Blog
New Bright 9.6v 1997 F150: hobby conversion
by Tyco Bandit King on 2012-05-11 17:54:13 UTC
Most of you at some point have probably owned one of these 9.6v trucks made by new bright with hi/lo gears. Back in their day they were cheap but a lot of fun being able to wheelie and tackle mud pits. I had several versions of the trucks as a kid and think they were one of the coolest little trucks out there. The best years of them were from 1996-1999 before they started using under powered motors.
I thought it would be nice to have one I would once again be excited to drive so I took a solid chassis and started the hobby conversion. Mounting the electronics was the easy part, mounting the steering servo took a bit of careful cutting to ensure the steering was aligned and very strong. I used a metal gear servo so I wouldn't have to replace it twice and fit the stock servo arm onto the hobby arm for the correct steering, it worked well.
Specs:
FM radio
Mamba Micro Pro speed control
Futaba metal gear servo
Stock motor
It can use either a 1650mah 7.4v lipo in the stock battery tray and will run a little more powerful than stock.
If I use a 2100mah 11.1v lipo I mount it under the body, It will wheelie from a stand still in high or low and is much faster than stock.
The body on this truck was originally a faded red. I used to have the same 9.6v black F150 back in 1997 so I took all the lights, windows and roll bar off, sanded it down and gave it a nice paint job. It took several times to get it right but using just a spray can in a cold garage it came out much better than the stock paint, love it. This truck is a total blast to drive and I think out of my entire collection it gets driven the most now. Its sooooo cool have proportional steering and throttle after years of single speed.
Replies
by czstycor/c on 2012-05-11 18:16:40 UTC
those are sweet trucks!
by Brushlesspower on 2012-07-04 03:59:47 UTC
Hitec-55 servo works very well with Tycos and Nikko cars.
by poptart on 2012-07-09 23:10:28 UTC
Man that paint came out great for a spray can!!!,,,spray cans can be a PITA to work with in the cold especially on plastic bodys.
by Viper GTS on 2012-07-10 00:27:40 UTC
I think i had to repaint it 4 times to get it right. It was about 45 in the garage and i was shocked how well it came out, just takes a lot of sanding and patience.
by jeffescortlx on 2012-07-28 16:05:47 UTC
I've got a very similar truck that I did a hobby conversion to also.
My new bright has a different front suspension setup, but gear box and body is the same.
I put a "Rocket 400" 3-7.2v motor in, running on the 9.6 pack.
Low gear is perfect for running in the grass, pulls willys like champ and has tourq like a 540 motor.
High gear is too fast. Does like 35mph, lol
Gear box is still holding up after about 5 battery packs.
by dragon on 2012-07-29 11:48:45 UTC
Do you have any pics of the new steering servo setup?
by Viper GTS on 2012-08-09 16:04:32 UTC
Yeah these trucks are waaaay too much fun, this one is the 1st generation chassis of these trucks and they actually started out as a dual motor 4wd from 93-95 then in 96 went to 2wd. In 97 they went to the suspension you probably have used all the way until the trucks turned ugly and underpowered around 00-01. I actually just converted one of the 4wd trucks to a hobby car and wow it takes off hard and flies through the grass. I will post a page for it and a video soon.
by Viper GTS on 2012-08-10 00:31:30 UTC
Here are some pictures of the servo setup on the 4wd version, they mount the same except 2wd is easier because it doesnt have the gearbox cuting it close.
by jeffescortlx on 2012-09-01 23:54:19 UTC
Cool to see a 4wd model. I've got a total of 3, but all 2wd.
by Viper GTS on 2012-09-02 03:32:29 UTC
Yeah i love this chassis, i think my 2wd hobby truck is the one of the most fun trucks to drive