SC10 Tuning & Repair

One of the biggest problems with short course trucks and the SC10 is the difficulty of keeping them stable in the air. If you run your SC10 on a small track then this probably isn't a problem for you. If you track features some larger jumps and features than you may have noticed that it difficult to control in the air.

Chaning the battery position can be a quick and easy way to tune the handling of your SC10. In general, we are changing the weight distribution between the front and the back of the SC10.

Effects of moving the battery back:

- More rear traction
- Less steering
- More stability during acceleration and breaking
- Vehicle will tend to jump more nose up

Effects of moving the battery forward:

- Less rear traction
- More steering

At TeamSC10.com, we want to help all types of SC10 owners, and most importantly we want to help the "newbies" out there, however, you won't find any step-by-step instructions on how to disassemble or reassemble your SC10 on this website.

If you've read our 6 Tips to Improve Rear Traction, you know that rear traction can be a problem for the stock SC10. The good thing is that the SC10 has tons of steering and you can do a lot of things to tune down the steering and get the back-end hooked up really well.

One of the ways to tune down steering and increase rear traction is by adding "Anti-squat" or "Kick-up" to the rear suspension. Anti-squat can be defined as the angle of the hinge pins to the surface your truck is on. To increase rear traction, you will want to increase the angle of your rear hinge pins.

Have you ever been at the track and heard someone driving a really loud RC? You also may have noticed that their truck is sluggish with very little punch. If this is your RC, or you want to avoid having an SC10 with no punch, then you need to regularly maintain your SC10's transmission.

Rebuilding your SC10 shocks should be done every couple weeks to ensure consistent dampening and traction on all 4 wheels. However, filling each shock with the appropriate amount of oil and making them feel smooth can be a pain in the A#*!! Thankfully, Associated created the Factory Team Bleeder Caps to make the process of filling your shocks with the correct amount of oil (while keeping air out) much easier.

Buy the SC10 Factory Team Bleeder Caps at RCPlanet.com

If you have a stripped screw on your SC10 you are not alone. Stripped screws are a common problem, especially when using cheap tools provided with a new kit.

First lets talk about what to do if you already have a stripped screw. The best way to get a stripped screw out is to use pliers (needle nose are the best). This process can be very tedious and you can break other parts if you are not careful. The goal here is to just get that screw to turn out enough to get your pliers around the head. If you are unable to get pliers around the screwhead, then we have bigger problems. At this point I would suggest that most people take their truck to their local hobby shop or watch this video - Stripped Screw Head Removal

A TeamSC10.com reader sent us a great link that outlines the basics of tuning the suspension on an off-road RC. This article through each tuning option and explains how it will affect performance.

Old and new RC enthusiasts alike should give this a quick read - Off-road Suspension Tuning Guide at MyRCBox.com

Winter is around the corner and for many RC'ers that means indoor racing. Many indoor tracks are high traction and well maintained. If your SC10 is set up for a loose and bumpy outdoor track, there are a few tuning adjustments you can make that will improve the performance of your truck on high-bite surfaces.

The SC10 comes with tons of steering out of the box. If you race on a loose surface, you have given up much of this steering in favor of rear traction. When moving from a loose track to a high-traction track, you do not need as much rear traction. This allows you to tune your truck for more steering.

There are two options when choosing a differential for your SC10...

1. You can keep the Associated SC10 Gear Differential that comes with your SC10 kit or RTR.

2. OR, buy the Associated SC10 Ball Differential.