Review: Team Durango DEST210R

For a time there, off road was all about 2WD buggies and 2WD stadium trucks. Then, in rolled 2WD and 4WD short course trucks, short course buggies and extremely affordable 1/8-scale e-buggies. Everyone was so excited to jump on those bandwagons that the poor 2WD stadium trucks got left in the dust. As with all things RC, the market shifts back and forth, and it’s now time for the Stadium trucks to make a comeback. Team Durango has just released the DEST210R, a stadium truck that has been manipulated and massaged into a pretty credible off-road force.

AT A GLANCE
WHO MAKES IT: Team Durango
WHO IT’S FOR: Intermediate to advanced
HOW MUCH: $289.99
BUILD TYPE: Kit

FACTS
• If you haven’t heard, the DEST210R allows you to not only tune the suspension to track conditions, but also alter the placement of the transmission and motor. You have four choices: RM3, or Rear Motor/3 Gear transmission (this is the standard layout on most 2WD buggies and trucks), RM4, or Rear Motor/4 Gear transmission. This keeps the transmission in the same spot, but mounts the motor on the opposite side of the truck. You also have MM3, or Mid Motor/3 Gear transmission and MM4, or Mid Motor/4 Gear transmission (basically the MM3 and 4 are the same as RM3 and 4, but mounted inside the shock tower). Each one of these layouts heavily affects the rear traction of the DEST210R.

• Both the caster blocks and rear hub carriers have plastic inserts that allow you to quickly change caster and toe without having to replace the entire part.

• The CVD design negates the use of a setscrew to keep the dogbone pin in place. Simply assemble the CVD and slide the bearing over it to capture the pin.

• The slipper clutch is also quite unique. Typically the slipper builds with the spur gear assembly and allows adjustment from that point, however the DEST210R has it just the opposite. The spur gear is built on one end of the top shaft while the slipper extends out the opposite side of the transmission. This allows it to be constantly exposed and easily adjusted without having to remove covers or plugs.

• The servo mount seems a bit extreme, but the way it is designed allows it to sit at an angle above the angled steering bellcranks. This helps keep the servo parallel to the steering system and moves it as far forward as possible, leaving lots of room to move the battery forward or back.

• The body is pretty sick looking, and after I got it back from JGO Paintz, I’m a bit afraid to drive it. This guy laid down the juice in record time and it looks absolutely SICK! I wonder what it will take to have him paint ALL my race bodies like this from now on!

PROS
+ Team Durango’s wild chassis design allows four different layouts
+ Big bore threaded shocks
+ Chassis allows weight distribution in large increments
+ Caster block and rear toe degree inserts
+ Captured CVD’s
+ Silky smooth ball differential
+ Reverse adjustable slipper clutch
+ Angled servo to allow for more room on the chassis
+ Chassis layouts make a huge difference depending on track conditions

CONS
– Changing the motor configuration around a lot might leave you with some pretty messy ESC wires

BEHIND THE WHEEL
STEERING: UNDERSTEER
The steering on the DEST210R was a hard one to rate. I had built the truck in the MM4 layout which, according to Team Durango, is best suited for high traction tracks. The first track I tested in was an outdoor track with a fine layer of dust…not very high traction. Steering was good at low speeds, but not so good at high, and the truck seemed to steer a lot from the rear. The second test was at an indoor track where traction was much higher. The truck seemed much more stuck and actually lost steering on the low and high end. I’m sure some simple tuning will help.

ACCELERATION: VERY GOOD
On the loose track, acceleration was limited to extreme rolling of the throttle. Having the weight so far forward really makes a difference, certainly more than I thought. On the indoor track, however, the DEST210R had amazing grip. I could accelerate much harder now thanks to the MM4 layout, and sometimes found myself overshooting some of the jumps.

BRAKING: VERY GOOD
Not only did the MM4 provide good rear grip while accelerating, it also kept the DEST210R in check under braking. The Tekin brakes are strong, so I had to turn them down a few clicks to help avoid locking up the rear tires. In most cases, you want to brake in a straight line; this is the best and easiest way to control any movement in the car or truck while stopping. With the DEST210R in MM4 mode, I was able to actually do quite a bit of trail braking, or apply brakes as I’m turning into the corner. The back would slide just a tad out of position, but still be completely controllable. That’s a really good thing in a 2WD off road vehicle!.

SUSPENSION: EXCELLENT
There’s something about the DEST210R’s suspension I just love. Maybe it’s the angled suspension arms or the curved (and cut) ball cups. It could be the inserts in the caster blocks and rear hubs for changing toe, or maybe the weight bias of the battery. It could also be the cool quad-motor configuration. My guess is it’s a combination of all of these…the truck just works. Once I got the truck in the element the MM4 layout was designed for, it was really fun to drive.

JUMPING: VERY GOOD
Jumping the DEST210R in MM4 mode was interesting to say the least. Normally in a 2WD Stadium truck, as you approach the jump you typically roll back on the throttle a bit to let the suspension settle and then continue accelerating off the face to the jump. This helps keep a nice, nose-up attitude. Minor variations of that process may be involved depending on the jump, suspension, etc, but with the DEST210R I found that when I followed that procedure, I left the jump with just the opposite; a nose-down attitude. Bringing the truck back in, I adjusted the ride height slightly and kept in the throttle a little more after take-off and that completely changed the way the truck flew. Even in the air I felt it was a little more sensitive to throttle and brake input.

DURABILITY: EXCELLENT
I had a few tumbles with the DEST210R, but nothing major. The only real thing that bugged me was that I had left my antenna tube a bit long so each time I rolled the truck it would bend and look all janky. Yeah, I know, but it’s really the only issue I had with the truck during the two test sessions.

THE LAST WORD
The Team Durango DEST-210R is really a great truck. It handles good, looks really cool and includes plenty of adjustments to tame this beast on whatever track you encounter. While the rear motor configuration might seem a bit tedious to change over, the only real issue is what to do with the ESC wires when you go from RM3 (or RM4) to MM3 (or MM4). But the wiring issue is cosmetic and won’t affect the way the truck works. Just having the ability to use that weight placement to help tune the truck is major, and once you hit the track and start figuring it out the next step is the podium.

Links
DuraTrax duratrax.com, 217-398-8970
Futaba futaba-rc.com, 217-398-8970
JGO Paintz jgopaintz@gmail.com
Pro-Line prolineracing.com, 951-849-9781
Team Durango team-durango.com, 217-398-3630
Tekin teamtekin.com, 208-634-5559
Thunder Power RC thunderpowerrc.com, 702-228-8883