B4: VeryTight Servo Linkage

[TBone77]

I'm wrapping up the assembly of my B4, and the servo linkage's ballcups are extremely tight on both the steering arm and the servo horn. This makes the steering very prohibitive. Is this normal? Any ideas for loosening it up?

[gizmoguy303]

Are you sure the ballcups are causing the resistance? Make sure your servo saver is properly tightened up so it doesn't rub the chassis. The ballcups should not cause considerable resistance. Hope this helps. I had a T4 back in the day, before I went Losi. :p

[TBone77]

Nah, the entire steering mechanism moves like butter... it's the linkage rod that's really, REALLY tight. It's weird. It's tight at both connections (the servo's horn and the steering mechanism). Even with the rod just connected to one or the other, it's very difficult to move the rod around. The ballcup is obviously too tight... I just wish I knew how to remedy it. :confused:

[gizmoguy303]

Make sure you haven't pinched the "cup" part of it with pliers or something. If it gets bent out of shape it will cause a lot of resistance. Other than that, I would try putting some polishing compound in the cup, snap a ballstud in, and spin it in a drill. Do it slowly and take breaks, because the plastic will quickly melt if you're not careful.

Good luck! :D

[xrayracer]

I would just put a little (tiny) amount of lube in the cup and leave it alone. trying to loosen them up will make them more likely to pop out when you don't want them to.

[gizmoguy303]

I would just go and buy a new set of ballcups. They shouldn't be that tight. If it's just minor resistance you're experiencing, it will go away with the first few runs as everything breaks-in.

[Mr. Furious]

Try this: With the ball cup in place on the ball stud, squeeze it from all directions with a pair of needle nose pliers. This artificially "ages" the cup and makes it work like one that is already broken in and moving freely. I do this on all my tight linkage connections and it works wonders. Do it very gently at first so you don't go too far and make it sloppy or too easily popped off and work it until it feels right. Since you're contemplating new cups anyways, you have nothing to lose. This method works great for me and I've never killed a cup by doing it.