u/-Man1fest0-

Finally took my LDRC 1297S for a proper run on the rocks by the sea today, and I honestly couldn’t be happier with how it turned out.

After all the experimenting, small modifications and occasional frustration with upgrade parts, this was the first time I could just forget about the setup and enjoy driving it.

And it works REALLY well.

It handled the rocks much better than I expected. The suspension setup feels almost perfect now. It articulates smoothly over larger obstacles, keeps the tires in contact with the surface, and on flatter sections it absorbs all the small bumps instead of bouncing around like it used to.

The 60 mm soft tires also made a huge difference. There’s plenty of grip without the rubbing problems I had with the 68 mm setup.

What I probably enjoyed most is that it still doesn’t feel like a hardcore crawler. It feels like a tiny scale trail truck. Watching the suspension work and the body naturally move over the terrain is half the fun for me.

After today, I don’t really feel like I need to change anything else. I just want to drive it.

This little Pajero has become one of my favorite RCs.

Small update on my LDRC 1297S.

Finally got a chance to take it outside and get some proper photos 😄

The new wheel setup is finally on: 1.3” metal beadlocks with 60 mm soft tires.

I previously tried 68 mm tires, but with the increased suspension travel from the Yeah Racing shocks they rubbed the body too much. The 60 mm tires seem to be the sweet spot. They still look properly chunky, have much better grip than the stock tires, and there’s just enough clearance at full articulation.
I also did a small lighting modification.

The stock headlights used white LEDs, which always looked a little too modern for an old Pajero to me. I desoldered them and replaced them with warm yellow LEDs. I think they fit the character of the truck MUCH better and look more like old-school halogen headlights.

Originally, the front running/parking lights came on together with the headlights. I wanted them to work separately, so I connected them to the unused 3-pin connector next to the steering servo connector.

Now I can have just the amber running lights on, and switch the main yellow headlights on separately.

It’s a tiny modification, but combined with the metal wheels, softer tires and suspension setup, I think the truck is starting to look surprisingly realistic.

Still not trying to turn it into a hardcore crawler. I actually like it much more as a scale trail truck.

Hi everyone!
I know some of you have been asking for more driving videos after the upgrades. Unfortunately, I haven't had time to film them yet.

My plan was to wait until all the upgrades were installed before making a proper comparison video.

Unfortunately, I ran into a few unexpected issues.
The official upgrade parts aren't as compatible as I expected.

I wanted to build the truck using mostly official upgrade parts, so I ordered:
aluminum chassis
aluminum rear axle mount
aluminum rear links

Unfortunately, I discovered that neither the stock links nor the aluminum links fit the ball mounts on the upgraded aluminum parts correctly. The holes are simply too narrow, causing the rear suspension to bind instead of moving freely.

That was honestly disappointing. One official upgrade requires buying another official upgrade, and in the end some of those parts still don't work together properly.

The truck is actually very good out of the box
This isn't a hardcore crawler, and I don't think it was ever meant to be one.
It's much closer to a scale trail truck.

Out of the box it has:
surprisingly nice suspension
enough power
realistic driving behavior
great overall scale appearance

That's exactly why I liked it so much in the first place.
The only upgrade I'd call essential
If you plan on crawling over rocks, I'd replace the front driveshafts.
Mine broke after only a few proper crawling sessions.
However, there's another issue.
The lower metal shaft (metal upgrade) doesn't rotate properly inside the stock steering knuckles because the truck uses metal bushings instead of bearings.
So you'll also need a bearing kit.

Bearing kit
This is actually one of my favorite upgrades.
I installed bearings in:
front suspension
front drivetrain
gearbox
The truck immediately felt smoother.

There are still bearings left in the kit, and honestly I have no idea where all of them go because there are no installation instructions.

My rear axle is already aluminum and comes with bearings installed, so I still have several unused ones.

Rear aluminum axle
Mine wasn't assembled correctly from the factory.
The pinion housing had to be swapped around, and the ring and pinion gears also needed adjustment because they weren't meshing properly.
After fixing that, it works fine.
Would I recommend it?
Honestly... not really.

The stock rear axle works surprisingly well.
The same goes for the stock plastic rear driveshaft. It's stronger than I expected.

Yeah Racing oil shocks
These are probably my favorite upgrade so far.
They're sold as an official upgrade for the 1297S, but they arrive completely dry.
I filled them with 300 cSt silicone oil, which works great.

One thing to note:
The front shocks are not a direct bolt-on upgrade.
I had to trim a small section of the front inner fenders because the shock bodies simply wouldn't fit.

They include three spring rates:
soft
medium
hard

Soft was far too soft.
Hard completely removed the sag and made the truck feel unrealistic.
Medium worked perfectly on the rear, but the front still sat too low.
Then I remembered the preload spacers that come with the stock truck.

They fit the Yeah Racing shocks perfectly.
Using the medium springs + stock preload spacers completely transformed the suspension.
Now the truck has proper sag, much smoother articulation, and the rear no longer bounces over every obstacle as it was before.

Wheels
This has been another challenge.
The truck uses 1.3" wheels.
Finding wheels isn't difficult.
Finding good tires is.

Most aftermarket crawler tires 60-64mm are made for 1.0" wheels.
The stock tire diameter is 62 mm.

I tried 68 mm tires, but after installing the new shocks the increased suspension travel caused them to rub the body.

So I went back to the stock wheels.
I also removed the foam inserts, which noticeably improved grip because the tires can conform to rocks much better.

I'm currently waiting for:
aluminum 1.3" beadlocks
60 mm soft tires
5 mm to 7 mm hex adapters
Hopefully this will be the final wheel setup.

One more thing
The front axle design is a little unusual.
The wheel itself keeps the axle from sliding inward.
With the metal driveshaft kit this isn't a problem because the shaft fits tightly inside the bearing.

With the stock plastic parts, however, the axle can slide inward, so I had to modify mine slightly and use a small zip tie as a retainer.

It works, but it's definitely something LDRC could improve.

Final thoughts
Despite all of this...
I still really like this truck.

If someone asked me today what I'd recommend in this size, I'd say:
Buy the 1297S (V2).
Drive it.
Replace parts only when they actually break.
The only upgrade I'd consider essential is the front driveshafts if you plan to crawl over rocks.
Everything else depends on what you're looking for.
It isn't fast.
The gearbox is geared for torque, not speed.
Even little kids can comfortably drive it, especially in low gear.

I originally wanted to keep it as close to stock as possible and only replace parts when there was a real reason to. But the broken front driveshaft started a chain reaction that was pretty much impossible to stop. 😄

While replacing the driveshaft, I noticed the truck doesn’t actually come with bearings. Everything spins on metal bushings, so a full bearing kit was the next upgrade.

The rear end was also bouncing around much more than I liked, so I ordered a full set of Yeah Racing oil shocks for both the front and rear.

There isn’t much information online about upgrading the 1297S, so a lot of this has been trial and error.
The Yeah Racing shocks are sold as an official upgrade for this model, but they arrive completely dry, without any oil. I filled them with 300 cSt silicone oil, which seems to work really well.

Installation wasn’t completely plug-and-play, though. The front shocks simply wouldn’t fit, so I had to trim a small section of the front inner fenders to make room for them.

The shocks come with three spring options: soft, medium, and hard.
The soft springs were too soft—the truck would settle almost completely onto the bump stops. The hard springs eliminated the sag entirely and made the suspension feel unrealistic.

The medium springs worked perfectly on the rear, but the front was still sitting too low. Then I remembered that the truck actually comes with preload spacers for the stock shocks. They fit the Yeah Racing shocks perfectly, and with the medium springs they transformed the suspension. Now the truck has a nice amount of sag while still keeping plenty of suspension travel, and it looks much more realistic when driving.
I also tried a set of 1.3” wheels with 68 mm tires.

Unfortunately, the increased suspension travel from the new shocks caused the tires to rub the fenders during compression, so I went back to the stock wheels.

I did remove the foam inserts from the stock tires, though. That lets the tires conform to rocks much better and noticeably improves grip, even if the factory tread pattern is still their biggest limitation.

Overall, I’m really happy with how the truck drives now. It feels much more planted, the rear no longer bounces all over the place, and the suspension finally looks realistic while driving.

My next upgrade will probably be a set of 1.3” wheels with soft 60 mm tires. I think they’ll offer a much better balance between clearance, articulation, and grip without rubbing the body.

I originally wanted to keep it as close to stock as possible and only replace parts when there was a real reason to. But the broken front driveshaft started a chain reaction that was pretty much impossible to stop. 😄

While replacing the driveshaft, I noticed the truck doesn’t actually come with bearings. Everything spins on metal bushings, so a full bearing kit was the next upgrade.

The rear end was also bouncing around much more than I liked, so I ordered a full set of Yeah Racing oil shocks for both the front and rear.

There isn’t much information online about upgrading the 1297S, so a lot of this has been trial and error.
The Yeah Racing shocks are sold as an official upgrade for this model, but they arrive completely dry, without any oil. I filled them with 300 cSt silicone oil, which seems to work really well.

Installation wasn’t completely plug-and-play, though. The front shocks simply wouldn’t fit, so I had to trim a small section of the front inner fenders to make room for them.

The shocks come with three spring options: soft, medium, and hard.
The soft springs were too soft—the truck would settle almost completely onto the bump stops. The hard springs eliminated the sag entirely and made the suspension feel unrealistic.

The medium springs worked perfectly on the rear, but the front was still sitting too low. Then I remembered that the truck actually comes with preload spacers for the stock shocks. They fit the Yeah Racing shocks perfectly, and with the medium springs they transformed the suspension. Now the truck has a nice amount of sag while still keeping plenty of suspension travel, and it looks much more realistic when driving.
I also tried a set of 1.3” wheels with 68 mm tires.

Unfortunately, the increased suspension travel from the new shocks caused the tires to rub the fenders during compression, so I went back to the stock wheels.

I did remove the foam inserts from the stock tires, though. That lets the tires conform to rocks much better and noticeably improves grip, even if the factory tread pattern is still their biggest limitation.

Overall, I’m really happy with how the truck drives now. It feels much more planted, the rear no longer bounces all over the place, and the suspension finally looks realistic while driving.

My next upgrade will probably be a set of 1.3” wheels with soft 60 mm tires. I think they’ll offer a much better balance between clearance, articulation, and grip without rubbing the body.

Full stock, some rock crawling, nothing crazy.
Suddenly one front wheel stopped pulling.
The plastic front driveshaft had snapped.

Time for the metal upgrade. 🥲

First tests

Hi everyone!
I recently became the (so far 😄) happy owner of the very underrated LDRC 1297S.

I also own three MN99S trucks and one MN82, all of which I’ve heavily upgraded, so I have a good point of reference. I wanted to try something different—an IFS suspension and a 2-speed transmission.

Unlike the standard 1297, the 1297S comes with proper front shocks, a 2-speed gearbox, and a 370 motor.

My first impressions:
The suspension is surprisingly good overall. It’s soft, has noticeable sag, and the IFS works better than I expected.

The rear suspension is a bit too bouncy at higher speeds, though.

The 2-speed gearbox occasionally misses a gear, but it usually shifts correctly on the second attempt.

The 370 motor has more than enough power for this truck.

The tires are soft, grippy, and glued to the wheels from the factory.

Overall, it’s a really enjoyable little crawler/trail truck straight out of the box. I honestly think this model deserves a lot more attention than it gets.

Has anyone else here been running the 1297S? I’d love to hear your long-term experience and any upgrade recommendations.