I am going to show you something I should have done a long time ago in one single video, ok in every season. I always get the question. How do I waterproof my RC seems pretty simple but a very complicated task nonetheless, so today we're going to take an axial scx10 right here, we're going to make sure front to back and everything in between is made water resistant, electronics, water going together, always things that Are you know a problem outside of the electronics, because we're always thinking we're, hearing things or waterproof there are things to consider such as the all important bearings. Ok, bearings are what help the wheel spin. I know a lot of us know what bearings are so I'm going to move on. If you don't, Google, bearings, okay, so scx10 brand new. We can basically equate this to any RC vehicle because they're relatively the same, especially in off road four by fours. Okay. This is for electric. Our C's today is for the electric vehicles. This is the new release of an scx10, 4×4 truck I'm sure many of you are familiar with it. If not check out my video right here, and this will give a good overview of what the truck does, but for those who have seen it and are running it in the spring fall summer winter. You like how I did that, because it's all seasons, we always need to know how to make this water resistant if not waterproof.

This is what the truck looks like steering, servo up front okay, receiver box. Underneath the battery tray motor transmission with the shroud on we will be removing that to look at it all the way to drive shafts differentials and bearings throughout receiver transmitter all that stuff. We have to keep in mind that we do not want moisture to be in contact with it, because we all know water and electricity makes RC fun, no go okay, so I'm, going to give you an overview of what's on the bench. Let'S do this together. I love the shine off the windshield of the scx10 there. Okay, so truck Hey, servos, we're gon na have to look at servos today axle. This is a rear axle of the vehicle receiver we're going to talk about batteries, we're going to talk the almighty transmission. What we do with that big fella we're, going to talk about ESC s and we're going to talk about motors and heck, I may even touch on a winch. What I'm going to need for today is a razor, a whole bunch of screwdrivers. These are hex drivers. Okay for those who want to know where I got this, it is a team associated factory team, okay handle, basically, I think, that's associated razor blade and my Phillips okay. So, basically those who don't know if Phillips is a star head. I read somewhere the other day that people do not recommend plastidip. I don't know who those people are because I've been using this forever in all of my videos.

There is also different things like liquid tape and all that, but they have a tendency to break down over time with heat and age. This does not. This is a plastic coating that you can get at. Basically, I get this in Canada at Auto value. You can get it at Target, you can get it online, it's, just a big black goop. Anybody who knows me or knows my videos knows that I use plastidip to help water proof or water resist my RCS okay. First thing: I'm, going to start off with is we'll just start right at the front of the truck. One of the things that you've got to consider is that there are bearings in the axles. There'S bearings: okay, bearings up here: bearings, where the drive shaft is and bearings on the other side, where the wheels are really easy to access the wheels. Take these off take the wheel off I'm going to show you something a little bit different. You guys all know. I have a frame of an scx10 hanging on the wall. You can see on the steering hubs. You will get this nice and close there I'm. Looking at the monitor right now, so I can make sure you see it. There is a bearing once. It focuses right back behind the drive pin. There is another bearing right behind the drive shaft okay right in there. We have to access this area to get in there to make sure to at least water resist those bearings the back axle I've already taken off, because it's easier for me to show you with a back axle here is a rear axle.

Okay, you guys may not think this is important, but it certainly is because everyone can have waterproof electronics. Even my buddy crawler Ted – and I were talking about this today – everybody can say waterproof truck the electronics are secure, but what they fail to say is that the bearings are not bearings, can still rust and seize so here I'm going to take this off. This is quite an old axle. It'S got some dirt in there I'm just going to pull this apart, so you guys can see four up early, perfect here's, one that I never did. This is a great example of why you need to do your bearings here at all the dirt in there, because dirt definitely will get in you can't stop it from getting in, because we have all these holes for the screws you never want to put grease or Silicone over the heads of the screws, because you will never be able to undo it, you can clean it. You can try to, but good luck. You need to keep it free and accessible right. Can you imagine grease with a hex driver it just slips and strips yeah? Okay, I can't say it: hahahaha have a look up here, rusty bearing listen to that grouse it's, not focusing cuz it's focusing on my face, but I want to focus on this I'm. Stepping out of the way of the camera look at that grouse 'no, so k, dirty, yucky, gon na seize up sounds disgusting.

What I should have done, let me have a look at the end here, because there's bearings that go in the end cap as well to try and push it out without stabbing myself. I can't it's solid it's frozen in there, okay, so slowly I'm working it out here. One of the things I should have done is used marine grease. I have a whole video on marine grease. You can check it out right here. Okay goes through. Why? I use marine grease the type of marine grease that I use. It is a lithium base grease but it's highly water resistant. You can see here that this, bearing has quite a bit of smut in it. You can't, really seeks the lights there. We go. Okay, quite a bit of crud in there now I could be very a meticulous and peel out the cover and put marine grease inside, which I suggest. If you have the time you can peel back the the rubber bushing that goes around it and pack some marine grease in there or you're, not going to be that tedious about it. You have the end cap that goes over the end. What I would do here, I've already got a pre loaded gun. Look at this big bugger, a hey. All I got ta do is show you this and then say that's what she said. Uh just give it a big blob in the end, okay, that's. So many dirty things when you're talking about slippery grease.

Okay, here we go just going to put you can see the nozzle there. Marine grease is relatively blue. Okay and just stick that nozzle in there give her a shot. Now you can see in the end big blob, a marine grease. Then you go you're baring, you just push it in make sure it's, nice and flush. You can do this with your old trucks too, just like I'm doing right now. You just want to make sure to clean it up nice, this one I don't really care too much about, but it makes for a great example, so you stick the bearing down in there and then what you want to do once it's flush with the end is Make sure that marine grease is blobbed in now it's somewhat majority protected from water, because it's been encapsulated in the marine grease. We have to move on because I don't want this to take forever. Also, once you clean out or if you have a brand new stock axle, you'll want to go in, lay a pad of marine grease right around the bearing on both sides, also on the differential gear, okay, so I'm not going to over pack it because over packing. It is going to be counterproductive and cause some binding issues, especially on gears and with a little motor when you're going through the mud. You don't want your axles to be binding, so I'll take the marine grease. You guys should wear latex gloves.

I can hear y'all writing in now, but just for the sake and purpose of this there, we go just kind of rub it around there. You also want to be putting marine grease around the bearings. Okay, you don't need to pack this whole thing again because of the binding issues won't bubble, bump bump off you all of a sudden get a nice greased and protected diff, while the bearings are also protected on each side from the step, one that we did with The original bearing and the end cap also make sure to get in behind the bearing of the drive shaft, because that is also important. You'Ve all had our C's that you've run in the water that go E, that's, my dolphin impression or a rusty. Bearing impression we hate it, it sucks there's no way around it. Unless you do your maintenance, you need to do maintenance with these trucks they're expensive, for a reason, because you're expected to cup keep them right, or else you're not going to have them very long. Next thing on the truck in order is going to be the servo, my friends just going to move this out of the way for a second we'll, get to that in a moment servos. This is not the stock servo and I've already done some undone. The screws on the bottom – this is a fairly popular brand called high tech, come on focus. What I do with these is I take my Phillips ba ba ba ba or the star head undo.

All of the screws on the bottom carefully lift the top off the servo, exposing the horn, okay or where you would mount the horn here. I got to get that to focus better for you guys there you go so you can see I've already started to marine grease it from the top. Don'T worry don't muck about with these gears in here. Take yourself. Let me see this look at this. A very very small, o ring. Okay, what you want to do is you want to stretch it around the top of that horn once you have it around the top of the horn here, I just got to do the get on there. All them on camera should have had that prepared first, but I didn't check it out. Okay, now focus on that. Not me there you go now we have an o ring around the top. This is going to help seal everything. Now you could go ahead and put a light coating inside the servo of the marine grease, not too much because you will cause binding in the servo and you don't want that. You want complete, thrill, left and right of your steering, so you could put a dab in here. A dab'll do ya! Okay! Moving on with this horn, here we'll get out the old marine grease again. This is like a ridiculous size gun. Okay, a little bit check it out. A dab will do ya, run it around the ring.

That'S there. Okay, now you're going to come back you're going to pop the lid right back on now. Not only have you got a water resistant servo on top, but once this is screwed back together, you're going to take this puppy, just like I've shown in other videos, okay on how to waterproof servos my good old friend plastidip. What I do is I dip it in plastidip. This has to take like ten hours to dry guys. I do it right right. I don't rush this when it's dipped it'll come out. Big and blobby, like you, saw in the video, if you actually looked at it, but over time it will dry and check it out. It dries around all of the seals it's focusing on that hood back there. There we go this dries around all and shrink, see drying and shrinking around all of these screws. Now your horn has been protected. All of the open seams have dried, and now you can see there's no water going to get through there got ta, get that to focus better, got ta get a new camera. This one's filmed like two hundred videos and what I do is, I hang it through. A pen not in between two and I just let it dry when it dries it shrinks, and you get this end result. This is now ready to go this. This is 12 thereabout, depending on where you buy it. This servo came with your truck anyway, so go ahead and do it right stock servo, even with a high tech one I have, they do have waterproof servo let's check this out a bow, and this is a high tech.

This here, you've seen me use. This is a Traxxas 20. 75. I don't like these there's, a reason why I don't, like them: they're like 45 bucks, but they're plastic gears inside. So if you actually bump something too hard and break the teeth off yeah, you can buy replacement parts for like six bucks online, but that kind of ruins your day of our scene, no good. I either do it this method or I haven't tried these out. Yet these are the new high Tech's, but this is 69. So a lot of us don't have 69 bucks. We have 12 bucks and this can go a long way and I'm going to show you what I mean next thing on the truck. Now that we got the servo and it's been installed, everything's good to go next thing I have is the receiver box. The receiver box holds a lot of the electronics like the lights, like the receiver itself. Okay, here is the frame that I have hanging up check out this little trick. I have see in the bottom of the receiver box, it drilled two holes. You know why, because no matter what water is going to go in there, I want the water to come out, so I drill two holes and make some drainage in it while I'm in there. I also have a look at the receiver now this is a spectrum receiver it's, another manufacturer. This is not the stock receiver, but same idea.

I just haven't taken it out of that truck. Yet I also plastidip the receiver, but before I do that, I put leads on it mm hmm, so I plug all my stuff into the leads. I think these are like two bucks, each at a hobby store and dip. This whole thing cool right into the plastic: dip, plastidip, not plastic, dip same thing, Plasti Dip. I let this hang and dry have a look over here, because this is a this over. Here is a receiver that I was doing that's hanging and drying same thing with what I was just showing you: okay, I'm, just gon na go back back back back up back up back up, really close uh, huh, okay and we'll. Secure that this receiver now can be accessed without ruining the waterproofing, you did because it's completely sealed it's got some velcro on the bottom. I can always plug things in and out with ease excellent idea, moving right along same thing, with the light kit inside it comes it's got some shrink wrap on it, just dip the light kit, a chip into the plastidip. Please keep in mind. All of this destroys your warranty. You have to be prepared that if you're run in your truck or doing any mods, there is no more warranty. I don't even know if these kind of trucks have a warranty I'm, not a spokesperson for anybody but RC sparks. So this is what I'm saying is that be aware that if you run your trucks in water be prepared to break them, but these are some tips that will help you well try to prolong the the agony of having to fix your stuff again.

Next is the ESC, the electronic speed control? It is more known as the brain of the vehicle or a Power Distribution Center; okay, because it works in correlation or in partnership with the receiver to push power to your wheels I'm just going to back up the camera. A little bit here because I need you guys to see something bump bump bump. Ah this is the ESC that comes with this truck. In fact, you can see it right here mounted sideways with an onoff switch doo doo doo, doo doo, doo, doo, doo, okay, the new ESC. This one has fins on the top. Just like the old one. Did this one has a drag brake, though, which is very handy if you don't know what a drag brake is. Definitely Google it. This has a sticker. That goes all the way around the outside, and what you want to do is not dunk this, because this has to have the fins generally exposed to distribute the heat that's produced right because electricity power heat, you know how it goes this year. My friends, I have already gone ahead and taken apart hanging in between the two controllers that you've seen but I'm, not just going to say this is what you do I'm going to show you how to take this apart, real quick, so you don't want to be Messing around and cracking things make sure you have a sharp blade go down the side without slicing your fingers off, especially if you're doing a video on waterproofing, okay, now I've cut on both sides on the top.

If you can see, and if it focuses right there, you can see that the case actually encases the chip so we're going to take my nice little fingernails and I'm going to pull on one side away, not too hard, though, and you can hear it. Click click. Look at focus focusing doesn't matter once it click six, you push a little bit and you go to the other side. You can see it starting to separate. This is also a warranty killer right here. Guys so be very, very aware that if you're going to do this, no warranty replacement, okay, I, on the other hand, don't care and just like water resistant gear. These leads come out this end, these all go through the top. In fact, you can see there's little holes holes on each four corner to let you know where it all goes pinch. Those wires together as those wires are pinched together, be smart tape. Them together, you're doing two things here. Folks, two things: a you're remembering how the case goes back together and be you've just now created a hanging point take the bottom off, also just by gently removing it, and here we go, you can see that there's tabs. Hopefully you can I'm gon na focus. Can'T focus there's tat, one to two tabs on the end, just gently lift back and pull it out check it out there. Okay, this is very important. No water can get anywhere around these electrodes.

Okay, good ol, Plasti Dip boo it, but I do not cover the fins. This stuff forms a skin very quickly. You want to let this dry do not mess around with it. Let it sit, hang and dry. You know why I created a little loop, Oh check. It out hey, I can hang it just like that. Okay, now I'm going to bring over the one I've done for you already. This has actually gone through the process. Twice, not the whole thing, but I covered it really. Well. Last night you can see that it's shrunk and dried it's all covering the electronics everywhere. You look even though it's kind of blurry there we go everywhere. You look has been covered. In fact, what I did was I inspected at the morning. I saw that when it was drying and shrinking it kind of pulled away from some spot, so I went in with a finger just kind of dabbed it on there yeah mushing it around with a latex glove and pushed it in there. Okay, something you want to make sure that there's, no electronics exposed, or else it will get ruined, also make sure to bend the wires back and forth blob some in there. You need to get this watertight notice. Everything is still how I said in the in a few minutes ago: taped off everything's, good and leaves hanging down. People ask me about the switch all the time, here's a little hint for the folks that are interested in doing this again.

I know I keep reiterating this, but it is YouTube and some folks don't listen. You will void the warranty if you cut any of this stuff. Well, what you saw me do just there was cut the onoff switch off. I don't need it all. I need to do is take the to open, leads mm. Hmm, you don't, let your mom, so you do this or your wife. If you spent a lot of money, your teeth simply expose the wires twist them together. That will complete the circuit. What that's going to do is always leave that on take your nifty little plastidip with your twisted wires. Look just like that. Okay, let that dry! Now, whenever you plug the battery in it turns on you unplug the battery, it turns off it's. Just that simple there. We go, I could feel a bit of resistance. Remember if you have to force it you're, not doing it right. Okay, everything goes together. Look at everything's, doing fine and click click, click, clickety click click! Oh, my ESC is waterproof now water resistant. I always feel so bad saying waterproof because you never ever ever know if you got it properly, it's the risk of playing with electricity in water, ok, making sure everything is sealed up now it doesn't matter. If this case gets any water on it, it doesn't because everything inside has been for protected and the heat fins are still dissipating the heat. Next moving right, along with my presentation, people always always ask me medic what about my batteries? How do I waterproof them? Lithium polymer, these type cannot go in water.

You get water on lipo stuff, it will explode, but there is ways to get around this. A lot of folks use nickel metal hydride. This is just an example of cells right round cells. You guys have these kind of batteries. In fact, I've got a perfect example of one right here: here's what some people use a normal nickel metal hydride. These are okay to go in the water doesn't matter. You don't need to waterproof these and, depending on the manufacturer, you get them from max. Amps is a good example of that all of their lipo's are waterproof already, but I know a lot of people out there, like a variety, some think they're too expensive, blah blah blah they've got different types of lipos, so I'm going to use something like this. Okay, a four thousand two cell lipo you'll notice. This is actually the my wife's battery. I took a thin layer of silicone and covered the open areas – hmm even around the front here. So no water could get in there. You could plastidip the whole thing. I don't really think it's necessary. You could put on a glove and wipe the plastidip all around. Let it dry and you'd be good. Don'T worry about getting these wet they're gon na corrode over time anyway, but this won't cause a short here. Come over here, I'm gon na bring the camera with me. Hey we're, going on a little journey together right here, I'm, going to show you one more thing: it has nothing to do with the radios it actually has to do with the motor.

This is a stock motor that comes with the truck I'm gon na back up a little bit just so I can see the fist properly. My own face we're gon na focus on this glass of water that's. Why I'm up in the top corner over here like this, this is a brushed motor, which means it has brushes inside that touched the calm that give it the power. Neads brushless is different I'm going to focus on brushed today. Ok, the brushed motor never needs to worry about being waterproof, but it needs to be in clean water to run it doesn't cause shorting. You want to see something kind of neat now I'm going to overpower this motor. I should be using a nickel metal hydride, but I don't have anything hold on a second, maybe I'd uh uh. No, I don't have anything on hand that is nickel metal hydride that has the proper connector on it so I'm, actually just going to use a two cell lipo it's, going to totally overpower this, but it will totally suit the needs for what we're doing right now. Watch this going around the bath ke mo over here, okay we're gon na move this closer. So you can see it! I love doing one continuous shot, it's almost like doing live TV okay, getting in there, especially when you're filming by yourself check this out. Now. All I did was put some different connectors on the end. Okay, i soldered them together now they're ready to go there's a pinion on the end, because I want to see I want to show you that it's actually moving the water inside check this out.

It'S going to jump like crazy and it will be quite noisy so I'm keeping my fingers clear from the fins because it has these holes that needs to breathe and I'm going to plug this in okay, watching watching plugging it in jumping okay direct going check it Out did you like that there we go totally totally waterproof. I should have planned that just like, I said, live TV. But what can you do? Okay? So now you can see that everything is just fine. No one was electrocuted the motor works. Fine fact I got a whole bunch of yucky garbage in there from kind of cleaning out the motor now. This is how we used to break in brushed motors back in the old days. In fact, if you do this, you can actually get quite a bit of torque because it will help clean off the brushes inside and make a better connection. In fact, you can see a whole bunch of I don't know if you can whole bunch of stuff in the bottom there that basically do drink the water after you do this, you can see all the yucky stuff in there that actually cleans this out. Okay, so it makes a better connection now I'm going to back this up and do one more thing before I end this video whew there we go okay. This is why I keep everything unplugged you never know when water is going to fly everywhere.

So here we go right here now that you know how to go through and make your motor work properly. Okay, people ask me: how do I waterproof a winch? Okay, they see me working with winches all the time. This is a three Racing winch, and this is the only winch I have experience with. So I won't talk about RC, four wheel, drive or other winches I'm going to talk about this one. Now that you've seen a brushed motor can work in water and not be damaged, brushed, not brushless. This is a little brushed motor in there. Okay right in there hey right over here, actually, where the wire comes out. This is where the motor sits. What attaches here is a circuit board. The circuit board is the thing that needs to be plastidip and water proofed I'm, not guaranteeing this will work forever, but I've certainly used my winches in the water and everything and it works fine granted over time. It will cease. The motor there's, nothing, you can do about it, okay, so there now you have a general idea: let's walk back over here again don't. Did it uh? You can see the mess under my table. You know, look it here. There'S one more thing! I'Ll cover this because we didn't cover the transmission. I didn't want to make this go on too long, but I actually think it's important here come in come over here. Let'S have a look on the table and I'll actually focus down here.

Okay, this is the transmission taken apart here. Let'S, look at the transmission transmission right here. This is just a shroud that covers everything. Transmission piece is right back here this big thing where the drive shafts connect. We were talking about bearings. This is a transmission watch. This all taken apart, I put all my parts in a bag, so I don't lose them the screws and stuff opening opening I've already taken the screws out. I got to do this slowly and oh, no yeah! Okay, now what you're, seeing in there is marine grease that I used to use when I first built this transmission. This is not the transmission off of the body or the frame. I just showed you, but you will see inside that, even though I've run water through here that there is no rust. You know why, because I went through you can see all the old yucky marine grease in there. Yes, it's brown, yes it's dirty, but you know what my bearings spin, like they're brand new okay, so you want to go in here. You want to do a quick, little dab. Okay, this is actually an aftermarket gear. I put in a nice solid drive links. I put my stuff through a lot of torque. This is an r RP piece Robinson Racing products. Okay, you can check them out. You can see all the gears focus, can't get it to focus, focus on me, not everything else. There we go.

So what you want to do is put a small blob in there and then start working it around okay. This will make it protected, but please keep in mind. You'Ve got to pull out the gears in here, because let's look let's, have a look at this idler gear: okay, focusing in focus okay bearing on the inside both sides. So you really have to be careful and get in there and make sure to put marine grease. Do not blob marine grease in here, because it will cause binding issues. We already know that, if you're in the mud in the muck in the rocks, if you have binding issues your motor is working over hard. Okay, you do not need the motor to work hard. So just get in there protect the bearings that's. What you want to do. I know that everyone has been asking me for a while medic. How do you waterproof your trucks? I'Ve done lots of videos about it, but I've never done it front to back. If you follow these steps, you actually go and spend the six doll six dollars on marine grease for a gun that big, you spend the twelve dollars, and you actually take your time and do it right with lasted it two things: what is that a total of 20, with tax you go out, you spend it you're in the hobby to have fun anyway, you're in it to learn about your trucks and cars and all that stuff.

Why not take the time while you're building it or while you sit down to rework it, to actually do these tips and tricks? When you do that, you will see a much longer life come from your RCS. Does that help you guys? I hope that helps you guys. I know there's plenty of ways to water resist your stuff, but I hope that this laid out in one format in one single shot, so there's no trick photography or anything like that. Actually, we'll give you some help. This is how I do all of my trucks, so yeah, if you like these videos, please click the thumbs up. Button make sure you're subscribed and if you want check out our see, sparks comm because that's, where all of the RCX come on by and share their experiences. There'S, lots of our see forums out there, Google RC forums or, if you want to come and hang out and chat with me, RC sparks, is where I'll be see.