I have a slash I been turning into a circle track car, and messing around with it has brought on the itch to buy another car to bash with. So other than the obvious body and tire differences, what else differs between the Bandit and the Rustler? Thanks.
Sounds like you have a fun decision to make!
The body and the body mount would be different as well as the tires as you stated. The a arms are buggy width as would be the links and axles. The gearing is different me thinks...
What else is there that's different?
MTFBWY
The Bandit has the same length (same chassis) but has a narrower width. What kind of terrain are you looking to play on?
MTFBWY
I have the Slash 4x4, Bandit, and a Rustler. In my backyard track the Slash can take the biggest beating IMO. But since you are trying to choose between the Bandit or Rustler, I would say the Rustler would be the best for overall driving and bashing. My buddy runs his Rustler sometimes with taller/grippier tires from Proline and the thing can be an animal everywhere.
Obvious difference: Bandit is a buggy, rustler is a stadium truck.
With that being said, out of the box, the bandit will be better for street(lower ride height and lighter weight), and rustler better for offroad. Al caster blocks are a must on both. bandit has pin drive wheels and rustler has hexes. a large part is what you like the look of, as both can be made into anything. All of this IMO. Hope this helps.
Made edit I didn't have time for, sorry.
CORRECTION: bandit is a few grams lighter due to no f body mount, and smaller a-arms, NOT a big difference.
You could get a rustler, put a bandit body (for full authentic look you need shock tower for bandit) on it along with buggy wheels(I believe this will give you a set of spare hexes for your slash), and basically have a wider more stable (better overall in non-crawler RC) bandit. This will cost more than a bandit on its own, but gives you better tires, and possibly your own choice of body. I had the same choice, and my LHS guy talked me into a rustler.
NOTE:Stock Bandit XL-5 is geared 21/83(optional speed gearing 31/83), while stock gearing for Rustler XL-5 is 16/90(optional speed gearing 28/86, mine is geared 16/86, which is just a combo of what came with it.). THIS IS DUE TO DIFFERENCE IN TIRE SIZE, NOT WEIGHT.
Hope this helps more than other post.![]()
Last edited by Is_It_Broken?; 01-30-2019 at 07:28 PM. Reason: correction
So Rustler is a bit wider basically because of the tires. The rear a-arms on the Rustler are longer as well as the axles. The Front a-arms on the Rustler are slightly longer, but not by a considerable amount.
Personally, I'd recommend the Rustler over the Bandit, because it is more capable, and gives a better upgrade path. There are way more 2.8" tires than 2.2" tires from what I have seen. Also, the Bandit eats through tires. I have had a lot of trouble finding a durable tire for my Bandit. You could put whatever you want on the Rustler including the tires with the same tread as the Bandit tires (Like bandito's and Traxxas Alias). I think both are awesome vehicles, and are a ton of fun to drive, but if I had to choose one, I'd take the Rustler over the Bandit every day of the week. And even on-road the Rustler does fine, especially an xl-5. I don't think the Bandit is that much better on road, and the Rustler does wheelies, but can't get the Bandit to wheelie.
Thanks everyone...for just a couple bucks extra I believe I will go with the Rustler, I had originally thought they were identical except the wheels and body, and wanting to go with different than stock on both I thought I'd get the bandit...but being wider I'll spend the extra few bucks on the Rustler...thanks again for everyone sharing knowledge and advice!!!
I would read the pm I sent you![]()
So what did you get? Please tell me you are planning to have a bandit or convert the rustler. We need more bandit people on this forum!
Maybe not as a first RC. I own a Bandit which is tons of fun, but not nearly as easy to play with as my Rustler. If you already have a Rustler you could get a Bandit and have a lot more fun with it, I think.So what did you get? Please tell me you are planning to have a bandit or convert the rustler. We need more bandit people on this forum!