42099 Mods and Improvements

[efferman]

Nearly all of Technic Sets have minor or big Bugs in their construction. The 42099 too

• Low Clearance below the diffs
• Wobbly Steering
• to fast to climb
• The big Turntable in front

Ground clearance Front: before 3,5Studs, now 4,5 studs

Back: before 5 Studs, now 6,5 Studs

Crawling: Now the reduction between Motor and diff is 1.4:1. Before it was at 1:1.985. The space for  3.89:1 is available

The Frame is changed a bit to move the battbox a little bit forward and lower the center of weight a bit.

Turntable

a vid for the the fixed steering will follow

Edited August 4, 2019 by efferman

[Zerobricks]

You can mount the front shock closer to the wheel, so suspension is a bit harder and with a higher ground clearance. I had same idea with using H frames to hold suspension arms, it's a perfect part for this purpose. I also suggest you move the steering balls closer to the wheels and extend gear rack to 9 studs to get a better steering geometry,

[efferman]

The steering lock is ok i think and a suspension which is to hard is not so good.

 

[1gor]

I think front tires are facing the wrong direction 

...but IMHO new PU system does not allow mocing so far, PF system is more flexible so far...

Mods look functional, but there is one stud stitching out both left and right from H shape frame...

[nerdsforprez]

certainly climbs a lot better but I hear lots of clicking gears!

[efferman]

49 minutes ago, nerdsforprez said:

certainly climbs a lot better but I hear lots of clicking gears!

Yes, i have to look where it comes from before i release the lxf. 

Edit. It seems the gears in the diff making these noise. Even without loud there is a clicking.

 

Edited August 4, 2019 by efferman

[kbalage]

You can play with the gearing in the original setup, it allows a wide range of reduction and the gears are well secured so you won't have any clicking. That does not help with the ground clearance though :) 

[efferman]

The clicking is in the diffs. No way to avoid this without using my 4 bevel gear diffs

[Lakop]

It needs a winch and better body work.

H

[Void_S]

@Horace T, do you mean a dark-blue livery?

[Ngoc Nguyen]

19 minutes ago, Void_S said:

@Horace T, do you mean a dark-blue livery?

With 2 white stripes in the middle and an exclusive plate number for each set.

[Aerolight]

Why cant the front wishbones droop as much as the rear ones, cant you just lower the spring mounts as well as the steering racks (if the lack of droop is due to the steering rods maxing out)?

[Lakop]

11 hours ago, Void_S said:

@Horace T, do you mean a dark-blue livery?

It needs body work to look like something. It's not recognisable as a vehicle at the moment so something to make it look like it means business. I don't have those wheels or maybe I would build it and add my own bodywork.

H

[nerdsforprez]

Not sure how beneficial it is to make global recommendations on personal taste.  I, on the other hand, love the looks of the model.  It doesn't fit the model in name or performance, but I do like the look.  Very much resembles a crawler in real life.  High to non-existent front wheel wells, shortened front end.... etc.

 

 

The real problem, IMO, is that of identity for this model.  It is called an extreme off-roader, which makes some sense because it is obviously geared for speed and not real crawling.  However, it is not that the looks aren't BAD.... it is that they don't match the identity of the model.  If looks and identity are matched, then it should be geared slower and given the name of a crawler, not just extreme off-road whatever.  Then name, performance (more or less), AND looks would all match. 

 

[Void_S]

8 hours ago, nerdsforprez said:

The real problem, IMO, is that of identity for this model.  It is called an extreme off-roader, which makes some sense because it is obviously geared for speed and not real crawling.  However, it is not that the looks aren't BAD.... it is that they don't match the identity of the model.  If looks and identity are matched, then it should be geared slower and given the name of a crawler, not just extreme off-road whatever.  Then name, performance (more or less), AND looks would all match. 

Yeah, it seems to be a point: "as it looks like a previously released Crawler model, it should be it but underperforms!". Really there is nowhere said that it's a crawler so just enjoy the off-road truck that runs and jumps nice.
The similar thing was for a tracked Stunt Racer that was fun enough to roll and wheelie-starting but wasn't a tracked heavy offroader

[Aerolight]

Using the existing parts you can redesign the model entirely for far better performance. Using a bevel gear set to transfer power to each wheel instead of the upper CVs allows the wishbones to attach to the frame 3 studs apart, instead of the original model's 9 allowing for longer wishbones for more articulation and ground clearance; although due to the limited length of the steering arms included the system would not work to its full potential.

This method also removes the diffs and allows for motors to drive opposite sides instead of individual axles; this greatly increases climbing capability and allows for tighter turning via the addition of tank steering.

Lastly this makes it easy to mount the motors next to each other in the frame, this makes enough space to mount the C+ hub at the lowest point in the fame; lowering the centre of gravity greatly when compared to the original.

You also gain parts for your collection as this end model uses less parts than the original.

[efferman]

19 hours ago, Aerolight said:

Why cant the front wishbones droop as much as the rear ones, cant you just lower the spring mounts as well as the steering racks (if the lack of droop is due to the steering rods maxing out)?

The cv joints have an maximum angle. On the rear axle the have only to go up and down and allowing much more angle. At the front they need to move left and rigtht, so the wishbones cat go the same travel like on an unsteered axle.

28 minutes ago, Aerolight said:

Using the existing parts you can redesign the model entirely for far better performance. Using a bevel gear set to transfer power to each wheel instead of the upper CVs allows the wishbones to attach to the frame 3 studs apart, instead of the original model's 9 allowing for longer wishbones for more articulation and ground clearance; although due to the limited length of the steering arms included the system would not work to its full potential.

Sounds interresting, please show  pictures

Next step in Chassis changes to allow to move the batterybox more forward.  Bricksafe for bigger pictures

Edited August 6, 2019 by efferman

[Aerolight]

Unfortunately after checking this model has no cross block/form (LDD name) pieces, I don't know why I thought it had some and since 8 are required for the new suspension its not possible to do with the parts in the box. However these 8 pieces are all you need (I made double sure this time) but even so its still more of a c model than an upgrade to the a model so sorry for posting in the wrong topic. However you can eliminate the diffs with this method.

No diff by michael waterfield, on Flickr

 

 

[Zerobricks]

Or you can use a 36 or 32 tooth gear a cuple of pins and pulley wheels to drive both sides directly.

[Aerolight]

True but you would have to redesign the model a lot to make space for the bigger gears and using a 90 degree mesh per wheel instead of per axle about doubles the amount of torque that can be passed through without de-meshing. Another mod I came up with the stock parts (there should be just enough gears and axles) was to move the motors the middle side by side allowing both motors to be easily connected allowing for better crawling, although I realise this is a bit to major to be considered a mod as you have to move so much about at this point all that's left is the body.

[efferman]

Small Video with different Drivelines and "wrong" mounted tires.

 

Edited August 8, 2019 by efferman

[Bartybum]

I’d love to see someone overhaul the suspension and give the model live axles and maybe even four wheel steering

[rekreK]

I’ve been modding mine, loosely based on efferman’s, I am using the 9.5L shock absorbers, doing Aerlight’s locked diffs, longer swing arms.

I've got the rear end done, working on the front end, but struggling with the steering, could you please show more details of your steering mods @efferman?

[efferman]

46 minutes ago, rekreK said:

could you please show more details of your steering mods

A lxf will come

Well, independent suspension with Diffs was a bad Idea.

 

[rekreK]

9 hours ago, efferman said:

A lxf will come

Cool, thx, I will wait...