Radio Control Blog
Installing a Rustler bumper upside-down on a 2wd Slash is a popular option for creating an on-road or rally style bumper cheaply and easily. Many people that have customized their Slashes for drag racing, rallying, or top-speed runs are already doing this. I got the idea from the Traxxas Slash Modified group on facebook – one of the most helpful (and positive) resources out there. I wanted to document the steps and parts I used to do create mine for a rally car conversion.
I did this mod to my TC6.1 because it’s a dedicated VTA racer. To be honest, 99% of the people out there racing VTA are using 190mm touring car chassis’. However they’re all also running 200mm bodies on them, which can sometimes look a little weird with the wheels tucked way up underneath.
Many of the 200mm VTA bodies that we use today were created by HPI in the early 2000s before the USVTA series existed. They were originally intended to be used with their RS4 chassis which included settings for both 190mm touring car bodies (The chassis actually measured 180mm), and 200mm for their wider bodies. The rear vintage wheels and tires have an offset so the 200mm bodies don’t look too bad on a 190mm chassis. But a select few bodies like the ’70 Charger and ’68 Camaro have an extra-wide 210mm rear. This is when the wheels tucked under look a little silly. Let’s fix that…
After buying a secondhand TC5 chassis for VTA racing, I had a leftover HPI RS4. Rather than letting it collect dust, I asked Jules if he’d like to invite his cousin Reese to go racing with us, of course the answer was yes. We had an extra unpainted Mini Cooper body and I was able to load up the unused chassis with super-cheap electronics like a silver-can motor for $4 and brushed ESC for $10.
There are many things that I like about R/C, especially now that I have kids. At the heart of the matter is that having kids means having less cash. Fact. Also, R/C models are something my kids and I can enjoy together.
There is 99% less chance that I’ll get killed doing model racing or flying vs. “real” racing or flying. I have no desire to be the next John Travolta or even worse, John Denver.
I didn’t say the danger is 100% less, as proven by this video that made it’s way to Tosh.0:
(probably not safe for kids – but it is pretty funny)
Here it is, a list of how to get into on-road R/C racing in two different classes (your choice) on the cheap. I’ll update this list and go into detail about the the components I find important. Mostly I wanted to make a list of everything I’ve purchased to keep things honest.
My son Jules has really taken to R/C driving – and crashing. My formerly pristine Subaru WRX body has officially been put through the ringer:
So I asked Jules what sort of body he would like – hoping that I could save the Subie body from further destruction. But he has a hard time getting past the fact that lexan bodies are clear and can be painted in any color scheme, so he’s often influenced by the presentation color rather than the shape. Unable to get him to commit to something, I made an educated guess.
When we race at the Twin City On-Road Club in Cottage Grove during the winter, he usually winds up running in the Tamiya Mini B-main if there’s not enough people for a novice class. We even discussed getting him a Tamiya Mini at one point.