As a long time RC nerd, I was delighted when my Secret Santa gifted me a 1:16 scale Land Cruiser, the WPL C54. In this thread I'll be sharing my initial impressions, what I've done with it so far, and a long term review.
Admittedly, I'm a bit of an RC snob. In my teenage years I owned numerous Hobby and Pro Grade RC's, ranging from 1:10 crawlers, 1:24 track cars, and 1:8 nitro buggies. I also worked at the RC counter at the local hobby shop. It's an interest that was sidelined once I was old enough to dump money into real cars, but I've held onto all of my old stuff.
After obtaining my LX, the thought appeared in the back of my head that I should get a matching RC, but I could never justify the cost. But after being given this new truck, I think I can spend a few bucks on improving it, as a little treat.
The WPL C-54 is manufactured by the Shantou Pine Fruit Forest Model Co., Ltd. I would classify as it as a bridge car, filling the gap between a toy and a hobby RC. The frame rails are seemingly aluminum, and the remainder of the chassis is what feels like ABS on the cheaper end of the plastic spectrum. There is a ton of slop in the axles and wheels, to the point of creating concern about premature breakages. The driveshafts were also suspiciously chintzy.
However, the body is very nicely constructed with accurate details, an opening hood, an interior, and working headlights. My particular itineration included 2x 800mah batteries and USB chargers. The transmitter feels CHEAP. It has virtually no weight to it, is a bit small, and only offers steering trim adjustment. I do like that the system is on 2.4ghz, I have no idea if AM and FM radios are even being produced anymore. The electronics on-board include a consolidated receiver+ESC combo board and plastic geared servo with a standard 3-wire connector.
Out of the box, some assembly is required in the sense that the accessories like the bull bar, sliders, and other exterior bits need to be added. The instructions are extremely sparse. For those without a lot of experience with RC, this may prove to be frustrating. I don't love that the hardware is Phillips, I'd have preferred to have hex on there. But at this price point, it's understandable. The included screwdriver is not great, I'd suggest sourcing a better one before attempting to work on it.
With a fresh battery loaded up, I was able to take it for a spin indoors. It has the torque to pop a tiny wheelie on carpet. The proportional control is good enough for just driving around, I haven't had a chance to do any proper crawling with it yet. The suspension flexes well but is very bouncy due to undampened shocks.
Given how garbage the original driveline components felt, I opted to immediately order some spares and the metal parts upgrade kit, as well as the metal gear servo they offer on their site. The package shipped directly from the manufacturer to my mailbox in a bit over a week.
Silly me for thinking the axles would be machined, they're cast of the finest ???. I will say that the castings are quite good for the cost, as I assembled the upgrades I found that everything fit correctly without any struggles. Those with larger or less dexterous hands may struggle with the tiny parts, and once again the instructions lacked in detail. All that was included for documentation was exploded diagrams, not a step by step guide. That said, there is a video on their website that I didn't watch, but I'm sure it would be helpful. The included grease and threadlocker was a nice touch, and there was way more hardware included than what was needed to complete assembly.
The metal axles and servo combined have made the WPL C-54 feel like a much more substantial model. There is far less slop and I have greater confidence in the durability of the vehicle. The turning radius also noticeably improved, as the throw on the new servo arm is a bit longer.
Upgrades installed, I took it outside for some poser shots:
Can't wait to get this thing onto the rocks and see how it performs in its intended environment.
Future plans for this include repainting it to match my rig, finding some grippier tires, and oil filled shocks.
Thanks for reading, feel free to ask any questions.
Links:
Truck - C54-1 - RTR - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/c54-1-rtr
Upgraded axles - Metal Upgrade for 4x4 - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/metal-upgrade-for-4x4
Servo - 25g Digital Metal Gear Servo - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/25g-dmg-servo
Admittedly, I'm a bit of an RC snob. In my teenage years I owned numerous Hobby and Pro Grade RC's, ranging from 1:10 crawlers, 1:24 track cars, and 1:8 nitro buggies. I also worked at the RC counter at the local hobby shop. It's an interest that was sidelined once I was old enough to dump money into real cars, but I've held onto all of my old stuff.
After obtaining my LX, the thought appeared in the back of my head that I should get a matching RC, but I could never justify the cost. But after being given this new truck, I think I can spend a few bucks on improving it, as a little treat.
The WPL C-54 is manufactured by the Shantou Pine Fruit Forest Model Co., Ltd. I would classify as it as a bridge car, filling the gap between a toy and a hobby RC. The frame rails are seemingly aluminum, and the remainder of the chassis is what feels like ABS on the cheaper end of the plastic spectrum. There is a ton of slop in the axles and wheels, to the point of creating concern about premature breakages. The driveshafts were also suspiciously chintzy.
However, the body is very nicely constructed with accurate details, an opening hood, an interior, and working headlights. My particular itineration included 2x 800mah batteries and USB chargers. The transmitter feels CHEAP. It has virtually no weight to it, is a bit small, and only offers steering trim adjustment. I do like that the system is on 2.4ghz, I have no idea if AM and FM radios are even being produced anymore. The electronics on-board include a consolidated receiver+ESC combo board and plastic geared servo with a standard 3-wire connector.
Out of the box, some assembly is required in the sense that the accessories like the bull bar, sliders, and other exterior bits need to be added. The instructions are extremely sparse. For those without a lot of experience with RC, this may prove to be frustrating. I don't love that the hardware is Phillips, I'd have preferred to have hex on there. But at this price point, it's understandable. The included screwdriver is not great, I'd suggest sourcing a better one before attempting to work on it.
With a fresh battery loaded up, I was able to take it for a spin indoors. It has the torque to pop a tiny wheelie on carpet. The proportional control is good enough for just driving around, I haven't had a chance to do any proper crawling with it yet. The suspension flexes well but is very bouncy due to undampened shocks.
Given how garbage the original driveline components felt, I opted to immediately order some spares and the metal parts upgrade kit, as well as the metal gear servo they offer on their site. The package shipped directly from the manufacturer to my mailbox in a bit over a week.
Silly me for thinking the axles would be machined, they're cast of the finest ???. I will say that the castings are quite good for the cost, as I assembled the upgrades I found that everything fit correctly without any struggles. Those with larger or less dexterous hands may struggle with the tiny parts, and once again the instructions lacked in detail. All that was included for documentation was exploded diagrams, not a step by step guide. That said, there is a video on their website that I didn't watch, but I'm sure it would be helpful. The included grease and threadlocker was a nice touch, and there was way more hardware included than what was needed to complete assembly.
The metal axles and servo combined have made the WPL C-54 feel like a much more substantial model. There is far less slop and I have greater confidence in the durability of the vehicle. The turning radius also noticeably improved, as the throw on the new servo arm is a bit longer.
Upgrades installed, I took it outside for some poser shots:
Can't wait to get this thing onto the rocks and see how it performs in its intended environment.
Future plans for this include repainting it to match my rig, finding some grippier tires, and oil filled shocks.
Thanks for reading, feel free to ask any questions.
Links:
Truck - C54-1 - RTR - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/c54-1-rtr
Upgraded axles - Metal Upgrade for 4x4 - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/metal-upgrade-for-4x4
Servo - 25g Digital Metal Gear Servo - https://www.wpl-rc.com/products/25g-dmg-servo
