RC-Monster Forums - 8ight T 2.0e Build

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Just get an 8T 2.0 and the Losi Conversion Kit. I also am using the RC Monster Mount (rather than the Losi that comes with the Kit). Only other thing you need is the brushless motor and ESC. Mine are just like the MMM 2200 Combo.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Electric Dave (Post 274222)

(Long post alert)

I took the truck down to the Pin Shop Hobbies track yesterday to run some practice laps and shake out any issues with the truck or electronics. For those of you that are not familiar with Pin Shop, the track hasn't been touched since last year. One part was pretty mangled by the snowplowing over the winter. At then end of the season last year, the track was pretty well beaten and in desperate need of a rebuild. I expected it to be rough and really just a shake down of the truck, not so much a setup or tuning day. A few guys showed up and did a great job with the raking, the track was super dry and it seemed to have loads of small pebbles and sand on top.

As far as running the truck, it is just psychotically fast. Perhaps too fast for this small track. I'm only up one pinion tooth from my gearing last year but the truck just felt much faster. There is no doubt the Losi is a fast reacting vehicle. The first pack was a little wild as I was getting to know the truck. I was pleased with the steering. I think the feature I was most impressed with was the jumping. The truck just loves to launch. Again, knowing the track is getting a complete rebuild in the next few weeks, I wasn't too concerned about handling, however I would mention that the rear end was much looser than the old CRT. The truck was just sliding all over the place. Eventually I stopped fighting it and just power-slided around the corners, it was impressive looking but very hard to control and in a race, it would be a very risky way around the corners. Once the real dirt is down and the track is built I'll work on bringing that rear end under control.

While it is great to sing the praises of something, you can get all that from the magazines, I'll mention my gripes with the truck/design. My biggest disappointment is with a flaw in Losi's design. This is the first time the Losi Truggy has 0 offset wheels so the geometry and arms are all new. In short, they rub badly unmodified. Luckily I had read about this online. A few days ago I posted in this thread that I ran it outside my house. When I did that I had not made any changes to the truck. True to form, even in the few minutes I ran around my house, I cracked a small part of one of the webbings inside the front wheel. At full lock the webbing inside the wheel will hit something, the steering knuckle or something. Before hitting the track I did the research. I took a sharpie and laid down a heavy line on the webbing, then I spun it by hand. The black ink showed exactly where the rub was on the webbing. Then I hit the dremmel, I didn't have the exact right bit for the job but I did the best I can. I also read about the rim hitting the arm in use and I can see wear from the spot that rubbed. I will also hit that with a dremmel. Apparently one fix is to use the optional Losi +2mm hubs. They won't require the wheels to be modified. Kind of bothers me that Losi, who touts their Engineering prowess all the time, would have made such a huge mistake. I'd bet that anyone running a new truck, without one of the two mods, will crack their wheel after one run. Other than that, another thing I saw online also happened, the camber links backed out in the front and rear. Fix there is copious amounts of locktight and longer screws to get into the nylon of the locknuts. I will be fixing that right away. Only other gripe is that even after just 4 or 5 runs, the rear bearings already feel not right. I have to take them out and clean them but I've read about some King Heads hubs which make use of larger bearings, I have a feeling that upgrade is in my near future.

The teething pains of a new vehicle design are not uncommon and while I sound pretty critical, I just want to help other guys reading to prepare their 8T 2.0's. I am sure this truck is fantastic and I'm positive that it will shave time off my laps. It is a winner for sure but like anything worth doing, you have to put in some time and effort to make it live up to it's potential.

Dave, great review, especialy about the negatives, a lot of times people just want to talk about how great their truggy/buggy is. I'll keep an eye on the wheels. How did the temps look? and what gearing were you running on the track? Can't wait to get mine out on the track.

Thanks. I know I'm going to love the truck but the truth is, it helps to know what's wrong so you can prepare. I read these sites and found your threads particularly helpful so I figured I'd try to post the same.

I'm 75% sure I'm going to just get the +2mm hubs though my current set of wheels have already been dremmeled. I also plan on hitting the arms where the rubbing happened just to eliminate it regardless of width.

Temps were good, but I wasn't very constant about checking. My last run of the day was a very long one, 11 mins on one pack, and I had already run 3 other packs through it in a very short time. The ESC was a bit warm at about 148, no fan but warmer than I thought it would be. My next outing will be more temp focused.

My gearing was 14T pinion on the plastic 45T spur, the track was very small and I honestly feel like it may be a bit much. I was running 13/46 on my CRT last year.

I heard back from Losi on the wheel rubbing issue - let me rephrase that...My calls and email messages continued to go unanswered so I kept calling until someone picked up the phone...anyway the guy who answered said that it was a known issue and that what he and "all the drivers" do is back down the EPA on their radios. I also asked about those +2mm hubs and he said he prefers the stock setup.

The parade of somewhat weak answers continued when I asked about the delays on the 8ight-E 2.0 and he said that it would be shipping sometime in the middle of April.

I just picked up my 8t 2.0 last night and they guys at the hobby store told me about the wheels hitting so I backed my EPA off some compared to my old 8t but they were still hitting. So I need to dremel them.. Will pro-line wheels do the same thing?

On a side note I used Rc-monsters motor mount with a kyosho 46t spur gear and I didn't have to do any grinding..

I've heard AKAs are the only wheels which don't hit without mods or the +2mm adapters.

Good to know on the 46T, I've got a few of those, I have a feeling when my Losi 45T dies, I'll switch back to the Kyosho.

Just what we need, a faster Dave at the track.

I envy you...

So clean. I am a huge fan of the 8, and the 2.0 is even better!

Hey guys, I've got a race report on the new truggy...

While I wanted to go another week or two of just practice, my buddy Mark pushed me into taking the new truck to a race at Wolcott. For those of you that don't know the Wolcott track, it is about the best way to battle-proof a vehicle known to man. The track is big and is just loaded with jumps and not small one's either. There is usually at least one very big jump that gives you anywhere from 6'-9' of distance between you and the ground.

During Practice, I shook out one of the common 8T 2.0 issues right away, shock ends stripped. The hobby shop didn't have the replacement parts but luckily one of the racers had a new pack and I just bought it off him. Amazingly the shock shaft was fine, I didn't even loose the spring. After that I had a wheel nut come loose - I was very worried it was the dreaded rear hub bearing issue but it was just a loose nut. I checked them after each run after that and it was not a problem. My final issue was also a common one, the wing mount screws backed out completely. It's another issue where longer screws will actually thread into the nylon of the nut and should go away. For the day I made use of the short screw and some copious amounts of locktight.

Once those issues were worked out I could really drive the truck and of course it is just amazing. I think having now driven it at two tracks I can honestly say that it's not worlds of difference from what I had, maybe it's only really 5-10% better than my old CRT but 5-10% is actually quite a bit. I give it high marks in two areas. Without a doubt it's a better jumper. It is lighter so it jumps far, high and fast. It also lands and settles much better. My favorite track feature was this incredible step-up big kicker tabletop. The truck just launched 8 feet in the air and with a tap of the (motor) brake landed the downside every time. Really smooth and beautiful. I also give it high marks in low speed corners. I could cut inside just about anyone in low speed. I still think on-power it has a lot of push but that is more likely because it's Electric and on-power it transfers lots of weight to the back. I plan to work on that a bit but it was acceptable.

During the actual race, I was quite surprised. Now in all fairness to any Wolcott guys, this was an odd week. There were only two heats of Truggy, about 12-13 truggies, and just about all the local Wolcott fast guys were absent so I wasn't up against their best. I got out front in the first qual round and just never looked back. I drove smooth and consistently. I focused more on not crashing than on trying to push the truck. I was careful with my jump timing and did really well. I won the heat and after the second heat of truggy ran, I was TQ. For the second round I ran a little more experimental. I was very far out front and I realized because of a transponder error (on the track's part) I wasn't clocking. It didn't really matter to me as I was TQ already and I had to leave before the main anyway. So I went a little wild. There was one section in the back where there was a double double. ALL of the Nitro guys were doing it double double. I did see a guy running an Electric 8ight buggy QUAD it once. It wasn't pretty but he did land it. So I went for it. Amazingly the truck LOVES to be pushed hard. I must have landed the quad at least 4 laps in a row. I was psyched. I'm sure my lap times were even better than round 1.

I did not make round 3 or the main b/c I had some family commitments. I left the track at 2:30 after getting there at 10am. All in all it was a great day of early season racing and I feel like now with (most of) one race day under my belt with the new truck, we are off to a good start.

Nice review...my co-worker just bought one and he is psyched!

Oh, here is a shot of the truck with the body on, sorry it's just a "bench" shot, in-race shots and videos coming soon...

http://visionarycomputer.net/rc/8ightT2e/racebody.jpg

Great review of your truggy :yes: Well-done Sir.

They don't stay clean and new long, do they :mdr:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Electric Dave (Post 277048)

http://visionarycomputer.net/rc/8ightT2e/racebody.jpg

Quote:

Originally Posted by AutoXMan (Post 278216)

Looks slow...

I know, it's an optical illusion. I had my expert painter make it look slow, to fool the competition. Once the race starts, this Losi actually eats Z01-T truggies for extra battery power. Turns out the Z01-T is good for something besides holding down a large stack of papers.

I would fire your painter as soon as you can.

Rumor has it he uses extra heavy paint to weigh down the bodies, and uses extra "protection coat" to weigh down the truggy even more.