Buggy to truck conversion?

[Gazzalene 171]

Sorry for all the questions lately but being new to the hobby I need help because of little knowledge.

Got a XV-01 Lancia and very happy with it. great fun on the correct surfaces. I went for the XV-01 over a TT-01 because I thought it looked a better kit.

I now want something for "rougher" terrain and little bit of air. I did look into a buggy, Dark impact or Topforce BUT buggy style does not float my boat,i don't really find the Top Force a nice looking car,sorry.

So the "crawler" style is what I like BUT after asking these will not be suited.the ones that are and I like  seem to be discontinued, twin hammer and Axial yeti. The slash,stampede,granite,senton I do not like, don't ilke the balloon tyres or squashed truck body of the truggy.  I know I am too fussy!

So my question now is, Top Force OR dark impact,can I buy either and change the body to a truck style I like , raise suspension a bit perhaps. I know I will be spoiling the buggies performance BUT I am a fun user. To me using the TF chassis must be better than one of the Tamiya cheaper end trucks.

I am not lazy,i have done a search for info and can not find any, this be because its not possible or a very bad idea.

[Mad Ax 9313]

What type of terrain will you be driving on, and how fast?  You say "crawler" but the models you suggest are more rock racers than true crawlers.  They'll go a lot faster than an out-of-the-box crawler.  A true crawler won't really jump very well because it doesn't go fast enough.

The Twin Hammers and Yeti have solid rear axles and independent front suspension.  I'm not sure who else does something like that but there's not really anything in the Tamiya line-up with that kind of drive train.  They're surprisingly capable as crawlers despite their IFS design, but their target terrain is going fast on rocks and sand.  The solid rear / IFS design gives a good compromise between traction and handling over this type of terrain.

The new Axial Capra is a similar style, but with solid axles front and rear it's more suited to rock crawling.  It's a "rock buggy" as opposed to a "desert buggy" - not sure how fast they are out of the box, might be worth looking up some reviews.

Now, in terms of building something fast and fun with big wheels made by Tamiya, well of course you can put big wheels onto a Top Force, however I would be concerned about the shock towers.  Conventional 2.2 buggy wheels and tyres will allow the bottom of the chassis to slap the ground before the shocks bottom out, but if you add 1.9 wheels with big balloon tyres (like a Twin Hammers) you will probably exceed the available suspension travel.  When you land from a heavy jump, the shocks will bottom out before the chassis does and all the force will be transmitted into the shock towers.

This will be the same for most buggy layouts unfortunately, as they will be designed to work with 2.2 buggy tyres.

So - what other options do you have?  AFAIK Tamiya don't have anything in the desert buggy class right now, but if I was going to build something for going fast and doing jumps I would probably start with a WR-01.  It's already got the clearance for big wheels, they're rugged enough for plenty of abuse and twin motor design means you can get buckets of torque by running the stock silvercans on 3S.  You can add 100mm shocks (using aftermarket shock towers) for extra suspension travel and they are well-suited to custom mods.  Mine is still in pieces following a strip-down a few years ago but despite its age I'm still excited to get it out again.

Hopefully some others will come along with some more appropriate advice is this isn't what you want to do

[Busdriver 6209]

You may have the right chassis (xv -01) just the wrong version. There is a T version called the Asterion, one of which I am currently building. I has longer Shocks and bigger wheels than the rally car, it also has a different front bumper. The suspension arms are different though I believe they do not change the ride height or the width. They are made of a more pliable plastic to better absorb the bumps. Shouldn't be too difficult to change your rally spec to truck spec. Plenty of bodies that will fit including the Bowler Wildcat, my personal and soon to ordered favourite.

[Gazzalene 171]

Thanks for both replies.

Busdriver, I will look into the Asterion. I like the XV-01 rally car and will keep that for on road ,loose stuff.

Mad ax,  You ask what sort of terrain I will be using? I live in London some week ends I go to the coast. So in London I will in a park,so cut grass ,bit of path and the odd bump or hump, No bashing for me. Even if I bought a Traxxas Maxx I would still not bash because I do not have the area to do it.

A buggy would fill my needs 80% of the time BUT buggys/truggys don't do it for me looks wise and that's  half of the fun? Big balloon tyres as wide as tall is not for me.

Thought if I went Top Force and got it looking right I could always put it back to buggy if I want that.

I think I will have to give up on the thought and stick with the Rally cars I got.

 

[JennyMo 3526]

I'd echo what Mad Ax has said - if you want a truck that can handle rough terrain at speed, something like the Vaterra Twin Hammers (you can still find them in stock at some online retails) or an Axial Wraith is the way to go, and the suggestion of the new Axial Capra is also a good one (check out some of the YouTube videos/reviews) although it is pretty minimalist bodywork wise. The nice thing about this kind of rock buggy is it's easy to change the gearing and motor if you want more speed and less crawling ability.

I can't think of any Tamiya that offers the same sort of versatility and off-road performance that isn't more of a traditional 'racing' buggy - although a Monster Beetle, Blackfoot or Brat would be fun, and similarly one of the older Toyota HiLux/Nissan Kingcab Monster Racer trucks could also be a option?

Jx

[Busdriver 6209]

You also mentioned TT-02 as a choice. Well theres a truck version of that too. TT-02T. Better known as the sandshaker. Its cheap and cheerful but surprisingly capable little offroad truck. It came with Torque tuned motor, rasied ride height, CVA shocks and CC-01 size wheels. With the right amout of putty in the diffs it makes an entertaining budget runner. Also because it uses 257mm wheelbase there are loads of bodies that will fit it. The one other thought I had ( a bit controversial this) was a CC-01. I believe CC stands for Cross Country not rock crawler or rock racer or the many other things that we have all tried to get it to do. I gather the gear train is not that robust for high powered motors but wasnt the original body for the CC-01 the VW Touareg Rally Raid. I imagine thats the kind of vehicle you might be looking for? With the advent of CC-02 perhaps the price of a CC-01 might drop a bit and make it a viable alternative.

[ThunderDragonCy 7878]

How about a Cayenne or Hummer DF01? Based onthe same drivetrain as the Top Force, but mixed up with some TA01 touring car bits to make s ale looking trucks?