› Project/traxxas Nitro Backslash

From short-course truck to buggy in six easy steps

Credit where credit’s due: The original Backslash concept was the brainchild of Ultimate RC’S “The Jang,” who was the first to drop an 1/8-scale buggy body and wing onto a Traxxas Slash. Type “Traxxas Backslash” into the Google machine and you’ll find countless variations on the concept, and it’s definitely a fun way to transform a 2WD or 4WD Slash into something that feels brand new. But as RCCA’S resident nitro guy, I felt there was something missing—an engine, of course. Thankfully, my dream of a Nitro Backslash would be easily realized since Traxxas offers the 2WD Slash with

TRX 3.3 Racing Engine power right from the factory. Adding the biggy bits and a few other choice parts was easy—check it out.

Buggy Body

You can’t make a platform like this into a buggy without putting a buggy body on it, and since no one makes a drop-on buggy body for the Nitro Slash, I had to make something work. I did a little searching on the Pro-line website and ended up picking up a Predator body designed for the Team Associated RC8B3E. I picked it mainly because it had a separate nose that could be bolted onto the nose of the chassis. After a rough trim and while the body was still clear, I placed it over the chassis and marked the outline of the engine, air filter, and exhaust tip so that I could get them cut out and keep the opening as tight as possible. I took one of the two front shortcourse body mounts, cut about a

1/4 inch off the bottom, and attached it to the top plate to mount the front of the body. The back of the body was simply tucked down below the wing. I used Duratrax spray paints for the paint job.

The buggy conversion looks so factory, it’s easy to forget it began life as a shortcourse truck. Pro-line Electroshot 1/8-scale buggy tires replaced the stock short-course tires thanks to 17mm hex adapters from Traxxas. A little thought had to go into trimming the buggy body so that it would fit the Nitro Slash chassis.

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Removing the bumpers and swapping the shortcourse treads for buggy wheels and tires really changes up the look of the chassis.

I mounted a Pro-line Trifecta wing using the existing rear body mount. It sets the wing at the perfect height, and I still have access to the EZ Start plug.