Nitro Rustler Suspension Tuning and Setup Tips

[Beer_Goggles_RC]

Just purchased a lightly used nitro rustler. Trying to scratch that gas truck itch without building an ignite kit for it to sit on the shelf 364 days/year

What are some must have hopups and what should I look at in particular for tuning to run at an 1/8 off-road track?

I’m pretty sure the diff isn’t sealed so maybe a trans upgrade? Do 2wd outdoor off-road diffs even need grease?

It’s the 2.5 so I’ll probably run 20%. I imagine any higher could be pretty hard to keep facing forward for a beginner. Hoping the traxxas carb will work better with 20% also. I’ve got luck with tuning my sidewinder 30% race blend on traxxas carbs.

Also looking for tire recommendations. Thinking green goosebumps and swaggers. Running at DirtBurners. Dusty hard packed. If I’m lucky I can hit on Sunday morning after a club race and run a fresh prepped and packed track.

 

[Chubaka]

Traxxas has a ball diff for this model. Other option may be a jato tranny upgrade if it has a sealed diff.

Maybe a better exhaust and motorsaver air filter fir more power? Probably swap some servos too.

The older white plastic nitro tranny gears are self lubing. The planetary gears in the diff need some grease.

Also ditch the cheezy start to save weight.

 

[Suburban_Hooligan]

ill second ditching the ez start. not only is it dead weight, experience tells me they aren't reliable. if you're going to race the truck go with a starter box. if you plan on racing and bashing it maybe a pull starter.

I'm also in favor of ditching the stock drive shafts and using MIP CVD's. traxxas drive shafts aren't known for there reliability.

you might also want to think about upgrading the servos. I'm a big fan of having a good (overkill) throttle/brake servo just for the throttle response and braking ability.