While I like build RC stuff that's accurate to the 1:1, I'm not remotely a rivet counter. I also want mechanical functionality, so I'm willing to to tweak things as I see fit, either for my own taste or to allow the thing to *work* like the 1:1, even if doesn't exactly LOOK like the 1:1.
One case in point is the suspension. The axles came with links and I could make them fit; I couldn't find a way to make leafs fit nor did I have any on hand. Another is the lift mechanism. I hate hydraulics in 1:1, so there's no way I'd do them in scale. That meant using linear actuators, though fortunately they can be easily controlled by an Arduino (see above wrt the RX and Arduinos.)
Here's a 1:1 moving a flatrack. The mechanism is actually compound. It has two sets of actuators, one to lift the main a-frame and another on the hook to bend backwards.
Learning to model that in CAD was, well, let's just say I tore out a substantial amount of my limited supply of hair
After many iterations, the design ended up like this at rest
Extending just the top, hook actuators looks like this
and then extending the bottom lifts the whole thing
Took me forever, but got all the sizing and angles worked out and it moves like this
That middle piece, the lift A-frame, was nightmarish to print, talk about a learning curve. It's too big to print at once even in my big printer, so it had to be split in two and then glued and bolted together.
and rendered for printing
For those not familiar with 3D printing, however, you don't magically get a nice clean piece straight out of the printer. What you get has supports and, unless you have the temperature and speed settings just right and the planets are in alignment, little melted bits and will require tons of sanding and filing and drilling to make perfect (or even good.)
That's an early iteration of the bottom half of the lift A-frame. After removing the supports and said sanding and such, the final version looks like this:
