Anyone else into RC rock crawling?

[CMBD]

My daughter goofing off with her 2wd brushless Slash at a campground this weekend .

The Traxxas Slash has to be one of the most durable RCs ever made. This one is at least 15 years old and lived most its life as a brushless 3s powered Baja Bug sand car. Has gone end over end at 50+ on hard packed sand a lotta times and never have broken anything. Ruined a lot of pinions and spurs but that's it.

 

[reddvltj]

My daughter goofing off with her 2wd brushless Slash at a campground this weekend .

The Traxxas Slash has to be one of the most durable RCs ever made. This one is at least 15 years old and lived most its life as a brushless 3s powered Baja Bug sand car. Has gone end over end at 50+ on hard packed sand a lotta times and never have broken anything. Ruined a lot of pinions and spurs but that's it.

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Sometimes I wish I had the 2wd vs the 4x4 Slash. The drive shaft and slipper clutch design SUCK on the 4x4. It likes collecting tiny rocks inside the drive shaft compartment and they either jam up the lock nut on the slipper or find some where to wedge themselves in the tunnel and act like a lathe cutting the aluminum drive shaft.

You are right about them being fairly indestructible though. i bashed mine for years with the stock pinion and spur and chewed up countless spur gears. I finally switched to a 8th scale pinion with the help of a shaft adapter and got a steel Spur gear to go along with it. The gear ratio was also a LOT higher then what you could get for the stock 4x4 slash... New speed level opened up!!! My top speed went from @60 to OMG please don't go airborne!

My first high speed run with that gear setup turned into a cartwheel fest that I thought for sure was going to end with multiple broken suspension components and maybe even bulkhead parts needing replacement. None of the above fortunately just had to readjust the pinion/and spur gear lash.

 

[CMBD]

Sometimes I wish I had the 2wd vs the 4x4 Slash. The drive shaft and slipper clutch design SUCK on the 4x4. It likes collecting tiny rocks inside the drive shaft compartment and they either jam up the lock nut on the slipper or find some where to wedge themselves in the tunnel and act like a lathe cutting the aluminum drive shaft.

You are right about them being fairly indestructible though. i bashed mine for years with the stock pinion and spur and chewed up countless spur gears. I finally switched to a 8th scale pinion with the help of a shaft adapter and got a steel Spur gear to go along with it. The gear ratio was also a LOT higher then what you could get for the stock 4x4 slash... New speed level opened up!!! My top speed went from @60 to OMG please don't go airborne!

My first high speed run with that gear setup turned into a cartwheel fest that I thought for sure was going to end with multiple broken suspension components and maybe even bulkhead parts needing replacement. None of the above fortunately just had to readjust the pinion/and spur gear lash.

Got home today and Im looking for a 4wd roller because someone in my group this weekend said we should all get Slashes for our next get together The control with the 4wd is sooo much better.

Im thinkin 4wd Slash, spooled rear, heavy grease in the front diff (acts almost like a stiff LSD), sensored brushless, and 3s. Would be like an IFS/IRS Ultra4 car. Could crawl and go fast. You can get around the junk caught up in the drivetrain, or minimalize it anyway.

Or... I have a complete Axial Yeti with broke front end parts. Love Axial but they piss me off with the lack of support for the Yeti. Yeti is an IFS/ SRA Ultra4 car for the most part.

 

[reddvltj]

Got home today and Im looking for a 4wd roller because someone in my group this weekend said we should all get Slashes for our next get together The control with the 4wd is sooo much better.

Im thinkin 4wd Slash, spooled rear, heavy grease in the front diff (acts almost like a stiff LSD), sensored brushless, and 3s. Would be like an IFS/IRS Ultra4 car. Could crawl and go fast. You can get around the junk caught up in the drivetrain, or minimalize it anyway.

Or... I have a complete Axial Yeti with broke front end parts. Love Axial but they piss me off with the lack of support for the Yeti. Yeti is an IFS/ SRA Ultra4 car for the most part.

Oh Definitely 4wd and 2wd are night and day different. The 2wd is basically a Rustler just a longer and wider chassis on the slash.

I figured out the best way to keep crap out of the drive shaft is to use some scrap lexan and make a flexible skid to block rocks from coming in under the dive shaft, that is held on by the front bulkhead to pan bolts and a small piece of tape over the slipper clutch adjustment window.

I'd be very careful putting a spool in the rear of a slash, you'll likely go through a ton of axles, especially with 3s. As far as using the Slash as a crawler, I'm not sure what motor you're thinking about, but I know with mine the stock brushless is VERY jittery when you try to go too slow.

 

[CMBD]

Oh Definitely 4wd and 2wd are night and day different. The 2wd is basically a Rustler just a longer and wider chassis on the slash.

I figured out the best way to keep crap out of the drive shaft is to use some scrap lexan and make a flexible skid to block rocks from coming in under the dive shaft, that is held on by the front bulkhead to pan bolts and a small piece of tape over the slipper clutch adjustment window.

I'd be very careful putting a spool in the rear of a slash, you'll likely go through a ton of axles, especially with 3s. As far as using the Slash as a crawler, I'm not sure what motor you're thinking about, but I know with mine the stock brushless is VERY jittery when you try to go too slow.

That green bug I posted had a modeling clay spool and big paddles the entire time I did 3s stuff with it. It didnt kill the stock axles. And the slipper was cranked to no not slip.

Sensored brushless is the way for a crawler. No cogging down low, pick the KV for the high RPM.

 

[joe98tj]

Some progress on my mashigan