Starter truck for competition build? (Class 2 / Sportsman)

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Blarfnort

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RC Driving Style
  1. Bashing
  2. Crawling
For those of you who are into competitions, I'd love some advice please. I'm trying to decide which vehicle to build. My first comp will be this coming weekend; I'm going to use my 1/10 Capra.. they said it was fine as long as I disable the rear steer. As a newbie, I'm in no danger of beating anybody... especially with a top-heavy Capra.

1. The new Element Sendero Sport SE. Just announced, this one looks interesting. Servo on axle, room for a servo winch, a 4-channel radio so I don't have to switch radios, the motor is positioned more to the front for better weight distribution, and the transmission can be upgraded to front overdrive. I'd have to upgrade all the links, but that's fine... I'd also probably switch to metal-body shocks.

2. Axial Base Camp. Better clearance and lower center of gravity than the TRX-4 Sport... not sure about overdrive -- are there other ring/pinion options for the axles, since the transmission doesn't do it?

3. TRX-4 Sport. Stiffer chassis, but almost a pound heavier. I don't know enough about this one.

4. Vanquish VS4-10 Phoenix. Seems very durable. I don't know enough about this one either, like in terms of clearances, center of gravity, etc. I know it has room for a servo winch though.

Thoughts?
 
For those of you who are into competitions, I'd love some advice please. I'm trying to decide which vehicle to build. My first comp will be this coming weekend; I'm going to use my 1/10 Capra.. they said it was fine as long as I disable the rear steer. As a newbie, I'm in no danger of beating anybody... especially with a top-heavy Capra.

1. The new Element Sendero Sport SE. Just announced, this one looks interesting. Servo on axle, room for a servo winch, a 4-channel radio so I don't have to switch radios, the motor is positioned more to the front for better weight distribution, and the transmission can be upgraded to front overdrive. I'd have to upgrade all the links, but that's fine... I'd also probably switch to metal-body shocks.

2. Axial Base Camp. Better clearance and lower center of gravity than the TRX-4 Sport... not sure about overdrive -- are there other ring/pinion options for the axles, since the transmission doesn't do it?

3. TRX-4 Sport. Stiffer chassis, but almost a pound heavier. I don't know enough about this one.

4. Vanquish VS4-10 Phoenix. Seems very durable. I don't know enough about this one either, like in terms of clearances, center of gravity, etc. I know it has room for a servo winch though.

Thoughts?

Not a comp guy but a TRX4 sport guy.

The TRX4 Sport has plenty of room up front for a servo winch between the steering servo and end of the chassis, there are gearing options for the ring and pinion. There are several SOA options including STL files if you 3d print.

I have the inner fenders which include the small battery tray, I just removed that and installed my steering servo at the very front but you can see there is quite a bit of room there.
PXL_20221018_130031544.jpg
 
I'm really intrigued by the new Element Sendero Sport, as an entry level, it looks really good for the price. I have really liked all of my Element RC's. they have made some really nice upgrades while keeping the cost down.

My second choice would be the TRX4 sport. It's a proven performer while still being reasonably priced.

I'm not sold on the Axial Basecamp. I think the new Axial Deadbolt out performs it and costs less.

Vanquish is the name to beat, but it comes at a cost.

Honestly, starting out you can't go wrong with any of them, they are all upgradable and fairly closely matched. All of the above have good aftermarket support, so you can't go wrong there either. They are all good rigs, whatever you choose, enjoy the process of learning how it handles and upgrading it.

Have fun and let us know what you decide. :)
 
If you want to do comps and be as competitive as possible then Id go for an M.O.A. crawler like the RC4WD Bully 2.

 
Thanks for the input! I'm going to ask the same questions this weekend at the comp and see what vehicles people are running... then eventually make up my mind. Fortunately I'm short on cash right now so I can't run out and buy one... I can force myself to research more. I'll probably buy one after Christmas.

I do plan, down the road, to get one of those Bully II's... but first I want to do a Class 2 rig and learn to drive it before going to the top of the food chain.
 
Sounds like a good plan, see what others are running and how they seem to perform, mind you most will have been heavily modified.
 
Yep! I want to pick their brain as much as I can (and as they'll tolerate) to see what is needed for each vehicle. Like, in my list in the original post, while all four trucks might be good choices, which one is the easiest/cheapest to mod? Gotta figure that out. The Phoenix is my last choice, mainly because it has features that can't be used (dig and the switchable overdrive), and new bodies are $150. The Sport and Base Camp have very simple bodies that should be easy to acquire, new or used, as needed if it gets beat up enough.

There was a video I saw by RC Review who did a side by side comparo of the TRX-4 Sport and the Base Camp as a crawler, and stock for stock, he picked the Base Camp as the winner, because he said it had a lower center of gravity and better clearance... and is almost a pound lighter. I'm not sold on less weight being an advantage though. The Sport, however, had a much more rigid chassis, which I'm not sure if that's a good or bad thing.

I know some people have built real nice Class 2 rigs out of Capras using a new body.. to be honest, I really hate those cut-down bodies that sorta resemble a Power Wagon. They're just cheap and ugly looking. But I suppose if you wanna compete, aesthetics can't have too much bearing unless it's a Scale event.
 
I really hate those cut-down bodies that sorta resemble a Power Wagon. They're just cheap and ugly looking. But I suppose if you wanna compete, aesthetics can't have too much bearing unless it's a Scale event.

:eek: Don't look at my Ecto!

PSX_20220716_144154.jpg



Just teasin' After a while a lot of the rigs start looking the same and you will want something different. You can only see so many Jeeps, Power Wagons, or Toyotas before you want something else. but I know what you mean.
 
:eek: Don't look at my Ecto!

View attachment 155302


Just teasin' After a while a lot of the rigs start looking the same and you will want something different. You can only see so many Jeeps, Power Wagons, or Toyotas before you want something else. but I know what you mean.
I think one of the reasons the Sport body grew on me was that so many people discard it for another body.
 
Your Ecto looks WAAAAY better than the ones I've seen. Yours has character and it hasn't been cut down like so many of them. The Eco was on my list of potential vehicles too... I love the look of it. BUT, it has a 12.8" wheelbase and the limit is 12.5".
 
You could also build a rig out of the Capra. Lots of options out there. A lot of guys run the Capra axles and swap out the tube chassis and transmission for a lower setup. The axles are a little wide but there are wheels out there that tuck them in pretty good and you still have the clearance of portals with out the big box in the way.
 
For those of you who are into competitions, I'd love some advice please. I'm trying to decide which vehicle to build. My first comp will be this coming weekend; I'm going to use my 1/10 Capra.. they said it was fine as long as I disable the rear steer. As a newbie, I'm in no danger of beating anybody... especially with a top-heavy Capra.

1. The new Element Sendero Sport SE. Just announced, this one looks interesting. Servo on axle, room for a servo winch, a 4-channel radio so I don't have to switch radios, the motor is positioned more to the front for better weight distribution, and the transmission can be upgraded to front overdrive. I'd have to upgrade all the links, but that's fine... I'd also probably switch to metal-body shocks.

2. Axial Base Camp. Better clearance and lower center of gravity than the TRX-4 Sport... not sure about overdrive -- are there other ring/pinion options for the axles, since the transmission doesn't do it?

3. TRX-4 Sport. Stiffer chassis, but almost a pound heavier. I don't know enough about this one.

4. Vanquish VS4-10 Phoenix. Seems very durable. I don't know enough about this one either, like in terms of clearances, center of gravity, etc. I know it has room for a servo winch though.

Thoughts?
I'd go.scx10 rather than the base camp
 

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