my planning stages for a scaled scx-10

[RootBreaker]

so a simple googling got me to the How-To: Modifying the Futaba 6EX for MOA Crawlers on this site.. and i have been
reading around and getting farther into it...
thought of getting a traxxas t-maxx 2.5 from craigslist for $100.... but decided against it....
Axial SCX10 - not sure on the model as i want to use a clodbuster/that style body as i have a 78 chevy I want to
replicate
im looking at taking it to the beach and sand blasting it... (possible paddles)
to the street to race it around...
not much rocks around here...
but take to lake george ny with us.. lots of hilly/rooted trails
snow, rain, mud... minor rocks

goal in an oversight
low gear for some minor crawling
high gear for some fast running
Waterproof as in submersible (im horrible as even my real truck the snorkel is 7' up)
scaled - my truck is running 40" ground hawgs and true diameter is 38.8" so scaled is 3.8"... 1.9 scale?????

so i need mainly waterPROOF - yes PROOF in caps on purpose... lets say i jump it and totally submerge it for 10
seconds as it is driving....

now i used to have a few rc cars years ago... but seeing all this new stuff.. i have been lurking and reading for
some time...
my knowlege is on the old stuff..
had a blackfoot when they came out
hotshot II
hornet
frog
tmaxx classic upgraded to .21
so we are talking a long time ago... so this ESC, DEC and all this other stuff is confusing..

now first q... on the kit....
I see the AX90007 is discontinued....
so it is between the AX9012,14,16....
i see some come with electronics and one doesnt.... are the electronics ok for the start.... i know one comes with
metal links but im wondering if it is worth starting out with the junky electronics or just go for the build kit
without the electronics and do my own? It will be a slow build while I try and get money up... kids in sports and
other bills make this hard to get back into...

so once kit is bought and put together....
ESC - plan on lipo (i see they explode if not taken care of... is this really true or do you have to abuse them for
that to happen?)
Traxxas XL-5
vs
Traxxas VXL-3S
Traxxas Summit 2 Speed Transmission
17turn brushless motor (summit???)
since im going for the scaler play toy.. I want a winch on front/back, rollbar lights, rock lights so thinking of a
7 channel radio (and i have no clue on radios other than what normally comes with the rc)

now im supprised someone hasnt come up with something for this... running the summit axles on their scx10...
make some kind of axle truss to keep that independant axle built into a solid style axle....
then can have locking diffs on the fly for that guy that wants the front unlocked on the street....

so looking for comments/bashing/nit picking..... trust me ya aint gonna hurt my feelings.... yes im asking for ALOT in a truck.. but im not asking for the most possible flexing rock crawler that can beat low profile cars in a straight away.... just an all around fun in any situation truck.....
thanks
Jeff


oh and some pics of what im going to be replicating....





got it painted... with a paintbrush and roller.... oil based farm equipment paint... ford blue on my chevy....

[Rook82]

I would go for an SCX10 kit of any sort you can find. The Honcho ones just come with a lot of extras that the base kit did not, but are very similar. The wheelbase is a little longer too. But same basic parts and design.

I would suggest a Holms Hobbies BR-XL esc. they can be bought for just over $100 waterproofed. There is no better esc for waterproof scale awesomeness. Yes that is a word, lol at least when I think of the Holmes esc. It can handle any brushed motor and up to 22.2 (6s)volts of battery power. Nothing matches that and have waterproofing.

Get a decent servo. Something over 150 ounces of torque. lot of good brands.
Good inexpensive servo:

http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/hrc35645s.htm

Little more expensive, more power:
http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/hrc37955s.htm

That leaves a radio for electo's. There are tons available and it comes down to budget and what you need. Many scalers like a radio with a 3 position 3rd channels for things like a winch. That way it can controll the winch moving out and in and 3rd position is at rest (1:rest,2:wire out,3:Wire in). It can be done though with the common 2 position 3rd channel radios. There are radios with many other channels setups but htye get expensive for basic rc crawler use. Depends on where you see yourself going with all of this. A good inexpensive radio is:

http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/spm3160.htm

All the features you could really need for basic crawling.

For a body there are many available. Tamiya makes a hard body in the Chevy called the ClodBuster. proline makes some lexan ones as well. lexan is cheaper and is lighter and holds up to abuse better. but they do not look as realistic as the hard bodies do. So that is a personal choice to make. The wheelbases will change a bit as all of the boddies are slightly different with the Tamiya hard Clod body being the shortest.

Keep with solid axles. Independent is nice for high speed, but the rig you are trying to copy is sold axle. The solid axles in these rigs are very durable. And very similar to 1:1 rigs. Good for crawling and strength. but not as good for high speed jumps. But that is not really what a scaler is usually about. For mud runs and hill climbs and rocks, solid axles are the way to go. Tracks and high speed jumps are for independent suspensions just as in full size rigs. So the Axial setup will work great for what you want to do.

There are other upgrades that are good off the start as in any rc. Things like transmission outdrives and driveshafts, etc. Just browse through the SCX10 forum if you decide to go that route and you will find the info you need.

Good luck with what you want to do. it is very possible with what is out there and will be a ton o fun.

[jammindriver]

I'm a bit of a noob as far as mods and crawling go. Sounds like you were on the right track as far as researching what you want. I hope you'll keep up with this thread as you begin your build. Going to subscribe because it sound like you really want to get your hands dirty with this (so to speak). Have fun!

[RootBreaker]

Originally Posted by jammindriver

I'm a bit of a noob as far as mods and crawling go. Sounds like you were on the right track as far as researching what you want. I hope you'll keep up with this thread as you begin your build. Going to subscribe because it sound like you really want to get your hands dirty with this (so to speak). Have fun!

it is going to take some time.. but yes this will turn into my build thread...
i have to put stuff on ebay.. so 7 days from auctions close i can start buying.... yeah i have been reading, reading and reading.... and still not quite there yet...

[AsILayDying]

Good luck, as I am in the same boat. I just got lucky and the wife surprised me with a New SCX10 Honcho for no reason.... Oh well I wasnt gonna say no. LOL

Anyways good luck and keep us posted as Im curious as to new ideas and directions this rig can go. This is a entirely new world in the SLOW LANE. The ability to climb over something and not just high speed jump over it is something I am now understanding the reason for addiction. Oh well, time to sell the MUGGY to have some cash for the crawler/scaler.

[transambill]

Originally Posted by Rook82

I would go for an SCX10 kit of any sort you can find. The Honcho ones just come with a lot of extras that the base kit did not, but are very similar. The wheelbase is a little longer too. But same basic parts and design.

I would suggest a Holms Hobbies BR-XL esc. they can be bought for just over $100 waterproofed. There is no better esc for waterproof scale awesomeness. Yes that is a word, lol at least when I think of the Holmes esc. It can handle any brushed motor and up to 22.2 (6s)volts of battery power. Nothing matches that and have waterproofing.

Get a decent servo. Something over 150 ounces of torque. lot of good brands.
Good inexpensive servo:

http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/hrc35645s.htm

Little more expensive, more power:
http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/hrc37955s.htm

That leaves a radio for electo's. There are tons available and it comes down to budget and what you need. Many scalers like a radio with a 3 position 3rd channels for things like a winch. That way it can controll the winch moving out and in and 3rd position is at rest (1:rest,2:wire out,3:Wire in). It can be done though with the common 2 position 3rd channel radios. There are radios with many other channels setups but htye get expensive for basic rc crawler use. Depends on where you see yourself going with all of this. A good inexpensive radio is:

http://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/spm3160.htm

All the features you could really need for basic crawling.

For a body there are many available. Tamiya makes a hard body in the Chevy called the ClodBuster. proline makes some lexan ones as well. lexan is cheaper and is lighter and holds up to abuse better. but they do not look as realistic as the hard bodies do. So that is a personal choice to make. The wheelbases will change a bit as all of the boddies are slightly different with the Tamiya hard Clod body being the shortest.

Keep with solid axles. Independent is nice for high speed, but the rig you are trying to copy is sold axle. The solid axles in these rigs are very durable. And very similar to 1:1 rigs. Good for crawling and strength. but not as good for high speed jumps. But that is not really what a scaler is usually about. For mud runs and hill climbs and rocks, solid axles are the way to go. Tracks and high speed jumps are for independent suspensions just as in full size rigs. So the Axial setup will work great for what you want to do.

There are other upgrades that are good off the start as in any rc. Things like transmission outdrives and driveshafts, etc. Just browse through the SCX10 forum if you decide to go that route and you will find the info you need.

Good luck with what you want to do. it is very possible with what is out there and will be a ton o fun.

Excellant advice.

[brianw]

Originally Posted by Rook82

I would suggest a Holms Hobbies BR-XL esc. they can be bought for just over $100 waterproofed. There is no better esc for waterproof scale awesomeness.

Unless you buy it by the end of this month and they're 25% off - coupon code is in the vender section