Savage Flux Is Now Shipping
 

I just got word that my pre-ordered Flux is shipping from Horizon Hobbies.RC-Planet is also listing them as in stock, so every store should have them soon. Can't wait to torture the new larger bearing, redesigned diffs. Going to give the single speed transmission a beating too. Time to sell my Castle 2200 motor and get a Neu 1527 :lol:.

Nice.

Looks like they beat traxxas, I'm impressed

My guess is that the HPI deal with Castle was much further along than the Traxxas deal. HPI already had a deal with Patrick for the motiv.

I'm wondering if the 2.4GHz Traxxas radio is the sticky point for them. With as many MMM combos as have been sold and shipped, Traxxas has surely had them long enough to stuff them in and start shipping if the rest of the truck were ready.

Personally I doubt it is that - Patrick might chime in but my hypothesis is that Castle had an agreed SLA with HPI for a set number of motors and had its own production schedule for the green variant to satisfy demand.

Traxxas came in a bit later to the foray... There must also be quite a lead time - I'd bet Traxxas have the motors already but have to get the kits built, packaged and shipped to USA for distribution.

Also I'm sure things were held up slightly with the v3 as Castle wouldn't have wanted HPI or Traxxas to have any controller issues - too much reputational damage and would imagine there are expense clawbacks on part failures etc.

PS All 105% conjecture on my part... None of these ramblings are supported or should be considered fact and may not represent (in fact almost certainlydon't ) the opinions of Mike (Rc-Monster), Patrick (Castle) or any other human or almost human being

:lol: Now THAT was funny!!!...love the disclaimer... :mdr:

Gotta have it, or else some moron will read it wrong and start a 4 page debate on why Patrick from cc has beef with rcm Mike over the price of tea in china and all kinds of other stuff that never happened...

Just don't wreck it, looks like all the parts aren't coming until "early March" lol

Batt tray kit is only listes as $26 tho. I wonder if this is for one or two? That's a nice price.

I am only curious to hear how the diffs hold up. The X diffs in my non-X Savage with FLM extended chassis have been perfectly fine with the use of a center diff, despite the absurd power they are being fed with.

This is strange as my Local Model shop here in the UK has been pestering me to buy the Flux as far as 2 weeks ago and assured me it was available in stock from the distributor. I did not bother as the retail is over £500 according to the shop - was was hoping to import it from the USA. With the pound having a hammering the exchange rate is weak and therefore I have not bothered to order it until forum members start giving feedback. What is the retail price in the US?

$630 at 1.4 = 450 welsh pounds - discounts

Thanks - so by the time you add shipping (USD 65) there is not much saving... I guess will have to wait and see how the truck performs in stock form.

Still no instruction manual. I want to order the single speed parts.

Now what did you have to go and say that for?!?!?!? Now I'm gonna be paranoid with mine!!!

Tower charged my paypal account today, so it looks like it will be shipping....

I got mine today and have been playing with it a bit. The good news is that the new bulkheads will fit all older models no problem. The single speed tranny is in the exact same case as the X, so it will bolt right in too.
The diff ring and pinion are new and look tough as nails. The bearing on the ring side is now larger so it should hold up better.
The trans has a new primary gear and a new thicker idler shaft. Hopefully it will hold up well.
The motor mount is massive! Should clamp great.
I put on the optional 25 tooth pinion and will run it with two 3S 5000 Flightpowers. I also put on some stiffer springs on the big bore shocks. It comes with the pink spring (medium-soft). I used the white springs (medium-stiff).

Got any pics of the Flux?

Also would be nice to get some "real" measurements of the battery compartment.

I'll put some up tomorrow night. Is there anything special you would like to see?

A few more details, the battery boxes are nice! The accessories bag has foam blocks and foam strips to customize the internal size. Box size is 30.4mm x 51.1mm x 201mm. (Rough measurement with calipers).
The outdrive dogbones are the new XL large head style. The front and rear bones are the same smaller size as the X.
The ESC mount is held up by the frame on one side and a thick hollow plastic standoff on the other (next to the motor).
The radio box has a lot of room with no throttle/brake servo or reverse servo. I took out the AM RX and put in a Futaba 2.4GHz system.
The center of gravity is impressive. The motor sits low and the balance is much better than the standard nitro X.
Of course, the real test will be how it holds up after numerous backflips and wheelies! HeHeHeH.

Thanks for the info. Now I can order some 3s packs. I'm interested to see how it drives for you.

Were you able to get an idea if the diffs need shimming out of the box?

I gotta get my battery situation figured out soon. I have two 3S packs right now, and need to order another set. I just dont know if this thing will run on 4S, or if I should just stay at 6S? I dont really want to mess with having a 2Sx3S system...like to keep even numbers!

Somebody has got to post detailed batt tray pix. This is killing me lol
Take some tranny pix too!!

How much to the door btw? Does this qual for HPI's rebates going on now ($50)?

i was wondering about the rebate also but I don't see the flux listed. If you're a towerhobbies saver member though you can get $60 off until 1/31 with code they email you.

Some pictures.

More pics.

Even more.

there no grease in the tranny????

How is the ESC on/off switch attached to the ESC?

Nice truck!!!

Will the Flux tranny fit in a Savage 25? Thanks

The diffs are already shimmed out of the box. Each side has 2 0.2mm shims. The pinion has 1 0.2mm shim. Very little play.

Nope, no grease in the tranny.

The switch is mounted to the ESC plate. It is completely sealed with a flexible hood. It's the white square in the last picture behind the three motor leads.

Weight is 11 pounds 6 ounces. I already bought an extra bulkhead and R&P set just in case. The HPI website has them in stock.

What are you running it on - 6S? I'd like to know how this thing runs on 4S - seems heavy for 4S with a 2200KV motor.

Eel- I'm like the truck more now. :great:

What did you find in the diffs, silicone oil or grease? Looks awesome!

My LHS called me today to tell me they're getting two in this Tuesday and my name is on one of them. :D Guess I'll have to add it to the list in my sig.

I did a few quick runs this morning with 2 3S 5000 Flightpower packs. This is the wildest, most powerful brushless stock truck I have ever driven. It beat the snot out of my FLM brushless chassis Savage. They both have a MMM with a 2200 motor, but the lighter weight of the Flux let it walk all over the FLM. You can shoot the Flux over a jump and literally do a mid-air flip. Standing backflips were no problem.
I tried to break the diffs, but they held up. To compare, my FLM with XL hardened ring and pinion busted teeth off the pinion after 4 backflips. The Flux diffs are still going strong after 11 consecutive backflips. I think this is due to a combination of the lighter weight and new R&P on the Flux.
The FLM is more stable on a track with it's longer wheelbase, but if you can keep the Flux on its wheels it can turn tighter and accelerate faster. Still, all in all, the Flux is a pure bashing machine. I rode a wheelie for over 120 feet with no problem. The shocks handle huge jumps without bouncing the truck on landing. So far, nothing has broken! I'm amazed.
On a side note, this is NOT a truck for a newbie on 6S. It takes some experience to control the violent speed. I didn't have any decent 2S packs to run, but I think for beginners, 4S with lower gearing would be better.
Run time varied on trigger action, but the average was about 13 minutes of all out bashing. Motor and ESC were not hot at all, even covered with the body. This was with a gearing of 44/25. So bash away and don't worry about temps.
Overall, I think HPI and Castle have a real winner here.

Man I hate to hear such a good review b/c now I have to spend another $600

how would you compare it to a E Revo?

What was the outside temp btw. Nice to hear about the performance. I'm hoping to get my next week. very excited!!

Azjc, I've never driven an E-Revo so I can't really offer a comparison. If I had to guess, I would say that they are sort of apples and oranges (to use a tired analogy). The Revo seems more of a low slung racer type vehicle. The Flux is more of a monster bashing type vehicle. If racing is your main thing, I would get a BL Revo. If you like the bashing side get the Savage. It is really, really fun to drive and do hard core bashing, but no Savage is really going to be at home on a race track without a lot of mods.

Rabosi, the outside temp was 63 Fahrenheit. The motor and MMM were not even hot to the touch, so it will handle much warmer outside temps.

...nice first comments...glad to hear they are going well...Thanks for those initial pics too...REALLY needed to see those motor mount braces ;) Keep us posted with eye candy too :D