From Senton Mega 4x4 to who knows where (NJ)

[Rdd201]

So I bought this truck for myself when I picked up a couple of other entry-level RCs for my kids for Christmas, yrs 3 & 8. It is my 1st Hobby grade RC I have ever owned and it has been a huge learning experience. It's a very good quality item for $220.
I would like to share my experience and progress in modding this RC while making some local friends for some bashing. I thought I was going to keep this truck stock for at least a few months but just a couple weeks later after the purchase, the gear Head in me started to do some research and tinkering. Please don't hesitate to share any tips or advice while I'm posting up pictures and information of what I've done so far.

 

[Don mercier]

So I bought this truck for myself when I picked up a couple of other entry-level RCs for my kids for Christmas, yrs 3 & 8. It is my 1st Hobby grade RC I have ever owned and it has been a huge learning experience. It's a very good quality item for $220.
I would like to share my experience and progress in modding this RC while making some local friends for some bashing. I thought I was going to keep this truck stock for at least a few months but just a couple weeks later after the purchase, the gear Head in me started to do some research and tinkering. Please don't hesitate to share any tips or advice while I'm posting up pictures and information of what I've done so far.

Do you have the 3s blx?

 

[bicketybam]

Do you have the 3s blx?

Based on the post title I'd say it's a brushed Mega.

 

[Rdd201]

Do you have the 3s blx?

Sorry, I'll make it more clear. It's the Mega 4x4

 

[Rdd201]

Truck was purchased brand new back in December, kept everything stock for about 2 weeks. It's a very fun little Short Course Truck no big complaint worth noting (broken bumpers, steering arms, etc due to cold weather). First, I was able to GPS the truck and it only got to 21mph out of a box. Curious to get the truck up to the 30mph claimed speed....
* 1st MOD; 27t rear pinion gear was able to get the truck up to 26mph on stock NiMh battery. LHS warned me about overheating the stock motor and losing punch. Only the punch loss occurred but very little, almost unnoticeable.

*2nd MOD; GoolRC 4300kv brushless motor w/ 60a ESC & Programming card Combo. https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/381730617859. Couldn't resist everything I heard from going brushless so with an eBay coupon that I had I only ended up paying about 20 bucks for this complete combo. Only downfall is that it's not waterproof. Running strong now for 2 months, no complaints at the moment.

3rd MOD; gens-ace-r-spam 2S Lipo 5000mah 50c battery.
( truthfully, should have been my first mod. I think I would have enjoyed the stock brushed motor a little longer)
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/131920567956
The stock battery was proving not worthy anymore. The new brushless system is demanding much more power that it cannot possibly get from the NiMh. Even with a Venom 5000mah NiMh, I was only getting about 3-4 min run time. After throwing that 2s in there, it felt like a completely different truck. Now getting about 35mph on the gps app.

4th MOD; HD Metal input gear. I heard these happened to snap very easily when you're on a brushless and lipo setup. I don't think it would have broken on 2s but definitely would have broken on 3s. Either way I thought it would be a good idea to change it out early

5th MOD; 3sBLX driveshaft bearing. A high RPMs you notice the driveshaft dancing around a little bit. This bearing will secure it in place and allow the transfer of power to get to the wheels a little easier. Plus it looks pretty cool ?

6th MOD; Granite wheel & tire combo. Broke one of my stock wheels on a hard-hit , it was time to get another set .Wanting a little more ground clearance with a more aggressive stance, I decided to go with the granite Wheels. Not a bad upgrade if you want to stay with the stock 14 mm hexes and no rubbing issues on the chassis. Not that cheap but they cost me about $27 for each pair. Haven't GPS'd it yet, but I'm sure my top speed has increased due to the larger diameter Tire combo ( previous top was 35mph, maybe at least 37mph now). Senton body will not fit without rubbing the body. I had to add extra preload spacers on the Springs to tighten up the suspension a little more to prevent rubbing until I figure out what I'm going to do (trim body or another body)

 

[Rdd201]

Just a couple vids uploaded on my Youtube channel. Will post up more videos with more upgrades soon. Please hit subscribe.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDb9LpBjNQ-ocASU3Ar16QA

 

[Rdd201]

How can I forget one of the most important things, your charger. It's not the best but for $25, it does the job very well and charges at a decent speed.

 

[Rdd201]

Possibly my biggest & only real gripe about this RC is that the shocks constantly leak. But these are the same shocks that you will find in the 3s BLX lineup as well. Arrma was nice enough to send me a rebuild kit but the ongoing problem is in this video

 

[Rdd201]

Probably my worst hit so far. It was like 35 degrees out so I don't really blame the truck at all. Even broke the wheel! ??

 

[Mmcbryar]

How do you feel about the 4300kv motor. I have a 3s with the 3200 and a mega with goolrc 3800. The 3200 feels much punchier and even faster, though my sheet calculated the 3800 at 40mph where the 3s should be running 33mph. It is using a 23 tooth pinion, I wonder if it is too much gear. crappy weather so I can't do any testing right now.

 

[DoNoHarm]

Pretty cool rig you got going on there man. You'll be buying castle 6s systems before you know it!

 

[bicketybam]

How do you feel about the 4300kv motor. I have a 3s with the 3200 and a mega with goolrc 3800. The 3200 feels much punchier and even faster, though my sheet calculated the 3800 at 40mph where the 3s should be running 33mph. It is using a 23 tooth pinion, I wonder if it is too much gear. crappy weather so I can't do any testing right now.

If you are running a stock Mega with a 3800kv motor on 3s with a 23t 48p pinion and a 91t 48p spur, your top speed should be around 47 mph. Something isn't right.

 

[Rdd201]

How do you feel about the 4300kv motor. I have a 3s with the 3200 and a mega with goolrc 3800. The 3200 feels much punchier and even faster, though my sheet calculated the 3800 at 40mph where the 3s should be running 33mph. It is using a 23 tooth pinion, I wonder if it is too much gear. crappy weather so I can't do any testing right now.

The 4300kv is fun but since its been my 1st ever brushless system, its hard to compare to anything but stock.
Sounds like your 3s has loads of torque. Traction is definitely an issue right now. Cold tires and cold ground has me spinning a bit. Difficult to get a good feel on initial take off. What batteries are you running on the 3s & the Mega?

 

[Rdd201]

Pretty cool rig you got going on there man. You'll be buying castle 6s systems before you know it!

Thanks! Its been fun and quite the learning experience so far. Come spring, i want to put the drivetrain to the test and try 3s

 

[Rdd201]

So it's still a bit cold out and traction is still an issue but I was able to strap the GPS back on and got a top speed of 38mph

 

[Mmcbryar]

Humm when I calculated I thought I got 40mph for the mega. Feels slower than the 3s.

Running 5000mah 2s 50c batteries.

Going to try and hit the track this weekend. Like 10 degrees out so I don't feel like freezing lol.

 

[Rdd201]

Yeah im also running 2s 5000mah 50c. All the extra gearing (27t & bigger tires) is helping me get that higher top speed. I thought it was going to be at the expense of acceleration but that hasn't been the case. My Senton still has lots of low end torque

 

[Rdd201]

Got to trim the body today just a bit to accommodate the larger Granite tires. Took a ride and some hard turns. No rubbing as of yet but it hasn't jumped.

 

[Dutch213]

@Rdd201 what part of nj are you in? i don't think you ever said in the nj bash thread...

 

[Rdd201]

Sorry. I'm from North Bergen in Hudson County. The asscrack of the state.