Features
Give 'Em The Shafts • Venom's included VC drive system provide smooth operation throughout the suspension's range of articulation and steering. The drive shafts are composed of steel shaft ends and ball joints while the main slider shaft is composed of the same glass filled nylon as the rest of the kit. These shafts are lightweight, helping keep the CG low, and are also durable for punishment on the rocks. Venom uses the same style joints in the axles to provide maximum steering angle, up to 40º, while still maintaining smooth operation and durability.

Wheel Weights • The Creeper features a unique wheel weight system that other crawlers don't offer. These beadlocks are capable of receiving Venom's optional wheel weights (available separately) for added tuning and traction. Each wheel is capable of receiving six weighted inserts, available in both 1.3oz and 2.5oz increments, allowing for a total of up to a pound per wheel.

Lock 'Em Up • One of the coolest features on this rig is the lockable differentials. A sliding mechanism on the outside of the axle housing contains a shift fork on the inside that engages the red anodized locking ring. The red anodized ring slides back and forth to engage the three locking pins into the differential bevel gear and thus locks the differential for some serious crawling action. As an optional part, Venom offers a remote locking kit (VEN-8347) to allow you to lock and unlock the differential on the fly.

1. Integrated Transmission: The transmission is integrated with the skid plate and lower link mounts for strength and the lowest center of gravity possible. This also allows for the skid plate to be angled to the sides for slightly more ground clearance. To top it off, the transmission is completely sealed to keep rocks and other debris out of the gears.

2. High Clearance Links: The lower links are bent to allow for more clearance on break-overs.

3. Internal Anti-Roll Springs: Four threaded body shocks with internal and external springs help maintain a consistent chassis ride height. The dual spring setup also helps keep chassis weight stabilized while on the rocks.

Testing
I headed out to a local recreational area in Southern California called Puddingstone Lake where there was a nice rock outcropping to crawl around on. The rocks were perfect with plenty of steep climbs, challenging break-overs, and tons of traction.

Torque and Power • The combination of Venom's Pro Brushless ESC, V540 Crawler Motor, and of course the Creeper chassis made for a nice combination of torque and power. Rated as an 18.5 brushless, the V540 paired with the Creeper's XX:1 final gear ratio provided plenty of hill climbing torque. And because the Creeper uses bevel gears and multi-gear transmission, higher speeds are attainable for powering over the toughest of obstacles.
Rating: 10/10

Brake Hold • The downside to using a bevel gear setup in the axles is that an ESC with a greater amount of drag brake is required for more brake holding capabilities. However, because the Creeper uses a few more gears within the center transmission to get the low gear ratio, that extra drag provides slightly more brake hold than other vehicles. It also helps that the Pro Brushless ESC has programmable drag brakes for just such occasions. However, even with the ESC set on the highest setting there still wasn't quite as much brake hold capability as I would have liked. The Creeper still kind of, well, crept down steep inclines if there weren't any bumps or nooks to grab hold of the tires.
Rating: 8

Maneuverability • This is where the Creeper got to show off its best feature. With the ability to lock and unlock the differentials, making tight turns was much easier than other not dig equipped vehicles. Of course, locking and unlocking the differentials required me to manually slide the shift fork over, something that would result in a five point touch penalty in a competition. Luckily, Venom offers an optional remote shift kit for the Creeper to avoid those pesky touch penalties (look for a scope in an upcoming issue). With the differentials in the open position, the Creeper's turning radius was greatly reduced; something other competitors' crawlers would envy.
Rating: 8

Crawling Ability • Venom definitely did their homework before designing the Creeper. With minimal torque twist this rig can climb some of the most challenging obstacles with not much wheel lift. Though there still is a little bit of noticeable torque twist, I'm sure it can be reduced with a little fine-tuning. On another note, Venom's rig has plenty of belly clearance and center skid surface area to prevent getting caught up on the rocks. The Ridge Line tires did much better than I anticipated in providing the traction needed, and the high clearance links worked exactly as they were designed to do. On a down side, the front skid plate got in the way a bit when a head-on approach was required or taken. At times I needed to hit a ledge at a slight angle to avoid catching the front skid, but that can be remedied easily by removing the front skid.
Rating: 8

Competition Potential • Venom says it right on the box and on their website, "Competition Rock Crawler," and I would have to agree. The potential the Creeper has as a highly competitive rig is definitely promising. Out of the box it handles and climbs great. Of course it, as well as other rigs, has its issues, but those issues can be overcome with a little bit of tuning and time behind the wheel. As with other rigs, learning the way the Creeper climbs to anticipate what it's going to do and becoming familiar with its limitations will greatly help over time. With that said, the Creeper is a great start right out of the box for either a novice or an expert crawler.
Rating: 9

Wrenching
Maintenance • If you've done rock crawling before, you know how much punishment these rigs can undergo in the course of a competition day. If you don't know, well, let me tell you... these things go through a lot. So much, that after a full day of competition a rig can come home looking like it's gone to war and back. Maintenance is a vital key to making sure any rig comes back from competition in one piece. The Creeper is no exception, a rig that is easy to work on is nice. All the main concerns for routine maintenance on the Creeper are easily accessible for the most part, with the one exception being the differentials. Accessing the differentials requires that you remove and dissemble the axles should you need to replace or even just check the bevel gears. If only someone would make their rigs with a diff cover for easy inspection of the gears... hint, hint.
Rating: 8

Wear and Tear • As mentioned earlier, crawlers are put though a lot, so beefiness should be a top priority to any manufacturer. Yes, I did end up breaking the Creeper (tumbled down an embankment and hit a few rocks along the way), but that just proves that we do actually drive and test our review vehicles. Luckily it was only a front lower link rod end that broke, something that apparently has been an issue with other Creeper owners. Venom is aware of the problem and is looking into fixing the matter. Another potential for problems is the center drive shaft ball joint. Early production kits were plagued with these parts being susceptible to breakage. However, the issue has been addressed and newer kits shouldn't be affected. The kit we received for review appears not to be one of the earlier versions, since I haven't experienced the breakage, knock on wood. Overall, the Creeper is a sturdy rig and can take plenty of punishment. Now all we need are stronger link ends, ahem Venom?
Rating: 8

Tuning • Venom hit the rocks crawling with the Creeper, offering two major tuning options on launch day. With the option of adding wheel weights for weight bias and the remote diff locking kit the Creeper can be tuned for almost anything. Of course, some of the standard adjustments on the rig are there too, such as link positions, gear ratio, spring pre-load, ride height, and oil weights. The one tuning feature missing is the ability to adjust shock positions.
Rating: 8

Conclusion
I have to applaud Venom for designing a competition worthy rock crawler right out of the box. The Creeper is definitely one rig to keep an eye on in the future and could possibly make a name for itself. So if you're in the market for an out of the box competition rock crawler, take a look at the Venom Creeper... you just might like what you see.