Kraton Kraton EXB rear diff compatible with 6s BLX?

[Jluther@becoinc]

I didn’t see if this was answered.... but if I took a fully assembled diff and housing removed from a kraton v4, (like one you can buy from Jenny’s rc) and put the whole assembly (diff, diff housing) on the EXB, that should be fine, correct??? It won’t over gear it or under gear it or anything silly that I am not thinking of, right??? Center drive shafts are the same???
I preordered the EXB.... hoping the next shipment has the diffs sorted, but if not, just want to make sure I can do a full swap and run it like that!
Thanks in advance to you all!

That will work I have done it to keep my exb running. Ive

 

[eyeopenher]

That will work I have done it to keep my exb running. Ive

Awesome! Thank you man!

 

[GiantNinja]

Way ahead of you bud

I had thought about transplanting the EXB gears onto the V4 ARA220050 units but with the help of @jondilly1974, we confirmed bolt patterns and diff cups diameters are very different. Also, the EXB uses 6mm, whereas the V4 uses 5mm diameter shafts. Plus more BS that makes it almost impossible for it to work.

Give it time though as someone out there is designing an aftermarket diff cup for the EXB...

I was thinking the same thing. Hopefully a super solid after market diff isn't too far away, because it seems like there's going to be a market for it

 

[MrTitanium]

I was thinking the same thing. Hopefully a super solid after market diff isn't too far away, because it seems like there's going to be a market for it

IMO, an aluminum diff cup is the only way to go.

 

[olds97_lss]

I was thinking the same thing. Hopefully a super solid after market diff isn't too far away, because it seems like there's going to be a market for it

From what I can tell, there's been a market for it for 5+ years... diffs have been a bit of an ongoing diatribe for the arrma trucks since I heard about arrma trucks.

Thanks for clearing everything up @Notorious J !

 

[GiantNinja]

So I replaced the read diff with part # AR220041 and so far it's been working well. Now the front diff is making noises and I'm planning on replacing it with the same part. Really hope they fix this diff issue and hope these diffs from the BLX Kraton hold up

 

[chrisexv6]

So I replaced the read diff with part # AR220041 and so far it's been working well. Now the front diff is making noises and I'm planning on replacing it with the same part. Really hope they fix this diff issue and hope these diffs from the BLX Kraton hold up

Did you need to replace the housing on the truck as well?

 

[jondilly1974]

So I replaced the read diff with part # AR220041 and so far it's been working well. Now the front diff is making noises and I'm planning on replacing it with the same part. Really hope they fix this diff issue and hope these diffs from the BLX Kraton hold up

Does that include the input gear too?

 

[GiantNinja]

Did you need to replace the housing on the truck as well?

No, the diff fits in the existing housing just fine... Only thing that is super important to remember is that you need to use the 10T input gear it comes with that attaches the 43T Spiral Diff Crown Gear to the center driveshaft (AR220041 comes with it, but ARA310957 does not). The exb one is different than the existing Kraton BLX, but it is a pretty straight forward drop in replacement

Does that include the input gear too?

Yes, it does. I think this is the major difference between AR220041 (which is what I got and has it but you have to assemble it yourself) and ARA310957 which is a fully assembled diff that you could just drop in the BLX Kraton, but not the EXB (unless you've already changed the input gear that is)

 

[chrisexv6]

So Im thinking this means an EXB diff would fit into the non-EXB diff housing, as long as you change to the EXB input gear as well?

Just getting ducks in a row for if the diffs ever come back in stock

 

[jondilly1974]

So Im thinking this means an EXB diff would fit into the non-EXB diff housing, as long as you change to the EXB input gear as well?

Just getting ducks in a row for if the diffs ever come back in stock

Yes the housing is the same exact part and the only shared part.

 

[GiantNinja]

So Im thinking this means an EXB diff would fit into the non-EXB diff housing, as long as you change to the EXB input gear as well?

Just getting ducks in a row for if the diffs ever come back in stock

Yup... You can sort by exb parts for the Kraton you have, and both the open/rear (#ARA311066) and limited slip diff pages mention you need to ensure you use the right input gear, but otherwise compatible

 

[chrisexv6]

You know, with the prices that some people are asking on Ebay for the EXB diff shims, I should probably buy an actual EXB and just part it out.

 

[jondilly1974]

You know, with the prices that some people are asking on Ebay for the EXB diff shims, I should probably buy an actual EXB and just part it out.

I had to pay $28 a set for gears from Germany. You do what you gotta do.

 

[chrisexv6]

I had to pay $28 a set for gears from Germany. You do what you gotta do.

$75 or best offer for a set of "active diff plates" on Ebay right now!

Past auctions went for $60-ish so I would assume $75 isnt really that much of a stretch.

 

[Duggin]

So Im thinking this means an EXB diff would fit into the non-EXB diff housing, as long as you change to the EXB input gear as well?

Just getting ducks in a row for if the diffs ever come back in stock

Why put an inferior diff in that is known to have a high failure rate? My stock V4 rear diff held up for 3 months of bash/racing. 6 battery packs every session. If I had an EXB I'd drop a V4 diff in and be done with it.

 

[chrisexv6]

Why put an inferior diff in that is know to have a high failure rate? My stock V4 rear diff held up for 3 months of bash/racing. 6 battery packs every session. If I had an EXB I drop a V4 diff in and be done with it.

The EXB diff parts are heavier duty.

The pins are larger diameter, the gear teeth are "deeper", the outdrives have larger diameter shafts and are (supposedly) made of tougher material, etc.

I think if you shim them properly (even the open diff), you'll end up with a better than V4 unit. But it will take more work than just installing it into the truck and hammering on it. Even v4 diffs should be checked before use, considering the production issues Arrma seems to be having with the EXB.

 

[jondilly1974]

The EXB diff parts are heavier duty.

The pins are larger diameter, the gear teeth are "deeper", the outdrives have larger diameter shafts and are (supposedly) made of tougher material, etc.

I think if you shim them properly (even the open diff), you'll end up with a better than V4 unit. But it will take more work than just installing it into the truck and hammering on it. Even v4 diffs should be checked before use, considering the production issues Arrma seems to be having with the EXB.

Standard shims alone won’t save the EXB diffs. You will need larger LSD sized shims at least, if not LSD plates themselves.

 

[chrisexv6]

Standard shims alone won’t save the EXB diffs. You will need larger LSD sized shims at least, if not LSD plates themselves.

I'll have to find the link but someone in the Facebook group posted a video of how he supported the open diff with shims around the planetary gear. In guessing they serve the same purpose as the lsd plates....support the gears.

 

[jondilly1974]

I'll have to find the link but someone in the Facebook group posted a video of how he supported the open diff with shims around the planetary gear. In guessing they serve the same purpose as the lsd plates....support the gears.

Yes @BashingBrian has a build thread here doing it with plate sized shims. My point was standard shim from Arrma and Mugen won’t save it tho.