trsills

As someone only a few months into this hobby, this was my first experience with painting a clear body and I decided to put together something for Jr's Slash. I picked up the JConcepts illuzion dare and got some sc10 Rockstar stickers since he really liked the design of the Losi Rockstar body.

Paint work went well as well as cutting it out wasn't too bad as I fortunately picked up some scissors and a reamer. I compared the jconcepts body to his stock body to confirm and it looked like the body seam and holes appeared to lineup prior to cutting.

Once cut though and as I started to ream the holes I realized that the body is not a perfect fit after all. The front holes were fine while the rear holes factory marks were nearly 1/4 too far back. Fortunately I hadn't reamed the rears yet but once I did make the holes and set the body down, I could now see that the wheel wells are going to need to be opened up (mostly the rear with a little trimming for the fronts).

Is this process typical even when the manufacturer says the body is meant for a particular brand cause otherwise I'm pretty disappointed with the fit?

I read where some bodies seem to be able to fit various vehicles, and the fine print will say may need a little bit of trimming. But I thought since this one specifically said slash on the tag it would be a one for one fit. It's not the end of the world and I'll make it work, but I just don't like the extra dimples on the body for the mounts or how the wheel wells are going to look.

Rob Phillips

iTrader: (6)

Although I am not familiar with that body and application, what you are describing sounds fairly typical.

Sounds like you did the right thing by only reaming the two front holes then doing the rear. Never ream all the mounting holes then check for fitment, always do it from front to back or back to front depending on the body or personal preference. One thing I'll add too is that sometimes bent body posts can alter the line up without you even noticing it. Always check those too.

A lot of bodies require you to open the wheel wells up further than the molded line (if they even have mold lines at all) that way you can make them fit your application and not have large gaping holes around the tires.

Correctly mounting a body takes some practice, especially when it's a generic application meant to fit various manufactures, like 1/10 touring car bodies. There are many different ways to do it, so give YouTube a look if you find yourself a little lost or confused.

trsills

Thanks for the feedback Rob. I enlarged the wheel wells and overall it passed the test as Jr. was happy to see it.

polarbear72

iTrader: (5)

After 20 something years of RC I'll throw n my tips for u. In the day there were no lines or overspray film so I had to learn some tricks myself. U can use saranwrap for overspray film if u need to. Also I take the wheels off and stack them 2 high and set the chassis on them. That gets the wheels out of the way and gets the chassis n the air. Next I set the body on the car and eyeball the excess body. Using a marker I draw lines for what needs to come off and is n the wayand then trim that off. Then set the body back on and mark the body post with the marker and fine tune any more material that needs to come off. I will usually go ahead and ream out the body holes so it sits on the car like its going to sit and see if any other trimming is necessary. Once I like the fit and it sits on there like I want, then I'll take sand paper and sand the bottom edge smooth. This gets out any uneven cuts and just fine tunes things. Then go back with finer paper to "Polish" the edge. Then u can paint. Its a longer process but it always comes out nice. Just take your time

polarbear72

iTrader: (5)

Ooops. Forget to say before u paint and you're done with the body to b sure to wash with soappy water and rinse well and let it dry, then your masking and paint. And just so I don't get my hands all over a clean body, I'll put on those latex doctor gloves

samnelso

iTrader: (1)

This would work for offroad buggies, truggies, stadium trucks, etc. But, for onroad, SC, etc., make sure you have the tires on and the vehicle under it's own weight before you start trimming the wheel wells and bottom edges.

polarbear72

iTrader: (5)

You're absolutely correct. I should have clarified or added that to it.