Thanks Rick. Would there be any problem with this battery?
Turnigy 1450mAh 3S 11.1v Transmitter Lipoly Pack
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...idProduct=9787

Just thought I'd post this even though it's been addressed by much more adept fellas than myself. This is a video of the belt rubbing on the pinion gear teeth. It's from a stock SC18 with no modifications. I thought they were RTR?

So, we moved the pinion away from the motor taking its teeth out of the path of the belt. On a second unit, we installed a 15T pinion to accomplish the same thing. In addition we were told it would afford us a little less tension on the belt. The rubbing is gone, but there wasn't much difference with the tension.

That said, the first unit we purchased is showing signs of the belts beginning to stretch a little. You can roll it about 3 feet where as out of the box it wouldn't roll more than 1 inch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GJzzMNjTZY

+ YouTube Video

I think it should be OK.

here is the finished car, it has ball diffs, hot racing steering, FT rear shocks,cvds. reedy 6100 brushless system, exotek lipo hold down.

its has alot more ground clearance.

Is anyone else experience sloppy steering? It seems like I am continually tweaking the steering trim to keep a straight line. And I've noticed there is some play in the steering. I'm just not sure if this is normal for this model - especially as it's new.

The irony is that this little rocket can turn on a dime.

My SC18 is totally stock.

True. Also steering linkage is very weak, breaks easily. Maybe it's reasonable to replace steering linkage with Hot Racing aluminum linkage AES4808?

The Hot Racing steering rack ($23.88) looks great, but is the issue the steering rack? I'm wondering if there were adjustable camber links and steering links if this unit could be tightened up.

The stock rack pivots on screws in plastic. No shoulder..so if you make the screws too tight it binds....too loose you have slop....being they are in plastic you must check them to see if they loosened.....

Sure. Maybe I had mine too loose? Here's a still shot comparing the current 'play' in my steering. The yellow lines are reference points to help illustrate the amount of play in the steering rack. Is this about right, or is it basically trial and error? I hope i didn't just answer my own question...again.

I tightened down the screws until they were snug, and then backed them off a little more than a full turn.

Regardless, thanks.

I didnt realize you have the plastic rod ends (links). Each ballstud and ballcup must be checked for slop. If they are too loose it will add to your steering play.
Now your going to say How do I eliminate that slop.....
This is where trial and error and experience come into play.
You can remove the link and gently squeeze the ballcup and re install....
eliminating play...but being careful not to cause a binding situation.
You can do many things to eliminate play and slop. Just be creative and use your mind and logic.
Next Im going to tell you why these guys come w play and or slop. Looseness makes the platform more forgiving in a crash.....
Also if your racing/running in dirt hitting bumps etc....it can be harder to control a tight truck.
If your running up and down your street and you notice it drifts....adjust your TX to compensate and have some fun......
When you tighten things up the truck may run better in straight lines on smooth surfaces but when you hit something there is no play (spring) to absorb any stress an BAM something has to give....

Now that makes sense. I never realized you could tweak the the ball ends in that way.

We hope to get to a local track for some fun, but in the meantime we race in the driveway and street. However, we also race on RCP track which requires much more technical skill and 'tight' steering.

One question though. How can I center the servo/steering?

I've been spending so much time wearing in the belts on this truck that I'm just now getting around to the steering.

And yes, we are having fun along the way. Thanks for the insight.

To center the steering you turn on the TX then the truck. Zero out the steering trim on the TX. At zero if the the steering is off you can take off the servo saver and adjust till the steering is better. The reality w the servo and saver they use splines and you very rarely get a servo and saver to be perfectly aligned at zero. (thats why TXs have adjustments)
When you initially check it and if it is only out a small amount adjust it at the TX and dont worry about it.
Running the SC on RCP must be FUN.....

Here's a short clip of an SC18 on RCP track. It's a make shift combination of two Wide L tracks. The SC18 is bone stock with the tensioner removed to keep the motor from over heating. The truck hooks up really well with the stock tires and the rough surface up. Hoping to try some foam tires from TheToyz.com in the near future.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlr7vfGQP6s

Very cool. Where can you get track like that?

This is the company and several resellers. I bought mine used from rctech in the For Sale forum. I think there is another company that makes their own as well, but I can't find it for sale.

That said, you can also find a similar material at Home Depot or Harbor Freight. The latter has large 2x2 squares for really cheap. Keep in mind though, the cheap stuff will not have the borders and corners and such that allow you to build race track. You'll have to make your own barriers and likely paint the track on the mat surface. So yeah, it's very expensive, but so far it's been great. We can set up a track in 15 minutes. And it's very portable. I've seen RCP tracks set up outside on pavement as well.

If I might be so bold, I'd recommend finding a few other guys/gals to pool your money and start a club. The fellas I bought mine from did that, and when they moved to rock crawling they pulled out the track and sold it using the money to fund their new rock crawling club.

For me, I'd like to start a club myself. Right now, there are no official 1/18 scale clubs in Denver. Mini-z is another great option for this track, and actually was the original intention. The main reason I went with the SC18 over the Vendetta and Traxxas short course trucks is that it's size allows you to race indoors on a tight track such as this. The Kyosho National races are held on this track. Route 241 Grand Opening Grand Prix -

http://www.rcptracks.com/

http://www.atomicmods.com/Categories...-and-Gear.aspx

Here's some examples of RCP Track and Mini-z
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=16hG8...eature=related

This is the other track I referred to above. It's made by Atomic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nomyfZAym9Q