Got an Axial Ax24 and am really liking it!
Of course the upgrade bug hit me early, but I resisted amy temptation to hack on the factory one. I decided to do a custom scratch build and keep the original stock.
This could get pricey, so I set a budget of $400 (I hope I stay within it).
Looked at a bunch of frames and didn't like any of the AX24 offerings so I naively figured that a SCX24 frame would fit... NOT!
Not knowing this I ordered this CF/titanium SCX frame from Amazon- seems like there's a lot of other variants also available there. I got the titanium one to see if I can do some heat anodizing and add some rainbow colors.
titanium frame $18
I wanted to stretch and widen it so I got this link and driveshaft extension set, also Amazon. Front +6mm, rear 18mm extensions.
link and driveshaft extension set $26
Got this too.
Skid plate $11
After getting these parts I discovered that the skid plate mounting is different between the SCX and AX. OOPS!
Gotta get creative... I figured that if I got a pair of CF AX side plates I could Frankenstein them together,so I got these
CF side plates $13
I was able to cut the "ears" off the AX plates and attach them to the inside of the SCX frame. With a little finessing it went together OK. I had to mount the fabbed up skid plate/AX side plate assy about 3mm lower than stock (not a bad thing) and slightly bend out the bottom of the frame to snug it in.
For the gearbox, I found this "2 speed" setup on Amazon, really it's just an overdrive for the front axle (not a bad thing).
Gearbox $24
Assembled all those parts, so far so good. Here's the rest of the parts I have either on hand or on order for the next stage.
Meus Racing Nylon portal axles. Cheaper and will "slide" better (I hope). Also adds 4mm width each side.
Portal axles $52 a pair
Servo set with mounts
Servo set $25
Stock driveshaft set
Driveshafts $8
Shocks 48mm
shocks $18
Adjustable steering links
Steering links $16 a pair
Wheels/tires- negative 7mm offset 62mm dia.
Wheels/tires $36
And the biggie... Furitek Stinger for the AX24
Stinger $135
I'm going to use a DumboRC X6PM-350 TX/RX I already have, it has channel mixing so I should be able to do steering mode switching. Also has endpoint adjustments for the first four channels.
TX/RX $36, already have one.
Mandatory tools for this scale are a MIP .050" hex driver and a M1.4 tap. Saves a lot of fastener headaches. Also got a SCX24 screw set just for spares.
The quality of the RampCrab stuff is really good! Fit/finish is spot on and the prices are decent.
All the parts should be here this week, in the meantime I'll try the titanium heat anodizing. If that fails I'll just CF vinyl wrap the suckers.
So far the damage is $345 (not counting the skid plate which is replaced by the Furitek one and the radio which I already have).
I'm not including batteries, I have a bunch on hand.
This leaves me with about $55 for the rest of the build. We'll see if I can stick the budget.
Here's some "in progress" pics:
Of course the upgrade bug hit me early, but I resisted amy temptation to hack on the factory one. I decided to do a custom scratch build and keep the original stock.
This could get pricey, so I set a budget of $400 (I hope I stay within it).
Looked at a bunch of frames and didn't like any of the AX24 offerings so I naively figured that a SCX24 frame would fit... NOT!
Not knowing this I ordered this CF/titanium SCX frame from Amazon- seems like there's a lot of other variants also available there. I got the titanium one to see if I can do some heat anodizing and add some rainbow colors.
titanium frame $18
I wanted to stretch and widen it so I got this link and driveshaft extension set, also Amazon. Front +6mm, rear 18mm extensions.
link and driveshaft extension set $26
Got this too.
Skid plate $11
After getting these parts I discovered that the skid plate mounting is different between the SCX and AX. OOPS!
Gotta get creative... I figured that if I got a pair of CF AX side plates I could Frankenstein them together,so I got these
CF side plates $13
I was able to cut the "ears" off the AX plates and attach them to the inside of the SCX frame. With a little finessing it went together OK. I had to mount the fabbed up skid plate/AX side plate assy about 3mm lower than stock (not a bad thing) and slightly bend out the bottom of the frame to snug it in.
For the gearbox, I found this "2 speed" setup on Amazon, really it's just an overdrive for the front axle (not a bad thing).
Gearbox $24
Assembled all those parts, so far so good. Here's the rest of the parts I have either on hand or on order for the next stage.
Meus Racing Nylon portal axles. Cheaper and will "slide" better (I hope). Also adds 4mm width each side.
Portal axles $52 a pair
Servo set with mounts
Servo set $25
Stock driveshaft set
Driveshafts $8
Shocks 48mm
shocks $18
Adjustable steering links
Steering links $16 a pair
Wheels/tires- negative 7mm offset 62mm dia.
Wheels/tires $36
And the biggie... Furitek Stinger for the AX24
Stinger $135
I'm going to use a DumboRC X6PM-350 TX/RX I already have, it has channel mixing so I should be able to do steering mode switching. Also has endpoint adjustments for the first four channels.
TX/RX $36, already have one.
Mandatory tools for this scale are a MIP .050" hex driver and a M1.4 tap. Saves a lot of fastener headaches. Also got a SCX24 screw set just for spares.
The quality of the RampCrab stuff is really good! Fit/finish is spot on and the prices are decent.
All the parts should be here this week, in the meantime I'll try the titanium heat anodizing. If that fails I'll just CF vinyl wrap the suckers.
So far the damage is $345 (not counting the skid plate which is replaced by the Furitek one and the radio which I already have).
I'm not including batteries, I have a bunch on hand.
This leaves me with about $55 for the rest of the build. We'll see if I can stick the budget.
Here's some "in progress" pics: