my new top brace

[k1e1v1i1n]

new brace i had made but i havet had a chance to try it out yet .

[BitHed]

...that looks really good...nice form...cant wait to see pics of it fitted...

[k1e1v1i1n]

ya i cant wait eather neither can the guy who made it . now all i need is a chassis made then i will b set .

[pimpsmurf]

looks much nicer than the CAW plate, but I wonder about the center diff. You would have to run it forward, correct?

-JNY

[VEN]

Hi All,

I am the one who made the chassis brace. Thank you for the compliments.

My next ones I'm going to make thicker (2mm instead of 1.5 if its better that way, or whichever the customer prefers) and in either painted white or natural finish aluminum.

Thanks Again,

VEN

[k1e1v1i1n]

ya i am running the truck in the normal config . if it comes down to it i will run some shims under it to rais it up the tiny bit it might b hugging the gear cover . if i cant get it to sit right i might just get him to make me another 1 with a step up in it for the center . the more i look at it the more i see i will end up using a little longer screws and it needs to b shimed about 2 mm in the front . then it shoudl clear everyhting nicly

[VEN]

I can always modify my design so it includes a cutout

[auto2]

I just wanted to make a point here about chassis and off road. too stiff is not better. The hole trick to off road is to keep the tires on the dirt. A stiff chassis relays on the suspension to do this and you must have the suspension set up perfect. A chassis with a little flex will keep the tires on the ground even if the suspension isn't perfect.
there really is a fine art to all this.
Now if you have chassis flex where the gear mesh is that of course is no good.
look at xrays site and you will see the XB8 has a few different chassis braces for tuning IN chassis flex. all very interesting stuff. Way beyond me.LOL!

[VEN]

So should I leave it at 1.5 or go down to 1.3mm?

[rustler08]

experiment with the thickness. I think the 1.3 would be better, but It might also be too thin

[BiGRoB21]

if you are going to be making a 2.0 main chassis, i think that a 1.3 top deck would be more than enough. the cars do not weight all that much so flex isnt as bad as a 8th scale.

[BitHed]

...one of the first problems i had with the STiffy was, surprise surprise, stiffness...Too stiff and baby would bounce around like a kangaroo on a bad acid trip...too soft and it was a wet noodle festival...The chassis would be pulled inwards if the top deck was too short...

...the original pitbull didnt have a kick up...but it is possible to put one in with the right push on a table ;)

...Hawk and I tried different things and one we cam up with was a slightly elongated, front to rear, rear hole...This meant the the STiffy / bulkheads would have a little bit of movement, forward and back, in the event of an impact...Hawk at one stage even had a three piece unit that was secured to the bulkheads front and rear and then had a 'floating' piece in the middle...We have really done some work on this...Im not saying that we are experts though...Far from it...

...My FIRST choice for this plate would be carbon, due to the inherent flex of the material, BUT, designed properly THIS top plate would also be a winner...I have been working on some different ideas with 1mm alloy plate though...Carbon is SUCH a PITA to work with...

...IMO this piece SHOULD have a cut out for the center diff but as the H8 world is in movement about the whole center diff then its optional...this design as it is will need to sit a little higher to clear the center diff as it is right now...It COULD be quite nice if it was two parts; a front and a rear...But for all my comments i REALLY like this design...

[BiGRoB21]

i finally got my pitbull in and will be posting some pics in a few mins

i just got finished mounting everything up.

[auto2]

my chassis is flat as a pancake. does your have a kick up?

[BitHed]

...Auto it is pretty easy to pop the front up...put the chassis on a HARD table with the REAR hanging OFF the table...hold the rear in one hand and press the nose down with your other hand...VERY CAREFULLY pull the rear UP and you will get a nice little kick up on your nose...Be careful doing this and try to get the right bend with one movement...It should be fine...Just be gentle...Its better to have TOO LITTLE and add some in increments than to make your kick up 90 degrees :eek:

[mat3833]

lol that would be bad

Matt

[auto2]

bit, wouldn't it be easier to use my sheet metal bender with the nice degree marks on it? :D

btw what is the stock shock oil????

[BitHed]

...well yeah i suppose it WOULD be easier :rolleyes:

...But for those of us without sheet metal benders with degree marks on them a table does wonders :D

...I think stock shock oil is 200 weight...might have been 300...Have to check the bottle...

[auto2]

that is what I thought with the shock oil but I have trinity weights at the moment and put in 50 then 60/ then 70 and it still doesn't have the pack I want. and you can move the suspension up and down real fast and the tires stay on the ground which is correct . maybe the oil is bleeding past the piston a lot. I have 80 to try but it's too late for an old fart so tomorrow is another day.

[BiGRoB21]

dam i put 40 in mine b4 and the rebound was slow!!!!

and mine was flat i think i never really looked pulled it out the mail box and got to work on installing it. kick-up is overrated anyway :P

[auto2]

hummm, I have the ST shocks. I wonder why.