HPI RS4 PRO "Home Made" Upper Deck
06-23-2009, 08:03 PM
#1
HPI RS4 PRO "Home Made" Upper Deck
I pulled my RS4 Pro out of storage last month and decided to put a Castle Creations Mamba Max 5700 set up in it. Well, that quickly turned into a bad decision. After a few runs up and down the street at speed probably close to 45-50MPH it got loose in some dirt and hit the curb head on. That collision led to a broken graphite upper deck (pic below). Since I had some scrap aluminum laying around, and parts aren't exactly hanging on the shelf at the local hoby store, I decided to make a quicky aluminum upper deck. The material is a bit thicker than the original graphit upper deck, but that's all I had. I had to make it in two pieces as the material I had wasn't wide enuff. So far it has worked out well. It is much stiffer than the original upper deck. Below are pics of the first attempt. I am going to drill out some holes to lighten it a bit. Once I am happy with it, I may try and cut it out of one piece. I would like to see how the stiffer deck will perform on the track (race condition). I am going to get the RS4 PRO ready for VTA racing in the fall.
My consern is not necessarly the added weight, but it is the fact that its up high, which will, no doubt, add to roll in the turns. So lightning is a must.
My consern is not necessarly the added weight, but it is the fact that its up high, which will, no doubt, add to roll in the turns. So lightning is a must.
06-23-2009, 08:12 PM
#2
Shortly after making the new upper deck, I burnt up the rear diff. The RS4, simply wasn't designed for that type of power. No matter how tight I make the diffs, they still slip and will eventually burn up. The rear diff melted the plastic and all of the balls were implanted in the melted plastic. I put a slipper clutch on it, but that almost already burned up. Oh well, I have decided to pull the Mamba set up out before I completly destroy that car.
06-23-2009, 08:48 PM
#4
first i would like to say that is pretty cool that you fixed it like you did. something i would probably have done but i would have done a bad job of it. pity about the diff gettin' damaged but that power is just too much.
so i take it you will officially retire the car now?
so i take it you will officially retire the car now?
06-23-2009, 09:19 PM
#5
first i would like to say that is pretty cool that you fixed it like you did. something i would probably have done but i would have done a bad job of it. pity about the diff gettin' damaged but that power is just too much.
so i take it you will officially retire the car now?
so i take it you will officially retire the car now?
Nope. Put a new rear diff in it. Going to convert it to a VTA (Vintage Trans Am) car. But it will never see a brushless motor with that type of power. I'm going to put the Mamba 5700 set up in a Traxxas Rustler XL-5(picked up NIB on eBay for $108). I will proced to beat the crap out of that truck with the Mamba....
The RS4 Pro will either receive a 27T brushless w/4 cell NiMh or 21.5 Brushless w/2s LiPo.
06-24-2009, 07:52 AM
#6
Hey, thanks for posting the pics - it looks better than you give yourself credit for!
You want me to ask my buddy if he's willing to part with his RS4 and parts collection? I had it at my house for the last 6 years but he took it back 4-5 months ago - I don't know if he's still driving it around or not.
You want me to ask my buddy if he's willing to part with his RS4 and parts collection? I had it at my house for the last 6 years but he took it back 4-5 months ago - I don't know if he's still driving it around or not.
06-24-2009, 08:18 AM
#7
home made upper-decker?
06-24-2009, 12:50 PM
#9
Does Penguin RC still exist? (http://www.penguinrc.com) If they do you might be able to get what you need from them.
I've got an old RS4 Sport/Pro and an RS4 Pro2 at home. I'll see if the upper decks are interchangeable (I think they are). I would recommend putting a gear diff in the car if you were going to run with that much power. However, I'm not sure how well the gear diff would last either.
I've got an old RS4 Sport/Pro and an RS4 Pro2 at home. I'll see if the upper decks are interchangeable (I think they are). I would recommend putting a gear diff in the car if you were going to run with that much power. However, I'm not sure how well the gear diff would last either.
06-24-2009, 02:03 PM
#10
Shortly after making the new upper deck, I burnt up the rear diff. The RS4, simply wasn't designed for that type of power. No matter how tight I make the diffs, they still slip and will eventually burn up. The rear diff melted the plastic and all of the balls were implanted in the melted plastic. I put a slipper clutch on it, but that almost already burned up. Oh well, I have decided to pull the Mamba set up out before I completly destroy that car.
We use our RS4 Pro2 as our INSANE SPEED RUN car...
Surface street - with a High Speed "OVAL BODY" and a cut down KIMBROUGH WING
5.5 NOVAK Motor (w/ sintered rotor)
LRP Sphere Comp 06 esc.
Top Speed 72 MPH x times so far on a 300 ft pass. (Numerous 65- 70 mph passes)
We've been punishing this car for several years, the LAST PASS last week took the teeth off the REAR BELT (This is THE ORIGINAL BELT that came with the car some 8 or so years ago)
06-24-2009, 02:16 PM
#11
Hey, thanks for posting the pics - it looks better than you give yourself credit for!
You want me to ask my buddy if he's willing to part with his RS4 and parts collection? I had it at my house for the last 6 years but he took it back 4-5 months ago - I don't know if he's still driving it around or not.
You want me to ask my buddy if he's willing to part with his RS4 and parts collection? I had it at my house for the last 6 years but he took it back 4-5 months ago - I don't know if he's still driving it around or not.
06-24-2009, 02:19 PM
#13
HMMMM....
We use our RS4 Pro2 as our INSANE SPEED RUN car...
Surface street - with a High Speed "OVAL BODY" and a cut down KIMBROUGH WING
5.5 NOVAK Motor (w/ sintered rotor)
LRP Sphere Comp 06 esc.
Top Speed 72 MPH x times so far on a 300 ft pass. (Numerous 65- 70 mph passes)
We've been punishing this car for several years, the LAST PASS last week took the teeth off the REAR BELT (This is THE ORIGINAL BELT that came with the car some 8 or so years ago)
We use our RS4 Pro2 as our INSANE SPEED RUN car...
Surface street - with a High Speed "OVAL BODY" and a cut down KIMBROUGH WING
5.5 NOVAK Motor (w/ sintered rotor)
LRP Sphere Comp 06 esc.
Top Speed 72 MPH x times so far on a 300 ft pass. (Numerous 65- 70 mph passes)
We've been punishing this car for several years, the LAST PASS last week took the teeth off the REAR BELT (This is THE ORIGINAL BELT that came with the car some 8 or so years ago)
06-24-2009, 06:32 PM
#15
If I can reduce the weight of the piece I made, being more rigid, I want to use that one. I thing it will make suspension tuning easier without the chasis flex. Plus it will have that added "hey I made that" factor.