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Upgrade  Philosophy
Time of Purchase
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The Project Stampede
Ultra-Pede
& Thoughts on Upgrading
Complete Upgrade List

The Project Stampede
Ultra-Rusty
Traxxas Rustler
Upgraded

At time of Purchase buy the following in order of what you can afford.

1. RPM Wide Bumper - What ever model you chose MSC or ESC, buy the freaking $5 RPM wide bumper.  This thing will save you a lot of money because even in stock form the Stampede is a little faster than you would think and despite your best efforts you WILL hammer the front of the Stampede into poles, the garage, the curb, the wall, your friends, your car,...your get the idea.  When this happens without that huge RPM bumper you could crack or break the body, the front shock tower, camber links, stripe servo gears,... again you get the picture. A very wise investment indeed that will pay for itself over and over.

2. Traxxas Aluminum Shock Caps - Everyone says the stock plastic ones pop off and blow silicon shock oil every where (you don't want to have to clean this stuff up), having swapped them out the the aluminum versions before even a first run, I have never had a problem. (See Mis-Behaving RC in Useful Links for the how to).  Note pick up a roll of Teflon tape form the hardware store and some Trinity Buggy Blast and some 50wt Silicon Oil from your hobby shop while you are at it.  If you follow the directions on Mis-behaving RC you will have a shock almost as strong as aluminum model at far less the price.  You will thank me for telling you this the first 2-3 foot jump the Stampede makes un-eventfully.  From a long term perspective, I see no reason for me upgrade to better shock, the rebuild takes the best plastic shock in the industry and makes it handle anything I've been able to throw at it.

3. Accessories - As above Trinity Buggy Blast, 50wt silicon shock oil, 3in1 Oil, bushing lube and comm drops (if you can find some), and a descent set of Allen wrenches (the one's from Traxxas are crap and will strip). A set of the Sears finger bits are the most used tools in my entire tool box.  These little double ended gadgets along with a driver extension are the primary service tools for  Project Stampede.

4. Xl-1 or MSC that is the question... - I have changed my opinion on this one.  Being the guy that has tinkered a bit with the XL-1 to make it really stable and cooler running with a 17 Turn motor I would have two recommendations.

Option I
If you are handy and comfortable with a soldering electronics, and enjoy projects then buy the XL-1 ESC model for the extra $20-30 and do the Project Stampede XL-1 Upgrade when you decide to upgrade motors. The $20-$30 XL-1 ESC will accommodate you through your first 17T motor.

Option II
If you have no idea what a soldering iron is, are just into the hobby to drive an RC car, and really don't have time for projects then buy the MSC model and pick up the lowest turn best Forwards/Reverse ESC you can afford, that probably now being the Traxxas XL-10. Do a search for "Speed Control" - there are a lot of strong opinions on this subject.  I highly recommend HobbyPeople.com, very fair and good return policy.

Either way hold on to the stock MSC or ESC, you may sell it and want to keep that high end ESC and you will need something to put back in it. It's also great to have a spare bashing ESC, even after you have a higher end one....something for the wet and snowy days so you don't blow the $100 ESC.  Also the MSC uses the same servo as the steering servo so its good for parts (more on that later).  If you can't afford an extra $50 buy the ESC model (and perform the wiring upgrade below), you can always upgrade down the road. In case you are wondering I bought the ESC model because I was in a big hurry and did not want to wait for the cheaper MSC model.  The MSC is also a great option for running in the snow, because it can be sealed.

5. Read Battery Charging before charging any batteries.

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