Slash 4x4 Thread

[kazuaki]

Originally Posted by Nick

Amazing photos!

What preparation and maintenance do you do when running in sand? I imagine it can get quite messy!

Thanks! As far as prep goes, here is what I have learned on my few trips with the Slash:
1) The stock driveshafts (sliders) quickly get bound up with fine sand. Once this happens, they no longer plunge and your suspension does not move freely. For this, I have created a diveshaft boot from heatshrink. It is snug enough to avoid the issue, but not tight enough to cause its own binding. I haven't taken it apart to inspect yet, but it was still moving freely after this session.
2) I was concerned about the sand piling up in the chassis, so I tried the JConcepts over-tray. It did a decent job of keeping the sand out, but it is just too small for me. The MMM combo is a very tight fit under the cover and I had significant heat issues in the sand. I then tried the Pro-Line under-tray. That ended up being a big bucket and just collected the sand. I had like 2 inches of sand in the chassis, with just the top of the MMM esc poking out. On this last trip, I ran the chassis naked No heat issues and no sand buildup. Go figure...
3) I know some people are very opposed to metal gears, but I just couldn't get the plastic spur to live in the sand. Sand inevitably gets inside the gear cover and the plastic spur gets chewed up quickly. I converted my gearing over to steel mod 1 gearing and it has been good for the last 3 trips.