TheDude (TD-Racing) IN STOCK !! MGT A-Arm Mounts,,,,,

[TheDude]

The tried and true Upper A-Arm Mounts. Accept no whimpy copies,,,say goodbye to aggrivating downtimes from bent mounts.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/MGT%20A-Arm%20Bracket%20Test/dude3Chevypic.jpg



Chevy-SS was kind enough to build a page on his site dedicated to my mounts.
Click here (http://csgbenefits.org/mgt/td_racing_mounts.htm) to visit his site. Browse the design, stress analysis and pics including the testing video.


Mounts are sold in sets of 2. 2 sets will complete a truck.
Set of two, unanodized - $45 plus shipping.



Estimated Shipping costs for all my parts; (except drag link which includes shipping to USA)


USA - $4.00
International - $8.00
________________________________________________________


Ok guys,
Seems a new wave of MGT owners is apon us and I'm getting requests for my A-Arm Mounts. So, I'd like to take a poll of how many folks need how many sets. (2 sets complete a truck).
I need this to get an idea of the bid quantity from the machine shop that does some of the machining. I do the final machining to keep cost down because believe me, I'm cheaper than they are.

Posting a request for mounts in no way obligates you to buy any.

I just need to get an idea of qty.

Thanks,,

duder,,,

TheDude abides,,,

[winter]

TheDude A-arm mount is a practical work of art. I recall the process from idea conception to computer modeling to bench testing to real world testing. These are invaluable for those who have a tendancy to bend the stock mounts. I should have kept my two sets when I sold my other MGTs. Here's the result of a crash with cracked upper and lower arms, TheDude mounts not only survived the wreck, they remained flawless afterwards...
http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j39/aklliu/MGT/MGT2-008.jpg

Please put my name on the wait list for two more sets. Thanks.

[Maglin]

I'll take 2 sets. Might even get 4 sets but that's a lot of money. I'll definitely get 2 sets and pretty sure I'll get 2 more.

[rollinondubz2002]

i already have 4 on my first truck.

put me down for 2 sets( for my new truck)

[homerlex]

I agree with Winter. The are a work of art and they take a licking.

[TheDude]

Those of you who remember they were designed to be a one time purchase. The design motive was to make a mount that survived beyond the breaking of the a-arm itself and have it replacable to your stock mount without any modding. My mount will do just that, just replace and go.!

Yes, I know it cost more than the usual "Hop-ups" You get from China.
But consider this, This mount is not a cheap copy of the stock model. This mount was designed, tested and machined purely in the USA by ME, TheDude.
And it is NOT intended as a replacable part. One purchase and DONE!....

Fact is, it was a weak link that was costly and time consuming to replace. I wanted to design a mount that survived even after the arm itself broke, since it is cheaper and easier to replace in the field. Winters pic proves it, and so does the impact test vid here. http://csgbenefits.org/mgt/dudevid.wmv
The mount on the right ( the side I'm hammering on) has my mount installed.
The left side has the stock mount and locked up after the first few hits... Sheesh!
Watch as I hammer harder and harder on the arm until it breaks.... My mount still swings free.

So there it is dudes,,,,

[old tmaxx]

ill take 2 sets, PM me when they are ready, and i will send you my paypal info for an invoice
depending on the final price, i may take 4 sets to do 2 complete trucks, but from what i have heard the fronts really need em, do the rears take as much abuse, i am in the middle of the lst shock mod for 1 of my trucks, so that may require a full set anyway.

[Theo15]

hey ill take two sets once there made. so for two sets is around $54.00?

[winter]

...so for two sets is around $54.00?
No, a set of two mounts costs $50; two sets will cost $100, not taking shipping into account.

[Theo15]

o in that case never mind i dont have that much cash atm

[TheDude]

Hmm, ok,, haha well that didn't last long. Roughly 6 sets I count. I'll post when I know more about schedules.

Thanks guys!

duder,,

[Stimey131]

I'll take 2 sets also. Let us when you are ready.

[Stimey131]

How much more to anadize them? I don't have to them colored, but if not that much more why not. Thanks

[TheDude]

How much more to anadize them? I don't have to them colored, but if not that much more why not. Thanks

Unfortunatly I do not have the space to set up the anodizing.
When this housing junk is overwith I'll be buying a house with more shop space and I'll set it up then. Until then, sadly, it's in boxes.....

[TheDude]

Some folks have mentioned the price of the mounts. I certainly understand that money is tight for most folks as the MGT genre is shifting to younger folks. But here is something to think about,,,,,,,,

Companies do not think you will pay for quality.
They have decided that you are a cheapo. HA!

You ever notice that when folks ask “Is this chassis / arms / towers, etc.” any good and the replies are most commonly “No, it will bend”, or “you’ll strip the threads”, etc.

There are exceptions, a few, yes. You can’t always go by price as some companies handle their overhead well and some don’t. So companies like Nova, RPM and Lunsford can make a good product for a bit higher price. They have found a good medium in cost, scheduling and overhead.

Fact is, most companies who make upgraded parts predetermine what they think you will pay. If an engineer states that it will make the part more durable the marketing and accountants shoot it down because according to them the price is too high and you won’t pay for it. Also, there is no resale value to a more durable part.

More importantly at this point they can’t offer the better part at the higher price even for us who would pay for the higher quality because it makes the lesser part look cheap.

So “FLASH” marketing and cool colors are how they attract you to their crappy parts.

So, just to be as informative as I can I’d like to give you guys more info about how these mounts are fabricated and my efforts to help to keep costs down by contracting as little as possible.

______________________________________________

I contract a CNC machine shop to machine several runs of A-Arm mount “sticks”
This batch consisted of 18 sticks of 3 per stick, 54 individual mounts, 27 sets of two.
So each feature described is done 54 times.

Some processes have pics and a vid.

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/100_0156.jpg

The remaining features to machine are the two slope angles, drilling and reaming the hinge pin bushing hole, the countersinks for chassis mounting and the recess arc for diff output cup clearance.

Next step is to rough cut them to length.
Cut, face finish, measure face to length.
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image004.jpg

Debur each pc. Yes, I'm FAT,, hahaha

PIC
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/misc013.jpg

VID
http://s54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/?action=view&current=Lightdeburr.flv

Some serious finger cramping doing 54 of these,, hahahaha
The debur step is done between each feature machined as the burs can cause inconsistent setups in the vice. This MUST be done to hold tolerance.

Next step is to center drill and drill through the hinge pin hole

Layout
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image012.jpg

Indexing the hole center
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image014.jpg

Center drilling
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image015.jpg

VID
http://s54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/?action=view&current=CenterDrill.flv

Hole Drilling
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image017.jpg

VID
http://s54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/?action=view&current=drilling.flv

Remember, each step is done 54 times and deburred before the next can begin,,,,,,

Deburr the drilled holes.
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image011.jpg

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image024.jpg

Now Mill the Angles.
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image026.jpg

VID
http://s54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/?action=view&current=Anglemachine.flv

The long angle is done in three passes and the small can be done in two.


Countersink for the mounting screw.
No pic, same process and tooling as deburring the holes.

Ream the hingepin hole,
No Pic,,,

Deburr all and wash
http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g107/TheDude36/Bracket%20Process/Image028.jpg

Finished and ready for anodizing.

I hope this helps you guys in understanding the work involved in machine the mounts, and, well, any part really. I hope this has also been educational.

[homerlex]

Great post TD!

[MajorPede]

I dont own a mgt was just looking around. I would love to use your statement from above about flash marketing in another thread. If that's ok with you sir.

Ever thought of makeing stampede parts?

[winter]

Some folks have mentioned the price of the mounts. I certainly understand that money is tight for most folks as the MGT genre is shifting to younger folks...

You're right, the high dollar vehicles like the LST2 and the Baja 5B are probably targeted to those with more disposable income or the die-hard hobbist whereas the MGT and Traxxas products are targeted at those with a tighter budget. My sense from reading the RC forums is that there are many more LST2 and Baja owners who are willing to pay a premium for high quality upgrades (brushless conversions, high dollar pipes, and engines). Of course there are exceptions, but the LST2 and Baja guys seem more willing to break out the check book.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning the production process of the awesome TheDude brackets. Yes, it was definitely educational, thanks!

[viper137]

I'll take 4 sets...I don't mind paying for quality.

[High Life MT]

I'll take 4 sets...I don't mind paying for quality.
yeah, that's awesome.

Thanks dude for showing the pics and and write up about what it takes to machine what seems like a simple part. Not so simple after all and the durability of this part has been proven. Props dude. That was a good read and illustration for those of us that have no idea about it. (me)
:p