Need advice on rc car brands
02-09-2012, 06:57 PM
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Need advice on rc car brands
I was wondering if exceed rc and redcat are good brands as far as duribility goes? Also if someone could make a rough maybe on what brands they think make the best quality rc cars to the worst?(I know it is probly mainly based on opinion.) Thank You.
02-09-2012, 07:03 PM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
I have an OFNA nitro buggy that's been great, highly recommended. I had an exceed buggy for like a week. I had problems getting it started, couldn't get in touch w/ customer service, when I finally did, they were no help at all. Ihave no experience w/ redcat, but would def. stay away from exceed.
02-09-2012, 07:33 PM
#3
RE: Need advice on rc car brands
ORIGINAL: Reuben-rc
Also if someone could make a rough maybe on what brands they think make the best quality rc cars to the worst?(I know it is probly mainly based on opinion.) Thank You.
Also if someone could make a rough maybe on what brands they think make the best quality rc cars to the worst?(I know it is probly mainly based on opinion.) Thank You.
i don't know anything about redcat or exceed. never gotten my hands on one.
personally i think team associated makes has the highest quality and best performing products in the industry.
duratrax is another company iv got a great deal of respect for. stricktly based off customer survice.
02-09-2012, 08:51 PM
#4
RE: Need advice on rc car brands
Ofna's are probably one of more durable RC's, and higher quality RTR's for those on a budget out of the box.
HPI has some nice, and durable RC's (outside the Brama 10b, E10, and recon those 3 are not very durable). they also have excellent customer support.
Tamiya has some fairly good low priced kits that with a few mods can be pretty durable
HPI has some nice, and durable RC's (outside the Brama 10b, E10, and recon those 3 are not very durable). they also have excellent customer support.
Tamiya has some fairly good low priced kits that with a few mods can be pretty durable
02-10-2012, 12:43 AM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
^ lol. At least you've now added a second brand that you like. 
The best brands isn't as subjective as you think, if you specifiy what the metrics are.
In any case, it's really very simple in this hobby. The more expensive it is, the better the materials, fit and finish, and therefore the more durable (yes there are exceptions espeically amongst the smaller scales and cars that are designed to be run exclusively on tracks, but that should be obvious).
One stand out exception to this is the Jammin (by OFNA) cars which are generally much cheaper than the top top brands, like Mugen and Xray, and every bit as durable.
One buys a redcat or exceed in order to get a cheaper startup in the hobby, knowing that it will break more often, but that is offset by the cheap cost of parts. If a hobbyist is not able to justify spending more than $250 ona model, but can afford to spend 20 bucks on parts a month, then an exceed or redcat is the way to go. If a hobbyist can afford to spend $500 on a model, of course they will need to fix it less often. It's all about the means of the hobbyist and why there continue to be 'cheap' brands and expensoive ones. there is a market for both, and consumers that buy either are doing it for a reason. Of course to make a Redcat or Exceed as durable as a top model, you will spend as much as you would have if you just bought a top brand in the first place. On the other hand, people who take it easy on their cars, may never have a problem with the cheaper brands, it also comes down to what your expectations are, but at least with a Jammin if your expectation is to be able to jump it 20 feet in the air and land it at any angle imaginable, then drive it away, you won't be disappointed.
Three cars stand out at the moment as representing phenomenal value for money and durability, in 2 different power plants and 2 different price brackets. If you don't have much to spend, at the $300 mark, nitro powered, you got the OFNA Hyper 7, or if you can find one, a Jammin X1 CR. At the other end of the spektrum ($500) with an electric powerplant you got the new Thunder Tiger monster truck, which is a beast.
The best brands isn't as subjective as you think, if you specifiy what the metrics are.
In any case, it's really very simple in this hobby. The more expensive it is, the better the materials, fit and finish, and therefore the more durable (yes there are exceptions espeically amongst the smaller scales and cars that are designed to be run exclusively on tracks, but that should be obvious).
One stand out exception to this is the Jammin (by OFNA) cars which are generally much cheaper than the top top brands, like Mugen and Xray, and every bit as durable.
One buys a redcat or exceed in order to get a cheaper startup in the hobby, knowing that it will break more often, but that is offset by the cheap cost of parts. If a hobbyist is not able to justify spending more than $250 ona model, but can afford to spend 20 bucks on parts a month, then an exceed or redcat is the way to go. If a hobbyist can afford to spend $500 on a model, of course they will need to fix it less often. It's all about the means of the hobbyist and why there continue to be 'cheap' brands and expensoive ones. there is a market for both, and consumers that buy either are doing it for a reason. Of course to make a Redcat or Exceed as durable as a top model, you will spend as much as you would have if you just bought a top brand in the first place. On the other hand, people who take it easy on their cars, may never have a problem with the cheaper brands, it also comes down to what your expectations are, but at least with a Jammin if your expectation is to be able to jump it 20 feet in the air and land it at any angle imaginable, then drive it away, you won't be disappointed.
Three cars stand out at the moment as representing phenomenal value for money and durability, in 2 different power plants and 2 different price brackets. If you don't have much to spend, at the $300 mark, nitro powered, you got the OFNA Hyper 7, or if you can find one, a Jammin X1 CR. At the other end of the spektrum ($500) with an electric powerplant you got the new Thunder Tiger monster truck, which is a beast.
02-10-2012, 06:25 AM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
HPI, Associated, and Losi are my favorites. I would also mention traxxas as having SOME good quality and durable trucks, but i find they are way over priced for what they are, so wouldn't recommend them.
02-10-2012, 07:15 AM
#9
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
durabilitiy? OFNA hands down. overbuilt especially hong nor models.
toughest stock engine? ofna again with its force line, the little dated red-head delivered ok power but the pull start would never slip and it will tolerate pure abuse, the force .28 is also a work horse.
value per dollar OFNA is on top, they could charge WAY more for thier things, and they will still impress.
lowest value per dollar goes to...... TRAXXAS overcharging out the nose for plasticy flexy loose fitting parts, poor chassis layout cheap universal shafts and miserable nitro engines all at a price that makes you wince. how dare they charge so much for a stampede 4X4 and how DARE they sell the nitro sport, the car that sucks so bad it has a half chassis AND tires without foam inserts!!!
they simply rule the market becuse they put OH MY GAAAWWWD IT GOES 65MPH++++++++++++++ IZ MUCH FASTUR THAN ALL DE ODTHERS!!!!
given i have a 1999 t-maxx and love it to death, it was $75 and i can justify that, but more than $300 its a total rip off.
toughest stock engine? ofna again with its force line, the little dated red-head delivered ok power but the pull start would never slip and it will tolerate pure abuse, the force .28 is also a work horse.
value per dollar OFNA is on top, they could charge WAY more for thier things, and they will still impress.
lowest value per dollar goes to...... TRAXXAS overcharging out the nose for plasticy flexy loose fitting parts, poor chassis layout cheap universal shafts and miserable nitro engines all at a price that makes you wince. how dare they charge so much for a stampede 4X4 and how DARE they sell the nitro sport, the car that sucks so bad it has a half chassis AND tires without foam inserts!!!
they simply rule the market becuse they put OH MY GAAAWWWD IT GOES 65MPH++++++++++++++ IZ MUCH FASTUR THAN ALL DE ODTHERS!!!!
given i have a 1999 t-maxx and love it to death, it was $75 and i can justify that, but more than $300 its a total rip off.
02-10-2012, 07:31 AM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
I actually have both an Exceed drift car and a RedCat RC truck.
The Exceed drift car is decent but imo the Exceed brand in general sucks. They use the same f-king chassis for everything. Their Drift car, Non-drift car, Buggy and "Short Course" truck all use the same damn chassis. Actually there's one chassis, two configurations (off road and on road)..... the only difference is the shocks/shock mounts they use and the length of the dogbones.
The buggy and the short course are the same car except with a different shell. That's why their Short Course truck is so small, because its just the buggy with a SC body.
RedCat is a little better imo but the quality of the RedCat RC's varies from model to model.
For example, one of their Monster Trucks is a total POS, handles like crap (can't remember if its the Earthquake or the Volcano) while another one of their MT's- the Caldera 10E- is pretty damn good and it handles great (I have one). The difference between the Caldera and the other RedCat MT's is the Caldera's chassis was specifically designed for off road use while the other trucks use generic chassis's.
Exceed and RedCat share some models. For example, the drift cars are the same for Exceed and RedCat.
Also, parts support is kind of sketchy for both companies, especially Exceed. Exceed is always out of stock on a ton of their parts.
Another brand you might want to look at is HobbyKing. Specifically the HobbyKing Trooper. Its basically a 4x4 Slash clone but at half the price. It costs less than $170 shipped from the USA warehouse, it has a lot of very solid reviews and parts for the truck are ridiculously inexpensive. The only negative (its a pretty big one) is the parts warehouse is in Hong Kong.
BTW, I am going to sell the Exceed Drift Car in the near future. Not because its a bad car or I am feed up with Exceed (I am not). It more has to do with RC Drifting itself being is too limiting...... off-road RC-ing is much more flexible as far as where you can drive. I don't want to have an RC lying around that's rarely used.
The Exceed drift car is decent but imo the Exceed brand in general sucks. They use the same f-king chassis for everything. Their Drift car, Non-drift car, Buggy and "Short Course" truck all use the same damn chassis. Actually there's one chassis, two configurations (off road and on road)..... the only difference is the shocks/shock mounts they use and the length of the dogbones.
The buggy and the short course are the same car except with a different shell. That's why their Short Course truck is so small, because its just the buggy with a SC body.
RedCat is a little better imo but the quality of the RedCat RC's varies from model to model.
For example, one of their Monster Trucks is a total POS, handles like crap (can't remember if its the Earthquake or the Volcano) while another one of their MT's- the Caldera 10E- is pretty damn good and it handles great (I have one). The difference between the Caldera and the other RedCat MT's is the Caldera's chassis was specifically designed for off road use while the other trucks use generic chassis's.
Exceed and RedCat share some models. For example, the drift cars are the same for Exceed and RedCat.
Also, parts support is kind of sketchy for both companies, especially Exceed. Exceed is always out of stock on a ton of their parts.
Another brand you might want to look at is HobbyKing. Specifically the HobbyKing Trooper. Its basically a 4x4 Slash clone but at half the price. It costs less than $170 shipped from the USA warehouse, it has a lot of very solid reviews and parts for the truck are ridiculously inexpensive. The only negative (its a pretty big one) is the parts warehouse is in Hong Kong.
BTW, I am going to sell the Exceed Drift Car in the near future. Not because its a bad car or I am feed up with Exceed (I am not). It more has to do with RC Drifting itself being is too limiting...... off-road RC-ing is much more flexible as far as where you can drive. I don't want to have an RC lying around that's rarely used.
02-10-2012, 06:11 PM
#11
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
My Preferences are:
Thunder Tiger (Tough and easy to find)
OFNA (Tough as nails)
Tamiya (Very nice On road kits)
Team Associated (good quality and parts support)
02-10-2012, 09:37 PM
#13
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
ORIGINAL: Reuben-rc
Any opinion on Losi and Hpi?
Any opinion on Losi and Hpi?
hpi-good stuff, some parts they make are too brittle and need to be boiled, ball ends suck.
pretty much all the brands with the big names are decent, with traxxas being ok but way overpriced.
02-10-2012, 09:46 PM
#14
RE: Need advice on rc car brands
ORIGINAL: Foxy
^ lol. At least you've now added a second brand that you like.
The best brands isn't as subjective as you think, if you specifiy what the metrics are.
In any case, it's really very simple in this hobby. The more expensive it is, the better the materials, fit and finish, and therefore the more durable (yes there are exceptions espeically amongst the smaller scales and cars that are designed to be run exclusively on tracks, but that should be obvious).
One stand out exception to this is the Jammin (by OFNA) cars which are generally much cheaper than the top top brands, like Mugen and Xray, and every bit as durable.
One buys a redcat or exceed in order to get a cheaper startup in the hobby, knowing that it will break more often, but that is offset by the cheap cost of parts. If a hobbyist is not able to justify spending more than $250 ona model, but can afford to spend 20 bucks on parts a month, then an exceed or redcat is the way to go. If a hobbyist can afford to spend $500 on a model, of course they will need to fix it less often. It's all about the means of the hobbyist and why there continue to be 'cheap' brands and expensoive ones. there is a market for both, and consumers that buy either are doing it for a reason. Of course to make a Redcat or Exceed as durable as a top model, you will spend as much as you would have if you just bought a top brand in the first place. On the other hand, people who take it easy on their cars, may never have a problem with the cheaper brands, it also comes down to what your expectations are, but at least with a Jammin if your expectation is to be able to jump it 20 feet in the air and land it at any angle imaginable, then drive it away, you won't be disappointed.
Three cars stand out at the moment as representing phenomenal value for money and durability, in 2 different power plants and 2 different price brackets. If you don't have much to spend, at the $300 mark, nitro powered, you got the OFNA Hyper 7, or if you can find one, a Jammin X1 CR. At the other end of the spektrum ($500) with an electric powerplant you got the new Thunder Tiger monster truck, which is a beast.
^ lol. At least you've now added a second brand that you like.
The best brands isn't as subjective as you think, if you specifiy what the metrics are.
In any case, it's really very simple in this hobby. The more expensive it is, the better the materials, fit and finish, and therefore the more durable (yes there are exceptions espeically amongst the smaller scales and cars that are designed to be run exclusively on tracks, but that should be obvious).
One stand out exception to this is the Jammin (by OFNA) cars which are generally much cheaper than the top top brands, like Mugen and Xray, and every bit as durable.
One buys a redcat or exceed in order to get a cheaper startup in the hobby, knowing that it will break more often, but that is offset by the cheap cost of parts. If a hobbyist is not able to justify spending more than $250 ona model, but can afford to spend 20 bucks on parts a month, then an exceed or redcat is the way to go. If a hobbyist can afford to spend $500 on a model, of course they will need to fix it less often. It's all about the means of the hobbyist and why there continue to be 'cheap' brands and expensoive ones. there is a market for both, and consumers that buy either are doing it for a reason. Of course to make a Redcat or Exceed as durable as a top model, you will spend as much as you would have if you just bought a top brand in the first place. On the other hand, people who take it easy on their cars, may never have a problem with the cheaper brands, it also comes down to what your expectations are, but at least with a Jammin if your expectation is to be able to jump it 20 feet in the air and land it at any angle imaginable, then drive it away, you won't be disappointed.
Three cars stand out at the moment as representing phenomenal value for money and durability, in 2 different power plants and 2 different price brackets. If you don't have much to spend, at the $300 mark, nitro powered, you got the OFNA Hyper 7, or if you can find one, a Jammin X1 CR. At the other end of the spektrum ($500) with an electric powerplant you got the new Thunder Tiger monster truck, which is a beast.
Needless to say after hearing that(and hearing other similar things) I was sold. No one can say he was just trying to push a model the shop carried cause they didn't sell the X1 there period
Same dude also roofed his savage a few times
02-10-2012, 09:53 PM
#15
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
i jumped my ofna 9.5 (is it a jammin x1x? i think it is) at 40mph and landed nose down ON A CINDER BLOCK, turned the car around and took off
i lost it at top speed and tumbled so hard it started skipping about, popped the tie rod back in and took off. i jumped from a 5 foot quarter pipe and landed upside down (failed front flip) flipped it over and took off.
i had a 1/8 buggy LAND on my car after a jump, and it was fine.
i swear to god its made of solid titanium.
the only time i broke something is when i ran into a pipe sticking out of the ground, just took out a shock and axle because it completly missed the arm and the bumper.
every time i think about selling it i go back to those times and remember what i have, i cannot do any better with durability.
i lost it at top speed and tumbled so hard it started skipping about, popped the tie rod back in and took off. i jumped from a 5 foot quarter pipe and landed upside down (failed front flip) flipped it over and took off.i had a 1/8 buggy LAND on my car after a jump, and it was fine.
i swear to god its made of solid titanium.
the only time i broke something is when i ran into a pipe sticking out of the ground, just took out a shock and axle because it completly missed the arm and the bumper.
every time i think about selling it i go back to those times and remember what i have, i cannot do any better with durability.
02-11-2012, 02:53 PM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
I am actually thinking of getting a Thunder Tiger MT4 G3 now after what I have read about it being so durable. But I was also thinking of getting a HPi Savage but it is a lot more expensive and I have not really looked around at it that much so i don't know if it is as durable as the Thunder Tiger MT4 G3. Any opion? or any other good rc trucks that are durable?
02-11-2012, 10:05 PM
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RE: Need advice on rc car brands
ORIGINAL: Haddi Taha
My Preferences are:
My Preferences are:
Thunder Tiger (Tough and easy to find)
OFNA (Tough as nails)
Tamiya (Very nice On road kits)
Team Associated (good quality and parts support)
01-17-2014, 11:59 PM
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I Need advice. I have a short coarse 1/8 scale 4wd. With venom brushless motor running with 2700 30c lipo battery.
Can I run a stronger longer lasting battery? If yes, what kind and will it run faster? Thank you.
Can I run a stronger longer lasting battery? If yes, what kind and will it run faster? Thank you.
01-18-2014, 02:29 AM
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You haven't specified how many cells this battery has, which is what will determine its speed. For a 1.8th car, you need a 4S battery at 5000mAh and about 40C. If you are using a 2700 30C pack in a 1/8th SC I'm amazed you haven't had the battery catch fire yet. That is WAY underrated for the application.
