I recently got an AX10 ARTR to do up. Currently running the integy 55t lathe motor through a mamba micro pro on a $8 1000mah 3s lipo. Runs forever and has more power than I need. I run a hobbico cs170 TG through a CCBEC.

Not too impressed though, in stock form my revo (converted 3.3, basically stock) crawls better than it :no:

Maybe after a few mods I can get it to do something cool though. So far a waste of money IMO.

i would go with the ax10 kit thats what i did. i ordered it from tower and got it for 190 with free shipping. it says 15 hrs to build it but if you have any common sense in rc stuff you should have it done in a max of 7. i had it as a roller in 5 and wired all electronics the next day in about 2 hrs taking my time. and its a really good crawler stock if you ask me esp if your just starting out. im running a mamba max with a old monster max 27turn brushed motor has wicked low end control and torque and good wheel speed for mudding and trail stuff. im going to go to a holmes hobbies outrunner soon tho. the only upgrades i really suggest are mip c shafts for the tranny to diff shafts because the stock u joints are pretty weak,you get in a little bind and you see the shaft hit the ground. i would also out of the box go to a 4 link in the rear upper links. it really helps eliminate the torque twist. and get the bent lower links for the front and rear for a little more clearance. and get a custom split 8 cell pack and put it on the front axle for better weight up front and a lower cg. i have about 20 oz of weight in each front wheel and i run the battery on a custom alum mount high up on the rear axle for when i go mudding.

You must have something way wrong on your setup if your Revo crawls better.

Do you have drag brake set up on your Mamba? Why are you running such a cheap Lipo?

Re the ax10 shafts, a guy on rccrawler makes cro-mo 6mm outputs for the tranny, alloying you to run revo or max shafts. Never break em :P

Based on what comes with the ARTR, it's actually a better deal than the kit IMO. I actually own both and am quite happy with both, but had the ARTR been available when I decided to buy the kit, I would have bought the ARTR instead. The big advantages of the ARTR:

High Clearance Rear Links
Rear Axle Lockouts
Hardened Diff Lockers
Prepainted Crawler Body (Versus the ugly non-crawler specific body with the kit)
Pro-Line Hammers for Tires

For the $20 increase in price, those added features are well worth it.

The stock shafts don't actually break, but the plastic pieces do pop off the yokes in a bind. A $40 set of MIP C-Splined driveshafts cures that issue easily though.

i know the artr might be a better deal but i wanted to be able to build my first crawler so i could see how it worked and could see inside the axles and how they are and i had wanted to do a kit for a while. the bent links were not a consern of mine at first but once i got into more extreme stuff i decided to make my own custom 105 mm rainbow lower links with about a 40 degree arch in them. alot better than the bent ones and were about 5 bucks for the tubing and about a hour and a few cold ones. the artr is a good buy but i thought it was fun to put the whole thing together. i really need to do somthing for center shafts tho, i have my front u joint super glued and zip tied together.

no drag brake, with that 55t brushed I don't need any, it will hold itself on any angle with drag brake set to zero - either that or slide down.

The lipos I just happen to have about a million of kicking around, theyre not the problem, its never lacked power and nothing gets warm. I run the battery on the links behind the steering servo, and the the electronics upside down under the battery plate. And yet the truck just tips so easily. I think the fact that it comes with the super firm springs out of the box doesn't help, it's so light the suspension never compresses, it's like it doesnt have any shocks at all lol. I've just received some alu shock bodies and the super soft (red) springs from amain. I won't be at home with my babies (read: cars :P) till sunday though, so I'll have to wait to give em a crack then.

I put the MIP's on my primary crawler and will probably put a set on my ARTR when I get my new DMG chassis shipped to me.

Do you have any weight in your wheels yet? If not, definitely add some lead in each front wheel. A few ounces per front wheel will make a huge difference.

OK sweet. I've seen a lot of photos of the shaft snapped around the hole where the pin is, so i assumed breaking was the problem. Must've been a one off case though :)

I think'd id prefer the cromo stuff though, My experience with MIP is about the same as with the losi MLST2: utter crap. All the MIP stuff I've ever bought has just been so badly designed its not funny. The drive cups in the cvd kits I've used are made of some ridiculously soft metal, so much that after a single run their worn out and the drive is all lumpy and seizing. Then they sell 'rebuild' kits with only one diff outdrive. pathetic if you ask me.

That was going to be my next step :yes: :P

I'm sure it'll come good, it's just not perfect out of the box. Then again, what is?

weight makes such a diffrence in the front i took my foams completely out and have 158g or 5 oz in each wheel. i used big steel slingshot ammo as rolling weight and it works great.

I keep forgetting that I have heavier wheels than stock on my kit version. I'm running Mayhem beadlocks that are 10.6oz each with a Losi Rock Claw tire and memory foam. The stock ARTR tire/wheel is only 6.1oz. Even at the weight my wheels/tires are now, they could use some extra weight.

skellyo- you got any good pics of your mayhems i was thinking about getting a set because of the weight diffrence they would be my crawlin wheels with the memory foam and rock claws. and the stock wheels and tires would have weight removed anf foams put back in for good trail/ muddin tires. i allready cut every other lug off on the stocker to get em to clean out better

Here ya go:

http://skellyo.com/scorpion/Scorpion3.JPG

http://skellyo.com/scorpion/Scorpion4.JPG

Yeah they look sweet.

Why to axial call their rims 8 hole beadlockers, when its obivous even in pictures that their only 6 hole? I'm assuming here that 8-hole means they should have 8 studs in either ring (like yours skellyo).

I can only guess they mean 8 spoke. I guess theres 8 holes as in the gaps between the spokes...

those look really good with the claws. who makes the mayhems and how could i get them? do they have any other types? ive heard people talk about them but never seen or heard of wwhere to get them

The 8 hole means the face of the wheel has 8 holes in it. It doesn't mean the number of screws on the beadlock ring.

Mayhem is a company. I like Eritex wheels too. I have quite a few sets.

Yep, I like Eritex as well, just don't currently have any of theirs...yet.

Link to Mayhem Engineering's thread on rccrawler.com:
http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/showthread.php?t=103930

You can purchase the wheels by PM'ing Mayhem Eng. on rccrawler.com and they'll be built after ordering. However, http://www.rpphobby.com has a few different sets in stock. You can find them in their wheel section.

For the wheels JRH was talking about, check out http://www.eritexinc.com