Odds & Ends

The biggest "Phase II" change I made was the tire selection. My front CVA installation left me with 19mm hubs again, so I got some OFNA Monster Blazer wheels and dyed them orange and fitted some huge Imex Claw Dawgs to them with OFNA blue Monster Pirate foam inserts. I don't know what I was thinking before with the little 'Maxx wheels -- this truck is a monster, and deserves big tires! So what if they give you more rolling resistance & rotating mass!

To help stop the truck, I installed some Kyosho brake pads (which came red instead of black) and sanded down the HPI fiber disc to true it a bit (it was mostly catching around the edge before).

Breathing this time around was enhanced by a Mugen air filter set, an inexpensive upgrade that seemed higher in quality than the stock unit, as well as larger. It also takes in air filter oil without ballooning up like the Kyosho filter did. Mugen replacement filter elements are cheap, too.

All around the truck, I began installing the stainless steel allen-head screw kit generously sent in by R/C ScrewZ (and now available at a discount through the URC Store). The new hardware is stronger, fits better, doesn't corrode, doesn't strip, and, if you ask me, looks way better.

To further improve steering responsiveness, I added a T-Maxx turnbuckle across the bellcrank centers with Traxxas rod ends and longer screws backed by locknuts. This eliminated the part of the steering play allowed by the flexing of the bellcranks about the short screws they're mounted with.

I finally upgraded my wheelie bar, too! Well, at least I changed the wheels. The new ones are just some 1" aircraft landing wheels with rubber tires. They actually roll, instead of just digging into the dirt.