turtle189mt

is their another option for shock orings?

steeledge

How do you guys think ease of working on your serpents compare to other 8th scale buggies you've owned? I've had the rtr versio of the 811 for about a year and there's lots of things I like about it. But recently something was slipping under acceleration and the buggy was barely moving. I assumed it was the front or rear grub scews on the shafts and went to tighten them. Only to find out I needed to take the entire front and rear apart to get to the little set screw. These set scews came loose when I first got my thunder tiger and I can retighten them without taking anything apart. Once tightened down and using locktight do you all find it nessesary to do this frequently? And is there a more efficeint way?

Lastly, when putting the front diff and case back together, there seems like a lot of friction when I turn the output shaft and/turn the tire, is there a trick to assemblembling the cases so the diff spins freely?

I know alot of question but anyone who would take the time to answer any of them, I would really appreciate it.

IOP_Racer

iTrader: (14)

I find the 811 to be fairly easy to work on. It has a few parts that are not easy to get to, mostly parts on the chassis. I have not had to tighten my grub screws after rebuilding my buggy. When I rebuild the diffs I clean the drive shaft and the set screw with break cleaner, apply a liberal amount of thread lock and tighten it down as much as I can. Just make sure the set screw hits the flat part. You know the three screws that hold the pinion in the case? I do not use the screw that goes on the side of the ring gear. Two screws does the job and eliminates the possibility of the ring gear rubbing on the screw. Also, make sure you do not over tighten the screws holding the diff case together. Snug will do. Hope this helps!

steeledge

Thank you man. You mean the three philips screws that surround the bearing in the case? It did seem like they may have been rubbing the pinion and/or diff gear. I played around with how tight I screwed them down, figuring that may be an issue.

orcadigital

iTrader: (61)

I have not run into many issues in repair work, and while some things are very easy to access (center diff), others require more work (front diff). The grub screws you are referring to are a known hassle. Locktite is the easiest option, but I also know people who have drilled a hole in the diff case so they can tighten the screw without removing anything.


+1 on this. I also sometimes do not fully tighten the 2 bottom diff case screws on the front as for some reason they will cause binding depending on which diff i have in the car.

IOP_Racer

iTrader: (14)

Yeah, those three phillips head screws. I tighten the other two down until they are snug, but not to tight bc you dont want to strip the hole. Having one of thse screws out also helps me know the diff orientation when I put the diffs in the cases so I dont install them backwards.

steeledge

That's some good feedback, thank you, I'll give that a shot today.

steeledge

What are your guys favorite steering servo's as of late? The usual hitec or any others, more $$ is fine. Just looking for the upper end of the spectrum. And how amount ESC and BL motor, the tekin? My rtr electronics, in particular the steering servo is glitching like crazy. Not sure why either, just started to happen randomly. I actually like the motor that came with the kit but may just replace both motor and esc and steering servo while I have it all apart.

Open to suggestions, not on a budget, so don't hold back!

orcadigital

iTrader: (61)

For servos, I have always been partial to KO. I run KO RSX Power (torque) servos in my ebuggy and etruggy for steering. Some prefer the Response (speed) versions but I have not found the need for the additional speed, but the torque has been very nice and reliable. I have plastic case in the ebuggy and metal case in the etruggy, but both have been excellent.

BL motor, I use and have always used the Tekin motors. 1900 mainly, both V1 and V2. Excellent reliability and power and pretty much the standard. Some prefer the 1700, some the 2050 depending on track size, but for 4s, that is the norm.

ESC, I am partial to the Hobbywing 150A. It is inexpensive, smooth, and delivers in terms of performance and reliability. I have run an RX8 and an IX8 as well, and while they both fit the chassis a little better, the IX8 required a cap due to the servo draw to not brown out (not a huge deal) and ran hotter then my Hobbywing. The Tekin actually felt fine, but was no quicker then the Hobbywing, and I have some personal bad experiences with Tekin ESC's and while they are the most common, they also seem to fail more in the rough world of ebuggy. The warranty cost on one is about the same as buying a new Hobbywing, so it's hard to justify the greater expense for no noticable gain. Many many people are very happy with the Tekin though, just my personal experience. I do not know anyone using the Viper, Novak, or Orion, though the Orion looks identical to the Hobbywing with different colors.

Hope that helps some.

steeledge

Great post and it certainly helped. I'll try one of those hobbywing ESC and pair it with a tekin.

I actually just picked up another serpent, this time a used 811 that comes with a KO servo already.

I'll likely use it as the main buggy and use the rtr serpent for parts.

Something about these serpents that distinquish them. I think its the slimmer more 10th scale look they have, which I prefer, instead of the fat bloated look many of the other 8th scales have.

Regarding the motor, for just fun speeding around/bashing, which would be the optimal the 2050 tekin T8?

Anyone here use their truggy or is there a dedicated serpent electric truggy thread?

orcadigital

iTrader: (61)

I as well prefer the looks of the Serpent as well as the Durango, the designs and bodies look much better, plus there is some inherent advantages to the split pack design. Quality of course is top notch on the 811.

For motor, it is completely up to you. Once you get to these KV motors on 4s, they all become silly fast. 1900 and 2050 are the most common, and can be picked up here used fairly often too. 1700 is a little harder to find. Just make sure you are getting a 4030 motor, not a 4038. The 4030 is the buggy motor with a shorter can then the 4038 truggy motor.

I do run the etruggy (it was a nitro with the Serpent conversion including new chassis, etc) and absolutely love it. There is a thread here, though it is not heavily trafficed as etruggy has not caught on to the level of other offroad classes. The thread title is something like Serpent Etruggy Conversion, so it is a little harder to find. If you can't find it, I can go dig it up.

Tony Rivas

iTrader: (56)

Here my short story

I went to S&S raceway in Tampa on a rental ride from a team driver a very big class in Florida (Serpent Ebuggy 1.0) first time ever, having not race a Ebuggy ever,Finish 4th in the A-main. With maybe 2 laps for practice (we got there alittle late) Never the less I loved the buggy and now I want one. This Buggy took a beating did not broke anything. I was looking at a losi but if you do some homework the Serpent is the way to go. I've been racing for a long time, never race an Ebuggy till this past weekend! I'm hook now. I would like to thank Freddy Villanueva for the rental ride, very helpful, Thanks Bro!

Is there any Hop - ups that I need to get? I was thinking of sway bars and shock springs. What do think of the Aluminum shocks tower? Lmk Guys Thanks for any Help!

orcadigital

iTrader: (61)

Great job! Same lap as the leaders too which is awesome!

Hob ups, very little is needed. Tuning options are always good (sway bars, springs, etc). I personally use the front aluminum tower, but it is mostly a durability thing. Not that I have ever broken a tower, but carbon fiber could break, aluminum would bend, which means I would still finish. I have the aluminum tower only on the front though, the rear is protected better between the rear wing and front tower. I would avoid the aluminum chassis braces as the flex is usually better to have. The opt 2 and 3 ackerman racks are nice for tuning, and I personally like the v2 radio tray upgrade, but other then the metal servo mount, I would not say there is any improvement there. I have run the plastic and metal steering assemblies with no difference, though the hard servo saver spring is a nice upgrade. Otherwise, just drive the heck out of it and enjoy it. Put your money into track time and tires.

BTW, stock body works better in most situations over the cab forward one. We usually have plenty of steering, and the stock body gives better rear bite.

Tony Rivas

iTrader: (56)

Wow Great info! I just get the Front tower for now. Never heard or seen the video radio tray going to loo it up. Yes the Acker, springs, sway bar is a must get it for me. Thanks for the info orcadigital!

Tony Rivas

iTrader: (56)

Ok i see the v2 is on the new 2.0 buggy. That the one I'll be getting!