X-Cellerator, Rustler, Evader

[deekortiz]

I am really stuck between these 3 trucks. I know that the rustler and the evader have been compared alot but now with the new electric XTM thrown in the mix it is even harder to pick an under $200 rtr.

Which ever one i get it will most likely be ran on 7 cells with a novak SS.

I plan on just doing a ton of big jumps and a bunch of bashing. Racing will be little to none. My friend has a track in his backyard and me and him racing is about as much racing as the truck would do.

Because of bashing the rustler was looking like a great idea. But the evader comes with some better stuff stock but according to most people the plastics used are less durable.

Not much has been said about the XTM i hope i can get some feedback on it in this thread. RCCA said it jumps well and is durable but slow. Im sure the Novak would solve that.

Right now because of its price and it having tons of hop ups availible i am leaning toward the rusty but i wanna hear more about the XTM.

Hopefully you guys can help me out and we can all get some more info on the XTM since not much has been said.

[EvaderRacer76]

well, i have the evader and rusty, but no xtm. from my experience, don't get the rusty - parts are hard to find for it now, and it's just all around crappy. The evader is slightly less durable, but a lot more ajustable, and you can race with it if u ever change your mind, plus, parts are a lot easier to find for it. Although, the xtm looks equal to, if not better than the evader, especially if you are going to replace the motor right away. If i were you, i would go witht the XTM as my first choice, then the evader close behind.

[racer234]

I'd go with the evader. The traxxas gear box that comes with the Rustler isn't really meant for a fast motor, and you'll be tearing apart gears.

[Prelude14WRX]

id go with xtm's stadium truck. I drove a rustler and i didnt like it-very cheap feeling. I drove the evaders cousin, the bx. I thought it was ok, better than the rustler, but not that much better. The xtm review in this months magazine looks promising. I like how it used AE's and losi's designs into one great rtr package. I also like the really nice gear that it comes with. In the review they said they were jumping off some sick skating ramps, and they said it didnt break nor did it bottom out. Those ramps are huge and this car could take it......get the xtm :D

[deekortiz]

Thanks for the help so far guys. Please keep the info coming. I think its down to the rusty or the xtm since a rusty is about $80 cheaper that would give me $80 more dollars to get a few things for it but im not sure if that would be enough to make it alot better. I am leaning toward the xtm because i think they are a great company and it is a great truck for the price. Hopefully someone who owns an X-cellerator could give some more information about it.

Please keep the advice coming its helping alot.

[henry_huckem]

the magnum tranny in the rustler will absolutely crap its pants and EXPLODE if you try running 7 cell B/L on it. I mean seriously man, I've seen these things get dizzy running my 12-15t mods. and thats on 6 cells! :P I have a rustler and an evader, and I hate them both. The rustler would be my choice if you plan on doing a ton of jumps and crazy stunts, just stock up on bulkheads, and for some reason they used one of the most retarded looking steering bellcrank systems ever introduced to man when they built this thing, so get some of those. And if you're going to run B/L get a few extra tranny's and some alum. or steel trans gears or else you'll get one or two packs out of a gearbox. lol...

Email XTM and ask them how their gearbox is constructed in the Xcellerator. I'm pretty sure its a 3-gear setup so it should be pretty durable and I bet you could run B/L power pretty easily. I plan on buying the new Xcellerator as soon as it shows up in my LHS. It looks like a killer truck and with a power plant upgrade looks like it could be a very formiddable competitor. wow. this post got long fast....

lol

merry x-mas

-matt

[crazy1]

Forget the copy. Get the orginal T4. Ok so I know it is $5.00 over your price range at Ultimate Hobbies but you get free shipping. And It can handle your Novak SS5800 all day long and the tranny will not wear out becase of the SS5800. I have ran over eightteen packs through my AE B4 in an afternoon with the SS5800 and gone months with out tranny problems. I allso have a T4 that I run in stock class. I can get parts almost any ware and that is a big plus.

Now to realy answer your question. The XTM while a copy of the T4 dose not share parts. Why is that important? XTM is not widely supported in hobby shops. Only one mail order place that I know of has XTM parts for the electric stadium truck. You will have to wait for parts to be sent to you VIA mail order. More down time, less up time. The Evader is a better truck than the Rustler espicialy in the trany. The Rustler has a gear diff. while the Evader has a ball diff. This is better for racing. Check your local hobby shops to see what parts they carry. Broken parts that you have to mail order = down time + shipping cost = less funtime + less hop ups = :mad: :(

If you are going to be running in the back yard and not at a track a Traxxas Stampede will be your best bet as it will run over grass and other things that a stadium truck will not. There used to be a ball diff upgrade for the Rustler/Stampede. This could be your first upgrade. I do not remember who makes it. The cheapest Traxxas trucks come with a mechanical speed control. You will not need a speed control as you are going to use the Novak SS5800 Brushless system. This will cut your cost some and give you a spare servo for the front stering if you break the orginal one.

[Ed237]

Crazy is right.

Why install a 200 motor/esc in a $130 Ruster? And, the T4 is just $5 more than a Xcellerator. I used to have an Evader and it was a nice truck, but a brushless motor will have the idler gear in shredds after a couple of packs.

[holeshotkid]

go to your lhs and find out what brand of parts they carry. i bought a dtx nitro evader and i have to order parts for it every time something breaks, because i didnt go to my lhs to see what they carry.

[SS Pede]

FWIW - An aluminum idler gear is all you need to make the Rustler's tranny very durable. Heck, my Pede's tranny (same as the rusty's) lasted for months with my SS5800 before the idler gear stripped. Mind you, I was lucky. But to say you will destroy your tranny nonstop unless you stock up on aluminum and steel gears is inaccurate. Just buy an aluminum idler gear for $11 or something like that, put some grease in there, and you're golden. So don't let the rusty's tranny scare you away.

[joostin421]

get a stampede!

carbon fiber chassis, front shock tower, and esc plate, aluminum arms frnt & rear, aluminum nitro stampede hub carrier in rear, titanium turnbuckles, aluminum idler gear, cold fusion racing Stainless steel diff gear, 4" aluminum shocks in front and rear, custom aluminum rear skid/bumper, novak ss5800, 22tooth pinion, 7 cells.

http://home.comcast.net/~joostin420/wsb/media/355614/site1227.JPG
http://home.comcast.net/~joostin420/wsb/media/355614/site1224.JPG
http://home.comcast.net/~joostin420/wsb/media/355614/site1228.JPG
http://home.comcast.net/~joostin420/wsb/media/355614/site1229.JPG

justin

[WimpSlayer17]

i would say the t4 rtr se. Besides it comes with a 15 turn motor and 13 turn LRP AI Super Reverse speed control you could sell or use on something else.

[deekortiz]

Joostin,

Is the Cold Fusion steel diff worth it ive seen them before and they seem great but for $64 is it worth it?

and what shocks are those and any idea on how fat your going with that setup.

[SS Pede]

I think most people consider the steel diff to be overkill for anything other that insanely powerful BL systems (a lot more powerful that 7 cell Novak SS5800). But hey, that was Joostin's decision.

The SS5800 will get the Pede over 30 mph with 6 cells. Joostin might be going in high 30's because of that 7th cell, but he'll have to tell us.

[Cain]

Those J-Dawg tires worked great on my T4. Gave it the clearance to bash and in the modified monster class ( E-maxxes, monstered-trucks ) the T4 was insanely fast and fun.

I know its nice to have something different than everyone else ( I run an SB Pro ) but if you really want to be able to get your parts to fix when you need them, make sure you have local support. I stock up, but, the SB doesn't break much so its a moot point. I don't know anyone with the XTM vehicle, so we can't really comment on its durability as most vehicles in the mags seem to never break during there testing but when you test it, you can have a pile of pooh on your hands.

[deekortiz]

Well you guys currently it looks like in getting a factory team t4 :D . I have some more to spend then i once thought. So I might as well get it. Anything i should order with it. Currently the set up is looking like...

1. factory team t4
2. RPM wide front bumper
3. Novak SS
4. Ballistic 7 cell pack and a reciever battery
5. Hi Tec aggresor radio
6. (hopefully) a hi tec metal geared servo
7. some spur gears
8. Deans connectors

For the 7 cell i just need to get a flat pack and it will fit right in right?
like this just a flat 7 cell pack right?

l l l l l l l

[Cain]

a flat 7 cell pack should fit in the vehicle. I personally would just run 6 cells but thats me.

As for gearing, I would get some pinion gears first and maybe a backup spur of the same size just in case you munch the gears. The stock gear cover should work ok.

As for deans, can be a pain to put on if you are on your own to install them. You may want to look at powerpoles. Easier to install and work great.

For the FT-T4, I have heard of guys preferring the handling characterstics of the stock plastic chassis. Not sure if you will care but you could buy that chassis, sell the graphite one or keep it as a spare.

You will probably want to pickup some extra arms.