You shoulda bought an Outcast - My 4s Granite Build Thread

[Crunchy Gears]

My kids are running their 3S rigs even in the skate park with minimal breakage and cheap replacement parts when they do. Agreed though that once you are serious and going to stay with this hobby, the 6S rigs are awesome. I really like my Notorious as well. My issue with buggies and smaller tired rigs is that where I run (construction areas a lot) the lower ground clearance = crashes and breakage. The Kraton is a great choice where I run and the Talion 6S would also be a good choice. At this point I am more looking to pick up used/smashed ones for cheap and then spend the money on the upgrades I want to make a good rig.

Imo the skate park is where these little rigs shine. The plastic flexes and and bounces back. Once you get something wedged under the motor mount and the shock rod ends sorted, you could run 2s with the occasional 3s antics and last forever.

I did ALOT of skatepark before I went to metal diffs and honestly if I wasn't already planning on 4s I don't think I needed to. Yeah they're plastic but if you're keeping them stock and light they do fine imo since I got 30 hard packs out of my first set..and that's with no grease or diff oil inside gotta love the QC but I digress. From what I've seen the Typhon is the best of the bunch for the 3s line. Light and smaller wheels means all that power doesn't do as much wear and tear.

For all around shenanigans, though my Notorious is king. Soaks up the rough stuff better and is just as snappy in the air. And even though it's slinging some serious weight around it's just tough as freakin nails!
My favorite rc of all time by far. I love the chassis design when I do work in it even though I've done very little so far. It's just a whole different experience might as well be a different brand compared to the 3s line.

 

[L3phturn]

Imo the skate park is where these little rigs shine. The plastic flexes and and bounces back. Once you get something wedged under the motor mount and the shock rod ends sorted, you could run 2s with the occasional 3s antics and last forever.

I did ALOT of skatepark before I went to metal diffs and honestly if I wasn't already planning on 4s I don't think I needed to. Yeah they're plastic but if you're keeping them stock and light they do fine imo since I got 30 hard packs out of my first set..and that's with no grease or diff oil inside gotta love the QC but I digress. From what I've seen the Typhon is the best of the bunch for the 3s line. Light and smaller wheels means all that power doesn't do as much wear and tear.

For all around shenanigans, though my Notorious is king. Soaks up the rough stuff better and is just as snappy in the air. And even though it's slinging some serious weight around it's just tough as freakin nails!
My favorite rc of all time by far. I love the chassis design when I do work in it even though I've done very little so far. It's just a whole different experience might as well be a different brand compared to the 3s line.

Yep, the 3S rigs do well at the skate park. I usually prefer 3S in them but a smaller mAh pack for less weight. The main reason is to get the wheel speed for good air control.

Totally agreed on the Notorious. I am not there yet but I aspire to @Rich Duperbash 's Outcast Light.

 

[Velodromed]

The arrma cvds are not meant for the Typhon arms supposedly but they seem to do just fine for me and have never come apart at the center so far inspite of having less area covered than they should.

So you were running the CVDs with typhon arms and no issues? For how long? Think I’m going to try that on Old Yeller. With the 3670, 3050kv motor it kills driveshafts on 3s unless I leave the slipper a bit loose. I have a set of cvds but have been hesitant to try them…

 

[Crunchy Gears]

So you were running the CVDs with typhon arms and no issues? For how long? Think I’m going to try that on Old Yeller. With the 3670, 3050kv motor it kills driveshafts on 3s unless I leave the slipper a bit loose. I have a set of cvds but have been hesitant to try them…

Since July I think, since last summer anyways all the way till last month with no issues.

Get rid of excess droop with a pair of zip ties and should be bullet proof. Or "suspension limiters" if you want fancy ones.
That said I didn't even do that until I started breaking them back to back..to back last month when I put bigger wheels on. They don't like backflips on extenders very much. But with normal size tires they're fantastic no issues whatsoever.

 

[JPWSRC]

Nope haven't had the need yet, I've put close to 100 packs in this truck and only went through 3, one of which was just because the safe D clip was bouncing around in the gear box. And this is my skate park basher.

The Granite Motor hasn't died yet but when it does I'll go down some kvs probably. With the drive train shimmed up nice and no further dust getting built up inside, it's been very resilient and honestly not that hot. I'm gonna throw one more fan on it come summer and I'm thinking it should be good.

It won't protect every which way, but your motor mount and spurs will last longer if you add support between the motor can and the chassis.

M2c makes a motor mount/brace that addresses it or you can use something as simple as gift cards like I have in this build

Yeah, I have arrma metal diff gears front and back. I just checked the gear mesh while I had it apart doing the suspension upgrade. Still look good but the HR yokes for the back are on my list especially now that I've added some more poundage to the Granite's frame.

If your slipper is coming loose, why not loctite the back? I used red loctite and it finally stays. Then when I need to take it apart just flick a lighter underneath it for a few seconds and good to go.


The Sketer looks like a beast man glad it's holding strong for ya. I got myself a Notorious during arrmas big sale in March and it's a totally different animal than the 3s machines.

Awesome that Noto looks like a hoot! I just got a complete V3 K6 I'm beefing up and have most parts to build out either a T6 and or an OC6, getting ready to build them out in the next few weeks and have a bit of fun. I'm mostly done with my S6, but that's not gonna be bashed as hard as the other rigs.
Yeah, I already had a M2C mount (if you zoom in you can see it in the pic) and was serving my BRCC well until I built the OC4. As for the yoke, I tried running the composite one and it couldn't handle the loads on the OC. Mesh is good now, but two packs in on the composite yoke, and it was already getting premature wear on the outer part of the input gear.
I don't red locktite anything RC, or for that matter much in the 1:1 world. I have some, but can't even tell you where it is because it's been that long. I tried blue locktite a few times but it didn't work and just made a mess of the clutches anyway ( even after 24 hrs).
The Sketer is a beast but not without its issues, ...just like anything else. A few weeks ago I was I hitting quads on 4s with a 17T pinion but she was getting hot. Knocked it back to 15T and reinstalled the stock wheels and its still hitting triples pretty nicely and is much cooler. Partly because I discovered some drag in the rear driveline from a bent shaft and misaligned (bent rear tower). Since upping the front diff to 100k I've broken both steering endlinks. Not sure if it's a coincidence or just plain wear and tear from months of hard abuse.

I like my Notorious.
I didn't need to add much to it at all. HR F/R braces and Center diff mount. Basically all stock. And gets some big air no issues.
No slipper to deal with. Diffs are running great. Run it with 3s, 4s and 6s. All stock electrics.
If I got a 4x4, I would have sunk in way too much money, costing more than my Noto. out the box.
Seems many try $upgrade$ on their 4x4's to become as durable as the 6s line. When in reality, it costs way more and always has issues running 4s when more speed is wanted. Much of the 4x4 upgrades are just band-aids that don't always work. I feel the 4x4's are all money pits. Some can say ALL RC's are money pits, just that some RC platforms are $way worse$ than others.

Not raining on anyone's parade here. The 4x4 platform is a great starter rig for someone, a young kid perhaps, new to RC and learning, all while NOT bashing YT hard, and not sure if they will like the hobby.View attachment 212802

I feel the 4x4 platform is already maxxed out with 3s running. And probably more durable running 2s only. Investing $200.+ in upgrades makes no sense. Yet many do this. Needing 6s shocks, Motor mount plate, constant slipper repairs/adjustments, driveshaft breakages. C hubs breaking, Having to go to 17mm hexes from the standard oddball 14mm hexes in some cases. Weak Servo Saver issues, Steering slop that is way worse than the 6s line, Power module that collects so much dirt, gear mesh that never stays correct/ bricked pinions and spurs. Diffs that are hard to shim/plastic yokes and main gears etc, Motor BB's that are very poor. Many end up replacing motors early on. By the time you try to upgrade/address many of these problem areas, you could have purchased a 6s rig and then some.. I noticed so many 4x4 upgrade parts cost as much if not more than many 6s parts. 4x4 line is a money maker for upgrade brands and Arrma. Because Arrma doesn't want to make the 4x4x line any better, continues to sell as is with many inherent issues. This has gotten very old by now. The only thing new is the higher prices Arrma gets for the same old 4x4 platform.
Just get a 6s rig. Only when you get a 6s rig will you understand it better.
A 6s Typhon RTR can be had for only $500.
You will very easily bring your 4x4 well over $500. by the time you start upgrading things that always break frequently. And it will happen out the box.
You can't bash 4x4's hard, like Arrma wants you to think. It was originally meant as a 2s Mega platform, IMHO. It is maxxed out already, so it will not be durable as many would like it to.

Solid points. I regret falling into the same trap... m2c motor mount and T6 shocks alone set me back 180 on the OC4, granted that mount WAS in my BRCC which sees much lighter use now. The OC build was ridiculou$, but a softer hit than 5-700+ all at once for a v5 or EXB variant OC. Overall I believe most folks fall into that category.
After getting the Sketer everything but that and my K4 gets used lightly otherwise. Broke out the OC4 last weekend and went full send doing quads and triples off a Killaramp on its second lowest setting and was having a helluva time.
Lately my go to is the K4, I've run ~20 packs through it since mid Feb but it nickle and dimes me to death. Currently it's awaiting a HR yoke after swapping out a new pinion & crown gear and I have a tire that's got a small tear in it now (still on the original tires). A few weeks ago it was a bent front shock rod and a clutch hub. I'd bash the Sketer more but the body is done and I'm sorting out how to swap on a different type of body...

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Awesome that Noto looks like a hoot! I just got a complete V3 K6 I'm beefing up and have most parts to build out either a T6 and or an OC6, getting ready to build them out in the next few weeks and have a bit of fun. I'm mostly done with my S6, but that's not gonna be bashed as hard as the other rigs.
Yeah, I already had a M2C mount (if you zoom in you can see it in the pic) and was serving my BRCC well until I built the OC4. As for the yoke, I tried running the composite one and it couldn't handle the loads on the OC. Mesh is good now, but two packs in on the composite yoke, and it was already getting premature wear on the outer part of the input gear.
I don't red locktite anything RC, or for that matter much in the 1:1 world. I have some, but can't even tell you where it is because it's been that long. I tried blue locktite a few times but it didn't work and just made a mess of the clutches anyway ( even after 24 hrs).
The Sketer is a beast but not without its issues, ...just like anything else. A few weeks ago I was I hitting quads on 4s with a 17T pinion but she was getting hot. Knocked it back to 15T and reinstalled the stock wheels and its still hitting triples pretty nicely and is much cooler. Partly because I discovered some drag in the rear driveline from a bent shaft and misaligned (bent rear tower). Since upping the front diff to 100k I've broken both steering endlinks. Not sure if it's a coincidence or just plain wear and tear from months of hard abuse.

Solid points. I regret falling into the same trap... m2c motor mount and T6 shocks alone set me back 180 on the OC4, granted that mount WAS in my BRCC which sees much lighter use now. The OC build was ridiculou$, but a softer hit than 5-700+ all at once for a v5 or EXB variant OC. Overall I believe most folks fall into that category.
After getting the Sketer everything but that and my K4 gets used lightly otherwise. Broke out the OC4 last weekend and went full send doing quads and triples off a Killaramp on its second lowest setting and was having a helluva time.
Lately my go to is the K4, I've run ~20 packs through it since mid Feb but it nickle and dimes me to death. Currently it's awaiting a HR yoke after swapping out a new pinion & crown gear and I have a tire that's got a small tear in it now (still on the original tires). A few weeks ago it was a bent front shock rod and a clutch hub. I'd bash the Sketer more but the body is done and I'm sorting out how to swap on a different type of body...

Red Loctite on anything that gets hot has worked phenomenally for me. It's the only way I can keep my slipper from backing out. Blue is worthless imo on anything rotating or hot.

I understand completely with the Sketer. Now that I have my Noto the Granite gets used less or I'll throw in 3s pack, set the radio to 50% and pass it to my boy when I get tired of searching the field and popping steering links back in on his Voltage. .


Well last skate park run killed my last plastic spur.

Couple nose heavy landings and she was done.

Finally bent the motor plate to the point of losing mesh.
So I'm gonna give the HR spur a try. They make two models, one that take 3 pads and one that takes 4. I opted for the 3 since the slipper does just fine with the set up I had.

Idk what kind of monkey metal arrma is using for the 3s trucks but it might as well be aluminum foil. I took the motor plate out to the sidewalk and barely tapped it and it was back in shape.

Picked up an m2c motor plate on its own off of eBay so just gonna go easy on her till that gets here.

 

[Velodromed]

Since July I think, since last summer anyways all the way till last month with no issues.

Get rid of excess droop with a pair of zip ties and should be bullet proof. Or "suspension limiters" if you want fancy ones.
That said I didn't even do that until I started breaking them back to back..to back last month when I put bigger wheels on. They don't like backflips on extenders very much. But with normal size tires they're fantastic no issues whatsoever.

They are working great after a few high speed runs. Don’t need to limit droop as the warped rear rpm arms that irritated me so much actually make for a perfect setup for cvds

 

[Crunchy Gears]

M2C is here to save the day

Same thickness as my stock mount. Fingers crossed the 7075 makes the difference!

Got it off a guy second hand so no extra hardware. I didn't want the chassis block since alot of guys seem to not need it saved me $40. I got plenty of washers and just used my own with trusty red loctite.

The parts fitment is very tight. Very well done. I was able to remove all my shims from the motor plate side and drop down to 2 .02 shims on the back plate side for the slipper.

Keep ya guys posted on how it holds up. Other than switching to a 35 kg servo in the near future to supplement the heavier tires the Granite is done other than vanity items.

Like this:

Still figuring out how to do the stripes but coming soon

Also anyone know of decent looking 17mm wheels that'd go with these? Don't care about the color I'm willing to paint em myself
https://www.horizonhobby.com/product/bandh-monster-truck-clod-tires/RC4ZT0018.html

 

[Velodromed]

View attachment 217173
M2C is here to save the day

Same thickness as my stock mount. Fingers crossed the 7075 makes the difference!

View attachment 217175

Got it off a guy second hand so no extra hardware. I didn't want the chassis block since alot of guys seem to not need it saved me $40. I got plenty of washers and just used my own with trusty red loctite.

View attachment 217176

The parts fitment is very tight. Very well done. I was able to remove all my shims from the motor plate side and drop down to 2 .02 shims on the back plate side for the slipper.

View attachment 217177

Keep ya guys posted on how it holds up. Other than switching to a 35 kg servo in the near future to supplement the heavier tires the Granite is done other than vanity items.

Like this:
View attachment 217178

Still figuring out how to do the stripes but coming soon

Also anyone know of decent looking 17mm wheels that'd go with these? Don't care about the color I'm willing to paint em myself
https://www.horizonhobby.com/product/bandh-monster-truck-clod-tires/RC4ZT0018.html

Nice! Looking forward to seeing what you do with the rest of painting that body. Looks very good so far.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Thanks! All painter's tape and used star decals from Walmart to mask off the stars

Was a royal b doing curves with paper tape so I'm on the search for vinyl striping tape before the weather snaps back to cold and rain.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Body's almost done. Just waiting on some things I thought came with it. Like a grill

Kids were at Moms today and the wifey surprised me with asking to go drive together. Hell to the yes! I took the Noto and she took the Granite and we played at the little skate park. Actually got some cool shots today too. Wifey's first successful quarter pipe jump. I took the reigns for just a couple jumps and got another couple feet closer to clearing the top of the utility pole On 4s it's just killer for as long as it lasts. So much power on tap. Power button got knocked loose and kept turning off and I definitely need longer Velcro straps for 4s very soon. Lots of walks of shame even on successful landings today.

Really put the rpm arms and m2c motor brace through their paces today. She's just as bad as Stemp. She beat the googly eyes right off it! I'm standing there trying not to wince watching it crash upside down from 15 ft up or more. Seeing her light up just like I do when pulling something off and being able to share this hobby tho makes it all worth it. ( And hopefully make her more forgiving of my expenses )

No visible breakages. Though something in the drivetrain is unhappy. I'm thinking since there's no clicking the wheels roll smoothly probably the slipper hub gave up but I won't know until I tear her open later.

 

[Velodromed]

Body's almost done. Just waiting on some things I thought came with it. Like a grill

Kids were at Moms today and the wifey surprised me with asking to go drive together. Hell to the yes! I took the Noto and she took the Granite and we played at the little skate park. Actually got some cool shots today too. Wifey's first successful quarter pipe jump. I took the reigns for just a couple jumps and got another couple feet closer to clearing the top of the utility pole On 4s it's just killer for as long as it lasts. So much power on tap. Power button got knocked loose and kept turning off and I definitely need longer Velcro straps for 4s very soon. Lots of walks of shame even on successful landings today.

Really put the rpm arms and m2c motor brace through their paces today. She's just as bad as Stemp. She beat the googly eyes right off it! I'm standing there trying not to wince watching it crash upside down from 15 ft up or more. Seeing her light up just like I do when pulling something off and being able to share this hobby tho makes it all worth it. ( And hopefully make her more forgiving of my expenses )

No visible breakages. Though something in the drivetrain is unhappy. I'm thinking since there's no clicking the wheels roll smoothly probably the slipper hub gave up but I won't know until I tear her open later.

View attachment 218240

That’s great man! I love it when my wife feels good enough to join me. I built her up a nice big rock over a year ago… she drives relatively slow though and is usually happy at 50% throttle. Which is fine because it’s less to repair. However the last time we went out she did drive it on 75% a good bit faster which impressed me

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Pulled out the power module today and it looks perfect. So I start rolling the truck first on the front wheels...all good then on the back..all good.

Then I rotate the rear wheels apart from each other. CLICK, CLACK, CRUNCH. There it is

Popped the diff out and the ring and input are still flawless so it must be the planetary gears inside that are shot.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

That’s great man! I love it when my wife feels good enough to join me. I built her up a nice big rock over a year ago… she drives relatively slow though and is usually happy at 50% throttle. Which is fine because it’s less to repair. However the last time we went out she did drive it on 75% a good bit faster which impressed me

I was getting everything out of the car, turned the Granite on set it down, had the radio already at 50% and reached in for the Noto turned around just in time to watch her send it full throttle over the quarter pipe! so I turned the throttle back up to give it a fighting chance. And honestly held up great! Other than the Velcro coming undone and the power button getting knocked loose, the only thing busted was the planetary gears on the rear. I still got to pull the drive shafts off and look in the diffs to see what exactly is broken inside but I'll do that when parts get here.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Wheels came today! Couldn't wait wanted to see what its gonna look like all together. I'm gonna need to shim up the hexes a tad. The hubs touch if the wheels wobble. I think just a millimeter or there abouts will do.

Same size as the ones I use for my slipper clutch so hopefully I'll have enough already.

 

[GRC]

That's a great look for the Granite. I was planning on getting the BigFoot body for my Granite as well.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

It's mahhoosive!

Gonna have to get extenders for the rear hexes..just not quite enough clearance. I have a washer on the rear hub because the screw doesn't actually cover the pin and the wheels in the back still hit it. Like 3mm is all I need I'll have to look to see what's out there. I don't want it any wider than absolutely necessary if I can help it.

Plus I wanna be able to swap between google's and bigfoot on the fly so don't wanna make it too complicated

Not a shelf queen but it's just too nice to be stupid with. At least for now. Save the LPs and google face for serious bashing.
Ran it in the yard just putted around for a minute in the yard just looks majestic can't wait to do donuts at the ballfield with it


The planetary gears looked pretty worn, it was the sun gears that got destroyed along with the inner bearing. Looks like heat/wear caused the pin retainers to blow out and that killed the rest.

Also new gasket color. My original ones were brownish. Filled it up with 10k again basically the only thing I reused was the yokes, the metal ring and input. The case's pin retainers we're trashed on both sides and the planetary gears that do still have teeth are, compared to the brand new ones, showing signs of wear. Also, since I was in there already I put 2 shims on the ring side this time to push it a little closer to the input. I'll have to do the front soon I'm sure it needs it too. These metal diffs have had alot of packs through em and until today we're still on the original internal gears. I chalk that up as a win

 

[GRC]

Gonna have to get extenders for the rear hexes..just not quite enough clearance. I have a washer on the rear hub because the screw doesn't actually cover the pin and the wheels in the back still hit it. Like 3mm is all I need I'll have to look to see what's out there. I don't want it any wider than absolutely necessary if I can help it.

Yeah, I mentioned in the other thread that rims smaller than 2.8" wouldn't clear the hubs. Hate to say I told you so, but ...

 

[Crunchy Gears]

Yeah, I mentioned in the other thread that rims smaller than 2.8" wouldn't clear the hubs. Hate to say I told you so, but ...

You did but they just look too damn cool not to try. Worse comes to worse they'll go on something else down the road. But I haven't given up yet!

With a couple shims they're fine in the front. It's just the backs and only because of that washer that hold the pins on. I don't dare run it without them tho my luck the pins would work their way out. I'll keep ya posted on if I find anything that works. Or I'll be getting extenders if I can find small ones.

 

[Crunchy Gears]

So even the Phillips head screw off rpm Typhon arms that barely even reaches the pin enough to hold it takes away too much room to keep the wheels from rubbing. And I wouldn't shim more than around a millimeter or you risk ruining your wheel hexes so gonna shelf those wheels for now.

Gonna have to pick up some hex extenders after all if I wanna run em on the Granite

@GRC Your build thread is amazing btw I wish I would have seen it sooner would have saved me alot of headache/heartache.

You did save me $40 off m2c took your advice on just getting the motor plate instead of the combo.

How do you like the 2400 with the 18t? Still running cool geared up? I'm running the 3s motor till she blows but was on the fence about what to throw in next.