Granite Thinking of Getting a Granite 4x4 Mega V3

[RCWilly]

Hello, hope you guys are doing well.

I am thinking of getting a Granite 4x4 Mega, and I just had a few questions I wanted to ask. I know the servo is only 23T. Is there a 25T servo horn or is it only compatible with the 23T servos? Another question I have is about the shocks. From what I can find, I don't really see many options for it other than the aluminum ones on eBay or the Proline Powers Strokes. Are the ones from eBay rebuildable or is does it only come as a set? I am also curious to hear what you guys think of it, and all the mods and upgrades that you guys have done. I am not new to this hobby (or the forums, my RCTalk Username is TurboChargedHonda) and I have quite a few Traxxas cars, but I am new to Arrma, so any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[CallMeTex]

Good call... I went with the Mega and regret it. After 2 weeks, my motor has failed. Upgrading to brushless and changing the slipper clutch is going to cost nearly twice the difference in cost between the mega and blx. Next time I'll know better.

 

[Ruzty1311]

Hello, hope you guys are doing well.

I am thinking of getting a Granite 4x4 Mega, and I just had a few questions I wanted to ask. I know the servo is only 23T. Is there a 25T servo horn or is it only compatible with the 23T servos? Another question I have is about the shocks. From what I can find, I don't really see many options for it other than the aluminum ones on eBay or the Proline Powers Strokes. Are the ones from eBay rebuildable or is does it only come as a set? I am also curious to hear what you guys think of it, and all the mods and upgrades that you guys have done. I am not new to this hobby (or the forums, my RCTalk Username is TurboChargedHonda) and I have quite a few Traxxas cars, but I am new to Arrma, so any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

Arrma makes a servo saver(horn) 25t to run 25t servos

 

[RCWilly]

@RCWilly If this is your first arrma they pretty much all make that noise. My Typhon is more clicky than my Granite lol Make a video and post it here just so we can hear it to make sure? There might be videos on YouTube of other people with this concern as well but realizing its normal after other arrma owners confirm it

Here's a video:

It also seems to cog fairly easily on grass and rought terrain, and also has a weird lag on startups, so I'm not sure whether it's an actual problem, or is it just just me? Thanks for trying to help!

 

[Ruzty1311]

Here's a video:

It also seems to cog fairly easily on grass and rought terrain, and also has a weird lag on startups, so I'm not sure whether it's an actual problem, or is it just just me? Thanks for trying to help!

Nope thats not normal lol Have you tried pulling the center driveshaft off and inspecting it? Sounds like something stuck in there. It could also be one of the diffs and I hope its not

 

[Engineer]

Nope thats not normal lol Have you tried pulling the center driveshaft off and inspecting it? Sounds like something stuck in there. It could also be one of the diffs and I hope its not

I would agree that that clicky sound is not normal and my thoughts would also be to look at the center driveshaft to see if anything is rubbing - heck, pull the driveshaft and run it in RWD and see if it still clicks.

 

[Ruzty1311]

Well shoot both diffs will rotate with the driveshaft off if you roll it on the ground so you can check both that way also. Its definitely not the motor so thats good.

 

[RCWilly]

Thanks for the replies! I'm not sure whether there is something stuck in there, but it had the clicking sound right from the box. I removed the center driveshaft and the front my itself was smooth and quiet (just lifted the rear and rolled it back and forth). Unfortunately, I can't say the same for the rear, and the clicking sound remains. The sound seems to be coming from the motor (or somewhere in the rear, lol). I think it's rather unlikely to be the diffs, since the car had this issue right out of the box (unless there was a machining error on one of the diff gears). I'll take a look at the motor assembly and spur/pinion tomorrow if it's not the rear diff. I really appreciate the help and effort from you guys, thanks!

 

[CallMeTex]

I don't know about RC diffs... but if that were a real car i'd say it's the diff. Typically louder under coasting is the diff pinion. It may be mesh incorrect (shims) or a missing tooth.

 

[RCWilly]

So I just took off the motor assembly, and turned the rear wheels. There seems to be a grinding sound coming from the back, and everytime it makes the sound, there's a tiny bit of resistance to it. I will take a look at the rear diff.

 

[RCWilly]

Yeah, something's definitely wrong with the rear diff... it would turn fine for 75% of a turn, and then it would start getting stuck with a light crunching noise. I removed the whole rear diff assembly, and took everything out, and there doesn't seem to be any noticeable flaws. Put everything back together, and the same thing occurs... At this point, there's three possibilities I can think of:
1. deformed differential pinion
2. deformed ring gear/diff housing
3. deformed differential case

What are your thoughts about this? Thanks for all the help!
(I'll try contacting Horizon and see what they say)

 

[L3phturn]

Great truck. Something isn’t right in the rear. Did you open the diff to see what’s wrong?
Call HH support line right away. They will sort you out. Send them the link to that video.
Be sure to calibrate your ESC, set your end points, and set your mesh correctly.

 

[chuggz]

Yeah, something's definitely wrong with the rear diff... it would turn fine for 75% of a turn, and then it would start getting stuck with a light crunching noise. I removed the whole rear diff assembly, and took everything out, and there doesn't seem to be any noticeable flaws. Put everything back together, and the same thing occurs... At this point, there's three possibilities I can think of:
1. deformed differential pinion
2. deformed ring gear/diff housing
3. deformed differential case

What are your thoughts about this? Thanks for all the help!
(I'll try contacting Horizon and see what they say)

Hi there , I have two granites and both rear diffs were like this , they are shimmed tight from factory and will wear in,
Because there is no centre diff , the rear diff cops a lot of abuse and need to be shimmed this way, common setup I used in off road racing 1/8 truggies.
Also check your motor pinion to spur mesh, spin the spur around and check mesh backlash in a few different locations to check for tight spots.
Razor Rc has a great vid explaining this

 

[RCWilly]

I checked the spur and pinion, and the whole motor assembly seems to be fine. I brought it to my LHS a few days ago. The guy there tried to fix it, and the clicking is less noticeable when rolling at low speeds, but at high speeds, the clicking is much more prominent than before (it kind of sounds like engine knocking). I'll see if I can post another video tomorrow (it's raining here in the bay area).

Another question... how long does it usually take Horizon to reply to warranty emails? I have only received an automatic reply with a case number so far (it's been 4 days, maybe more since I sent the email). Any thoughts?

Edit:
Here's what the email says if that's any help:
"Hello ,

Thank you for emailing us. Your case number is 00793710.

To update this case, please reply to this email chain / thread. Please note: Kindly reply only to this email thread (which contains a direct link to your case number and ref number) because new emails will not attach to this case.

To create a new case on another matter, please send a new email with a new subject to us.

COVID-19 and remote working situations have led to longer response times. We are working to improve our service experience and thank you for your business and patience as we strive to answer your needs. A member of our team will respond in the order received during our business hours Monday through Friday.

You can check the status of your active order by going to https://www.horizonhobby.com/login, and either logging in or checking the status using your order number.

Sincerely,
Horizon Hobby Support"

 

[Ruzty1311]

I checked the spur and pinion, and the whole motor assembly seems to be fine. I brought it to my LHS a few days ago. The guy there tried to fix it, and the clicking is less noticeable when rolling at low speeds, but at high speeds, the clicking is much more prominent than before (it kind of sounds like engine knocking). I'll see if I can post another video tomorrow (it's raining here in the bay area).

Another question... how long does it usually take Horizon to reply to warranty emails? I have only received an automatic reply with a case number so far (it's been 4 days, maybe more since I sent the email). Any thoughts?

Edit:
Here's what the email says if that's any help:
"Hello ,

Thank you for emailing us. Your case number is 00793710.

To update this case, please reply to this email chain / thread. Please note: Kindly reply only to this email thread (which contains a direct link to your case number and ref number) because new emails will not attach to this case.

To create a new case on another matter, please send a new email with a new subject to us.

COVID-19 and remote working situations have led to longer response times. We are working to improve our service experience and thank you for your business and patience as we strive to answer your needs. A member of our team will respond in the order received during our business hours Monday through Friday.

You can check the status of your active order by going to https://www.horizonhobby.com/login, and either logging in or checking the status using your order number.

Sincerely,
Horizon Hobby Support"

It took them about 5-6 days to get in actual contact with me. They are sending me a new motor HOWEVER it isn't the Spektra 3200kv since they are out of stock. They are sending me an Arrma Blx3656 3800kv. They told me it performs same as the Spektra so we'll see lol I send a "any update on my claim?" reply about 4 days after my initial claim then they got a hold of me a couple days later. Send them an email tomorrow asking for update on your claim.

 

[RCWilly]

Thanks for the reply! I replied to the original email... hopefully they will respond within a few days

 

[RCWilly]

lol, still no reply, and I don't think they reply during the weekend, so I guess I'll wait until Monday.
Wait, is "[email protected]" the right email?