I look after a mini 1/10 brushless RC truck here in the UK, and most of my notes are about the boring parts: charging, switching on in the right order, and where the battery goes. This is the routine I keep for the Rlaarlo Omni-Terminator Metal.

What came in the box

The truck, a 3S 2200mAh LiPo, a 2.4 GHz 4-channel transmitter and an accessory pack. There is no charger in the box, so the pack goes on my own LiPo charger before the first run.

Power-up order

I keep to the same order every time:

  1. Switch the 2.4 GHz transmitter on first.
  2. Take the body off, sit the battery in the tray and plug it into the ESC.
  3. Press the ESC power button once the transmitter is on.
  4. Check steering and throttle on the bench.
  5. Clip the 1.2 mm PVC body back on.

Turning off goes the other way round: truck first, transmitter last.

The drivetrain I'm working with

The motor is a 2852 3100KV brushless unit on a 45A ESC with a cooling fan. The ESC takes a 2S or 3S LiPo. Drive is 4WD through a centre differential, on a 2.5 mm aluminium chassis with an aluminium upper deck, nylon suspension arms and oil-filled metal shocks. The steering servo is an 11 kg unit with 7075 aluminium gears.

The published top speed is 60 to 80 km/h. The upper figure is quoted on the included 3S pack, and off-road it depends on the surface.

Battery tray

The tray has two bays. The small one is 110 x 36 x 30 mm and holds the pack that came with it. The larger one is 140 x 30 x 45 mm, for a bigger 3S pack. I measure a pack before buying rather than guessing.

Limits I keep to

  • Keep it out of standing water. The truck is not for immersion.
  • The 104 mm tyres grip loose ground well, so I'm gentler on smooth tarmac.
  • The transmitter range is stated at about 150 m. I stay well inside that.

Storage

Size is 410 x 288 x 172 mm with a 251 mm wheelbase, so it fits a shelf without taking the body off. The LiPo comes out of the truck after each run and is stored separately.

The truck I'm describing is the one on rtrbrush.co.uk.