ASK Cubby – More Questions, Less Answers
“Mini Crawlers
What’s a good small rock crawler that doesn’t cost too much? At the end of the month I will be picking up a pair for me and my son. We have a large backyard that never gets enough use, I can not wait for Spring. Thanks Cubby.
Levon T.”
Cubby- Hey ya there Levon, thanks for taking the time to write in to ASK Cubby. As always, your snail mail will get you one of our BSRC sticker packs.
About those small rock crawlers, there are quite a few on the market now days. You did not state how much you wanted to spend (people rarely do), but pretty much all the small crawlers are super affordable.
So, here is my recommendation. On the higher end of the scale are trucks like the 1/18th sized rigs from RC4WD. These are incredibly scale accurate and come with a bunch of real metal parts, as well as highly detailed plastic bodies. The small scalers from RC4WD are all about scale realism- they look awesome and drive in a scale manner.
If you are looking for a small scaler that is even smaller, the 1/24th scaled crawlers from Axial Racing are a fun option. These are super affordable and are also quite scale realistic. At a smaller size these are absolutely perfect for indoor crawling courses that you might set-up in your man-cave or garage. Pricing is just over $100 and there are a couple different body styles to pick from.
Shoot me pics of whatever you end up buying there Levon and have a funtastic weekend.
“Pinion
Cubby, how are you man? What brand of pinion do you use? Is one brand better than another, is there is brand to not buy?
Walter B.”
Cubby- Yo Walter, how ya be? Thanks for writing me an email.
Pinions, pinions, pinions! Ya know, I rarely get pinion questions, yet that single part is one of the most important on your truck.
What brand of pinions do I run? For 1/10th scale and smaller, I typically run Robinson. The folks over at Robinson have been making pinions for a very long time and their work is fantastic. Their pinions tend to be fairly light, yet last a long time. For 1/8th scale Mod 1 pinions I have been running Castle. I got a bunch of their pinions years ago and I am still trying to destroy them.
Is one brand better than another? Yes. Cheap pinions are often heavy and quick wearing. Cheap pinions can often times just start shedding teeth, or even just break in half at the worst possible time of course. A good pinion is fairly lightweight and lasts forever.
Oh and, also of note. While you are out buying a handful of new pinions to experiment with, pick up a temp gauge if you don’t already have one. You don’t want to ruin your motor while doing gearing changes, so keep a temp gun handy.
Have a terse question? Need an even more terse answer? What about that epic rant that you just have to get off your chest? Email me- thecubreportrc at gmail dot com.
