scx10 or wraith

[93TJ]

I want to buy four rc crawlers, one for each person in my family. I have a three year old son and a four year old son. They both drive $30 walmart crawlers; until Christmas (that's when we'll get real ones). The problem is that I can't decide if we should get the scx10 or the wraith. (Either way, I'll buy the kit version)

Here's how I see it.....

SCX10
pros
I like the scale realism
I think they are more prestigious because they require more skill to crawl
I hear they are awesome straight out of the box
cons
harder for my wife and KIDS to drive


Wraith
pros
Bigger tires are nearly always better
They look like a buggy, and that's kind of what we have (full scale)
I think the kids would do better with the wraith
Down the road, the wraith could be modified to go fast and jump, etc. if that's what my kids become interested in
cons
They seem to need a lot of mods to be good crawlers
not as many customization possibilities
not as prestigious
they inadvertently create "lazy skill less drivers" (ok, that's not fair and obviously over exaggerated)

Does anybody have any input or advice?

 

[benjy]

They seem to need a lot of mods to be good crawlers

I am far from qualified to give any advice here. My wife bought be me a wraith last year, and it has been a blast. I wanted something more crawler oriented, so I swapped in a 55 turn motor. I have also had to upgrade to an aluminum pitman arm (servo horn I think?)... and it is a riot. I talk it out camping and crawl it all over. It's been a ton of fun.

I don't care to have the most technical crawler, and I didn't want to modify it non stop, so it seemed like a great compromise for everything.

 

[RockChucker]

i have a wraith. plenty of upgrades you can do to those stupid things. spend 5 or 10 bucks on a smaller pinion gear and a bigger spur gear and it will crawl nice. if you're buying the kit version, you'll be able to flip the shock mounts around to lower them down and make better crawlers out of them. you probably can't go wrong with either though.

 

[SLC97SR5]

Wraith all the way.

The SCX are more scale and do require more skill to crawl effectively but they are somewhat limited on the terrain that I find when camping/bashing around the yard.

I have a Ridgecrest, it is a Wraith without the tube body. I have no issues letting ANYONE drive it. In 2.5 years I have replaced the motor 3 times, replaced a rear body mount, rebuilt the transmission and swapped in stock c-hubs and upgraded front axles.

I run a 5000mah NiMH battery and see 60-80 minute run times.

It has been beat by every neighbor kid and family member that wants a go at it. It has been hucked off of Church building roofs and keeps coming back for more.

The Wrath has fantastic support online and from the LHS.

You can't go wrong with either choice but I think the Wraith platform will be more fun and it takes to speed better when that bug bites.

 

[Marsh99]

I would check in to the new axial yeti aswell.

 

[spacecase]

i've always been more of a fan of the scx10 myself, but for kids you cant go wrong with the wraith. no body to worry about breaking. both are pretty tough out of the box.

either direction you go will have plenty of aftermarket parts

 

[Coco]

I would check out the Wraith or the Yeti. Wraiths are a blast to drive, and very durable. I have heard the Yeti is as equally fun, but the the only downside to them is they are more of a go-fast style rig. With a couple simple upgrades, they are pretty much bulletproof (depending on how you drive) I have had 3 wraiths over the years, all were built to be heavily modified and thrashed for the Ultra4 style races 801rcc does. I recently got rid of everything, but wouldnt mind eventually getting another to tinker with, but that is far down the line. The nice thing about any Axial option, is you can drive them out of the box for a while, and go crazy with them later. You can build them to the max with lots of aftermarket support, and there is a couple locals that build some killer custom tube chassis. Kit versions are a good step up from an RTR as it is, as they some with some upgrades (aluminum links, Universal front axleshafts, R35 ['Sticky'] Ripsaw Tires to name a few) so the kit option is already a good step up from an RTR wraith.

You can definitely sink some serious money into RCs, just like the fullsize ones. All of my wraiths were in the $1000-$2000+ range, but were bulletproof. Would do 25-30 (guesstimation) MPH on a 3s LiPo, and would still go slow and crawl.

If you have more questions, and are near the Taylorsville area, stop into West Valley Hobbies, and talk to Mike Thompson. Tell him Coco sent you.

 

[Coco]

they can be customized

http://www.rme4x4.com/showthread.php?87968-Crawler-Picture-Thread

 

[Nappy]

I'm with Spacecase on this one. But it really is such an open hobby, that you can do anything you really want. You can even combine the two like a ton of people do. I think Spacecase is running Wraith axles on the SCX. But that's really not the original question. My 6 year old has an SCX10 that I have pretty much bulletproof. And I have a few myself...He likes it, but whenever I am fixing a Wraith for a friend, he would rather play with that. They crawl fine for what kids want to do anyways. He isn't all about taking a perfect line and not hitting gates. Kids like to play. I would say a Wraith is a better bet for just playing. If you want to empty your wallet and sink yourself into a hobby, get into scalers..

 

[93TJ]

Thanks for all the insight. Those wraiths are sweet. I think we'll get four wraiths with 55t motors. But I'm concerned they might be too slow. Would they be much faster than a normal walking pace?

 

[Marsh99]

Thanks for all the insight. Those wraiths are sweet. I think we'll get four wraiths with 55t motors. But I'm concerned they might be too slow. Would they be much faster than a normal walking pace?

55t motor equals super slow. Just drop the coin and get a sensored brushless crawls awesome and has speed.

 

[93TJ]

55t motor equals super slow. Just drop the coin and get a sensored brushless crawls awesome and has speed.

That's a great idea and I understand where you're coming from. But I want them to be slow for my kids. I want them to be able to drive in the house without bashing all of our furniture. But I'm also concerned that they'd be so slow that if we were out on a hike we'd be at full throttle all the time and then they'd overheat.

 

[Marsh99]

I think you would be safe with 35t motor

 

[Nappy]

All you need to know is on this website.... Here is a link you can read...

http://www.rccrawler.com/forum/axial-wraith/346212-choosing-motor-esc-your-wraith-gearing-added.html

 

[benjy]

Thanks for all the insight. Those wraiths are sweet. I think we'll get four wraiths with 55t motors. But I'm concerned they might be too slow. Would they be much faster than a normal walking pace?

IMO that's the way to go, especially for the kids ages... I would say it's a little faster than a brisk walking pace

 

[93TJ]

Great info., you guys are awesome.