Monster Truck Madness – Giant Primal RC Grave Digger Coming Soon + Mailbag

Hey folks, welcome to your weekly Monster Truck Madness!

I’m usually not one for talking about an announcement of an announcement, but I’ll make an exception for the upcoming Primal RC 1/5 Scale Grave Digger.

The Primal R/C Raminator was a ton of fun when I got to drive a previous generation of the rig, and them landing the Monster Jam license is a big get. I’m very curious to see what the Grave Digger version will look like. While you can click the link above for full description, here are some of the stats-

• Officially Licensed Monster Jam^® Grave Digger^® body
• Six Piece Modular 5mm thick CNC Aluminum chassis
• 49cc 4 bolt 2 stroke reed valve 2 stroke pull start engine with remote engine kill switch!
• Large Capacity MEGA Shocks with huge 10mm shock shafts
• Custom Dual Shock Setup
• Upgraded Aluminum Enclosed Battery, Receiver and Remote Kill Switch Box with Voltage Meter
• Adjustable aluminum 4 link suspension with steel heim joint ends
• Large 78mm Centrifugal Clutch
• All Steel HD drive train and double chain driven single speed transfer case with counter rotating drive shafts
• 5 different interchangeable gear ratios to choose from.
• Heavy Duty CNC Aluminum modular Axles
• Front and rear CNC cased oil filled torque control differentials for awesome on road or off road performance
• Huge 12″x7.5″ High traction tires mounted on 24mm hex bead-lock Nylon rims with inner tire foams
• Stainless Steel Tuned pipe for maximum performance and sound
• Front and Rear Sway bars
• Upgraded Dual 100KG Brushless Steering Servos with integrated adjustable servo saver system and steel heim joints
• Front and Rear axle mounted mechanical disc brakes
• Strong, Green plastic roll cage and Strong 2 piece Polycarbonate body shell with detailed interior and Grave Digger Sticker Sheet
• L.E.D. Headlights
• Radio controlled reverse feature
• Reverse gear slider for easy reverse engagement
• Strong CNC Aluminum parts used just about everywhere in this truck including hardware with strong cap head bolts
• Ball bearings used throughout the entire vehicle
• Large 1200cc Fuel Tank for super long run times (a few hours!)

This all sounds pretty trick. The version I got to drive two years ago, which you can read about here, was fun but a bit lax on the steering and throttle feel. This newer one has apparently fixed some of that, and then you now add the Grave Digger look to it to boot!

The cosmetics will be very interesting. The Primal R/C Raminator has always had a short wheel base look, and if that’s the same on the Digger, it means it will resemble the short wheel base Grave Digger #7, one of Dennis Anderson’s most infamous rides.

I dunno if I’ll be able to get any wheel time with one, but once it’s released I’m gonna try so I can post some impressions!

And with that, let’s change gears to get to an e-mail that came in from New Zealand.

From Del H.

Hiya guys. Love the Losi LMT class. Which brings me to the question I need to ask. Where do you guys get you bodies from? I know the JConcepts Raptor Bigfoots are available at RCMart, and JConcepts. But what about the other bodies? The reason I ask is, I’ve got a LMT (roller) coming, should be here by end of this week, and I’d really love to do a different body to what I normally do, which is a Proline Chevy C-10 . I’m not sure what other options are out there that will suit the LMT. I really love old school 50’s pick ups, and Prolines Early 50’s chevy is my all time favorite. I’d really love to to a Captians Curse replica, but I can’t seem to find any Willys pick up bodies anywhere. I do have a Traxxas Monster Jam Captians Curse, and a spare body, not sure if it would look right on the LMT chassis though.

Ok thanks. Forgot to mention that I live in New Zealand. The hobby supply shops here are, well putting it nicely, pretty useless when it come to aftermarket parts etc. So I do get alot of stuff from RCMart, or AMain.

Thanks for your time, and keep the LMT class running 👍

Oh, and what color did you use on Nuclear Banana? I love that color, definitely stands out on my 60 inch TV.

Hello Del, greetings from the USA!

So, you are looking to outfit your Losi LMT with a new lid and are wondering what will fit? The Losi is an interesting truck to outfit for a body. It’s overall size is juuuuust slightly larger than your standard Solid Axle monster, and it seems that a lot of the bodies designed for solid axle monsters (like the Axial SMT10) are just a smidge small. That unfortunate combo means a lot of stuff can look too small on the LMT, at least with the stock tires and wheels.

The wheel base is 13.5″, so keep that in mind. I’ve seen a variety of bodies used on them, and while yeah, the purpose made LMT JConcepts bodies look great, I think you’ll find there’s a lot of Pro-Line bodies that do work well for them too. Sometimes wheelbase listing alone can be deceiving, as certain shells have fender placements that can be trimmed back or cut to look appropriate, while others may be funky.

I’d hop on the Facebooks and browse various LMT groups to see pics of what guys are using!

Your Traxxas Captain’s Curse will definitely NOT work, though. That Monster Jam series of vehicles was just a Traxxas Stampede with different wheels, tires and bodies. It would be absolutely tiny on the LMT.

Nuclear Banana was painted by my friend Travis Sutton of Sutton Motorsports and Machine (I just wrote about their r/c pulling trucks last week) and he used a florescent yellow backed by white, and then black to seal it. The body does the name justice in the sunlight, because it’s so bright it does look radioactive!

Just an FYI, if you ever do paint with a neon color, you need to make sure you add a lot of coats before you back it. That paint always goes on very thin!

Let me know what body you go with on your LMT and send pics!

And with that, I’m out. Have a great weekend, everyone!