Best Axle Design for sliding over rocks

[MAGNUMB]

Is there a straight axle design or type of plastic that is better at working it's way over the rocks?
I've noticed some get jammed up easier.

[vinceherman]

I don't know about axle materials, but I did hear knowledgeable people discussing the preference for harder materials.
Stainless is better than aluminum for skid plates for example.

[mikemcE]

Plastic axles tend to “slip” more than metal.

That said the added weight on the alloy axles is a plus. I’ve never noticed a big difference between them. Now ask me if plastic axle housings can snap. Yessir many of them have done that. So Value, strength, cost, weight, it’s all really personal.


Hang up and Drive

[HumboldtEF]

Plastic is preferred for the best material to slide on the rocks. Aluminum is soft and tends to grab more than plastic would (even with plastic being softer).

I'd say the best pumpkin would be made of Delrin but I dont think that exists, maybe(?).

The shape of the pumpkin also comes into play. My HPI Venture jammed up super easy on the rocks due to the square shape of the diff cover, I filed it down rounding it over and that made a decent improvement.

And on the subject of skid plates I always cringe when I see metal skids or metal skid covers. Again, plastic is best as its lighter and slides better. A metal skid serves no real purpose. You wont see metal skids offered by the best of the best aftermarket parts manufatures (like SSD or VP), you will however find them from the "others".

[meatmonkey]

I'll say my ssd pro44's slide across rocks easier than my old scx housings. They even seem slicker than TRX4 housings. Of course the portals keep you from dragging diff as often so its about a wash.

I have aluminum SSD and Vanquish axles under my wraith, and while they are durable, they certainly are not slippery.

[MAGNUMB]

Originally Posted by HumboldtEF

Plastic is preferred for the best material to slide on the rocks. Aluminum is soft and tends to grab more than plastic would (even with plastic being softer).

I'd say the best pumpkin would be made of Delrin but I dont think that exists, maybe(?).

The shape of the pumpkin also comes into play. My HPI Venture jammed up super easy on the rocks due to the square shape of the diff cover, I filed it down rounding it over and that made a decent improvement.

And on the subject of skid plates I always cringe when I see metal skids or metal skid covers. Again, plastic is best as its lighter and slides better. A metal skid serves no real purpose. You wont see metal skids offered by the best of the best aftermarket parts manufatures (like SSD or VP), you will however find them from the "others".

Like the idea of filing the diff cover to get it to move over the rocks better.

People criticize the SCA-1E pumpkin for it's weird looks, but it seems to be the best as far as not getting jammed up.

[ferp420]

Plastic is the best on the rocks for sure but alloy is the best over all choice for a scaler in my opinion exsample the ar60 the plastic version dosent hold up to heat they warp and bend and the gears dont mesh right when they get warm ok for a comp rig the aluminum dose away with the heat warping and gear sliping and are nice and strong but they stick on every obstacle they come in to contact with and there alot more exspensive than say alloy or plastic great for a shelf queen the alloy axles are heavy lots or waight to them and really help with the center of gravity and if done right they dont need wheel weights and they slide better than aluminum and are stronger than plastic
All that sead not all plastic is equal take ssd there axle housings don't flex like axial and the gears dont slip when its 100° out he also uses bigger bearings were posable there are alot of good plastic axles outhere that are solid but they dont help as much with the center of gravity and arent as strong as metal housings
My last few builds ive been running alloy axle up front and ssd plastic axles for the rear

[nathanotis]

Related? Some competitive 1:1 rock crawlers use a layer of UHMWPE backed with steel or aluminum on their skids.

[Inspector86]

Material aside, if the sharp edges are smoothed out there is less to snag on rocks. I when the TRX4 was new the axles would hang up on rocks pretty regularly. After a few hundred hours of crawling the axle housings were worn and smoothed to the point there was significantly less snagging.