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MANY moons ago I bought a Traxxas kit and built my own truck, and had tons of fun bashing it around. Now my 14 year old son & I want to jump in to some RC cars, and we both love the idea of building from kits. Went to the local hobby shop and they said that kits were pretty rare these days, and pointed us towards the RTR SLASH, which I have also seen recommended on the boards here. The only kit they had was a Tamiya Grasshopper (old skool! - I remember that one!!!).

We really like the idea of building a kit - the hobby shop guys said to buy the Traxxas RTR Slash, and we would have plenty of fun "building" as we repaired and upgraded and modded in the weeks that would follow. Budget is also a concern - would love to jump in around $300 per setup if possible.

A few more thoughts - we live at the beach, so the idea of a brushless/waterproof setup appeals because of the opportunity to run on the beach. BUT, I am torn. Do we start with a RTR, such as the Slash? Or go with a kit such as a RC10 from Associated? Or old skool Tamiya kit?

I know this is a common, general "where do I start question," but I didn't see a ton of kit vs. RTR for beginners conversations. For my son, who is quite the engineer, he will enjoy the building process as much as bashing. I am not scared of a kit - done it before, and the cars look very similar to construct. Thanks in advance for any input!

sloppyG

RTR is much cheaper, although it will have lower quality electronics

if you can find the team associated stuff, it's better than traxxas from both a quality and maintenance standpoint (and in some cases it's cheaper too)

Argess

There is a ton of RTR vs Kit threads. And a ton of opnions too! Sounds like you want a kit, so just broaden your horizons and do more research. There are kits out there.

Maybe ask "What kits are out there for (whatever vehicle type; brushless, 4WD, etc.)?

One deciding factor might be to stick with a name brand, and one your LHS either stocks parts for, or can order them.

[email protected]

Thanks for the input. I should mention that we are not near any LHS, so I will likely have to go internet. That being said, would you suggest the Associated RC10?

sloppyG

SC10 is their slash equivalent, I'd suggest their brushless RTR that's usually found for $250-270

assembling an equivalent RC from a kit would easily run $400

SyCo_VeNoM

look at tamiya if you want kits they make PLENTY

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

If you're talking about the beaches at the Atlantic ocean, that is the WORST place you could possibly run an RC, waterproof or not (which the Slash is NOT).

Saltwater kills electronics faster than normal water, and it also eats bearings faster than normal water.

You can get an Associated SC10 kit, radio, motor/ESC, and a cheap battery/charger for around 300 bucks if you shop around. ThunderbirdJunkie's LHS sells the Associated SC10 basic kit (not the Factory Team) with a Sidewinder SCT brushless motor/speedo for $249.99. Granted, for a servo, radio, battery, and charger, that's not leaving much leeway, but if you really want a kit, you pretty much need to step up your budget another $100 to $150. ThunderbirdJunkie barely built his Stampede kit in the mid 90s for $300, and that was basically all the cheapest stuff you could buy (Futaba Magnum Sport, truck, two batteries, and a charger)...and stuff was dollar-wise cheaper in 1995 than it is now.

Unfortunately, unlike the mid 90s, there are no good, lower-end brushed motor/ESC setups. At least none that you could buy that won't leave you better off picking up a Castle Sidewinder SV2/SCT system. Granted, ThunderbirdJunkie's 19x2 Trinity motor he bought when he got his first Novak Rooster back in the day was about $20 more expensive than his Sidewinder 4600 setup last year.

If ThunderbirdJunkie were you (as he sort of was in January of 2010, getting back into electric), this is what he would (did) get:
SC10 kit ($180)
Castle Sidewinder SV2 4600 or Sidewinder SCT 3800 combo ($100ish)
A couple packs of Deans plugs ($10)
Futaba 3305 servo ($35-40)
Turnigy 5000mah 20C batteries ($20ea)
Turnigy Accucel 6 charger ($23ish; this and the batteries are available at HobbyKing's USA warehouse)
ProLine Trencher SC tires in M2 and M3 compound ($20ish a pair, M3 compound for the rear, M2 for front)
Futaba 2PL AM radio (about 70 bucks if it's still in production)

You should be good to go after this, presuming you have some sort of 12v power supply, which can be built for under 40 bucks. Alternatively, instead of $23 for the charger and 40 for the power supply, you could just spend an extra 35 bucks for a Hyperion Eos 0606i charger for $100ish, which will charge anything under the sun.

Electric has gone nuts since you've been gone, man...and once you get it figured out it's way freakin awesome. ThunderbirdJunkie originally went away from electric in '01ish to go smash around some nitro stuff because the nitros were more complex and had more "going on"...and the electrics nowadays are an even bigger mindfreak and WAY more fun for the techical brain that can actually understand what's going on with them. You're gonna have a blast, beach[8D]

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

Also, holy fxxxing Deja Vu.

Now that's the original Deja Vu, for the RC10B2, not the Deja Vu 2 for the B3.

Is it bad that ThunderbirdJunkie actually dreamed he was replying to this very topic at some point? Creepy, yes? Either that or he spends far too much time on RCU.

bdf777

If you don't mind the building part, go for the kit because that way if anything breaks you will know exactly how to fix/replace because you built the car!!

Foxy

Kit>RTR every time. I don't care if you're in the hobby 5 minutes or 5 decades, a kit will teach you much more about your car, and none are 'difficult' to build correctly, given the right tools and some patience.

The Mad Modder

+1 The more you know about your car, the easier it will be to find and fix any problems you may have down the road.

SyCo_VeNoM

or its just this type of thread has popped up like 20 times in the past year [:@]


But yea I agree the slash is NOT "waterproof" I just got a 4X4 roller the other week that shows how "waterproof" it actually is. Basically EVERY piece of metal had rust on it in the whole RC.
The only thing actually waterproof on traxxas RC's is the electronics, and that is if you drive them through a puddle here and there.

Chucksolo69

Hey, buy what suits you. I have never built a kit and never plan to. I have upgraded/repaired all my RC cars/trucks. I have changed/rebuilt  nitro engines, electric motors, rebuilt shocks, shock towers, receivers, replaced servos, ESCs, etc. Am I mechanically inclined? Nope, not in the least. I don't do house repairs, I call a contractor. I don't fix my own car, I take it to the shop. In other words, I see no point in building your RC unless that is what you really like to do. The crap about it being easier to  repair when you break it is a lot of hooey. Most RTR cars/trucks come with an exploded parts sheet anyway. This hobby ain't rocket science folks. If you really wanna build, build; if not, you can gain just as much knowledge from fixing an RTR as you can from building a kit from scratch.

[email protected]

Thanks for all the great input, and for all the suggestions (ThunderbirdJunkie!).  I am leaning towards the SC10 kit, and working my way in via that route, but still watching all the input from this and other boards.  I'll gather info for a bit and then try to sort it all out and take the plunge.  

Chucksolo69

You can't go wrong with any of the brand names, like Traxxas, AE or LOSI. You and your son are gonna have a great time no matter whether it's a kit or RTR.

Tarasdad

I had the same dilemma when getting back into RC airplanes after a 15+ year absence. I've always been a kit builder but decided to get an ARF and a decent radio to get back started. Same is going to happen for RC cars except that I'll be getting an RTR at first, then going kit. Gets me something to run while I take my time building rather than rushing to complete something and making mistakes.

SyCo_VeNoM

Trust me if you can build a kit airplane you can slap a ground based RC together in 2-3 hours and not miss a thing. Only thing that will take time is painting the body, which I find to be the longest part of assembling a kit, and needs to sit a few hours after done. Unlike a airplane where you have to wait hours for glue to cure RC's are generally all screwed together, and made for easy, and fast to disassemble.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

Psh, screw that, ThunderbirdJunkie throws the window masks in, hits the truck with a couple cans, and bam, done. Takes 20 minutes.

They always look like crap, though...maybe that's why he bartered parts and some other stuff for a guy to paint a couple bodies for him

SyCo_VeNoM

WELL I used to spend 5+ hours on a body using a brush, but since I got an air compressor & spray gun I spend probably 2 mins to spray a coat pull out a air dryer and use that to speed up the dry time drastically(under 3 mins to dry it)
If its only a solid color I'd be done in like 20 mins for 3-5 coats

Nitro Fumes

I prefer kits too. I've never had an RTR. Of course when I originally got into this hobby there was no such thing as an RTR. It was only kits. However these days its hard to find kits now. It must be 95% RTR now.

The Mad Modder

Yeah I know. When I started, back in 2000, everything was available as a kit and there were only a few RTRs. Now the kit is an endangered species.

Since the RTR's took over, I have had to buy RTR's on occasion. It always seems like there's something that wasn't built to my standards. Last RTR I bought was my prebuilt wheely king. The axles had almost no grease in them and the tranny case was packed full. Currently, HPI discontinued the pre-built WK, so if you want a new one, you're stuck paying for garbage electronics. That's why I'm against this RTR takeover.