TRX-4 newbie

[TRX4]

I recently picked up a TRX4 Defender and i have a few newbie questions about it. I have never owned a RC car but ive driven many!

1: What are the biggest Pros and Cons of this chassis in your opinion? Or what do you like/dislike about it?

2: Are the Servo's really that bad on them? One of the main reasons i got the truck in the first place was because of the diff lock/2 speed switches.

3: Is the Defender a good starting platform or should i have went a different route?

4: What maintenance things should i keep up with on my TRX?


Note: My main goal is to have fun with this truck and not beat on it too much so it lasts a number of years (replacing parts as needed). Unfortunately, I dont have a whole lot of spare time to be working on things so im looking for a fairly reliable set up. Ill probably be running it once a week on average.

Thanks!

[afrofroggy]

Congrats on the trx4
just dont submarine it and the micros servos will be fine
get a alloy servo horn 25t for the steering
also run it until the front servo dies
with that out of the way just run it and enjoy

Adam..

[high plains drifter]

The TRX4 is a very capable and reliable crawler right out of the box with some exceptions. No different from most any rc vehicle. Preventative maintenance is the best thing that you can do to prolong the life of the vehicle. This means becoming aware of how the rig operates and staying on top of maintenance procedures. Most of this is easy/ simple... visual inspections, keeping bolts tight/ thread-locked, keeping differentials, gears, bearings, etc cleaned/ lubricated with the right oil/ grease. Also make sure when making visual inspections to look for things like leaking differentials, shocks, etc... and be mindful of any components that are binding, loose, making contact with other parts, etc. It's pretty easy for the most part as long as you're willing to put in some effort. Plenty of people don't do these things and have good luck but I don't advise that plus working on rigs is fun and doesn't take up a ton of time or money anyway. Read thru the manual and become familiar with how things should operate. Also... drive drive drive! That's the best advice I can give.

Biggest drawback with the D110 body off the bat is going to be the high center of gravity. This particular body is rather top-heavy but at least for me it is manageable. Minimizing the weight that you have up top on the rack will really help. I actually removed the rack on mine to keep things balanced better. It's a fairly heavy body but you can take steps to reduce that weight. Read thru the TRX4 section of this forum for lots of in-depth tips and tricks. Adding some weight down low ( brass or steel portal covers, c-hubs, etc) can help to mitigate the high COG also so I wouldn't worry. It's an insanely fun and capable rig regardless!

I wouldn't worry about the mini lock/ shift servos. The one that you will likely need to replace/ upgrade will be the steering servo. Good news is that you can go high dollar for a beast of a servo or you can just spend a little on something that is still significantly better. A lot of choices when it comes to servos and RCC has a thread dedicated to cheap servos that are a considerable improvement over stock. What the newest cheap servo hotness?

I personally think that the TRX4/ Defender is a great platform full of possibilities in regards to stock capability, performance upgrades, and available scale parts. I absolutely love mine as I believe that most TRX4 D110 owners do. Great rig/ have fun with it!

[dungeonracer]

I'll agree that the stock servo could be a weak link. But....

I also think it's the steering servo horn that is the real culprit. Mine stripped out after a couple runs. Thought it was the servo, but it was the horn. Replaced it with a metal one, and the stock servo is still going along just fine.


Have to wonder if people are tossing good servos when it's the horn that's stripped, not the servo...

[high plains drifter]

Imo the horn isn't the "real culprit". They are two separate weak points. But yeah.. the horn has a good deal of slop in it and an aluminum one will definitely be an improvement. The catch-22 is that upgrading the horn is potentially going to kill that stock servo even quicker. I wouldn't necessarily go buy a new servo if the stock one is still good but at the very least I'd definitely budget for a better one. Even in perfect working order the stock servo has very little torque so something stronger is really going to improve performance.

[Topher Builds]

Originally Posted by high plains drifter

The TRX4 is a very capable and reliable crawler right out of the box with some exceptions. No different from most any rc vehicle. Preventative maintenance is the best thing that you can do to prolong the life of the vehicle. This means becoming aware of how the rig operates and staying on top of maintenance procedures. Most of this is easy/ simple... visual inspections, keeping bolts tight/ thread-locked, keeping differentials, gears, bearings, etc cleaned/ lubricated with the right oil/ grease. Also make sure when making visual inspections to look for things like leaking differentials, shocks, etc... and be mindful of any components that are binding, loose, making contact with other parts, etc. It's pretty easy for the most part as long as you're willing to put in some effort. Plenty of people don't do these things and have good luck but I don't advise that plus working on rigs is fun and doesn't take up a ton of time or money anyway. Read thru the manual and become familiar with how things should operate. Also... drive drive drive! That's the best advice I can give.

Biggest drawback with the D110 body off the bat is going to be the high center of gravity. This particular body is rather top-heavy but at least for me it is manageable. Minimizing the weight that you have up top on the rack will really help. I actually removed the rack on mine to keep things balanced better. It's a fairly heavy body but you can take steps to reduce that weight. Read thru the TRX4 section of this forum for lots of in-depth tips and tricks. Adding some weight down low ( brass or steel portal covers, c-hubs, etc) can help to mitigate the high COG also so I wouldn't worry. It's an insanely fun and capable rig regardless!

I wouldn't worry about the mini lock/ shift servos. The one that you will likely need to replace/ upgrade will be the steering servo. Good news is that you can go high dollar for a beast of a servo or you can just spend a little on something that is still significantly better. A lot of choices when it comes to servos and RCC has a thread dedicated to cheap servos that are a considerable improvement over stock. What the newest cheap servo hotness?

I personally think that the TRX4/ Defender is a great platform full of possibilities in regards to stock capability, performance upgrades, and available scale parts. I absolutely love mine as I believe that most TRX4 D110 owners do. Great rig/ have fun with it!

Originally Posted by dungeonracer

I'll agree that the stock servo could be a weak link. But....

I also think it's the steering servo horn that is the real culprit. Mine stripped out after a couple runs. Thought it was the servo, but it was the horn. Replaced it with a metal one, and the stock servo is still going along just fine.


Have to wonder if people are tossing good servos when it's the horn that's stripped, not the servo...

Even when that servo is working it’s only 125oz/in. That just isn’t enough servo for a crawler.

[Still Bill]

Originally Posted by Pant Danza

Even when that servo is working it’s only 125oz/in. That just isn’t enough servo for a crawler.

Especially for a heavy crawler like the defender.

[rey tacis]

hi guys. i have two trx4 rig,tactical and the chevy blazer.. in noticed on my tactical the small light on the receiver is red when iam using it and on the chevy blazer the light on the receiver is green,, any advise on whta maybe the issue?? thanks in advance..

[brian.brigg]

Originally Posted by rey tacis

hi guys. i have two trx4 rig,tactical and the chevy blazer.. in noticed on my tactical the small light on the receiver is red when iam using it and on the chevy blazer the light on the receiver is green,, any advise on whta maybe the issue?? thanks in advance..

Red means that Lipo low voltage detection is disabled which is very bad for Lipo batteries which can be damaged if they are allowed to discharge below a safe threshold. Press the easy set button and hold it for ten seconds to enable it. Disabling it is done the same way.

Sent from my LG-H870DS using Tapatalk

[Inspector86]

Originally Posted by rey tacis

hi guys. i have two trx4 rig,tactical and the chevy blazer.. in noticed on my tactical the small light on the receiver is red when iam using it and on the chevy blazer the light on the receiver is green,, any advise on whta maybe the issue?? thanks in advance..

This indicator light is described in your TRX4 owners manual. You might be surprised how much you can learn by reading it.