What SCX-10 2 do I pick??

[J.hyland]

I really like the Cherokee but im just wondering whats the difference between the Deadbolt 2 and the Cherokee 2? Im trying to spend the least amount of money but wondering if performance wise if the are different?

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[jason02ws6]

If money if the deciding factor then go with the lowest priced option. If performance and longevity play a factor I would spend a little more and go with the CRC JK due to the metal trans gears, metal links, and universals.


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[StomperCrawler]

I'd spend $30 more for the Honcho for 3 reasons: looks, bumpers, and the possibility of receiving metal transmission gears like some have. You can upgrade links and CVDs l8er if you want to.

[JatoTheRipper]

The Cherokee is the best equipped. I'd choose it over the Deadbolt or Honcho. You'll dump more money into these other two since they have more plastic parts out of the box.

[thead]

i got the honcho and added the front u joint axles.been very pleased.

[Browneye]

Unless you really like the jeep body the rest of the stuff is kind of tongue-in-cheek. I personally don't feel it's worth the upcharge.
The HOncho is really capable right out of the box. Add metal link balls and gears if it needs it and run it. IT's a great platform to build from.
I may end up with a deadbolt 2 just to get a scx10II rig. Would replace the radio and esc anyway, servo if need be, metal links, etc. I like the deadbolt body a little better but the honcho bumper is a nice feature. I would not buy any of them on the old chassis, mainly for the old style axles.

Get the one you like how it looks and go from there. You can always spend a few bucks and get a new body of your choice. Pretty much everybody ends up with wheels and tires anyway, so whatever they come with is fine to start out with. Get the one you think looks like FUN to YOU.

[DrewHammer]

One that doesn't have the goofy, new, 1 piece axles, such as the honcho. For long term, I'd want something that's more upgradeable without needing to buy all new axle housings.

[MattySlimz1987]

Originally Posted by DrewHammer

One that doesn't have the goofy, new, 1 piece axles, such as the honcho. For long term, I'd want something that's more upgradeable without needing to buy all new axle housings.

The new 1 peice axles are more favorable imo, look at all the aftermarket SSD, VP, all their rear axles are non-lockout, non-rock hang up, more scale looking units. These were all the main reasons I shot for the Pro44s from SSD that I’ve yet to put together and throw on my kit Cherokee.

To OP, I say go for what for what you like best, noted already are some main benefits, tweaks, body/tire changes to the to the 10ii line that Axial continues to improve upon.

[durok]

Originally Posted by MattySlimz1987

To OP, I say go for what for what you like best, noted already are some main benefits, tweaks, body/tire changes to the to the 10ii line that Axial continues to improve upon.

I'd agree with the above, get whatever you want after clearly understanding what each model includes and what it doesn't - it's up to you what you want to keep and what you want to change (if anything) right away.

Bodies can get expensive pretty quick, if you really like one of the bodies and its paint job as is, I'd use that as a guide to which one to get.

If you definitely want to swap for your own custom body and maybe just sell the stock body (or use it as a beater body) - then get the one that has the best internals as far as axles & gears, etc.

At least, that's the way I'd do it.

For example - I like the Deadbolt body with its new shade of "military" green - but I HATE the front bumper, and dislike the lower-end one-piece plastic axle housings.

So, I could just buy a sweep WertyMade steel front bumper and SSD multi-piece axle housings (seriously cool with metal tubes and a slippery plastic pumpkin for excellent obstacle-clearing with minimal drag on the rocks!) and maybe upgrade the transmission gears and links to metal and add universals bit by bit.

I have spare wheels and tires I'd swap out, although the included ones would be OK for bashing and light crawling.

At a starting price of $300, it's still pretty darn cool.

On the flip side of the coin, I have never had a Jeep-bodied crawler, so the 2017 Wrangler Unlimited CRC (for $110 more) has most of the upgrades and the multi-piece AR44 axle housings plus a fair amount of nice scale body details added on already.

Ideally, I'd rather have a clear body - but with some matte black paint on the inside of the shell, the grille, and the roof - and matte clear paint over the red (mask the windows inside and out) - I think it'd be fine for a good long while.

Again - crap bumpers - front AND rear (!) - they gotta go. And the wheels and tires pretty soon after. Otherwise... it has universals, metal links, metal gears - nice!

Although I'd be spending quite some time peeling nearly EVERY sticker off that body...

Hey - that was fun!

Anyways - best of luck, pick what one yanks yer crank and enjoy!



*** Lastly, am I the only one that wishes they'd kept the old-style bumpers with the little stubby "stinger" hoops and shackle mounts? I just find the new ones SO friggin' boring!

Frankly, they make them look almost like toy-grade RC cars at first glance. Axial needs to make a running change in production there...


Cool, "old-style" bumpers:



Boring, "new-style" bumpers:

[Teng]

As for me the deadbolt looks so handsome. Wait for me, I’m gonna to buy you soon.


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[dacaur]

Taking personal feelings out of if, here are the actual differences.
Both the deadbolt II and the cherokee RTR come with the"new" ar44 axles, but the deadbolt are one peice axle housings, while the cherokee has better housings with seperat outers. the cherokee RTR has universals in the front, vs the deadbolt II's (inferior) dogbone axles. advantage cherokee
The deadbolt II has a better transmission than the cherokee RTR. advantage deadbolt (the kit cherokee has a whole different transmission thats 2 speed capable if you add about $40 in extra parts)
The Cherokee has metal (steel) links, the deadbolt ii has plastic links. advantage Cherokee (the kit cherokee has aluminum links)
The deadbolt II has a lame looking 2ch radio. The Cherokee RTR has a decent 3ch radio. advantage Cherokee.
The Cherokee has a lot more scale accessories.
The Cherokee has a slightly longer wheelbase, at 12.3 vs the deadbolt II's 12"
The deadbolt has no rear bumper, to enter most scale comps, you need front and rear bumpers... the cherokee has a sweet rear bumper.
tires are obviously different, bfg atko2's on the cherokee vs "mud terrains" on the deadbolt.



The Cherokee is definitely the superior truck..... The one advantage the deadbolt has is its new (lower geared) transmission.

If you get the 2017 wrangler, you get all the advantages of the cherokee with the new transmission, plus a lighting capable ESC and lights.

The trail honcho has the same features as the deadbolt (one peice axle housings, plastic links, 2ch radio, etc), except it has a better looking front bumper, the lighting capable ESC from the 2017 wrangler, plus lights front and rear (though still no rear bumper) plus a 12.3" wheelbase.

I wrote cherokee so many times that now it looks weird, like it cant be spelled right....

[Browneye]

I wasn't aware there were different axial axles - any pictures? Why did they bother with that? Production cost savings?

[dacaur]

deadbolt II/honchoaxle deadbolt ii
cherokee axle cherokee

[CHAOTIC]

I'm just getting back into the RC scene after decades. I just bought the Deadbolt 2 and I love it. Yes, there are a bunch of items I will probably upgrade over time, but for a beginner like me, it does everything I could hope for. If I'm honest, I'll probably drive it maybe 2 weekends a month. If something breaks, I'll worry about fixing it at that time. Otherwise, I feel it's a great entry level crawler and radio for the occasional weekend outing.

[Capt J-rod]

I will throw in a curveball. I just built the kit. It was a nice challenge. You get the aluminum tapered links, the ar44 axles, the 2 speed capable trans, metal gears, and your choice of electronics. The CRC jeep is a very nice rig that has some nice upgrades. The honcho and deadbolt were built to be entry level products. The kit wasn't terrible to build and you are fearless when it comes to repairs once its done. There is an issue in the top shaft of the kit transmission that vanquish solved for $15. Electronics don't need to cost a fortune. I put a rc4wd 35T brushed motor in $10, a dynamite waterproof esc $35, a $25 servo, and I had a spare spectrum receiver to bind with my transmitter on my dx5c. If you're set on rtr, then the arc wrangler or the Cherokee. If money is really tight then the honcho or deadbolt. I believe the honcho is a longer wheel base than the deadbolt.

[MidWesti]

Ok guys.. Im buying a RTR kit tomorrow. Should I get the new trail Honcho or the jeep cherokee? main things I question would be the new solid axles(are they as bad as people feared?). The transmitters(which is better). and the transmissions(new vs old). The plastic parts I dont really mind upgrading later if they do go bad on the honcho. For what its worth, I do like the honcho body more. So the tranny, radios, and axles. those are my focal points. hopefully I can get some input asap. Otherwise I think im gravitating towards the honcho life. Thanks fellas.

[1fox2go]

I love the Honcho body. I have since I picked up my OG Scx10 Honcho...

That being said, between the two, knowing what I know now, and driving vehicles with the dog bone front axles....

Id get the Cherokee for the better front universal axles. Its a very noticeable difference.

If I were picking kit over RTR. Id get the kit( I have the cherokee kit). The roof rack is cool. The R35 compound tires really impressed me for being the All terrain tread pattern. I really enjoy building the kits

As for you concern about the one piece axles...I am indifferent. I can agree to both sides. The smaller more scale look can assist by not dragging on obstacles. Flip side, you need a whole housing if you run into issues. I dont think its that big of a deal. So I wouldnt let it bother you too much. Im looking at the UMG10 kit now...the one piece axles has not deterred me from buying one

Get the Cherokee. The money you save by not needing to buy metal links can be put toward a better set of wheels/tires

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by MidWesti

Ok guys.. Im buying a RTR kit tomorrow. Should I get the new trail Honcho or the jeep cherokee? main things I question would be the new solid axles(are they as bad as people feared?). The transmitters(which is better). and the transmissions(new vs old). The plastic parts I dont really mind upgrading later if they do go bad on the honcho. For what its worth, I do like the honcho body more. So the tranny, radios, and axles. those are my focal points. hopefully I can get some input asap. Otherwise I think im gravitating towards the honcho life. Thanks fellas.

The Honcho is a great base platform to build from - lots of them out there.

Did you find Harley's series on the budget build for this one? Well worth watching through the series.



The primary difference in these is the plastic vs metal links - former on the Honcho. Budget $50 for an upgrade at some point, along with your other mods you'll want to do - like tires and wheels, most want a better tire and some alloy beadlocks.



The Cherokee is a good rig as well, all their best stuff in a RTR.


You can always swap a new body in if you want a different looking rig.



I got the Blazer and love it. It's one of my favorite trail rigs and crawls just great right out of the box.

[MidWesti]

Originally Posted by Browneye

The Honcho is a great base platform to build from - lots of them out there.

Did you find Harley's series on the budget build for this one? Well worth watching through the series.



The primary difference in these is the plastic vs metal links - former on the Honcho. Budget $50 for an upgrade at some point, along with your other mods you'll want to do - like tires and wheels, most want a better tire and some alloy beadlocks.



The Cherokee is a good rig as well, all their best stuff in a RTR.


You can always swap a new body in if you want a different looking rig.



I got the Blazer and love it. It's one of my favorite trail rigs and crawls just great right out of the box.

Actually funny you mention Harley. I did find his weekly build videos and was watching them last night. I asked him which he thinks would be a better option and he responded within the hour and said he thinks the honcho is the better option to work from. I don't have a problem buying the metal link kit by vanquish. Would be an easy upgrade. Any input on the radio transmitter comparison? The 200 vs 300? Thanks

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by MidWesti

Actually funny you mention Harley. I did find his weekly build videos and was watching them last night. I asked him which he thinks would be a better option and he responded within the hour and said he thinks the honcho is the better option to work from. I don't have a problem buying the metal link kit by vanquish. Would be an easy upgrade. Any input on the radio transmitter comparison? The 200 vs 300? Thanks

And there ya go...


I'm biased on radios, coming from the RC aircraft segment, so SPEKTRUM is my flavor of choice. Early on, with my first kit, I got a DX5C and absolutely love it. Usually a 3ch receiver is sufficient, can be had discounted or used on ebay for $30 or so, and the radio with a 4ch rec was right about $100. Lots of members like the Flysky radios - I just can't comment. I stick with the big guys.



And the ESC is really basic in all of them as well. The best money spend on any brushed rig is a HobbyWing HW1080.



But these are all upgrades you can do over time, as you learn and gain experience. The RTR radios work fine, they're just very basic and only control one car at a time. I now have 4 rigs on one radio, and two other RTR's. The good news is I can hand a trainer rig to a noob and let them play with it. My first rig has trained at least 4 drivers now. Still works great.



I don't recall if this was your first rig or not, but my recommendation for a intro RTR would be the TRX4 Sport. It's all around a better rig, and similarly priced. Better plastics, more updated platform than the SCX, and really durable and capable. I still fall back on my Ascenders though, love them to death.



As Harley explains in his series, the Honcho is a very good platform to build from, and you get to play while you learn. Axial enjoys huge aftermarket support.