# Review of Duratrax Vendetta ST



## Guffinator (Aug 27, 2005)

I know some on here are contemplating a 1/18 scale off roader, so after giving my new Vendetta ST a fresh weekend of testing I thought it might be beneficial to give my opinion on it.

The Vendetta ST (and it's buggy counterpart the Vendetta) come RTR, which in case you've been living in a cave means Ready to Run -- and it is. You open the box, plug in the supplied battery charger to the supplied battery, and 4 hours later you are ready to run. Yes, I said 4 hours. The kit includes what may be the wimpiest battery pack in existence, with a matching wimpy battery charger. Don't get me wrong, this stuff is great if you are a kid playing in the street, but for any kind of real competition, this stuff should go directly into the garbage can.
It comes with a Duratrax servo that seems to do what's asked of it, and a Duratrax ESC which also did it's job quite well. The kit includes a Duratrax VR3 brushed motor (380) which puts out decent horsepower once you put a real man's battery pack in the truck. Top speed is solid and low end punch is decent as well.
The chassis itself is very surprising, not the Duratrax of old that I remember. No-sir-ee-Bob, this chassis has some nice stuff going on. Blue anodized shock towers and front and rear braces. While the chassis isn't overly tuneable, it does have alternate shock mounting postions and adjustable body posts. Oil filled shocks on all 4 corners as well as optional springs are available, so I don't see tuneablity being a problem.
After many runs up and down my street, and several laps around the track the truck seems to be solid and predictable. It jumps well and has adequate steering without being loose.
Overall I give the truck a 7 out of 10. What does the kit need to become a 10 you ask? To start with the servo comes taped down. While this works fine for initial runs, we all know what happens after the front wheels take a few smacks, the servo tape comes loose and you have a floppy steering servo. Duratrax does make a brace to rectify this, but it's an aftermarket item. The kit should come with it, or a redesign to bolt the servo down my solidly. As mentioned above, the battery is pure ****. **** I say! 650 mah? My toothbrush puts out more voltage. While I wouldn't expect a killer race pack, they should include something with some decent punch. The kit includes a Futaba AM radio. You experienced racers are now th8inking "Uggg", while this radio is definitley no-frills, I must confess it performed flawlessly and never glitched once. I have since switched over to my FM radio, but I honestly can't complain about the included radio.
In closing, the kit costs $169 and is ready to go right out of the box. Overall I'd say it's a pretty good deal, and with some upgrades to some of the electronics it easily becomes a race-ready truck.


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## PD2 (Jul 1, 2005)

Nice review Guff! I think it says a lot about the truck - purchase it as a basher or purchase it with a few minor upgrades and tweaks and you have a racer! Either way, it sounds like a great base truck to start with, no matter what you are wanting!

Cool deal!

Thanks!
PD2


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

I was impressed with the Vendetta. Before I saw and drove it I was wondering what Guff was thinking. Has he gone crazy? :spineys: An RTR Duratrax???

Like he said, this aint the Duratrax of the old days. This thing rocks!


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## cjtamu (Sep 22, 2004)

Yep, supposed to be a really good vehicle. I'm trying to decide b/w the Vendetta buggy or the FT 18B.


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## madf1man (Jan 28, 2005)

Website has been updated with others. Cool little truck. I'm getting one for the next race.


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## ddcarter3 (Jan 1, 2005)

Thanks Guff for the review. After driving yours, I have a much better opinion of the 1/18 scale racing. Thanks for letting me prove that I am not an onroad driver. I will most definetly give the A/C a second try. I will arrive in time to help Trey set up and just might have a little car of my own.
BTW Guys, don't let the size fool ya, these cars are fast!


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## madf1man (Jan 28, 2005)

Just ordered the ST along with an 18R. Looking forward to racing them.


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## Guffinator (Aug 27, 2005)

I put the Mamba into the Vendetta. Holy cow! It's a land missle riding on knobby tires.


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## Courtney Vaughan (Apr 11, 2007)

Trey, how did that size pipe do for whoops? I'm getting ready to make some portable obstacles, and I'm starting with a 33" wide, 70" long whoops section. Bumps spaced 7" apart. Should I go larger on the PVC for the bumps?


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## madf1man (Jan 28, 2005)

I think no larger except maybe for a random spot or 2 or 3 just to mix it up. 3/4 pvc seemed perfect. I'll be workin on some stuff also


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## Courtney Vaughan (Apr 11, 2007)

I'm going to be working on a whoops section, and a couple of turn bumps. We will still need a table top and a large double. I'm also thinking about maybe a short rhythm section.......maybe a small double-double, or maybe a small double-single-double. If we can get all of that together, I'd think we could make a very technical track.


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## Reel Bender (Sep 30, 2004)

Well, I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, the question of the day?????????????????????

Where do I buy one??????????????????????


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## Guffinator (Aug 27, 2005)

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXPGV6**&P=ML


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## Gary (May 21, 2004)

Reel Bender said:


> Well, I'm back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> So, the question of the day?????????????????????
> 
> Where do I buy one??????????????????????


WooHoo!


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## Reel Bender (Sep 30, 2004)

Do any of my* Local* Hobby Shops (That are at least 70 miles away) carry these?????????????

LOL


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## Guffinator (Aug 27, 2005)

Reel Bender said:


> Do any of my* Local* Hobby Shops (That are at least 70 miles away) carry these?????????????
> 
> LOL


I bought mine at Randy's Hobbies, but any would order you one I'm sure.


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## cjtamu (Sep 22, 2004)

Got a question. Will the Detta take a side by side 6 cell like the 18B or do they have to be stick packs? We're trying to get batteries lined up for Shriners next weekend.


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## Big Phil (Apr 27, 2007)

stick been there before


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## nik77356 (Jun 8, 2007)

why would duratrax makes there car use an uncommon battery? thats idiotic


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