What will it take for me to make a 2WD Slash competitive for racing?

[.crispy]

Here's my dilemma. I've got a Slash that I run in Stock class. I also have another Slash that I run on an oval and I leave it in that configuration. Both of my sons have a Slash that they run in Novice with the idea that they'll move up to Stock class.

I also want to run in the Open 2WD SCT class as I hate sitting around.

I could buy a SC10RS for what..., about $370? Plus tires/wheels and then there is all of the parts.

I'm thinking that I might be better off sticking with the Slash from the standpoint of commonality of parts and my knowledge of the platform. For example, I own a set of wheels/tires for that class.

What do I need to make a Slash competitive? What parts? Would I just buy the brushed and buy my own motor/esc or do I buy Traxxas brushless? I could re-use the brushed motor for my other trucks. Which LCG kit? Which motor? Etc...

[rag6]

In my case, it was a brand new lcg build, with mostly aftermarket parts to get into the same league with the "race" trucks. The only Traxxas parts left are the internal trans gears, springs, big bores, axles, drive shafts, modded 4x4 crank, and camber links.

It may be cheaper to get an FT sc10. It sure is fun to pressure the race trucks with Traxxas DNA though 8°)

[harry697]

The SC10RS is way less than $370, unless you need a battery and charger too.

If I were gonna race open/mod SC with a Slash, I would just buy a roller and get my own brushless combo, good servo, wheels/tires, and body. The pro-trac kit and big bores would also be a good choice.

[.crispy]

You're right, it is around $320. Which is about what I have in my Slashes what with the RPM parts and shock parts.

[harry697]

$300 with free shipping on ebay. That's probably the minimal you'll end up paying regardless of what route you go.

I have a stock Slash, MMP Slash, and a brushless SC10 and I honestly can't say that I'm hands-down faster with any of them. A lot depends on what surface you run on. The SC10 feels better on a smooth high-grip track while the Slash seems to shine when the track gets rough. IMO, the SC10 has less "personality" and is sorta predictable and boring at times compared to the Slash.

[.crispy]

Okay, here's a follow-up question, other than tires, what additional do I need to buy to make the SC10 ready to RACE?

Yes, I'm aware that there is no upper limit on the upgrades that could make it faster, but are there certain minimums that you can't live without.

[ducati777]

SC10, as in the Associated truck? It needs nothing... get tires matched for the track and a SC10 is competitive out of the box. Thats a double edge sword though, once you know the car is competent, you've got no excuse!


As far as a Slash? I did ok with the Slash before switching to the SC10. Its a great truck to learn on, and RC racing is much more about the driver and tuning than the truck itself.

[Mr Wolf]

Our (STRC) LCG Slashes are more than capable of keeping up with any other SCT on our track in the (10.5T limited) open class. My son is regularly TQ and has won several A-mains with his LCG Raptor.

The best part for me is the surprise and frustration it's causing some drivers that scoffed when we decided to stick with Traxxas when almost everyone else was buying Blitz ESEs and FT SC10s. They're not laughing anymore and are curiously looking over his car.

The car's well set up for the track plus he's a skilled driver and at club level that's all it really takes to pull off the wins. I run a Protrac version of the same car but alas have less skill than him and usually finish about halfway down the field. I've driven his car and don't think my Protrac kit adds any tangible benefit to the mix.

[harry697]

Okay, here's a follow-up question, other than tires, what additional do I need to buy to make the SC10 ready to RACE?

Yes, I'm aware that there is no upper limit on the upgrades that could make it faster, but are there certain minimums that you can't live without.

This thread will end up missing in the morning if we go in that direction.

[ducati777]

Right. Shhhh.

[.crispy]

Yeah, nevermind.

At least I'm trying to make a go of it with Traxxas. I just don't want to spend $600 for a $300 truck.

[Mr Wolf]

I'm not saying a LCG Slash is the cheapest option around but it didn't cost me $600 as I sold off the electrical bits I didn't want when they were new (XL-5 ESC, Titan motor, servo, radio/receiver) to create my own Slash "roller" for about $60 net and put in the following:

- MMP ESC $110
- Tacon 3650 11T motor $25
- Rustler chassis $15
- Hitec 5625 servo $42
- Airtronics receiver $45
- Kimbrough #124 saver $8
- STRC LCG kit $40
- STRC bellcrank $22
- STRC alum bulkhead $20
- TRX alum casters $20
- TRX alum shock caps $12
- FLM sealed diff $40
- STRC locking hinge pins $13
- Protrac kit $55
- TiN rear shock shafts $8 (I rarely bend the fronts)
- Race tires (4) $40

I still have the stock wheels/tires and a Slash chassis to sell but should easily get $50 for these at which point I reckon I'll have spent just over about $500 net which I think is pretty good value given the performance and durability of the end product. I could ahve got it down to $400 by going with a cheaper ESC and skipping the FLM diff. Had I skipped the Protrac kit (not really essential) and gone with RPM rear and SRT front towers instead I could have got it down to $370.

[.crispy]

Thanks, that listing is exactly what I needed.

[Jakey]

... What do I need to make a Slash competitive? What parts?

A good LCG kit and the Proline Protrac kit.

[rag6]

While a protrac kit is not absolutely required, it will help you to get those last few performance increases out of the truck.

[hotrodgrafics29]

The bare minimum you need in my opinion for competitive racing is suspension kit and your brushless motor and esc. I'd recommend the Velinion VXL3-s... I think that's your bare minimum. Oh and racing tires.

[Mr Wolf]

While a protrac kit is not absolutely required, it will help you to get those last few performance increases out of the truck.

Even though I have one on my LCG Slash, I'm not really sold on the benefits of the Protrac kit. My son's non-Protrac LCG Raptor seems to handle every bit as good as mine. That said, our track is quite slow and technical and I once heard someone say on URC that its benefits are much less on slower, twisty tracks. Something to do with roll centres I think.

I only bought the kit because it's actually very good value for the parts you get as I would have needed to upgrade the shock towers for racing anyway plus the rims are useful. The arms and turnbuckles have given me useful stock item spares for our other trucks.

[.crispy]

OMG!

I added the STRC LCG Kit and threw in a Castle Sidewinder SCT ESC and 3800 brushless motor and this thing is a rocketship. I had to dial back my throttle just to maintain control. Everything else is pretty much stock except the ProLine Suburbs tires.

My current big issue is pushing into the corners. I need to do something to help my turn-in.

[Mr Wolf]

That motor is truly a beast isn't it! Rather than dial back throttle, try the torque limiting feature in the Castlelink software. I found level 6.0 (10=max) to be a good setting for making it more controllable without losing top end speed.

Adding a little toe out at the front will increase turn in speed and can help shift the back around. Also check you ride heights front and rear, a higher rear than front will increase steering. But mostly controlling pushing comes down to front tire traction and throttle contol.

[rag6]

I was able to increase my lap times on both trucks by adding the protrac and dialing in the suspension. Those extra mount holes on a protrac kit are there for a reason.

One other thing I noticed about adding toe out at the front, the car turns in and hooks a bit, and then pushes in the middle and exit of the turn. On a 4wd, with throttle control, toe out was better for me than on the 2wd. I still run about 1° of toe in on my 2wd trucks for my fastest laps.

[O.G.]

Subscribed! Keep the ideas coming guys.

[Mr Wolf]

In case it's of any use to others, here's my set-up info for my LCG Protrac Slash on our twisty hard packed clay track. The surface is very bumpy and lightly dusty to mostly blue groove on the racing line.

Diff oil - 50,000wt (Mugen) in FLM sealed diff
Shock oil - 40wt front and rear (AE)
Springs - Losi Silver 2" front, Losi Orange 2.5" rear
Front shock mount - outer arm hole/inner tower hole
Rear shock mount - 2nd hole from outside on arm/inner tower hole
Front camberlink mount - centre tower hole
Rear camberlink mount - upper centre carrier hole/centre tower hole
Front camber - 0°
Rear camber - 1°-ve
Front toe - 0° (i.e. straight ahead)
Gearing - 14/54 (on Tacon 3650 11T motor)
Battery - ******* ******** 5300mah 2S 50C (100C burst) Lipo
ESC - Castle MMP, 30% punch control, 15% drag brake, 30% max breaking, 100% torque
Tires - AKA Enduro (soft compound) rear and P/L Caliber (M3 compound) front
Rear toe - fixed at 3° from Protrac arms
Ride height - 29mm front and rear

This is the stock Protrac set-up except for the rear tower camberlink mount which I lowered once hole to get more -ve camber gain in the corners.

Not suggesting this is a great or perfect set-up by any means and any feedback, ideas, suggestions would be most welcome.

It would also be great to see some other race set-ups posted, especially from LCG Slashes.

[.crispy]

We're still on carpet up here in the tornado belt. I'll get an indoor setup that I like by about the time we move outdoors and then I start over.

Very useful thread. I'm putting as many suggestions as possible into play.

I think what bothers me most, is that right now I'm just as fast with my stock Slash. I'm as smooth as butter with that truck through the corners and jumps and since the straights aren't very long, the lack of a top end doesn't really matter.

I'll have to use two different driving styles I think.

[96motorhead]

Practice practice and then some more practice.

[rag6]

I will get my setup posted after Sun oval. I moved the pack to the left side, and have not ran it yet. I think the setup will be a lot different than what it was with the pack running sideways across the chassis.

My previous short carpet oval setup:
LCG Chassis - Chuckworks Slice A3
Full Protrac kit
RC Solutions x-wide c-blocks to fill the wider ft on the losi LM body
Diff oil - none totally open, very little 1:1 red bearing grease
Shock oil - 45wt front and rear (Losi)
Shocks - TRX Big Bores
Springs -Rustler stock ft. Slash 4x4 platinum stock rear(Black mark)
Front spacer rt 2 full size traxxas
Front spacer lft (1) 1/2 size traxxas
Rear spacer rt 1 full size traxxas
Rear spacer lft none
Front rt shock mount - outer arm hole/outer tower hole
Front lft shock mount - inner arm hole/inner tower hole
Rear shock mount - Custom on arms because of the mid trans the arms are reversed and shocks out back/outer tower hole
Front camberlink mount - centre tower hole
Rear camberlink mount - upper centre carrier hole/centre tower hole
Front camber - -1°rt,0°lft
Rear camber - -1°rt,0°lft
Front toe - +1°
Gearing - 87/21
Battery - 5400 50c spc
ESC - Castle MMP, 60% max braking, software v1.26, default on everything else
Tires - bald Panther soft rear on protrac offset, bald suburbs m3 ft on protrac offset
Rear toe - fixed at 3° from Protrac arms
Swaybar- HR ft sway soft
Servo - 2075 with Dr Isotopes 4x4 crank geometry fix with 48mm center link

Thanks for the setup template Mr Wolf 8°))

[.crispy]

Okay, I've added it up because Wolf's post up top kept gnawing on me...

2WD Slash $250
RPM bearing carriers and caster blocks $28
TRX alum. shock caps $14
RPM bumper mount $9
TRX front Hexes for rear $3
TiN rear shock shafts $8
Pro-Line Suburbs $46
JConcepts Rulux wheels $16
Castle Sidewinder SCT combo $144
STRC LCG kit $40
Rustler chassis parts and battery tie-down $23

That's $581. Ouch. And I'll end up getting the ProTrac kit at some point.

I get a $23 motor back but that will go in one of my stock Slashes. The old wheels and tires are now the "bashing set" for my son's Slash. And I have a spare ESC and chassis.

Ah well...

[Mr Wolf]

Bargain! Well, you know what they say about money...you can't take it with you!

The worst thing that happened to my RC wallet a while back was over hearing the "serious guys" (mostly FT SC10 drivers) at our track scoffing how a Slash was simply hopeless for racing. At that point I took it upon myself to do everything I could to prove them wrong. Now my 13 year son is dishing it out to them on a weekly basis with in his LCG Raptor (which I built for him) which is just beautiful.

By the way, don't buy RPM casters as they flex too much and your king pins will bend in no time and knacker your steering. And if you go Protrac at some point, be aware that any stock wheels you've bought can't be used on it as they will be make the truck too wide due to the offsets.

[.crispy]

Okay, so new problem. Truck runs like a bat out of heck in a straight line.

Can't get it to turn. I've tried tow-out. I've raised and stiffened the rear end. I've tried late braking to get the nose to dive.

I'm open to ideas.

[Mr Wolf]

Can't remember, are you running Protrac or stock arms?

EDIT: Remember now -it's stock.

I would do the following:

1. Make sure you're getting absolutely the maximum possible steering throw - if necessary remount servo saver, adjust servo/bellcrank connecting rod and reset servo end points to get it.

2. Run zero toe in/out (toe out only improves the turn in speed, not the on-power cornering circle)

3. Don't run much -ve camber up front (1° max) - you don't neded it as the 30° caster angle give huge amounts camber gain when you turn the wheels.

4. Make sure front chassis ride height is no higher than the back.

5. Use a softer spring at the front to get more grip - helps weight transfer to the front wheels

6. Stiffen the back (firmer spring) to reduce rear traction to help it round.

7. Grippier front tires with more side bite.

There's quite a few more things you could try but that's where I would start.

[rag6]

Was that you that was asking about sway bars? Adding a stiff rear sway, and a soft front sway made a big difference. Before the slash mt would either push, or flip. After I was able to throw it anywhere I wanted and it just slid, but rotated so nice.

[.crispy]

Can't remember, are you running Protrac or stock arms?

EDIT: Remember now -it's stock.

I would do the following:

1. Make sure you're getting absolutely the maximum possible steering throw - if necessary remount servo saver, adjust servo/bellcrank connecting rod and reset servo end points to get it.

2. Run zero toe in/out (toe out only improves the turn in speed, not the on-power cornering circle)

3. Don't run much -ve camber up front (1° max) - you don't neded it as the 30° caster angle give huge amounts camber gain when you turn the wheels.

4. Make sure front chassis ride height is no higher than the back.

5. Use a softer spring at the front to get more grip - helps weight transfer to the front wheels

6. Stiffen the back (firmer spring) to reduce rear traction to help it round.

7. Grippier front tires with more side bite.

There's quite a few more things you could try but that's where I would start.

1. Done. Although I had pretty much already done this.
2. Zero toe, check.
3. Camber reduced to -1 degree.
4. Rear is at or above front height.
5. Softer (stock progressive) springs in front, no spacers.
6. Firmer (red stampede) springs in rear, 2mm of spacers.
7. What tire would you recommend for the front? Right now I have Pro-Line Suburbs MC all the way around because that's what most (at my track) run. But they don't seem to have much side bite at all. I think they'll be fine on the rear though.

[rag6]

So your running soft springs in front and and stiffer in the rear? You should get more turning, not push...

[.crispy]

Springs were the same until today. I haven't tested on carpet yet to see if the push is gone.

I'm just trying everything in the list above. Yes, I know, one thing at a time. But it was so bad before, I didn't really have a baseline anyway.

[dstaks]

1. Done. Although I had pretty much already done this.
2. Zero toe, check.
3. Camber reduced to -1 degree.
4. Rear is at or above front height.
5. Softer (stock progressive) springs in front, no spacers.
6. Firmer (red stampede) springs in rear, 2mm of spacers.
7. What tire would you recommend for the front? Right now I have Pro-Line Suburbs MC all the way around because that's what most (at my track) run. But they don't seem to have much side bite at all. I think they'll be fine on the rear though.

All zero offset rims for the front of the slash rub the protrac arm causing less throw. Guys are either dremeling out the arm or running non-offset in the front. They gain about 15 degrees more throw is what I heard

[rag6]

I run Rc Solutions xtra wide c-blocks. I am allowed in mod sc at my track. That way I do not have to dremel the arms.
By the way, here is the race results after a couple small changes in my oval setup above.

2nd in the a in late model sct, and 1st in the a in mod sct

[Rustler User]

Well, I would go with a ae sc. But that's not what your asking for. From what I've seen, if you have any competition with a high level of experience, your gunna need heavy mods. An lcg chassis of some sort. Or the slice a3 kit. I would go with a tire such as the enduros by aka in the rear and suburbs up front. Deff need some rear toe. It's a long process and in the end the cost will be close to a competitor brand truck, so its a pick and choose deal when building a track worthy slash.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk

[O.G.]

I run Rc Solutions xtra wide c-blocks. I am allowed in mod sc at my track. That way I do not have to dremel the arms.
By the way, here is the race results after a couple small changes in my oval setup above.

2nd in the a in late model sct, and 1st in the a in mod sct

I wish I'd kept my son's race results from years ago.

[dstaks]

Well, I would go with a ae sc. But that's not what your asking for. From what I've seen, if you have any competition with a high level of experience, your gunna need heavy mods. An lcg chassis of some sort. Or the slice a3 kit. I would go with a tire such as the enduros by aka in the rear and suburbs up front. Deff need some rear toe. It's a long process and in the end the cost will be close to a competitor brand truck, so its a pick and choose deal when building a track worthy slash.

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk

A stock slash can beat a sc10. But, the sc10's driver will have to do less work then the slashes. I would say just to be competitive it's all setup and get an lcg. Nothing else is really needed. Car's don't win drivers do... But I see your point

[Rustler User]

Ive never seen a slash beat an sc10

Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk

[rag6]

Look in post #37. I beat 4 of them, and a 2 losi's too 8)