Steering for crawling, and other advice appreciated

[therealrsr]

My crest is about a week old and going to be my first crawler, I have many bashers, mt't, buggies, road, helis and a single old school trainer plane so not much I won't understand in explanations. (saving you all some typing I hope)

So far I have:
m3 screws where prone to loose or already loose
flipped batt and elec frame supports Bender stage 1
inverted shock mounts Bender stage 1
Trimmed stock tire tread Bender stage 1 (ordered axial 2.2 XR10 vws beadlocks, Hot Bodies Sedonas, Memory foam)
Drilled out wheel holes to 1/4"
Painted 2 Door Proline Rubicon Body
Ordered "throw away" Atomik 35t and Axial 55t motors to determine which is right for me (either move to a rebuildable brushed or a sensored brushless after deciding)
Super soft (red) axial springs
Plastic balls replaced with alluminum
Axial stage 1 alum link kit
Swapped in one of my Spectrum rx's (Stock was actually ok, just used to tx programming)
Savox High Torque Metal Gear servo
Axial 25 t alum servo horn
And...
Unfortunately ordered the steering kit for the old AX10
So instead I replaced the top steering link with an adjustable toe link from parts box. Stock plastic link between wheels. I read through all of Bender's crawl build and his early comment about having some steering flex made sense to me, but then he swapped for rigid in stage 3 anyway.:?: I have looked at the vanquish, strc and rc4wd options. Not sure which route to take so looking for input. Seems Vanquish has the best rep around here, but also more $$$. Most importantly, do you want steer flex in a crawler?

run 5700 mah 2s and stock 20t for now. LVC, 100% drag, 100% brake, for/rev w/ no lockout.

For future I'm thinking BEC, vanquish axles, axial alum knuckles-c hubs-carrier kit for XR-10 (AX30432), more wheel weight and a smaller/lighter lipo.

Crawling skills improving every day with practice/line selection, this is a very different driving experience but I love it. There is a late Sept crawl comp hosted at my lhs that I would like to try...and probably get schooled. So please help guide a newb crawler to a better than last finish:lmao: Thanks!

 

[Dezertdirt]

You don't want steering flex in a crawler. I run the vanquish steering links on my wraith. They are extremely durable and I would recommend them to anybody. The only issue I have had is that the links hit the diffcover when it is at max steer. I also recommend gearing that 20t down before you fry it. Ps the wraith and ridgecrest share the same axles.

 

[Gravebane525]

I would say you don't want steering flex unless you are running a weak servo. that flex could keep the stock servo going for alot longer. my stock servo is still going strong after months of hard bashing and crawling hour wise I'd say atleast 20-30 hours of crawling and 60+ of bashing. people put metal steering links on they rigs to get rid of that flex then btch and moan about the stock servo being so cheap after it craps out in a few hours.

 

[jboehler04]

Honestly sounds like ur on a good build. I would recommend VP steering links. Too bad you already have the aluminum suspension links cuz you can get all for a decent price. Or as some would say make ur own steering links as most have done. Another suggestion would be some metal gears for ur tranny and metal drive lines. I think ull like the 35t vs 55t motor. I put an integy 35t motor and 16t pinion in and love it. Seems like a good combo for the crest. The 55t will be really slow.

 

[redsawacs]

I agree with everyone else with only one exception....I don't think you need metal transmission gears. You're not going to hurt the stock gears unless you start to get silly! if you're running a 35t motor, you wont have the ability to get silly - hehe

here are a few more tid-bits for ya as well...

ALUMINUM SHOCK BODIES AND PURPLE OR BLACK SPRINGS - drill out the piston holes in your shocks too....I have several posts in the Ridgecrest section talking about it

Battery - I use a 4000 and it last FOREVER!!!!

BEC is a must for any upgrade servo!

Aluminum wheels = Jewelry (some folks need them so they don't strip out the hexes due to their driving style)

I have used STRC and VP steering links, STRC is alright if you're on a budget - you may have to trip the link or shim it to get your toe-in/out correct but the VP is sweet. VP will flex a TINY bit, but not enough to make any difference at all. I don't want ANY flex in my crawler steering - basher, different story

Upgrade as you break things - but you'll find that you won't break things as fast as some folks say

I love the stock parts for what I do....Heck, my 2 year old cant break them. Even the stock servo is around 170oz. If you don't add weight to the front wheels, you wont need to upgrade the servo for a while

I hope something I posted helps out and I want to welcome you to the ADDICTION!!!!

 

[therealrsr]

Thanks all, lots of good input, really appreciate it.

 

[Gravebane525]

aluminum wheels are also good for people who are not used to working with plastic. I get annoyed at constantly stripping out the screw holes in plastic stuff so if its something I deal with often (and my tires need to be reset after almost every real crawl) I want metal to screw into. main reason I got beef tubes was for that metal for the chub screw to bite into.