Traxxas Rustler & Stampede XL-5

by The JANG | July 2006

Stampede XL-5

First Impressions:

The gray parts, white springs and new paint scheme stand out visually, but this is still in essence the Stampede I've always known. The biggest obvious difference on the new 'Pede is the wheel/tire combo. Speaking of which...

Wheels & Tires:

The 2.8" chrome wheels have a serious presence that commands attention like the old dish style never could. The tires are wide -- nearly 2" -- and soft, supported by foam inserts and sporting a scaled down version of the Revo's moderate and artful tread. Like with the Rustler, this is a huge step up from the past. The old Chevron pattern meats were heavy and very hard, decent for onroad use, but very slippery offroad. The new setup really transforms the character of the truck.

Suspension:

While the updated Rustler has lighter-weight front springs, the Stampede sadly doesn't seem to. The suspension is still a bit stiff both front & rear, and here again the rear springs are too long, but here the fronts are even worse, resulting in a leaned-back stance. The bigger wheels & wider tires give the 'Pede more of a monster truck look than ever, and with this look comes the suggestion of more terrain-hardiness. The with the firm springs, though, articulation is a modest 2" with a 6-cell battery installed. I do expect onroad handling to be good, but we'll just have to see in the live test.

Motor & Transmission:

The ends of the truck are still shared with the Rustler, so there's the new vented motor mount and Revo-bred slipper clutch. The 12-turn Titan feeds in power through a 19T pinion and 86T spur, a bit more conservative ratio than the Rustler's to account for the extra size and mass of the tires.

Do you think they put enough grease in the transmission and diff? You should see what's in the other half of the case.

Electronics:

Again we have the new XL-5 ESC, forward-mounted TQ2 receiver, and the torque-geared 2055 steering servo that is needed more than ever to motivate the front tires to turn.

Accessories & Extras:

The Rustler and Stampede have always come with a bag of body clips & washers, a bag of basic small tools, a decal sheet, and various paperwork. The first two bags have stayed the same, but the decals have been redone and are of a higher quality now. They're still precut, so application is a breeze. They now also include an extra, larger pinion gear for running onroad and attaining their advertised 7-cell speeds of "30+ mph" for the Stampede with a 23T pinion and "35+ mph" for the Rustler with a 28T pinion (pictured). What's a shame is that they give you an allen wrench for the pinion set screw, but to get to the pinion, you need your own Phillips-head screwdriver to remove the gear cover.

The big news is the new combined Rustler/Stampede manual. This new document features very clear color illustrations with callouts and a fully annotated top-down photo of each truck, showing where everything is. There's enough basic, straightforward information to bring a total RC new comer up to speed, yet it's not patronizing to folks who already know the ropes. This is the highest-quality manual you can get with a budget RC, and it beats the offerings of many of the big-name manufacturers as well.