I have both and I'd choose the gatekeeper every time if I didn't have either and was trying to decide. Two main reasons. Simplicity and price. The gatekeeper is quite a bit cheaper and alot easier to work on. The capra, although more crawling capable, is a pain in the butt to service and modify IMO. Plus, if you own one enduro, you own them all. I have 4 and all parts interchange (except for the added trailing arms on the gatekeeper lol). But, you can't go wrong with either one!
I'm coming round to your point of view. The Capra is a bit of a pain to work on. The gk rear arms and the Trailrunner / knightrunner IFS front are different, but otherwise they are all largely the same, that's quite right. It's not a bad platform, either. Good points!
@@RCTNT Out of the 4 enduros I own, I've yet to try out the IFS lol. I just feel that would be aimed more towards speed and like you, I'm more into crawling and the going as slow as possible lol. I need to invest in an ifs rig or at least get the ifs kit someday lol
@@TheRCBuildersPost I drove my knightrunner today with a friend and his Trailrunner. Definitely a trail oriented rig with mild crawling ability, but better than you may think. Speed? No, at least, not more than any other Enduro model. Quite fun, but if you want a crawler from the Enduro range, the Sendero or Gatekeeper are better choices.
@@RCTNT It's a beautiful looking truck but I had my doubts on its crawling abilities already lol. My first ever rc was an Element Trailwalker back in January and it struggled with those 1.55s on it. Still a great/fun trail truck but not a very capable crawler. Still crawls fairly well though! So I could only imagine 1 55s plus IFS! I would think It would be very stable for speed? Was it not very good at high speed? Or just not fast enough to tell?
@@TheRCBuildersPost Lol, the second one: not fast enough to tell. ...with one exception - it turns on a dime for the class of vehicle that it is. The IFS plus overdrive make it exceedingly nimble when it's moving along, but its gearing is such that even on 3S, "fast" is not a word it'll ever garner!
Ah yeah, I've long forgotten about this video! It wasn't all that long ago, but I've learned a lot about making videos and about RC cars since then. It feels like this could be 5 years ago, not just the two it's been! Thanks for that, yeah, the nerdy little inclusions are extra value, or good for a giggle anyway :)
Your video was extremely helpful. I have the gatekeeper and added 2.2 steel wheels, 18mm wheel extensions, and Fusion 2300kv brushless motor. Most of my rock crawling has been at the beach, and even without rear wheel steer I find the gatekeeper does just Great!
With a few minor mods, I have my gatekeeper driving up (not just statically sitting on a board) 64-65 degree inclines. There is a lot of potential there.
THAT was the ultimate Gatekeeper vs Capra comparison! Such great examples of how capable they are, and who's their target audience. Really enjoyed and can't but praise this vid! I literally went and watched it back-to-back! It's a shame the GK didn't fare any better, but being a hybrid of Element's parts-bin (IMO, especially limited in comparison to the Capra by the chassis dimensions, which force the shape of the cage to be taller, and the axle sizing+portals, mostly), limits its capability to match the Capra. I don't think it's a bad rig. As you put so well, it's a great all-rounder if you could only have one truck, but being realistic, who does? haha! I especially loved something as simple but as visual as the tilting of the rigs, both laterally and longitudinally. Maybe this could be a standard procedure on your reviews from now on? Even a small table on the corner as you describe the trucks to get an idea of a baseline of performance for all of us. This could also be useful to appreciate your upgrades from the stock rig. I know I'd love to see this kind of info more readily available.
I will use the side to side framing for comparisons, I think, yeah. Worked well here. And I'd better build a proper test rig for tip and tilt angles! Thanks for the feedback, very helpful.
That was cool to watch! I seen a couple comparison videos with the two and I guess it's kind of obvious the Capra is best. I just happened to have the Gatekeeper, and I love it. I think I commented earlier, I just barely drove it, only a few times. It's cool that now conditions aren't really for proper crawling, I can just slap a bigger pinion in it, crazy stupid tyres, and use it to drive over piles of snow like my buggies can't do it, heh...
If you’re at a competitive level and have to compete against a Capra, then it would make sense to get one. If you are playing around in your yard or park, the gatekeeper is for you. Associated builds a higher quality kit than axial does. Fit and finish along with general parts quality is better in my experience. Maybe you can’t run the exact same line on a course, but that’s impossible anyways. It’s all about the challenge! Rig ability won’t make a better driver.
The capra and gatekeeper look identical but capra is mainly designed for crawling and it is one of the best in the market's today if not the best of all. The gatekeeper on the other hand is also designed for crawling but it is a little of failure for its high center gravity and narrow width make it easy to flip. So the gatekeeper is degraded to whom want to have a trailer with a little better climbing ability but can never expect too much of it.
Fair question. People asked for it and the rigs have enough in common that it's still interesting. The Capra is better for most things but the GK has it beaten on faster driving, I think. In any case, the hope was it might be interesting! Plus, it gave me the chance to get my head around the capabilities of each. I personally found it useful too! Thanks for watching and asking questions!
Thanks! These are the ones: INJORA beadlocks a.aliexpress.com/_mMQcfC2 I used them because I had to buy so many sets for my tire test series. Gets expensive fast if you buy bigger name ones! These are quite good, for the money.
Sorry Cary, I don't. But I've driven with them both in kit and RTR form. They're not a crawler and their open diff design means speed is the main way to clear obstacles. I probably won't be getting one as it just doesn't appeal to me personally, but check some reviews if you like them. Sorry I can't be of more use!
@@RCTNT no I thank you for your response. I prefer crawlers my self. Was not sure about the ryft being similar to the two in your video. Thanks again. 👍
Your tipping over for the capra was inaccurate and unfair to the gatekeeper. you drove the gatekeeper up the ladder frame and the capra you just placed it on the frame and moved the frame. The motion of going up the frame and the rear tires pushing the vehicle plays a big part in when a vehicle will flip or not. The capra doesnt have the overdrive in it and makes it harder for it to climb steep angles but you cant do the test diffently for the same challange. Plus you cant give accurate test findings if both vehicles are not set up the same IE having the same motor, ESC, and tires.
Thanks for the constructive criticism. You're correct in that these weren't scientific tests - but I did drive the Capra at 4:31 and it didn't tip. Part of the problem was drag brake strength - the GK would roll back at that angle. That's on me, not the GK, of course. I wasn't trying to favour either car but regardless, it could definitely have been done better! As always, these aren't meant to be scientific tests. More just an indication of how they go on various terrain and such. The budget and time required to make everything the same on these tests means I just couldn't make these videos, I don't think! The tip test is something I could have easily improved though, you're absolutely right. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts, I'll keep them in mind for similar future videos. Cheers
This is one you've gotta answer for yourself! Heh, I buy my rigs on sale - if it's 20% off I'll generally go for it. If you're keen on the GK and you can afford it, go for it! It's a fun rig to build and drive!
I love these unfair, biased comparisons. These two trucks aren't in the same category, so why compare them? Why not compare a Toyota Tacoma to a Ferrari? They both have wheels that turn and you can steer them both.
I figured since people might be trying to decide between them. They look similar. This wasn't meant to be rage bait! I'm sorry you feel so strongly about it.
While stock vs stock it isn’t fair. But the Gatekeeper is easy to mod and make as capable as the Capra. The Capra is a great truck to buy, the GK is a great truck to get started for less, then mod up to Capra levels.