New Site Format
     As you know
  StampedeProject has
  become way more than
  just Stampede, Traxxas,
  to now include other
  RC brands, accessories,
  and cars. I still don't sell
  anything, I just
  enthusiastically promote
  those RC products I think
  are great.
     Take a look through
  the above links.
  I simply had too much
  information for my
  old site format.
  More fun projects
  coming...
  - Tony

  StampedeProject.com

  Please Private Message
  me Here on the
  Traxxas Forum    

  Copyright 2007
  all rights reserved 

Getting into Rock Crawling

Rock Crawling 101 HPI Rock King - Rock Crawler Conversion Axial Scorpion Crawler Tuning Part 1 Axiom V10 Hand Wound 85T Crawler Motor

I got into rock crawling really by accident about a year or so before the Axial Scorpion chassis came out.  I just fell into the RCCrawler.com forum one day and thought, "Oooh that looks cool" and spent the next week in my basement building a crawler. 

After building and tearing back down my third crawler, I begged RC Car to let me do a regular feature on rock crawling and finally got the approval.  Wheelie Kings were already being used as the basis for crawlers so I started there, and the Axial Scorpion was on the verge of release so that seemed the next logical place to go to get people interested in crawling. 

My first set of articles focused on giving some background, and showing how to make a crawler.  Need some background and crawler pointers see the articles to the right.

Now the 2.2 crawler market is red hot with over 20,000 Scorpion kits sold since the first of the year with projections of over 100,000 sold by the end of 2008 - the hottest selling kit ever from any manufacturer.  The Scorpion kit offers everything you would want in competition rock crawler, just assemble and bolt on your electrics are your are ready to hit the rocks. Tamiya just introduced a 2.2 Scaler class crawler that looks about as real as it gets and is a crazy detailed kit.  HPI is introducing a bolt on kit that converts the WK to a capable crawler for nominal cost.

Meanwhile custom fabrication shops around the world are kicking out un-believably engineered parts and kits that are taking crawling to a whole new level.  Mico Engineering of Canada, Bender Customs, VF, Mayhem Engineering, are leading the cutting edge of design, engineering, and performance for crawling.  Never before have all these custom manufacturers jumped in on a segment so hard and fast.

The big aftermarket names are joining the party, Losi lead the charge with the Rock Claw tires, Bug bodies, and shocks. Pro Line has beadlocks, gate markers, a couple new bodies, and over 20 crawler specific tire combinations when factoring in regular or memory foams and different tire compounds.  Panther is now getting in on the action with a new crawler focused tires and gatemarkers.  Novak and Tekin both have bolt on crawler ESC/motor systems that make getting up and running easy.  A123 and MaxAmps have small crawler spec packs that allow for high energy density and can tuck in on axles for super log CG (center of gravity).

Because crawling is just you and any rock bigger than your foot and will immediately show the effect of every little upgrade and tuning tweak, crawling is highly addictive. 

Tony - StampedeProject.com