Pro-Line RC parts and shocks

Shocks and springs

A shock controls how fast weight moves, not how much the car sits down — that is the spring's job. Our scaler shocks are built long and soft so a crawler can keep four tires loaded on uneven ground. Our race and bashing shocks are shorter, firmer and sealed harder, because they have to survive landings rather than creep over rocks.

Spring rate is the first thing to change and the cheapest. Go softer at the end of the car that will not bite, firmer at the end that is loose. Change one end at a time or you learn nothing.

Armor and chassis protection

Bash armor exists because the cheapest repair is the one you do not do. Skid plates take the landing, suspension arm guards take the kerb, and body mounts take the roll. All of it is replaceable in minutes with a hex driver.

On our own PRO-MT 4x4 platform the parts tree is published part by part — chassis, spine, side pods, drive shafts, axles, hinge pin holders — so a broken truck becomes an order, not a project.

Pit tools and consumables

Tire glue, o-ring kits, body clips, hex drivers and weights are the things that decide whether a race day ends early. We keep them in the same pit box as the parts because that is where they get used.

Tire weights deserve a word: added at the wheel, they lower the center of gravity of a crawler and stop it toppling on a side hill. On a racing car they do the opposite of what you want.

Which shock length should I run?

Match the shock to the chassis it was listed for. Crawlers want the longest shock that does not bind at full droop; race cars want the length the kit was designed around. Changing shock length changes geometry, so treat it as a chassis decision rather than a tuning one.

Are Pro-Line shocks a direct fit?

Each set names the vehicles it bolts to. Where an adapter or a longer body post is needed we list it in the item, because a shock that nearly fits is a shock that leaks.

How often should I rebuild a shock?

Rebuild when the damping feels different, not on a calendar. For most bashers that is once or twice a season; for racers, after a muddy weekend. An o-ring kit and fresh oil cost less than a set of arms.