Im looking to buy an RC18T in the near future but I have a few questions that I am hoping someone help me with.
I noticed that this vehicle comes with ball differentials, How durable are they and how often will they need to be replaced? I have had ball diffs before in larger vehicles and from my experience they are not what they are cracked up to be. Are the ball type diffs really worth it?
Can the stock differential that is in the Vendetta fit into the rc18t (its a miniture version of what you find in a 1/8th model)? I would buy a vendetta but I am not a duratrax fan and I dont want to buy an RTR as I dont need a radio or batteries.
Is anyone running a Futaba 3PM 2.0 GHZ radio with the R603FF 2.4 GHz FASST Receiver? I am looking to buy a Castle Creations 1/18 Mamba Micro Pro + 6800 kV Combo from tower hobbies. Will I need a separate BEC/regulator to protect my reciever with this setup?
I plan on doing some racing and minor bashing with this badboy when I finally get it.
Are metal spur gears really worth the investment, or am I better off just sticking to the stock plastic spurs? I know all metal in a transmission is bad as there is no failure point during a mishap and its better to replace a cheap plastic part than the whole transmission.
Last question, I know what NiMH batteries im going to get, but I also want to get a nice LIPO battery, nothing insanely aggresive, but something that will give this some nice "get up and go". Any reccomendations?
I have 3 RC18s and the diffs in them hold up to some pretty hard racing. A ball diff is much easier to adjust, and as long as they are adjusted correctly they can handle all the power you can dish out. I usually disassemble and check everything inside the diffs anywhere from 20-50 runs, depending on how hard its been used. Ive done it a few times and only needed to clean and re-assemble. I dont know about the Vendetta Diffs, but I seriously doubt they would fit.
I do not run that Futaba radio, but you will not need anything like an external BEC or regulator. The Mamba Micro Pro is your best choice, and it comes with free firmware upgrades for life. One of the newest upgrades has an adjustable BEC Voltage, so that you can use it with pretty much any radio ever made.
I dont like metal spur gears, but there seems to be alot of people running them on these cars becase they always strip plastic spurs out. I have run mine on 14.8V 4s Lipo and never had a problem. If you take your time and set your gear mesh correctly you should never have a problem.
Check out Hobbycity.com for your Lipo. They have several different packs that will work great for the best price you will find. I run the Rhino 1750mah, but they require very slight modifications to fit, so slight that I still run Nimh without it moving around.
Im looking to buy an RC18T in the near future but I have a few questions that I am hoping someone help me with.
I noticed that this vehicle comes with ball differentials, How durable are they and how often will they need to be replaced? I have had ball diffs before in larger vehicles and from my experience they are not what they are cracked up to be. Are the ball type diffs really worth it?
Can the stock differential that is in the Vendetta fit into the rc18t (its a miniture version of what you find in a 1/8th model)? I would buy a vendetta but I am not a duratrax fan and I dont want to buy an RTR as I dont need a radio or batteries.
Is anyone running a Futaba 3PM 2.0 GHZ radio with the R603FF 2.4 GHz FASST Receiver? I am looking to buy a Castle Creations 1/18 Mamba Micro Pro + 6800 kV Combo from tower hobbies. Will I need a separate BEC/regulator to protect my reciever with this setup?
I plan on doing some racing and minor bashing with this badboy when I finally get it.
Are metal spur gears really worth the investment, or am I better off just sticking to the stock plastic spurs? I know all metal in a transmission is bad as there is no failure point during a mishap and its better to replace a cheap plastic part than the whole transmission.
Last question, I know what NiMH batteries im going to get, but I also want to get a nice LIPO battery, nothing insanely aggresive, but something that will give this some nice "get up and go". Any reccomendations?
For what is available for micro vehicles, balls diffs are going to be a lot more durable than gear diffs, and the RC18 diffs are about as good as they come. A sealed gear diff in a 1/10 or 1/8 nitro car is bullet proof, but a well built ball diff is just as good, and will last a while (the key being properly built)
You will not need an external BEC, the BEC is built into the speed control.
Do not waste your money on a metal spur. It just adds drivetrain weight, and will put more stress on the diff gears. If your looking for drivetrain protection while jumping/bashing, Exotek sells a slipper clutch for it.
For what you are looking for in a lipo, whatever you can stuff into the space to get the most runtime will probably serve you best Look for 2S lipo. They will be mildly faster than nihm, but not stupid crazy retarded like a 3s will
__________________
Mike Gee
Team Driver For: Exotek/Castle/Psycho Cells/GQ Tires/Darkside Designz/Rad Racing
Proud Supporter of: MRL (Micro Racing League) / Final Thoughts RC Club
Not that this thread needs another opinion, but Im giving mine too!
The Losi Street Meats are by far the best tire I have used for all out traction, but they will balloon and fold under high power and fast cornering. The Pro-Line Road Rage was more durable, but really had no traction at all compared to the Losi's. Yeah Racing Slicks seemed to only work when I swept the track carefully before running, and if I did speed runs with them I had to be careful because they will slip and slide when you try to slow down. The Pro-Pulse Street Tires worked great for traction and wear, but they are just a bit too tall for my track with tight corners. . I had issues with the truck traction rolling without lowering the truck alot. For bashing the Pro-Pulse is my tire of choice. I finally decided to go with 3Racing 18R tires. They are much smaller, and I had to add some spacers to help mount them. But for the best mix of traction, wear, and stability at speed, these cant be beat. Just add a 1/10th wheel nut behind the normal axle nut, and they mount just fine. Gear accordingly to get a similar ratio, and it will fly!
Racing/speed runs-3racing street tires for 18R
Bashing-Pro-Pulse street tires
Hi all,
I inherited a used 18T from a dear deceased friend. The front end was apart, but he had put all the pieces into a sealed baggie. I put it back together but one of the front wheels wobbled badly and wheel hopped when turning while moving. I replaced the axle and that straightened that part out. But it won't go in a straight line and has started to wheel hop again. One of the wheels looks to be turned in and the other straight, so no amount of trimming on the radio will help, and since the links are one piece, you can't adjust them. I have a Losi Mini-T, but this 4-wheel drive Associated is totally new and foreign to me. Also, a short time later, I ran into a plastic garbage can inside the house (while the car was moving slowly as I was testing to see if it would go straight - it didn't) and the servo would barely turn after that, even when holding it off the ground. I think the servo was very weak to start with. But what I really notice is that when you move the front wheels back and forth the entire steering assembly flexes quit a bit. is this normal? My husband does have an 18T that he got several years ago, used, but we haven't used it much. The steering assembly also flexes quit a bit, but his does go straight. Any ideas on what to check or replace, besides the servo? I am used to Losi 10th scale, but not so much these little guys. Can you also tell me what tends to need replacing the most on these 18Ts? I did notice that the axle had a groove in it toward the dogbone side. I really didn't think that would be the problem, but when we put a new one on there, it straightened up. Up to then, I thought that it had either a bent wheel or a tire on the rim crooked, but it did the same thing when we switched to another set of tires. After the axle was replaced, that went away. Any help would be appeciated. I would love to be able to run this little truck!
Unfortunately, this is the common trend with all the RC18 products. The stock servo rarely recenters itself correctly, the steering assembly as a whole is garbage. There are many fixes to this. Loosen the stock steering linkage screws just a 1/4 turn or so, mine were too tight from the factory and the servo wasn't able to move and was binded. Loosen the servo horn screw a 1/4 of a turn for the same reason if the problem persists. Now, here comes the stuff that will cost some money. Replace the steering servo with a better one, many people like the Hitec products. Buy an aluminum steering assembly or a DP drag link for the stock setup. Or, you can spend some big bucks for a quality Exotek chassis set that comes with the best steering system for the RC18 series. Hope it helps!
I have a few of the 18s and a few different steering setups.
CVDs are a must to keep the front end smooth, new axles and springs help alot, but quickly go back to doing the same things.
The stock servo is very weak as you suspected. A Hitec HS-65MG is my favorite replacement. Associated sells mounts to make it a direct fit. There is likely other servos that are as good or better, but Im not sure of what else fits.
The stock servo saver is used with the aftermarket servo, so you have to strengthen it somehow. I cut a coil off of a shock spring and wrapped it around the plastic "C" spring that works as the servo saver. This helped the steering center much better.
Next came the draglink, this piece flexes VERY badly and must be replaced for decent steering. On one car I used an aluminum setup from TheToyz.com. It came with everything needed and works very well. On my other cars I used the DP draglink, also available at thetoyz. This piece works very well also and is a much cheaper alternative to the full aluminum setup. I did have to fiddle with it a bit to make it fit properly though.
Now my steering is very predictable, strong, fast, and I have no problems even when I crash.
Thanks, guys. I will have to think about it. I'm not sure I want to go to all that expense and effort. Too bad, it is a nice little truck. However, it sounds like you are speaking about the steering overall, whereas the problem I have is that one wheel is straight and the other is turned in slightly, so there is no way to adjust one wheel as the links are one piece. I'm not sure what to check for that. Any suggestions there? Is there something that can cause just one wheel to be "tweaked"? in or outward? I have changed wheels and tires and it stays the same. Thank you, again.
Ladies,
sounds like someone had the front end apart, check to see if someone got a caster/camber link on one of the steering links. I think one of the links is longer, dont rember if it is a caster link or a steering link. But from your description i would look to see if someone played with the links up front.
Hello im starting a class of 1/18 sliders on asphalt oval and was wondering it there as any rules on them and what i should start with to make it fun and competive? I ran a mod motor for 4 min. and did 40 laps and dont have any rear foams left lol.. should i run another rubber tire or what?
Horacer:
Thanks so much for that info! I never even thought of that and since I have never assembled or had a car with nonadjustable links, I never even thought that the caster/camber links would be different from the steering. I will check that. One great thing that happened this weekend. My husband was able to do some trading for some hop up parts for the 18T. We got the aluminum steering bracket, which made a huge difference. The servo was okay, a pin on the steering bracket had come loose and was sticking up in front, so it made everything cadywampus. The servo does work now, but it is pretty weak. I will still check the links as it still pulls to one side some. Thanks again, I appreciate you bringing that to my attention.
If the links are not mixed up then keep this in mind; You have a trim adjustment on your radio. If one tire is pointed in and one is straight then just trim in the direction of the pointed in tire to split the difference. The stock links have never been straight on any of my cars and I always get some turnbuckles to help with that. If you shop around you should be able to find some very cheap. Unfortunately these little 18s require some mods to be up to par, but once they are dialed there is not much better out there.
Do the outdrive rings for the plastic outdrives help keep them from wearing so fast? I found that if I don't land jumps on throttle they don't chip, but I am wearing the right rear outdrive pretty fast.
What are teh best and best priced alloy outdrives? I don't see that I need them for the front as I only have problems with the rears. Front does have cvd's if that makes a difference.
And are the hobbycity brushless units pretty decent? I don't want something that will be cogging or not have a good low end throttle responce. I won't be buying anything to soon but am trying to figure out what to buy once I sell some stuff to finance some upgrades.
Ladies - these trucks are great fun once you get them figured out. The main things were a new steering servo and shimming the diffs properly. I am a 1/10 and 1/8 racer myself and never gave these things the time of day before. Now I can't run the bigger cars anymore so picked up one of these and what a blast I'm having now that I got the bugs worked out.
Look for 2S lipo. They will be mildly faster than nihm, but not stupid crazy retarded like a 3s will
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