AJsToyz

I think considering the problems Recat needs to do better. At the very least step up and help a little with the problems not just keep letting people dump alot of cash on parts while they profit. If they were really interested in making a good product and keeping people happy they would resolve certain issues before they sell more problems.

speedchris

I wouldn't do that if I were you... Unless you want it to be on a shelf... I own a 1/10 buggy for 3 weeks now, got it brand new, after break I've had nothing but problems w/ it. (gears stripped, clutch spring broke, suspension bolts came off, rear shaft flew out etc...) I havent finish the 8th tank on it yet, it breaks every 5 minutes, you fix one thing, run 5 minutes and something else breaks... I haven't even jumped anything, this buggy it's just too fragil. I'm not happy w/ it at all... I really regret buying it. Stick w/ Traxxas. I'm getting a Jato. It's like the old saying: "You get what you pay for"

speedchris

"after break in" not after break

martinanderson

I agree speedchris, i would be so happy if i could drive 5 min without something breaking, and after i broke my first part i started to drive it in my yard really nicely, (no jumps) and i broke a rear a-arm by driving over a 1/4 inch stick and the gears suck really bad. i bought about $120 worth of parts and i want to sell it all, all the parts havent came in yet, got them from chubbysdad, he is awsome, great shipping and service, he is the only good thing i think there is about these buggys. i have a traxxas rustler and i would strongly sugest a different brand than redcat or himoto to anyone. expecially the japan .18 engine, that thing is the biggest pile of crap ever. but all of this is my own oppinion alot of people on here love there buggys to death, anyways peace out

speedchris

I haven't had any problems w. the japan .18 yet (luckly)... But the rest of the buggy just keeps breaking, I'm not gonna run it anymore after I fix the gears and the rear shaft, I know it's gonna keep breaking if I use it, so I'll leave this one for the shelf. It was a lesson learned the hard way.

ehroof

my biggest problem is the gears, spur gears strip no matter what you do, so far no a arms or suspension broke, the pullstart broke but i put a rotostart on the tornado xp, The volcano is not so bad except the gear, i was able to run many tanks of gas thru it before it broke though. The single speed it much much better than the 2 speed.

nitrosteve22

Hey Ehroof,do you think maybe the engine mounts could warp over time causing a funky gear mesh that contributes to your gear stripping problem? They do feel pretty soft&heavy... Or a clutch issue thats causing extreme heat helping to weaken the teeth? Cause I've put my buggy through enough torture to bend the chassis and shock towers, I should have experienced this by now as I run mostly on pavement and due to my temper towards this finiky little .18 I show it no mercy (the past few tanks I intentionally hammered on it trying to brake something).... You obviously have plenty of knowledge of this hobby but maybe something on the buggy is doing them gears wrong.

Both sides of the center transmission case had to be trimmed,shaved,tinkered with and un-bugged on my buggy before the gears could spin freely... It was causing alot of tension which I noticed upon inspecting the clutch bell teeth I could see a very slight indentation of the gears but both transmission gears look brank spankin new and now the buggy runs much faster that I've fixed alot of kinks throughout the drivetrain and cleaned/greased the diffs&bearings. There has to be something in there cause this shouldnt be happening. Granted these are not the best quality but they should be capable of holding up on a little light weight buggy,these engines got grunt but not THAT much lol.

Speaking of which,are these engine shafts 'pilot' shafts? I'm dieing to try one of those O.S .15CV pullstarts (tower has em for $99!),the crank looks about the same lenght but has a nut that screws over the crankshaft instead of into it like our vx.18's...

[8D]

ehroof

that should work but you may have to change the clutch bell. i was at my lhs today looking at an os .18 for my nirto mt, gonna bring it tomorrow and see. i did notice that there is alot of play in the clutch bell, if you wiggle it you will see how loose it is. I am totally baffled by this gear stripping. The engine mounts warping would make sense but i stripped gears on my 3rd tank of gas during break in. Then again about my 6th tank and i was driving it easy since i knew this seemed to be a problem. I only ran 1 tank thru it since i changed them in my xp and 2 in the volcano. i have been using my other rc's since i like to run once i a while with no problems. I will run them again when i want a challange.(LOL) All in all they are a good rc for the money, i am actually toying with the idea of getting the hurricane xp, will wait a few days and think about it.

AJsToyz

Actually I'm really starting to dislike and thats being very very nice. Spent almost nine hours waiting for them to call me back. This is after calling them several times and waiting and waiting .... the check is in the mail !!

CA_Fun_N_Sun

I've enjoyed running my volcano..with the few 214/215 replacements and a LOT of clutch springs. Heck, my father-in-law ran it into a cement lightpost (at full speed) and it just bent the front of the frame where the bumper mounts. lol Upgrades have been getting pricey especially since I haven't committed to aluminum arms yet.. so far just aluminum front/rear arms and door mounts, but I've run it fairly hard (even for a noobie). I don't know how well other trucks hold up to fun/abuse/use. This one seems to be doing good for the 1/2 gal run thru it so far.

I am seeking parts from alternative souces to save on costs. Lots of RS4, MT2, Himoto, Hi-Speed w/e I can find and read on these boards. I look forward to coming back here to give a glowing review after running my 2nd gallon
Which might be a while as the wife and I just had our first baby..She did most of the work lol

I plan on breaking my truck and fixing it.. It's part of the fun !!

unclezesta

My Feedback: (1)

do you guys think that a tornado xl would be a good first nitro for my little brother who has a on road electric right now? is it tough chasis wise?

AJsToyz

I would buy a name brand , this was my first and I can honestly say my only and last Redcat product. Spend to much time trying to keep it together not enough time getting to play.

oz_hole

absolutely not and maybe.

ehroof

The xl would probably be ok, my son uses the xp and besides the stripped gears it kinda holds up. The xl is less expensive than the other buggy so i would probably say go for it, not many people here complain abot the xl, its mostly the xp, i would order some extra parts with it like front and rear a arms. Check the forum and see what else people have breaking. I would reccomend clermontmotorsports.com to buy it from, he is on the forum and is very helpful (chubbysdad), he never has anything bad to say no matter what!!!!!

unclezesta

My Feedback: (1)

do you make sure you have your gear mesh set correctly? it shouldnt strip out if its set right. a good trick is to fold a loose-leaf peice of paper in half a couple times, slide it in between the gears with the engine loose, push the engine so that the clutch bell is holding the paper to the spur, then tighten it down while your holding it there. then you can slide it out. you should have about a millimeter or two between the gears at any tooth.(from the point of one tooth to the little hole of the other gear). also, you cant find any stronger spurs that would fit?

ehroof

i have made sure the motor is square, gears are meshed correctly, i even filed the teeth on the clutch bell to take off any burrs, so far 2 tanks and good. i have been in the hobby for many years and have many vehicles, nitro and not nitro. I had a pm from the owner of redcat and he said he will take care of it, hopefully have some good information for me. The volcano truck is good and i have no problems with it, it did strip a spur but it was after 20+ tanks, thats no problem. thats why i said maybe the tornado xl would be good since it seems to use the same gear setup, it seems like several people have the spur problem with the xp.

unclezesta

My Feedback: (1)

maybe since they use the same quality gears with the bigger engine they are not enough to stand up to the power. i would expect they would be working on some beefed up gears.

oh, i get it now. sorry i was quick-reading and missread your post. i couldnt find any good pictures of the gearing so i have no idea of any other gears you could use on it.