Popular Post Gaz! Posted June 21, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted June 21, 2023 Hi, before i start, ill offer my unbiased opinion on this little truck and pit it against its rival, the Traxxas Trx4m. To start with both vehicles will stock, i will be using a Traxxas esc/rx, tx from a Trx4m along the same stretch of course, then as is normal, start to add some hop-ups/improvements to then compare to my heavily breathed on Trx4m. all findings good and bad will be published and if i can get one of the kids to help with some video footage along with pics to show whats happening in better detail. now as much as i like the look of the Chevy Blazer i much rather preferred the look of the Power wagon, no idea why but its a very striking little truck with a really quite impressive stance. So one came up from (end of line rc) eBay as a new vehicle but missing the radio gear, esc, battery & charger. Had a good scan through the build manual and it does all look very well presented and clear enough to understand. onto the truck, the body is released by 4 little tangs that slot into the holes in the chassis, tiny bit more fiddly than the Trx4m but still much better than body clips lol. Once removed, the wheel arches and running boards are one piece and screw to the cab piece so a bit of body modding will be really straight forward to do. Same idea with the rear cage. On to the chassis now, which i believe will be the exact same as the Blazer, i was very dubious of the “nylon” chassis/braces, its all one big piece and yes it does flex a bit but under running conditions i dont think that there will be a noticeable difference comparing to a steel rail/ plastic chassis brace design, overall i believe it will be put to the job, this is where my first little gripe comes, the battery tray is tiny, thats going to make battery choices limited or some modding to fit. I believe stock to be a 2s 380mah, almost half the stock supplied Traxxas counterpart, not a deal breaker, just need to get creative with what i have. as i roll it along the bench, it does feel incredibly smooth a lot like the 1/10 Trx4, the driveshafts whilst plastic look quite beefy but with any crawler, metal driveshafts are better and will be on the cards for it. Axles and portal housings (all plastic) look and feel very nice and maintenance should be a breeze, there is very little slop where the front portal housing mounts to the c-hub which is very impressive at this scale. Suspension links are all plastic and the upper links are a wishbone type shape so its 3 link suspension and not the listed 4 link, after looking closely at the Blazer pics on here they are the same as this power wagon, which to be fair is a bit cheeky really as 3 link is no where near as free moving as 4 link suspension at ANY scale, again it can be remedied and will be at some point “proper” four link suspension. This up 3 link does give the front axle quite a bit of slop, imagine your thumb under the diff and your index finger on the steering servo, it rocks back and forth approx 3-4mm which feels a lot, same with the rear axle. Again this can be remedied with a four link set-up. whilst the axles are in hand, there is a monumental amount of driveline slop, it can be felt by hold the driveshaft steady and turning one wheel, this is the case on all four corners, its to be expected from a 2 speed gearbox but the axles will require a strip down and inspection. i will endeavour to get some video footage with some help. finally before the pics, the gearbox is of good compact design, motor is Power Dash 130 sized motor as opposed to the 180 sized motor found in the Trx4m, but with the portals and two speed “should” make it as torquey and give similar wheel speeds, the gear change servo is inverted and the servo horn and wire link could be susceptible to dirt ingress or damage where its placed, this is going to be something to keep a eye on. electrics wise, i will remove the 2 stock servos and the connectors are not the usual fitted ones, steering will be done with a micro savox 0257 servo and Tactic micro servo for the gear change. now onto the pics, This shows the gear change servo horn/link set-up. This is the falsely advertised area, this should be resolved before someone takes them to the cleaners….. you can clearly see the upper “wishbone” shaped upper links. Finally the last pic shows my daughters stock Trx4m with the power wagon and my quite modded Trx4m to be able to test at various stages of this review and be based on actual findings, ive bought both so i dont have to promote either vehicle by being told to or big it up because of “buyers remorse”. Thanks for looking and ill update once it has electrics fitted and is a runner. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone-wolf Posted June 21, 2023 Share Posted June 21, 2023 Good review, it will be interesting to see what you think of the little power wagon against the trx4m 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted June 21, 2023 Share Posted June 21, 2023 Be good to see how they perform against each other 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Gaz! Posted July 7, 2023 Author Popular Post Share Posted July 7, 2023 Time for a update, i have replaced all the stock electrics now to a separate esc and receiver, also used a ftx lipo (sadly doesnt fit the battery tray so had to go higher up over the shift servo and gearbox. all tested and working well on the bench, today should hopefully be the real start to testing. swapped out the stock wheels and tyres for a set of stock trx4m wheels and tyres for now, i think that something a little bigger diameter wise would be beneficial. so here it is as of now, Oh and finally, i have no idea who Doug is or why he has named the truck (reminds me of Brum? With a face) removed it and found a larger Dodge decal although its a touch too big i think. updates after first (stock chassis) run, will also be running a stock trx4m and my lads heavily modded trx4m today to for some proper comparisons. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted July 7, 2023 Share Posted July 7, 2023 Looking really good mate just hope with having things higher inside doesnt affect the cog to much 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted July 10, 2023 Author Share Posted July 10, 2023 I have done a video but cannot seem to upload it… probably just me lmao The first test run was terrible!! it had 30 attempts at the same bit of course and managed it twice, it rolled so many times that the rear of the cage doesnt hold very well now, the tyres have very little grip also, the wheelbase is incredibly short which can help but also hinder, on a descent the rear end came over the front far too easily. so back onto the bench and its now got weight inside the wheels and ive trimmed back the massive wheel arches, now looks like this…. Only had a 5 minute drive before the lipo ran out but it IS a definite improvement, it managed the course more, the rear still wants to come over the front when descending, the tyres aren’t the greatest, they dont really deform over the rocks. So now im afraid its a waiting game before i can order any goodies for it. I have compiled a list already….. 1. Wheels and tyres for more grip and more weight. 2. Suspension links and steering links to try and get rid of all the sloppiness. 3. Front c-hubs and steering knuckles will hopefully help increase steering lock as stock is a little disappointing. 4. Shocks/springs will need doing, it is very bouncy and again will help the handling. i have pondered if the battery is too high now and causing it to be a bit top heavy, unfortunately though it has to go this way. thanks for looking, more coming asap. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 At least your giving a try out and modding / improving as you progress 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ed1 Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 got the same model/colour by chance. pm-ed you about the wheels and tyres you are selling.following your review/update! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted July 10, 2023 Share Posted July 10, 2023 Have you considered these ? https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/1348871 maybe even just on rear wheels might add enough to stop nose overs ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted July 11, 2023 Author Share Posted July 11, 2023 8 hours ago, Stormbringer said: Have you considered these ? https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/1348871 maybe even just on rear wheels might add enough to stop nose overs ? Yeah ive seen these, looks a good way to add a little extra weight where needed. I need to decide on some wheels and tyres and see if these could work with them, great call though mate, thank you. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted July 11, 2023 Share Posted July 11, 2023 Welcome 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 Managed to make a couple of small purchases (excuse the pun lol) got some internally sprung shocks, alloy steering links and some alloy wheel hexes coming on a slow boat from China. in the meantime, i need to have a look at what other bits i have left to sell to get some more stuffs ordered…. 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steephill Posted July 12, 2023 Share Posted July 12, 2023 I've got brass portal covers front and rear and the brass wheel rings on the front wheels. Does make a huge difference to the centre of gravity 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davy Crockett Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 Nice review and interesting read pal 😀 Had a Power Wagon a while ago and had similar issues with it being nose heavy and tendancy to roll sideways. Didn't keep it long enough to do many mods but wrapped a 9v battery to look like a pack to give a bit of weight on the rear. Yours looks great with the TRX4m wheels and tyres, trimmed arches make a difference 👍 Looking forward to progress 😄🙂😄 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted July 24, 2023 Author Share Posted July 24, 2023 Well the upgrades came and really impressed with the steering links and hexes, for a no name brand, the fit and finish is very good. same with the shocks, they look amazing! Easily look like they could be twice maybe even three times more expensive. Unfortunately once fitted, the shell wont go back on as they stick out further than the stock pogo sticks, I haven’t had time (end of school term stuffs) to have a look to find a remedy, just off the top of my head i could swap the lower link with the shock mounts on the axle and remove the shock top standoff….. if it clears the shock towers, i will make a start on it asap. @Davy Crockett, thanks for the kind words mate i have thought about making a little box on the back to house the main drive battery, those wheels and tyres have been robbed back by my lad now, he has built up a stock rtr Trx4m for his mum to use so we all have one now. i will make sure to get some before and after pics of the shock issue, if that goes well then its time for some head scratching with the electrics (again! Lol) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted August 1, 2023 Author Share Posted August 1, 2023 Well the shock problem is no more!! I couldn’t swap the shock and lower link around as the top would have fouled the shock towers, luckily i had some smaller spacers (the ones supplied with the shocks was 5mm i think) at 2mm, and the plan was to upgrade the mounting hardware with some cap head bolts but now these fouled the wheel arches, so i had to use the Phillips head, supplied bolts which is far from ideal but they were too long, luckily they are made of cheese so a snip with the cutters and off we go again, and now thankfully the shell clears JUST lol the steering link went on no bother as do the hexes (you might just be able to make them out in the pics), now its time for another run and see how it goes. one thing i will say is my power wagon has really poor steering lock, again another plus point for the Trx4m there im afraid. anyway, ill shut up until the results of this “test run”, still unsure of battery placement as of yet though??? Finally, i got in touch with the seller about the shocks as the ad listed them to fit and explained they didn’t and he should amend the ad according, as it could lead to more problems from fragile buyers, he was excellent throughout and even did a part refund as a gesture which i thought was very kind of him. just noticed the pics, it does my head in to see hex bolts and dirty Phillips screws together, need to sort out some small bolts in various sizes….. thanks for looking 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 That was good of the seller tho . As for the battery placement could you not swap places with esc and battery ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone-wolf Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 just an idea for battery, maybe a box on the rear bed area to house the little 380mah, as the power wagon can use a little more weight on the back 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted August 2, 2023 Author Share Posted August 2, 2023 22 hours ago, Stormbringer said: That was good of the seller tho . As for the battery placement could you not swap places with esc and battery ? Definitely was, i will make a few future purchases from him. The battery is longer than the esc mate, meaning the cab wouldn’t go on over the front… 9 hours ago, Lone-wolf said: just an idea for battery, maybe a box on the rear bed area to house the little 380mah, as the power wagon can use a little more weight on the back I dont have the original supplied lipo, i bought the one you recommended in your fcx24 thread mate, yeah that placement is definitely on the cards, just cba digging through the plasticard and making something if I’m brutally honest lmao, will have to try something after this test run. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stormbringer Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 Ahh ok mate i didnt realise that from the pictures 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted September 25, 2023 Author Share Posted September 25, 2023 Cant believe its been so long, nothing performance wise to update but ive kinda hit a cross roads with this truck. My original plan was to convert the power wagon shell for the blazer shell but by the time you have bought all the bits, its not a cheap fix, (with a set of wheels and tyres, i cant see much change from £100) couple that to the upgrades that are still wanted and im in new rc territory. Also has mentioned, the wife has bought me the Injora Tarantula kit for my birthday which is going to need some pennies throwing at it too, although wont be top spec from the off, that would have to be gradually done too. So my options are, 1, carry on above with said plan and keep the fcx24, spending another £150-200 getting it how i want it. 2, attempt to sell the fcx24 and a couple of other smaller rc to offset the cost of the Traxxas trx4m Chevy Blazer and the essential upgrades (the Traxxas Blazer is £197.99 when i last looked). both options would require being funded by selling others in an attempt to get the funds. The days of have spare money have now passed restricting what i can buy etc. if im honest though, its a chore going through them all photographing each and listing for no one to reply. EBay comes with the pressure of finding a idiot then being left out of pocket so thats kind of last chance saloon. i know its not a serious dilemma in the grand scheme of reality lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone-wolf Posted September 25, 2023 Share Posted September 25, 2023 i get you situation, my problem is not having space for all my rc stuff, with out over flowing into main house area so i tend to have a one out one in policy, hence i dug out my blitzer with a view to clean, photo and list but then decided to just keep it and sack of new car. You could get a fair price for the power wagon and put the money toward the tarantula build 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaz! Posted September 26, 2023 Author Share Posted September 26, 2023 19 hours ago, Lone-wolf said: i get you situation, my problem is not having space for all my rc stuff, with out over flowing into main house area so i tend to have a one out one in policy, hence i dug out my blitzer with a view to clean, photo and list but then decided to just keep it and sack of new car. You could get a fair price for the power wagon and put the money toward the tarantula build Thanks for that mate, could i ask, what do you think its worth?, i have no idea what to ask for it as its not a standard one with the electrics and few upgrades… 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone-wolf Posted September 26, 2023 Share Posted September 26, 2023 really hard to say Gaz, can get them new for about £130 if you shop around 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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