After getting a lot of positive feedback on my HPI RS4 page I thought that since I now own a T-Maxx I would make a similar page for this awesome truck. This page is intended to offer some you some helpful tips that will hopefully save you some time when you work on or just run your T-Maxx and also help you decide if certain upgrades are worth while. Everything here is just my opinion and the opinions of the guys in our club so feel free to send me your tips if you have any.

I said it before and I'll say it again, this truck is awesome! When I first decided that I wanted a monster truck I considered the OFNA Pirate Monster. That truck fully build with a decent .21 engine, radio, servos, and starter would have set me back about $1000. Already I have heard that the drivetrain on the Pirate tends to shred under the power of the .21 engine. And getting parts from OFNA can be a real nightmare. That is when I decided to look at the T-Maxx (Thanks Dave!). For $379 which is the approximate going price (and lowest price you will probably find it) you get a radio, servos, the truck, well it's RTR so you get everything. Of course there a few small items you need and tons of upgrades you might want to consider so read on.

I HIGHLY recommend running this truck bone stock before you tear it apart and start upgrading. The .15 Traxxas engine is strong so don't get too excited about throwing in a new OS (or other) engine because the truck won't be much faster. Once you buy the truck you will need fuel. Buy the Traxxas, O'Donnel, or Blue Thunder 10% or even 20% if you want. Besides fuel you will need a few glow plugs (break in usually burns up at least one), a 7.2V battery pack ($13), a charger for the 7.2V pack (about $34-$40), CA for the tires, and you should buy a fuel bottle if you don't already have one. Get one with a bent tip instead of straight, it's easier to fill the tank.

The EZ Start system does add some weight but it is really convenient to have. You plug in the 7.2V battery pack, the glow plug lights, press the red button on the starter that comes with the truck and the motor starts! One thing, if you experience the starter slipping or not grabbing the motor to turn it over you probably got fuel (which has oil in it) in the starter assembly. The oil prevents the starter from gripping the drive shaft tightly. Once the car starts and this problem seems to disappear, it is because the heat from the motor causes the drive shaft to expand just enough to let it grip again. If this happens you need to remove the EZ Start assembly and clean off the bearing that grips around the drive shaft. Use nitro cleaner or denatured alcohol. Other than that, enjoy the EZ Start system, it works well. Once you finally burn up your engine then you can justify a new engine. Make sure you buy a pull start engine and glow plug ignitor for it. If this is your first nitro toy you probably won't have some of these needed accessories laying around.

Installing a new motor - The drive shaft on the T-Maxx engine is very short compared to the drive shaft on the OS engines so you will need to cut the shaft. I used a Dremel tool which works really well. If you don't have one, mark the shaft where it needs to be cut and take the engine to your local hobby shop and ask them to cut it. Make sure the motor is in a plastic bag with just the drive shaft poking through it otherwise you will get metal shavings in your engine. And if you cut the shaft, wash your hands after you take the motor out of the plastic bag since metal shavings will be there too. There will be about 5-6 threads left on the shaft which seems really short but it works. I cut mine a little longer to be safe then ended up cutting it 2 more times to make it short enough. Worst case is you ruin your drive shaft and you have to buy another one. That's not cheap so mark the shaft clearly and accurately and cut it right the first time! The flywheel and shaft collar from the T-Maxx motor will fit the OS along with the clutch bell, etc.

Here's a good one for you. Take the spacers out of your shocks to lower the truck. It takes about 30 seconds and the truck will handle better. Dave T., one of our club guys put 12mm of fuel tubing around the shock shafts (inside the shock body where the oil is) to limit the suspension travel. His truck became much more stable but did not take BIG jumps as well. So what he did to compensate for this was to first move the shocks to the outside hole (on the bottom) to create some more angle in the shock, similar to the way the Serpent Impulse is set-up. Of course the angle is nowhere near as steep. Then switch to 70 weight shock oil, it helps. The lighter oil weights can't keep up with the new limited travel. But 70wt. is great. Make sure you keep the shocks filled with oil. They are even a little underfilled right from Traxxas so you might want to check them before you run for the 1st time. Upgraded shocks are not necessary in my opinion but they are available for about $80 a set of (8), the dual shocks per wheel make the stock shocks very strong. Shock oil weight changes do make a big difference so let me know what you have found works well in your setup And thanks Dave for the tips!

Whenever you make a hard turn, one of the front tires will lift off the ground and spin like crazy until the turn is over. With the stock diff in the front end this means that your other front tire is doing nothing. So here's Dave's on diffs: I was going to put a spool in the front of my T- max. But I didn't and here is why. I put a solid axle in my serpent. It runs great, corners great but, and this is a big but, the stress on the dog bones is to much for them to handle. I bent 4 in the last two weeks of racing and there is a lot of stress on the belt and pulley system. I killed 3 belts and 2 pulleys already! Like they say there is always a trade off. I can't imagine what would happen to the T-max in that kind of load. So here is what I did - first you need to take apart your front diff and clean out all the grease. Then you need to get some silicone caliper grease. The only plaice I could find it is at the parts counter at an auto dealership. It looks like silicone glue, the clear stuff, and feels like it. Fill the front diff pack with it and when you put it back together it should be as full as you can get. Do the same for the back but only fill it 3/4 full. Pay attention which way the diff faces when you put it back in your truck or you may go in reverse when you want to go forward (I am speaking from experience). The result, your front diff slows down about 90% from stock rear about 60% from stock (you want the rear to be looser). Now you have a lot stiffer front end and don't have the problems with all the stress on the parts with a spool.

In case you don't know what a diff (differential) does, it is used because when a car makes a turn the outside wheel must turn more than the inside wheel. Without a diff the car tends to push through the turn because the outside wheel will be trying to turn the inside wheel more than it can, hence the skidding. On loose dirt this is not much of a problem, the inside wheel can spin easily instead of skidding. But as Dave says, the stress caused by a solid axle can be too much for the car/truck to handle. Thanks again Dave!