mesh backlash is Non existent. The Pinion is "Slammed Tight" against the Spur gear.:rolleyes: (n)
- Used a torch as usual to loosen both Motor mount meshing screws. One hex screw stripped anyway. Not coming off. Will dremel and use a Large flat screwdriver for this. Nothing new with 6s Arrma's here. They use tons of RED Threadlocker. Been there. Will source proper 3mm socket heads as usual.
- All 4 Droop screws are bottomed out with one washer placed under each head. Obviously, they wanted these droop screws bottomed out. Using a washer to predetermine a fixed amount of droop screwed all the way in. Like barely any shock droop at all. Makes no sense to me. I Need 4 upgrade proper droop screws. I believe @Engineer had some DS's bottomed out and stripped out in his FT arms. I'll soon find out if this happened here.
-Front outer BB's need a shim or 2 . Much end play slop. Nothing new. Rears are fine.
- Rear Hubs are missing a .5 mm shim at each of the lower Arm/Hub hingepins. Both sides. Not the first time with Arrma 6s rigs.
-Both Front Upper arm Hinge pin screws were not snugged tight. The upper arms were loose as a result. Causing sloppy Castor angles. Typical. Just tightened them up.
- Wheel alignment all jacked up. Nothing new. Typical. They all need attention out the box. Most any new RTR rig.
- Pivot balls at the Fr. hubs need adjusting. Some were tight , others way loose. Adjust them with the servo link detached before you align the rig. Best way.
- The ESC mains and aux leads were all loose and floppy. Commonly seen Best to Zip tie as needed. The Cap Pack wires zip tied to the mains leads are known to break. Secure all. Typical with all Arrma rigs.
- Many complain of the Firma ESC switch cracking apart. I see how impacts may cause this, The switch is mounted to chassis' Side plate and too close to the body.
I might mount the switch to the ESC mount next to the ESC. Hole provisions are there on the ESC mount for the switch. Might prevent switch damage better in this location. IDK.
- Motor's B-phase lead has Heatshrink in 2 hap hazard places, the other leads not. Not sure why??? Just sloppy motor assembly. No attention to detail. Is what it is.

I will update what else I find to keep note of.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Following are some positive observations specific to the FT:

-The Directional FT tires/wheels are well glued and have very beefed up hex hubs. Can't see treads lasting long however. But nice and large. They do have foams in them. I thought they did not as one reviewer has stated. They need to be balanced. Just part of my personal regimen. Many don't.
-FT is the only 6s rig to cime with the Metal center diff carrier/case. Nice touch. I use them in most of my 6s rig center diffs.
- The Hand Brake is what it is. Fluff. I know full well, I'll yank it out soon. After I play with it. Just to see how much it sucks. I don't RC with bloated fluffy stuff.:giggle:
I like a Radio's Trigger and Wheel to drive my rigs. Nothing more.
-Black anodizing throughout does make it look nicer than the common Arrma Red that we are used to seeing. My TLRT Typhon the same. Black makes it look like a serious model.
But that is just aestetics.
- Comes with a Black EXB Steering Top plate. A plus. Mounted with the EXB orientation and a larger Front brace screw. Unlike the TLRT, which was upside down, using a smaller Fr. brace screw. EXB branding was not visible.
- Another Bonus was the optional "X-Hard" chrome Servo saver spring is included. Not sure yet if shimming will be needed at all.
Some EXB rigs didn't even come with the X-Hard SS spring. I know my TLRT did however.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I need a few upgrades:

-Fr and R alloy braces. Not sure which ones to get. I think the EXB ones are not a good choice for FT. And the H. brake might cause clearance issues with some beefier Rear braces out there. HB will be tossed anyway.
-DS3235 35 kg AMZ servo. As usual, all my RC rigs. Maybe even the Pro version this time around? (not gambling on the S652 stocker frying the ESC) I don't want to be one of those guys.
- Legit proper Droop screws. Arrmas OE ones will be fine. Avid Ti ones are overkill for this Basher, IMHO.
-CF sleeve over the T2T brace. What I always do. T2T's do bend, unsleeved. And cheaper than buying a BQ CF upgrade one. This is a budget rig for me. Like the price it was....
- (4) 6x10x3mm Sealed BB's for the Steering belcrank. Every 6s Arrma rig needs these. OE Brass bushings suck. The TLRT is the only Arrma that gets them as standard, installed out the box. All other 6s rigs need them as upgrades.
-I'll use the RTR SLT3 Tx for a bit. Checking out the silly Hand brake.... Then I'll use my Spektrum DX5C for this rig. Taking advantage of the pre-installed SR315 DSMR capable Rx in there now. Not my favorite radio however. But will be good enough for bashing the FT.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

-I need to pull all 3 diffs to Check, change oil and shim ( shim F/R).
My go to oil is 60k fr/500k ctr/30k Rr. My Kraton loves this combo. I'll stay with it.
- Need to pull the motor and bench test it's KV rating on my BLX motor analyzer, check timing and BB's.
Then rebuild it, adding my own synthetic BB lube. I won't chance them being dry BB's from the factory. Been there.



This is a simple inexpensive build for me. Hope this helps someone new to the FT or any Arrma 6s rig.
The many well seasoned guys here can surely do better than this. Wallet permitting, we all do RC differently. I I hold this rig to a budget. The best way to enjoy RC IMHO.
As you can see RTR rigs are not truly RTR. Sure you can drive them out the box. But some Pre-Run wrenching makes for a better experience and way less frustration down the road.
No RTR Rigs will be perfect. If you want that level, buy a Kit Brand like Tekno. And build it your self. I always preferred kits years past. But RTR's are the norm now. And best bargain for the price.

I'll post pix here and there as I proceed.
Enjoy.

View attachment 260088

View attachment 260089

View attachment 260090

View attachment 260091

View attachment 260092

View attachment 260093

View attachment 260095

View attachment 260096

View attachment 260097
There is no way all those things could be wrong with your fire team.
There's a sticker right there that says it passed Arrma quality control!!!🤣🤣
Great break down👍
20221202_202732~2.jpg
 
Great write up! Thanks. Can you please share where you buy this sleeve?
Got these.
Measure the stocker T2T brace exactly . (I remove the ends) Then cut the tube and sleeve over it. I place masking tape where I mark and cut the sleeving square and straight. Don't breath the dust, as CF dust is toxic to the lungs. I've used a fine cut hack saw or a dremel.... your choice. Measure twice, cut once. I usually cut a few mm longer, then sand down the edge the last few mm, to make it perfecly the same length as the alloy brace. Screw back on the Ends after. The T2T will not bend/ or bow anymore.
Enough to do 2 rigs. All 7 of my 6s rigs have them. (The Typhon doesn't have a T2T) I've used the spare scraps to make CF spacers, or whatever.
They used to bend before I did this mod. Many did this before solid rod Upgrade CF braces were around.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00RX7GURU/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I like Gloss CF . But they also have a matte CF. Preference is yours.
 
Last edited:
There is no way all those things could be wrong with your fire team.
There's a sticker right there that says it passed Arrma quality control!!!🤣🤣
Great break down👍
View attachment 260116
Another great example of china's quality control.😁👍
Another great example of china's quality control.😁👍
To cut costs they hire one guy and hand him a huge book of quality control stickers and he just slaps a stickers on all day..he sees one truck with missing screws he slaps a stickers on he sees one missing a wheel he slaps a sticker on he sees leaking oil from shocks he slaps a sticker on .he does this all week long and he gets paid 50 cents a hour 😁👍.he goes home happy somewhere in Hong Kong and you get a quality made product...thanks arrma .🤣🤣🤣
 
Last edited:
Another great example of china's quality control.😁👍

To cut costs they hire one guy and hand him a huge book of quality control stickers and he just slaps a stickers on all day..he sees one truck with missing screws he slaps a stickers on he sees one missing a wheel he slaps a sticker on he sees leaking oil from shocks he slaps a sticker on .he does this all week long and he gets paid 50 cents a hour 😁👍.he goes home happy somewhere in Hong Kong and you get a quality made product...thanks arrma .🤣🤣🤣
Pretty much sums it up.
It is that obvious.
QC sticker is for BS marketting purposes.
Do you really think someone actually ran the motor and it passed QC? Not.:ROFLMAO:
My FT Motor wire was disconnected. :unsure:
 
Another great example of china's quality control.😁👍

To cut costs they hire one guy and hand him a huge book of quality control stickers and he just slaps a stickers on all day..he sees one truck with missing screws he slaps a stickers on he sees one missing a wheel he slaps a sticker on he sees leaking oil from shocks he slaps a sticker on .he does this all week long and he gets paid 50 cents a hour 😁👍.he goes home happy somewhere in Hong Kong and you get a quality made product...thanks arrma .🤣🤣🤣
Another great example of china's quality control.😁👍

To cut costs they hire one guy and hand him a huge book of quality control stickers and he just slaps a stickers on all day..he sees one truck with missing screws he slaps a stickers on he sees one missing a wheel he slaps a sticker on he sees leaking oil from shocks he slaps a sticker on .he does this all week long and he gets paid 50 cents a hour 😁👍.he goes home happy somewhere in Hong Kong and you get a quality made product...thanks arrma .🤣🤣🤣
If you add extra passed stickers it makes it ok and ready to bash !
 
Great write up @SrC!

Do you need to change out the plastic F/R braces if you don't bash very hard?

Can't wait to see your writeup on working over the diffs, it will certainly be valuable to see.
 
@SrC

“Comes with a Black EXB Steering Top plate. A plus. Mounted with the EXB orientation and a larger Front brace screw. Unlike the TLRT, which was upside down, using a smaller Fr. brace screw. EXB branding was not visible.”

Did you notice that the front plastic brace now has an M4 button head screw attaching it to the top plate instead of the M3 screws used in the past, hence the top brace oriented with the EXB branding facing up.
 
@SrC good write-up. I took the same route, and like you and Engineer I found the same in the new purchase breakdown process.

Great feedback!
 
That’s quite the laundry list. I didn’t count loose screws or missing shims. Just did it all as part of normal prep work.

I noticed the EXB spring and second shim on the steering tube but upgraded (or downgraded) mine to a V3 adjustable one right away as well as ball bearings and an m2c Ackerman.

Haven’t looked at the body yet - I probably should. Was going to reinforce the screws on the body panels with flat washers.

To their word, Horizon replaced all the jacked up parts:

View attachment 260108

View attachment 260107

Interesting to see a “MAP” listed on the parts.
What was wrong with the arms and tires?
 
Great write up @SrC!

Do you need to change out the plastic F/R braces if you don't bash very hard?

Can't wait to see your writeup on working over the diffs, it will certainly be valuable to see.
The stocker plastic chassis braces look stout made of Hard composite, and are both keyed into the chassis.
Yet I bent many a chassis snapping many plastic braces. I don't consider myself a hard basher. Small air if anything. I just always put on Alloy braces, out the box. It really does help spare the chassis.
I've bent many chassis before. Mostly on my Kraton. And since this FT chassis is very long, they bend much easier.
I have an $M2C XLWB$ chassis on my Mojave. Not going to sink that much coin with this FT. If the chassis does bend, I might down the road. And I wouldn't waste my time and coin with a Mojo EXB chassis. With chassis', I stay with stock or Upgrade to M2C. It's all or nothing.
 
Last edited:
Old Thread: Hello . There have been no replies in this thread for 90 days.
Content in this thread may no longer be relevant.
Perhaps it would be better to start a new thread instead.
Back
Top