Trucks Traxxas T-Maxx 2.5 4x4 Used

[Swat868]

Hey guys Brandon here,

I just got finished purchasing my first RC car ever and its a nitro! My friend told me that if i loved to tinker on stuff a lot then nitro was the way to go and that is definitely me. So my buddy told me to go on craigslist and see what i could find and i happen to come across a 2.5 T-Maxx for $100 and he said just grab it man all the parts are replaceable we can get that thing running no matter what its a great deal.

So after a long drive out to the middle of no where i pull up to this house and there is lying what shocked me a perfect condition Nitro RC car that sells for $400 brand new at my hobby shop here in town that this guy says he barely ever ran it then got into dirt bikes and it was an adult which is always a +.

So i snag this car for $100 bucks take it back to the hobby shop and my buddy works on it for about 15 minutes and boom pull start, not easy start and it fires right up o im excited now im ready to drive this thing all over the place. Once he gets the wheels spinning he noticed something that he wasnt sure was a good or bad thing and thats what brings me here.

So what i believe is called the slip clutch because i believe Tony referred to that in his transmission video that part in my truck doesnt free spin all the time basically after 2 or 3 spins it catches on something and stops and becomes almost locked up. We werent sure if this is normal or something with the transmission or maybe even something with the gear on the motor sorry i dont know the terms.

But like i said im totally new to these things never worked on one before but im researching all over the internet on every little detail about this truck so i can become more knowledgeable. So if any of you guys know if this is good or bad and if so how to maybe fix this problem if it is one please let me know when ever you are available to respond

Thank you so much for your time! and if anyone can explain how to upload pics id love to show u guys the truck!

 

[breeze400]

So what exactly are you asking? The slipper clutch is the clutch on the bull gear witch is the big gear on the tranny. The engine clutch is inside the flywheel on the motor. On the slipper you adjust the nut on the front till it barely moves. Read the Manuel or download one from Traxxas - The Fastest Name in Radio Control! | traxxas.com if you don't have it. It will tell you how to adjust it. If its too loose the tranny won't shift into hi. If its too tight you will end up braking axels. Just right and shy will wheely all over the place! Lol but get a Manuel and read it. There is lots of valuable info it it! Good luck. I have a 3.3 t maxx and we have a riot every time we take them out!

 

[Swat868]

so basically the slipper clutch when i go to spin it with my finger i was told it should free spin when all put together in the truck and basically after a rotation or 2 it locks up and does not free spin i have to spin it the opposite direction a bit kinda wiggle it then it free spins a few more rotations idk if thats normal or not.

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o and thanks for that link ill definitely look into that owners manual any kind of documented stuff will help

 

[breeze400]

I'm not sure what you mean. It should just spin hard while holding the wheels from spinning. You turn the bull gear and it should bearly spin. Like I said read the Manuel. It will tell you how to adjust it.

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Hear I got ths info for you on how to adjust the clutch!

http://traxxas.com/support/How-Adjust-Slipper-Clutch

 

[Swat868]

So it was the slipper clutch after all, half of the teeth on that gear were gone and it was lose replaced it now its running like a champ although if I'm full throatly then come to a stop it usually shuts out on me or a few laps back and forth if I slowly bring it to a stop it shuts off been fine tuning the idle and such slowly getting there

 

[Tony]

I know exactly what you are talking about. While it's sitting there idling it will be spinning teh large gear (Spur Gear) and every now and then it will click and stop the gear. Usually making the truck jump forward a little. this means you have the idle on the truck just a little too high. Just lower the throttle and this will stop.

The reason it does that is because this truck has a two speed transmission with reverse. The spur gear is meant to free spin until it reaches a certain RPM then a clutch inside the trans will engage and shift the trans into first. After you accelerate to a certain engine rpm, the trans mission will deploy another clutch and shift the trans into second.

When you are looking at the spur gear, there is a nut on the shaft in teh center of the spur with a spring behind it. This is what you use to adjust the slipper clutch. The slipper is located just behind the spur gear between the gear and trans housing. This is used to save the transmission from hard take off's by letting the spur slip a little. In true world racing, the slipper should slip for the first two feet then the tires should start to spin. However I usually locked the T-Maxx trans' down a little more because they are very heavy. However locking them down could damage the transmission and/or drive shafts. so I would do the 1-2' slip just to save money in the long run.

I hope this helps explain your question. Let us know if there is anything else we can do to help.

 

[Adam]

Oh man these things are fun to learn i wish i had that setup you got.

 

[Swat868]

Man im so excited to have gotten it running well today i want to post more pictures but it says they are to big of a format not sure how to shrink them to fit but ill figure it out so u guys can see how ridiculously clean this truck is! i got the idle real smooth now and even got the motor temp. to a consistent 230-240 which really excites me now the only problem i have left now is either ill get the thing started and the second i go to give a bit of throttle it immediately dies which i read online having something to do with the low speed tune thing but i havent quiet go the handle of that one yet my other problem is if i am at high speed full throttle and then break fairly quickly alot of times it will die on me right in the middle of the road which is annoying so any other ideas? sorry to be so full of questions but i really want to get this thing as stable as possible so i can take it out int he fields and not have to work on it all the time

 

[Swat868]

 

[Tony]

To set your low speed needle, fire the truck up and get it up to running temp. something over 200ºf. Once it's there, pinch the fuel line going to the carb. It should take exactly 3 seconds for it to die. If it takes longer, it's too rich. If shorter, it's too lean.

Look at a clock. When you are tuning, ONLY turn one hour at a time! These needles are very sensitive. Ambient temp will affect the way these engines run FAR LESS than humidity. If the humidity changes, you will need to tune the engine.

For the high speed needle, you will need to run it up and down the road or where ever and make sure it runs good as well as stays under 250ºf. Once you have those set, you are ready to play. But like stated, you will have to change this up every time you run the truck.

Another thing, cut a larger hole in the windshield on the passenger side. This will allow more air to flow into the fins on the head. A must have for any nitro vehicle.

 

[Swat868]

so in what order should i adjust my knobs low speed first then high speed? do i need to adjust my idle control at all? i need to go buy a temp gun.

 

[Swat868]

so i took your advice Tony! i got that low speed knob right at 3 second shut off and i tell u what if that didnt make my motor run freaking cherry it still dies on me if im full throttle then quickly slow down but other then that it runs like a champ now! atleast from what i know who knows if im running it wrong but it seems to work wonders. im not sure if its to hot or not because i dont have a temp gun but the motor never smoked and when i spit or put a little water on the motor it rarely even bubbled the water so i feel like its running wonderfully. i drove it in a huge dirty field for the last hour im not sure how i can clean this thing because it has dirt alllll over it. i took the air filter off and its clean as new but how do i clean out the head where the glow plug is and so on so that there arent dirt particles all over any ideas? let me know

 

[Adam]

So does this thing do Wheelies?

 

[Swat868]

it wont when on the street or any hard ground but the second it touches dirty or grass i cant keep it on all fours i really wish i could get it to do wheelies on the street but it just doesnt seem to want to do them yet of course. i literally got the entire thing covered in dirt today it was absolutely the greatest feeling ever until i took it home and im still not sure how to clean it because there is dirt everywhere and im scared to break something if i use fluids but i gotta get the dirt atleast out of the glow plug slot.

 

[breeze400]

Use compressed air to clean it off! Lol

 

[Tony]

Yup, as Sam stated, I use an air compressor and blow gun. You can blow it off dry, then take some Simple Green, spray the truck down, let it sit for a minute, then blow it off with the air gun. It will look like new.

And if you are dying at full throttle, it's more than likely too lean. Saying you never saw smoke is also another indication. If you watch my videos, you will always see smoke coming out of it. If you don't, you can burn it up. Read up on the truck and set the high speed needle to the stock setting. I want to say it's 3 turns out but I'm not sure. But I do believe you are too lean on the top.

 

[Swat868]

o im getting great smoke out of the exhaust actually i was talking about the glow plug never starts smoking the only time it dies is if im full throttle and then slam the breaks to a stop really quick and its usually after a few hard laps full throttle i feel like the motor may just be getting chocked and i shouldnt slow it as quickly but im sure its just a bit more fine tuning but i feel like its running really well. i did go threw a pretty big puddle and it got wet i just took the lid off put it in the sun and dried it and it seems to be just fine this truck is awesome and im so thankful for all your guys help thank you.

 

[Tony]

I'm not sure I know what you mean about the glow plug not smoking. But I do agree that you need to get a temp gun. It's the only way to know for sure the engine is running at the right temp. This will assure your piston and sleeve will last as long as possible. It can not wear out if you run it rich, you will just lose a little power, but if you run it lean it will burn the engine up quite quickly.

 

[Swat868]

well im running it pretty rich almost so rich that sometimes it wont shift to 2nd gear until its really warmed up but i have to say i think its running pretty good. im gonna take a few videos and post them to see what u guys think but personally i think i got this beast doing pretty good for not taking anything apart.

 

[Swat868]

well i hit a curb today and blew the survo according to the hobbytown guy. and i lost most of my compression so im not going to watch Tony's video on taking apart the entire thing im gonna clean it all up in my parts cleaner make the thing brand spankin new and see what happens! any tips let me know!