Monster Truck Madness – 3D Bodies
Given how popular scale r/c monster trucking has become, to where big companies like Pro-Line and JConcepts are catering to our every whim, I feel pretty spoiled trying to ask for more. But hey, that’s what I’m here for, right?
Many of the standard truck bodies that full size monsters have run throughout the years are now available, so let’s get crazy. Today we are going to talk 3D bodies.
To my knowledge, monster trucks are the only motorsport where something like a Snake, Tiger or Devil are actual makes of vehicles. While various r/c companies have offered several of these in the past for scale monsters, nowadays they are all out of print. To make matters worse, the wheelbase sizes for most of these classic monster bodies were that of a standard Clodbuster, around 10 and half inches. Most modern r/c monster trucks are somewhere in the 12-13″ range, and that includes bashing rigs as well. The old ones are just too short.
If money was no object, here are my top 5 choices for 3D monster truck bodies that I’d like to see released today.
#5 – Megalodon
One of the coolest looking 3D trucks in years IMO, the massive shark would look outrageous on an Axial SMT10. Not happy with this choice? Blame Hot Wheels and the OG Sharkruiser for my love-affair with shark cars, not me. Sharks are also enjoying a big spike in popularity at the moment thanks to various movies like the Meg, so let’s see it happen!
#4 – El Toro Loco
The El Toro Loco paint scheme has been one of Monster Jam’s most popular looks for many years now. Different drivers use different colors, and this would translate well to r/c. Also, previous to being known as El Toro, the body style was popularized by Bulldozer, which Parma actually had a licensed replica of for many years. You can find re-pops of this body out there, but the wheelbase is soooooo short. The big bull deserves a new release!
#3 – Predator
Alan Pezo has campaigned this big cat for many, many years. Predator was one of the early 3D trucks, and damn if it still isn’t one of the best looking. Even many of the long time die-hards that absolutely hate cartoon-styled bodies are down for Predator. Like Bulldozer, Parma once offered this as an option. I even owned one of them back in the T-Maxx days! This needs to make a return to the r/c world. FYI, the best looking paint scheme for this was the classic black version, and I won’t hear any other arguments.
#2 – Zombie
There are multiple reasons why a Zombie replica body needs to happen. For starters, it looks awesome. In the cartoon world of Monster Jam, Zombie is gory, gross and legit scary. My kids are terrified of this paint scheme, and that’s great! The second is that the truck is closely associated with driver Bari Musawwir, who comes from the world of r/c monster trucks. Bari is a friend and champion for all of us that bleed solid axle rigs, so his full size truck should be replicated! Bonus points to whatever manufacturer figures out a way to make a durable set of zombie arms! (P.S. the amazing looking Zombie replica-Clod that’s the headline photo of this article was custom made by friend and long-time monster trucker Tad Goad.) Hey, you’ve always wanted an excuse to splatter fake blood on your r/c, haven’t you?
#1 – Snake-Bite
You can attribute this to my BIGFOOT bias (and that’s totally accurate), but who cares? Snake-Bite was the original 3D monster truck, and is still the best looking IMO. The white fangs, red body and green wheel covers are all iconic. Both Parma and Kyosho had versions of this body back in the day, but a long wheelbase get-up would be very popular. There are also a lot of fun alternate paint jobs that folks could dream up with this. Long live the Snake!
