Readers’ Rides – February 2022

FARM TRUCK
Bill Sofroniuk « Alberta , Alberta , Canada
Bill wanted to build a custom truck that would test his kit bashing skills. He had never used styrene before, so he used the plastic sheeting to create the pick up’s cab back and front of box. Then he cut the bucket seats out and built a bench seat, and used an old t-shirt as a seat cover. When Bill got into the painting portion of the project, he used a thin strip of styrene to act as the body trim. He also made a sliding rear window, because he wanted to make a mag mount CB antenna and a place for the antenna cable to get into the cab. Used CD cases were used to create the window and more styrene for the window trim. Great job on your custom made creation Bill!

BUILD HIGHLIGHTS
– Chassis: GCM Racing CMAX with leaf spring set up
– Body: Custom made pick up truck
– Motor: Castle Creations Slate 1900Kv
– Speed Control: Castle Creations Micro X
– Battery: Ovonic 1300mAh 3S
– Wheels and Tires: Locked Up RC Trail Ready with all the scale 1.55 hardware and Goodyear MT/R tires
– Shocks: ECX 1/16th scale, just used for helpers for the leaf springs
– Axles: GCM Racing 3D printed axles
– Paint: Rustoleum x2 paint and Vallejo dry pigments
– Radio System: Spektrum DX6R
– Lighting: Custom made system from raw LEDs
– Other Options: Mix of custom 3D printed parts

OLD BANANA
Joseph Rocha « Adelanto, CA
Joseph wanted to build an off road utility truck but it almost didn’t happen because he couldn’t source the ProLine Utility bed that he wanted to base his project on. At the time, he had ordered RC Exclusive’s utility boxes, which were perfect to use in ProLine’s bed. Luckily, he was able to source one from a seller in Australia. Joseph wanted an old faded paint look for the truck so Old Banana was painted by SNT GFX. He coupled the paint with some Axial rust stickers that he found to create the look that he was looking for. Not only does it look great, he reports that Old Banana is a great tow rig to boot. We’re loving it!

BUILD HIGHLIGHTS
– Chassis: Vanquish VS-410
– Body: ProLine 1966 C10
– Motor: Castle Creations Slate motor
– Speed Control: Castle Creations Mamba X
– Battery: Hobbystar 3S 4600 LiPo
– Wheels and Tires: ProLine BF Goodrich Class 1 All
Terrain tires with SSD Wheels and RC4WD center hubs
– Shocks: ProLine Scaler 90mm shocks
– Axles: Vanquish D44 Currie
– Paint: ProLine
– Radio System: Spektrum DX5 Rugged Orange
– Lighting: A lighting system from eBay
– Other Options: A mix of scale accessories by Chris, RC
Exclusive, ProLine and RC4WD, ScalerFab front bumper

THE SUPER STRIKER
EVAN LEE « Strathroy, Ontario, Canada
Evan picked up a Tamiya Striker about 10 years ago, which even at that time was not a popular choice, but it turned out to be one of his favorites. After the front suspension arms broke, he installed the Team CRP FX-10 Front Suspension Kit that was a popular upgrade for the Tamiya Striker at the time. His engineering background soon had him pursuing other means to upgrade the buggy, leading to the highly modified machine you see here. It was upgraded with the intention of increasing its driving performance, while retaining the spirit of the original concept. The front wing was added to honor its off-road Formula 1 concept. The stock Striker was built from all the spare parts he had and provides a nice contrast to the modified version. While the Striker remains a polarizing buggy, Evan’s “Super Striker” shows some possibilities for the chassis.

BUILD HIGHLIGHTS
– Chassis: Tamiya Striker
– Body: Tamiya Striker
– Motor: Generic 23T brushed open-endbell motor with custom decals
– Speed Control: Generic brushed ESC
– Battery: Traxxas Powercell 7.2v 1800mAh NiMH or Reedy Wolfpack 7.2v 2400mAh NiMH
– Wheels and Tires: Kyosho Turbo Scorpion-style wheels with Arrma dBoots Nano tires
– Shocks: Tamiya CVA Dampers, short dampers on the rear, mini dampers on the front
– Paint: Tamiya Color
– Decals: MCI Racing Striker custom color reproduction decals
– Radio System: Spektrum DX4C, Spektrum SR210 receiver
– Other Options: Custom 3D printed front shock tower, front suspension is a mix of Team
CRP and 3D-printed parts, front wing is a Team Blue Groove reproduction Avante wing,
rear wing is a genuine Tamiya Egress/Super Astute type, rear differential is from a
Tamiya Rising Fighter, with mixed Tamiya parts for the diff joint cups and drive shafts
to make it work, Tamiya’s Hi-Torque Servo Saver was fitted with some modifications to
the lower chassis.

DEMON
Pedar Staley « Chesapeake, VA
This custom Cross RC Demon was submitted by its owner, Pedar Staley, who has thoroughly customized it with plenty of scale parts including a custom paint job and LED lighting too. It even has a scale driver and dog riding in it too. The detailed Cross RC SU-4 body is made of hard ABS plastic, which gives it an even more realistic look. With its full interior that boasts five seats, we’re sure this rig is a fun ride to show off on the trails.

BUILD HIGHLIGHTS
– Chassis: Cross RC Demon SP4C
– Body: Cross RC Demon SU-4
– Motor: Cross RC 35 Turn
– Speed Control: Hobbywing Quicrun WP1080
– Battery: Tattu 1300Mah 11.1V 75C 3S
– Wheels and Tires: RC4WD 1.9 Deep Dish Wagon
wheels with 1.9 Mickey Thompson Baja Pro
– Shocks: Stock Cross RC
– Axles: Stock Cross RC
– Paint: Rustoleum Red and Black
– Radio System: Stock Cross RC
– Lighting: LED by Cross RC
– Other Options: Scale Driver and Dog