Questions on Capra 4WS

[BA0701]

I'll post the pics here, and update from my pc, typing is much easier, but pics are on my phone.

Ok, so the update. The only thing I have accomplished so far is the body panels. I also mounted the wheels you see alone, but those rims have one fatal issue. They are PitBull rims, and some of my fav rims of all time, they are beautiful rims. All of the tiny silver beadlock bolts you see around the face of the wheel, they are real, and yo have to screw each and every one of them in, that is the level of detail we are talking about.

But, the center cap is attached, it is actually a part of the body of the rim itself. This is a massive issue, because so far the only truck I have been able to attach them to is the TRX4, but I have different 2.2 rims on it. Every other vehicle I have tried to put these wheels on, the axle stud is too long, and hits the inside of the center cap, making them difficult to mount at all, and impossible to mount on straight. I remember on one truck I had put them on, it may have been the Gen8 Axe but not sure, but the studs stuck out so far on it that I could not even get the bolts mounted.

Another thing about these wheels is they have a separate piece that actually fits over the hex nut on the axle stud, once it is attached to the axle, you then line up 6 tiny holes, as you can see in the pic, and those are the bolts that attach the rest of the rim to the axle.

So, I will have to figure out some other rims, once I I get the motor/esc/power issues resolved, and we will just stick to the stock wheels for a bit. I also plan on getting the Vitavon carbon body panels for it, but when I just went to order those the other day, it said 5-6 weeks shipping time, so I got these, which I think also turned out really nice. Shocks will be next, likely tomorrow, I believe they will really tie things together.

 

[BA0701]

Couple of updates on the Capra, I put the 2.2 wheels and tires seen on my TRX4, on the Capra. The tires are RC4WD Mud Slingers, which have always seems to stick really well, but I won't know how well until I get this truck on the rocks. I installed the Desert Lizards, but ran into an issue. For starters, they only provided 6 spacers with the set. I used one on the fronts, and two behind the top of the shock on the rears. I also followed some suggestions in a video I came across. Man in the video said he was getting ready for a crawl event, and he actually explained why he did things a certain way, as opposed to a lot of videos you find that simply say "This is how I run my setup", and it all made sense. He actually suggested going the opposite from the Yeah Racing Desert Lizard video, which says for droop run the short spring under the plunger, and the medium spring on top of it. This gentleman runs the medium spring under the plunger, and the short on top.

Given I had already built a couple following YR's video, I had something to compare to, and this gentleman's setup really did lower things at least .5-.75" further than the YR way. In building the shocks, I used both soft springs in the front, and the short soft spring with the medium stiffness medium length spring in the rear. My rears just would not drop, without my pulling on them, not from the weight of the axle and tires anyhow. It looked, just eyeballing it, as if they may have been binding, and could have used an additional spacer, which I did not have enough, on top of the fact that to use a third spacer would have needed longer screws than I have available as well.

Not to mention, to be fully honest, while the desert lizards definitely dropped the height of my truck in this configuration, I really prefer the stock shocks over these, as I have them setup. So, I put the stock shocks back on, and will play around, maybe putting the soft medium length springs in the rear as well, and perhaps some lower weight oil (currently using 25wt), but only after I can find some spacers and longer screws.

I have read that the Enduro shocks work really well on this truck, so I may look further into that, and repurpose the Desert Lizards for another rig. In the mean time I have ordered the 1080, just to get me up and running with my transmitter, so I can learn how to drive with dig and 4ws, while I decide which motor and transmission to go with, and I believe I might call Castle Creations and ask them about running 3 servos (2 full size and 1 micro) on their 10A, so I can get that ordered, and start setting the Axial dig up.

I ended up going down this rabbit hole, after seeing a YT short, from a British guy running a Bully II, and climbing a 90 degree obstacle, using 4ws and dig to do so. Almost bought a Bully instead, but since I have always wanted a Capra, and can do the same things with it, that is the direction I went.

The shock build video I referenced (some really good info here):

The YT Short that started me down this maddening path:

 

[Doom!]

I have no personal experience with them, but I've heard more than a few people say that the Desert Lizards are more hype than performance. I think a lot of people buy them for their looks.

 

[BA0701]

I have no personal experience with them, but I've heard more than a few people say that the Desert Lizards are more hype than performance. I think a lot of people buy them for their looks.

You may well be right, or it may be the config I currently have them setup with, haven't fiddled with them enough yet to give an opinion. Regardless, the stock shocks perform better on my rig, currently, so until I either get the DLs figured out, or find something I believe better, I will just stick with those. Was trying to get as much droop, and lower the truck as much as possible, while keeping it flexible. I have not yet read, or seen, that the Enduro shocks work well in a droop setup, but from everything I have read they are really good shocks all around.

At the end of the day, we keep trying until we get a config we are happy with, and then we keep trying to make that even better, a vicious never ending, yet strangely fun and ultra enjoyable, cycle.

 

[Doom!]

You may well be right, or it may be the config I currently have them setup with, haven't fiddled with them enough yet to give an opinion. Regardless, the stock shocks perform better on my rig, currently, so until I either get the DLs figured out, or find something I believe better, I will just stick with those. Was trying to get as much droop, and lower the truck as much as possible, while keeping it flexible. I have not yet read, or seen, that the Enduro shocks work well in a droop setup, but from everything I have read they are really good shocks all around.

At the end of the day, we keep trying until we get a config we are happy with, and then we keep trying to make that even better, a vicious never ending, yet strangely fun and ultra enjoyable, cycle.

I hear you, I have purchased more than a few things because they looked cool only to find out I was better off stock. But experimenting can be rewarding too.