8 myths about RC Crawling

8 myths about RC Crawling


Tubers are for looks, not performance
Comp tubers weigh about the same as or sometimes less than a twin vertical plate chassis running a Lexan body. When set up correctly, they can be just as deadly on the rocks. It’s all in the geometry, driving style and setup.

Slower is always better
Slow and methodical crawling is the key to success on the rocks, but a number of obstacles require wheel speed to get up and over. You want your crawler to have the ability to crawl slowly with high torque as well as the ability to launch, if need be. A 3-cell LiPo and 35-turn or 45-turn motor is a good combo to get the best of both worlds.

Heavier rigs are always better
A light, nimble rig set up correctly with proper forward weight bias will perform better than a heavier rig. It’s basic physics. The heavier something is, the harder it is to go uphill, and the easier it is to flip while side-hilling.


You need tons of articulation
This is a very common misconception. Although lots of articulation might look impressive, your crawler will perform best with around 30 to 45 degrees of articulation. Anymore, and your rig will try to twist and wont’ be stable on the rocks. The truck will also feel less predictable on the rocks since the front and rear axles are not working together and are in extreme positions on the rocks. More often than not, excessive articulation leads to a truck doing an impression of a pretzel when it encounters a difficult obstacle.


Full-size and RC crawlers are very similar
Bogus claim alert. Power plants, transmissions, tire setups and driving style are all different from the RC counterparts. There are, in fact, far more dissimilarities than similarities. The power-to-weight ratios are not even remotely close. The contact patches on the tires, the compounds and the tread designs are not really that much alike. Some of the principles are the same, but what works in the real world might not work in RC and vice versa.


Dig is mandatory
Dig definitely gives you an advantage on courses, but it isn’t necessary. If you can’t compete on a local level without dig, then the course designers are building a “dig-favored” course. Tight corners could definitely make any course more challenging but the rocks themselves should be the obstacle, not the gate markers. The bottom line is: a good driver without dig will still beat a hack with dig.

You need gobs of ground clearance
Ever see those crawlers that are jacked up to the sky? Lower that monster down to the correct height! You want the bottom skid plate and lower links on your crawler to be almost parallel with the ground or slightly up. Clearance of 2 ½ to 3 inches is usually ideal, and anything over 3 inches is starting to push your limits. After you’ve set up your rig correctly, approach the rocks, and point your tires toward the tallest rocks. This will lift up the axle and keep your axles and skid plate out of harm’s way. You also want your rig to have a super-low center of gravity, so it doesn’t flip on vertical climbs.


Trucks with independent suspensions can’t crawl
Have you seen the Traxxas Summit? It crawls extremely well. Sure, solid axles have the advantage over independent system; but independent-suspension-equipped trucks more than pull their weight on the rocks. With a progressive independent suspension system as used on the Traxxas Summit, trucks can be formidable on the rocks. Will we see independent suspension rigs win comps? No, but you can still crawl with them.



source:rccaraction.com

Cool post.....shows that some people talk a load of BS regarding some of these issues. I am not new to crawling, but steadily learning some principles....I just cannot get my head around suitable suspension geometry....I dont want to go back to school...LOL

I am overcoming the lack of wheelspeed by installing the 2 speed R2 into my crawler...when I get it.

Thanks for the info. (And no, I still would never get an indepedent susp crawler)

There we go Richard, you dont need that dig unit just yet!

Great post, started reading this thinking that damn i had read this before somewhere.... and then saw the source from RCCA....

they actually have an awesome section in the back of the mag dedicated to crawling now call ROCKPILE i think!

thanks for sharing sir chard, this would be helpful for starters . . .