His and Hers – A Love Story

This story was originally part of a series I wrote for another blog. Thought I would repost it due to a few questions I have been getting on smaller RC rigs. These little rigs are great to travel with and one of mine has almost frequent flyer mileage as I do.

I have had several Revos, Slashes, Rallys, and combinations, conversions, and off-shoots of these three. But by far the most fun I have had was building these two rigs with my wife.

A few weeks ago she showed an interest in an old buggy. Now she has always loved building and painting but driving was not so fun for her. I took an old slash and put a 23 turn motor in it and placed in training mode. In the privacy of our backyard track she learned to like it. Then last week for the Sweet 16 Rally we held here, we picked up a mini slash for non rc visitors to bash. She fell in love with the car when placed in training mode.

Her rig is stock and has the 12 turn Titan but soon to have a 23 turn HPI. That should give her longer run time and slower speeds

My rig has the Velenion brushless with Traxxas ESC, Traxxas and Integy aluminum, and run it on a Spektrum controller.

On neither rig am I overly concerned with having top shelf race parts, and use trickle down stuff from my prime rig…the Revo.

The Slash takes a lot of lip because of stability. My argument is that if you drive a car within its limits you don’t flip as much. We can go through several battery packs in an evening without ever being on our lids.

I’m enjoying our time in the yard with these rigs. I’m kind of anal about similar rigs running at the same time so its nice we are driving short course rigs at the same time.

Honcho SCX 10 Review

As you already know, I am a hard core Jeep guy. I have an XJ, a YJ, and the latest has been a JK. My wardrobe is 90% Jeep shirts, hats, and this last Christmas my parents even found me a wallet. The house and office, yep Jeep. Even my 1/10 scale rc rig is a Jeep.

When I picked up our new Axial SCX 10 and had the choice between a JK Wrangler or a Honcho, I selected the Honcho against all my history with the greatest American vehicle ever made. I even lean towards Nissan and not Toyota, which the Honcho is clearly a Tundra.

The latest edition to the 1/10 garage fills several gaps. First, it is a seed truck. We want to recruit others into the hobby and thought having a demo rig would be a great way to do that. Second, going to events in other states and having your rig break or simply decide to not work is a joy killer. We had this happen to Abby at the G6 in Bend, Oregon and I had to pull parts off of her rig and place them on. 1/2 finished build we happen to have with us. Even on our local outings, I had a truck misbehave and wound up walking with Melissa and Abby on what has to be one of the greatest trail drives we have found to date.

The SCX 10 is a well proven platform. Driving the truck right out of the box without all the extra mods and accessories was pure fun. I took it out to an area we call “Mini-Moab” to do some testing with it. Just out of the box, no ladders, winch, Pull Pal, wheel weights…literally out of the box.

The 27t motor provides enough speed to make driving interesting, yet it doesn’t over-power the rig. It also provides some torque when needed for climbs. Since it is a brushed motor, I don’t have to worry about water proofing. On this rig the battery is already moved forward and it is stock with driving lights, yep…trail ready.

I have heard allot of drivers complain about the servo. First, it is not water proof. Second, it is said to be week. To date, the servo set ups in both Abby and Melissa’s rigs has done well and they both abuse them quite a bit.

The radio controller is great for out of the box. It is a 2.4 Ghz set up, so cross-communication with another rig is a very low risk. If feels great in the hand and feathering the trigger is easy to do with it. The main feature I like, it has a notch for using a lanyard. I hate setting my radio down in the mud, and since this truck will be used for newbies, the lanyard is a must to help keep it protected.

Again, driving the basic rig was a blast. One of the problems with this hobby is the elitist mind set of having to super-build a rig when starting out. Most seasoned drivers have forgotten what it was like to be new to the hobby. This rig can have you on the trails right away. All you really need is two solid rc batteries (which I will cover in a later blog and podcast), a decent charging station, 4 AA batteries for the radio, and a trail to go play on.

If you are in Idaho, this next year we will be doing adventure and expedition runs. These are not comps. These are fun get togethers to go run around on trails or other interesting areas to drive.

Be sure to check out the web site and facebook page, I will post some links over there. Remember if you purchase anything through our Amazon site, you support our survival training.

RC Sand Ladder Test

One of the reasons I love these small scale adventures is all the cool gear you can get that is funtional. Sure I like the ice-chest and tool box that bounces around in the back of my mini Wrangler, but to have items that really work like tow straps and winches are pretty awesome.

I picked up my first set of sand ladders just before my first G6. For under $20 I had a set of MaxTrax sand ladders like my big scale rig has. They were used within the first 15 minutes of the start of the G6 in Bend, Oregon when after working our way through a maze of mud and sludge, we had to climb over a few ruts that was giving other drivers fits. I pulled the ladders off the roof rack of my little Jeep and Abby and I glided over easily where others were getting stuck.

I had noticed at the starting line at that first scale adventure how many different types of ladder systems there were. Many had been home built, while others were definitly manufactured. All had something in common, there were all longer than my set.

Over the next week I struggle to make a set of my own. They either looked great and were non-funtional, or were perfect bridging devices that looked like a sixth-grader’s shop project gone wrong. I went into my second G6 in Sparks, Nevada with my MaxTrax.
I used them a few times either alone to bridge or decrease an angle of attack or to help with my winch on an obstacle. They were fine until We went into the night course, which had a route that took us through a parking lot. Going off the curb….no issues. Going up and over a curb, my little orange bridges were too short and I wound up following another driver up his home-made bridges that were twice as long.

The following week I ordered a set of Siege Ladders from DS Pro. Twice in length and slightly less expenseive, and regionaly made from a great guy over in Oregon. I decided to test them right away.
They areas tested:

1) Scale Look – Here I think the MaxTrax wins without question. This is probably due to the fact I have a set for my big rig. They look like the actual ladders in production. With that said, since MaxTrax is also made in blue, black, and grey there should also be options for the other colors. The DS Pro looks good, and I hate to down grade it here, and as you will see in a moment…form does not discount funtion.

2) Durability- Before I comment, I have to give huge props to DS Pro here. In transit my ladders showed up warped. Probably happened in the mail along the way. Within 48 hours DS Pro not only had a new set to me, but was looking for ways to help me salvage the other set. I have had issues with other RC accessories and service has been hit and miss…DS Pro takes care of its customers.

Because of the geometry of the MaxTrax, there is less space for flex, especially when under stress of bungee cords. In addition, they use a concave shape to help strengthen overall load. They also have reinforcement on the long-axis of the ladder. There are small cutouts along the edge for mounting with a bungee, and under minimal stress, have either torn or stretched out of position.

The DS Pro ladders are longer and more suseptable to flex. They have smartly placed reinforcement along the two outer edges so there isn’t hardly any flex when under load. They have also been on the rig as it took a 30 foot tumble down the side of a rocky bank and did not break or bend, eventhough they protrude beyond the roof rack. I would like to see a slightly different plastic formula used since it is suseptable to bending like it did in the mail. I am curious as to what it will do in the summer. It does not seem at risk of snapping in cold weather. I drove today for about 6 hours in temps ranging from 29° to 36° and used the ladder for testing…no cold temp issues.

3) Usability- This is tough. Most likely, each has its specific place that shines, but here is where the Siege Ladders shine. The ladders not only long enough to bridge large gaps and provide a much better angle of attack, but are long enough that you can shove them deep into soft dirt or sand and they will stay in place as you transition out of the rut you are in. I will carry both sets, but if I had to pick one, I would most likely use the DS Pro product based on this alone.

4) Traction- for both sets, tracting was an issue, though the dimples on the MaxTrax were only slightly better. Only slightly, because with the siege ladder you have more options for angle of attack. Change the angle so you aren’t trying to drive as steep out of the sand trap. If there was some grip on the DS Pro ladders….outright awesome.

5) Overall Satisfaction- Again, if picking one…DS Pro. I really like the look and the ease of mounting of the MaxTrax, but for the reason of needing a ladder for urban and rocky environments, I would have to use the longer ladder. The other reason is simply the company taking care of me. I work hard for my RC gear and I hve to do it for Abby and Melissa as well (not always same brand- just same option), and when a company steps up to take care of me, it means allot.

With that said, I am sure RC4WD has some fine folks working there. But with our winch projects, I have already seen a lack of insight, like putting screws to mount the winch to the bumper in the packets or at least telling me up front I would need them. Still, they have a history of making great products.

You can’t go wrong with either set. MaxTrax look great and will do most of the work. Siege Ladders, best all around and will be my go-to set when I am stuck.

Be sure to check out our Facebook page for the video of these guys in action and be sure to tune into our podcast for more info on these and other adventures.
http://www.AdventureIQ.com

Axial SCX-10 Review

Most times when traveling for business, I find myself stuck in a town without transportation independence. I have rented bikes, taken taxis and buses, even purchased a moped to get out and see the sights. But for a Jeep guy who is often stuck in a hotel room, well after venturing hours, the immobility is hard to take.

Enter the world of RC cars. I have traveled fairly extensively with my 1/16 scale and 1/38 scale rigs. Taipei, Korea, Shenzhen, and Glasgow have all become speedways and crawling courses for my various rc toys. I have found the best way for me to stay out of the troubles is to have something to keep me entertained. Having small rigs to play in a hotel rock garden or a race at a local hobby store on club night is a great way to pass the monotony of travel.

My newest passion has been he Axial SCX 10 Jeep JK. I wanted to test this rig for several reasons. First is that now we own a new JK, I wanted something to emulate my 1:1 ride. The second, I wanted to review a true crawler. While my 16-scale Summit has been modified to play in a few local parks, noting beats a real scale crawler.

I have also wanted to find a way to get the adventure crew back outside to both the trails as well as our own backyard. I believe strongly that a family that finds common outdoor activities builds up better protective layers when storms arise. Having a soon-to-be middle school daughter, I wanted both solid insulation for the coming foul weather, as well as make opportunities for time together. As for our matriarch, we just need to get her outside in less stressful environments.

For the sake of testing, we went two distinct routes. Melissa’s rig is a “Ready-to Run” SCX 10, meaning you pull it out of the box, put AA batteries into the radio controller and NiMh or LiPo batteries on the rig, and you are ready for fun. Axial makes solid products and they are truly ready for the trails strait off the shelf.

We did a few minor modifications to Melissa’s crawler though. First, we swapped out the 27T motor for a 55T motor. To make it easier to understand, lower turn = higher top end/less torque
and conversely, higher turn = lower top end/more torque. I wanted the ability to help her control her speed since crawling is more finesse that bashing through stuff. One of her frustrations was always wrecking her Traxxas Slash. Even with a slower motor, she was wrecking it.

Moving to a 55-turn motor decreased her speed, and gave her the torque she needed for crawling obstacles. It also eliminated the full speed/ 90 degree turn and flip syndrome as can happen with many high-speed RCs. We also swapped out her controller for a higher grade one from Spektrum. The controller Axial makes is awesome, but I had an opportunity to get her one at a steal so I couldn’t turn it down. The stock Axial is a 2.4 Ghz high quality controller. I resold it within 48 hours.

With my rig, still using the SCX-10 platform, we bought a kit. Even though, I have put a few kits together, based on time available and experience, I decided to let Troy Dewey from Team Dewey Hobbies put mine together. He built a great mini-version of my 1:1 rig. I also put in a 55T motor. With the kilt you need to supply all of your own electronics. If this is your first crawler, I recommend going with the RTR versus a kit, since you will want to be out there playing right away.

Its hard to think of this as a toy at times. You can quickly get sucked into a hobby that no one else understands. The realistic looks and upgrades can quickly turn into an obsession. I hate to think of how many hours I have wasted, errrr…reinvested into thinking of accessories alone.

The SCX-10 has phenomenal handling, and with the differentials locked, can climb more than you would expect. The suspension consists of four oil filled coil-over shocks, with dual spring rates, attached to front and rear four- link suspension. Like its 1:1 counterpart, the spring rate on the RC is preset pretty low, which helps to stabilize it when on the trails or crawling over objects like rocks or wood pallet based obstacles.

The absolute coolest thing about the SCX-10 Wranglers is the ability to upgrade ands add accessories. Like 1:1 Jeeps, a true Jeeper can park next to another Jeeper and the two rigs will be completely different. Performance upgrades such as tires or shocks and scale cosmetics like bikini tops, camping gear, roof, racks and working lights make any rig truly yours as you add custom options. Companies such as Rugged Ridge and Poison Spyder have rallied behind this rig to make scaled replicas of their primary products.

Scale Model Expeditions

Two Axial SCX-10 JK Wranglers working down the trail. This is not racing or crawling, this is oveland exploration using scale vehicles.

Amazing the details you find in terrain when moving over it with detailed vehicles.

Sunday morning working our way down a hiking trail with scale models of Jeep JK Wranglers. Watching our footing as the electric motors quietly propels each along, both with loads of 1/10 scale expedition gear. Climbing rocks, selecting lines, and working with the other rigs to get un-stuck or select a better path.

Radio Control Expeditions. This is our newest passion. In an effort to get back into shape, we have dedicated ourselves to scale model overlanding. Borrowing from other disciplines, trail hiking, real sized Jeeping and Overlanding, as well as RC rally racing (as done in Europe and Asia) and scale crawling events, we have built a few 1:10 scale (and highly realistic) models to explore local hiking trails.

Melissa working her JK through a bolder section on the trail. Scale Overlanding provides new or additional opportunities to PLAY outside and get a nice hiking and boldering workout

A few years ago we jumped into rc racing and “bashing”. Using several different Traxxas vehicles in various scales, we built up both a collection of cars as well as destinations we had taken them to. I normally travel on business with a 1/16 truck and We even built a rally course in our backyard.

While I did race, working the short course races never really appealed to me, I however loved the rc rally format done in Europe, where instead of a closed course that you repeated, you had to go from stage to stage. In the 4×4 truck world (rc) you also have the Axial G6 which is a competition with several stages like the rally racing.

I like the idea of the G6, but we are more about the adventure and exploration side of life rather than competition. So we have started doing “scale trail runs” with our Wranglers.

We know we are not the first ones to do this, in fact there are a few Youtube videos out there of guys getting together to do fun runs on weekend mornings, but we are one of the few and as far as we know, the only ones in our area doing trail runs and not just taking crawlers out to a spot to see if they can conquer the obstacle. For us, its driving the rig down a trail to a new destination.

Touching the rig to reposition or recover it not allowed. Here Rob’s red JK cannot get enough traction to get over an obstacle, so Melissa’s silver JK is helping out with a tow strap

Full Value Norms
First, I hate rules that look like “elitism”, but we are going for a look and feel with this experience. We implement a few rules to make it more interesting, a bit more realistic, and promote good driving skills and line selecting. Here is a quick run down of how we set up our rigs, handle getting stuck, and putting a bit of realism into our scale adventuring.

Vehicles are 1:10 scale 4×4. Must have a realistic drive train including “pumpkins”.
Tires and rims must be realistic to the model.
Vehicles must carry a tow strap and have recovery points in front and back of the vehicle. Recovery points must be realistic and comply with manufacturer or fabricator specifications. The tow strap must represent current manufactured straps available in the 1:1 world.
Vehicle bodies should represent street legal models, since overlanding in the 1:1 world is done on dirt roads, forest service roads, byways, as well as Jeep trails. This includes minimum one mirror, simulated lights, etc.

Recovery:
1.when a vehicle becomes stuck or turns over, it must be righted or unstuck in one of the following ways:
Winching by self
Winching by another vehicle
Yank strap by another vehicle
Yank strap by “judge” or hand (with a judge pull- it is a single strait line pull by fellow driver)
Anchor point (tow strap in anchored in place by fellow driver’s foot

2. Use of lifting and traction aides

If a hi-lift jack is on the vehicle, the driver can lift the vehicle by hand 3/4 the height of the jack
Objects may be placed under the tires as long as size and weight are proportional and realistic to what a driver could lift and place.
Use of sand ladders, pull pals, winches, shovels, etc is highly encouraged.

Use of the “hand of God” or “foot of God” is forbidden- except when vehicle is in peril of falling or in imminent danger of damage.

While it seems legalistic to have so many rules, we do it to preserve the culture we are trying to build with this and keep it enjoyable for us.

Equipment
1. Most obvious is the 4×4 scale rig. As above, it should represent a manufactured, street legal, off highway vehicle. We chose to use the Axial SCX 10 for its scale realism and on trail performance.

Melissa’s rig is an out of the box ready to run rig, while mine is a kit. With that said, we swapped motors in Melissa’s from a 27 turn motor to 55 turn motor. I can explain turns in another post, but for now understand this, less turns= faster, more turns=torque. We wanted her to have the ability to go slower and have power to climb.

My rig was a kit. It comes with everything but the electronics. Troy Dewey of Team Dewey’s built the rig for me as a favor and learning experience. I have built kits in the past and I struggle, Troy is probably the top expert on rc rigs in the state, so getting him to do the build was awesome. Most kits we have both done are a matter of hours from start to finish. It took us 2.5 days working together. Mainly due to the way the parts are listed and laid out. The kit comes with a clear body, so naturally I selected a finish to match our new adventure rig. I will do a full review of the rigs in another blog.

2. Next you need a backpack with hydration bladder. This is a trail hike taking you far from camp or your 1:1 rig. This will give a place to store a few parts, batteries, snacks, and a first-aid kit.

We recommend at least three extra Lipo batteries for your rig and an extra pack of AAA batteries for your radio controller. The Lipos tend to last about 2 hours. That two hours is going to go fast.

A small first-aid kit is a must since you may be climbing rocks, going through brush, etc. Along with the kit, should be bug repellent.

Trail Etiquette
You are doing something out of the norm on trails where there are other users. While on a common trail, look out for mountain bikers and hikers and get out of the way. We practice Tread Lightly principles just as if it was a real rig so we don’t endanger our access rights. Stay close to rig as if it was a pup on a leash.

We think we have found a way to get outside and play more. Combining hiking and boldering with the rc hobby has us back outside. Trail climbs don’t phase us as much even though we are both out of shape, funny how the car pulls you up the trail. We are already selecting destinations to explore trails with our scale expo rigs.

RC Adventure

I haven’t talked about this area of our adventure life much. It is a seasonal thing for us, but it is something that at times has drawn us together as a family. That is probably true for so many of our adventure activities, that desire to draw us all together. This can be a challenge since my bride shows up as a 1-1-1 on the behavioral scale of her Emergenetics diagnostic. This means that when presented with a new idea, she can have Spock like reactions and I really don’t know if she is disinterested or her heart has truly stopped. I also have to wonder about her acceptance of the idea of if she is just pondering.

A few years ago when I got super excited about rc cars not only did I feel compelled to allow my life to revolve around the new interest, I built an rc track in our back yard. Not just a section, but the entire yard. I then went about placing plants and flowers to offset the curves and jumps. Then I built a tabletop track in our garage….just because that’s how I roll….

The indoor teack has since been dismantled and the wood has been transformed into a workbench, tre outdoor track is seldom used and is quickly becoming a prayer path or something, and most of the cars we built to entertain guest sit idle.

Still, I love taking cars out with me when traveling or when out for a day/weekend trip in the Jeep. This is why I am in love with 1/16 scale off road rigs. I can place a car, assorted batteries, charger, and small tool kit and parts in a backpack. I have taken my 1/16 scale companion on commercial aircraft, in the back of the little Cessna, and on road trips to the coast for a weekend honeymoon. Whether alone, with the wife, with the kiddo, or all three, we can take a few rigs on a trip with minimal room.

I have had several Revos, Slashes, Rallys, and combinations, conversions, and off-shoots of these three. But by far the most fun I have had was building these two rigs with my wife. A few weeks ago she showed an interest in an old buggy.

Now she has always loved building and painting but driving was not so fun for her. Our building and painting together was great couple time and since she has a preference for structure, she was able to quickly learn thenins andnouts of rc repair.

I desperatly wanted her to learn how to drive and overcome her fear of crashing a car. I took an old slash and put a 23 turn motor in it and placed in training mode. In the privacy of our backyard track she learned to like it.

Each year we hold an event in the fall called Sweet 16. this is held when night approaches earlie in the evening and we can light up our backyard for an rc rally featuring 16 scale vehicles. Last year, for the Sweet 16 Rally, we picked up a mini slash for non rc visitors to bash. She fell in love with the car when placed in training mode.

Her rig came stock with the 12 turn Titan but soon replaced it with the slower 23 turn HPI. That gave her longer run time and slower speeds. this has proven to be effective in the Mini-Summit as well that goes camping with us.

I still like my speed and when speed is the game in a camp site or an empty hotel parking lot, I still pack my MERV. Mini Electtric ReVo is not at all stock. My rig has the Velenion brushless with Traxxas ESC, Traxxas and RPM parts where available, and run it on a Spektrum controller.

I have several Summits, Rallys, Revos, and Slashes, the last takes allot of lip due to stability. My argument is that if you drive a car within its limits you don’t flip as much. We can go through several bettery packs in an evening without ever being on our lids.

The rc cars are just another avenue for us to play. whether on our track, hiking behind the car on a trail, or playing in an empty parking lot of (with permission) an empty hotel meeting room, the cars have kept me out of mischief on the road.

This next year I hope we get into building scale rigs like the Axial SC series. Think scale models, complete with working winches, shovels, loadable gear, etc. these would be fun to build and drive….at scale speeds. I could build one to look just like my Jeep….or what I want my Jeep to be one day.