10/21/02 - aluminum
chassis update near end of page
not much concern for looks here, lol - well, just enough to realize the stock body on the larger wheelbase looked obsurd.
all sorts of background info on this machine is HERE
as for the wheelbase increase, the front axle mounts in a slot in the chassis, thats used as a pivot point for the suspension - by mounting the axle backwards, well, what u get is what u see above, lol. so it was a 2min hackjob just to give me enough room to run a 9cell pack in this thing - 9cells was successful, plus even a regular 6cell stick pack rubbed on the tires during tight turns, so the stretch is gonna be permanent - but not on this chassis - working on a new chassis - maybe even a 4link susp. so , i wanted the truck to keep the name "clod", but its really nothing like the 1/10th scale clod - it shares a body with the 1/10th clod, but not much else, and its not much of a QDclod anymore ( its small size was its biggest "qd" feature) so its the "ANTIclod" :-)
oh, and that lil "module" mounted on the front axle wrapped in duct tape, lol, thats the curcuit board from a futaba servo that im using to control the motor and potentiometer (variable resistor) in the stock QDclod servo - using that module allows me to use regular radio gear with that servo - it essentially turned the stock servo into a standard "hobby" servo - only difference is that instead of being neatly mounted on the inside of the servo casing, its board is on the outside the servo casing wrapped in duct tape , lol
10/21/02 - aluminum chassis
KISS - "keep it simple stupid " - lol, a motto of mine when it comes to my rc projects - so ive put off making a 4link susp ( cuz im lazy, lol) and managed to retain the stock front susp, by reversing the way the front axle mounts, as i did with the old chassis, and bolting it onto that piece of aluminum "u channel" thats a leftover scrap from an old glass sliding shower door - lol, i hate to see any possibly useful building material get tossed away - that aluminum has been collecting dust for atleast 2 or 3 years - possible more, lol - but i knew one day it would find its way into an rc project, so its taking up space in a corner was justified.
as before, rear end is bolted directly to chassis ( i refer u to "kiss"lol )- if it bounces alot, ill find a way to fix it, but i dont expect alot of bouncing - if any at all - tires are pretty soft - dampens things a bit, plus the weight bias is to the rear. see how nicely the body fits? and because of the lack of rear susp, and the tiny bit of susp travel in the front, i wont have to raise it too much to eliminate body rub on the tires - should look sweet ! :-)
If u email me, and please feel free to do so, include a reference to RC or this site in the "SUBJECT". i get alot of spam, so if i see a strange email address with no subject, or a subject that says "hi" or "hello", etc, im not going to read it - so u need to say something in the subject that makes it clear to me that your message isnt spam. ndumu@hotmail.com