usmcrc

i am having my wife send me the ss out here in iraq so i can put it together on my off time(if i ever get any!) i have looked at a couple different radios and servos for it. for the servos, i plan on getting the hitec 645 for steering and i don't know what i want yet for the throttle/brake. the radio needs to be 3 channel because i will get the reverse module eventually for it. i have been considering the airtronics mx-3 and the futaba 3pm. i saw in the specs that the airtronics doesnt have abs(whatever that does, i don't know) and i wasn't too sure but i thought it said that i need to buy a reciever for it aswell. the futaba seems to come with everything that i would need except the servos and cost only about 30 bucks more than the mx-3. has anyone had experience with these radios or can anyone point me to another one that runs well with the savage? i have limited time to research on the net or i would do more homework. thanks
tim

GALAXY

Abs is anti lock brakes...it just pulses the servo instead of applying full brake,not for me thanks.

I have the MX-3 with reverse and it comes with a reciever and you can get it with 2 regular servos for throttle/reverse and order the hitec seperatly which I did but just a different brand steering servo.That should all work fine...keep all that sand outta the engine,get her to send you a motor saver airfilter too.Good luck over there and thanks for all you've done.

usmcrc

thanks galaxy. what reason do you have for not wanting the abs? do the brakes actually lock without it? i would think that one could just not hit the brake so hard to prevent any lock. how do youlike the mx-3? i guess i don't really understand what the specs are telling me. it is something more that i will learn about as i move on i guess. thanks again
tim

Q8 RC

hey tim i am from KUWAIT and my frined have a shop and so many americans come there and i have a savage SS with a Futaba 3PM its very nice and it can store up to 10 models so you dont need to buy anymore radios again and i have the MG-645 its not that strong
and i have the MG-625 its awsome for the brakes and throttel very fast response i hope i helped thanx

Bader

KUWAIT

usmcrc

so...now, i am having trouble decideing on a servo. i haven't heard anything about the futaba high torque or super torque and i have heard contradicting things about the hitec 645. is it that just some of the 645's are strong and some aren't? probably not...how could a manufacturer make something like that? i know about the steering mod. have those of you that love the hitec 645 done the steering upgrade and those of you that speek low of it not? there really is no way for me to find out for my self because i can't go to the nearest iraqi hobby shop and test the servos for my self, you know what i mean? those are the two that i am probably going to choose from. thanks a lot for the help. this is just like the jeep board that i go to...quick responses and a lot of experienced drivers.
Q8...how's life there? do you like what kuwait has become since armed forces became involved? it would be nice to know from you that this has impacted you in a good way. i might be out of line asking you all that. yes, we are doing a lot of good things here. i appreciate the response.
tim

WizzBang

I also have the Futaba 3pm. I like it allot and the price was nice. It's all digital and the buttons can be programmed for different functions. I set one button to open the throttle slightly. This helps with startups. Once the engine is running, a second press of the button returns the servo to the original position. (Very nice feature)

As far as other parts you should get - do the differential mod (2 spider gears) and use a good diff oil instead of that gunk they pack in there from the factory. Also, save yourself allot of trouble and install the reverse module right away. It's a PITA to install after the truck is assembled. I'd also suggest a heavier wieght shock oil. Don't forget a glow plug wrench and some extra glow-plugs.

If your wife is sending all this, I would ask her to send a small (miniature) metric combination wrench set too. Craftsman has a good one for $10-$15

usmcrc

thanks dirt. i am just having her send me the ss and nothing else. i just wanted something to do on my off days when i'm not working on them. wouldn't i just have to disassemble some parts to install the reverse module? it can't be that hard. i can do it when i get back home, in the middle of paint coats. i wouldn't want to run it out here anyway. i wouldn't be able to get it back home if i had fuel ran through it. and also, i can't exactly have the gas sent out here. it is haz-mat and it wouldn't even make it out of the states.
what parts do i need to mod the diff? a stock diff has only 1 spider gear? that is kinda messed up. i know a few things about diffs and transmissions, etc. on automibiles and heavy equipment. the marine corps sent me to heavy equipment school and i got stuck working on generators...ok a little off subject but my point is that i am glad that the savage has things that i can understand right away. i would think that the "good" diff oil would be a little thicker to help a limited slip diff...is that where you are going with that? as far as i know, oil is oil, just different grades and additives.
about the glow plugs...i have no idea where to start with those, either. brands, temps, etc. are all things that i will have to gain more knowledge on. what about a glow starter(is that right?)? there is a bunch of things that i need to learn. maybe i jumped on board too quick becasue one thing that i hate, is someone(kinda like what i am doing)who just asks questions when they could research more to find out for themselves. sorry for that but i, again, have limited capabilities here as far as the internet goes. well thanks for the replies and i'll work on finding time to do more homework on the savage.
tim

WizzBang

OK, I said 2 spider gears but I meant 2 additional gears per diff. You can double the strength of the differential by adding 2 more gears to each. This should really be done before you assemble anything else since the assembly begins with the diffs. I'll look for the parts you need (should be several posts on this subject) and point you in that direction. There are specific grades of differential oil for different purposes. I went with what my hobby store suggested (cant remember right now).

As far as newbie stuff goes...

The glow plug starter is basically a battery that supplies power to the glow plug. I suggest getting one that is rechargable and has a gage or indicator on it. The gage will tell you if your plug is bad or if your battery is dead. I also suggest getting the type of starter that locks onto the plug. That way you can pull with one hand and use the other to support the truck (instead of holding the starter)

With these motors, you should use a long plug. If you use a locking style starter, then you will want a glow plug with the grooves in it for locking against.

Use the super glue on the tires as the directions suggest. Tires come off and roll a long way if you dont (yep, I had this happen).

Good luck..