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Remodeling the Sledge right into a Devoted Truggy-Class Competitor
Traxxas Sledge® delivers peak 6s efficiency and over-the-top sturdiness, preferrred attributes for a track-focused truggy-class competitor. To indicate simply how properly Sledge can carry a transponder across the pipes, we’ve been racing the truck featured right here commonly at Indy RC World. We went all out with our race construct and this text will cowl all of the mods and upgrades we made, however you need not go to these extremes. All you really want to do is set up the tires which are the new setup at your native monitor and begin racing.
Monitor-Optimized Chassis Flex
Sledge doesn’t want something added within the chassis division to make it race-ready. The truth is, we took stuff off! The additional bracing that makes Sledge so extremely robust for knockaround 6s stunt-driving isn’t required for racing. A very inflexible chassis might be detrimental to trace dealing with too. Eradicating the T-Bar™ brace and rear facet helps permits the chassis to flex extra simply, and the burden financial savings helps the truck speed up, brake, and alter course extra responsively. For extra weight financial savings, we additionally eliminated the quick-release battery hold-down system in favor of straps.
Our Sledge’s unique blue chassis plate was trying fairly thrashed, and changing it was alternative to check out a brand new colour. You may hold issues shiny with green or red, or select dark titanium like we did for a stealthier look.
Eradicating the chassis’ T-Bar brace and rear facet helps permits extra traction-enhancing chassis flex.
We stored the battery tray however changed the quick-release hold-down mechanism with hook-and-loop straps to avoid wasting weight.
Sledge’s GT-Maxx® shocks are competition-spec proper out of the field with their high-capacity threaded our bodies, X-ring seals, and bolt-on decrease retainers. For absolute minimal shock-shaft friction and most run time between rebuilds, we outfitted our truck with the non-obligatory titanium-nitride coated shafts. The low-friction coating is scratch- and scuff-resistant for long-lasting smoothness and ultra-responsive shock motion. We additionally fine-tuned the damping and spring charges to swimsuit circumstances at Indy RC Raceway. Our setup makes use of stiffer springs and higher-viscosity oil than inventory, which must also carry out properly on most different hard-packed tracks. To study extra about tuning with spring price and oil viscosity, check out Part 2 of our Suspension Tuning Guide.
You’ll discover the TiN shock shafts and all of the spring choices on the Sledge Accessories page. Traxxas Premium Shock Oil is obtainable in particular person bottles, however for those who actually wish to be prepared for any monitor circumstances, get the Shock Oil Set with carousel.
The shafts’ TiN coating fights friction, extends put on, and appears trick.
Whereas the shocks had been off the truck, we traded the inventory mounting {hardware} for the even-stronger hardened steel pin set.
Excessive-Power, Excessive-Precision Suspension
The engineering that permits Sledge to shrug off big-hit stunt motion offers it greater than sufficient power for the monitor. We made some aluminum upgrades to the suspension, to not stop breakage, however to extend stiffness for razor-sharp dealing with and responsiveness. We supplemented the inventory steering blocks with machined-aluminum caster blocks, outfitted the rear suspension with aluminum rear axle carriers, and upgraded to 7075-T6 shock towers front and rear for flex-fighting rigidity.
We additionally put in the non-obligatory 7075-T6 hingepin tie bars. These don’t alter suspension geometry or have an effect on dealing with really feel, however they do provide better power and precision.
The blue-anodized caster blocks and rear axle carriers are additionally accessible in inexperienced, orange, purple, and grey. We additionally swapped the usual blue-anodized serrated axle nuts for black.
Tie bars put in. You may as well get them in inexperienced, purple, orange, and grey.
We swapped the inventory 6061-T6 aluminum shock towers for the super-strong, extra-rigid 7075-T6 variations with a dark-titanium end. The towers are machined for precision and look killer with their polished highlights.
Extremely-long-travel suspension and big traction makes truggies susceptible to chassis roll, so a set of sway bars is an important tuning assist. Traxxas affords a full set of bars for Sledge in stiffnesses optimized for track-ready dealing with. When you’ve decided one of the best sway bars in your monitor situation, you may additional fine-tune your setup by shifting the linkage place on the bar. Part 4 of our Suspension Tuning Guide covers the whole lot it is advisable learn about sway bars, and
they’re a simple strategy to refine your truck’s dealing with.
The Sledge sway bar set contains six color-coded bars to equip each ends of the truck, and all of the required {hardware}.
The sway bars are straightforward to put in and modify and may make an enormous distinction in dealing with really feel—and your lap instances.
Camber & Toe Adjustability
You can begin racing your Sledge with the fixed-length camber and tie hyperlinks however with the ability to fine-tune these setting with adjustable turnbuckle linkages will show you how to dial in your truck for greatest dealing with, simpler driving, and quicker laps. Inflexible turnbuckle hyperlinks may also sharpen up steering and suspension response, and turnbuckle hyperlinks don’t come stronger or stiffer than Traxxas TUBES. As an alternative of threading a single metal rod (heavy) or titanium rod (costly), TUBES characteristic heavy-duty threaded metal inserts and hole 7075-T6 aluminum our bodies to ship the lightness of titanium with even better power and stiffness.
We went stealthy with dark-titanium anodizing. You may as well get TUBES for Sledge in purple, blue, orange, and inexperienced.
You may go straight to the monitor with Sledge’s inventory Excessive Torque-347 steering servo. It’s obtained metallic gears, an aluminum mid-case, and digital circuitry for exact efficiency with 347 ounce-inches of torque to maintain your truck on the quickest line. Extra energy is all the time higher, nonetheless, and the High-Torque Red 400 Brushless Digital servo delivers it with an extra 53 oz-in of torque (400 whole) and even quicker steering response because of its brushless motor. All the advantages brushless energy brings to powering your truck additionally apply when powering a servo, and the Pink 400 is unbeatable for fast steering response and tire-aiming muscle to tame massive
truggy treads in high-traction circumstances.
The Pink 400 servo is a direct alternative for the inventory servo.
Drivetrain Effectivity Upgrades
Sledge has drivetrain sturdiness dealt with proper out of the field in relation to sheer power. For racing motion, the non-obligatory Heavy Obligation Metal CV Driveshafts provide even better power and put on resistance, plus the very best effectivity for max energy switch. The center and rear CV shafts substitute dogbones and that’s the place you’ll see the most important features. Sledge contains entrance CV shafts as inventory gear. You may as well do what we did: hold the inventory entrance CV shafts and improve them with hardened steel stub axles.
Hardened-steel development and environment friendly CV-style common joints be certain that each watt of energy finds its strategy to the tires.
Buying and selling the rear dogbones for CV shafts will considerably prolong drivetrain life and guarantee bind-free energy supply all through the suspension journey vary.
As talked about beforehand, choosing the right tires for the monitor is essentially the most important facet of a race-winning setup. Fortunately, all it is advisable do to make an knowledgeable tread alternative is check out what aggressive drivers are working (or simply ask the monitor operator). Our go-to from the Traxxas tire lineup is the Response Professional tread on 3.8” dish wheels, which arrive professionally mounted and are match for many hard-packed tracks. They’re additionally very inexpensive in comparison with another mounted competitors truggy tires, which makes Response Professionals a terrific alternative as a observe tire if the perfect tread is one thing dearer.
We’re virtually able to hit the monitor. We’d like a battery, in fact, and naturally we’re utilizing a real Energy Cell LiPo. Class guidelines name for 4s energy, and 5000 mAh is loads for a warmth of racing. We additionally put in a fan on the motor to maintain temperature down and effectivity up. And eventually, our Sledge’s rear wing had numerous stunt-driving put on and was due for alternative, so we bolted up a freshie and secured it with a blue-anodized wing washer for bonus model factors. We determined to go along with a white wing in race mode, for higher visibility on the monitor.
Sledge is a 6s-capable truck, however the racing class requires 4s energy. We’re utilizing the 5000 mAh Energy Cell LiPo pack, mounted all the best way ahead within the tray for max steering grip.
The non-obligatory cooling fan retains motor temps down, which will increase energy and effectivity.
Now that appears like a critical race machine—which it’s.
SLEDGE SETUP SHEET – Indy RC Raceway, Garland TX
Indy RC Raceway is a hard-packed, swept and watered indoor monitor. If you happen to’re racing on an identical floor, our setup ought to get you near dialed in. On rougher/softer tracks, you’ll possible discover that softer springs, lighter oil, and lowered sway bar stiffness will enhance dealing with. As all the time, change one factor at a time and take a look at completely earlier than deciding if a change helps or hurting. Good luck, and have enjoyable!
Click on On the Picture to Obtain the Full Setup Sheet
- 9595 Sledge sway bar set
- 8963T TiN-coated GT-Maxx shock shaft, 72 mm
- 8962 GT-Maxx shock rebuild equipment (x2)
- 8969 1.725 price GT-Maxx springs (pair)
- 9662T TiN-coated GT-Maxx shock shaft, 80 mm
- 9659 1.487 price GT-Maxx springs (pair)
- 9579R Machined metal 43T ring gear & 10T pinion gear
- 9583X Hardened metal differential output cups, F&R
- 9586X Hardened metal differential output cups, middle
- 9553X Metal CV stub axles (pair)
- 9655X Metal CV driveshafts, middle
- 9654X Metal CV driveshafts, rear (pair)
- 2255 Excessive Torque 400 Pink brushless servo
- 2889X Energy Cell 4s LiPo 5000 mAh
- 9522A Chassis, darkish titanium anodized
- 9638A 7075-T6 aluminum rear shock tower, darkish titanium anodized
- 9639A 7075-T6 aluminum entrance shock tower, darkish titanium anodized
- 9629 7075-T6 aluminum entrance tie bars, blue anodized
- 9630 7075-T6 aluminum rear tie bars, blue anodized
- 9532X 6061-T6 aluminum caster blocks, blue anodized
- 9552X 6061-T6 aluminum stub axle carriers, blue anodized
- 9617 6061-T6 aluminum wing washer, blue anodized
- 5722 Hook and loop battery straps (4)
- 3936 4×10 mm button head screws
- 9545A 6061-T6 aluminum servo saver put up, darkish titanium anodized
- 9546A 6061-T6 aluminum steering draglink, darkish titanium anodized
- 5038X Traxxas Premium Shock Oil Set with carousel
- 6489X 16T pinion, 1.0 metric pitch, 5 mm
- 5375R Response Professional tires mounted on white 3.8” dish wheels (pair)
- 9517A Sledge wing with washer, white
- 9663 Hardened metal shock pin set
- 9540 Hardened metal suspension pin set
- 7758A 17 mm serrated wheel nuts, black anodized
- 3476 Cooling fan equipment with shroud for 2000 kV motor
Store for These and Extra Sledge Equipment within the Hyperlink Beneath
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