Hey Bro,
Your plastic shocks with plastic shock caps are fine until you can afford to get nice shocks down the road. Don't go and waste your money on aluminum caps and crap that you don't need for good performing shocks. Not to mention that adding Metal caps to a plastic body could cause more damage when/if you have a nasty accident.
Honestly, if I could have done it over again I would have bought a nice used T-maxx that's already hoped up to whatever extent on E-bay as I've replaced most everthing on my Maxx with superior components or plan too (other then battery box, Reciver box tranny and diffs). Anyway, You need to seriously look @ your Maxx and what you want to do with it. You also need to decide how you ultimately want the truck to be when "finished" (no -one ever finishes with hop ups hehe). Read a ton here and abroad and research every product your going to get and how it might or might not place/play nice with future products you want.
Like the other poster reco'd. I would outfit you truck with most everything PRM makes as their products are bad ass and they'll replace them if broken, no questions asked. IMHO...RPM is the best RC product company on the planet for what they make. In order of importance...
1. RPM Bulkhead Braces - Don't go and spend your money now on expensive alluminum bulkhead braces. Their's some companies that are currently designing or have designed supeior bullkhead designs. Definitely wait on bulkheads for now. The RPM Bulkhead braces will seriously decrease your chances of breaking the stock plastic ones until you have the bucks to buy alluminum. $10.00 or so. Also make sure you follow the RPM Bulkhead brace instructions to a "T".
1. Titanium HingePins - The stock pins can and will bend with relative ease when doing hard bashing and big jumps. Even the TI pins can bend but you basically have to hit a wall full speed to do that. Nothing is designed to be strong enough for you to hit a wall.....lol. Some things come close though. Around $20.00
2. RPM A-ARMS to go with your the Titanium Shock pins and the Knuckles you say your getting. The RPM Knuckles with "oversized" bearings will make your care drive smoother then the stock ones and can take allot more wheel load. Around $50.00 for a full set of A-arms.
3. A superior cooling head for your engine. I don't care what anyone says, the Stock 2.5 cooling head is a joke for a .15 motor that's ported the way the 2.5 is. A cooling head for a Nitro motor is the same prinicpal and thing as a "heat sink" on a computer processor. THe Nova head and others are very nice but tend to be very expensive..around $50. THeir's some great cooling heads on the market for around $30 or less if you shop around.
4. Titanium TurnBuckles. The Stock turnbuckles are strong but eventually (sometimes within the first week of bashing) your stock buckles can and will bend. Also, the cheesy plastic ends on the stock turnbuckles are el-sucko and break easy. I'd reco a 1/8th Scale Ti Turnbuckle set form Lundsford Racing or Unlimited Engineering. Even if you don't get TI Turnbuckles now, do yourself a favor and get stronger and bigger plastic connecting ends NOW bro.
5. Metal Geared servo. THe Stock Traxxas Stock Traxxas steering servo is less then stellar dude. When your ready to get a good Digital or Analog servo their's a plehtora of info here and aborad.
6. A "SERVO SAVER" system. The Stock T-Maxx "Servo Saver/Steering system is pretty pathetic in IMHO and that of many. Unlimited Engineering, RPM and others have come out with killer systmes that will offer superior steering, holding and keep you from destroying your servo if you get in a nasty front end accident.
That should keep you busy for now.
Peace
Originally posted by Domination
i wasn't thinking of RPM towers neways i was looking at Hardcore Racing tower but they seem a lil pricey
Don't go out and spend big bucks on metal shock towers until you've addressed the truly weak points of your maxx.
Peace
