Making it Yours

There are many different ways to make your RC look the way you want, one of those ways is to change the body, "No one wants to keep the stock body on their truck for very long because the truck just looks like everyone else's, so an aftermarket body is one of the first upgrades to consider" (Radio Control Car Action 24). You can also change wheels and tires, bumpers, install lights, etc.

Choosing the body

One of the first steps to making your RC unique is to pick out a body that you like. Proline makes high quality bodies and I love the way they look, although you can also buy the stock body from the company that makes your RC.

Prep, mask, paint

For my other axial
Started over winter break
but its been too cold to paint
-'80 Chevy c10-

Next is to cut out the body because chances are it isn't pre cut, then sand down the rough edges of where you cut it. Now if you so choose, mask off the areas you want to be a different color, this can be really simple or really tedious depending on the design you are going for or you can just paint the whole thing one color. After you are all done prepping/masking pick out your paint(unless you already did this) MAKE sure that you get paint that works on plastics (I have used the incorrect paint before) your local hobby store will more than likely have it.

Some of the bodies I have painted

Axial deadbolt

-'72 Chevy c10-

Traxxas summit

-desert militia-

Team Durango
-new stock body custom painted-

 

My question for you-

What other brands of bodies have you used? Do you find it easy/fun to make a custom body that is unique to you?

(Side note: I get all of my RC parts, bodies, paint, electronics, wheels and tires, etc. from RC hobbies in Covington)

RC Car Action. Your Ultimate Off-road Guide. N.p.: Radio Control Car Action,

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Complete Control

What tells your RC what to do?

In order to tell your ESC and your steering servo what to do (or what ever other servos you have installed) you need a receiver and a radio. The radio is what you hold (the controller) that has the steering "wheel" and the throttle trigger along with what ever other switches are needed to control the other parts of your RC.

Brands of receivers and radios

I prefer spektrum (yes I know spectrum is spelled with a 'c' the company spells it with a 'k') because they have a smoother trigger and wheel than other setups I have used. Most NOT ALL RC's come with radios and receivers. The stock ones aren't bad, is really up to personal preference. Traxxas has good ones, and axial uses two different types: tactic and axial, tactic is similar to spektrum and I love it for that reason.

Types of receivers and radios

There are different companies that make different receivers and radios, and those companies have variations of those receivers and radios. Some are 2 channel, 3 channel, or  4 channel, meaning you can connect an ESC and 1, 2, or 3 servos or light kits; they also have different features, "the higher up the ladder you go, [meaning price/quality wise,] the more functions you get" (Radio Control Car Action 24).

My question to you-

What brand radio and receiver are you using? Do you like it?

RC Car Action. Your Ultimate Off-road Guide. N.p.: Radio Control Car Action,
     n.d. Print. Radio Control Car Action.



Make your Drivetrain Bulletproof

Most RC's come stock with plastic parts for their axles, drive-shafts, gears, and wheel hexes. And if your like me and have an RC that can do 60+MPH (my traxxas summit) and shred parts you will want to have metal drivetrain parts. Metal parts are extremely expensive but well worth it in the end. I have yet to buy aluminum parts for the summit, but I do have metal driveshaft's in the slash, and all metal gears in my deadbolt.

Why aluminum parts?

As sated in my book, "A sure-fire way to avoid any failures is to replace the stock plastic gears with ones made out of aluminum or steel". (Radio Control Car Action 26) Aluminum is a lot stronger than plastic (no duh its a metal!), and yes aluminum parts cost a pretty penny but its definitely worth it. The reason for aluminum parts is because if you have an rc that produces a large amount of torque it will, if you have splined axles or driveshaft's, just twist the plastic like a piece of liquorish or snap them. And if you have plastic gears they will get flat spots where the teeth are ground off and therefore will not spin. (I have stripped many gears although I never thought about taking pictures of them so I don't have any pictures of stripped gears.)

My question for you-

What are your thoughts on metal parts? Have they been useful or a pain?

RC Car Action. Your Ultimate Off-road Guide. N.p.: Radio Control Car Action,

     n.d. Print. Radio Control Car Action.



The Powerplant

The Main Parts

There are many different ways to get your RC to drive the way you want. There are two different types of motors that can be installed in RC's, brushed and brushless. And to run the motors you have to have an ESC (electronic speed control) which come in many different sizes and power ratings. In order to power the ESC-motor system you need a battery which come in 4 different types, NiCad, NiMh, LiPo, and LIon.

Brushed motors

Brushed motors use brushes inside of them to rotate the output shaft which in turn moves the RC. These kinds of motors are commonly used in crawlers and slow-moving high torque vehicles although some companies sell their RC's with brushed motors in them from the factory like the slash. Some types of brushed motors I have used are the Axial 27turn, Traxxas titan 755, and the Traxxas titan 550.

Brushless motor

Brushless motors use magnets inside of them to rotate the output shaft and move the RC. Brushless motors are used for high speed applications. Some motors I have used are the Castle 2700kv and the Castle 4600kv.

Castle 2700kv- brushless motor

Castle 4600kv- brushless motor

Axial 27t- brushed motor



ESC's

ESC's are what supply the RC's electronics power and they also control the speed of the RC. ESC's can handle different amounts of power, some can take up to a 6s-LiPo and others can't even run a LiPo. Some ESC's that I use is the Castle Mamba Monster 2, Castle sidewinder 3, Traxxas EVX-2, and the Axial AE-5.

Batteries

Batteries come in all shapes and sizes. LiPo (Lithium Polymer) batteries are the highes grade, most expensive, have the highest power output, and last the longest. I prefer to use LiPo batteries because the have more power and last longer than other types. LiPo's have different Mah tell you how long the battery last, C ratings which tell you how much power they will put out, and a number next to an s which tell you the cell count. I like Venom batteries because they come with different connectors that can be changed very easily so if you have two different types of connectors on your RC's you don't have to use an adapter. LiPo batteries I use include 2-Venom 2s 5000Mah 25c and 2-Venom 3s 5000Mah 25c. NiMh batteries I have used are the Traxxas 7cell's.

What should you choose?

Choosing the correct set up for you is entirely dependent on the type of driving you are doing. Brushless motors are good for going fast and brushed motors are good for low speeds, although gearing can also be a factor because some brushless motors can be geared to run slow and brushed motors can be geared to go fast "it comes down to gearing and battery choice."(Radio Control Car Action 64), but keep in mind that depending on the types of gear-battery set-up you use, because you could potentially overheat the motor.

RC Car Action. Your Ultimate Off-road Guide. N.p.: Radio Control Car Action,

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Info on short course trucks and chossing the right tires for you

RC's that I have had experience with-

I do all sorts of driving with my RC's and have several different types of RC's that preform at their best in different environments. Some of mine include the Traxxas slash 2WD: good on dirt tracks, indoor carpet tracks, and cement tracks, the Traxxas summit: good on off-road courses and the also Axial SCX10 deadbolt: good at rock crawling and off-roading (trail trucking) but this blog is going to mostly be about short course trucks (the Traxxas slash).

A bit of background on the slash-

The Traxxas slash is a very versatile short course RC truck and comes in many different versions. The slash comes in a 2WD or 4WD, brushless (motor) or brushed (motor), and a low cg (center of gravity) chassis, all of which are good for different racing.

Picking your tires-

Pro-line Trenchers

Pro-line Badlands

Pro-line Street fighters

Now lets get into choosing your tires. In order to choose the correct tires for you, you need to look at the type of driving/racing you will be doing because, "the stock tires get you up and running but often aren't ideal for the conditions you plan to run in."(Radio Control Car Action 27) The types of tires include street, dirt, and AT(all-terrain) tires. Some of the tires I have had experience with are Pro-line Racing Badlands, Trenchers, and Street fighters. I love the trenchers which I run on my summit and on my slash because the are great on and off the road. The badlands aren't my favorite tires which I have also ran on my slash because they wear down to quickly on the road BUT that's what I get for running them on the street. The street fighters are also another one of my favorites because they are phenomenal on the street since they have a super sticky compound and firm foams but they don't do to well of road and I like to go on and off road simultaneously so I have found that the trenchers were the best fit for my style of driving.

I will definitely be trying out different tires from different companies to see if they work for my style of driving.

I would also like to know what types of tires you may use for similar driving or completely different driving and what your experience with them have been and if you may have any suggestions for me?


RC Car Action. Your Ultimate Off-road Guide. N.p.: Radio Control Car Action,
     n.d. Print. Radio Control Car Action.