cumquat

the age old question, witch is better nitro or electric?
i run both and i prefer nitro. i just got my first one in over a year after getting a dud and giving it back. in this past year i was pretty much a hardcore electric guy but i got tired of the pathetic runtimes and power of the brushed on nimh. i like having an electric around (even though it needs a new radio) so i can run somthing when its 90 degrees out with out ruinning the engine in my nitro sport.
i want to know what yall think about the 2. if you must trash one be gentle, there are kids on here.

electric
pros
brushed is cheap
easy to use
brushless is pretty much fastest

cons
brushless is expensive
lipo is expensive and dangerous
brushed is weak
pad power to speed ratio- one or the other


nitro
pros
best power to speed ratio- dont gotta choose
can hear if somthing is wrong
realistic smell and sound
can change exaust sent
cheaper to get max proformance out of engine

cons
loud
smelly
messy
hard to tune small engines
heavy
prone to run aways
toxic fumes


that is how i see the situation what do you think?

sheograth

Neither, gas all the way for me

Still, I do enjoy nitros and electrics quite a bit.

Ttam Says Blarg

Its all electric for me right now. Why? I dont have a reliable fuel source or I would have tried nitro a while back. Gas sounds so fun I want the 5t so bad but I dont have a G to drop on it. Honestly as far as simplicity electric is the way to go. If you like tinkering or tuning nitro.

TIGER76

always had electric rcs ive played around with nitro and can see the attraction of the noise and smell,but the tuning annoys me when its not going well and i just want to run etc  i like late night runs on the street and on a quick charge i got 2 batteries ready to go in 35mins so the nieghbours cant complain lol

sheograth

For late night runs in the neighborhood, yeah you can't beat electric.

Otherwise, I love gas because you don't have to re-tune every time the wind blows. These engines start up reliably, hold a tune for months on end, and sound/smell great

cumquat

the problem with gassers is the size and cost. if they made one around 1/8 scale and it was maybe $400 i would definatly save up for one, but they dont so i wont. i would rather spend the k it would cost for a 5b kit and get a few nitros and electrics.

cobra26

I own and run both. They are like vanilla and chocolate, and I like 'em both. Sometimes I'm in the mood for electric, and sometimes for nitro. If I'm going out to run for the day, I takea couple ofnitros and electrics. Nitro is nice for constant running and electric is good when silence is needed. They're both good...

DaveG55

I don't exactly understand why people think one has to be "better" than the other...

Buy what you like and what suits your needs and have fun with it.

Foxy

Well, one day you'll be able to afford one, it's the logical progression of the hobby for me. Once you go gas, you don't generally go back, unless you still race in the smaller scales. For bashing there ain't nothing like em.

Argess

Nitro is way better.  Electric......if it takes batteries to make an electric motor rotate the tires, then it's a Radio Shack toy, even if has $1000 + of brushless and Lipo's etc.  Electric = Toy.  Nitro = Real Man's Hobby.

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL....ask a silly question, get a silly answer............................

cobra26

^ ^^^^^

And that is one silly answer!

dacaur

Nope

Electric = Toy. Nitro = Toy.

They are ALL toys. From the lowlyest wal-mart car, to turbine powerd jets... Toys....

Argess

Never let a 2-year old operate a Nitro MT.....give him a Savage Flux instead!!!!!

hehehehehehe.................

Well......my point was made, one way or another...."better" is in the eye of the beholder...just like "which is better...apples or oranges?"




Oh...Tower Hobbies says:

If you're interested in mechanical or electronic devices, you'll be fascinated with the advanced components and design of these models — not like the R/C toys you see in department stores.


-read the whole thing at:

http://www.easyrc.com/

cumquat

i mostly want to know everyone's opinion on the topic. i agree that there isnt a best or a worst, if you like nitro you like nitro if you like electric you like electric. compare the pros and cons, its likly they will com out even. it pretty much boils down to the persons situation, if the live in a city or out in the country, how much they have to spend, what the prominent terain is and so forth. i think the real question is not if electric is better than nitro but what car drove you to your position.

Access

Practicality?A lot has changed over the last several years. An electric vehicle can be made to be near absolutely trouble-free. Not always the case, but it is the case today.

There are two basic attitudes, one is to chase the future and the other is to chase the past. Nitro fans are drawn to the more carnal aspects of a vehicle, the roar, the (feeling) of power, the noise, 'riding / taming the beast', etc. It's more instinctual, less practical / reasonable in the modern world. Many products, icons, or symbols like this, even ones we see often in the modern world (and that is their appeal). Ican cite a character like wolverine, a modern character in a modern action movie, with special effects and all that, yet his appeal is based on something much more basic.

tony0707

HI  I  am a glo guy all the wayfeel uncomfortable when electrics are flying at the field-  i want to hear a plane before it might hit megive me some warning-  those things are toooo quite-never know were they are unless you are watching there every movemy biggest problem with the hobby are being sure my batteries are in good shapei refuse to lose a plane due to poor battery conditionbatteries are not my thing

Airbus 9e

My dirt oval cars are all electric......a must when 6 months of the year is spent indoors racing.....My basher truck is nitro......and I agree with the "animal" aspect of a nitro powered monster truck....If I work the throttle just right, my Aftershock will carry the front tires for 100 feet.....hehe

olkleaf

well technically one is not better then the other it just depends on what you like.

but one could be better then the other for a person depending on what they can do. lets say you have a offroad track down the street form you, and the only run electric becouse of the noise of nitro. well in that case it would be better to have a electric buggy. or vise versa their is a track down the street from you that only runs nitro becouse their is not enogh people to start an electric class then it would be better to buy a nitro.

i like nitro better though. especialy in racing it makes it more relistic

Traxxas4fun

My Feedback: (3)

i dont really know, i like nitro like in my boat because i can just go run it, i dont have to charge a battery for an hour, then gets 25 minutes of run time.

or i can shut it off, bring it in, and run it later without topping off batteries

scoobs92

if im about to go and invest 200 or more im not gonna go and ask whats better this isnt a popularity contest im a fan of both i like my t maxx  to kick around in the back yard but i also like electric for night runs and when im lazy and don't want to mess with starting it but when i first startd i didn't ask what was better i went with what i liked more at that time it was nitro in my opinion they both have goods and bads

The Hedgehog

Still electric guys have trouble runnin 1 hour mains in racing. Also, Ihave seen so many 8th scale brushless setups fail over just last year of racing its a joke.

The Hedgehog

My nitro planes take 1 battery. Hmmm so do my electric planes.

VeeAte

Irun my nitro engines in temperature up to and including 47 degrees celsius (117F) with no problems at all. As long as you have it tuned correctly you wont have a problem.


As for nitro vs electric........ Iam a revhead so it will always be fuel powered for me.

Ihave no problems with electric RC tho. Its all helping to expand our options in this great hobby.

HJJFFFAA

Even 1:1 stuff can be considered toys. If it's meant to entertain, it's a toy. No exceptions.

Argess

Very true HJJFFFAA.  I think Wikopedia, or some such data base, says a "toy" is a "plaything".....like Ana Nicole Smith, or my ex-wife's 18 year old Boy-Toy.  I have a 1:1 car that I think of as a "toy" (see avatar).  But many words have connotations, or colloquialisms, so many of us think of “toys” as something for children, therefore our “playthings” must be more than toys.

 

Think I may have hit a few nerves with the “nitro is better than electric” thing.  I didn’t really mean that.  Some of my best friends drive electric…..LOLOLOL.  Seriously, I like nitro better, so a slight pro/con difference (either way) between nitro and electric doesn't make enough difference for me to ever change.  And if anyone is the opposite, I salute you for your ability to make a choice without “going with the flow”  and having to do what is “better” to satisfy your peers.

 

Nitro….it’s better for me, and I don’t really think “hobby-quality TOYS” that are electric are for wuzzies even though those guys probably wear pajama pants, pocket-protectors, and glasses with band-aids around the nose-piece, to the track……chuckle.

 

RC…..whatever your fancy, it’s a great hobby!