A second way to place your batteries on both sides would be to turn your center diff by 180 degrees so that the spur now faces the front axle and place your motor on the opposite side of your steering servo. This might give you a better front/rear balance. But battery pack length will determine if you can do it this way (mine measure 135mm/5.31in lenghtwise).
Here are 2 pics how i started my Mantis conversion:
pic1 and
pic2
. I posted my conversion with videos of its maiden in
this thread.
. A Video of the same setup running on snow with eagletree Data inserts can be found in
this thread.
After having some issues with a loose endbell on my Neu 1512 motor i installed a Neu 1515/2Y motor which has even more torque.
.
Video showing performance on asphalt
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video showing performance on gras
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Latest video driving on my favorite bashing space
After more then 220 runs with the brushless Mantis i can safely say it's a good brushless truggy platform but it has its weak spots like every car. I now run my truggy without rear wing because it can put too much stress (when cartwheeling or falling on its wing) on the weak shock tower mount. I already replaced it five times:
pic1 (with german description),
pic2 (broken piece)
Check your diffs and shim them properly. Brushless motors without a clutch put a lot of stress (instant torque) especially on your rear diff.
Looking forward to see your conversion pics. Your suggested brushless components will for sure be more adequate for a race track.