Oh Snap - Element RC Shoots Their Shot! - Comp Kit -

[SteveB1]

Check this out..

Enduro Comp Fox Competition Rock Crawler Kit | Associated Electrics

www.associatedelectrics.com

 

[JatoTheRipper]

$400 for a kit with those stupid front axles on the rear, but with lockout links and the center-mounted trans from a decade ago? Hard pass. This is honestly laughable IMO. I'd be embarrassed to be an engineering at AE/Element and release that...

I'm interested to hear the Element fan's takes on it, but definitely not for me.

Did Element copy the Artful Dodgers' GroundFox chassis or did they buy the company or license it? Can no longer find the Element GroundFox chassis.

 

[Speedy-Triple]

Im with JTR on this one ... too many great choices to have around the same ballpark price that will run laps around elements offering. I like certain element products and have a few of their platforms but I would steer away from this on price point and engineering.

 

[SteveB1]

You guys are a tough crowd! Heheheheheheheheh. I think it's cool that they are trying. Micos are a thing, and those are trash.

 

[Speedy-Triple]

You guys are a tough crowd! Heheheheheheheheh. I think it's cool that they are trying. Micos are a thing, and those are trash.

The flat rail trucks and builds have been going on for a few years now and most companies are trying their best to innovate and bring new standards to the game... This kit does not offer anything new other than some CF bling and some really good shocks. I wonder if the transmission still has the plastic gears and if the Ring and Pinions have been revised for the portal gearing stress?

Anything RC will be fun depending on the situation. Some don't have the room or time to get out there and drive their 1/10s and larger RCs' but they like building and thinker with their little rigs that work for their space. I use to hate micros because I just drove them stock and they flip and flop around and they were slow and uncapable until I started building from scratch and aim towards performance and have been having a lot of fun doing so.

Element has a great mix of set ups for their trucks and I like that they are usually fair on their prices for what you get. however this one is far out from the suggested price for what you can get somewhere else.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Meh....If they had made the front axle offset and scooted the skid up a bit, they would have been able to get the motor lower. BTA steering sucks, so do the rear lockouts. Chassis looks pretty good otherwise and so do the shocks and braces. My VRD chassis is kinda flexy. That one should be rigid.

 

[SteveB1]

I think it's a fun move on their part and I was wondering when / if they would try out the carbon chassis kit one day. If nothing else, it shows the company is willing to continue investing in the crawler world.

 

[pwjm]

Meh....If they had made the front axle offset and scooted the skid up a bit, they would have been able to get the motor lower. BTA steering sucks, so do the rear lockouts. Chassis looks pretty good otherwise and so do the shocks and braces. My VRD chassis is kinda flexy. That one should be rigid.

Why does the BTA steering suck?

 

[svt923]

I think the insistence on continuing to use the Stealth X gear sets is not doing them any favors. Having an enormous bottom gear in the transmission puts the driveshafts too high off the skid and results in awful driveshaft angles.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I think it's a fun move on their part and I was wondering when / if they would try out the carbon chassis kit one day. If nothing else, it shows the company is willing to continue investing in the crawler world.

Are they investing in the crawler world by continuing to offer parts bin specials that lag behind? I mean come on...using front axles in the rear should have been dead with the OG SCX10. It doesn't even appear that AE/Element did much engineering of the chassis. It looks to be an Artful Dodger product.

I think AE has been sucking it up lately, not just with Element, but with the low-quality of their re-releases.

I think the insistence on continuing to use the Stealth X gear sets is not doing them any favors. Having an enormous bottom gear in the transmission puts the driveshafts too high off the skid and results in awful driveshaft angles.

Exactly. They need a new transmission and axles and then I'd give them a legit chance and buy a kit.

 

[smog]

No one who competes will buy that. I don't compete and I won't be buying it either . So who, other than Jato is buying it?

 

[SteveB1]

Truth be told, I couldn't care less who buys it or who doesn't; I don't have a financial stake in Element. I'm just sharing the news; I ain't new to this dance.

That said, having companies not invest in the industry isn't doing anyone any favors. How's this website gonna sell it's dwindling add traffic if fewer and fewer companies build crawlers and trail trucks, and fewer people are interested in the hobby.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

Well if AE/Element wasn't already a joke, they blocked me from their page and banned me from their group for stating the facts about these axles! I'm sure it was that Brad Geck d-bag.

From what Josh/Harley said, nearly every engineer left Associated and the portal axles were designed "overseas" which makes complete sense why they are so terrible.

 

[ktse]

It's a mass produced Ground Fox, I think that's pretty cool for Artful Dodgers. It makes them a lot more accessible since they are now part of a major distribution channel.

I like the shocks and the chassis design. I don't mind the transmission either since it's relatively simple and just works.

Not too sure about the axles since they are very new and Vanquish F10 portals set the bar pretty high.

That being said, for 399 USD, we're in VRD Carbon territory. And VP makes well thought out drivetrains that are worth investing into.

So who's this for? I think these are for people who are starting to get into comp crawling or want something more capable than the average trail rig but may not have the knowledge to know exactly what to get for it to work well. For someone like myself, I like the idea of buying a frame/chassis from Artful Dodgers, but getting the rest of the smaller details right like link lengths, correct hardware, axles, transmission, shocks, etc, is intimidating because there's an abundance of choice and it will take time to research, a lot of trial and error and/or asking a lot of questions to get it to work. If I get a builders kit from Axial, Vanquish, and now Element, I at least know I'll have baseline that should work.

TLDR: it's for folks who like Element's recipe on the entry level comp crawler.

 

[svt923]

Well if AE/Element wasn't already a joke, they blocked me from their page and banned me from their group for stating the facts about these axles! I'm sure it was that Brad Geck d-bag.

I’m generally neutral on Element. They do some things I think are good and some that are crap. However, they have managed to cultivate one of the most insulated and annoying social media followings of all RC brands.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I’m generally neutral on Element. They do some things I think are good and some that are crap. However, they have managed to cultivate one of the most insulated and annoying social media followings of all RC brands.

I am neutral to Element as well. I think the portal axles and this release are a joke, but otherwise they just were hohum and I wasn't interested.

You are so right about their social media presence! Their employees go around Facebook like rabid fanboiz. It's so pathetic that it's hilarious. It seems to indicate the desperate nature of the company. They were even desperate enough to brag about a lawsuit against another company.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Why does the BTA steering suck?

BTA adds additional of strain on the tie rod, rod ends, and knuckles due to the added leverage.

I am neutral to Element as well. I think the portal axles and this release are a joke, but otherwise they just were hohum and I wasn't interested.

You are so right about their social media presence! Their employees go around Facebook like rabid fanboiz. It's so pathetic that it's hilarious. It seems to indicate the desperate nature of the company. They were even desperate enough to brag about a lawsuit against another company.

If you want another reason to hate on AE, they posted a memo a couple months ago saying they were going to go after companies selling products that infringe on their copyrights and trademarks on the RC10 series...In other words, people selling remake RC10 parts...Parts for a 40 year old car that AE was not supporting and had not supported in many years, so the aftermarket stepped up. Now AE has started selling parts for them so competition is a problem and they want to stop it.

 

[Col_Sanders]

Memo:

 

[JatoTheRipper]

BTA adds additional of strain on the tie rod, rod ends, and knuckles due to the added leverage.


If you want another reason to hate on AE, they posted a memo a couple months ago saying they were going to go after companies selling products that infringe on their copyrights and trademarks on the RC10 series...In other words, people selling remake RC10 parts...Parts for a 40 year old car that AE was not supporting and had not supported in many years, so the aftermarket stepped up. Now AE has started selling parts for them so competition is a problem and they want to stop it.

Yep I mentioned this lawsuit in the last sentence of my post that you quoted. F**k AE! I stand behind Fan RC. That's obviously one of the companies that AE is claiming they are going to go after. AE has become a joke.

 

[twade984]

As always, I’m happy to see new releases.

I’m generally a fan of element, but I feel like their pricing is high across the board compared to other offerings.

i think there will be a market for this kit though, either from people newer and wanting to get into flat rail stuff, or the collectors/builders who just enjoy checking out all the options on the market.