The Proline tuber cage (see here) fits straight onto the standard Axial chassis (any AX10 version) by means of just four screws. It provides location for the battery, receiver and speed controller, as well as forming a reasonably substantive roll cage. It's not made of metal, unlike the standard Axial sideplates it sits atop, having a mixed plastic appearance. It's moulded largely in what appears to be three parts, with a few additional jointers, screws and bits and pieces, like a choice of front bumpers and a battery cover with standard body clip fixings. Here's what it looks like as designed on a bare truck (someone else's pics - apologies and thank you Greg B!):
What I found was the battery cover was very hard to get on and off to change batteries; also the securing clips were quite fiddly to get in and out. So I did away with the cover, which actually secures the battery, and cable-tied the original Axial battery plate (which would normally be done-away with by this conversion) back into its (near) original position. This means I retain the standard velcro fixings, which makes life a whole lot easier.
I mounted the receiver by sandwiching it between the two main cage sections at the very front, just behind the bumper which protects it well. It, a 3 channel Futaba R133F, fits a treat and stayed perfectly in place on the first run despite not even having an additional cable-tie or two to further secure it. Having it in the suggested position at the back means it needs a servo cable extension for the front steering, as well as placing its weight at the wrong end of the truck. Also the aerial conveniently wraps around the structure of the cage, although I may yet change this. Once everything is finalised I'll completely waterproof the receiver, which is mounted with its plug and crystal sockets facing downwards.
The truck came with a Novak Rooster speed controller. Unfortunately this was just a bit too tall to fit into the suggested location at what would be the dashboard position, impinging slightly into the space for the battery. I had a spare RV-20 kicking around, so that's what it got because it fitted fine. It has a reverse delay, which seems to aid in getting unstuck from tricky places where I couldn't go further forwards, and the brakes (or a touch of reverse) work fine on steep descents. There are no 'instant' drag brakes of course, because these only come with dedicated crawler controllers, but to be honest these just employ a different technique for going downhill. Either method needs its own set of skills.
The front servo is a Traxxas 2070 with about 125.0 oz-in (9.00 kg-cm) of push. This seems to give sufficient steering authority. I didn't use the supplied servo-saver, preferring the more direct approach. Whether this will affect its longevity or not remains to be seen. Just about the only other thing I did was to cover the lower and steering links with clear (or nearly - it looks more white than it really is in the photos) nylon spiral wrap. The links are such lovely little items, what with their anodised colour and tidy laser size etching, that it seems such a complete sin to instantly scratch and scrape the hell out of them on the first rocks they touch. Later on I may see if I can get some orange coloured heat shrink. This would do an equal job although it might need replacing more often.
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