Jato Got a Bronco

[JatoTheRipper]

When the TRX-4 came out I really had no interest in it. I'm not a huge Land Rover fan and I just didn't feel that I needed all of the extra complications of 2 speed and remote locking diffs. Then I saw OSRC's on a trail run and I started getting the bug. Seeing a truck in person is usually all it takes to pique my interest. :lmao:

When the Bronco body was announced I fell in love. I'm a Chevy fan, but I love old Fords as well and the 78-79 Bronco was a great year.

It's tax time and a nice refund got me searching for a Bronco. They were sold out everywhere online and nobody was guaranteeing that I'd get one even with preorder. That's what I started looking locally and I found one shop that had a red and black bronco. The sunshine scheme is way too "That '70s Show" for me. They were cool enough to hold it for me until I could get there Saturday. So I adopted this shiny new black and red model on Saturday. I'm a big fan of the red and black color combo so it's perfect for me.

I don't intend on doing much to this other than adding some mild performance upgrades - wheels, tires, and maybe portal or knuckle weights. And I'll upgrade the electronics as they fail. Everything, even the much maligned steering servo proved fine in my backyard test.

These wheels are excellent. I hope somebody makes some beadlocks that look like this.

The tires even feel great for RTR tires. They are definitely the best RTR crawling tires I've ever gotten my hands on.

I was surprised by how heavy this truck was out of the box. It's a really solid truck. It's stout and screams well-built. No other crawler that I've owned has felt this solid and well built. I'm really looking forward to getting this out on the trails if and when it ever stops raining.

 

[B-MOW71]

I'm jealous Jato! I too am a Chevy fan, but love the look of the older Bronco's. Reminds me of being a kid growing up in the 70's and seeing these running around town.

I've been wanting to buy a TRX-4 for awhile now but have not pulled the trigger yet. A few friends have these and I am really impressed at how well these run right out of the box.

Seeing yours with the black and red paint scheme might get me to the LHS a little quicker to pick one of these up!

 

[Frank211]

Check you out , ended up getting one. SWEET !

 

[Topher Builds]

Nice bud! I’m a fan of that scheme as well. Definitely agree about the build quality impressions, it’s a night and day comparison to other crawlers I’ve had or driven. I’ve yet to take mine out yet though so it’s good to see the first drive went well.

 

[OldNTired]

I never thought I'd see the day..... ;-)

Look forward to seeing what route you take it and what your thoughts are on the platform. I still haven't pulled the trigger on one of these yet but the Bronco may just get me as well.

 

[2mtech]

Thanks a lot, Jato, I really NEEDED some more encouragement to buy one of these! Looks way sharp, to be sure.

Now that the kit version is out (and maybe available someday somewhere) it's even more attractive, although strange that the kit includes electronics, motor and radio gear.

Since I lived That '70's Show I kinda like the sunburst color scheme, but I'm not about to try and recreate it if Traxxas offers a naked body.

 

[soze]

Nice, I'm just biding my time. Sooner or later I'll end up with one.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I'm jealous Jato! I too am a Chevy fan, but love the look of the older Bronco's. Reminds me of being a kid growing up in the 70's and seeing these running around town.

I've been wanting to buy a TRX-4 for awhile now but have not pulled the trigger yet. A few friends have these and I am really impressed at how well these run right out of the box.

Seeing yours with the black and red paint scheme might get me to the LHS a little quicker to pick one of these up!

Thanks! The red and black scheme is what pushed me over the edge as well!

Check you out , ended up getting one. SWEET !

Thank you!

Nice bud! I’m a fan of that scheme as well. Definitely agree about the build quality impressions, it’s a night and day comparison to other crawlers I’ve had or driven. I’ve yet to take mine out yet though so it’s good to see the first drive went well.

You haven't even taken it for a backyard or house crawl?

I never thought I'd see the day..... ;-)

Look forward to seeing what route you take it and what your thoughts are on the platform. I still haven't pulled the trigger on one of these yet but the Bronco may just get me as well.

Why didn't you think I'd get one?

Thanks!

Thanks a lot, Jato, I really NEEDED some more encouragement to buy one of these! Looks way sharp, to be sure.

Now that the kit version is out (and maybe available someday somewhere) it's even more attractive, although strange that the kit includes electronics, motor and radio gear.

Since I lived That '70's Show I kinda like the sunburst color scheme, but I'm not about to try and recreate it if Traxxas offers a naked body.

I like being a bad influence! Or is that a good influence? :lmao:

FYI - RPP has the chassis assembly kit in stock!

It is strange the kit includes the electronics. That coupled with the fact that the clear Bronco body isn't currently available from Traxxas and the fact that the painted Bronco bodies are going for insane prices on eBay lead me to the RTR.

There aren't many companies that build RTRs to the same quality as Traxxas so I'm not worried. I have seen some people taking them apart and stating there isn't enough grease, but that's the only major complaint I've seen.

I'm not worried about the grease. If the gears succumb to an early death I'll install the Traxxas upgraded units and maybe overdrive or underdrive one or both of the axles for more crawling performance.

:ror: I like the sunset body. It's just not my style. FYI the red on my body, and from what I've read the sunset on the other body, is just decals and people are easily getting them off and they are left with all black bodies. One thing that was pointed out to me is that the Lexan does not have body lines. The body lines are in the decals. I have no verified that though.

Nice, I'm just biding my time. Sooner or later I'll end up with one.

I was biding my time as well and thought I'd probably eventually end up with one. The Bronco body made me act sooner than expected.

 

[Topher Builds]

@jato

I don’t have a battery with a traxxas connector, I popped the stock esc, motor, and servo our and put the mamba x in. The 2280kv and alll the other goodies should be here tomorrow though so I’ll finally get a run in!

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I did another backyard run last night. I really can't wait to get this truck out on the trail, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to be gushing over it. It's so well designed, so well built, and it just works! I'm so tempted to take it out on the trail 100% stock - even the wheels and tires.

The portals obviously give a lot of ground clearance and this truck goes over things where my Ascender and other trucks will drag the skid plate. You still have to pick your lines or the knuckles on the portals will get hung up.

The truck also crawls so well even with unlocked diffs. I don't understand it. All of the climbs seen in these photos were made with unlocked diffs.

I modeled a low center of gravity battery tray last night as well as a scale accessory. I have to 3D print them and see how they fit.

Here are some more photos.

 

[Jim85IROC]

These pics make me want one so bad.

 

[ebbet]

So the decision to get one has already been made...the question is, which color?? Both are so sharp looking! I thought I had my mind set on the sunset color until I saw the posed shots of your black and red. So cool!!!

 

[RCTom]

Did anyone verify if the body lines are molded into the Lexan or not?

BTW, nice Bronco Jato. When I first saw these I thought the susnset paint was the only way to go. Now, I'm starting to lean towards the black/red because of this thread.

Funny thing, I usually think that RTR bodies and colors are OK at best, but Traxxas really nailed it with these bodies. You really can't go wrong with either one.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

These pics make me want one so bad.

Do it!

So the decision to get one has already been made...the question is, which color?? Both are so sharp looking! I thought I had my mind set on the sunset color until I saw the posed shots of your black and red. So cool!!!

You won't regret it. The colors are just decals so you can change the scheme down the line by peeling and replacing the decals.

Did anyone verify if the body lines are molded into the Lexan or not?

BTW, nice Bronco Jato. When I first saw these I thought the susnset paint was the only way to go. Now, I'm starting to lean towards the black/red because of this thread.

Funny thing, I usually think that RTR bodies and colors are OK at best, but Traxxas really nailed it with these bodies. You really can't go wrong with either one.

Thanks! At a quick glance I did not see any body lines for the doors last night.

 

[calcagno45]

The truck also crawls so well even with unlocked diffs. I don't understand it. All of the climbs seen in these photos were made with unlocked diffs.

Videos or it didn't happen... "thumbsup"

 

[JatoTheRipper]

Videos or it didn't happen... "thumbsup"

Oh it happened. Buy one and you'll see!

I'll try to get video of it though.

 

[Jim85IROC]

Do it!

I'm too poor right now. I just bought a new TV and I have a list of other crap that I want to buy before another RC is in the mix. I do like that though...

 

[Inspector86]

I did another backyard run last night. I really can't wait to get this truck out on the trail, but I'm pretty sure I'm going to be gushing over it. It's so well designed, so well built, and it just works! I'm so tempted to take it out on the trail 100% stock - even the wheels and tires.

The portals obviously give a lot of ground clearance and this truck goes over things where my Ascender and other trucks will drag the skid plate. You still have to pick your lines or the knuckles on the portals will get hung up.

The truck also crawls so well even with unlocked diffs. I don't understand it. All of the climbs seen in these photos were made with unlocked diffs.

This is pretty much what I have been experiencing for the past 8 months since I purchased my first TRX4 and until someone actually drives a TRX4 they can't fully appreciate just how capable this truck really is. I see owners of other trucks offering all sorts of opinions on the TRX4 but they generally have no first hand experience driving it. Usually the first comment is that the TRX4 is too complex and they would run locked axles. Whatever. No exaggeration, I drive with the diffs unlocked easily 99% of the time and only lock them when needed and then immediately unlock them again. A tip that I have found works well on these diffs, if you pack the differential cover and spider gears with a heavy grease or 1,000,000cst differential fluid, it creates resistance in the spider gears and makes the diff work similar to a limited slip unit in a 1:1 axle. I don't think the TRX4 was released in time to make much of an impact on any 2017 comps but I look for 2018 comps to be a different story with TRX4s taking a lot of top spots. I now have two TRX4's the first was a Defender RTR and the second I built up from a pair of frame rails. The third will be a Bronco RTR coming soon.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

Did anyone verify if the body lines are molded into the Lexan or not?

There are no body lines in the Lexan for the doors. There are very faint body lines for the hood.

This is pretty much what I have been experiencing for the past 8 months since I purchased my first TRX4 and until someone drives a TRX4 they can't fully appreciate just how capable this truck really is. I see owners of other trucks offering all sorts of opinions on the TRX4 but they generally have no first hand driving experience with it. Usually the first comment is that the TRX4 is too complex and they would run locked axles. Whatever. No exageration, I drive with the diffs unlocked probably 99% of the time and only lock them when I need to get past an obstical and then unlock again. I don't think the TRX4 was released in time to make much of an impact on any 2017 comps but I look for 2018 comps to be a different story. I now have two TRX4's the first was a Defender RTR and the second I built up from a pair of frame rails. The third will be a Bronco RTR coming soon.

A friend told me that his could tackle most obstacles with diffs unlocked. It was so hard to believe. Then I experienced it for myself. Crazy.

With the kit I think it will be even more popular!

Inspector86, very well said indeed! I like all my crawlers and my TRX-4 is very capable, I like it for it's uniqueness, all the bells and whistles and it's quite capable with just a couple free and cheap mods! With the available single speed tranny, diff spools, over-drive and under-drive ring and pinion gears, different tires and wheels (most people change these eventually anyways), and a lighter body, there's going to be some Traxxas crawlers taking top spots in competitions.

Jato, are you home modding this thing yet? :ror: 8)

I just sat down at my computer to start modeling so I can mod it. "thumbsup"

 

[willygee]

Nice, I'm just biding my time. Sooner or later I'll end up with one.

yip....me too.