HPI Savage X SS 4.6, Duratrax Warhead EVO and Traxxas Revo 3.3 Hop Ups, Tricks, Tips, and Parts Reviews

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Happy Racing!
ash

Well, the Savage X hasnt been cranked in a while! I’m addicted to Halo 3 LOL. Anybody know any Halo 3 Tips and Tricks?

I wanted to let everyone know about a new site that is up and running as of now - rcBasher.com

If you are surfing the net for some of the best information in the RC World, rcBasher.com is sure to satisfy your thirst for knowledge in everything that is RC Bashing!

Congratulations, doesgo, for the launch of this awesome new website!

Enjoy the ride…
-ash

Now this was with some pretty tough rc bashing, but this Integy Fuel Tank Guard (used on a Savage) couldn’t take the abuse…

Many aluminum parts like this are not made to bash, they’re really just for looks. The best information that I have learned from going through dozens of parts just like this is to stick with plastic as much as you can because plastic will bend.

Thanks for the pic, Giants17

Here’s an email I just answered with some very common questions onWhich is best, Savage or Revo?

Whats up Todd,

What you want depends on how you are going to use it - racing or “bashing” - which basically means beating the pulp out of it on jumps . If you aspire to “race”, the revo is the way to go, but keep in mind that racing is VERY competitive and, in my opinion, loses its appeal because everyone is so bent on winning instead of having fun. Savage is the basher - no comparison. You can beat on it way more than a revo, I’ve had both and am working on my 5th savage build (I beat them up, break them, then upgrade to stronger parts!).

Which car is faster? - The Revo is faster out of the box, but the savage can take many more engines (is compatible with many different engines). I can smoke a stock Revo with either of my Savages (I have a Picco .28 in one of my savages). This question also depends upon the gearing and the length of the race. If you’re talking short race, I’d say Savage would win (call this a drag race). In the long race, top end, I think the Revo would win (stock). On a race “track”, where you have turns and ovals, the revo would win hands down.

Which car is more stable (quick turns)? - the Savage tends to roll, unless you lower the suspension. The revo is engineered to handle quick turns better.

Which has the better stock steering response? - This depends upon the stock servo. I guess to answer your question for face value, the Revo has the better response - it has 2 steering servos to the savage’s one. But upgraded, which you’re going to do with either truck anyway, the Savage can match the Revo (with better servos).

Which car is easier to maintain? - they are equally difficult to maintain. If you get into nitro, you’re going to be spending alot of time tuning, maintaining (like differentials), adjusting, reparing, and learning how to fix them. No easy truck in that regard. If you have some mechanical skills and some time to spend, you’re golden. If you are not mechanically inclined, just know that you’re either going to be working on it yourself or paying your hobby shop to fix the issue at hand.

Which car is more durable? I’m mostly just going to be driving the car around on my own doing some jumps and driving it as hard a can, on pavement, dirt or shorter grass. - The SAVAGE is more durable, hands down.

Hope this helps! Good questions…I’m going to post this for today’s post.

happy bashing

ash

Subject: Revo 3.3 or Savage X 4.6

Hi Ashburg

I am hoping you might be able to answer a question of mine. I am looking to buy my first nitro vehicle and have somewhat narrowed it down to two, the Savage X 4.6 or the Revo 3.3. I just don’t know which to get and it seems both have their camps that support them. There are a few people like yourself that seem to support both. I think that probably comes down to personal preference, so I was wondering if you might be able to give a couple comparisons between the two machines.

Which car is faster?

Which car is more stable (quick turns)?

Which has the better stock steering response?

Which car is easier to maintain?

Which car is more durable? I’m mostly just going to be driving the car around on my own doing some jumps and driving it as hard a can, on pavement, dirt or shorter grass.

I’d appreciate any answers you can give me.

Thanks in advance

One of the major steps I took when building this version of the BulletProof Savage was the conversion from the stock Savage X “easy access” differentials to the old school Savage Setup - a multi piece, Alloy Metal, differential which included the new Savage X SS alloy diff cups shimmed internally and externally.

The internal shims include thin shims and square shims to make the spider gears inside the diff cups mesh together better. Also, the new alloy diff cups from HPI do not flex! With the older versions of differential cups, they used plastic, which under stress would distort and compromise the mesh of all those spider gears. When that happens, they strip.

An ESSENTIAL step you MUST take if you want rock solid differentials is to shim for side to side clearance. This is BEST done with the alloy diff CASES as opposed to the plastic diff cases because the alloy cases don’t flex, don’t wear at the bearing races, and are generally more ridgid.

To shim the savage differentials, you need to get the hpi hellfire shims, which will take out the clearance between the crown gear and the pinion gear. You want them to mesh to where they are tight, but not crushing up against each other. One shim on the crown gear side and one on the cup side is what worked for me with the GPM diff cases. For you, it may turn out different…but that’s a start!

Here are some pics installed…to reduce weight, you may want to go with the diff cases only, using the plastic bulkheads. I got the gpm bulkheads for the bling factor (and I don’t think the bulks are vulnerable to bending).

Notice the thick piece of foam I have down in there between the bumper and the diff…this acts as a bumper for those hard landings when I happen to land on either end:

Here’s another shot of the savage differential, shimmed and installed: