Kev’s Bench: Custom 1/5-Scale Trophy Truck

I have been a fan of 1/5-scale for many years. I love the size of the vehicles and have always been impressed by the performance that they give you. About 5 years ago I thought it would be cool to have a 1/5-scale trophy truck but the problem with that was that no one was making them. That’s why I decided to make my own! I had hoped that this truck would be done by now but life happens and I have had to set the truck aside to get some other stuff done. Here’s what is done so far.

 

Everything you see in aluminum are parts that I designed in a CAD system. The inspiration for the chassis design came from a trophy truck that Robby Gordon was building. I really liked the Y-shape and make that happen on my truck. The shock towers will give me some suspension adjustment and the suspension arms are designed to look similar to what they use on full-size trucks. All the aluminum parts on this truck were made by my buddy Ed Cable. The plastic components that you see are from an HPI Baja.

Slowing things down is a hydraulic brake system with custom made carbon fiber discs and aluminum brake pads. The disc is going to be floating on multiple screws in the hub. I got this design from the many short course races that I have attended. They use a brake disc similar to this. I really liked the look of them so I had a few made up for my truck.

Power for my truck is coming from a 23cc Zenoah engien. You may notice that it doesn’t look like the engine found in a HPI Baja or Losi 5IVE. It’s a marine engine and the reason for using it was for two reasons; it spools up faster and it’s cool to say that I have a water cooled engine in the truck. It’s something that no one has so why not. It will have a custom made electric starter that I will be able to operate from the radio and the gear mesh will be adjustable so that I can easily change out pinion gears.

I have searched long and hard for a way to cool my engine and this is what I found. It’s a radiator for a computer and although it will do the trick I’m not a fan of the look and may make my own.

I am installing a slipper clutch from HPI that is designed for the Baja series of vehicles. It will make it easier to control my truck during hard launches and will help protect the drivetrain from shock. It will be attached to a custom made shaft and mount.

Here are the lower links for the rear suspension. HPI Baja rod ends will complete the package.

I started on the roll cage. The current tubing is 3/8 steel tube and I am brazing it together. I designed a custom clamp for my lathe so that I can feed the tube into an end mill at the right angle to fish mouth it and get a nice clean joint. This is as far as I have gone with the tubing and I plan on scrapping it because of its weight. The new cage will be constructed out of aluminum tube to considerably reduce the overall weight of the truck.

 

So that’s it so far. I am working on setting up a new spot to work on my truck and am investing in a few tools that will improve the project. I’m really  looking forward to getting this one done. What are your thoughts? Email me at kevinh@airage.com and let me know.