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Model Forum / Radio Controlled / Land Models / March 2006Mini-LST Battery life and steering centering?
Howdy, Well, just picked up my first electric r/c and my first mini.............Team Losi Mini-LST. Build quality is excellent; she's a stout little bugger. Also very impressed with the speed and agility. Two things that have my really peeved and wanting to take it back and/or sell it: 1) Battery life STINKS! I'm getting like 5-7 minutes out of 1200Mah Ni-Mh packs before the performance starts to drop off. These packs have been properly charged on a delta-peak charger so I know they are being fully charged. 2) Steering is impossible to center. No matter how hard I try I cannot get this truck to track straight. Methinks the dual servos and wimpy servo savers aren't helping much. Any advice or comments from Mini-LST owners? My bud bought an Associated RC18T buggy at the same time and it's faster, handles better and has much, much better battery life. TIA, Doc > Howdy, > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] > > TIA, I have an RC18MT - It's crap. How many times have his drive shafts popped out? If they haven't yet - they will - then the cups will break. Then you'll both notice that mini electrics are boring and fire up the Savs again :)  SignatureDan >> Howdy, >> [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > you'll both notice that mini electrics are boring and fire up the Savs > again :) What kind of runtime with your RC18MT? Doc >>> Howdy, >>> [quoted text clipped - 25 lines] > > What kind of runtime with your RC18MT? It's never lasted a full pack without breaking - about 20 mins would be my guess. SignatureDan > > Howdy, > > [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > -- > Dan Have you gotten the free metal sleeves that fix that problem from TA? >> > Howdy, >> > [quoted text clipped - 36 lines] > > Have you gotten the free metal sleeves that fix that problem from TA? They're not available or free in this country, but I bought exactly the same thing from B&Q for 69p. And I still hate it. SignatureDan The RC18MT and Mini-LST are very different vehicles designed for different purposes. On a groomed track my money is on RC18MT every time. In a gravel driveway with some big ramps I put my money on the MLST, and a side bet saying the the 18MT does not even finish the race. Not sure what you were expecting for run-time. The Mini-LST runs twice as many motors and servos. The RC18MT weighs 1.3lbs, almost a pound less then the Mini-LST at 2.2lbs. Five to ten minutes is what I have been hearing from most owners, and what Losi said it would get. To get more then that you will need to go to LiPo, and brushless would not hurt. Dynamite has a 1900 LiPo pack designed for the Mini-T and Mini-LST that will drop it with no mods. Check out www.one18th.com for lots of MLST help. If you have not done so yet, get the upgraded gears from Losi. They are free, the ones that came in the trucks originally are defective and strip easily. > The RC18MT and Mini-LST are very different vehicles designed for > different purposes. On a groomed track my money is on RC18MT every > time. In a gravel driveway with some big ramps I put my money on the > MLST, and a side bet saying the the 18MT does not even finish the race. I'll second that side bet. Anyone want to buy an RC18MT? SignatureDan >>The RC18MT and Mini-LST are very different vehicles designed for >>different purposes. On a groomed track my money is on RC18MT every [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > > Anyone want to buy an RC18MT? WIll you take $2 USD. That's like $2,000,000 CDN no? I wonder if Tamiya's mini Frog will be any better? MacPhreak >>>The RC18MT and Mini-LST are very different vehicles designed for >>>different purposes. On a groomed track my money is on RC18MT every [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > > I wonder if Tamiya's mini Frog will be any better? What's either of those in real money that I can use ;-) ? (gbp) SignatureDan > The RC18MT and Mini-LST are very different vehicles designed for > different purposes. On a groomed track my money is on RC18MT every [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > are free, the ones that came in the trucks originally are defective and > strip easily. Thanks Tech. I didn't know what kind of runtime to expect to be perfectly honest with you. Like I said, first electric r/c mini so no point of reference. I'm used to driving my nitros for 10-15 minutes a tank and running them as long as I please (2 hour marathons are not unheard of!) so to have this little guy crap out after 5 minutes was a letdown. Could you tell me more about the Li-Po's? What's the max Mah I could squish in the MLST and how long approximately would it run for? Could I use the stock ESC with the Li-Po's? one18th has been down all evening! I've been trying to log on to get some information. Doc I have been following the MLST since it has been announced, but don't own one yet. My brain keeps arguing about it. "It's Winter, you don't need to buy an RC truck in winter!" "But it was 60' this weekend! We have had a lot of nice weather this Winter." "And you KNOW that once you plop down the $200 we will get a foot of snow and you won't get to play with it, don't you?" "Yeah, your right." one18th.com is still down. I hope all is well with them, it's a great resource. Losi, AE and Duratrax actually have reps that respond to questions there. The Dynamite battery is the easiest to install, but others will fit. I don't know which exactly, I planned to go back to one18th.com to get that info once spring hit and bash time started again. If 1100 gets 5-7 1900 should get 10+ I guesstimate. Stock ESC will work if you keep voltage the same, but will need LiPo charger. Replacing the dual brushed with a single brushless will increase speed, runtime or both depending on how you do it. I do remember mention of the steering not centering but can't recall what was said about it. Where are you one18th.com? We need you! > I have been following the MLST since it has been announced, but don't > own one yet. My brain keeps arguing about it. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > I do remember mention of the steering not centering but can't recall > what was said about it. Where are you one18th.com? We need you! What sort of speed are you guys getting out your 1/18's? This might give a little indication of the poor battery life if you have them geared for top speed. I no my slow old Mini T Pro, top speed of about 30 kph lasts for 30 minutes on the stock Losi 1100 pack. It almost gets boring and after 2 batteries in a session I have to look at recharging the batteries in the radio before the T. Cheers Richard > What sort of speed are you guys getting out your 1/18's? This might give > a [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Cheers > Richard If I had to guess I'd say on a fully charged pack she's topping out somewhere just under 20mph, which is about 30kph. Obviously the weight, dual motors and dual servos of the MLST play a factor in battery drain. I might go with a brushless setup and see how that does with extending the runtime. I guess the reason I am so dissappointed is this thing is so freakin' fun to drive and when the batteries crap out I'm like "waaaaa, I'm not done playing yet!" I can literally drive this wee little truck around my yard like my 1/8 nitros and nothing stops it. It's also cute as a button. Doc Inline............................ >I have been following the MLST since it has been announced, but don't > own one yet. My brain keeps arguing about it. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > snow and you won't get to play with it, don't you?" > "Yeah, your right." No sh.t. It was nice yesterday, and 2" of snow this AM when I woke up! > one18th.com is still down. I hope all is well with them, it's a great > resource. Losi, AE and Duratrax actually have reps that respond to > questions there. Sounds kinda like savage-central.com...........I've heard them referenced quite a bit in various forums. I too hope they're up and running soon. > The Dynamite battery is the easiest to install, but others will fit. I > don't know which exactly, I planned to go back to one18th.com to get [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Replacing the dual brushed with a single brushless will increase speed, > runtime or both depending on how you do it. Ok, this interests me. Forgive my ignorance with electric stuff. With a brushless setup, I'd be running a single, brushless 370 motor in place of the dual 370 motors? I've heard lots of good things about Mamba and AON (sp?) systems on the various forums. Any experience with either of them? > I do remember mention of the steering not centering but can't recall > what was said about it. Where are you one18th.com? We need you! On grass, gravel and dirt it is unnoticeable. On concrete it is very pronounced. I think having the dual, independent servo savers that are quite weak is causing the issue. I might add some toe-in the next time I drive it and see if that helps any. Thanks for everything so far, I'm learning quite a bit. Doc one18th.com is back! Yes, just like the Biguns' you put a single brushless in place of the dual 370s. Ran a single HV-Maxx brushless in my Twin-Force and it was not only faster then with dual 550s, it had no problem keeping up with nitro trucks! Keeping the front wheels on the ground was the biggest problem. Brushless is a more efficient way of doing things, you waste less juice so you get both increased speed and runtime. I have only owned brushless from Novak personally. While those that have tried claim the Mamba system will work in a MLST it is really designed for a truck almost half it's weight. From reading the posts it seems you need to set a gradual acceleration to keep the motor from cogging. The larger AON motors with the Mamba ESC seem to be a better setup with their added torque. Some other guys have used various plane motors with good success. You can see posts from guys that have tried the various setups at one18th.com and pick one that will work for you. The only thing better then learning from your mistakes, is learning from someone else's. Just keep in mind that once you put LiPos and brushless in your MLST and beat your friends 18MT, he will do the same. Once he does that there won't be anything you can do to catch up, he has to much of a weight advantage. Still, I would take the MLST over the 18MT any day. > one18th.com is back! > [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > there won't be anything you can do to catch up, he has to much of a > weight advantage. Still, I would take the MLST over the 18MT any day. DAMN!!! I didn't think the HV-Maxx setup was that much better than *2* 550 size motors.. I knew it was on par, but crap me imagine what my e-maxx would be like with 2 brushless!!!! Before I put anymore power through that thing I *need* metal axles. My rear axles are sooooo stuffed I've been waiting for one of them to snap for the last 3 or 4 runs :) (those stocko plastic axles only last 15 or so runs with me behind the wheel!) hmmmm, E-zilla or metal axles and brussless setup for Maxx... Decisions decisions! Cheers Dre > DAMN!!! I didn't think the HV-Maxx setup was that much better than *2* > 550 [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > last 3 or 4 runs :) (those stocko plastic axles only last 15 or so runs > with me behind the wheel!) Think yourself lucky, if it was an 18T they'd have popped out by now and probably broken the cups as well. SignatureDan > > DAMN!!! I didn't think the HV-Maxx setup was that much better than *2* > > 550 [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > Think yourself lucky, if it was an 18T they'd have popped out by now and > probably broken the cups as well. LOL, I get the impression your not too impressed with the axles in your RC18 :) Only problem I've had so far with my Inferno mini is my mate slamming it full speed into his foot, busted the front right hub bigtime. Was good in the end though cause I stinged him for new replacement blue aluminum ones :) Cheers Dre Yeah, I got tired of looking for dogbones and put CVDs in the front of our 18MT. I do not consider that an upgrade, but a mandatory fix. I admit I was VERY impressed with the performance of the HV-Maxx. Much better then I imagined it would be. Every bit as fast as a gas truck. Run time with 3200 packs, about 12-15. I also ran it with one pack and it was about as fast as a stock stadium truck. I let my nephew drive it that way and he had fun. Not sure why you would need, or want, two brushless motors in a truck. With one you can't turn at high speed and tend to break things a lot. Try one and if that is not enough, well your just crazy :) > Yeah, I got tired of looking for dogbones and put CVDs in the front of > our 18MT. I do not consider that an upgrade, but a mandatory fix. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > With one you can't turn at high speed and tend to break things a lot. > Try one and if that is not enough, well your just crazy :) Brushless generally can't be run in pairs anyways, correct? Doc > Yeah, I got tired of looking for dogbones and put CVDs in the front of > our 18MT. I do not consider that an upgrade, but a mandatory fix. It shouldn't be a problem because they shouldn't have let such piss poor design leave the factory. The plus side is, they seem to hold their value well (god knows why) so punting it out on eBay to some sap shouldn't be a problem. SignatureDan >> Yeah, I got tired of looking for dogbones and put CVDs in the front of >> our 18MT. I do not consider that an upgrade, but a mandatory fix. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > well (god knows why) so punting it out on eBay to some sap shouldn't be a > problem. You can add my Mini-LST to your auction listing and make it a "two-fer the price of one." Called Losi today about the steering issues, or rather the fact that the truck will NOT track straight no matter what I do. It bears 45* to the left or right depending on what mood it's in. Losi told me that they're aware of the issue and that's just the way they are. The fix they suggested involves me spending $60 on two metal-geared micro servos and better servo savers. No thanks! RTR servos always suck, but I've never had one suck so bad it couldn't center the damn steering! The exploding center/rear/front diffs didn't bother me because they addressed the issue and ate the cost with a free upgrade kit. Ditto for the stripping wheel hexes. The fact that they are expecting me to eat the cost of the steering issue is what pisses me off! Arrrrggghhh! And to think I was even considering a LST2. Doc > You can add my Mini-LST to your auction listing and make it a "two-fer the > price of one." Called Losi today about the steering issues, or rather the [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > the stripping wheel hexes. The fact that they are expecting me to eat the > cost of the steering issue is what pisses me off! This is why we should stick with nitro. > Arrrrggghhh! And to think I was even considering a LST2. To be fair, from what I've seen so far, there have been a lot of broken bits from the few on MaxBashing... > Doc SignatureDan You can add my Mini-LST to your auction listing and make it a "two-fer the price of one." Called Losi today about the steering issues, or rather the fact that the truck will NOT track straight no matter what I do. It bears 45* to the left or right depending on what mood it's in. Losi told me that they're aware of the issue and that's just the way they are. The fix they suggested involves me spending $60 on two metal-geared micro servos and better servo savers. No thanks! RTR servos always suck, but I've never had two suck so bad they couldn't center the damn steering! Doc Maybe you should fix the steering yourself and sell the fix back to Losi or even better sell it as a upgrade kit on ebay for a stupid amount of money as a upgrade to the crappy stock LST steering. Sounds like Losi should have tested these trucks more thoroughly in the first place or is this the quality you can expect from Losi now? Cheers Richard > Maybe you should fix the steering yourself and sell the fix back to Losi > or [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > Cheers > Richard Not a half bad idea Richard. This is my first (and last) Losi product. I had always heard good things about their product quality and customer service, but thus far I haven't seen anything good in either category. Doc Doc too bad you didnt read my thoughts on this POS I rated it a 4 a while back and have not changed my view yet. Here are some things along with a list another person started and I added to::: quote QUEKE&SHAKE How are your guys servo saver springs tension wise. Mine seem to be a little weak. Without power on if I turn wheels left to right by hand the savers kicks in. I addd a 7mm washer to each one and this helped. I have those warped hexes too, will wait for aluminum hexes. So far NOT TO PLEASED with the initial quality of this truck. I give it 4 out of 10 Makes me think I bought a traxxas product LOTS of SLOP at all corners. Ive went over and tighened most screws I could and still have too much play. My esc wasnt set. The servo saver weakness. The shock doesnt fit well in inner hole on suspension arm front drive side havent tried the rear yet. Wheels seen out of true. [QUOTE=littlebuddha]hey guys, the mini lst seems to be having lots of problems... i'm feeling bored so i just made a list of all the ones i've heard and read about. 1. differentials/drivetrain- can get upgrade kit 2. Sloppy steering- some people have noticed this- maybe this is true after some use. 3. Dogbones wearing out the out-drives- more than a few people have reported this 4.ESC fire- due to connectors- with stock gear (people reccomend changing it to deans but shouldnt losi have dont that in the first place? 5. bad wheel hexes resulting in cracked rims- fixed with updated hexes 6. Squeaky Shocks- that need topping off. 7. I've noticed some pretty deep scratches in the underside of the body, which show on the other side- luckily most are covered with stickers. anyone else had the same thing? 8. Lack of Grease in the gears/diffs- drivetrain- updated pack includes grease- but comon- even duratrax nicely lubricates their gears and diffs. 9. fragile antenna tube Whether you have one problem or another seems all down to luck- i'm not all that impressed with the quality control. Most people just say to top off the shocks- or replace the gears, connectors etc etc, granted some issues are minor- but losi...WHY DID I BUY A RTR IF I HAVE TO OPEN UP THE DRIVETRAIN AND FIX THE GEARS etc BEFORE I CAN RELIABLY RUN THE TRUCK?! anyways, hope this is helpful for anyone new to the truck, is there anything else?[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=QUAKE&SHAKE]10. Ball-ends pop off often 11. Cheap brittle plastic knuckles. 12. Poor fit between axle and bearing Im finding that the quality/standards are very low in the 18th scale segment. So if you dont expect much you will be happy. I on the other hand have higher expectations of what a Losi product and hobby grade rc should be and think this mlst they rushed to get out before xmas. The only other product that I have owned that was actually worse was a Traxxas Bullet. I have never owned or will buy another Traxas product because of it. Because of this mlst I most likely wont buy another Losi product. For sure not a 1/18 Losi product.[/QUOTE] <BIG SNIPPAGE> >Because of this mlst I most likely wont buy another Losi > product. For sure not a 1/18 Losi product.[/QUOTE] Every single thing in your post is dead on accurrate. EVERYTHING! You nailed it to a T. You still have yours or have you sold it yet? Doc Quote; From: nospam@noway.com (Doc) Every single thing in your post is dead on accurrate. EVERYTHING! You nailed it to a T. You still have yours or have you sold it yet? Doc :Quote ----- Havent sold it. Will let my son run it once I bother to change the gears... again. Its the not going straight that ticks me off more really cause I cant seem to fix that. Im going to maybe try to work things out with it cause I think once its fixed it would be a neat little truck. "Doc" wrote: > <BIG SNIPPAGE> > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Doc I'm an AE guy myself, but don't let Losi's mini trucks color your whole picture of them. Their 1/10 stuff is generally first class. I'm not too partial to their 1/8 stuff though. SignatureJustin Mahn > Yeah, I got tired of looking for dogbones and put CVDs in the front of > our 18MT. I do not consider that an upgrade, but a mandatory fix. [quoted text clipped - 8 lines] > With one you can't turn at high speed and tend to break things a lot. > Try one and if that is not enough, well your just crazy :) Yeah I'm crazy (stupid?) like that :) Cheers Dre "Doc" wrote: > Howdy, > [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > > Doc Seems like most if not all of the 1/18th truck/buggies/etc need some more money spend on R&D. As with most first/second production runs, the consumers ARE the r&d department. Maybe in a year or two most of the bugs will be worked out. > Seems like most if not all of the 1/18th truck/buggies/etc need some > more money spend on R&D. As with most first/second production runs, the > consumers ARE the r&d department. Maybe in a year or two most of the > bugs will be worked out. He he he, I acutally waited a few months and read review after review on the forums to see what was wrong with them. I bought it knowing the hexes and diffs were ticking time-bombs but that was ok as I got the upgrade kit for free w/purchase and was prepared to make those repairs. Nowhere did anyone mention the damn thing don't drive straight! I will give it credit, it's stout. Very stout. I can't see anyone actually breaking this thing. Top speed is decent as is accelleration. It is also very good looking and has a nice factory finish on all the parts. But..............all of this don't mean s**t if I can't keep the damn thing on the track! I'm going to fiddle with it this PM and see what I can do about the steering. Maybe insane amounts of toe-out will keep her tracking straight. Doc "Doc" wrote: > > Seems like most if not all of the 1/18th truck/buggies/etc need some > > more money spend on R&D. As with most first/second production runs, the [quoted text clipped - 17 lines] > > Doc I agree. I can overlook many things, but driving straight would be a tough one! > Howdy, > [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > > Doc So how come no-one is talking about the mini that *I* want, the Mini-Zilla????? Or doesn't it even rate high enough to mention :) Cheers Dre >> Howdy, >> [quoted text clipped - 29 lines] > > Cheers Dre I've got an awesome RC18MT I'll flog you ;) ? SignatureDan > >> Howdy, > >> [quoted text clipped - 31 lines] > > I've got an awesome RC18MT I'll flog you ;) ? HAHAHA, sorry but I've heard they have a slight issue with drive shafts :P But hey, I'll swap it for an E-maxx body (unpainted :) I really want the zilla (with brushless setup please!) but have kinda just blown the budget out of the water by buying a new mountain bike so the RC stuff will have to wait a little while... But seriously, is the reason that no one is talking about them becuase they are crap?? Cheers Dre > I really want the zilla (with brushless setup please!) but have kinda just > blown the budget out of the water by buying a new mountain bike so the RC [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > Cheers Dre Perhaps the opposite. All of the stuff we've talked about in this thread is garbage. Perhaps the zilla didn't come up because it is not. Doc > > I really want the zilla (with brushless setup please!) but have kinda just > > blown the budget out of the water by buying a new mountain bike so the RC [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > > Doc Well now your talking :) It is made by Hotbodies which I believe is a sister company to HPI (and HPI make some really REALLY nice stuff) Either way, I want one and I'll get one soon, but like I said, my cash reserves are very dry atm :) So many cool toys and sooo little time/money! Cheers Dre >> > I really want the zilla (with brushless setup please!) but have kinda > just [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] > > Cheers Dre Sportwerks is a sister company of Team Losi. Losi sucks, Sportwerks rules. Hopefully this isn't a trend where one sucks one one doesn't, cause that would mean Hotbodies stinks cause HPI rules!. FWIW, I e-mailed Hotbodies 2 weeks ago with some questions about the GTX2 and the Savage Twin conversion and they haven't replied yet. For that reason I will never purchase one of thier products. Basically I was going to buy one or the other and had some questions about them. Their failure to reply has soured me. I sour easily! Losi still hasn't returned any of my e-mails either. I put the POS on e-bay as I can't even stand the sight of it any more. Makes me sick. Doc > >> > I really want the zilla (with brushless setup please!) but have kinda > > just [quoted text clipped - 41 lines] > > Doc Yeah there is nothing worse than not getting useful info from manufacturers (worse still is none at all!). I have the same problem, for example I am trying to contact Norco to get a replacement manual for the bike I just bought (for specs like adjusting the rear shock etc). They dont supply replacement manuals! The did however point me to their webpage to look there which was an insult in itself as I got their bloody contact details from there!!!! (and had allready looked high and low there) Bloody big money hungry corporations! Anyway, so since your Losi is for sale, any ideas what you are getting as a replacement? btw, I've just seen the sneak peak photos of the Kyosho Nitro Mini Inferno!!! holy sh.t that looks the goods! Cheers Dre |
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