[MOC] Off-road truck Gaz 66[instructions available]

[keymaker]

Hi,

I would like to present my newest creation – off-road truck Gaz 66. It is my interpretation of small, old and very popular truck, which has a lot of off-road capability. Someone can ask why next similar small scale off road truck? I would say I like this type of vehicles, the scale and challenges they bring. And with every build I try to test something new, which I wasn't try before. Here the main goal was to go below standard for those wheels width of the model - 15 studs and prepare narrower axles than standard - 11 studs ones. Which I did. Gaz 66 has 13 studs width body with 9 studs (from rim to rim) front axle - stereed and driven. Thanks to that size of the body is more proportional to used wheels. And you can also use tractor tires provided with cargo for even better effect (you can see such modification in real Gaz 66 on one of polish off-road YT channel - LINK). I also tried to add as many details related to real truck as possible, in this scale, I hope there are here some fan of original Gaz 66 and they will recognise some elements I added.

 

Below you can find video and list of features and details. Enjoy.

 

Instructions: LINK

 

General details

• scale: 1:20
• dimensions LxWxH: 30x10,5x12,5cm
• weight: 946g

Features:

1. RC front axle steering (C+ L motor)
2. RC 4x4 drive (C+ L motor)
3. RC winch with place to lock the hook (C+ L motor)
4. 4-link live axle suspension for all 4 wheels
5. three studs ground clearance (with "KrAZ" tires)
6. openable doors and easy access to spare tire
7. working V8 engine with fan located in cabin, plus grill via which working engine can be watched
8. detailed two seats cabin
9. powered by Buwizz 3.0 but also prepared to be powered by standard C+ Hub
10. can operate with "KrAZ" tires included in cargo

Photos: LINK

 

My Gaz 66 is powered by Buwizz 3.0, but there is no problem to use standard C+ Lego battery box:

Internals of the MOC, so drivetrain connected with V8 engine, steering and the winch:

Edited May 14, 2023 by keymaker

[vascolp]

Very very cool!

[JoKo]

That's cute! I like that you can even build it with C+ hub.

Good job making it so compact and sleek!

[Mechbuilds]

Awesome! 

You should definitely try making a hotrod next. You have a very good talent of making mocs with smaller scales. 
@sm 01made awesome hotrods at this scale but he's no longer with us.

[Daniel-99]

Piece of technical art, and that is it! 

Edited May 14, 2023 by Daniel-99

[Jurss]

Technically impressive with all those electronics stuffed there.

[AutoBacon]

I like this a lot. A very challenging scale. Good job.

[KirTech LAB]

Awesome model, so interesting transmission for such a small scale! These wheels fit the scale perfectly, hopefully TLG will introduce a big replica of these tires one day.

[Igor1]

The model looks and technically great, but it seemed to me that the body cargo area is very long.

A shorter and lighter version without a winch would also be interesting.

[JoKo]

If I understand well the "crankshaft" of the fake engine was the only option at this size, could not be more "realistic"?

I like the off-road wheels better but it looks like they don't allow full steering and suspension without rubbing against wheel arches. Do they?

[keymaker]

Thank you all.

@JoKo You are right, for such a small engine (only 3 studs high + 0,5 stud for crankshaft) I do not see possibility to make it in a way that cylinders move in more natural order. For that you need engine with different construction - a higher one and also crankshaft which takes 3 studs and not 2 as my does.

In case of second question, yes, tractor tires are a bit to big for such body. Steering works in full range, but not when suspension reaches it's limits. But I think a bit different construction of wheel arches can solve this issue. But over all, that is why default tires are the 49mm ones and tractor tires are tuning option :D

Edited May 15, 2023 by keymaker

[gyenesvi]

I love this! I always wanted to go in this direction, but not quite there yet. It looks great, recognizable (love the front grille), and the technical solutions are really pushing the boundaries; the drivetrain is crazy compact, and I like the use of the crankshaft pieces, I did think about something like that but did not put it together as such, I think it's an okay compromise that the firing order is not quite right.

I wonder about two things. How much slack does the steering system has because of all the gearing? Second, in the driveshaft, do you really need the second (weak) CV joint at the rear axle? It could the drive just arrive with a straight axle, and the gearing would take care of the tilt angle?

This could be a serious contender at the Buwizz camp's mini trial truck competition this year. Are you planning to go? :))

[Zerobricks]

Another awesome mini trial truck! Well done inded. The only negative side I see is that due to the very low axle gearing (actually 1:1) you have some serious effect of the driveline on the suspension. The only way to avoid that would be to have motors mounted on the axle themselves, or to power them from another angle such as from the top.

[keymaker]

I am glad you like it.

@gyenesvi There is some slack in the steering system (the amount you can expect in case of using such 3 gears) but since it is slow, off-road truck which not meant to participate in serious competition - it doesn't really matter. In case of CV joints, I try to avoid them as much as possible, because they are rather useless for torque transferring, but in such a small scale I didn't have a choice.

Buwizz camps looks great, but this is a bit to far from my location :( And my Gaz 66, it has off-road capabilities, but it was not the main goal during building it. The main goal was to check, if I can build such a narrow truck and at the same time keeping the standard list of features I put into models, so AWD, full suspension, decent look. I was able to do this, but with some compromises like using those CV joints in drive train which is undoubtedly a disadvantage.

@Zerobricks Yes, I agree with your comment. It is one of the compromises when building in such a small scale. Gear ration 1:1 near to the axles was dictated by construction of the front axle. I decided to sacrifice reduction on behalf of good bracing of the gears, since brick build solutions were bulky or causes gears to skip. Also I tried to prepare rear axle to be quite flat/low (it is only 2 studs high) to be able to place the frame of the truck on similar height as in real truck.

Edited May 15, 2023 by keymaker