by Smoke&Mirrors

After some suggestions from other forum members, I decided to add some weight to my front wheels to help it climb better and decrease it’s flipability (how often it flips, which is frequent). As usual, here is my particular process. I wanted to be sure that this method added enough weight to make a difference but not kill the steering, I also wanted it to be ultra secure so it wouldn’t rattle around. Here we go:

Start out by gathering some:

• Soldering Wire
  
• 2 front Wheels And Tires from ZZMT
  
• Aluminum Tape
  
• Super Glue
  
• Flat-Head Screw Driver (like the one found in your zzmt controller, convenient huh?)

Gather and use the items at your discretion. If you feel you don’t need it, don’t feel obligated to use it.

 

Get a length of wire about 12 to 15 inches and just lightly straiten it by hand. Don’t stress getting it too strait.

 

Now start wrapping the wire around the rim from the inside out. By that I mean, start at the part that faces the chassis and work your way out toward the end where the wheel nuts go on. Be sure to get the wire nice and TIGHT!
Loose:

 

Tight:

 

Grab that aluminum tape and cut off a strip as thick as your rim and about as long as your circumference. Just be sure that the tape overlaps on itself. Just like I DIDN’T do in the picture. Seriously, do as I say and not as I do.

 

Using your screw drive, etch out the outline of the wire to make the tape tight.

 

If you have some tape sticking out over the edge of the inside of the rim, use your screwdriver to push the edge down nice and tight as pictured.

 

Now you are done. You could stop now, but I’d recommend getting some krazy glue and putting on a thin layer at the previously described “outside” of the rim between the wire and the plastic. Here is your finished product and with a little extra effort, your tires will fit on fine. Try climbing something you knew you flipped on before and be amazed at the difference. Seriously, damn!

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 20th, 2008 at 3:05 am and is filed under Fabrication, Micro. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.