Dirty Bandit!

[PimpFloyd]

Managed to run a few packs thru the buggy today in between the "Biblical rain" we're having. Traxxas says it's water proof - guess we're gonna find out! My new track is far from down to dirt yet - still alot of grass.

Out of the box I was experiencing horrible rear wheel hop at speed on the bumpy straight sections - almost uncontrollable. I put some 50W weight shock oil in today all around and it's hooking up MUCH better. Still a little bit squirrely from time to time so definetly not dialed-in but at least MUCH more fun to drive. I plan on driving it this way for a while, note changes as the track dries out and experiment with pre-load, then maybe start thinking about a pack of springs.

One thing for sure, driving on a rough course is a hell of a lot more challenging (and fun) than just blasting around the yard willey-nilly! When you get a rythem going and get'er blasting out of the corners - it puts the buzz on ya!

Noah

[sidewinder]

Now see, that's the way a good buggy is supposed to look after a run. I'm glad to see you're enjoying the buggy, I've always like the way 2wd buggies handle.

[sidewinder]

Just got the Bandit delivered yesterday and of course it was raining...supposed to rain all week. anyways, since the brushless isn't waterproof I decided not to risk it. Then a few minutes ago I noticed that it had dried out enough that the streets were water free (weather forecasters suck btw) so I thought I'd give the buggy it's maiden run on a combination of my driveway and the street. Our town put in rounded curbs about a decade ago so I have some cool little ramps provided thoughtfully by the town.

Anyway, have I mentioned that I have one very well established talent? That's the talent to break things in ways no one else has ever done. I took the buggy out and was impressed with how fast it is on just a little 7.2v stick, plus with the limited room it added a lot to the fun... Apparently the steering trim was off a little, because there's just no way I could have steered it full speed over that sunken storm drain I managed to launch the little buggy into a barrel roll that would have made any NASCAR fan wince...not bad when it's done in the dirt, but on pavement it tends to break things. To my complete surprise, even though it had come down from maybe four or five feet in the air and landed directly on the side of left front wheel, nothing was broken. This was one of the harder tumbles I've ever seen...and it was intact. So I decided to head up the other direction, it turned right fine but when I went to turn left nothing...when I picked it up the steering was jammed so badly that it wouldn't move in either direction. I couldn't see anything wrong so I took it inside to tear it apart...i tiny piece of slag (like they use on the roads when it snows) maybe the size of BB was stuck under the steering link. Of course as soon as I took it out the steering worked fine. I truely believe this is something that only I could have managed.

Now if the fields would just dry out I could give this thing a real break in.

[ibjamn]

That's what I love most about my Stampedes.... they can live through the craziest crashes. I have been know to get a little too crazy, but not the insanity like I have seen. One fun thing I've done, is at my parent's house in thier cul-de-sac. I took a plywood board, and created a ramp at the curb... the "landing side" of the jump is only about 6ft of flat surface, then a 45degree declining embankment til about 10ft lower elevation. then it's a downhill slope that isn't too steep. Anyway, it looks really cool to clear the jump until the gradual downhill section. But, if the Pede gets a little hairy, it will land crooked, and sumersault for ever. ==== really fun.

One tip. After many sumersaulting acts, or after a lot of abuse, always check the steering blocks and the screw pin that goes vertical through it. Unscrew the steering rod from the knuckles and test for any resistance by moving the wheel side to side. That pin is the weakest link, and is known to get bent. I have used the RPM steering blocks for a while and I've drilled out that shaft area for a thicker pin that uses e-clips. I haven't problems since.

[sidewinder]

Thanks, I'll keep an eye on that. BTW, where are you buying the RPM stuff, I was kind of afraid of getting anything like that from ebay because I could see it being some other plastic.

[PimpFloyd]

Apparently the steering trim was off a little

I noticed on my Bandit that I had to dial in a significant amount of trim to get the front end straight. With 0 trim being at 12:00 O'clock, I was trimmed at about 4:00. After my wet grassy run last weekend, I tore it down for cleaning imediately because I was leaving town for a week.

Prior to all this, I down-loaded an older version of the assembly manual for the bandit from the Traxxas web-site. In the manual, it states that the linkage between the servo saver and the steering assembly should be 45mm eye to eye on center. I checked mine and it was much longer. I shortened it to spec and reset the position of the servo-saver on the the servo. Much better now.

VXL Download > http://www.traxxas.com/products/electri ... htm#manual

Keep an eye on the turn-buckle on the servo end of things, mine just ever-so barely rubs the top of the plastic piece that the whole ball of wax is mounted to - sort of an oversight on the design end of things IMO. Not enough to bind or anything, there's enough pivot and stuff in the linkage but the next time I'm in there I will probably sand a little plastic away so I can see daylight as the turn buckle moves thru it's full actuation.

Enough of my babble - hope you dig your Bandit! Not an expert opinion but just from a common sense point of view and the satisfaction litmus test - I think they build a great product...especially in the RTR category and for new-comers. Seems rugged and easy to work on too

PF

[ibjamn]

I don't have a normal seller that I go through. I've gotten them through TowerHobbies, Hobbytown in Duluth GA and the one in Marietta, and from Ebay.
But now that I think about it, I do have a lot of RPM stuff. But I went with stronger/lighter plastic than stock instead of aluminum upgrades.As much as I was content with the stock stuff, I got the RPM goods to replace broken parts or to actually upgrade the stock parts. You have to remember though, my Pede was bought several years ago, and I have added a little here and there.

The RPM list that's on mine.... and all of mine are black.............................. Blue =
wide front bumper- a must have, this you guys need to get soon. even if it does look big on the Bandit
front bearing carriers - because my stock ones held 5x8mm bushings - RPM holds 5x11mm
rear bearing carriers - same as above
caster blocks - after so many crashes I have noticed the stock ones started flexing too much
rear shock tower - a bit stiffer vs. stock
front shock tower - same as above
shock spring cups - not sure as to why, they aren't much different than the stock ones
gear cover - same reason as above but mine won't fit with the newer slipper clutch
rear arms - they have more clearance, and have rounded edges to not snag on stuff

the other RPM stuff waiting to buy....
rear arms - I do have stock rear arms on the front still
wheelie bar mount
motor protector

Enough about my shtuff..... sorry about hijacking....

Here are some RPM products that'll fit the Bandit if you ever want to do so.
http://www.rpmrcproducts.com/products/t ... ndRDex.htm
The Bandit lost out on some of them, but I just spent some time looking at the exploded views and have figured a way to get a few more accessories to fit.

[sidewinder]

Thanks for the link IBJ.

Hey PF, I tried both the stock springs and the blue ones--I don't know what the rate is they were with the buggy when I got it--The best combo so far for moist hard packed dirt seems to be stock white springs on the front with a pre-load spacer, and the blue--stiffer--springs on the back, no spacer. At least today with relativity fresh tires. There's not a lot of options for adjustments on these so the first thing I'd try is playing with the pre-load and toe in.

[PimpFloyd]

Thanks for the link IBJ.

Ditto!

Thanks for the setup info, SW. Did the blue springs come with your VXL package??

Sounds like the rain has let up there

How do you like the Traxxas BL setup??

PF

[sidewinder]

I got it off of ebay slightly used, I was going to go for a completely new one but this slipped under the radar for $197.50 shipped, so I couldn't pass it up. He said it only had five or six packs run through it and after I got it and examined it I believe him. The tires weren't even worn much (they are worse now than this morning). Oh, so yeah, he had the springs with it. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0309701621

[PimpFloyd]

WOW! Looks to me like you got a great deal indeed! I like the blacked out wheels on the VXL Bandits!

Hope to run a few packs thru mine again today...I re-mowed my little L-shaped short course last night and it's starting to get fast. I'm currently on the look out for a roto-tiller to get down to the dirt. Rumor has it the neighbors got one

With the nice weather comes the official start of yard work season though - you don't own a home...a home owns you

Hope the weather in your neck of the woods is turning!

PF

[ibjamn]

Towers has a good bit of aluminum stuff and wheels and tires.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wt ... AC05**&P=Z

If you want a little more adjustability in the setup, and don't mind bling.....
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wt ... LXWJX8&P=Z -you'd have to fab up something for the wing mounting.
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wt ... LXTPP6&P=Z
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wt ... LXWJX6&P=Z


My disclaimer.......
Forget about buying anything for it. For now, at least.
Drive it as much as possible and enjoy it how it is. The simplicity of it has a particular fun value. You'd be surprised at how you learn it's handling characteristics without adding parts to tune it in. I don't have anything tunable on mine, except the gearing and the shocks. When I got my Revo, I learned a lot about tuning it in to handle differently.... but I prefer bashing with the non adjustable tuning optioned Pede when I want a quick driving session.
IMHO, if you don't race it, keep it simple.

[sidewinder]

I'd agree with you totally, you can get some gains from tinkering but the newer RCs are pretty good right out of the box, and if you do start to adjust things keep a journal so that when you make things worse--which you will from time to time--you can get back to the baseline.

BTW, you have to love dumb people I kept wondering why anyone would sell something this fresh more than $150 less than the cheapest price I could find(counting shipping). He said he won a bid on a Rustler VXL at the same time and decided to only keep one...maybe, I've won bids I didn't expect to and then had other bids still active. This afternoon I figured out why he'd take the loss; I usually check the gear mesh before running something new, but this time I didn't. I heard a clicking noise from the tranny, so I cut the run short and decided to check the mesh before I killed a spur gear. When I pulled off the cover I saw that the mesh was so loose that he'd chunked the spur in two places...no big deal, $3 for a new one. I decided that the clicking noise probably wasn't from the missing teeth though and wondered if he'd played with the slipper...either he'd adjusted it or Traxxas is hiring crack addicts. The rubber cap was gone so it's been adjusted, it was so loose that the adjusting nut wasn't touching the spring. I'm kind of amazed that it was able to move at all, let alone throw rooster tails like it did. I only did a quick indoor test after adjusting the slipper but so far it sound like the clicking is gone. SO, basically for a $3 part and evidently the lack of energy to read the manual before tinkering, the former owner lost close to $150.

[ibjamn]

I'd agree with you totally, you can get some gains from tinkering but the newer RCs are pretty good right out of the box, and if you do start to adjust things keep a journal so that when you make things worse--which you will from time to time--you can get back to the baseline.

And that is the one thing I hated about Gran Turismo.........

[sidewinder]

Try it in a Late Model with concrete wall coming at you... that's a really fun time to figure out you just made the stupid thing impossible to turn.