New to Crawlers

[RichardinNZ]

Just about to order a CR-01. Had a Sandscorcher back in the '70s and have a lunchbox for some fun now (traded for the very decrepit scorcher), but no previous crawler.

The dealer is offering a Futaba ESC; both the previous cars were mechanical speed controllers so ESCs are new to me. Will the Futaba be OK?

Also; do most people now use Transmitters with the trigger and wheel? I'v eonly had one's with sticks; what are the benefits of each?

Finally; will all the standard Tamiya parts be ok for normal use, or should anything be upgraded from the start. The car will be used for 'fun' use...for me and my kids.

Thanks
Richard

[mtnhrdgr2]

Welcome to RCC. As was told to me when I first started, SEARCH function is your friend.

Originally Posted by RichardinNZ

The dealer is offering a Futaba ESC; both the previous cars were mechanical speed controllers so ESCs are new to me. Will the Futaba be OK?

What model Futaba esc...MC230CR? If it is that one, that esc can only handle 20 - 27T motors (ie stock motors). If you do not ever plan on upgrading your motor, then it should be fine. If you upgrade the motor, then you will also need to upgrade the esc. But if you are just using this for "fun" then I do not think you will need to upgrade your motor and thus do not need to upgrade the esc.

Originally Posted by RichardinNZ

Also; do most people now use Transmitters with the trigger and wheel? I'v eonly had one's with sticks; what are the benefits of each?

Stick vs wheel i guess is your preference. Typically the reason why people switch to sticks is because of the extra channels that these have. These extra channels will then allow you to operate accessories like lights, winch, dig unit, independent 4-wheel sterring, etc.... If you do not plan on doig any of these, a 2 channel is fine. You can get a used TQ2 or TQ3 pretty cheap.

Originally Posted by RichardinNZ

Finally; will all the standard Tamiya parts be ok for normal use, or should anything be upgraded from the start. The car will be used for 'fun' use...for me and my kids.

Again, it depends on your use. If it is just for fun, standard tamiya items will be fine. Based on my experience, I would recommend to at least upgrade to a metal gear servo (ie hitec 645MG). Plastic gear servos will break easily.

Good luck and have fun. I love my CR01. Since I can't afford a nice 1:1 FJ40, i guess this CR01 will do!!

[vipxj]

Hey kiwi,first thing to upgrade is the driveshafts,theyll last a day at the most.

[RichardinNZ]

Thanks for the help. It is the MC230CR esc, so it sounds like that should be OK. Will look into the driveshaft issue.

Thanks; Richard

[1rcmonster]

I have had my CR for almost a year and have only twisted out 1 driveshaft, and have wheeled it pretty hard too. I also recommend the Hitec 645 servo and no servo saver. I have a 35 turn motor in mine but will be switching it back to the silver can here in the near future. There was not much difference in running the 35 turn and I need it for another project.

I had a DX6i on my CR when I first built it but have changed that out to a JR XS3. The 6 channels were over kill as I only have lights that I turn on and off from the radio.

The Futaba esc will be fine and you can use other motors as long as they are a higher wind ie; 35, 45, 55 and so on.

Hope this helps you out and ENJOY your CR

[sococrawler]

its all in preferance, if you have friends with trigger style try it you might like, on my buddies fj he went with the tekin setup as it sits well, i'm not familiar with futaba at all but hang in there and keep crawlin!

[lewy]

Originally Posted by vipxj

Hey kiwi,first thing to upgrade is the driveshafts,theyll last a day at the most.

Thats what I thought but mine actually lasted quite a while. I upgraded and the rear lasted one run before it slipped and I only had front drive.

Lucky it was an easy fix.

[RichardinNZ]

Thanks for the help everyone.

Radios; I'm on a budget and looking at the Acoms Technisport and the Futaba 2PH or 2PHKA. Any thoughts? Both would come with their standard servos etc.

Thanks