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Features
Upon first glance at the fully built chassis, you can tell right
away that the AX-10 Scorpion is strictly business. High ground
clearance, articulate suspension, and a locked drivetrain are
mandatory ingredients on any rock crawler, and you'll find all
that and more here. Axial started with a clean slate when they
designed the AX-10 Scorpion, and it shows in its execution and
design. The AX-10 has features that you'll find on any custom
built rig, incorporating a lot of things that have worked in
rock crawling competitions. Let's take a closer look at what the
AX-10 Scorpion offers.
Four or Three?
The AX-10's suspension looks like a 4-link but is actually a
3-link setup that uses four anodized aluminum rods to attach
each axle to the main chassis. The lower links are standard fare,
but the upper links are oriented in an A-arm-type position, with
a single centered pivot point for each axle end. This single
pivot point actually gives the axles an abundant amount of
articulation, allowing the axle assemblies to rotate to match
the terrain. Every suspension joint rotates on captured balls
for bind-free freedom of movement.
Front and Center
Axial didn't bother with 4-wheel steering just to put those
words on the packaging. The AX-10 features a front-only centered
servo steering setup, which not only keeps linkage count low but
also conforms to the rules of competitive 2.2 rock crawling,
which is the class that this chassis fits in. Two heavy-duty
aluminum rods deliver steering inputs to the two front wheels.
For hardcore performance freaks, Axial offers an optional mount
that puts both the steering servo and a small Li-Po pack on top
of the front axle for front weight bias and an even lower CG.
Tough Axles
Axial designed their axles with toughness in mind. The axle
casing isn't held together just by screws; the steering hub
attachment points are part of thick molded rings, one on each
end, that slide around the ends of the axle casing. In essence
they act likeheavy duty sleeves to keep the axle case halves in
one piece. For the rear axles (shown here) Axial threw in both
molded, 1-piece toe rods and adjustable turnbuckles to give you
added adjustment if you so desire.
In the Middle
The foundation for the AX-10's drive system is a center-mounted
transmission. This 3-gear design features a locked center diff
gear, steel output shaft gear, and ball bearings throughout for
smooth movement. Similar to a familiar off-road transmission
design, instead of outdrives there are two molded slider shafts
that send the motor's torque to the front and rear axles. These
sliders are molded plastic, but are very beefy and should handle
the rigors of crawling.
Under Lock and Key
Take a peek inside the gearboxes and you'll see no differentials;
in their place are Axial's sweet-looking solid aluminum diff
lockers, which reside inside the diff housing. They didn't hold
back here either, for in place of inferior molded gears, you'll
find steel ring and pinion gears. Everything from input gear to
wheel axle rides on ball bearings for strength and little
drivetrain resistance.
Instructions and Setup
Axial's instruction manual was easy to follow, with full-sized
drawings for hardware and separate bags for each group of steps.
There were a few sections where the drawings were a little hard
to decipher, and I counted two wrong part numbers, but in
general the manual was easy to figure out because of the
detailed CAD diagrams. Axial added a gear ratio graph in the
back of the book, but more importantly there's a great section
on crawler-specific setup and tuning. You can tell just by the
manual that the AX-10 Scorpion was designed first and foremost
as a true rock crawler, and not a truckmodification or
semi-conversion.
Testing
To test a rock crawler, you need rocks, obviously. This time
around I took the AX-10 Scorpion to Mount Rubidoux Memorial Park
in Riverside, CA. The sun was beating down, and staff
photographer Carl and I had to hike up a ways before finding
some good spots to put the AX-10 Scorpion to the test. I ran the
truck with a slightly modified setup from box stock: Axial sent
a set of their high-traction Rock Lizard tires, and I elected to
run a lighter, smaller 2100 Li-Po in place of a standard 6-cell
stick pack that beginners would start with.
Torque and Power • The 55t Integy gives the AX-10 enough
torque and power to get around, over, and across rocks of
different sizes. That said, it's also far from a law-breaking
speedster. Before adding some pre-load on the left-rear damper,
the AX-10 would easily lift the front-right wheel up to the sky,
due to the torque steer. After adding a couple of the included
pre-load spacers, the torque steer was controlled and the front
two tires stayed on the surface (relatively speaking, since we
are driving on rocks.)
Rating: 8/7
Brake Hold • When it comes to crawling, brake hold (also known
as stalling) has to do with surface traction, chassis weight,
and in some cases, weight distribution and CG. The Axial Rock
Lizards gave the AX-10 ample grip on the rocks, and although the
truck was on the lighter side, in certain situations the
somewhat high CG put more weight on the rear tires than the
front tires (when climbing.) For the most part, the AX-10 would
make it to the top, but every so often it took a lot of clawing
and grabbing just to get up there.
Rating: 8
Maneuverability • The AX-10 has excellent maneuverability,
albeit with the included diff lockers. Since it has a
single-axle steering setup (which coincides with the generally
accepted 2.2 class rule of no rear steering), the AX-10 won't
complete a U-turn without a few feet of space. However, those
same diff lockers do wonders when the truck is trying to find a
way to maneuver up and around obstacles. The lack of front
overhang and a decent track width help the AX-10 get through
rock valleys without a snag. Some crawlers dislike them, but
during tight-quarter maneuvering I had no hang-ups from the side
body posts during testing. Response felt good as well; it's
always easier to drive a lighter ride over rough terrain.
Rating: 9
Crawling Ability • The second the AX-10 first touches a rock,
you can tell that this was what it was made for. Crawling
ability takes into account everything about the vehicle; this
means that the suspension has to have articulation, the tires
should grab, the motor power should be enough to uproot trees,
etc. Safe to say, Axial did their homework. The AX-10 made quick
work of many makeshift courses we set up. Even with only one
wheel having traction, the AX-10 (with a little help from the
side lugs on the tires) made it up rough course sections, no
problem. I did notice that because of the position of the
electronics plate, on occasion too much throttle would shift the
weight of the electronics tray over the rear axles (when
climbing) or to one side (when sitting at a non-level position),
causing the light end to lift, and eventually the truck would do
a slow tip-over. Moving the battery to the optional spot over
the front axle will probably address this small issue, but as is,
take a few seconds to survey your terrain to refrain from
traversing at super-extreme angles.
Rating: 8
Competition Potential • For anyone looking to jump right into
rock crawling, the AX-10 might be the ticket. The 3-link
suspension is very common in competitive rock crawling, as is
the ample amount of axle articulation. I know I mentioned my
concern for the high battery mount, but remember—Axial did
that to allow for the use of a common 6-cell pack, which
wouldn't really fit anywhere else. Most competitive crawlers use
some form of small, lightweight battery pack to provide voltage.
Axial knew this from the start, and offers an optional front
servo plate that allows you to mount both the front steering
servo and a small (think Li-Po) battery over the front axles.
Ask any competitive crawler and he'll confirm that having the
bulk of the weight over the front axles is the way to go, and
Axial can easily provide you with this capability if you so
choose. Other than that, the rest of the AX-10 is competition
spec already, from the triple-locked diffs, to the super-high
ratio transmission.
Rating: 9.5
Wrenching
Maintenance • Most crawlers are relatively simple in design,
and the AX-10 is no different, but Axial put extra effort into
making pit stops quick and easy for most wrenching tasks. For
example, if you need to work on the transmission, it comes
completely out of the vehicle with just four small screws. What
if you need to make ESC adjustments? Radio plate removal takes
all but two screws. Gaining access to the inside of the axles is
about the same as other trucks, but with the lockers in place
you won't have to get in there that often.
Rating: 9
Wear and Tear • During a shake-down run, I experienced an
issue where the rear upper link end popped out of place,
effectively disconnecting the upper half of the 3-link
suspension. I immediately called Axial after I noticed that the
molded mount had a hairline crack in it, and they sent me a
replacement part right away. The replacement mount went on the
truck in literally seconds before we went to Rubidoux for the
photo shoot and real testing. Out there, under the sun and on
much tougher and unforgiving terrain, the AX-10 had no
mechanical or suspension issues whatsoever. The beefy lower
links took the abuse of constant contact with Mother Earth.
There was this one rock I kept trying to climb, and eventually I
made it – but not after countless tumbles and rolls down the
side. The AX-10 stayed in one piece, and upon turning her back
on all fours, the chassis was ready for some more driving. In
fact, the body was the only thing showing signs of abuse – the
rear bumper got chewed up by the Rock Lizard tires whenever I
drove through extreme-articulation situations.
Rating: 9
Tuning • Out of the box, the AX-10 is very capable using the
kit stock settings. You can probably run the stock setup for the
majority of your rock crawling excursions and most of the fun
stuff. However, when it comes to competition, competitors love
having the ability to tune their rides, and the AX-10 allows for
it. There are multiple mounting points for both the suspension
links and the upper shock ends. Got the wrong ratio? No problem
- the spur gear can be changed without taking the chassis apart.
The wheels use common 12mm hex drives, and Axial offers extra
tuning options, such as 30-degree suspension rods, softer shock
springs, and more.
Rating: 9
Conclusion
After absorbing the afternoon's events, one thought popped into
my mind on the way back to the office: the AX-10 Scorpion, which
is Axial's first chassis foray into the ever-so-growing
rock-crawling scene, strikes me as something maybe one or two
small changes away from being a heavy duty player in the genre.
Taking into account the high position of the electronics (weight
is weight), the AX-10 crawled really well throughout the day,
didn't show any damage after tumbling down some pretty shady
rocks, and was easy to pilot. Parts quality is top-notch, the
build was smooth and trouble-free, and the number of standard
features (when compared to your typical scratch-built design)
give it high fives on the value scale. All in all, the AX-10
Scorpion is an excellent first entry for Axial, and if you want
to get into crawling with a machine that's ready to take on the
best when you are, it looks like they've got the answer! |
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Manufacturer: Axial Racing
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