What spare parts should I have on hand?

[lampshade9909]

I've run my ET48.3 a few times at the track since building it and I'm enjoying the hell out of it. What spare parts should I keep on hand when I go to the track? I'd like to get some ordered so I have them ready to go. I hear people saying the truck is incredibly durable, but I'm sure I'll need to replace stuff eventually right? The most obvious things are spur gears, various size pinions, and tires. But what else? Do you guys keep extra things like suspension arms or turnbuckles or rod ends?

 

[nulli]

Black plastic spurs, (rear) camber link balls and shock shafts.

After countless laps on a clay track last summer I broke one spur because too tight mesh, bent one or two rear camber link balls (shock tower side) and one bent piston shaft (prob rear).

On clay you have to ream the A-arm hinge pin holes often, especially rears.

 

[lampshade9909]

Black plastic spurs, (rear) camber link balls and shock shafts.

After countless laps on a clay track last summer I broke one spur because too tight mesh, bent one or two rear camber link balls (shock tower side) and one bent piston shaft (prob rear).

On clay you have to ream the A-arm hinge pin holes often, especially rears.

Thanks for sharing! I'll make a note of those things.

Is it because the clay gets inside the hinge and makes it stiff/stick? Were you reaming it to get the clay out? Or to make it looser?

The piston shaft is the shock shaft, right? Yeah, I could see that happening.

 

[TBuggy]

Extra hinge pin inserts and bearings are good to have on hand as well.

 

[lampshade9909]

Extra hinge pin inserts and bearings are good to have on hand as well.

What is a hinge pin insert? Is that the hinge pin itself that goes through the A Arm?

 

[lampshade9909]

So it looks like the manual recommends a #19 drill bit or a 4mm reamer. Which one do you guys use? After a quick google, a #19 drill bit is about 4.2164mm (which is larger than the 4mm reamer. That seems like a big difference. 5% larger!

References:
http://bobmay.astronomy.net/misc/drillchart.htm
https://www.teknoforums.com/misc/manuals/tekno-rc-et48.3-manual.pdf
https://www.amazon.com/4mm-Straight-Shank-Hand-Reamer/dp/B008ED51KY

 

[Billl DeLong]

in addition to those parts, I would keep a set of chassis braces on hand, as well as bushings and hardware around your steering linkages which can get loose over time if you're not careful enough to check for loose bits after every race... definitely some extra 17mm hexes and pins for all the suspension arms as well as pill inserts. I have broken a front shock tower on occasion and learned to keep a spare tower as well as extra aluminum shock caps which would snap at the head from time to time too. Plan to replace the arms every 6 months or so as they tend to wallow out and get sloppy... also carry a set of gear boxes, the front will break at the sway bar mount if you get tangled up with traffic.... sometimes you'll lose those screws which fasten the sway bar too when the case cracks. Also plan to replace the plastic center diff mount every so often when the screws strip out over time.

Invest in a pin replacement tool if you want to save a small fortune!

 

[lampshade9909]

in addition to those parts, I would keep a set of chassis braces on hand, as well as bushings and hardware around your steering linkages which can get loose over time if you're not careful enough to check for loose bits after every race... definitely some extra 17mm hexes and pins for all the suspension arms as well as pill inserts. I have broken a front shock tower on occasion and learned to keep a spare tower as well as extra aluminum shock caps which would snap at the head from time to time too. Plan to replace the arms every 6 months or so as they tend to wallow out and get sloppy... also carry a set of gear boxes, the front will break at the sway bar mount if you get tangled up with traffic.... sometimes you'll lose those screws which fasten the sway bar too when the case cracks. Also, plan to replace the plastic center diff mount every so often when the screws strip out over time.

Invest in a pin replacement tool if you want to save a small fortune!

Cool. Thanks!

What are "pill inserts"?

So the Chassis Braces can break from the impact of crashes? Wow.

Regarding bushings and hardware around steering linkages. Do you mean things like in Bag I, J, and K from the manual? https://www.teknoforums.com/misc/manuals/tekno-rc-et48.3-manual.pdf

What pin replacement tool are you referring to exactly? There was not a URL attached to the underlined text in your post.

 

[Billl DeLong]

here's the link I intended to post:
Pin Replacement Tools

Parts I have had to replace at one point or another:
Pill Inserts
Center Diff Mount
Diff Shims
3x10 Cap Screws
137mm Shock Shafts
Front Arms
Rear Arms
Front Tower
Chassis Braces
Rear GearBox
Spur Gear
CVD Rebuild Kit
122mm Shock Shafts
Diff Case
17mm Hexes
Steering Rack Bushings
Top Plates
Arm Bushings
Spindle Bushings
Outer Hinge Pins
Inner Hinge Pins
Front Gear Box
3x40mm Screws

Recommended upgrades:

Traktion Drive Kit
Emulsion Shock Caps + 1 spare set
Revised CNC Shock Cartridges
Aluminum Servo Arm
Split center diff for quick access

 

[lampshade9909]

Wow thanks for the list! This is very helpful!

So can you not just get these pins out without this tool? I haven't tried it yet obviously, so I may try to remove them without the tool just so I can see what you mean and understand why this tool is required.

So he's saying to replace these with these at the first sign of wear, right? I'm just not understanding why I'd need that tool to do that.

 

[Billl DeLong]

I am the author of the Pin Replacement Tool article... I have heard of folks using a bike chain tool to press new pins but haven't tried it, I simply bought the RC specific tool. Here's a video explaining how it works:

 

[lampshade9909]

I am the author of the Pin Replacement Tool article... I have heard of folks using a bike chain tool to press new pins but haven't tried it, I simply bought the RC specific tool. Here's a video explaining how it works:

That video is helpful. It's hard to see which end he's doing. Refer to my picture below. Is this referring to replacing the red circled pin and NOT the blue circled pin? That would make sense. The blue circled one seemed to be easy to change. And if it is the blue circled one, then maybe after lots of use it becomes difficult to change without a tool?

And you must be referring to the pins in the center drive shafts right? See below:

 

[Billl DeLong]

Yes, the pins circled in Red, the CVD rebuild kit I referenced earlier are the blue circle and don't need to be pressed out

 

[lampshade9909]

Yes, the pins circled in Red, the CVD rebuild kit I referenced earlier are the blue circle and don't need to be pressed out

Got it that makes perfect sense now. Adding those pins and that tool to my shopping list. Thanks for explaining

 

[nulli]

Forgot to mention the drive/dog pins, 3x14mm. I have the Mugen tool for that but haven't used it yet.

 

[Klappars]

Wow thanks for the list! This is very helpful!

So can you not just get these pins out without this tool? I haven't tried it yet obviously, so I may try to remove them without the tool just so I can see what you mean and understand why this tool is required.

So he's saying to replace these with these at the first sign of wear, right? I'm just not understanding why I'd need that tool to do that.

I was able to use a hammer to push the pins out while holding the driveshaft on a piece of a wood with a hole in for the pin to fall out. I then hammer the new pin back in.

There is a slightly higher chance of causing damage than using the proper tool but that tool is expensive!

 

[Billl DeLong]

The cost for the tool pays for itself on the very first use, simply add up the cost for replacing all the drive shafts and you'll see what I mean. When you use the tool, it automatically sets the depth so you get perfect spacing every time making it super quick and easy to press in new pins.

Pay extra attention on rear center shaft, those pins tend to need replacement more frequently than any other shaft on the car.

 

[lampshade9909]

Yeah I can see the tool paying for itself especially if you use an upgraded driveshaft. Replacing those is even more costly

 

[Billl DeLong]

Oh snap, also add the center driveshaft to the list!

There is a trick where you can get more chassis flex and get more rear traction if you remove the rear chassis brace, but you better be a clean driver because if you nose dive any landings then you will bend that center drive shaft, and on rare occasion I have seen a couple guys shear the rear gear box from the chassis with a botched landing... many choose to take the risk of decreased durability simply because their lap times prove it's worth the risk for added performance gain without that rear brace.

 

[lampshade9909]

Oh snap, also add the center driveshaft to the list!

There is a trick where you can get more chassis flex and get more rear traction if your remove the rear chassis brace, but you better be a clean driver because if you nose dive any landings then you will bend that center drive shaft, and on rare occasion I have seen a couple guys shear the rear gear box from the chassis with a botched landing... many choose to take the risk of decreased durability simply because their lap times prove it's worth the risk for added performance gain without that rear brace.

That’s an expert driver move that’s out of my league! I’ll put that one on the shelf for later after I’ve raced for a few years.

I’m curious how that flex gives you more traction. Is it similar to comparing loose suspension to tight suspension when accelerating?