FastEddys XB8 Build

[NITRO 21]

Looking good eddy! I can't wait to get started on mine I am hoping it arrives tommorrow. What engine do you plan on using with it?

[FastEddy]

Front transmission.

Nothing difficult here its just a matter of following the directions.
After trimming off the extra plastic strip off of both the front and rear bulkheads I installed both the front and rear bearing and slid the bevel drive gear through from the inside of the bulk. Make sure the bearings are seated well. The kit was short 2 screws to hold the shock tower on. I had to dig into my extra parts and snag a few.





The next step is to secure the universal to the shaft on the bevel gear.
Make sure to use lock-tight. The universals are covered with thick oil from the manufacturer. I have found just like any adhesive that lock-tight works better on a clean surface. I recommend cleaning the universals and set screw with warm soapy water then drying them well. Its cheap insurance to keep the set screw from coming loose. I have an ultrasonic cleaner that make short work of this. This seems like a great place to show it off.



Slide the universal over the shaft and tighten. Make sure you hold the bevel gear from the back with your finger and push on the universal to eliminate any free-play gap while your tightening it. Check to make sure it doesn't bind after its tight.



Place the diff into one of the bulks and pay attention to the bearings. They must be seated in the grooves properly.



Place the two bulk halves together. Again make sure the bearings are properly seated and that the two case halves align properly. Secure the two halves with screws in the holes that are in the center from top to bottom.



Install the shock tower and the body mount with the remaining 5 screws. Be careful not to over tighten them. I found because the holes aren't taped and the plastic is hard that over tightening is easy to do. Watch for the screws to touch then snug them just a bit more. Make sure nothing is binding up when your done. Both the front and rear go together the same just use the proper diff, universal, and shock tower.

[alkyula]

if i do get a xray like i (really really reallllly) want next year i will be using eddys build thread instead of the manual becuase right now hes got better instructions than ive seen anywere haha.

[FastEddy]

Alkyula,
The directions that come with the kit are A++++ except they provide minimal written instructions. They chose to use full color drawings that are right on the money.

Nitro 21 I will be using an OS VZB and most likely a THS pipe.

[ImBroken]

Awesome pics Ed... I still cant get my shots to look like that... Time for a new Digi I guess... The builds lookin good so far. Any tight spots in the diffs once assembled? I know they will breakin, & become smooth, but one of mine seemed a bit off... I pulled it back apart & shaved a very fine layer of plastic from the bearing holder halves in the casing, which seemed to free it up a bit. Just curious...

[FastEddy]

Imbroken,
I'm impressed with the fit of everything so far. No hangups or rough spots in the diff. They are smoother than my broken in Storm diffs. I did place 1 super thin shim in all 3 diffs as mentioned above. In reality they didn't need it but it made me feel better.

Your camera is just fine! Ill post a shot of my light stage setup, It does all the work. All I do is press the button.

[CorradoPsi]

looking good so far eddy. glad to hear you'll be joining the Xray/OS camp as well may i recommend a 086 or 2050 pipe for that motor. from what the guys on the Sgrid are telling me that combo is the cat's pajamas.

[FastEddy]

Installing the rear A-Arms in itself is easy. Trying to get the setup procedures the way I want them still has me a bit confused. Ill explain this as it comes up.

First thing is to screw on the front lower suspension holder. Use the two long screws.



The next step is to decide what eccentric bushing to use. Others have suggested to use 3 degrees of rear toe-in. To accomplish this I installed the #0 bushing, one on each side.



Next slide the hinge pin into the lower A-Arm and forward into the bushing.
I'm impressed with the beefy arms and pins.



Here is where I'm getting a bit confused on the setup. Eccentric bushings need to be installed into the front suspension holder. These are to adjust the rear squat. I wanted to set the anti-squat to 1 degree. To do this would call for a #0 bushing. Here is the issue I'm confused about. So far the kit only included 2 #0 bushings that I used for the toe. I'm hoping that there are more un-used #0 bushings in the kit. If someone can tell me I'm doing something wrong or if there are more bushings that would be great.

I installed #1 bushings facing up to give me an anti squat of 2 degrees. I will change it later once I find more bushings or correct any errors I have made.



Slide the suspension holder over the hinge pins and use the 2 short screws to secure it into place.

Use the fat set screws (Down Stop screws) in the provided holes in the A-Arms close to the hinge pins. The setup calls for 3mm of the screw to stick out the bottom. We got lucky here. 3mm of the screw will be sticking out the bottom when the top of the screw is exactly flush with the top of the A-Arm.



Once everything is put together check to make sure that nothing binds up. It should all move freely.


__________________________________________________ _____

Several people have asked how I get good looking picks.
I wrote an article a while back and will place the link here.
http://www.rcnitrotalk.com/forum/sho...ghlight=Studio
I'm using a Canon Digital Rebel with a 28-200 72mm lens.

Here are a few pics of my home made studio. Everything minus the camera and tripod costs well under $50.00 and is available at home depot.

[Diver6127]

I gotta find that article again. I really wanna take some nice digital pics of my cars when their lids are still new. Especially when I take so much time to work on them.

BTW, nice ultrasonic machine. I didn't realize how small it was. I can probably stick that entire unit in our Branson cleaner.

[CorradoPsi]

eddy, since your changing the setup from the one included in the manual (as recommended) look in the last bag of parts you have. you will find spare parts and extra tuning items like your bushings you need also in .5 increments for finer adjustment, heavier clutch springs, firmer shock springs, the 0*-2* rear toe block, etc.

[ToRqUe]

The More I Read About This Build, The More I Want A Buggy...

[Skyline Racer]

FastEddy, How much did you spend on this?? I am tallying up a christmas list, the XRAY XB8, RB WS7 II, Jammin J2? Pipe, and i still gotta find a good set of great servos. I saw this kit on ebay for 650.00. good god thats alot lol. let me know, and is this to hard for a begineer to kits, i got common sense though. i just saw somethings in the pics that seemed a little hard. lmk is it hard for me to build it. and what set up i should get, im gonna sell my buggy and some other things to help buy it. later

[FastEddy]

Corrado,
I knew you would have the answer.
Everything that I read raved about the tuning options. It was hard for me to believe they would short the kit on bushings and shims.
I got your PM and and will most likely take you up on your offer for help in the build. Members like you prove that RCNT is a great community.

Thanks,
-Ed

[FastEddy]

Originally Posted by Diver6127

I gotta find that article again. I really wanna take some nice digital pics of my cars when their lids are still new. Especially when I take so much time to work on them.

BTW, nice ultrasonic machine. I didn't realize how small it was. I can probably stick that entire unit in our Branson cleaner.

I posted the link above.

The cleaner is 6x6x6. Large enough to fit 99% of all the parts I need to clean. I did a lot of research on cleaners. There is $49.99 units for home jewelry use than you make the jump to an industrial unit. In the industrial units you have small and expensive then larger and even more expensive. For my needs this seemed to be a good choice. So far it seems to work well. I'm still experimenting with different chemicals for different cleaning needs.

[CorradoPsi]

no problem eddy, i start work at 5pm today so any call ill answer before that. after that leave a message and a time after which i shouldnt call.