PR Racing SC201 Short Course Truck

Get into SCT racing!

This article was originally published in the RC Driver’s March 2016 issue.

Words: Steve Trebing
Photos: Edwin Rodriguez

Short Course Trucks are arguably one of the most popular classes each and every week at RC tracks around the globe. The 2WD class is especially popular with drivers looking to have some good fun and be competitive in something a little bigger and heavier than their 2WD buggies and trucks. As the class evolves, trucks are becoming better and better, with more features carrying over from other forms of off-road racing. PR Racing, a relatively new (2008) manufacturer, is known for their excellent 2WD and 4WD buggies as well as their accessories. Their entry into the 1/10 SCT class looks great on the surface and seems to have all the right ingredients for success. Keep reading and see if it holds up…

REVIEWER’S OPINION
PR Racing is obviously on the move, creating a full competition line of 1/10 electric racing machines. The SC201 is a quality short course racing truck with plenty of tuning options to dial it in to any track conditions. The performance of the truck was great and I plan on spending a lot more time behind the wheel of this more than capable SC racer.

TOOLS AND ACCESSORIES INCLUDED
• None

ITEMS NEEDED
• Radio
• Motor & ESC
• Pinion gear
• Servo
• Battery
• Body
• Wheels/tires
• Oils & lubes

ITEMS USED
• Trak Power MS Series brushless system – MS-1   ESC/8.5T motor
• Trak Power 6800mAh, 70C LiPo battery
• Turnigy steering servo
• AKA Handlebar tires
• Futaba 4PLS radio system
• Parma SpeedFlo SC body

ADDITIONAL ITEMS USED
• Pro-Line Primes SC tires

HOP-UPS WE RECOMMEND
• Depends on track, PR offers a full line of   upgrades

IMAGE

FEATURE BREAKDOWN
‹Fact 1: Chassis
The chassis is made from super sturdy 7075 aluminum, finished off with plastic side plates. Front and rear ends connect solidly to the chassis with high quality machine screws. Battery placement is inline and uses red aluminum thumb screws to hold the battery strap down. Standard, and very large, front and rear bumpers round out the chassis on this SCT.

‹Fact 2: Suspension
The suspension on the SC201 is up to par with many of the other race ready SCT’s on the market. The included shocks are very nicely designed, fully adjustable and offer plenty of dampening. Every possible suspension setting is adjustable on the SC201 so there will be no lack of tuning at the track. Depending on the track where you will be driving your SC201, PR Racing offers a ton of hop-ups for the truck. I drove the truck stock and am curious to see how it does with some of the optional parts in the future.

‹Fact 3: Steering  
Steering on the truck is handled by a standard dual bell crank system with a nice servo saver on the right side. The entire steering system rides on a full set of ball bearings for nice, smooth action. Adjustable tie- rods allow for complete adjustment of tow on the SC201 and red aluminum 12mm hex adapters secure the wheels. Standard C-hubs and knuckles support the front wheels. Again, upgrades from PR allow adjustment in these areas.

‹Fact 4: Drivetrain 
Arguably one of the best features in the SC201 is that all the parts to build the truck as a rear motor or mid-motor are included. I chose to build it as a mid- motor for no other reason than I thought it would help with CG and handling. The kit includes the gearbox sides only for the optional mounting, so if you want to switch things up, you will have to disassemble your transmission and transfer all the parts to the new case. Not a huge deal, just a little time consuming.

‹Fact 5: Additional Features 
The SC201 is a very complete, race ready truck right from the box. It has all the right components and features it needs to be competitive at most tracks.

ON THE TRACK

ABOUT THE TRACK
Speed RC is the newest, and arguably, one of the best indoor off-road RC facilities on the East coast. Speed RC is a partnership between Scott Speed and TJ Bell. Scott was the first American driver to drive in the Formula One series since Michael Andretti in 1993 and recently won the Global RallyCross Championship for Andretti Motorsports. T.J. Bell is an accomplished racer in all 3 NASCAR series. Both Scott and TJ are super passionate about the RC hobby and it certainly shows at their facility.

Speed RC is a 12,000 sq. ft. facility in Mooresville, NC, my home town. The facility features a full service hobby shop and an amazing track with an abundance of pit space, power and a very tall drivers stand for amazing views of the circuit. A ramp and shorter drivers stand sit next to the tall one and can accommodate anyone with a disability. Kudos on that!

The atmosphere is very family friendly yet competitive and always fun. Mooresville is known as “Race City USA” and people take that to heart. Speed RC opened in June of this year and has already seen numbers in the 60-70 entry mark for normal race days, with 100+ for special events. If you are in the Charlotte NC area, make sure to stop by or look up Speed RC on the old interwebs at www.speedrc.com.

I took the SC201 to Speed RC to give it a workout. I didn’t want to race it right out of the gate so I took it up on a practice day to get it dialed in. First thing I noticed was that the AKA Handlebar tires would not work for the super packed hard surface at Speed RC. Pro-Line PRIME SC’s are the tire of choice for the guys racing SCT at the track, so after picking up a set and getting them mounted and glued, I was back at it. I had the truck set for as close to neutral as I could. Roll center was slightly on the low side, CG was slightly aft of center and I had about 30% preload in the shocks. With fresh packs and a beautifully painted body from Kustom RC Graphics I hit the track with the SC201.

STEERING
Steering was crisp, fast and responsive. The Turnigy HS/HT servo I was using was insane and provided all the help I needed to turn consistent laps. Initially I had the steering rate on the radio set at 75%, which I thought was a good starting point, however, I quickly bumped it up to 100 to help compensate for lack of grip. Even with the Prime slicks, the truck pushed horribly in the corners, forcing me to slow down and dial up the steering. After more testing and tire break in, I was able to put in a little steering and get the truck cornering like it should. It was never glued to the track, but neither was anyone else’s, so it may just be the track.

ACCELERATION/BRAKING
The Trak Power setup I was using was just about perfect for the track configuration and the SC201 in the Modified 2WD SCT class. The 8.5T motor was more than enough for the track, although not being able to find grip in the rear end caused me not to clear the big triple jump in the layout. I made several adjustments to the ESC, Diff and Slipper to try and get the rear end hooked. It got better, but nowhere near what I would have liked. The power was there, the brakes were perfect, but without being able to apply it, I ended up with slower than expected lap times. I don’t feel like this is a negative for the truck, more on me not getting the setup perfect. I was competitive in my class, turning times close to the TQ, but faster is always better and I feel like the truck is capable of TQ.

HANDLING/JUMPING
I mentioned earlier that I built the SC201 with the mid-motor configuration as I thought it would help with CG and handling. After a few times out, I think I may try the rear motor setup and see how different it is. With the mid-motor setup, I felt like the SCT wanted to nosedive into the ground after each jump, with neutral input from the throttle. Of course I can stay in the throttle and keep the front end up, but in its neutral position, it’s nose heavy off the jump. I wish I had time to make the change to the motor setup and see if the jumping/landing improved, but time ran out… Sorry. Overall ground handling of the SC201 was better than expected, with slightly more push than I would have liked, again, not really the truck’s fault. I feel like the more grip I am able to get from the tires as they start to come in, the less push I will get when entering the corners. For now, I just have to slow down, which is something no racer wants to do!

DURABILITY
I have driven the SC201 for two full race days and one practice day with nothing breaking. I have had to tighten a few screws that were loose and adjust the slipper a few times, but that is to be expected. Overall I am impressed with the durability and quality.

SPECS AND TUNING OPTIONS

DIMENSIONS
LENGTH: 12.95 in. (329mm)
WIDTH: 11.65 in. (296mm)
HEIGHT: 5.25 in. (133mm)
WEIGHT: 2.2 lb. (1000g, no electronics,
body or tires)

BODY, WHEELS AND TIRES
BODY: None
WHEELS: Black Plastic
WHEEL ADAPTER TYPE: Aluminum Hex
TIRES FRONT/REAR: None

SUSPENSION
TYPE: 4-wheel Independent
SHOCK POSITIONS: Fully Adjustable, 3 Top, 2 Bottom Front and Rear
CAMBER: Adjustable Tie-Rods Front and Rear
ROLL: Adjustable Front and Rear
WHEELBASE: Fixed Position
RIDE HEIGHT: Fixed Position
MISC: N/A

STEERING
TYPE: Dual Bellcrank w/ Servo Saver
TOE: Adjustable Tie-Rods

CHASSIS
TYPE: Tub with 25 Degree Kick Up
MATERIAL: 7075 Aluminum and Plastic
THICKNESS: N/A

DRIVETRAIN
TYPE: 2WD
TRANSMISSION: 3 Gear
DIFFERENTIAL: Bevel Gear
GEAR RATIO: 24T Pinion/81T Spur
BEARINGS: Metal Sealed
CLUTCH TYPE: Adjustable Slipper

RATING TALLY
Opinion: 9
Performance – Acceleration: 10
Performance – Steering: 9
Performance – Handling: 9
Performance – Durability: 10
Feature Breakdown: 9
Overall Value: 9

WRAP UP
I absolutely love the PR SC201 after spending time with it at Speed RC. 2WD SCT is one of my favorite classes to race and I am glad companies like PR Racing are taking the time and effort to engineer great quality products like the SC201. The flexibility of building it as a rear motor or a mid-motor is incredibly useful and certainly came in handy in my situation. Including all of the high end parts right out of the box means you can build one and be competitive from day one, which isn’t the case for some other trucks in the segment. If you want to get into SCT racing and you want a kit that will perform with the best, take a close look at the PR SC201, I really don’t think you will be disappointed!

LINKS
PR Racing, prrc.com, info@prengine.com.tw