Here Kitty Kitty...

[Espeefan]

Wow. The bare bones chassis and loader looks great. How do you cut your parts out? Did you bush the pivot points of the bucket and boom? Everything is looking very nice. I'm very interested to see this project completed.

[RCP57]

Originally Posted by Espeefan

Wow. The bare bones chassis and loader looks great. How do you cut your parts out? Did you bush the pivot points of the bucket and boom? Everything is looking very nice. I'm very interested to see this project completed.

Thanks! The main pivot points on the bucket and boom are the servo motors themselves. I didn't bush the pivots on the dumby rams because there isn't any load carried there other than weight of the rams and linkage. I just finished the main lifting mechanism so I'll take some pics or a video of that soon. I ended up making a single screw drive that runs in the belly of the machine so the lifting rams for the boom will be dumbies as well.

I use a modified wood cutting bandsaw(geared down) for cutting the aluminum and a file or grinder to clean it up. Oh yeah and I also use a file... did I mention I use a file?

Reg

[RCP57]

A few pics. Hopefully these two will be working together within the next few weeks...

[doodlebug]

Nice progress! Waiting for more!
Later, Neil#2 aka doodlebug.

[RCP57]

Here are a few updated pics. I've spent a lot of time with this thing lately so It's been progressing fairly well I think. I ordered motors and a sabertooth speed control a while back and paid the extra money to have it here by the 10th and I still don't have the stuff... but then it is Canada post so.... Boom and bucket are now fully functional and with some fine tuning I hope they will work fairly well. Hopefully my drive parts will show tomorrow so that I can see all my hours of work function. Lots of work left and then the part I like the least... painting.

[Lil Giants]

Fabulous fab work Reg, just like your dump trk.

[RCP57]

This afternoons progress... so much more to do...

Reg

[doodlebug]

Look's great!!! I used to go and watch those 955's dig basement's after school in the seventie's, when I was a wee lad. Thank's for sharing.

Later, Neil#2 aka doodlebug.

[modelman]

Very nice work- Do you have a full size machine to look at for your dimensions or pictures?

[RCP57]

Thanks for the positive feedback guys!

Yes we have a machine here that I can take the measurements from. I don't know how many times I've gone and looked at it and then forgot to measure something... good thing it's close by

I'm hoping that my parts will come in the mail today. Our mailman seems to be the only one in the area that doesn't get the mail delivered in the morning

[rc_farmer]

Hey Reg, that's a nice piece of work you got there. Keeps the pics coming.

[RCP57]

Motors and speed control arrived and are installed. Seems to function well and have good power. I think I should have opted for a the higher amp sabertooth as the 2x12 goes into protection mode long before the 17rpm motors slow down let alone stall out but I think it will work for now. I have to make all of the small idlers for the tracks yet so when I get those done and the tracks stay on I'll post some video of it in action.

Thanks for the complements!

[steamer]

Hey Reg, the dozers looking really good and I'm sure it will have the power to shove a lot of dirt. Do you think it will be done for the Port truck show on Labour day weekend.
I'm really looking forward to it as I haven't had much time to myself lately and it will be a fun weekend. I think that Lou, Greg and myself will be staying Sat. and Sun.
Rob

[RCP57]

It should be done for Port I think. I'm not sure if it will be painted but...

Do any of you have experience with servo strechers or mods that accomplish the same thing? My DX8 allows me to adjust the travel of my hytek 645's to 150% but it still isn't nearly enough travel for my bucket and is no where near 180 degrees like the servo strechers claim to achieve. I don't need 180 degree movement but I don't think I'm getting 90 degrees now and it's not enough to properly dump the bucket when the boom is up.

Thanks Reg

[modelman]

RCP57-sounds more like a mechanical issue than servo travel. 150% travel seems to be more than enough. You probably need to adjust your pivot points to get more movement with shorter strokes. But remember that will take more power. Just a thought

[RCP57]

The servos are mounted directly to the bucket and boom and have no issues with travelling the correct amount before hitting their internal limits but when powered up they do not come close to rotating as far. A servo strecher is supposed to fix this but I don't know for sure. I guess if I had known all this before I could have ordered servos that are modified to rotate 180 but live and learn.

Thanks

[SmallHaul]

Wow, awesome work! The entire machine looks great. So cool to have a loader and dozer on one machine.

[modelman]

What you are saying makes no sense to me. How about some pictures. Remember you are using servos for a job that is supposed to be hydraulics so it make take some adjusting and experimenting. Any time you move the pivot points closer together it should take less travel. Maybe I just don't understand. Pictures would help.

[RCP57]

The servo motors are the pivot point so the travel is only limited by them. The servo body is mounted to the bucket and the output shaft is mounted to the boom so there is no linkage at all. The rams and linkage that you see in the pictures is all fake and does nothing. If the servos would rotate more than 80-90 degrees my problems would be over, hence me asking about the servo stretcher or mods that accomplish the same thing.

Thanks for the props Smallhaul

[SmallHaul]

If you put 7955tg hitec digital servos on there they can be programed for almost 180 degrees of rotation and they have over 350oz of torque! They'll easily lift it for you but, the catch is they are $99 a piece. When you consider the price of one hydraulic cylinder though the $99 price isn't that bad.