My thoughts on the SC10 kit...

[lincpimp]

So I decided to put the sc10 together this evening. Got the chassis completely assembled save for the shocks.

I have not assembled a 10th scale kit for a while, last thing comparable to this was a losi xxx-cr 10th buggy about 2 years ago. The losi kit was better designed and materials are better than this, I am a bit disapointed in that too.

I am pretty disappointed in this kit. The instructions for assembly are decent, but they overlook some pretty obvious stuff, and some of the build methods are questionable and could only be correctly carried out by a very experienced rc nut.

First up was the servo saver. It is integrated into one of the bellcranks. The collared nut that holds the spring and half of the saver has a very coarse thread that self-threads into the plastic half of the saver. 2 small (very small) oillite bushings go in each end and a mainly smooth shafted screw acts as the pivot. The instructions call for assembling the collared nit and then placing the bushings and screw in. I did that and ended up with the collared nut not going into the saver half straight. This the screw and bushings were super tight when installed. I had to put the entire assembly together and then loosed the collared nut and force everything to sit straight under pressure by the spring as I reinstalled the collared nut. Someone with less manual dexterity and hand strength would be screwed here...

Then I tried to install the front bulk to the chassis. Well the steering draglink was hanging up pretty hard where it passes thru the bulk. After taking it apart an few times, I could see the the downward pointing head of the above mentioned screw that holds the servo saver together was contacting the chassis and was being pushed forward causing the draglink to contact the inside of the bulkhead. I tried to tighten up the screw, but that only caused the steering to have heavy drag (the manual states to not tighten the two bellcranks screws too much or binding will occur, at least they got that right...). So I ended up taking the dremel to the chassis (brand new chassis!) to create some clearance for the screw head. Still had to take the bulk/steering assy and hold the servo saver backwards under alot of pressure while screwing in the long screw. Problem solved, no contact and the draglink cleared nicely... This took about 1 hr total, and I was still on the 1st page of the build manual... Not a happy pimp, I can tell you.

Most of the rest of the build went quickly (it is a 10th scale 2wd for pete's sake!). I will say that the diff is very nice, fully sealed with 2 (yes 2!) orings on each output cup, and the internal bevel gears are very nicely made. I put some 5k diff fluid in (the instructions make no mention at all that you can do this, they just suggest grease...) and the diff felt like it was already broken in, super smooth. The idler is plastic (booo) so I will limit power to a novak 540 style motor and 2s lipo (what it was designed for, I am sure).

So I get to the rear camber links, and the instructions tell me to make them 71mm long from the centers of the ball cups. The tierod in the label package was well over 71mm, and with the cups fully screwed on around 85-87mm center to center. I set the truck on the table and eyeball the necessary distance with a ruler. 86mm looks about right so I guess I had the correct part, and that the instructions were wrong again...

Overall not too pleased, and I am sure a novice to the hobby, or a younger hobbyist would have serious problems (especially with a steering setup that binded that bad). The manual is nicely laid out, but does not have full sized hardware images to reference next to the various steps. All items were correctly bagged, and I usually only had to open 2 bags at a time. No spares to speak of (booo), especially the tiny setscrews for the hingepins and the few e-clips...

I have not built the shocks yet (an hour of head scratching/hand fitting killed my timetable), and they better go together well

I have built about 25 kits, mostly tamiya, and would rate this as a 5, and the second worst save for the kyosho 1/8 motorcycle (crap). I have never had to hand fit a tamiya, even the 1/32 aa power micro juggernaut I paid 10 bucks for.

Its a decent deal for 160 or so bucks, but you will need to play with it to get it to work right...

I will get some pics up in a day or so when I get the shocks built and the body painted.