crazydave
05-25-2008, 02:46 PM
When I built the first Mastodon, I wanted to see what I could do on a budget, with as many stock parts as possible. I soon realized the limitations of the stock chassis, and decided I wanted more performance, but I also wanted something more scale looking. I guess I was looking for what Jason refers to as a "'tweener", and so we embark on a new journey with Mastodon II. This is a long term work in progress, but I'd like to show you what I have so far.
I started with Ripper7's Hellcat chassis. I like the scale looks, and it raised the tranny up some, so I wouldn't get high centered so easy. It also moves more weight to the front axle as well, so it suits my purposes perfectly. Here it is after I painted and polished it up.
http://bitpimps.lixlink.com/pages/phpGallery/albums/userpics/10007/stumbo6.jpg
I had to cut new linkages, this time I used 6-32nd rod, covered in 3/16th aluminum tubing. I reamed out the Traxxas ball ends with a 1/8th drill bit so I could continue using them. I picked up some Proline Eight Shooter wheels and Moab M3s to go with them. I meant to order the '80 Chevy body, but somehow ended up with the '72 Chevy body, so I'm just working with that, for now. The Maximizer diff locks, and TowerPro servo carried over from the previous build. Here's where we're at so far.
http://crazydavegraphics.com/images/dadon1.jpg
http://crazydavegraphics.com/images/dadon2.jpg
As I was saying, this is a long term project. For the future I'm looking at a clocked motor plate, I already have, and I'm thinking about using it with a clocked transmission mount, or I may just opt for an Axial tranny. I'd like to try to increase the steering with some CVDs and improved knuckles, but in the meantime I'm going to work on some scale details such as bumpers and an interior
Here's a vid. Nothing special, just playing on a few random rocks near my place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA5Voj03Y0Y
I started with Ripper7's Hellcat chassis. I like the scale looks, and it raised the tranny up some, so I wouldn't get high centered so easy. It also moves more weight to the front axle as well, so it suits my purposes perfectly. Here it is after I painted and polished it up.
http://bitpimps.lixlink.com/pages/phpGallery/albums/userpics/10007/stumbo6.jpg
I had to cut new linkages, this time I used 6-32nd rod, covered in 3/16th aluminum tubing. I reamed out the Traxxas ball ends with a 1/8th drill bit so I could continue using them. I picked up some Proline Eight Shooter wheels and Moab M3s to go with them. I meant to order the '80 Chevy body, but somehow ended up with the '72 Chevy body, so I'm just working with that, for now. The Maximizer diff locks, and TowerPro servo carried over from the previous build. Here's where we're at so far.
http://crazydavegraphics.com/images/dadon1.jpg
http://crazydavegraphics.com/images/dadon2.jpg
As I was saying, this is a long term project. For the future I'm looking at a clocked motor plate, I already have, and I'm thinking about using it with a clocked transmission mount, or I may just opt for an Axial tranny. I'd like to try to increase the steering with some CVDs and improved knuckles, but in the meantime I'm going to work on some scale details such as bumpers and an interior
Here's a vid. Nothing special, just playing on a few random rocks near my place.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iA5Voj03Y0Y