Traxxas rustler Xl-5 ( opinions )

[WickedFog]

Hey Doom I agree ... I have a few others.. But I don't know if you read in my other posts I have a losi my micro SCT and Lucy micro Truggy but their discontinued.. if I run them and break them, I'm not going to be able to get any parts for them so what the hell am I going to do with them now? Also a DHK RAZ R Stadium trk upgraded..it's an off brand but it runs great and it's fast... I'm almost scared to run the Losi's but I will... They r great micro cars ... Have no clue as 2 y they were discontinued

The smaller RC's like 1/18 and under don't break things quite as easily as their bigger brothers. If you have RC's that are discontinued, I would suggest trying to find the A-arms, spurs, driveshafts, diffs, and any other gears (besides the pinion). Stock up on those parts and your RC's will outlive you as long as you don't beat the hell out of them. Most other components can be sourced from other kits. Electronics like servo, motor, esc, and the receiver can be bought anywhere.

 

[biggman100]

Sorry 2 hear about the fire.. hope Noone got hurt bro. ..Yeah its the original one but I had to paint over the body. I wasn't a fan of the color.. what's the difference between the original and the razor 2?

The original Raz-R and Wolf were based more on the 1/8TH scale truck stuff, like the Hunter and Zombie 8E, and, as a result, are more durable. I'm not saying the 1/10TH scale cars (Wolf 2, Raz-R 2 and Cage-R) are bad, but, you can tell they dont have the build quality the bigger cars do. One issue i always encountered with the Wolf 2 and Raz-R 2 was how the driveshaft is set up. The gear at the end of the shaft that engages the diffs has a screw in it, that either comes loose, or outright breaks. The biggest issue i found with the Raz-R is the center diff, and how the upper aluminum plates mount to it. The plastic mounts that screw onto the diff housing tend to break easy if you jump it hard, and the body isnt very durable. I shattered mine the first week i had it, and then found a different body to put on it.

 

[Richiered]

Is yours the original Raz-R, or the Raz-R 2? I had several DHK cars until i lost them in a fire. 2 Hunters, an original Raz-R (the yellow and blue one that is impossible to get now), a Cage-R (also nearly impossible to get), 2 Wolf 2's (one was modified into a custom police truck for my step son), and a Raz-R 2. I tend to like the off brands.

Sorry 2 hear about the fire.. hope Noone got hurt bro. ..Yeah its the original one but I had to paint over the body. I wasn't t a fan of the color.. what's the difference between the original and the razor 2?

The smaller RC's like 1/18 and under don't break things quite as easily as their bigger brothers. If you have RC's that are discontinued, I would suggest trying to find the A-arms, spurs, driveshafts, diffs, and any other gears (besides the pinion). Stock up on those parts and your RC's will outlive you as long as you don't beat the hell out of them. Most other components can be sourced from other kits. Electronics like servo, motor, esc, and the receiver can be bought anywhere.

All those parts you set to stock up on I looked them up and I found all of them.. I guess there's more parts than I thought were available... and there's a lot of other parts also. I'll have to do that ... Those parts are the same for the sct and truggy. That'll work!! OHHH I was searching for a battery cover ... For days and it's not available... I think that's why I thought they were really no parts available.. luckily I found it..
Thanks Wicked . Talk soon

The original Raz-R and Wolf were based more on the 1/8TH scale truck stuff, like the Hunter and Zombie 8E, and, as a result, are more durable. I'm not saying the 1/10TH scale cars (Wolf 2, Raz-R 2 and Cage-R) are bad, but, you can tell they dont have the build quality the bigger cars do. One issue i always encountered with the Wolf 2 and Raz-R 2 was how the driveshaft is set up. The gear at the end of the shaft that engages the diffs has a screw in it, that either comes loose, or outright breaks. The biggest issue i found with the Raz-R is the center diff, and how the upper aluminum plates mount to it. The plastic mounts that screw onto the diff housing tend to break easy if you jump it hard, and the body isnt very durable. I shattered mine the first week i had it, and then found a different body to put on it.

LOL jumping? My Raz r never seen air I'm worried wen I go over a small crack in the concrete.. if I go down a curb I go down like a 85year old lady with a broken leg Have a good night BIG... .my r closing ... Talk soon my friend

 

[WickedFog]

Sorry 2 hear about the fire.. hope Noone got hurt bro. ..Yeah its the original one but I had to paint over the body. I wasn't t a fan of the color.. what's the difference between the original and the razor 2?

All those parts you set to stock up on I looked them up and I found all of them.. I guess there's more parts than I thought were available... and there's a lot of other parts also. I'll have to do that ... Those parts are the same for the sct and truggy. That'll work!! OHHH I was searching for a battery cover ... For days and it's not available... I think that's why I thought they were really no parts available.. luckily I found it..
Thanks Wicked . Talk soon

Another way to get spare parts is to buy used cars on ebay. Buy them, strip them down, clean everything in Simple Green, and put the parts in a Plano storage box or something

 

[Richiered]

Another way to get spare parts is to buy used cars on ebay. Buy them, strip them down, clean everything in Simple Green, and put the parts in a Plano storage box or something

That's true.. I think I'll be good buying some parts here and there.. I looked some more and there's alot of parts available...... Talk again .. thanks Wicked!!!

 

[biggman100]

LOL jumping? My Raz r never seen air I'm worried wen I go over a small crack in the concrete.. if I go down a curb I go down like a 85year old lady with a broken leg Have a good night BIG... .my r closing ... Talk soon my friend

Thats one of the best things about this hobby. Everyone has a different way they run their stuff, which means there are as many ways to set up and build a car as there are ways to run it, which is why i tend to have 2 or 3 versions of the same vehicle. I think it would get extremely boring if everyone ran the same way. I know guys that their stuff never sees dirt, and that are perfectly content with a stock car up and down the street. Me, i run them on all kinds of surfaces, in all kinds of weather, from sunshine, to rain, to snow and ice, and my cars almost never stay on the ground through an entire run. If i can't set up the ramps i built, i run them at a local skate park, where i typically get them 20 feet or more in the air. I have even made my "on road" cars fly at times. However, typically, on road cars are the worst for breaking when they get air, so i dont do it often.

 

[DavidB1126]

Sup David ... Thanks 4 the tips and the links... I've down loaded them and saved em... I'll do about 90% on the street so I'll try a higher pinion ..... Is it safe to get a cleaner for wen I'm done so I can spray all the electronics and all? Or did I just ask a dumb question? Cause I'm real good at it thank u David...

I see people use simply green. I only run my cars on the street and in the grass when its not wet out so I use a can of compressed air to blow all the grass and dirt away. Here is a video about simply green foam and how it works:

I do agree with @WickedFog and others. The rustler is easier to work on but durability out of the box is ehh. I think I made my cars more durable than stock with the steering and suspension parts. With my rustler I already upgraded all of the suspension and steering parts. I want to sell my slash and rustler but they to fun to sell. I bent and broke a few castor blocks (stock and RPM) I upgraded to the Atomik rc aluminum castor and steering blocks. The atomik ones are $14 vs the traxxas ones are $25 almost $30. Same with traxxas batteries. Traxxas 2s lipo is about 60-70 dollars vs the 2 pack Hoovo 2s batteries are 30 dollars.
Also to note. A higher pinion will give you a extra 2 or 3 mph. So more higher of a top speed.

 

[WickedFog]

I see people use simply green. I only run my cars on the street and in the grass when its not wet out so I use a can of compressed air to blow all the grass and dirt away. Here is a video about simply green foam and how it works:

I do agree with @WickedFog and others. The rustler is easier to work on but durability out of the box is ehh. I think I made my cars more durable than stock with the steering and suspension parts. With my rustler I already upgraded all of the suspension and steering parts. I want to sell my slash and rustler but they to fun to sell. I bent and broke a few castor blocks (stock and RPM) I upgraded to the Atomik rc aluminum castor and steering blocks. The atomik ones are $14 vs the traxxas ones are $25 almost $30. Same with traxxas batteries. Traxxas 2s lipo is about 60-70 dollars vs the 2 pack Hoovo 2s batteries are 30 dollars.
Also to note. A higher pinion will give you a extra 2 or 3 mph. So more higher of a top speed.

Those Hoovoo batteries are terrible. Nobody should buy them. Greywolf's testing has Hoovoo at the very bottom of the list.

 

[Doom!]

It seems weird that his test results showed the Hoovo batteries as being so bad. I do not doubt it, but mine have performed quite well. I always wonder if there are variations from batch to batch, or if because mine are older they may have changed something in later versions.

 

[WickedFog]

It seems weird that his test results showed the Hoovo batteries as being so bad. I do not doubt it, but mine have performed quite well. I always wonder if there are variations from batch to batch, or if because mine are older they may have changed something in later versions.

It really depends on what you run them in. If you were to run them in an RC drawing a lot of amps, you would likely see a voltage drop vs using a battery from another brand with similar specs. The average RC guy probably isn't going to notice much of a difference from pack to pack.

Shane has a datalogger and is monitoring and logging voltage drop during the discharge. The Hoovoo batteries did not do well at all.

The only reason I say anything about these cheap Amazon batteries is you can buy really good batteries for around the same price. My buddy in the UK does even more testing than Grey does, using drones and test equipment, and he said CNHL are the best bang for the buck, where Grey has CNHL and Liperior topping his tests in their price range, and even besting a lot of the name brand batteries like SMC. He has had some perform better than the CNHL and Liperiors, like the Turnigy, but they are quite a bit more money.

 

[Doom!]

I like the Turnigy batteries, but I have to go to the post office to pick them up, because they won't leave them without a signature. And that is a pain in the butt.

 

[Richiered]

Thats one of the best things about this hobby. Everyone has a different way they run their stuff, which means there are as many ways to set up and build a car as there are ways to run it, which is why i tend to have 2 or 3 versions of the same vehicle. I think it would get extremely boring if everyone ran the same way. I know guys that their stuff never sees dirt, and that are perfectly content with a stock car up and down the street. Me, i run them on all kinds of surfaces, in all kinds of weather, from sunshine, to rain, to snow and ice, and my cars almost never stay on the ground through an entire run. If i can't set up the ramps i built, i run them at a local skate park, where i typically get them 20 feet or more in the air. I have even made my "on road" cars fly at times. However, typically, on road cars are the worst for breaking when they get air, so i dont do it often.

Your right if they were all the same you would know wut to expect... that'll get old qik.Fear of the unknown will keep u on your game .....As far as jumping and getting crazy air, wen I watch these videos I cringe wen there about to land... I guess it won't be as bad if u knew how to repair them and Kno wut your doin. As opposed to not having a clue! But I still njoy watching these videos.. I can't believe how much air they get and land HARD!! and yet they still run!!!

Those Hoovoo batteries are terrible. Nobody should buy them. Greywolf's testing has Hoovoo at the very bottom of the list.

You know I didnt even think of compressed air.. that would be ideal. Considerin I'm only on the street and maybe some light grass.... As far as the pinion I thought the speed would go up about 7mph or so...i don't think I would be able to see a difference if it's a 2-3 mph gain or will I?... I guess I'm watching WAAAY to many videos

 

[biggman100]

Your right if they were all the same you would know wut to expect... that'll get old qik.Fear of the unknown will keep u on your game .....As far as jumping and getting crazy air, wen I watch these videos I cringe wen there about to land... I guess it won't be as bad if u knew how to repair them and Kno wut your doin. As opposed to not having a clue! But I still njoy watching these videos.. I can't believe how much air they get and land HARD!! and yet they still run!!!

This is my 2WD Slash at a skate park:

Before i lost it, this was a routine run for it. As for knowing what I'm doing, TBTH, i really dont. I just go out and run them, and, am of the mind set, whatever happens, happens, since it can always be fixed or replaced. I was actually stunned the first time i pulled off a flip in the air, since that Slash is the first truck i have ever been able to pull that off with. The fixing them part, its really not hard to learn, and, the manuals and exploded diagrams really do help a lot when you first get into it. It just takes a bit to get used to, but, do it enough, and study the diagrams enough, and it almost becomes routine. Its the biggest reason i always recommend getting a cheap Tamiya kit to build. It will teach you the basics, and, anything you do on that car, is the same for the most part on every other car.

 

[Richiered]

This is my 2WD Slash at a skate park:

Before i lost it, this was a routine run for it. As for knowing what I'm doing, TBTH, i really dont. I just go out and run them, and, am of the mind set, whatever happens, happens, since it can always be fixed or replaced. I was actually stunned the first time i pulled off a flip in the air, since that Slash is the first truck i have ever been able to pull that off with. The fixing them part, its really not hard to learn, and, the manuals and exploded diagrams really do help a lot when you first get into it. It just takes a bit to get used to, but, do it enough, and study the diagrams enough, and it almost becomes routine. Its the biggest reason i always recommend getting a cheap Tamiya kit to build. It will teach you the basics, and, anything you do on that car, is the same for the most part on every other car.

Kool video.. I must've cursed and cringeed over 5 times..some of those landings and flips were great.. the ones that landed on it's back r the ones I was like ... And no body either? I think I would've put bubble wrap around the damn thing

 

[biggman100]

Kool video.. I must've cursed and cringeed over 5 times..some of those landings and flips were great.. the ones that landed on it's back r the ones I was like ... And no body either? I think I would've put bubble wrap around the damn thing

That video, i had just gotten the truck, and had to replace the ESC, so, after that, i took it out to test it, but, the way you see it in that video is how i got it. I tend to buy a lot of my stuff used, and then build it how i want. It did come with a green Ford Raptor body, but, since I'm not a fan of that truck, or the color green, i pretty much gave the body away, and eventually picked up a cheap VW beatle body for it.