RC car?

[Fairmont Kevin]

Hey all! My kid wants a good RC car. He's had the Radio Shack types that break and can't be fixed.

What do you think of this car? (http://www.kyosho.com/cars/kyod93.html) It's cheaper than I expected, so I kinda wonder if it'll hold up and if I can get parts for it if it breaks.

TIA

kevin

[captainoblivious]

Kyosho makes some nice stuff, but parts can be a pain to get and pricey at times.

Personally I'd recommend a Traxxas vehicle, http://www.traxxas.com/. They have changed alot over the years and now make some very good stuff that is aimed towards the beginners. The E-maxx and T-maxx while on the pricey side are great and fun trucks.

The biggest deciding factor should be what you local hobby store stocks. Sometimes something may break and you may not want to wait for or pay shipping on a tiny part.

[Darius Rudis]

My brother had one of those exact cars. The electric version. My neighbor currently has a F150 nitro truck we use in our backyards (HUGE 40 acre field).

Gas (nitro) versus electric...
IMOHO gas is MUCH faster, and you can use the car over and over and over again (no waiting on batteries recharging). But, the fuel/oil and starting and smell are something to deal with.
Depending on his age, will he be able to run nitro himself?
Battery is easier for beginner.

My 11 year old son is currently re-building the R/C nitro boat that I destroyed (when throttle stuck wide open, couldnt turn, and beached it 15 years ago) and is resurecting that shell. :cool: Father/son project, and enjoying it.

[onestep]

How old is your kid?
Those cars are a blast but really fast! They can do a lot of damage to things (shins and ankles) and themselfs if you are not careful.

Generally you can get replacement parts from online catalogs, you just have to wait a few days.

What would is his intended use for it, does he want to race it? If so check into the local sene and find out about the types of car classes they run.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I'm definitely sticking with electric. Honestly I'm not holding up my end of our current father/son project (driveway full o'Camaros) and I'm not going to take on something that'll take my time away from that. Especially since my wife wants 3 Camaros reduced to 1 even more than I do....

I'll check out Traxxas and see what the hobby shop has.

BTW, he's turning 14 but is a beginner at working on stuff.

thanks
kevin

[crosser]

In my youth I raced those quite frequently, thus leading to my addiction to real cars.

On the subject, Kyosho is a pretty well built car but the parts are usually an order only item, many hobby shops don't carry their parts in stock. At least this is the case around my area.

Something I would look into would be what the local hobby shops carry and stock parts for to base your decision. From my experience the Associated brand had a big following and was pretty durable. Something that has a big following is this truck

T-Maxx (http://www.traxxas.com/products/nitro/tmaxx/trx_tmaxx_over.htm)

It has a huge aftermarket (almost bigger than mustangs) and almost every hobby shop carries them. You didn't mention the age of your son or if he had a preference for electric or nitro powered. The nitro powered cars are a bit harder to maintain, they require a break in period and need to be tuned with weather changes. However they are faster which adds fun and there is not really any down time from having to charge batteries. My co-workers and I have T-Maxx trucks and have some pretty good experience on what breaks first. We discovered a skating park, these things are capable of reaching 20 ft in the air with the right jump.

Another route from Traxxas is the Nitro Rustler (http://www.traxxas.com/products/nitro/nrustler/trx_nrustler.htm) , which I think would have been a better choice (hind sight is 20/20). About the only thing to break on these is the rear shock tower, which is usually from landing a jump upside down. One of my other co-workers has one of these. It has made it through three years of abuse with only replacement of the engine and the before mentioned rear shock tower which are $6 a piece.

Traxxas has cornered the market in making ready to run kits, they also have an electric version of the Rustler if you want to stay electric.

On edit:

Damn people are fast tody. I need to speed up my posting skills!

[Fairmont Kevin]

The hobby shop has an outdoor track. I'll see what the deal is with that. Also if there are any other tracks closer to home. I'm sure he'd like to try racing it....

thanks
kevin

[Tim G]

Yes, go Nitro as electric looses a lot of the fun durring all the waiting for the recharges. It has been a while, but you need a minimum of 4 batteries to always have a charged one.

Man the 1/6 Traxxas Monster buggy (http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXJE09&P=7) is cool. 23cc, 2hp, and runs for 45 minutes. Woooo-Hooo! But at 900 bucks-- YIKES!!!

/tg

Edited.

[Tobey]

I'll second the Traxxas recommendation. They are very durable, and pretty common, so spare parts shouldn't be a problem. Another good brand is HPI (http://www.hpiracing.com/index2.htm) . Both HPI and Traxxas can be bought as ready to run kits, with radios and servos and tires included. If it's just a backyard toy, the quality of the electronics that comes with the kits is acceptable.

As captainoblivious said, buy what the local store stocks. Having to mail-order repair parts sucks.

[Fairmont Kevin]

For what a nitro rig costs, I could have his REAL car running.

I'm definitely not looking to spend my car fund on this, and I've spent so little time on the Camaro that "Why would you spend money on a toy car when you have a real one that needs work?" isn't working.

Honestly I should have bought a nitro car instead of the Camaros. Then he could ride the bus when he turns 16.

hmmm......

thanks
kevin

[crosser]

If you want to catalog order your kid's car try these places. They are also good for price comparison to see if the local hobby shop is ripping you off.

Tower Hobbies (http://www.towerhobbies.com/)

and

Horizon Hobby (http://www.horizonhobby.com/)

[crosser]

On second thought, he's what 14 you said, give him one of the camaros!:D

[onestep]

Forget the RC thing! Just hand him the keys to one of those Comaros. He can learn to maintaine and fix it to drive it, you can spend time bonding and the wife can no longer bitch about you having 3 of them in the drive as technically one would be the boys!:D

edit: damn I gotta learn to type faster.

[Fairmont Kevin]

Bad engine, this is the fixer-upper http://images3.fotki.com/v27/photos/3/32054/267768/MVC003S-vi.jpg

Engine's coming from this one. For obvious reasons. http://images3.fotki.com/v26/photos/3/32054/267771/MVC004S-vi.jpg

Nice looking car with no title and Florida roof-rail rust. Body parts come from here. http://images3.fotki.com/v28/photos/3/32054/301260/MVC008S-vi.jpg

I've got about $650 in them all together. Plus $1000 for the car I hit with the trailer when I brought the black one home. :mad:

kevin

edit -- html

[kpl]

I have a Traxxas Nitro 4tec that's been sitting on a garage shelf for about a year...kid got a real car and sold his r/c car so I'm stuck with mine (you want to buy it?)

They are really durable. I never broke anything, though the body shell could use a replacement. The kid broke several suspension parts on his HPI. The adjustablility of the suspension is really cool and one can certainly learn alot from messing around with alignment settings, changing springs, etc. The engine is pretty much trouble free. Just clean the air filter regularily, and resist the temtation to adjust the mixture screws once you get them set.

Forget electric, it stinks to run out of juice. When we'd have our "races" at the local elementary school it would usually turn into an enduro of sorts we'd do hot refueling and run until we didn't have any tires left.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I've been under the impression that frequent tuning was required for the nitro cars. And that the engines would seize if run flat out for long. And that expen$ive FM radios are virtually a requirement for nitro. And that if he's racing (nitro or electric) that a selection of expen$ive radio crystals are needed.

Input on these pre (mis?) conceptions? Tho I gather from all the nitro suporters that these may not be such an issue.

kpl, what do you want for yours?

thanks
kevin

[Tobey]

Frequent tuning is required to keep it at max power without running too lean. A safe tune (running a little rich) is a little less effort. Again, if it's just a backyard toy, run it a little rich and don't worry about it.

A high-quality radio is a good idea. Less interference and better range are good things with a 40 mph missile on wheels. Some receivers also have a fail safe mode, where if the signal is lost, it cuts the engine back to idle. Not a bad idea.

When I was racing, one spare radio crystal was all I ever needed. Much like racing real cars, the tire bill was the most expensive part of racing RC cars. I raced touring cars on pavement, though. Off-road may be a bit different.

[|Thrax|]

I third the Traxxas, they are very good cars for the money.

You never specified if you want a car or truck or buggy r/c.

[Drew Manzella]

Get him an Associated RC-10GT truck.

The Traxxas are cheaper but you get what you pay for. The T-Maxx can be fun but it is limited. It isn't real fast and it never will be real fast. It can drive over shit and go up on 3 wheels but that is about it. The RC-10GT has almost all the functionallity of the T-Maxx but you can take it to construction sites and catch some serious air with them.

Drew - Who has been racing RC vehicles since 1987 and currently has several thousand bucks worth of these damn things (and I got rid of a lot)

[P-51]

I think it's a great idea to get an RC car for your kid. I had one when I was his age, and it kept me out of trouble. I was always at home building them, driving them, or doing work to earn money to buy more. Saved all my money for them, and had no time or money to get into trouble with. Plus, learned useful skills at the same time.

I suggest getting a kit. Building it is half the fun, and then you know how to fix it when it breaks. I'd suggest getting an Associated car. They are very common, American made, and most hobby shops should have all the common parts in stock.

I also suggest electric, it's just easier for your first time.

Check this out:

http://www.teamassociated.com/shusting/CatalogHub/kitspecs_b4/rc10b4_kits.htm

A buggy is probably the best compromise. You can have fun with it on and off road.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I got him into model cars. Considering what he makes out of those kits, I'm definitely not buying an RC kit.

If "you get what you pay for" is a factor in choosing the Associated cars, they're definitely not in my budget.

Maybe I will just dump the Camaros. He can hitch rides with his friends when they're all 16.

kevin

[kpl]

the only tuning we really ever had to do was due to the weather. The instruction manual has a good instructions for tuning. These motors are surely far less finicky than the stuff I dealt with back when I was a kid. Probably due to 20 years worth of metallurgy advancement. I'll get back to you with a price, I haven't thought of it until this thread popped up.

I never did any real racing, but I'd suspect that those guys generally run higher nitro fuels which greatly reduces the life span of the motor.

[crosser]

At times the nitro cars can be a pain to tune. Running them rich does up the lifespan, even the people who race these things for a living don't tune for max power. Nitro races are usually 30 minutes long and require a fueling stop.

Having an engine running on the edge is not good if you have to make it through one of these races. Many people actually use an infrared temperature gun to tune their engines, but they usually only need to be messed with for break in and final tuning. After that it's just minor tweaking for temperature and humidity changes. The sweet spot is around 200 to 230 F.

There are quite a few web forums out there to help, but the noise on these boards is pretty high. If you think the corral is frustrating wait till you read these things. Just do a search for RC or Nitro RC and tons of them will pop up.

For dirt racing tires usually last a long time. I never bought a set of tires because I wore out my old ones. Usually something came out that gripped the track better and it was the "hot ticket". RC has some big trend followings because not to many people will spend the money just to try stuff.

The crystals average about $15 for the FM radios. Most tracks will make accommodations for frequency changes. If you're new they will be more forgiving and ask if some one else could change. Honestly it's a fairly friendly hobby. It can get costly especially when you start racing. If you search tower hobbies engines for a T-Maxx can range from $100 to $300 depending on size and performance.

If you really want to choke on how much these things cost check out 1/8th scale buggies. The race level kits start around $550 and require an engine, radio and other starting equipment jut to get the car up and running. You could have over $1500 in a car! My boss just made the plunge into this type of set up. From what he tells me the 1/8th scale buggies are the RC equivalent of F1 racing. I guess I don't get it, it's just a toy to me.

Just to try and side track your son into real cars, if you're willing to do it, offer up one of the Camaros. He might bite.;) If I could have taken the money wasted on RC cars I could have had one kick ass car! But then again I may have never gotten into the real thing.:D

[swhiteh3]

I have two Nikki Stalkers that my father-in-law gave my wife and I. One has been opened, one has not. I'd sell them for about $50 each. I don't know what price range you're looking in, but at the low end of things these are pretty decent little units. Certainly nothing fancy though.

You can get a little more info here:
http://home.aeneas.net/~wormmy/toys.htm

These sell for a little over $100 typically, and don't have any (that I know of) aftermarket support - just plug and play type deals.

Drop me a PM if you're interested....

[mdaniels]

Frequent tuning of the nitro cars are not as bad as they once were. Especially if you buy a pre-built rig (do you want him to build one or just have one to run?)

Finally, someone said Associated. The RC10GT is totally the way to fly, and is available pre-built and ready to rock, too. I wish I never got involved in the electric ones, once you realize that a fast-ish electric car gets about 10 minutes of run-time off of an expensive battery - the joys of nitro become very clear. I spent a crapload of money on expensive peak chargers and matched battery packs, dischargers, motors, etc... Go nitro and don't look back, they are very reliable now, and don't require as much tweaking.

Matt

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by Fairmont Kevin
If "you get what you pay for" is a factor in choosing the Associated cars, they're definitely not in my budget.

The T-Maxx is a good bit more than the RC-10GT RTR deal. They run almoat $500 complete. The Associated at $284.00 is a good bit cheaper and you aren't going to get much better of a complete kit. I don't think the Traxxas stadium truck is much less than that complete and I would take Associated over Traxxas any day - and I own a Traxxas vehicle.

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXCLU0&P=7

[Fairmont Kevin]

The Camaros ARE his. All three of them!

But the money is mine and the work they need is mostly mine.

He pops into the living room at 9pm and says "let's work on the car!" Well, the garage is a disaster that'll take 4 hours of cleaning just to be able to get at the car. And he goes to bed around 10. And I was just settling down to watch a little tube with the wife. But try to get him to stick around the house on a weekend to work on the car? Hell no!

At this point he barely knows which end of a wrench is up. So I will have to supervise the process. And the reason I planned to not have kids is my time is already overbooked. I know I have issues to resolve, but I'm still better than his worthless real dad.

Since (in his view) I'm the reason the car isn't getting worked on, and will "never" get worked on, he won't save any money towards it. Give the kid a quarter and he's on the way to a gumball machine! He had almost enough money to buy the Kyosho buggy and decided to buy a NFL jersey instead.

The only way to get him to save money is to pay 200% interest, but cutting my lawn is his main source of income and I really don't want to pay $30 for him to half-assed cut it, plus I have to keep a mower in running order when I could pay a professional $25 to do a good job and provide his own damn mower. So when he does some work for his dad or one of dad's neighbors, I'll triple whatever he saves from that money. WHich seems to just about make up for the times one of those shiftless bastards stiffs him. :mad:

So he wants an RC car....

kevin

[mdaniels]

Duplicate post oops.

[captainoblivious]

In defense of electrics, they are getting faster with new advancements in brushless motor technology. But thats a crapload of money to invest in.

Like it was said nitro's can be a pain to tune but are getting better. I remember when I first started it was crazy to tune them, now the newer kits (rtr and beginner) have super reliable engines that are easy to tune compared to the old days. Run it on the rich side and you'll be fine.

If you want speed and don't mind an onroad car, the Fusion with the 3 speed gear is crazy. My co-worker has it and we run out of parking lot room before hitting top speed. Many people have clocked them at 70+ mph.

Here's some boards to check out:
http://www.radiocontrolzone.com/cars/index.asp
http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/index.php
http://www.rcuniverse.com/

[Fairmont Kevin]

Here's one FS on another board I visit.

Kyosho Inferno 1/8 scale nitro buggy....I just don't have time to play with it. I'm not sure of the year, but its a Kyosho Inferno 1/8 scale offroad 4WD buggy. I don't have the buggy body, only a Merc lead sled body (unpainted). The motor is a Rex 3.5 and it has a tuned pipe. I'll throw in the radio, fuel, bump starter, and glow plug igniter, everything you need to go play. It's VERY loud and runs faster than I care to drive it.

$200 obo cash.

The $284 Associated deal Drew linked looks real nice, but that kinda money just ain't happening for this. I'd definitely have to sell the Camaros. So if I could get the one above for like $150, maybe I'd go nitro since that's just a little more than a new electric. Thoughts? I've requested more details from the seller.

Or I'll see whatever kpl wants for his car.....

[Drew Manzella]

I have an Inferno MP6. With the price on the one you listed I am betting it is an MP5 which you don't want. They are:

- Delicate
- Oddball cars
- Poorly engineered

Parts are damn near impossible to get for them and they break easily.

If it is an MP6 I would wonder what is wrong with it as $200 for a full MP6 is way too cheap. I am betting it is an MP5.

RC is not cheap. Period. If you aren't willing to spend $300 for everything as a starting point then you should look into something else because if you spend less you will have a miserable experience.

[Jumbo240z]

If you go electric consider the additional equipment costs... A good batt/charger/discharger ($300.00). The batteries themselves aren't cheap either ($40 a six pac for 2000s when I was doing this with my son). 4 to 5 minute run times with batts compared to 20 min with nitro. Electric motors wear out, you'll need to replace comms and brushes, or just the entire motor if you buy sealed (stock class) motors or live with the decreasing performance/speed.

When my son and I were involved in RC cars we spent some real quality time together. We went the road racing route in expert gas .15, 10th scale gas, Super 10 gas, stock and mod electric, and a rear wheel drive electric class (RC10) I can't remember. There were two events a month during the season, one electric and one gas. I tuned, he drove. He was pretty good at it and won championships at the local level and placed in the top 10 in regional events like the HPI classic and Kyosho whatever (I don't remember the name).

The road cars are very similar to tuning a real car. You changed spring rates, sway bars, shock oil and dampening, tuned pipes, carbs, counter weights, wings/bodies for aero... it's as close as you can get to the real thing for a kid. And if they really smashed it into the wall, maybe $20 to fix it (control arms and stuff).

I guess if you're going to buy the RC as a toy that's cool. But IMO if you get involved in organized clubs whether on-road or off, you'll have something that can build character through competition as well.

In addition to the brands already mentioned, check out these sites:
www.teamlosi.com
www.hpiracing.com
www.serpent.com

Most of my son's race results are still online. If you're interested just do a goggle on "Jon Miwa".

Jon

[onestep]

Do your self a favor, sell the cars, keep the money, and do not buy any toys for him. He is old enough to earn it himself and buy his own toys.

Is this a birthday gift? If so set aside an approprate amount of money as the gift and tell him when he collects the rest for the Koyosho he wants you will get it for him.

[Jumbo240z]

Running a season wasn't considered cheap. My wife reminded me of that constantly. I'll have to ask her exactly how much we were spending. I'm sure it's burned into her brain.

But then, at that time I didn't have an OT car. Funny, she hasn't said a peep about this hobby.

Jon

[Justin R]

Originally posted by Drew M
Get him an Associated RC-10GT truck.

The Traxxas are cheaper but you get what you pay for. The T-Maxx can be fun but it is limited. It isn't real fast and it never will be real fast. It can drive over shit and go up on 3 wheels but that is about it. The RC-10GT has almost all the functionallity of the T-Maxx but you can take it to construction sites and catch some serious air with them.

Drew - Who has been racing RC vehicles since 1987 and currently has several thousand bucks worth of these damn things (and I got rid of a lot)

I second the GT if he wants gas. Stick with the big brands such as Associated and Losi. Traxxas makes a decent product now, but in the past their parts were hard to come by. Go into your local hobby shop and see what brands parts they carry. Most likely it will be Associated, Losi and HPI products.

Its funny someone started this thread here because I have just recently dug out my R/C stuff that has been collecting dust for the last 4 years. I was meaning to ask if anyone was into the hobby. I raced competitvly here in Fl. I was ranked 12th(2WD Stock Buggy) in the SE region back in 1997. R/C cars are a lot of fun but they can get expensive very quickly....Although most of the cost comes from starting out, after that its just maintance.

For a 14y/o I would recommed him starting with electric due to them being less finicky. After he gets a firm grasp on how they work he can always upgrade to Nitro cars. I raced for 4 years and I have never owned a gas car and I dont really want one.

Oh I would also recommend NOT buying a ready to run kit. Building a car from scratch will give him the know how to take it apart when it breaks.

[Drew Manzella]

$300 for a battery charger?

The kid doesn't need a CE Turbo Charger. I can walk in to the hobby shop down the street right now and buy an AC/DC peak quickcharger for under $50. I can get 2000Mah 6-cell packs for $20. The kid is just starting out. He has no need for racing-grade equipment like linear chargers and battery conditioners or high-level matched SCRs. He doesn't need a commutator lathe or brush cutting gear. He doesn't need a Huddy rack to tweak his suspension with precision. Motors don't wear out that quick. Don't believe me? Come look in my motor box and I will show you the following:

- Revtech Stock
- Revtech 13 turn
- Team Checkpoint 13 turn
- Original Twister stock
- Original Trinity Monster Horsepower stock
- Trinity Joel Magic
- Cam stock motor

Those are ALL circa 1990 and they all still work. Granted they have lost some of their original punch but there is no reason why a motor (stock or modified) won't last several years. None at all.

Here is some of my hardware:

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC

5 points to anyone who can identify this car without going to the link:

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/cw1.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/cw2.jpg

That car should pretty well date me and my involvement in RC cars . . .


Here is an RC10GT:

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/gt.jpg

[Justin R]

Is that a chain driven 4WD?.....LoL, thats before my time....

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by Justin R
Is that a chain driven 4WD?.....LoL, thats before my time.... Yep. Don't let it fool you though - that car has one of the smoothest drivetrains you will ever find. Spin 1 wheel and all 4 seem to spin forever.

That car was beyond legendary - it was EPIC. It defined an entire genre of RC racing and it was THE car to beat from the day it came out until the day the company closed its doors.

I can't think of another RC car that was unbeatable for 10 years steady with no major design changes.

[Justin R]

Originally posted by Drew M
Yep. Don't let it fool you though - that car has one of the smoothest drivetrains you will ever find. Spin 1 wheel and all 4 seem to spin forever.

That car was beyond legendary - it was EPIC. It defined an entire genre of RC racing and it was THE car to beat from the day it came out until the day the company closed its doors.

I can't think of another RC car that was unbeatable for 10 years steady with no major design changes.

That is pretty sweet, I've never seen one before. But then again I never really did any dirt oval racing.

The RC10 Buggy in its many variations before the B2 came along in 95 had a stellar record also. I keep searching Ebay for Kinwalds RC10 Worlds Car in decent chape, but it near impossible to find.

[Lewis Tanner]

I gotcher Dominator right here.

http://www.mouthbreather.net/images/bolink.jpg

Slightly cooler than my old graphite Eliminator...

This baby is going to prove that you can sell anything on Ebay. I got $22 for the Futaba AM that was on it. I bet the chassis goes for less...

[Drew Manzella]

The RC10s were pretty dominant for a while but the JRX2s knocked them off the pedestal several times and Schumacher had a 2WD that beat it up at IFMAR a few years. They probably won more years than the Dominators but they never had a 10 year uninterrupted run at it.

Lewis - those Bolinks never really had the "A" game. We had a few guys running them and they were never much of a match for the TRC Pro 10s and the Associated 10Ls. I always thought they were the coolest looking though.

Wanna put it up against my Evolution with the full floating rear pod? :p

[onestep]

Well can some one post a pic of a Frogger?:D
That was my first, I just sold off a 1/8th OFNA Ultra Worlds2 buggy that kicked ass!

[mfennell]

Originally posted by Drew M
The RC10s were pretty dominant for a while I had one of the first to hit the streets way back in '86 IIRC. Man it was cool though opening the box was quite a suprise after building probably 20 Tamiya cars.

I have to put the shocks together? WTF?

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by mfennell
I had one of the first to hit the streets way back in '86 IIRC. Man it was cool though opening the box was quite a suprise after building probably 20 Tamiya cars.

I have to put the shocks together? WTF? And how come there are only 3 gears in the gearbox? What is this metallic substance and why are they using it? Caster? What is that?

[Tim G]

Originally posted by onestep
Well can some one post a pic of a Frogger?:D
That was my first,<snip>

Mine too. Painted mine that bright Kawasaki green.

/tg

[Drew Manzella]

My first car was a Kyosho Turbo Optima. I never raced it offroad because there was no place to do it. I converted it to a dirt oval/paved oval car and got my ass handed to me by the Dominators so I bought one.

[crosser]

I started out with at Turbo Ultima as well! Moved up to the Losi JRX2 and was probably the first person to campaign a JRX-T, the Losi stadium truck. Back in the day it was the first competitive stadium kit. If I remember most of the guys I was competing against had converted their RC-10 buggies.

I think RC is a touch and go hobby. Many of the stores and tracks in the Cincinnati area had their hay day and closed because people lost interest. I ended up getting into on road cars for this reason.

Drew your right about the Bolink cars. They just didn't have the gusto to compete with the RC-10L car from Associated. I made that mistake and ended up upgrading cars only after a few months of racing. For some reason RC bring good memories back to me. I was very competitive and for a hobby it wasn't nearly as expensive as these real cars have gotten. However it's just an RC car, there just isn't as much excitement there anymore. I guess your youth amplifies things like that.

[Redline]

Originally posted by mfennell
I have to put the shocks together? WTF?
My circa 1985 Tamiya Super Champ had oil-filled shocks you had to assemble. That car was a tank.

I've recently been thinking of picking up an HPI MT stadium truck. But then again, I also want to go to Laguna in 2 weeks.......

[Fairmont Kevin]

One of the Camaros should be going away this weekend. The kid will just have to live with a 2.8 instead of a 3.4. It'll build character.

But the RC car is gonna be in the $100 neighborhood. I'll see what the hobby shop has in that range, or maybe live with ordering parts for the Kyosho if needed.

Main use will be backyard toy, and my main goal is to not have to throw it out if something breaks, like what seems to be the case with the Radio Shack-type cars. I assume you can't get parts, anyway; mostly I can't see how to take them apart to fix them.

If he wants Nitro or a real racer he can work, save his money and buy his own. And if he loses (or doesn't rekindle) interest in the Camaros, I could sure use the time, space and money for something else.

Tho whether the "something else" is more worthwhile than what ought to be a learning experience and quality time with the kid is another question.

Thanks all for the enlightenment!

kevin

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by crosser
I started out with at Turbo Ultima as well!I said Turbo Optima. The Optima was the 4WD car.

I think RC is a touch and go hobby. Many of the stores and tracks in the Cincinnati area had their hay day and closed because people lost interest. I ended up getting into on road cars for this reason. Yeah. I started out on dirt oval, then went to paved oval, then to offroad and dirt oval simultaneously to nitro onroad to 1/8th scale nitro offroad and ended with electric touring. Sometimes the changes were for variety but most were a function of what tracks were open.

I would LOVE to find dirt oval racing again. That was always my favorite (though 1/8th scale nitro offroad is a close second). I just did a Google search and it looks like Custom Works has a nice new website which makes me think that maybe they are back up and running again? If so that means that people are racing dirt oval somehwere.

I found 1 or 2 tracks near me but they don't offer 4WD classes. It seems like they all cater to the 2WD buggies and the stadium trucks (on an oval???) so I am not sure what is out there.

For some reason RC bring good memories back to me. I was very competitive and for a hobby it wasn't nearly as expensive as these real cars have gotten. However it's just an RC car, there just isn't as much excitement there anymore. I guess your youth amplifies things like that.I think it was the age. I started racing when I was 13 and all I cared about was beating Casey McKay the next weekend. School didn't matter. Friends didn't matter. Only Casey. Casey was the local hotshoe whose talent was made by his dad's exorbetently large willingness to keep Casey in the hottest, fastest and best equipment.

I hated Casey. It took me a year to save up the $500 I needed to buy a Dominator. At 14 that is a lot of money to come up with. My parents helped out here and there but they prefered to teach me how to save for things I want than to just buy it for me. In the time it took me to get my Dominator, Casey's dad bought him an original Dominator, a gen 2 Dominator (different chassis config - ultimately an $80 interchangeable part) and then a Dominator Pro Comp for a grand total of about $1900. I still beat that fucker with my non-matched stick batteries that I taped into my car because the chassis wasn't designed to take stick configs.

My best memory is when we were racing for the championship. I burned up my ESC in the second qualifier. I didn't have another one. I wasn't about to ask for one so I quietly went back to my pit and started packing my things. One of the other guys I raced with came over and asked where I was going so I told him the story. About 5 minutes later the guy who was #3 in 4WD modified points for the season walks over holding a Novak ESC and says I have 3 minutes to get it in my car before he kicks my ass for bagging out on the championship. So I put it in and went to help out marshalling while my batteries charged. When I came back 10 minutes later the same guy is standing over my stuff. As I get closer I see he is messing with my car and charger. He had stuck his BEST pack of 1700SCEs in my car and was peaking them. Turns out the ESC he gave me was his GOOD one and he put a spare into his car.

This was the first time I ever expperienced true sportsmanship. He told me that I was the one who had a better shot of beating Casey and that he was repaying me for all the clean races I had had with him when I could have easily punted him (At the time I didn't even know you could do that as a strategy). He said he also wanted to see what my driving coupled with his money could do. I beat Casey by 4 laps.

[Fairmont Kevin]

Originally posted by Drew M
It took me a year to save up the $500 I needed to buy a Dominator. At 14 that is a lot of money to come up with. My parents helped out here and there but they prefered to teach me how to save for things I want than to just buy it for me

Yeah, if Nick saved 90% of his earnings, he could probably come up with $500 in a year. When I was 14 I pulled down that much in a month during the summer! And what do I have to show for it?

:rolleyes:

Great story tho! That's why I gotta find _something_ for Nick to do besides watch TV, play Nintendo, and unstructured miscelaneous outdoor playing.

[onestep]

Well I started with a paper-route at 12, that is a real job! 7 days a week no matter what the weather is like. Then there was chaseing down the deadbeats to collect, after I stopped delivering and having my manager telling me they called and bitched even though they did not pay.

Well I saved most of the money I made from my route although it is in the form of boxes and boxes of comics.:rolleyes:

[Fairmont Kevin]

I did a few paper routes. Not including time spent chasing deadbeats, I think I made $0.05/hr. Cutting grass is the way to go!

kevin

[mdaniels]

Originally posted by Drew M
My best memory is when we were racing for the championship. I burned up my ESC in the second qualifier. I didn't have another one. I wasn't about to ask for one so I quietly went back to my pit and started packing my things. One of the other guys I raced with came over and asked where I was going so I told him the story. About 5 minutes later the guy who was #3 in 4WD modified points for the season walks over holding a Novak ESC and says I have 3 minutes to get it in my car before he kicks my ass for bagging out on the championship. So I put it in and went to help out marshalling while my batteries charged. When I came back 10 minutes later the same guy is standing over my stuff. As I get closer I see he is messing with my car and charger. He had stuck his BEST pack of 1700SCEs in my car and was peaking them. Turns out the ESC he gave me was his GOOD one and he put a spare into his car.

This was the first time I ever expperienced true sportsmanship. He told me that I was the one who had a better shot of beating Casey and that he was repaying me for all the clean races I had had with him when I could have easily punted him (At the time I didn't even know you could do that as a strategy). He said he also wanted to see what my driving coupled with his money could do. I beat Casey by 4 laps.

That is a cool ass story. Casey sucks!! :D

Matt

[Rx3]

Wow, I haven't seen a Bolink Eliminator since.....forever.



Here's is my first (and still running strong) R/C car; almost as old school as the Bolink:

http://www.comtrix.net/~rick/Kyosho%20Icarus/Icarus.jpg

http://www.comtrix.net/~rick/Kyosho%20Icarus/Image01.jpg

http://www.comtrix.net/~rick/Kyosho%20Icarus/Image05.jpg

[mfennell]

Originally posted by Redline
My circa 1985 Tamiya Super Champ had oil-filled shocks you had to assemble. That car was a tank. The Super Champ was the first "real" RC car I ever saw. I had to have one but could only come up with the bank for a Grasshopper at the time. The shame!

Great story Drew.

[dwygrsshpr]

Damn this forum.

I now lust after a Traxxas Nitro 4-tec. With all the hop-up bling-bling parts too. The wife is not going to be happy about another hobby :(

http://www.geocities.com/dwygrsshpr/4-tec.txt

60 mph? damn is that going to be fun.

[Drew Manzella]

I will sell you a Traxxas Nitro 4-Tec (not the "Pro") for $250 with several bodies and maybe I will even throw in a radio if I have a spare.

It does have upgraded shocks.


Damn this thread!

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/12l31.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/12l32.jpg

I am a whore for used shit. I went to get some body posts for my 12L and walked out with body posts . . . . attached to a 2003 12L L3. Kids with rich parents who change their minds more than they change their underwear r0ck!

[onestep]

Hey Drew I do not see a "Suck it! " decal on there any where!:D

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by onestep
Hey Drew I do not see a "Suck it! " decal on there any where!:D I haven't raced 1/12th scale in about 7 years so until I brush up my skills a little bit I will be the only one being told to SuckIt!

[Nick]

Originally posted by Drew M
Here is some of my hardware:

That car should pretty well date me and my involvement in RC cars . . .
Damn Drew, now I'm going to have to take some pics of my old RC stuff. I have a lot of equipment from the same time period that should look pretty familiar.

Custom Works Dominator: My very first experience with car envy.

[M1-Combat]

Well, I'm a little biased but I think associated is the way to go. if you are at all interested in dirt go with one of the RC-10 varieties...

Also, If you don't mind waiting on parts, you may look into OFNA. They are built like tanks as well. I broke one spindle from hitting a rock (big rock) at about 40MPH. I have one of their stadium trucks ATM and it has ALL the cool features including front and rear stabars and 4WD (Shaft driven w/ 3 torsen diffs...). I think you can pick up a Nitro versioned one with a .21 engine for about 250 (Maybe it was 350?). They handle very well on pavement with the right setup and tires so if you race stadium trucks on pavement and dirt (and they'll let you run 4WD and a .21 engine) this is the best performing truck. If not, go with the associated. Most stadium truck classes in my area are .15 engine classes (Which is what I have in my OFNA ATM).

IMO, I would go with Nitro first. He'll get there eventually and quite frankly, you'll get a hell of a kick out of it too. The things turn ~40K RPM's :). All the engine building tricks work well to including porting and the like.

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by Nick
Damn Drew, now I'm going to have to take some pics of my old RC stuff. I have a lot of equipment from the same time period that should look pretty familiar.

Custom Works Dominator: My very first experience with car envy. You have any of the old Futaba 3ch. PCM radios you would be willing to part with?

These:

http://members.cox.net/timbo37/pb3miss.jpg

Transmitter and receiver is all I need. No servos or anything.

[Goggles_Pisano]

Instead of parting with one of the Camaros or buying one of those expensive R/C kits, why not combine the two and build a full sized R/C car like these guys (http://www.rcpics.net/media/camry.wmv) did? (Right click, save as...)

[Drew Manzella]

Blah . . .

:p

[Rick Hohwart]

Custom Works is owned by Tony Stewart. And yes, THAT Tony Stewart.

[mdaniels]

Originally posted by Goggles_Pisano
Instead of parting with one of the Camaros or buying one of those expensive R/C kits, why not combine the two and build a full sized R/C car like these guys (http://www.rcpics.net/media/camry.wmv) did? (Right click, save as...)

Simply awesome.

[hopster]

Rick are you still racing R/C? When I first saw you name I said nah! it couldn't be till I went to your site. You don't know me but got a kick out of watching you drive. Also if you interested check out this site for old Tamiya equipment. http://oldtamiya.interfree.it/

[WhiteLX]

Originally posted by Drew M
You have any of the old Futaba 3ch. PCM radios you would be willing to part with?

Transmitter and receiver is all I need. No servos or anything. I want one of those too. Those are great old radios.

I have been racing R/C cars and trucks on and off for the past 12 years. Started with a Losi JRXT, converted it to a JRX pro buggy, sold it for a RC10 Team car, and traded that for an experimental Traxxas car from a team driver. I also had a 10L fiberglass that I had for about a month until it was stolen at the track. I got out for a few years then bought a Tamiya TA03F Pro which I still have today. Just a few weeks ago I bought RC10L2. Time to go pan car racing again. :D I love the simplicity and speed of these cars.

I haven't raced since 98 and I am amazed at how far R/C racing has advanced since then. They have 3300 mah NiMH batteries, stock motors that are faster than some of the old mod motors, rebuildable stock motors, speed controls that run so cool the don't need heat sinks even with 8 turn mod motors, and more... The touring car craze is just nuts, it seems like every 6 months someone is releasing a new car.

Eric

[Rick Hohwart]

Rick are you still racing R/C?
Yep, still racing although not as much as I used to. I still work in the industry so after working with them all day, playing with them is not quite as interesting as it used to be. Right now I only compete in about 8-10 larger events per year, and am still competitive.

[mdaniels]

Originally posted by Drew M

Damn this thread!


Yeah, no kidding.

Instead of working on the project car, I pulled my RC stuff out of the corner in which it was, stole a table in the kitchen, and I got the RC10T running again (broken front axle and shredded rear bearings) and I finally painted and decalled the Mercedes CLK-GTR body on my HPI RS4 that I never completed. The RC10T is such a blast to run.

A couple of trips to the hobby shop later, I now have parts to convert the RS4 to a WRC car and sprayed a Peugeot 206 body to complete it. And now, I am coveting one of these. (http://www.teamlosi.com/kits/mini-T.htm)



http://www.middleyear911.com/rc.jpg
http://www.middleyear911.com/clk.jpg

[Drew Manzella]

Well after cleaning out my storage closet of ALL my touring car stuff I grabbed this guy:

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/Reflex/r12-1.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/Reflex/r12-2.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/Reflex/r12-3.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/Reflex/r12-4.jpg

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/RC/Reflex/r12-5.jpg

It is the brand-spanking new Trinity Reflex 12. It was just released in the beginning of November and they are sweet.

Now I have to try and figure out what to do with 4 1/12th scale cars.

[ewaher]

I raced a few seasons with a RC10B3 and a TC3 - obviously both AE cars.

Just from my own observations, AE cars seem to stick together better than Losi cars. My local tracks were really split between the two chassis, alot of the time I could win races I shouldn't have just because the competition didn't finish. =)

[Drew Manzella]

I have noticed that too - not so much that AE stuff is more durable but that the Losi stuff breaks easier. I see people changing control arms on their XXX-S's after every race because they broke them.

I don't ever remember JRX2's being that fragile.

[sackdz]

Here's a vid of an RC car. A little different though ;)

http://www.freebmw.net/bimmersteven/cars/misc/video/rccar.wmv

[Lewis Tanner]

Originally posted by sackdz
Here's a vid of an RC car. A little different though ;)

http://www.freebmw.net/bimmersteven/cars/misc/video/rccar.wmv


Damn. You start off with a post that says "Hi I'm new...", and 5 posts later you're tossing Klinks out in one-liner posts in GD. Fortunately for you, your post-per-day count is pretty low so you'll either figure it out before your next post or take several months to finally break enough rules to be kicked off the island.

You've seen the Avatar a repost can earn you, right?

[Perry H]

Lewis rules with an Iron Fist.

[sackdz]

Originally posted by Lewis Tanner
Damn. You start off with a post that says "Hi I'm new...", and 5 posts later you're tossing Klinks out in one-liner posts in GD. Fortunately for you, your post-per-day count is pretty low so you'll either figure it out before your next post or take several months to finally break enough rules to be kicked off the island.

You've seen the Avatar a repost can earn you, right?

Which rule exactly did I break? I've skimmed the posting guidelines, perhaps I missed it?

Then again, I'm not trying to be that highly regarded as you are in the elite and widely respected C-C GD society.

[DougNuts]

http://content.collegehumor.com/media/movies/housejump.wmv

I couldn't find this in the search. Those RC cars look pretty damn tough!

[DougNuts]

Originally posted by sackdz
Which rule exactly did I break? I've skimmed the posting guidelines, perhaps I missed it?



Reread this post, hell, start on the second page..........

Might want to go back and read the posting guidelines. There is nothing elite about anything on this site. Some people just don't deserve to post here............ (not assuming you, I mean the average corraler)

http://us.st5.yimg.com/store4.yimg.com/I/demotivators_1765_3183866

[sackdz]

Sorry I didn't read the whole thread. Nor would I have known it was the same video since I couldn't view videos from the computer I posted link.

[Perry H]

You probably ought to retract your former statements quickly before you are sackdz from the site. It may already be too late.

From the posting rules....
"Use the search function BEFORE you post a question. We don't like rehashing a subject that was discussed just last week, last month, or a even last year if nothing new is brought to the table. We like to be thorough in technical discussions, so chances are good that your question was answered if your topic has been brought up before. In addition, use wildcards in your searches. A search for tire* will find both tires and tire. Finally, don't search for a URL and expect to find out if a link to another site has been posted; that does not work."

Now it is often true that a thread won't show up when you actually use the search function because key words aren't in the posts themselves. I ran a search on remote control and didn't find the former posting of the video, but I know I saw it previously.

Problem is you broke another ...
"Try not to piss off the big meany-head administrators."

I think you are in for a smackdown and at least an ugly avatar if not a pink slip.

[Lewis Tanner]

Originally posted by sackdz
Which rule exactly did I break? I've skimmed the posting guidelines, perhaps I missed it?

Then again, I'm not trying as hard as you are in the highly elite and widely respected C-C GD society.

USE THE SEARCH FUNCTION.

That's not a suggestion - It's a rule. Rules will be enforced, some people will not be happy with the results, the rest of us will. You're not going to be banned for the occasional duplicate post or a subject that has been touched on before, but if 10 seconds and the search engine comes up with 2 or 3 of the same exact discussions or subjects, it just may be your ass. Dig up the old posts, seeing them pop to the top shows you're paying attention and actually give a shit about what you and others are discussing.


The video you posted is linked about 10 posts above yours in this thread. In addition to that, it has its very own thread (http://corner-carvers.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8624&highlight=rc+car), which was started three days after you began your illustrious (and rapidly shortening) membership on this site.

Nobody is trying to be elitist here, but if you can't be bothered to search before posting or even read what others have said in the same thread, maybe this isn't the place for you. There's dozens of other sites where you can post and repost the same content all day long.

We're now one day shy of the anniversary of Zero Tolerance Week.

[sackdz]

Please clarify which post you are referring to? I posted a thread in the suspension forum about spherical bearings after I did a search and didn't find what I was looking for.

As for the link, I saw a thread with a title that said 'RC cars' and a bunch of pictures of RC cars. No, I didn't read the whole thing, no I'm not into RC cars. No I didn't see the link to camry.wmv which I'm assuming is the same video I posted, which I'm still not sure because I'm not going to download it. And even if I did I would not have been able to view it at the time and would have no way of knowing.

So, if I am pissing off a big-meany-head administrator by my contribution or lack thereof to this thread, and have commited such a felonious assault on your little community in which I am apparently not welcome, please do what you will with regards to my avatar, title, postcount, mother, future offspring etc. I obviously don't visit this site often and I could care less about this particular discussion forum.

I will stick to the tech forums in the future. That is, if you don't ban me for my atrocious behavior.


Carry on with your rc cars, kids.

[Lewis Tanner]

http://corner-carvers.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8429

Originally posted by sackdz
Hi I'm new, I thought I"d start off by helping someone. I see Drew M is a moderator here, so I'll make sure to piss him off just enough that he doesn't ban me ;)

At least you got the part about Drew not banning you right. And the bit about not being welcome.

I guess ZTW started a day early this year.


And just so you don't feel left out, here's your Orwell:

We stood waiting, five yards away. The warders had formed in a rough circle round the gallows. And then, when the noose was fixed, the prisoner began crying out on his god. It was a high, reiterated cry of 'Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram!', not urgent and fearful like a prayer or a cry for help, but steady, rhythmical, almost like the tolling of a bell. The dog answered the sound with a whine. The hangman, still standing on the gallows, produced a small cotton bag like a flour bag and drew it down over the prisoner's face. But the sound, muffled by the cloth, still persisted, over and over again: 'Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram! Ram!'

The hangman climbed down and stood ready, holding the lever. Minutes seemed to pass. The steady, muffled crying from the prisoner went on and on, 'Ram! Ram! Ram!' never faltering for an instant. The superintendent, his head on his chest, was slowly poking the ground with his stick; perhaps he was counting the cries, allowing the prisoner a fixed number - fifty, perhaps, or a hundred. Everyone had changed colour. The Indians had gone grey like bad coffee, and one or two of the bayonets were wavering. We looked at the lashed, hooded man on the drop, and listened to his cries - each cry another second of life; the same thought was in all our minds: oh, kill him quickly, get it over, stop that abominable noise!

Suddenly the superintendent made up his mind. Throwing up his head he made a swift motion with his stick. 'Chalo!' he shouted almost fiercely.

There was a clanking noise, and then dead silence.

[Drew Manzella]

Originally posted by sackdz
Carry on with your rc cars, kids. Who the fuck are you calling a kid?

Don't even get me started on who I am and what I have raced in my lifetime because I guarantee you that my REAL CAR resume is much, much larger than yours - kid.

[DougNuts]

Originally posted by sackdz
Please clarify which post you are referring to? I posted a thread in the suspension forum about spherical bearings after I did a search and didn't find what I was looking for.

As for the link, I saw a thread with a title that said 'RC cars' and a bunch of pictures of RC cars. No, I didn't read the whole thing, no I'm not into RC cars. No I didn't see the link to camry.wmv which I'm assuming is the same video I posted, which I'm still not sure because I'm not going to download it. And even if I did I would not have been able to view it at the time and would have no way of knowing.

So, if I am pissing off a big-meany-head administrator by my contribution or lack thereof to this thread, and have commited such a felonious assault on your little community in which I am apparently not welcome, please do what you will with regards to my avatar, title, postcount, mother, future offspring etc. I obviously don't visit this site often and I could care less about this particular discussion forum.

I will stick to the tech forums in the future. That is, if you don't ban me for my atrocious behavior.


Carry on with your rc cars, kids.

http://us.st5.yimg.com/store4.yimg.com/I/demotivators_1765_6754427

I could do this all day, thanks to Redline for the link!!

[JonnyX]

We have to start tracking who has gone from zero to SuckIt! in the fewest posts. 9 has to be close to....something.

[ROUSHGTR]

Originally posted by JonnyX
We have to start tracking who has gone from zero to SuckIt! in the fewest posts. 9 has to be close to....something.
And one of those was a redundant post that I deleted, so now it's only eight.

Jim

[Fairmont Kevin]

http://www.teamassociated.com/shusting/CatalogHub/kitspecs_b4/rc10b4_kits.htm

A buggy is probably the best compromise. You can have fun with it on and off road.


Hey, the RC thread is back!

Nick's getting a report card this week that will earn him an RC car. Finally!!

He wants 2wd so he can oversteer better. Is that right?

I'm prepared to pay $250-ish for a nitro car. He goes back and forth every second between touring car and monster truck. We've got a paved road race track at the hobby shop (10-15 minute drive from home) and a school with fields and parking lot a block away.

Should I suggest the buggy compromise like P51 says? There are a number of votes for Associated....

thanks
kevin

[Rx3]

Well how serious does the kid want to get? I would check out the venues you said, and see who is running a racing league. Then get the vehicle based on what the kid wants to compete in. You don't want to get a monster truck or buggy only to find out he wants to compete with all his friends in the touring car races.

If he just wants something to rip around the house while he's outside, then definitely go the monster truck/buggy route.

[Scat(\/)an]

Kevin,

All of my experience with touring cars is with electrics. RWD is practically uncontrollable unless you're running a 'stock' motor (27-turn). AWD cars can be set up to be pretty loose if you want and are much more forgiving with the handling. You can completely change a cars character just with sway-bar adjustments - not to mention what you can do with tire compounds. I'm not aware of ANY 1:10 scale Nitro cars that are RWD - you couldn't put any power down.

You do however need flat, wide open spaces to run an on-road. The less littered with rocks/debris the better. At the speeds these cars can reach, hitting a small rock can be enough the send the car into the air.

As for off-road, there are stadium trucks/buggies and monster trucks. The stadium trucks are more robust than the touring cars - you can build ramps and launch them through the air and they'll (usually) survive the landing. They suck on asphalt though - the camber curves are horrid and the body roll is atrocious. The tires don't last long on pavement either. The buggies are lighter but usually have very similar chassis.

Can't really comment on the monster trucks - they were always too big and too slow to interest me.

That said, I'm kinda partial to electric touring cars. Insert a battery and hit the power switch. When I'm done, I stick it back on the shelf. No fuel to add, no carb to adjust. I don't have to spend 10 minutes trying to start it and get it to idle properly. With an aftermarket motor it's not much slower than a nitro car, and hits top speed a lot quicker.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I want to get good-quality, durable equipment, but commitment of time and money will be strictly hobby-level. Of course he's gonna want the race-grade and bling-bling stuff, but it's my job to temper that. He's got plenty to do besides become a pro RC racer.

Between keeping his grades up, playing Varsity football, and he says he's going to play tennis next year too, his time is pretty well booked.

None of his friends that I know have "serious" RC cars to run against. I've seen a couple of 20-somethings down the street running one.

The school parking lot will be a much better place to play than the street at home. Thanks for the info on 2wd vs 4wd!

kevin

[onestep]

Do youself a favor go electric for the hobby level fun low hassel route. Unless he is a motorhead that would love to chase tuning a motor. Get a couple of batterys and have fun.

[Toddzilla]

I would get the best electric buggy/stadium truck possible. If you get him some cheap "entry level" kit you will spend more money modding it than you would have just buying the better kit to start with.

In college, when I was too poor to mod my real car, I raced stock electric stadium truck and buggy classes every week.....it was an absolute blast.

In my experience, driving up and down the street, or in the dirt lot behind your house gets old, racing is fun every time.

I've currently got a losi XXX-T, RC10 B3, JRX-pro, and an old LX-T. I dusted them off a year ago and raced, but I got my ass kicked. :(

Maybe I'll sell them all to you! :D

[Rx3]

Do youself a favor go electric for the hobby level fun low hassel route. Unless he is a motorhead that would love to chase tuning a motor. Get a couple of batterys and have fun.




I agree. Electric is more cost friendly and easier to deal with than gas.

[P-51]

I also agree, for just bashing around, stick with battery power. Just pop a battery in and go.

Gas would be a great learning experience if you want him to go down that road, but it is more work, more risk of "blowing it up".

On one hand, getting an on-road car makes sense, cause he could race it at that track which is a great pass-time. On the other hand, racing is horribly expensive and time consuming. Unless you're dedicated, you can't be successful.

I gave up, and got back into airplanes.

A RWD truck is probably the best bet for the most versatile. It'll drive on asphalt, dirt, short grass, and even snow if your electrics are waterproof.

I drive my truck onroad sometimes, and it's fun... sorta. Kinda uncontrollable, lots of spinouts.

A buggy would be faster however. The trucks are basically buggy chassis with fat tires which slow them down.

I would suggest sticking with Associated, Traxxas, or JR.

Traxxas is often the most affordable, and good parts availability. They usually have good "all inclusive" packages. Associated and JR are higher performance, higher cost.

[captainoblivious]

I love the smell and sound of nitro.

With that said, making sure you have fuel, extra glow plugs, as much improved as today's engines are they can still be finicky and the clean up; I'll stick with and suggest electric.

Did I mention how much of a pain nitro exhaust + dirt is to clean up?


As for what type to get, find out the use. Touring cars are fast and alot of fun, but I got board with mine quickly since I don't race. Monster trucks are more fun and can go over many things.

Then there are the micro's.

1/28 scale like the Mini-z's and Radio Shack Xmods. These need flat surfaces but can be run in the house and in the garage. The Xmods aren't as good, but are only $50.

1/18 scale. They have everything for these. Touring cars, staduim trucks and monster trucks.



If you go with the normal 1/10 scale I also recommend Traxxas. They make onroad, staduim and monster trucks. They pretty much aim there products and those new to the hobby, so everything ready to run, minus batteries and a charger. On top of that they are good quality and in the hands of the right person can still be competive in racing.

[Toddzilla]

I would suggest sticking with Associated, Traxxas, or JR.


You forgot the best brand....losi.

[e30power]

bullshit. You just refuse to accept the 18 time IFMAR champions :)

That being said, if its for your son, get an Associated T4 RTR or a Losi XXX(XXXXXXX)-T RTR. In the world of R/C Cars, you can bash a racer, but you cant race a basher. If he gets the "track" bug, he will be buying a new platform very fast if not a Losi or Associated.
IMHO, Losi and Associated make the best RTR's to start out with. Traxxas is a good one for a complete novice, but if you start to get more involved, you're severely limited with the chassis. The T4 and XXX-T are very very good platforms to start from, and can be upgraded to Factory Team and MF editions respectively as your son's skills progress.
The included motors and ESC are amazing these days for the price, and the RTR's stated above will not be the limiting factor.

A "stadium truck" will be the best option. In the past 7 (good lord) years I have ran my T3, I have gone from ROAR Off-Road races to slamming it and running foam tires on carpet. They are very versitile, and will perform great on any surface. Buggys are more offroad, but have a lower ground clearance than a "truck" (read: not as much backyard bashing). Monster Trucks are becoming popular on the scene as of late, you might want to look into the new Traxxas Revo, its one hell of a monster truck.
On-road cars are very fun, but obviously cant go off roading. However, if your son likes it, Nitro 1/10th Scale On-Road is a very very fun class to eventually race in.
Batteries are definately the way to go for a starter. I only bought a nitro R/C car 3 years ago, and the jump is amazing. If he likes R/C cars, I would look into getting a Nitro vehicle as your 2nd one. Nothing rivals a Nitro TC3 FT with a Mugen/Novarossi MT-12 engine for speed, handling, and fun :)

That being said, just go have fun. Some guys take R/C racing very very seriously (go to a ROAR race), and ruin the "grassroots" aspect of it. If you guys decide to race your R/C car, I would look at racing in a spec class.

[Fairmont Kevin]

Thanks guys! Went to the hobby store today; they were slap out of electric cars and won't have any for a week. They recommended Associated, and they stock the parts. So I searched the net and placed the following order at Tower Hobbies: :cool:


The following items will ship to you from our Reno, Nevada distribution center
Estimated Arrival Date: On 05/04/05
Associated RC10T4 Special Edition RTR 1 224.99
Epic 6-Cell 3000mAh NiMH Sport Battery Pack 2 17.99
DuraTrax IntelliPeak AC/DC Mini Pulse Charger 1 64.99
Tower Hobbies #1 Tower SS Club Pack-C 1 14.99
$40 Promotional Discount 1 -40.00
Tower Promo R/C Car Action (3 Free) 1 - .00


I hope that formatted ok.

I was totally clueless about the batteries and charger. Did I do OK???? :confused:

The hobby store no longer has their road course. :( There's an oval nearby in Bradenton but Nick was not interested. There's an offroad course in St Petersburg and a road course in Tampa. The truck will get plenty of miles in the yard and we'll make the 40-min trip to St Pete occasionally.

[br93lx]

The IntelliPeak is a good charger and for just bashing the batteries are fine. You don't need 3300's or 3700's for use in the backyard.

[hopster]

It sounds like to me he is looking for a drift car if he is wanting one that oversteers. Check out this company they are making a drift car that can also compete with regular racing if he gets tired of sliding around. http://www.yokomousa.com/

[Fairmont Kevin]

Thankfully, no. He's seen drifting on TV and thinks it's stupid. He just wants the same sort of responsiveness that makes so many of us prefer RWD real cars to FWD.

kevin

[Drew Manzella]

Not sure if it is at all what you would be looking for but I have a practically brand new HPI R40 competition touring car I am trying to get rid of. It is almost complete - just needs a radio. The motor is a modified ROAR-Legal Novarossi and this car screams. Even with its short race gearing it will still do mid 60MPH.

http://www.tubas.net/~drew/drew/content/Sale/R40/r40.htm

Ignore the price. If you are interested we can work something out.

The nice thing about an HPI is you can get parts for it almost anywhere.

[Tim G]

Do they make a "weed eater" gas powered car? At a reasonable price?

I think it would be great to fill up and play for 30-45 minutes. Plus a gallon of gas will last a long time.

/tg

[Fairmont Kevin]

Thanks, Drew, but look about 4 posts above yours to see what I bought. Should arrive today.....

[hopster]

That is a great combo. He will have fun! Cannot go wrong with Associated. Hopefully their buyout by Thundertiger will not be bad.

[Fairmont Kevin]

It's here!! I'm trying REALLY hard to not open the box. Let the kid have all the fun... :o

Wouldn't you know, today is the first time I can remember it raining here in quite a while.... :(

[Fairmont Kevin]

Slow-charged the first battery for 30 hours.

He ran the car in the yard and in the street for maybe 10 minutes until he noticed it possibly slowing down a bit and then suddenly it stopped. The steering worked but the car wouldn't move. After a few minutes of looking at it, the motor would run if you gave the car a push, but if it stopped moving it wouldn't take off on its own.

It seems like it shouldn't have overheated the speed control or run down the battery in 10 minutes, right?

Any hints? All the connections seem good. The temp outside in in the 70s and the grass is dry. WHat else can I tell you?

[Rx3]

Sounds like the battery died :confused: Charge it back up and see what happens.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I posted on Hobby Talk.com and they say that's normal life (!!) for batteries in a fairly powerful car like that.

I guess that's the difference between real RC cars and toys.

Gotta get more batteries....

[Rx3]

I posted on Hobby Talk.com and they say that's normal life (!!) for batteries in a fairly powerful car like that.

I guess that's the difference between real RC cars and toys.

Gotta get more batteries....


Yeah, that's normal get 2 batteries and a quick charger (usually charge in 10-15 minutes). Charge one while you run. That way you always have a fresh battery ready to go :)

[e30power]

haha.
10 minutes is actually a really long time.
I used to have problems making 5 minute races back in the day.

Oh, dont slow charge the batteries. Hit them hard and fast. NiMH's respond best to a 5 amp charge, and then take them off when they start to get warm to the touch. For 3300's (good lord), it might take 15-25 minutes.
Trickle charging a NiMH battery like that is also a sure fire way to kill it real fast. Unlike NiCads, they dont really lose their voltage threshold as they peak when charged. Most lower-end chargers are setup to look for the voltage drop that doesnt exist to stop charging.
Fast-charging the batteries will also give you more power from the get-go.

If I guessed right at the version of charger you got, it can charge NiMH's at 3 amps. Use this setting, and you will be good to go.
Tobey has a good idea. A stock motor will also require less time before you have to do motor maintenance.

[Tobey]

I see on Tower Hobbies site that your kit came with a 15-turn motor. The fewer turns, the more power, but the more current draw. A good "stock" motor (27 turn) might be a good investment. More run-time and it's not THAT much slower. It will require regearing, though. Welcome your son to the endless joy and pain of modifying cars...

Here is one example of what I'm talking about:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXGSZ1&P=ML

[br93lx]

Ten minutes is very good. Mine barely last six minutes. It doens't matter since the heats and the mains are only 4-5 minutes depending on the track. Like it was stated earlier don't trickle or slow charge. Hit the batteries with at least 3 amps. I usually charge my 3300's and 3600's at 4 amps.

Tobey and E30 have the right idea, a stock motor will last longer. You should be able to get 15-18 minutes out of a charge depending on gearing. You just won't have the speed with the stock motor that you do with the 15T.

To Tim G. they do make R/C cars that use "weed eater" style motors. Most are 1/6 amd 1/5 scale for off road. On road you can go as big as 1/4 scale stock cars. Those things are truely awesome to watch run. I'll try and find some more tech on this. The sites I did have on the 1/4 scale no longer work.

[Fairmont Kevin]

Crap! I fast-charged the battery we used yesterday and slow-charged the new battery and it still does the same thing, straight from the charger, with both batteries. It won't go! What next??

[br93lx]

Does the steering still work or is the car completely dead? Check all the electrical connections. If they are good you might have a brush/spring hanging on the motor. Pull both the springs off and pull the brushes out to make sure they move freely in the hood. If that isn't it, try hooking up the motor to another power source to see if it runs. If it doesn't, it's your motor, if it does run then most likely your problem is the speed control.

[Tobey]

The problem is that once it stops, it won't move without a push? But once you push it off, it runs fine, speeds up and slows down with no problems, as long as you don't stop?

Sounds like a bad brush on the motor. If you can do it without pulling the motor, pull on the brushes and reseat them against the motor. If you have to remove the motor to access the brushes, you might as well pull them out and clean them with a pencil eraser.

[Tim G]

It has been a zillion years from when I had my electric car... but I had a small battery pack for the radio/servos and much larger one for the motor.

Are new cars only working now with only one?

/tg

[Sam Lin]

Newer electrics all run off the single pack, with a BEC (battery eliminator circuit) on the ESC (electronic speed control) that ensures that the rx and servos always get their current regardless what the main drive motor is pulling.

What ESC is in the car? That's a relatively low-turn motor for a "kit" ESC to handle, I'd second the recommendation to get a higher-turn stock motor for messing around with, it'll give more run time and require less frequent maintenance. I'd also look at upgrading the ESC depending what it is.

Sam

[Fairmont Kevin]

Hung brush!!

thanks guys!!

[Redline]

I just picked up a used HPI RS4 MT electric stadium truck from Ebay. I've been out of RC for about 20 years (see my earlier posts in this thread).

It comes with a 3000 mah NiMH battery -- any idea what kind of charger to get for this?

Thanks.

[Fairmont Kevin]

I got the
DuraTrax IntelliPeak AC/DC Mini Pulse Charger, 64.99
at Tower Hobbies. It works fine and I've gotten good comments on it here.

Get at least one extra battery when you get the charger. They only last ~5 min in our car, and not usually longer than 10 min in slower cars....

[Redline]

They only last ~5 min in our car, and not usually longer than 10 min in slower cars....Crap! That's it? Even a 3000 mah?

[Fairmont Kevin]

It depends on your motor and your gearing. And I admit I haven't timed our battery life, but my guess seems reasonable. We have 3000mah batteries and, iirc, started with a 15-turn motor and now have a 14.

We also don't have a track that requires much slowing down, so it's WFO all the time.

hth a little

kevin

[Perry H]

Anyone know of an RC Boat that looks like an alligator? (full size or nearly so)

My dad just bought a place with a pond in the back. I want to have a little fun.

[JSKEARNEY]

My dad just bought a place with a pond in the back. I want to have a little fun.

How about one of these (http://www.metacafe.com/item28218/new_videos/6/the_hydro_foam) Hydro Foams....?
Jamie K.

Now that would be fun.

[Perry H]

That's a pretty incredible little toy, but I'd put that thing into a tree or nosedive it into the pond within 5 minutes.

I was thinking of a different type of fun - as in scaring the Bejesus out of visitors.

Another idea was a pnematically operated "Jason" with Hockey Mask that jumps out of the pond close to where I tell someone to go look at something. :)

[XHawkeye]

If you want a R/C vehicle that a little slower and more expensive. (http://www.gardentrucking.com/peterbilt.tpl?cart=11251107203554329)

The kids will be able to play with it. (http://www.gardentrucking.com/pix/LittleTrucker.jpg)

Drivetrain picture. (http://www.gardentrucking.com/pix/Originals/DSC00133.jpg)

[SalKhan]

Allright guys.... I've joined RCZ and asked this question, but I thought I'd throw it out there to you as well...

I miss my Kyosho Optima Mid that I had in the late 80s/early 90s. CF Upper chassis, Aluminum lower, 4WD via reinforced belt, Trinity motor, Novak reciever, Futaba controller... Mmmmm....

I want to get back in with something similar to that.... But I don't know where to start.

Whaddya'guys think? I have nothing leftover from back then so I'm starting from scratch.

[br93lx]

If you're wanting to have another 4wd electric there are many choices.

Losi: XX4 & XXX4

X-5: (modified XX4)

BJ 4x4: (current world champion)

Kyosho: ZX-5

Schumacher: Cat 4000 (Not released yet)

Academy: SB Pro and Sport

Durango: Cost around $1500

Yokomo: releasing a new buggy next year

This Site (http://www.4wdrc.com/) is dedicated to 4wd electric.

If you're just wanting something to bash around with in the backyard or something I would recommend a 1/8th scale 4wd buggy or truggy.

[onestep]

Man up and get something with an engine!
Nitro methane!!!!!

[SalKhan]

Man up and get something with an engine!
Nitro methane!!!!!

Well I'm going to look into getting this:

http://www.teamlosi.com/ProdInfo/Gallery/losa0015-03-450.jpg

(Thank you brlx!)

It just seems to match what I have experience with the closest but it seems the best pricing I can find is in the mid-$300. Should I definitely go new and if so, where? Or should I hop on Ebay and see what I can track down?

I don't want to go with Nitro just yet. I have a habit of breaking everything nice I own and I'd rather break something I'm khanvinced I can fix. :D

[onestep]

Ebay all the way. Do a quick search at all those toys people wanted but then barely used.

[br93lx]

Nine out of ten times Ebay is your best bet. You can usually snag a used XXX-4G+ for $200-$300 with motor, radio, servo and sometimes batteries. Plus, most already have aftermarket goodies already on them. I would recommend if you want to use reverse don't pick one up that has the one-way front differential already installed.

If you go to any major offroad race the Losi's will out number every other manufacturer present. They do great on blue groove tracks and are usually hard to beat. The XXX-4 has trouble on very rough tracks, that's why they brought the XX-4WE (http://www.horizonhobby.com/Shop/ByCategory/Product/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSA0011) back. It's a great car but with three belts it's a pig.

[SalKhan]

Ebay had a few XXX-4 I'm keeping my eye on. Hopefully something will come of it even if it's $75 off one of the new kits still in box.

I doubt I'll race anytime soon! I mean granted it would probably be cheaper than racing the bike.... Esp....escially in..... the....... Winter. Off...... Season.

This could get dangerous. :D

Nine out of ten times Ebay is your best bet. You can usually snag a used XXX-4G+ for $200-$300 with motor, radio, servo and sometimes batteries. Plus, most already have aftermarket goodies already on them. I would recommend if you want to use reverse don't pick one up that has the one-way front differential already installed.

If you go to any major offroad race the Losi's will out number every other manufacturer present. They do great on blue groove tracks and are usually hard to beat. The XXX-4 has trouble on very rough tracks, that's why they brought the XX-4WE (http://www.horizonhobby.com/Shop/ByCategory/Product/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSA0011) back. It's a great car but with three belts it's a pig.

[Tobey]

Ebay had a few XXX-4 I'm keeping my eye on. Hopefully something will come of it even if it's $75 off one of the new kits still in box.
If you go this route, PM me. I have a bunch of electric stuff I'll sale you cheap. Several motors, batteries (NiCads, no NiMH), charger, radio (JR 3-channel, IIRC), motor controller (Novak, I think), heavy duty steering servo. If you're interested, I'll dig it out and get all the model numbers, condition, etc. for you.

[SalKhan]

If you go this route, PM me. I have a bunch of electric stuff I'll sale you cheap. Several motors, batteries (NiCads, no NiMH), charger, radio (JR 3-channel, IIRC), motor controller (Novak, I think), heavy duty steering servo. If you're interested, I'll dig it out and get all the model numbers, condition, etc. for you.

Saweeet! Thank you sir!

I'm going to head down to my local hobby shop a little later tonight I hope, and see what they have to offer. Just so I can at least look at them. Maybe my last chance to get scared from it or something. ;)

[br93lx]

I doubt I'll race anytime soon! I mean granted it would probably be cheaper than racing the bike.... Esp....escially in..... the....... Winter. Off...... Season.

This could get dangerous. :D

Yeah, my buddy who races WERA does this mainly in the winter or when he doesn't have a bike to ride.

[SalKhan]

Well..... Just got back from Hungates(.com) and they didn't have much in terms of Buggy... but they did have this:

http://www.cenracing.com/flashbody/ff073.jpg - Copy/Paste to work it seems.

http://www.cenracing.com/cars/ff/rally.html (Schlesser Model shown)

Heh... Not electric and not a TRUE buggy (is it?) but it seemed very nice for the price - $269 - with everything included. I'm guessing though I'll get everything I pay for huh?

I've never heard of CEN but a search on some forums turned up some reviews saying it's not bad. And CENRACING.com seems to have some parts/upgrades for it as well.

Any thoughts?

[Jon Richard]

I have a team losi XXX (http://www.teamlosi.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSA0030) i'd love to unload. Sorry if this belongs in sale/trade. I'm not that motivated to sell, just throwing it out there since the subject came up. I drove this thing 5 or 6 times last year and just wasn't that into it. This one is a graphite frame with titanium hardware, kinwald shocks, and a killer little German made speed controller by LRP called the quantum super sport (http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LWW019&P=1). I have 2 ni-mh 3300mah battery packs and an integy 16x3v6 (http://integy.automated-shops.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=2359&p_catid=23&sid=4wSJJh1G05F18tv-36105436005.74) charger and a cheapo airtronics blazer sport controller. The motor is stock, if replaced with a 12 turn and a quick steer servo this would be a front runner. The body is unpainted but otherwise ready to run. PM if interested or if I can answer any questions

[br93lx]

I've seen a couple of the CEN 1/8th scale 4wd buggies at the track. They've been around for a while and seem to make a decent kit. They hold thier own against the Kyosho's, Ofna's, Mugen's, and Sportwerk's buggies. I haven't driven any of the latest "Rally" type cars that are coming out.

Radio Control Zone (http://forums.radiocontrolzone.com/forumdisplay.php?f=114) is a lot like NASIOC. If you sift through all the crap you will find really good reviews on any buggy you might be interested in.

Edit: Complete sentences own me.

[SalKhan]

PM Sent but sorry! I misread and thought it was a XXX-4! But! I'd still be interested!

I have a team losi XXX (http://www.teamlosi.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSA0030) i'd love to unload. Sorry if this belongs in sale/trade. I'm not that motivated to sell, just throwing it out there since the subject came up. I drove this thing 5 or 6 times last year and just wasn't that into it. This one is a graphite frame with titanium hardware, kinwald shocks, and a killer little German made speed controller by LRP called the quantum super sport (http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LWW019&P=1). I have 2 ni-mh 3300mah battery packs and an integy 16x3v6 (http://integy.automated-shops.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=2359&p_catid=23&sid=4wSJJh1G05F18tv-36105436005.74) charger and a cheapo airtronics blazer sport controller. The motor is stock, if replaced with a 12 turn and a quick steer servo this would be a front runner. The body is unpainted but otherwise ready to run. PM if interested or if I can answer any questions

[Oz Racer]

PM sent also, if Sal doesnt take it?



I have a team losi XXX (http://www.teamlosi.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=LOSA0030) i'd love to unload. Sorry if this belongs in sale/trade. I'm not that motivated to sell, just throwing it out there since the subject came up. I drove this thing 5 or 6 times last year and just wasn't that into it. This one is a graphite frame with titanium hardware, kinwald shocks, and a killer little German made speed controller by LRP called the quantum super sport (http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LWW019&P=1). I have 2 ni-mh 3300mah battery packs and an integy 16x3v6 (http://integy.automated-shops.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/st_prod.html?p_prodid=2359&p_catid=23&sid=4wSJJh1G05F18tv-36105436005.74) charger and a cheapo airtronics blazer sport controller. The motor is stock, if replaced with a 12 turn and a quick steer servo this would be a front runner. The body is unpainted but otherwise ready to run. PM if interested or if I can answer any questions

[SalKhan]

Jon's RC is all yours OZ! I PM'd him and told him about the situation.

And in the end.... I decided to go with this:

http://www.minirccar.com/ProductImages/nitro-rc-cars/funfactor/subaru.jpg

CEN Fun Factor Rally. http://www.cenracing.com

And I know, I know... I said I wanted electric but it was probably some great salesmanship from the hyper-post-teen employee at Hungates... But I got a great deal on it. The kit (2 controllers and everything), 12 batteries, rechargeable glow plug heater, glue, bottles, et al for a shade over $300 PLUS a $20 Gift card for parts and whatnot.

I haven't been able to run it yet as I have to charge the glow plug heater for about 14 hours, but I have a feeling this might take some getting used to. But the smell of the nitro-methane as I opened the bottle was both unsettling and intoxicating at the same time.

Thankfully, replacements are on the ready. :D

I'll have pictures of it up tomorrow if anyone is interested!

[br93lx]

I hope you enjoy it, that is the main thing. Another bonus is it sounds like your LHS carries CEN so you shouldn't have a problem with parts. That is the reason I switched from running Yokomo's to Losi's. No one carried parts for the Yokomos. I always had to order online and wait up to two weeks for parts.

[onestep]

So you bought a RTR?

Man half the fun is in the assembly and with that you also gain the knowlage to repair it later.

Loc-tite is your friend!

[SalKhan]

Weeeeeeeeellll....

It kicks ass! It does! In our 50ish car parking lot I barely got it to kick up into 2nd gear with no tuning so far! It's much faster than I thought it would be...

... And that caused a problem.

I broke it in on 3 tanks of gas as recommended. Shut her down and threw the body on after modifying it with some ventilation holes. Then went back out for a full blow test...

Which ended abruptly after a long drift into a cement parking block. The back left slammed into it quite quickly:

(Forgive the cameraphone pix. My digicam isn't behaving lately)

http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/Ouch1.jpg

After 3 barrel rolls, the only damange besides some scratched lexan was a snapped rear axle:

http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/ouch2.jpg

It was bound to happen ya know? ;)

So fear not! Little by little, this bitch will come apart!

But I absolutely dig it and it's bringing back lots of memories. I hope we get a little snow on the ground here this year so I can have some icy fun! I did run it through the grass around my apartment and it was quite at home!

[SalKhan]

Back in action! I managed to track down an HP1 axles that fit with the help of some washers. Starting up easy and running like a hellcat! Some pictures of my success... since they're rare :D

http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/rc1.JPG
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/rc2.JPG
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/rc3.JPG
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/rc4.JPG

The holes were cut for engine ventilation as recommended by both other owners and the Updated manual. I made the one in the windshield a little bigger so that when I started it, I wouldn't have to pop off the top to refill the gas tank.

Any recommendations on smoothing out Lexan?

[onestep]

Do you have a bump box for that car?

What powerplant is in there?

What scale is that car?

[SalKhan]

Do you have a bump box for that car?

What powerplant is in there?

What scale is that car?

Naaah... I was thinking about getting one today at the hobby stores but it was like $90 without the battery! I'll hold off... It's pull start and seems to fire up pretty easy when done right!

The scale is 1:10 and it comes with CEN's 2.67cc two-stroke single cylinder engine and runs on a 20% Nitro Methane fuel. It's a full HP I believe.

[Rx3]

I give you 40 days before you ram it into a tree Sal :p


Congrats on the new toy.

[SalKhan]

I give you 40 days before you ram it into a tree Sal :p

Christ that many? I'm only on day 3 man!

[e30power]

Looks awesome Sal. You can smooth lexan out with sandpaper, or a really sharp hobby knife and cut a new path.
When your motor gets more worn, a starter box will help out in the frustration department.
I would also look into cutting a hole in the rear window as well. Without any real tech to back it up, it helped out my engine's temps.

[SalKhan]

Looks awesome Sal. You can smooth lexan out with sandpaper, or a really sharp hobby knife and cut a new path.
When your motor gets more worn, a starter box will help out in the frustration department.

I was going to give some sandpaper a shot or if I can find my damn Dremel Tool try that with a sanding bit! But it has seem to have gone MIA. Up and left!

You got any recommendations for Starter boxes? I don't need one with meters and gauges and build in LCDs... Just something to fire it up when need be.

[e30power]

I have an ofna true start starter box with the 12 volt battery. I have used this at the track for 5 years. I havent worked on it since I bought it, and actually forgot what battery I had in it until you asked. That's how dependable it has been. No bells and whistles either. Only does one thing, start a motor.
Also, its very powerful. It can start my Novarossi and OS TR motors when they have new sleeves in them, and are stone cold.

[SalKhan]

I have an ofna true start starter box with the 12 volt battery. I have used this at the track for 5 years. I havent worked on it since I bought it, and actually forgot what battery I had in it until you asked. That's how dependable it has been. No bells and whistles either. Only does one thing, start a motor.
Also, its very powerful. It can start my Novarossi and OS TR motors when they have new sleeves in them, and are stone cold.

Funny you mention that! I just found this:

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXAXU2&P=7#tech

Over at TH! I think I might pick it up next chance I get!

[Ron L]

Dremel is the way to go with lexan bodies. The pointed stone bits are the ones I use, not the sandpaper drums. The points are great for rounding sharp curves like the edges of your windshield cutout. Those pointy bits are also good for "drilling" body mount holes, if the body isn't pre-holed for your chassis.

Starter boxes are great especially for large engines, but I've been thinking of those shaft starters where you hook up a cordless drill to it. My HPI has no room for one, not sure about CEN. Hauling the starter box and its 12v source around is another "too lazy to carry" item that keeps me from playing with the cars.

[SalKhan]

http://www.cenracing.com/video.html

Click on CT4S! 74 MPH out of the box!

[onestep]

I had the Ofna box for my 1/8th buggy and .21OS motor and it just kicked ass.

[br93lx]

I was at the track this past weekend and a guy there was telling me odered a nitrous kit (http://www.nitrousexpress.com/Pages/rc_n2o.htm) for his Revo. Nitrous Express claims it can add up to 1/2 a horsepower.


Brian

Edit: I can't spell.

[SalKhan]

http://www.rc411.com/pages/scopes.php?scope=28&page=1

I'm as scared with it as I would be on a 1:1 car with High CR. :D

A little update to my wanderings back in the R/C world...

I break things. Lots of things.

Front Diff Cups:
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/damage/Diff1.JPG

Bent Chassis (AFTER I straightened it out):
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/damage/chassis.JPG

Broken Body Mount:
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/damage/mount.JPG

Complete Front End Disassembly:
http://www.mindspring.com/~salk/Pics/Car/RC/damage/Full.JPG

Basically performed the classic rookie mistake of having the batteries in the Transmitter die at full pace and then veering off course into cement curbing. It was painful and funny to watch all at once.

But the amazing thing was to fix everything cost me $35 and about $7 in shipping. I'll also have plenty of spares left over!

I have yet to replace universal axles which seem to be one of the more expensive parts or the need to start order diff parts. And with the most expensive part being the chassis at $50 - I think I'm pretty happy with the price-to-play so far. :D

[onestep]

Oh ya just gotta work on that thing on the white carpet don't you?!?!?!?!? :D

[SalKhan]

Oh ya just gotta work on that thing on the white carpet don't you?!?!?!?!? :D

IN MY Defense!! It's a light beige! Almost Cream.... ok? :D :)

So far I've been well behaved and picked up a cart-load of Resolve Instant Carpet Stain remover. It's a miracle in a can I tell you!

Besides... Who's going to yell at me? ;)

[SalKhan]

MUST..... RESIST....... URGE!!!!!!!

http://us.st11.yimg.com/store1.yimg.com/I/internet-rc_1872_125925

God.... damnit.

http://us.st11.yimg.com/store1.yimg.com/I/internet-rc_1872_125925

Yes... Working front disc brakes.

[phils88gt]

PFFT!
Childs play! Look here.
http://www.corner-carvers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25367&highlight=OS

Phil

[Sam Lin]

But the amazing thing was to fix everything cost me $35 and about $7 in shipping. I'll also have plenty of spares left over!

I have yet to replace universal axles which seem to be one of the more expensive parts or the need to start order diff parts. And with the most expensive part being the chassis at $50 - I think I'm pretty happy with the price-to-play so far. :D

Uh, wait until you start modding.

Sam

[SalKhan]

Uh, wait until you start modding.

Sam

Shut up damnit! :D

[SalKhan]

Just in case some guys here are into it as much as I've been lately...

I've been dealing with http://www.toyhaus.com - particularly with Sean - and have had an excellent overall experience.

He's actually helped me more with my CEN car than CEN has believe it or not! Very timely Emails and shipping is always on-time. I'm not sure if they have/carry anything you guys might have use for - but I just thought I would share it with everyone.

[SalKhan]

This thing has been more enternaing than my computer here at work! So far I've been through:

* A few axles.
* Many screw, nuts, and bolts.
* Body Mounts
* 2 Cans of Nitro Cleaner
* Aluminum Brake disk upgrade.
* 2 Spur Gears.
* A partridge in a pair tree.

It's spent more time on my table while I tweak, repair, and modify and I'll be honest, I actually enjoy it! The biggest problem I had was getting the 2nd gear to work (which was actually an easy fix) and tweaking the engine settings. Those 2-strokes are fussy! I still have a problem with it creeping at idle, but I'm going to try and get a hold of CEN for that.

Otherwise the setup is almost perfect now - just waiting for my toe-in and camber gauges to come in the mail. But suddenly, getting this:

http://www.cenracing.com/cars/ff/factoryupgrade.html

Doesn't seem so silly anymore. :D :)

[SalKhan]

Holy badass Batman!

http://www.rbinnovations.com/catalog/images/tmaxxtwin6.jpg
http://www.rbinnovations.com/catalog/images/Tmaxxtwin5.jpg

Twin Engine, Dual-Supercharged, Traxxas T-Maxx.

Bling!

[cgrant26]

I'm starting to get into RC Helicopters but I grew up on RC cars. I'd love to get back into it but I already have too many expensive hobbies so one RC fix is about all I can aford and Helis are just so damn cool.

This (http://home.comcast.net/~gchadwick100/Grant-Car.jpg) was my first car. It was a Kyosho Turbo Optima with the Javalin cage body. Full ball bearings, chain driven 4WD, LeMans 240 motor and Futaba Magnum Jr. radio. IIRC, when I got this it was the first year Futaba came out with the Magnum Jr. pistol + wheel style radio. I was also the first kid on my block to get one of the *new* Novak electronic speed controllers. :p

Haha, good memories.

*EDIT* Yes, I know I look like a dork in that photo. :rolleyes:

[kpl]

Twin Engine, Dual-Supercharged, Traxxas T-Maxx.
Wow, I didn't know there were superchargers available!

[Ron L]

I finally got bit the 1/18 scale bug. Being into 1/10 and 1/8 gas/electric cars since the Grasshopper days I wasn't too sure if I'd enjoy a sub-sized R/C car. So I took the plunge and bought an Associated RC18R (http://www.teamassociated.com/ae/18r/kit18r.htm) Subaru, err, "Kamino", for a father's day gift to myself. The 18R is derived from the 18T (truck) and 18B (buggy) with a few mods to make it a "rally" car. On a smooth parking lot it's so fast and responsive my daughter calls it "the mouse". It handles well enough on semi-smooth and hard packed dirt but after 3 days of thrashing it off road I wouldn't recommend it too much. The gears are exposed and I've already stripped two main spur gears. One was stripped even without taking it off-road. The servo-saver is quite shitty and requires constant trim adjustments which makes driving the car very frustrating. Idler arms run into the front gearbox at full lock, so turning down the steering dual-rate helps save the servo-saver, but what's the point?

Of course, that wasn't good enough for some real rough driving, so I bought a Duratrax Vendetta ST (http://www.duratrax.com/cars/dtxd14-vendetta-st/dtxd14-index.html) for that. I took both with me on our trip to the summer home that's accessed with dirt roads. This thing is extremely fun! Even after taking turns with a few 6 and 8 year old kids for 3 days nothing on it has broken. The gears are fully sealed from dirt and rocks. For a brand that's considered "lower" than Associated, I'd give this car the thumbs-up over the 18R. With some mods I'm sure the 18R could run circles around it but having both of them bone-stock I don't even feel like using the 18R anymore.

On both cars the main problem is the double-stick tape they use for some of the components. Vibrations let dirt and dust under the tape which eventually causes the tape to lift. Buy a roll of thick double-side tape to bring along.

I wish I had discovered these sooner. Battery, speed controller, and motor technology has come such a long way that these tiny cars can pretty much match up to the larger 1/10 scale models, plus they're easy to throw in the trunk to take anywhere you go. I thought my modded 1/10 e-Rustler was fast, but now it feels like it's broken after driving the 1/18 cars. Both cars retail for under $200 which includes everything, but the 18R does not include AA batteries for the transmitter. The Vendetta's long travel suspension even has nice "plushiness" with lots of bump/rebound travel once found only on high-end gas cars . Search YouTube for "18r brushless" or "vendetta brushless" and you'll see the insane speeds these cars can reach with a brushless motor/ESC combination.

[John__Taylor]

Yesterday we got this for the younger boy (12).
http://www.traxxas.com/products/nitro/revo/revo33/revo33_imgs/5309-FRONT-www-image.jpg

As suggested in this thread, I found a good hobby store first. The guys that work there are ALL into this hobby like white on rice:). In fact, this store is about 4k sq. ft. and is all about RC stuff only...from $50.00 to $5000.00 (for the big F1 Ferrari).

It was a bitch to get started the first time, took maybe 30 minutes and 2 battery packs, I guess because the tolerances are pretty tight, but after that, no problems. I had to pull the plug a few times and finally got it going by squirting a bit of Nitro into the hole :D .

We are on tank 3 of the 5 tank break in schedule. They hammer it home that its very important to break it in properly and I can see the thing getting faster and faster as we move along.

The adjustability of this truck is mind boggling. Its even got oil filled shocks & diff.for goodness sakes!!

It has a pretty low center of gravity (check suspension layout) and goes like a bat outta Hell.

http://www.traxxas.com/products/nitro/revo/revo33/gallery/revo33-top-chassis.jpg

It's a RTR deal (Ready to Run) that comes with a cheap but "fine for now" 3 channel radio.

We got some extra stuff like a fail safe that applies a percentage (adjustable) of brakes if the signal drops, extra battery pack, etc. and got out the door for around $800.00. The truck was about $600.00. The sales dude comped us a gallon of 20% and some batteries as well.

The truck comes with an excellent, I mean excellent, owners manual that expalins everything from the simplist shit to an advanced suspension set up guide. +5 for that manual.

The engine is loud, hot, and "burn your eyes" stinky..what more could you ask for?:D :D The kid loves it.

As far as tuning the beast, all I've had to do is crank down the idle after things loosened up a bit (1/4 turn). The high speed is set properly (rich) for break in from the factory. It puffs blue smoke like its supposed to. After break in I get to lean it out....just a bit:) .

The steering (2 servo's) is so precise its scary, but of course you can upgrade those as well, or even convert to a single servo if you want.

I dont know about long term durability yet, but so far I give this thing a 9 out of 10.

Video Link:

http://www.traxxas.com/ftp/revo33_mov/trx_video_revo3301.htm

John

[John__Taylor]

One Week Update

Engine break in takes 5 tanks of Nitro, the first 2 are to be used with the body off (for heat reasons). We had a slight rollover at about 15mph. After we righted the truck, it would not move although the engine ran.

Took it to the shop and they said the spur gear (power to tranny) was not engaging the clutch bell (drive gear from engine) because the engine shifted about a ¼ inch. They adjusted it and off we went.

That night on the third tank of gas, it stopped moving. Took it back and found the spur gear completely stripped. They replaced it.

It ran fine for an hour and stopped moving again. Spur gear looked fine. I took it back again and they called the next day, transmission gears grenaded, they replaced all 4.

This morning the new spur gear stripped again. I took it back and they were helpful, but no more freebies (don’t blame them). They gave me a spur gear and let me use their work area and tools, and they checked up on me every few minutes to inspect my work.

So I pull the engine and half the motor mount comes with it!! The mount was cracked in half. So…was it a bad casting from the factory, or did we do it with our low speed rollover? Who knows?

The sold me a new motor mount for cost, I buttoned everything up and its been running fine for 3 tanks of gas so far.

The FUNNY part is I emailed Traxxas yesterday complaining about the build quality of a $650.00 item and asked why the Hell it keeps chewing up gears. They answered today saying:
“You must have another problem to keep breaking gears like that; it’s probably a cracked motor mount”. Uh-huh…

So I’m kind of torn on this Nitro truck. If I caused the initial crack in the first 10 minutes of using the car, then all subsequent problems were my fault. If it was a factory casting problem, then I sure couldn’t recommend them to anyone.

It seems to be working fine now. Goes like snot, powerful like you wouldn’t believe. Starts right up (using a separate igniter, forget the trick factory igniter on the starter pack), and does 50 mph on a flat road surface.

If anyone has any questions, feel free.

John

[eBell]

Since you didn't mention buying any magnesium or titanium suspension bits for it yet I suggest you assume it was a bad casting, be super pissed and sell it off.
This is for your own good, at the very least your wallets own good.;)

Glad I've been able to strictly limit myself to one electric RC car so far. I'm screwed if I ever buy a nitro powered unit.

[John__Taylor]

Since you didn't mention buying any magnesium or titanium suspension bits for it yet I suggest you assume it was a bad casting, be super pissed and sell it off.
This is for your own good, at the very least your wallets own good.;)

Glad I've been able to strictly limit myself to one electric RC car so far. I'm screwed if I ever buy a nitro powered unit.

Oh yeah, I'm down with that. You can replace EVERY damn part with exotic material components to drop weight or add strength.

This is a "bleed money" hobby, no two ways about it, but when the thing is running right the fun factor is a 10/10:D .

The hobby shop is a gold mine by the way. Friday night...FOUR guys working the store and a steady crowd, mostly between 20 and 50 year old customers from the looks of things.

They sold a $1000.00 car (total was $1400.00 with add-ons) and a $900.00 boat while I was there, not to mention a steady stream of customers buying parts. Body $50.00, Wheels & tires $40.00 for 2, paint $8.00 per small can, 33% Nitro fuel $30.00 a gallon, Aluminium half shafts $29.00 each, and on and on....

John

[captainoblivious]

If I caused the initial crack in the first 10 minutes of using the car, then all subsequent problems were my fault. If it was a factory casting problem, then I sure couldn’t recommend them to anyone.
Probably was just a weak casting that cracked on the flip.

I have an Emaxx that has been abused pretty good and the only thing that has broken so far is one of the body mounts. Personally I really like Traxxas, they make some really good entry level stuff at decent prices. Plus their trucks are extremely fun. I just wish they would offer the stuff w/out the Tx/Rx, after a while you just collect to many of them that don't get used.


Anyway since this topic was brought back up, check out the Kyosho Mini-z's (http://www.kyoshoamerica.com/carsandtrucks/minizracer/). A friend of mine opened up an indoor track to race these little things, wow are they are a blast. You can pick one up along with the necessary upgrades to competive in racing locally for about $200.

[John__Taylor]

Steve from Traxxas emailed me back and told me he sent out an engine mount and new spur gear.

I think thats pretty decent of them considering its impossible to prove one way or the other why / how it broke in the first place.

The broken mount was was definatly the cause of the gear problems. The car had about 10 tanks run through it this weekend without a single problem.

Capt., those mini's look like a load of fun, too bad I'm broke now from the Revo :)

John

[Ron L]

I let my friend drive the Vendetta. His response was "Now that I have a job, I just found a new hobby". He was a bit too enthusiastic with the wheelies in the grass and ended up snapping an outdrive. A new set of factory plastic ones are 4 for $9. Aftermarket steel CV shafts, $35 a pair! Even the cheap cars get you with the upgrades.

I'm looking into an HPI e-Savage (http://www.hpiracing.com/kits/kitMain.php?partNo=507) next. It's unfortunate that the 1/10 scale 4wd buggy selection is pretty thin. It's either 1/8 or 1/18 4wd buggy, or 1/10 4wd monster truck.

[John__Taylor]

The Savage (Nitro) is a nice big block, but I dont think its as well rounded as the Revo (no reverse, but you can buy it) and a few other things I cant remember right now, still a nice truck though. The new ones also have a 3 speed tranny according to the video on thier website.

My top 2 picks were the Savage or Revo, with a Tmaxx being third.

I'm not too familiar with the electric version though.

As we were paying for the truck, the sales guy said "Dont let ANYONE drive your truck" :D

John

[br93lx]

The 10th scale 4wd buggy selection has grown a lot in the past two years. You have kits from Academy, Associated (in Sept), Losi, HPI, Kyosho, X-factory, JConcepts, Durango, Yokomo, TTech, Tamiya and Schumacher available. Out of all those I would consider the kits from Academy or Tamiya's lower end kits for bashing. The rest are pretty much high end competition buggies.

[Teutonic]

Ok, my soon-to-be 5 year old goes nuts whenever he sees someone playing with an RC car, so it seems like it would be a good Christmas present for him. I have no earthly idea about the RC hobby other than you can get very serious and spendy pretty quick, as this thread most readily illustrates. Does anyone have a suggestion for a $50-75ish battery powered vehicle that would stand up to a 5 year old driving it repeatedly into a wall? I have a large collection of NIMH cells and a good charger. I'm sure I can head to Radio Schlock and buy something in that price range that would work, just looking for some real world experience.

[Drew Manzella]

"Decent" stuff is going to start at around $200 RTR. The cool stuff that is less (like the Losi Mini-T) won't stand up to his abuse.

Buy something cheap and let him kill it. Chances are your NiMH packs will be useless in aything cheap.

Take that with a grain of salt from someone who has been racing RC cars for 20 years and currently has about $1600 invested in his 8th scale buggy alone.

[Teutonic]

Drew-

Thanks for the advice. If he was a bit older I might take the plunge on the Mini-T (looks interesting) but I think we'll stick to disposable for now.

[Deviousfred]

I had a CEN Matrix and loved it. It was amazing right out of the box. I used it both on road tracks and dirt tracks and it handled great. Very low maintenance and built very tough.

[Ron L]

Ok, my soon-to-be 5 year old goes nuts whenever he sees someone playing with an RC car, so it seems like it would be a good Christmas present for him. I have no earthly idea about the RC hobby other than you can get very serious and spendy pretty quick, as this thread most readily illustrates. Does anyone have a suggestion for a $50-75ish battery powered vehicle that would stand up to a 5 year old driving it repeatedly into a wall? I have a large collection of NIMH cells and a good charger. I'm sure I can head to Radio Schlock and buy something in that price range that would work, just looking for some real world experience.Duratrax (http://www.towerhobbies.com/microminirc/promos/dtxd13.html), see my review in this thread. It's fairly priced but serious enough for the grown ups to "borrow" from their kid.

But for $50 - $75, plus he's 5, how about a Radio Shack Xmod? Well, they were $50 but are on sale for $30 this week, which I didn't know until replying to this. Large community following, proportional controls, plus lots of mods and spare parts. Grab two and race together!

Edit- I forgot to add, check out the used outlets such as Craigslist or eBay. I bought a complete, used Rustler for $60 on eBay. It was for my daughter who was 5 at the time. She hasn't broken anything on it since.

[Foster12]

I wanted to bump this up, and get some opinions. I am contemplating purchasing a 1/16 Traxxas E-Revo VXL (http://www.traxxas.com/products/electric/erevo7108/trx_erevo7108.htm) for a little bashing around the house, etc. I am a newbie to RC cars, other than the crappy little things I had growing up. Decent battery life, able to handle small jumps in the backyard, etc are my main items of concern.

I'm looking for something with decent performance to use around the house, and that my kid (8 yo) can play with if she wants. Anything that I am totally over-looking? I've been lurking on the Traxxas message board doing a little research.

I fully expect to purchase a couple extra batteries, and I wouldn't mind a recommendation on a decent charger either (in case the references earlier in this thread are out-dated). If I purchase the model above, I would like to be under $400 with a couple spare batteries and a charger. I don't plan to race this.

Josh

[Tobey]

I wanted to bump this up, and get some opinions. I am contemplating purchasing a 1/16 Traxxas E-Revo VXL (http://www.traxxas.com/products/electric/erevo7108/trx_erevo7108.htm) for a little bashing around the house, etc. I am a newbie to RC cars, other than the crappy little things I had growing up. Decent battery life, able to handle small jumps in the backyard, etc are my main items of concern.

I'm looking for something with decent performance to use around the house, and that my kid (8 yo) can play with if she wants. Anything that I am totally over-looking? I've been lurking on the Traxxas message board doing a little research.

I fully expect to purchase a couple extra batteries, and I wouldn't mind a recommendation on a decent charger either (in case the references earlier in this thread are out-dated). If I purchase the model above, I would like to be under $400 with a couple spare batteries and a charger. I don't plan to race this.

Josh

For backyard bashing, I don't think you can go wrong with a Traxxas. I've never used that particular model, but in general Traxxas stuff is overbuilt and durable. Maybe not the best for competitive racers, but it's definitely on the short list of makes that are good for taking abuse. Plus, spare parts are usually available at any of the good hobby shops, for when you abuse it a little too much.

Can't help with the charger; I've been away from the RC scene for too long. But get one that works on 120 and 12 volts. That way, if you're at the park away from home, you can charge off your vehicle battery.

[Drew Manzella]

I second the Traxxas remarks above. They are your best bet for backyard fun. I wouldn't say they are over-built but they are also not UNDER-BUILT like HPIs and the other entry-level RTR offerings.

Parts availability is also stellar on them. Most "chain" hobby shops like HobbyTown stock pretty much all the parts you could need for them. They are also a dime a dozen online.

As for a charger - the Duratrax models are as good as anything else for the money. I will caution you about one thing - brushless motors eat batteries. You will probably get tired of it running for a few minutes and then needing to be recharged. The logical solution is LiPo batteries.

The problem with LiPos is they can't be charged with any old NiCD/NiMH charger. There are plenty of LiPO chargers out there but the best bang for the buck is the Duratrax ICE (http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHDJ1&P=M). It will do LiPO as well as NiCD/NiMH so it may be in your best interest to just nut up on that from the get-go so you are ready for the LiPOs when the time inevitably comes.

You will also need a power supply. These can range from free (if you have a computer power supply of 500w or better laying around) to hundreds of bux but a typical 10A power supply nowadays isn't bad - around $60 (http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXRJN7&P=FR).

Shop around - if you find a LiPO ready charger that can run off AC and it is a decent brand at a good price grab it.

And just an FYI - the reason why better RC battery chargers almost never run off AC is because DC is much more solid and consistent. Combine that with the fact that there are a bunch of other pieces of equipment that racers use which require DC power (dynos, lathes, etc) and it makes more sense to make a small DC charger instead of a big unit with a beefy regulated power supply built-in. Most racers already have the power supplies anyway.

[thesleeper92gt]

Josh, I recommend this as a good entry level charger: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXCLD5&P=SM
I have two of these and they work great. They can be used at home or off your car battery. They can quick charge or trickle and can easily be setup for NiCad or NiMH,

[Drew Manzella]

AC/DC NiCD/NiMH/LiPO:

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXLCJ6&P=7

Not true AC/DC since it is a DC that comes with the power supply but same concept.

[Rich]

Anyone have suggestions/tech on RC tanks? I've been thinking of getting an electric powered RC Tiger tank.

[Foster12]

Thanks for the info guys. I bought the Traxxas late yesterday, and now I'm researching batteries. The Li-Po batteries sound like the way to go, so I'm sure one of the combo chargers will be on the way later today.

Thanks.

Josh

[Drew Manzella]

If you go LiPO I would HIGHLY suggest you switch everything over to Deans connectors (http://www.rcsuperstore.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=WSD1302&click=2).

They aren't expensive but are the industry standard for high-flow connectors.

[Pach95GT]

Lipo batteries are awesome, but very fragile compared to Nicads or Nimhs. Running a lipo to LVC(low voltage cutoff) and then not using it for 6 months normally nets you one totaly useless battery.

This is a pretty good read on how to properly take care of them: http://www.rchelicopterfun.com/rc-lipo-batteries.html

[SHOboy]

Lipo batteries are awesome, but very fragile compared to Nicads or Nimhs. Running a lipo to LVC(low voltage cutoff) and then not using it for 6 months normally nets you one totaly useless battery.

This is a pretty good read on how to properly take care of them: http://www.rchelicopterfun.com/rc-lipo-batteries.html

Thanks for that. I fired up one of my little Havoc helos for the first time in a while the other day and it appears to have about a fourth or less of the capacity it used to have. I have a newer one as well, so the storage tips in that site should help to keep it healthy longer.

[Auto-X Fil]

I've been jonesing for a Nitro since I was about 5. But, I never wanted to cut in on other hobbies enough to do it, since I knew it would be all-consuming for a while.

But, electric stuff has finally gotten to where I'm happy with it. I grabbed a Traxxas Stampede, which is a 1/10 2WD stadium truck. There's a much pricier brushless model that'll do 65mph with LiPo batteries, but NiMH are cheap and good enough for screwing around with. It comes with an 12-turn motor that was surprisingly quick out of the box. Also very nice - slipper clutch, oil-filled shocks, adjustable coilovers, all waterproof electronics, etc.

I got a cheap 7-cell pack to boost it to around 40mph, but the stock 6-cell runs great too. A fast charger ($30) slams them in less than an hour @ 4A, and I get about 20 minutes of run time if I'm doing slower things like rock crawling - just mashing it cuts it down to 10-15 minutes or so.

This is a hoot! No muss, no fuss, and it's fast enough to be really fun - wheelies, donuts, big jumps, etc. My experience is limited, but it looks to me like Traxxas is the cheapest of the quality brands with spare parts and upgrade paths available. I was leery of 2WD, but it's fine so far, and kept the cost down - it was right around $200 for the RTR truck, good charger, and extra battery pack.

[Tobey]

Thanks for the info guys. I bought the Traxxas late yesterday, and now I'm researching batteries. The Li-Po batteries sound like the way to go, so I'm sure one of the combo chargers will be on the way later today.

Thanks.

Josh

Impressions? I'm considering the 1/16 scale Slash, although it's the same price as the 1/10 scale... How do you like the smaller truck? Run time with the LiPo's? Other thoughts?

[Rich]

http://www.racetraxxas.com/amsoil may have good prices on Traxxas RC vehicles. I may still be able to get a discount on them as well. Once I find out, I will post.

[white_2kgt]

http://www.racetraxxas.com/amsoil may have good prices on Traxxas RC vehicles. I may still be able to get a discount on them as well. Once I find out, I will post.

I'm looking for a Revo 3.3, if you can get a better price let me know!

-chad

[Foster12]

Impressions? I'm considering the 1/16 scale Slash, although it's the same price as the 1/10 scale... How do you like the smaller truck? Run time with the LiPo's? Other thoughts?

Sorry for the delay - I must have missed the bump.

Granted the 1/16 erevo is my 1st decent RC vehicle, but I really enjoy it. My daughter (8 yo) and I drive the heck out of this in the backyard. I'm running 2 two cell lipos in parallel, and we are probably getting at least 20+ minutes of run time (I haven't actually measured the time yet - might be more but only on 1100 mah batteries). We split the time, and I run it very hard (nearly all out all of the time) in the grass; and she is a little easier.

The steering servos tend to be a little flaky sometimes, and I went ahead and upgraded to a Hitech servo ($30) plus a metal servo horn ($6). That should allow me to not have any issues on the steering. Her and I have been jumping it off of a small ramp (~24" high), and that caused me to pop the plastic servo horn yesterday (just bought the metal one over lunch today).

The lipo battery thing made me a little concerned initially (all of the mention of fire, etc); but I think it is like anything: buy good chargers, treat your stuff right, and you will probably be OK.

I haven't tried to run dual batteries in series yet - that is what gives you the crazy top speed (with gear change) and the instant wheelies. Right now the truck has plenty of torque to pull through ~3" tall grass in my yard (my mower is set on the higher setting). Plus it is very fun in gravel/dirt.

I can see where this hobby can get expensive, but I'm enjoying it now. It is nice to spend $6 to fix something compared to real car parts. :D

The Traxxas forums have a good depth of knowledge (I just lurk over there while searching). I'm very happy that I decided to buy one. So much so that I may buy another one for my daughter for X-mas (if both of us are still enjoying it). Plus the 50% power reduction mode is great when you are 1st learning (or if you let someone else drive it).

Josh

[Ron L]

Damn, do I want an E-Revo VXL or upgrade my Duratrax Vendetta to brushless for over half the price of the E-Revo? At least the VXL has room for a second battery, sealed electronics, etc.. It seems that Tower Hobbies doesn't do the 3-payment option on the really good stuff otherwise I'd be all over a VXL.

But if I had $600 to throw around...
http://www.hpiracing.com/kitinfo/100646/

[Auto-X Fil]

I just put a 12-turn double wind Trinity motor in my Traxxas (thanks for the pointers, Drew) - it's MUCH faster than the stock motor, and doesn't seem to hurt battery life palpably. I'm going to gear it up a few teeth so I can actually put power down without the slipper clutch screaming all the time.

I could adjust the timing to get more revs/power if I gave up reverse gear...

Grass sucks. It's slow and kills the batteries/overheats the motor. Pavement is very fast, but the thing flips over constantly. Gravel parking lots are phenomenal.

[Tobey]

I'm going with a used Slash. Now it's time to break out the old NiCads, and see if they are worth a darn after sitting dormant for several years. I feel a LiPo purchase in my future...

[Redline]

Wow, time flies. I remember back around 1982 when a neighbor kid got a Tamiya Rough Rider buggy. I thought it was the most amazing toy a kid could have (I was 10 at the time). The following Christmas, I got a Super Champ and that started a period of about 10 years for me of being really into RC cars.

To commemorate the 30 year (:eek:) anniversary of their first buggy (the Rough Rider), Tamiya is re-releasing it as the Buggy Champ. It retains much of the original coolness (and weight), comes with a good ol' 540 motor, but has a few modern upgrades (ESC).

LINK (http://www.tamiyausa.com/product/item.php?product-id=58441) :cool:

http://www.tamiyausa.com/images/product/250/58441/gallery_107.jpg
http://www.tamiyausa.com/images/product/250/58441/chassis.jpg
http://www.tamiyausa.com/images/product/250/58441/gallery_58441.jpg

[white_2kgt]

I'm looking for a Revo 3.3, if you can get a better price let me know!

-chad

So I gave up on that and got a Slash and an E-MAXX,
http://www.2kgt.com/gallery/d/19613-2/IMG_0201.jpg

The slash has been turned in to 90% Aluminum with Velineon system and 3s lipo. I have a Castle 5700 but it's just to darn fast to drive.

http://www.2kgt.com/gallery/d/19683-2/IMG_0284.jpg

The E-MAXX mostly got RPM upgrades with the exception of bulkheads, shock towers and bumpers, stockers broke first run (and center braces later tonight). It also got the Mamba Monster system. Currently running it on 4s lipo and it's plenty fast for now.

http://www.2kgt.com/gallery/d/19687-2/IMG_0285.jpg

Still waiting on a few parts from TowerHobbies today to get them both ready for the snow tomorrow (hence the paddle tires). Sand tires for the front of the slash and some steering bits for the e-maxx. I forgot how much fun these things are to work on and drive, and sitting in my 70* office sure beats lying on a garage floor when it's 4* outside...

Next upgrade is 2.4ghz radio and maybe a 2-speed for the e-maxx.

-chad

[jachady]

Looks like you've got your directional paddles going two different directions.

[Tobey]

Nice. I've had my Slash stock for a couple of months, and finally decided to upgrade. My VXL brushless stuff should be here in a day or two. I'll be running 2s lipos.

I'm also taking delivery this week of a used T-Maxx. I got it cheap, and it's likely to be destroyed during a guys weekend coming up in a few weeks at my friend's ranch. If it dies a spectacular death, I'll try to bring back pictures.

[white_2kgt]

Looks like you've got your directional paddles going two different directions.

I just stuck them on there for the pic. I have to change the hubs to 20mm to make them work. Those blue hubs are 17mm.

Nice. I've had my Slash stock for a couple of months, and finally decided to upgrade. My VXL brushless stuff should be here in a day or two. I'll be running 2s lipos.

I'm also taking delivery this week of a used T-Maxx. I got it cheap, and it's likely to be destroyed during a guys weekend coming up in a few weeks at my friend's ranch. If it dies a spectacular death, I'll try to bring back pictures.

Nice, 2s lipo and maybe a shorter gear and that thing will fly! Just remember those nitro's are a b&^%$ to keep running in the cold. Main reason I gave up on the revo. May revisit in the spring.

[Drew Manzella]

Here's a long shot but anyone here have an older high end 1/8th or 1/10th scale nitro onroad car they'd part with? I have the itch for one to mess around with again but also not interested in any of the entry-level RTR type stuff.

Looking for something like a Mugen or Serpent.

[e30power]

It's not mine, so beware, but:

http://www.r3vlimited.com/board/showthread.php?t=158251

Pretty damn good setup, even today.
I got dibs on the collari motor if you decide to re-sell it :)

[Drew Manzella]

More than I was looking to spend. I also don't need the radio and shit. I've got an M11, starter box, electronics, etc. Roller or car/engine/pipe is all I really need.

With that said I sold my old R40 back in 2005 with a Novarossi built buy the guy who used to do Barry Baker's engines for $300 sans radio gear. Of all the RC cars I *used* to have I regret selling that one the most.

[Tobey]

Nice. I've had my Slash stock for a couple of months, and finally decided to upgrade. My VXL brushless stuff should be here in a day or two. I'll be running 2s lipos.

Nice, 2s lipo and maybe a shorter gear and that thing will fly!
You weren't kidding. That thing absolutely screams now. And it flies better than before, which means it lands harder than before, which means the carnage has already started.

There is a dirt pile in my neighbors yard. With the stock motor, it barely caught air over the top. With the brushless, it launched about 8 feet in the air, flew nice and flat it seemed, and landed on all four wheels. Apparently it landed with a little bias to the left rear. And in the cold weather (~40*), the shock oil thickened up a little too much. Time to upgrade; the Big Bores seem to be popular.

Edit: Upon further review, the other shock shaft was also bent, just not as bad. Currently replaced with parts scavenged from my Rustler.


http://www.corner-carvers.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=23679&stc=1&d=1263069611

[white_2kgt]

Time to upgrade; the Big Bores seem to be popular

I have the big bores on my emaxx and slash, pretty happy w/ them on the emaxx, still fiddling w/ shocks on the slash. Of course you can always get alum end caps and titanium rods and keep running the stock bodies. I broke and bent 2 stock ones on the emaxx so far the big bores have held up well. With the paddles ties and 2s lipo's I can pull wheelies in 4" of snow, batts don't last long though.