VP VTX vs. PB RB 4.45's - 1.9 Tire Discussion

[Browneye]

Hey guys,
I just did a search for the Vanquish VTX tires that come on the new Origin and zilch, nada, nuthin' here. So....

I've run a lot of different tires on my rigs - there are 3 Vaterra Ascenders in various stages of modification, and a new Axial Blazer on the SCX10II chassis that is mostly stock.

For this comment I just mounted up the VP VTX on the brand new Raceline replicas that PitBull just introduced -I won a set and appreciate their giving so many sets of wheels here. However trying to mount the VTX's on them was an effort in futility. I did manage to finally get them mounted, but I likely spent the better part of three to four hours futzing with them. The bead is very narrow, and would just pop out as soon as you try to cinch the two wheel halves together and clench the beads.

When I did finally get them mounted they appeared just too small for that rig. It's my main Ascender comp rig with CodyBoy axles, HH motor, HW esc, titanium links...in other words all kinds of goodies. But I had hub weights in the wheels to keep the front down on super steep hill climbing, and without those weights it just didn't do as well. So I took them off and mounted them to some 'chanquish' wheels I had and put them on another chassis I have that is not weighted nor too customized. Oh, and they weren't quite as difficult to mount, but still a challenge - nothing like mounting Proline or PitBull tires on just about any kind of wheel.

VTX performance is pretty good. Actually the stock memory-foam foams did better than I thought they would - once they get some run time on them they compress down a bit and stay there and the traction just gets better and better. Interestingly we've litterly kicked-a$$ on a couple of Origins that have showed up on the rocks. But then that may be setup and driving as much as anything. I don't know if these tires really match the quality of the Vanguish rig. But I wanted to try the tires out especially for their size.

Below is a pic of another rig with the PitBull Rock Beast in the 4.45" size- so not the 'XL's and they are their 'komp' compound which isn't quite the 'alien-snot' of their new 'alien compound', CI-foams. But they grip really well, surprisingly so, and the little rig on the left with beef-tubes and front hub weights is my best climber. So tire size isn't everything, but weighting and setup is, and how you drive.

I have also compared the Proline 'predator compound' in their big TSL, and like the Rock Beast XL it is a stupid-big 1.9 tire. It's okay on some rigs, but others they appear just way out of scale. I would say the RB XL's and the Predator TSL's are very on par as far as traction. I will say that the TSL's just shredded on granite - so bad I took them off after about 7 months of running them, and went back to the Rock Beast XL's.

Other tires I've run are Proline Krawlers (G-8 rubber), Pitbull Braven Ironside in Class-1 size (4.19") and stock Vaterra Ascender TSL's which surprisingly do well if you simple green them and scuff them some, and run some soft foams.

Anyway, getting back to the Rockbeast scalers and the VTX, here's my two rigs with them. The VTX on the right - they are very surprisingly similar in size, both width and height, even though the Rockbeasts are rated at 4.45" tall and the VTX at 4.65" tall. The RB has a profile a little more squared off so I dunno, I think it might grip a little better. And I have better foams in them, just the stock foams that come with the Vanquish tires.
What is interesting is these are both Ascender chassis' but there's no way the one on the right can keep up with the one on the left. Setup and weighting makes all the difference.





The VTX's up close - they're a nice looking tire, scale look, even if not a copy of a 1:1 offroad tire:




IMO the super big XL tires are just too much for these 1.9 rigs. Traction is king though, for sure. Hyrax's seem to be similar for traction:

[Topher Builds]

Originally Posted by Browneye

Hey guys,
I just did a search for the Vanquish VTX tires that come on the new Origin and zilch, nada, nuthin' here. So...

Probably because you searched VTX instead of VXT

Nice write up though. They are indeed a pain to mount. There’s a couple threads around with tips on how to go about it that are helpful.

I’m a fan of these tires and have them on my trx4 on some PB raceline wheels. I think they perform very well and I appreciate their size and width. I Frankensteined a dual stage foam for the front by making rings from Proline single stage foams and trimming the vxt foams down for inners.

[Joshs4x4toyz]

Originally Posted by Pant Danza

I Frankensteined a dual stage foam for the front by making rings from Proline single stage foams and trimming the vxt foams down for inners.

Thats a great idea! these foams are dense! I too really like these VXT tires, great compound especially after a few runs.

Nice write up and nice rigs Browneye! Really digging that colorado body, would make a killer truggy body too I bet.

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by Pant Danza

Probably because you searched VTX instead of VXT

Nice write up though. They are indeed a pain to mount. There’s a couple threads around with tips on how to go about it that are helpful.

I’m a fan of these tires and have them on my trx4 on some PB raceline wheels. I think they perform very well and I appreciate their size and width. I Frankensteined a dual stage foam for the front by making rings from Proline single stage foams and trimming the vxt foams down for inners.

You know, that is funny - I've been known to get things confused, but not known to be dyslectic. Oh well. LOL
Thanks for the heads-up.

My next tire is the Proline predator BFG Mud Terrains.
I think they will be a good fit and a good tire...just a hunch.
Going to put them with the Silverado - it's the same chassis as the Colorado.

I'm running the Krawlers on it now with the new raceline wheels. The wheels are just okay. I think they're a little fine and dainty for my tastes. They're clean though.

I got all four of mine running at the same time. Go figure...

[Browneye]

BTW, I had to shim all four wheels out on the RC4WD rally wheels on the Blazer- the rears rubbed on the axle bearing caps and the fronts on the tie rod.
And they were a PITA to mount tires on them.

[Browneye]

These are the new PB 'Raceline' wheels with Proline Krawlers. Jury is out on the wheels...I particularly don't care for the hubs bolted to the axles behind the wheel - so you have to remove the 6 hub screws just like a full size. Okay I guees - I've been dealing with ONE nut for a couple of years. Maybe I'll get used to it. They work fine but I need some weighted steering knuckles now. Gonna order the SSD ones.

I'm saving this body for PLBF. I just ruin my bodies in the rocks - they end up all scratched and beat to hell. LOL
Check out the shredded rock sliders. "Rustoleum Bed paint?" whut?????