The 2.2" Rig You Didn't Know You Needed!

[@scottjlambert]

I’ve been waiting on this one and I’m glad you like the Marksman. I had my daughter paint the driver for me and it looks much better. I’ve got some proline super swampers on white wagon wheels and now it’s got the look I wanted. Really a fun machine to get out on the rocks and trails!

[@RCTNT]

Aw gee, thanks so much for your support, Scott. I really appreciate that. Your Marksman sounds pretty good! I like those tires and I bet the white wheels really work with the white accents on the body, too. I love that your daughter painted the driver for you, too, that's really cool. Glad you enjoyed this one and thank you for watching!!

[@bobzilla9p0]

Great vid. I've had my Marksman for a year now and this summer picked up a second for my wife. For the steering issue I ground the C-hub "nubs" flat and used flat counter sunk screws (1mm shorter). This will max out the steering, as even with the Club 5/Husky steering links (which have offset rod ends) the steering link barely touches the front diff pumpkin. I would need to make an angled/curved link to get more clearance. Though, I don't think there is much more steering angle to get with the stock knuckle design and CVDs. I am glad you noted that you can change the voltage to the servo. I also have the Club 5 servo relocation mount and a 35kg water proof coreless servo. If you do buy the Club5 (search for Redcat Wendigo parts as they are the same platform) stuff find the kit that includes both the steering links and the relocation mount together, as there is an extra shorter steering link, angled rod ends, and brass bushings you don't get when buying them separate (plus the combo price is better). The Club5 stuff reduces body roll/torque twist during turning. I also put 50w oil in the shocks which also reduces body roll in turns and slows the reaction of the shock removing the slight bit of "bouncy-ness" they have after breaking them in. Finally the Redcat Wendigo rear sway bar helps torque twist as well, and the Wendigo steel axle tubes add some weight down low and strength. Please do a follow up video as you make your own changes and keep up the good work.

[@RCTNT]

Thanks for the detailed information, bobzilla! Love the username too :) I've ground down unis before for better steering angle and deleting the end stops on this one seems like a good idea. I've got a great brushless servo ready to go in and had a 60wt oil for the rear and 45wt for the front I was going to start with. Got a few other ideas too. Thanks for the tips, I haven't heard of club5 before, so I'll look into that too. Cheers!

[@johnbarnicoat9423]

Not a vehicle for me but your videos have become some of the best RC vids around in my opinion, full of great info

[@RCTNT]

Oh nice, thanks John!

[@fishnrc294]

I was so excited it felt like I was getting a new RC! And the reason why is I’ve had mine since they first came out & other then metal bead locks removed body clips & steering mode to give it a little bit more radius & lots of scale accessories that’s about all I’ve done. It’s such a great crawler & incredibly fun to wheel. It will out crawl most of my 1:10 scale RC’s including the Bronco. I think it has alot to do with the width, big tires & clearance, motor & Esc. But it’s the size & weight that makes everything come together. I’m amazed at what it’s gone up. I was glad to see you had one & now the review that I knew would be fun & just a stand out for a crawler. Redcat has not got the credit it deserves for this RC. I hope we get to see new crawlers form Redcat soon I’m just dying to see them after such a good last group they had. This year should be awesome. I hope we get to see it on the test course soon. Can’t wait.

[@RCTNT]

Awesome! Thanks for that. I can definitely see why you like it! 6-problem test coming soonish. Got a few things to test, and then we'll look into upgrades right after we have that benchmark! I'm looking forward to it too :)

[@doubledome2076]

Great video!! The explanation of things, the places you shoot the videos, EVERYTHING is great!! I don't " crawl " , never have, always liked speed cars, but after seeing this, you nailed it!- I didn't know I needed this, but I know now I do!! 👍👍

[@RCTNT]

Haha, thank you! So nice to hear that kind of feedback :D Cheers

[@vincevargas7892]

I like that Rig...Marksman💪 Nice electronics...Beast of a Rig. Redcat👍

[@jeffparryncc1701]

It comes with the HobbyWing QuicRun WP Crawler 80A ESC, and Holmes Hobbies 13T Crawlmaster 550 brushed motor straight out of the box? Bravo Redcat 👏👏👏👏

[@RCTNT]

Radio isn't bad either. Solid all-round (just don't look at the servo, move along, nothing to see here!)

[@jeffparryncc1701]

@@RCTNT 😁

[@rcmakingtracks18]

Enjoying your videos, informative and entertaining. Keep up the good work. John

[@RCTNT]

Thanks John, appreciate it!

[@CoryDean]

Great video. I love my Marksman. Definitely have to upgrade the servo out of the box. There is a pretty simple mod you can do for better steering radius (several tutorials here on youtube). Add a Redcat Wendigo sway bar kit to the rear and that takes care of the torque twist. I'd also recommend 60 to 70 weight oil in the shocks.

[@RCTNT]

Nice list, thanks Cory!

[@danweiss4928]

To be honest I not a big redcat fan ! But they have stepped it up with this body!! It looks good!

[@RCTNT]

Give them time and I bet their stuff continues to improve, too. This one is a looker, eh!

[@danweiss4928]

@@RCTNT yes it is that !! Love the looks

[@epicrc2084]

That's a really great looking and performing crawler

[@RCTNT]

It made a good first impression, yeah!

[@roblowrie1969]

That's a really great looking and performing car. And what a stunning location to run it!! Not much to add from the comments you made. The only issue in the UK, is dealers are few and far between. I always like to get my hands on a car if I'm interested in it, but there are no dealers anywhere near me. 👍🏻

[@RCTNT]

Hm it does sound like Redcat is harder to get there. I hope you could enjoy this one vicariously through the video here at least! Thanks for watching and sharing your thoughts, Rob!

[@mistermasada1829]

I installed a Fusion Pro, different beadlocks and a set of Mickey Thompson Baja Pro X tires. The 13T Holmes motor was adequate at best; very good throttle punch but then it falls on its face. The Fusion Pro not only provides great throttle punch but the power band is so much better than the 13T motor (as it should be), the drag brake is second to none, and the low modulation crawling is just crazy.😀

[@RCTNT]

That's a good choice for this rig, I'm not surprised you're happy with it :)

[@markcole6475]

You’ll have to change the servo and a new set or tires to see how it goes! Maybe even a nice set of aluminum rims!

[@RCTNT]

Definitely the servo. I like to take a minimalist approach and test, little steps. I also suspect these tires will do better with more wear. We shall see!

[@nhansme]

It’s a good looking truck Redcat racing recently made a video about improving steering angle

[@RCTNT]

Oh yes? Thank you for the tip! I'll take a look at that. Cheers

[@crawling86]

You always got the coolest back drop🙏

[@RCTNT]

Thanks Travis, this was shot along the more northerly part of the Great Ocean Road. I did a few vids while I was down there for the day as I had 9-5 to kill. Made for a nice day out!

[@HeavyHaulagePilbara]

As always, a good informative review. Cheers craig.

[@RCTNT]

It was a fun day when I did this! Got quite a few reviews done while I was down south. Good day. Even got some rain that day (the white TRX4 Bronco by the ocean was that afternoon).

[@snyperal]

Looks tidy 👍👍

[@RCTNT]

Aye, very tidy! I can't think of many (any) other crawler that looks so smooth with the body off. Its size helps with that effect, no doubt. I like this thing :)

[@CRAZYBUILD349]

Outstanding bit of infomation, great editing and video work, well done,!! did you fix the steering problem?

[@RCTNT]

Thank you, and yes: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hHOTmpJti8ioa80

[@MrCveedub]

The question I had, and I read the in-depth write up on your site (well done) was are the beadlocks metal? I know that are for the Scout Gen9 so it go me curious.

[@RCTNT]

They're plastic, which is almost always the case these days unless otherwise noted. I hadn't realised the Gen 9 rings were metal, that's cool! I'll have to go look at mine again to see! Bonus!

[@MrCveedub]

@@RCTNT Appreciate the reply! To clarify, the inner and outer pieces are steel on the Gen9, but the inner ring is plastic and the beadlock "ring" is plastic (I had misread the description when I commented).

[@RCTNT]

Oh I see! That's good to know. I really should give the Gen 9 some more attention but I've been so busy with everything else!!

[@hellofromsoutheastalaskarc7517]

Hello from southeast alaska sweet crawl video bro

[@RCTNT]

Hello from southeast australia and thank you :)

[@hellofromsoutheastalaskarc7517]

@@RCTNT that truck looks like runs pretty good

[@RCTNT]

So far so good, yep!

[@YoShImUrA53]

I remember when it was released, it looked very interesting at first. I started digging up info about it, and was turned off after finding it had a poor steering angle (from reviews of its original iteration, the Wendigo). I kinda forgot about it, as it was never really that extensively tested by the regulars... other than J. Holmes himself, which, being an invested part of it, I couldn't really take his view on it, as a 100% un-biased opinion. After seeing it going over the rocks on your vid, it doesn't seem that much of a deal-breaker to have a smaller steering angle, since it's already a bigger scale. But, besides the weak servo, it seems like the tires could do with an upgrade, too. It does look good, and with a bit of work on some details, like working on some 3d printed tail lights and front corner lights (the stickers don't look too good, IMO), it has a lot of potential. I totally dig Scott's white wagon wheels combination. I think even just painting the original ones on this would make it great contrast with the stickers. Wouldn't it have been great if the "rusty" inside paint were there, but it came unpainted on the outside, so you could paint it whichever color you liked? just an idea, in case Redcat is watching...

[@RCTNT]

Nice. I don't know how different these axles are from the predecessor, given the spares listings I've found say they are cross compatible! Still, the 6 problem course will show us the truth of it! (and there's nothing stopping you painting over this body I guess!)

[@HolmesHobbies]

Nice video!

[@RCTNT]

Hey, you found it! I'm glad :) Thanks!

[@rcvärmland]

Really nice video 👌

[@RCTNT]

Thanks, I appreciate that!

[@grisslebear]

If you look at the side lugs on the tires, there's M-16 bullet silhouettes molded in.

[@RCTNT]

Whoa! Right, I see! Thanks for that!

[@grisslebear]

@@RCTNT We 'Murican's love our guns. Hence the name "MARKSMAN", & the "M-16" themed tires. Great review, by the way.

[@RCTNT]

That went right over my head. Brad, that's so obvious when you spell it out. Haha thanks for explaining it!

[@grisslebear]

@@RCTNT No worries, mate. Be safe & go rc something. 🤠🤙

[@RCTNT]

Wrenching as we speak :) I should be livestreaming this stuff really!

[@GARYU-S44]

very good video 👍 my friend🤝🤩😁

[@RCTNT]

Thanks :)

[@GARYU-S44]

@@RCTNT 🤩🤝

[@brianmassey7563]

I've always heard it had terrible steering, not just in the strength, but in the radius. I have 2 1/8" scale Traction Hobby rigs and so far I love 'em. I have been considering a marksman but until I know what is up with the steering I'd want to know if there is another axle you could use on it to fix it.

[@RCTNT]

Hm, I don't recall having issues with the turning radius, but our 6-problem course test will certainly show that up if its an issue. As far as other axles go, it's a fairly standard setup underneath so I'd think if you shopped by axle width you'd probably be fine with anything that fit. We'll come back to this if it's an issue in the next video. Thanks Brian!

[@Molekulasti]

I've been trying to find the Marksman in Europe since it came out and no cigar. Just something about it I like.

[@RCTNT]

That bad eh? Sorry it's been hard to get. Hopefully someone picks up Redcat in Europe and carries the range!

[@Molekulasti]

Thanks mate. There are plenty of Gen 7/8s on offer here. Marksman is elusive. Have a good one.

[@jims8531]

After you’ve been crawling on the beach what’s your cleaning regime? How worried should I be about sand and salt water if I go crawling on the beach?

[@RCTNT]

Expect all carbon steel screw heads to have surface rust. Any steel with scratches, surface rust. How much you do to address that is personal preference. I use light machine oil and a toothbrush over all such surfaces and that's good enough. Run water through the motor. Remove tires from wheels and rinse well then dry. Open axles and rinse, dry, pack with fresh grease and service bearings if needed. ...or, just hit the whole thing with a hose then purge it all from memory. It'll squeak here and there and bearings may fail at some point, but that's a 2 minute version. That's for beach running. I really wouldn't recommend salt water exposure. That's gonna be a lot worse. Expect rapid corrosion, especially if your cleaning process misses some salt affected areas. It's also bad for your batteries. Salt water running can be done and cleaned up after, but the return (fun) on investment (maintenance) may not be worth it to you. Personal choice though really. If it makes you happy and you're down with maintenance, have at it.

[@jims8531]

@@RCTNT thanks for such a detailed response! I think I’ll stay away from salt water, not sure the fun is worth the clean up.

[@RCTNT]

I love the beach and streams and all but must agree, surf is just wasting components to corrosion. Fresh water maintenance isn't so bad though!

[@Djkommode]

Head reminds of my axial kit head

[@RCTNT]

Yes, very much so! Could be the same, they're so similar!

[@guymarotta2596]

Reminds me of an army jeep.

[@danwoodruff4323]

You should try the HK Hobbies 45kg direct servo. $40.00. But never go wrong with a good Holmes product.

[@RCTNT]

Thanks Dan, I'm not familiar with that one. I have a few favourite servos already but if this is a 12v direct drive one, the price certainly sounds right! I'll check it out, thanks :)

[@danwoodruff4323]

35k Direct Power 16v Rock Crawler Servo. In my first post I said it was 45kg it’s 35kg.

[@RCTNT]

@@danwoodruff4323 gotcha, thanks. Still sounds good. More than 30kg, if genuine/accurate, is generally a nice, strong servo in my experience. Cheers for the tip!

[@alantaylor353]

I just wish my LHS sold them in the UK.!

[@RCTNT]

Hm, fair enough! I'm guessing ATees shipping and EU import costs make it prohibitive to buy internationally in that way.. bummer!

[@alantaylor353]

@@RCTNT very definitely a bummer.!! The prices of a lot of things have gotten ridiculous, all sorts of every day items as well a hobby. I read an article which said the cost of living has gone up 80% from last year.! Heating & power has sky rocketed. Thanks to Brexit. Now that I've cheered you up... Stay safe out there mate & best wishes from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 🙏 ❤️ 📻 🕹️ 🔋 🚗 🚖 🚕 🚔 🚚 🚙 🚘 🚓 🚒 🚑 🚐 🚎 🚤 🚁 🛩️.!

[@RCTNT]

@@alantaylor353 thank you, and you.

[@TonysRcTechboom]

Wow bro I watched every second and the information you give out about the Rig and all the info on crawling and what's the best options is amazing 😉 i learnt alot from watching 😛 the Rig is beautiful and when have you ever bought a Rc and everything was Tip Top 🤔 servo will be a easy upgrade them you got yourself a scale crawling beauty 🥰 love how simple it is inside and Love the body 😍 id have to paint the man's face 😊😛 thanks for going on my channel so returned the favour ha ha 😊 have a wonderful day bro and stay safe 🙏 BOOOOM 💥💣💥💣

[@TonysRcTechboom]

Oh all the info in the Description is amazing to 👍😉👍

[@RCTNT]

Good on ya, thanks Tony :)

[@TonysRcTechboom]

@@RCTNT your welcome brother 🙏

[@michaeldorich4485]

This looks like and performs like a good crawler. It appears they have made a very good attempt to produce a quality product. I think Redcat is battling its past reputation. Many people would. like to walk into their hobby shop and get parts. Some parts are available on line in the U.S.

[@makertime6296]

In my opinion the past reputation is now in the past. The products are as good as anything else. They all break, all need servos and etc. What they are battling these days are fanboy influencers who get free products for worshipping them and bashing others.

[@michaeldorich4485]

@@makertime6296 I agree the past should be the past, but that's something Redcat needs to overcome that some way. IBy having fair and thorough reviews like this one is one way to do that. I would suggest that Redcat use whatever websites to sell their products at rock bottom prices to get their products out there to demonstrate the quality of their products. It's been done many times in the history of business. When they starting getting good reviews on Amazon and people walk in the hobby shops and ask for their products they will sell more.

[@makertime6296]

@@michaeldorich4485 Redcat has overcome it just fine and for many years now with the Gen8 crawlers, this crawler, Kaiju bashers and etc. Just like Axial, Traxxas and others have overcome. Their pricing is always better and they don't focus on selling you replacement parts.

[@michaeldorich4485]

@@makertime6296 That's great if they have overcome any past stigma. I wasn't aware of that. If what you say is accurate about not focusing on selling parts, then that's not good for the hobby shops. Hobby shops make their best profit margin from selling parts.

[@makertime6296]

@@michaeldorich4485 Upgrade parts is good and all have parts that can break. But they should not be designing a product with weak parts that we have to replace. Especially expensive parts like Horizon with their Spektrum junk. Redcat chooses quality items like Holmes and Hobbywing.

[@DankePlace]

You will laugh when I say I want a new toy for my dog. Nothing you have shown will be done with mine, just a simple back yard folly toy. I have had a few RCs before but some seem too quick or too slow for my back yard. A few q's: I wont need to change servo if I am just plonking around on grass? Maximum battery size for 3S? I'd like to go hardpack maybe a 5000MAh? Is there chassis tork when you accelerate? Also are the diffs locked as I have some concrete I may travel over. Thx for the upload, this seems like a real nice piece of kit, has nice esc, nice can, and it's only $600 AUD atm which I can get for $530 but am waiting for Black Friday deals.

[@RCTNT]

You won't be the only one playing with dog and rc at the same time, don't worry! Servo will be ok, but it's too weak and you will want to replace it eventually. Yes, it's that bad. But it will work for a while just fine. 2S or 3S 5A packs will be fine. Diffs are locked, yes. Torque twist is as shown in this video, it's quite pronounced. I have a small bit of kit coming from Amain that'll apparently deal with it somewhat. More on that once the gear arrives and I can test it. Lastly, I found its available in Australia on ebay right now for aud$530. I got mine for $480 in the last big promo, but 530 is pretty good still. Here's the one I found (no affiliate, just sharing the link - I'm guessing it's the one you've found too, given the price is the same) - www.ebay.com.au/itm/133839690315

[@DankePlace]

@@RCTNT Yeah I rang those guys, they're the importer, had a discussion with them and they seemed a little thrown off by my qs lol. I am also checking out the Wendigo, I am wondering if this will be better. I had a Wraith and sold it, it just wasn't my cup of tea especially with the body tork. Will be interested in your body fix, I am thinking some extra linkages? With the Wendigo, is it a sensored setup? I see 3 wires and I think this would be better suited for my needs and my dog. Appreciate the response. I can get the Wendigo for 430 AUD, I already have a 4Wd Rock Crawler Land Cruiser non pro with the TRAX system attached, upgraded ESC and can. Works great but bad turning circle, I don't want a basher, but a multi purpose 4wd I can tease the dog with.

[@RCTNT]

Honestly you might want to consider the RGT Pioneer. It's basic, tough and capable. This thing is better than the Wendigo, I expect, but I've not had one of those before so can't say for sure. Htdirect do heaps of sales, they're not a hobby shop. I wouldn't expect them to be able to help you with anything to do with the truck except facilitating the sale. The body roll from the torque twist is significant compared to other machines these days but it's still quite drivable. My latest video is a running montage of this rig. Goes fine. The upgrades to address torque twist are actually sway bars, so yes, more linkages. Ideally being able to reverse the rear outdrive from the transmission would be the best solution but there'd be a fair bit of work to get that done. I've got a few things I'm working on with this one to improve it overall, so stay tuned!

[@DankePlace]

@@RCTNT If the RGT is same as HSP, yeah I already have something like that with a 2 stage gear box, that's the one with the TRAX system attached.

[@RCTNT]

@@DankePlace fair enough. I have a bunch of great videos about it here anyway. You sure have a lot of choice these days!

[@darcyclements7046]

what battery did you use

[@RCTNT]

Now that's stretching the memory! I think it would have been a 2200mah 35c 3s lipo from zippy, Turnigy or rhino. They're the three sets of 2200mah 3s in that spec I have.

[@darcyclements7046]

@@RCTNT thanks for the reply! just got myself one of these. i already got a stronger steering servo too. at the same time as the truck 😂

[@RCTNT]

Oh perfect, you're all set then!

[@canuckchuck8836]

I don't understand why it seems that the Marksman is not very well liked. Is it the price point? Redcat's reputation of being a lower quality brand (rightly or wrongly)? It just seems very capable and not too overly priced considering its features. Beautiful spot for crawling by the way!

[@RCTNT]

I have yet to find why it hasn't sold well. Maybe its simply a perception that its too large to wheel with friends who have 1/10 scale rigs, or that it can't just be used in a 'run what you brought' 1/10 or 1.9" fun comp class... dunno otherwise. Certainly the Gen 7 and Gen 8 lines have well-deserved reputations for being solid and reliable trail rigs that can crawl well too. We'll get this thing onto our 6-problem course next time and see if we can find any weak spots - other than, y'know, that sad little servo!! Cheers :)

[@makertime6296]

The fanboy influencers of big names (like Axial) are paid in product to put down smaller brands. The real truth is Redcat products are very good these days. As good as anyone else. Maybe better than Axial since they have now been Horizonized. RC-TNT is very fair with all brands and should be a go to for info. And no, I do not know him. 🙂

[@canuckchuck8836]

@@RCTNT The only major problem with Redcat (at least for me in Canada) is replacement parts and aftermarket parts availability. There are not too many shops that carry Redcat and even less that carry a stock of parts. Typically, those shops carry the lower end Redcat models (beginner models) and not so much of their higher end vehicles. I think perhaps this is one of the reasons why Redcat has a "cheap brand" reputation here?

[@canuckchuck8836]

@@makertime6296 it is for sure a marketing game that Redcat is not doing too well at considering who they are up against.

[@RCTNT]

A nice thing about the hobby is that this is not a zero-sum game. You don't need to put down other brands to promote your own preferred one. For so many of us who love the hobby, if we can afford it (and even sometimes when we can't really!!) we have multiple rigs. You can save for what you really want and then later on if something else looks interesting that can go on The List as well. Honestly, the hobby today is what I dreamed it would be when I first got into it in the 80s and then into the 90s. Things are incredible these days - choice/variety, performance, durability, value and related clubs and groups that run this or that kind of thing. Oops I started rambling!

[@carlosjuarez7449]

That driver needs a slight tan! Lol

[@RCTNT]

I really should get around to painting all the little driver figures in my various cars, yes!

[@tommaxx24]

👍🙂👌

[@RCTNT]

Thanks Tom :)

[@WoodsUnknown]

I think Redcat screwed up on the scale of this truck, it should be a 10th scale not 8th. The new Traxxas Bronco is the same size if not a bit bigger.

[@RCTNT]

The cars on which they're based mean there's a discrepancy on actual model size, even though the scales are probably about right - it's the curse of scale modelling. But the Marksman is way wider and a shade longer than the TRX4 Bronco. It definitely drives like a 1/8 scale! But what you're referring to will be tested on the 6 problems, next video. That'll really show weak spots and issues with the scale, if there are any! We will see!

[@WoodsUnknown]

@@RCTNT i wait eagerly for your next video as always, stay safe my friend.

[@topqualityfi8216]

Im so annyoied,cheap crawlers, on sale 300, duties and taxes alone 158e and shipping like 100e,i hate living in finland

[@RCTNT]

We pay similar money in Australia too, yeah. Thankfully there's a lot of good about our countries, aside from expensive rc cars!