Opinions wanted on Blackfoot Extreme

[justinspeed79]

I could have sworn that this was just discussed somewhere, but I can't find it so here it is...

I have a chance to pick up a nice Blackfoot Extreme for $50. I haven't put my hands on it yet, but it looks like it is in good shape and the seller claims it works good. Is this chassis any good? And how is parts support for it? I love the original blackfoot, and have been wanting another one, but I loathe the drivetrain, and dont want spend a fortune upgrading an original. This will just be a fun runner, so I'm not expecting it to be bulletproof, but it would be nice if I could give it a moddest power boost and not have to worry about anything hand-grenading. I appreciate any input. Thanks.

[justinspeed79]

This is it.

[hondaman]

I would say for $50 it's a nice deal from the looks of it.. Check out this thread on Tamiya Club: http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=49368.. It shows how to make it 4WD and parts to buy.. Kinda cool.. Here is another thread showing someone narrowing it up using TL-01 parts: http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=68226... I still see hop-up parts on the Bay come up pretty often when I search for vintage BF parts.. It hasn't been discontinued for too long and there are a few stores online that still have them in stock.. I was looking at one myself.. $80 gets me some aluminum GPM parts (lower arms and towers) but I have a couple projects in the pipe that I want to finish first before taking one on.. I think building a BF Extreme for low budget crawling would be cool too..

Shawn

[justinspeed79]

Thanks for the info and links, Shawn.

I'm going to look at it later, and most likely get it, assuming there are no "surprises".

[Rc4on]

The blackfoot is bulletproof. Ours is used for beginner at my local rc club.

See the video

[youtube]Bb-XuD481To[/youtube]

[justinspeed79]

Very cool, thanks for posting.

That looks like a fun "old school" style track.

[justinspeed79]

I got it, I love it, I want another one.

It's in really good shape for a used truck. The only exception is that it has a really nasty paint job, I'm going to start stripping it down.

[hondaman]

Nice! Take some brake fuid to that shell to remove the paint!! That's how I stripped my old Grasshopper of the ugly old paint.. Got that tip from the Tamiya guys over at Tamiyabase.. Worked like a charm.. Lots of possibilities for that BFE.. Post some pics when it is done..

Shawn

[justinspeed79]

Some "as is" pics before I start tearing into it.

[justinspeed79]

Nice! Take some brake fuid to that shell to remove the paint!! That's how I stripped my old Grasshopper of the ugly old paint.. Got that tip from the Tamiya guys over at Tamiyabase.. Worked like a charm.. Lots of possibilities for that BFE.. Post some pics when it is done..

Shawn

Thanks, that's exactly what I plan on doing, after I use a pocket knife to chip off the most recent coat. Lol... This thing is is nice. It's basically ready to run too. It has a futaba receiver, Duratrax Intellispeed 12t esc, and a really nice Reedy Krypton motor. I'm thinking that Krypton will find a home in one of my Associated vehicles. I could just throw a matching crystal in it and run it, but I don't have any AA's for my old transmitters. I already have a bunch of ideas running through my head for this thing, it will not stay stock for long.

[REMJ666]

Nice addition for 50 bucks...Hopefully the body does not have to many flaws after you remove the paint...I have a blackfoot that I had to paint because the person who owned it before me used it as a mud truck and NEVER CLEANED IT The mud stained the body so I just gave it a lite sand job and sprayed it flat black...I like all of the blackfoots...I think they really got better as they evolved...What sucks about the originals is they are so damn top heavy and flip on a dime...

[vwjuice]

Those are cool trucks. Especially of you add the front drivetrain to make it 4wd. I think $50 is a pretty good deal.

[markbt73]

Don't worry about drivetrain problems with this one. It's pretty bulletproof. It's geared much lower than the old Blackfoots, so you need a motor with some oomph to wake it up. A cheap brushless system (EZrun or similar) is a really good match for this truck. That, and full bearings if it doesn't already have them, and a set of oil shocks, and you're good to go.

[GoMachV]

Got one for the kid a few years ago, he didn't end up enjoying rc but it was very durable as Mark mentioned. Good basher. I liked the design as you could build a 4wd dual motor (or just buy it that way as a dual hunter I believe it was called)

[REMJ666]

Has anyone modernized there Blackfoots ????