Wrangler build question. Proline vs Axial vs Injora

[badgustav]

Hey all, super new here. Got my sone a TRX 4 tactical as our first truck for my son and I and a few days later found a Blazer on Craigslist for $250 (turned out to be a solid deal).

Bought a proline wrangler as a proof of concept and he claimed it as his own. T is mostly finished, but as a JK owner I’m already thinking of what i want out to do to the Blazer. Pu Injora front and back bumpers on it and am super pleased with the quality and install.

These are obviously rock crawlers, but he is 5 ( but a careful, considered kid. Parents know what I mean) so once in a hike things go fast and rough. Bu 90% of the time we’re slow crawlers. I’m totally into the scale stuf. Here are my thoughts/options.

Another Proline. Tough, a bit cheaper, kind of eh.

Axial JK. Tougher? Much better looking. Fit issues?

Injora. Almost as cheap as the Proline. Best looking. Most accurate. Pre-painted option. Most delicate?

Haven’t found a lot of recent stuff on this, wondering about thoughts.

[Inspector86]

First off, Welcome to RCC! The Axial and Proline are vacuum formed clear lexan bodies which weigh less and generally have minimal impact on performance. The Injora and the like are what we refer to as hard bodies which are molded polystyrene and are more detailed but also much heavier. The heavier bodies do make the truck react to the terrain more like a real truck would. If you are into the scale stuff and are more interested in trail style driving and not the extreme comp style crawling you would probably be happy with a hard body. The JK body mounted on the TRX4 chassis in this video is a hard body and you can see how realistically it reacts to the terrain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTxStP4c5oo

[badgustav]

Originally Posted by Inspector86

First off, Welcome to RCC! The Axial and Proline are vacuum formed clear lexan bodies which weigh less and generally have minimal impact on performance. The Injora and the like are what we refer to as hard bodies which are molded polystyrene and are more detailed but also much heavier. The heavier bodies do make the truck react to the terrain more like a real truck would. If you are into the scale stuff and are more interested in trail style driving and not the extreme comp style crawling you would probably be happy with a hard body. The JK body mounted on the TRX4 chassis in this video is a hard body and you can see how realistically it reacts to the terrain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTxStP4c5oo

Thanks for the response! I’m playing with 5 year old, so the Axial might get me to some level of taking abuse but a bit more detailed.

[TexasSP]

Been there done that. Don't force your son to play your way, he's 5. Go with the lighter more forgiving lexan bodies. Pro-line>Axial as they use thicker Lexan generally.

I have two boys, now 8 and 13.

[badgustav]

That’s why I put him in the Pro-line, but thinking I can maybe handle the Axial to give me a bit of fun

[theMANIMAL]

I bought an ScX10.2 Wrangler take off body from eBay since it came with all the scale pieces for less than buying everything separately and matched my 1:1. In my experience, the Axial body is quite flimsy and weak. Both side mirrors have ripped off within ~6 packs (driver side broke off on my first pack, ughhh), leaving 2 holes where they should be. Knowing what I know now, I'm not sure I would spend the money again? The TRX4 Proline body looks far superior in my opinion, but I wanted a 12.3" wb, not 12.8.

Now the original SCX10 Wrangler Body with the roll cage was really tempting, and likely what I should have purchased. I have the G6 2dr Wrangler body and cage from my SCX10 G6 kit and it has held up significantly better. I've considered changing my wb to 12" and running this body with my TRX4...

My roommate has the Injora Wrangler hard body. When comparing our two TRX4s, mine definitely side hills better, and is more stable when crawling off camber - no surprise given his higher COG. The windshield wipers have fallen off and the paint has scraped off in a few places, but it's held up surprisingly well. You will need to get creative with mounting it. He opted for magnets which may have contributed to the body surviving as well as it has?

If you do go with the hard body route, I'd recommend purchasing a bowhouse LCG Battery Tray. We found it allowed the body to be mounted closer to the chassis. Make sure your batteries aren't terribly tall either.

Hope this helps!