MIP 4wd Sassy Chassis resto

[aconsola]

this is my recent ebay grab. a few aftermarket parts, and lots of dirt. The drivetrain appears complete, but tight, it will need a complete teardown and cleaning, but hopefully I can get it going.
I am completely out of my element on this build, please feel free to point out build errors and oddities.
An ideas on who made the front shock tower?

[shodog]

that is the same vintage as my Two kits. aside from the crazy shock tower, it looks to be built normally. I don't know if I would use the Sassy chassis, that thing is begging for a carbon chassis

[Eau Rouge]

Doesn't look like anything is yellowed on it at all. Very nice! Couple cans of motor spray and it will look like brand new. Helluva score.


That front shock tower is crazy.

[popboy905]

That looks like a real fun resto. Are you going to run it?

[mrlexan]

The chassis obviously is too short, note the height of the tensioner and it still has droop.

[highwayracer]

The chassis obviously is too short, note the height of the tensioner and it still has droop.

Not knowing anything about these kits, is it possible that the wrong belt (too long) was used bw the previous owner. Can someone provide the correct belt length?

I think the chassis make it a unique combination...I'd keep it.

regards,
highwayracer

[aconsola]

Thanks for the comments guys.
Does anyone have a copy of the instructions? The sheet I got with it only has page 3/4.
The sassy instruction sheet notes that there are holes specifically for the steering on the mip 4wd kit, but I wonder if that is for the chain drive kit that came before this. I assume that the chain can easily be shortened like the old kyosho chains.

[YZ-10]

interesting project, good luck with it

[aconsola]

The chassis obviously is too short, note the height of the tensioner and it still has droop.

The chassis is the same length as the stock chassis. the front geometry is different though.
the pic below has the 2 plates bolted together at one of the trans mounting holes. You can see that the front suspension mount holes line up almost exactly. The kickup on the sassy plate starts much earlier. I think this will cause the front gearbox to be tilted rearward(instead of standing straight up), thus shortening the distance to the rear sprocket. I only discovered this difference after completely tearing everything apart for cleaning, so it will be a couple days before I can test fit the system to see if the tilt is the issue.

[bscotti]

great project for sure!

The front shock tower is by JG.

[templeofspeed]

Aren't you supposed to move the nose plate forward on a stock '10 chassis? That would account for the belt sag with the Sassy Chassis.

[Asso_man!]

That is for the 4-10 Legend kit temple, I think you only have to trim the chassis on each side and drill two holes to place the steering backward on the older kit. I'm sure someone here could confirm...

[aconsola]

I got a lot done, everything is cleaned, and the drivetrain is rebuilt. I confirmed my suspicion about the sassy chassis. The front kickup starts too far back, causing the front gearbox to tilt backwards. In order to get proper belt tension I would have to tilt the box back to perpendicular to the chassis plate. This would require making a wedge shaped block and re drilling the chassis.
I fit the drivetrain to a beater gold tub and everything fits fine with proper tension.
The only problem is that if I put the battery front to back so I could actually fit a modern battery on the chassis, then there is no room for a servo.
If I put the battery cups side to side, I have plenty of room for a servo, but do not have any batteries that fit.
I think Shodog is correct, I need a graphite chassis.

[asashaw]

when using a belt conversion (sp-45) on the chain drive kit, the instructions call for small shims to be placed under the front gearbox... they show a piece or wire being used!?!

[aconsola]

Got it mostly together. I went with a stock tub, motor plate and nose plate. The sassy chassis looks good, but didn't fit, and the stock setup is much stronger/stiffer. i had to notch the front of the tub for clearance for the steering bellcranks which were moved back to clear the front gearbox. I used the sassy plate as a drill guide and it all is spaced out well.
The belt tension is easy to set by adding washers to the front of the nose tubes.
All I need to get for it is a set of front shocks.
I don't know if I can actually bring myself to run it now that it is almost ready, I'd be pretty annoyed if I broke anything.
If anyone is interested, the sassy plate will be listed on evilbay soon.