jk47

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Hello all. Today I have a question that I am looking foward to hearing your answers to. Say I have $400, and I want a new offroad electricvehichle thats 4wd, 1/10 scale or bigger, tough and Handles well. Speed can be added later so that isn't my concern. what do I get Ofna Lx2e? Slash 4x4?I'm opento any build kits as longas electronics can be added forunder the $400 mark. Any cheaper car with suggested upgrades to add up to around $400. I run mostly on the street and in grassy fields or clay tracks... Let me know your thoughts!

SyCo_VeNoM

the ofna don't look bad at all
no clue on the ESC in it though
the OFNA buggies are known to be tanks, and can take a beating.

jk47

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Good to hear! thanks for the reply! any other opinions?

jk47

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What about the Thunder Tiger EB 4 g3 buggy?

nitrosportsandrunner

I dont know much about the ofna (other than a few ofna's i have seen are very tough) but a slash has issues.

Basically, its overpowered. snaps driveshafts, breaks spur gears. Sits to high as well.
Fun truck to drive, but plan on upgrading!

I might get bashed for saying this one, but the Redcat backdraft 8e. its another 1/8 scale brushless 4wd buggy. Much tougher than redcats's 1/10 offerings. It has an ezrun 4s lipo brushless system. 50MPH out of the box. Comes with lipos for about $300.
For alittle more cash, you can get the tougher hurricane XTE. This brushless 1/8 buggy is based off the common 1/8 nitro layout.

So many options when you have $400 to drop.

You could even go the 1/10 route with a tamiya DF-02...youd have enough cash after buying the kit for a brushless system, a lipo and basically all the upgrades you can buy for it!

Foxy

Jammin SCRT-10
Castle SCT 3800 combo
Flysky GT3B radio
Hitec 645 servo.

Think your 400 will just about stretch to that.

jk47

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Thanks guys I will look into the Redcat backdraft, Sandrunner. I am also very inerested in the Jammin truck Foxy. Is there any reliable place to get parts for the Redcat buggies?

nitrosportsandrunner

this is one downside to owning a redcat...as most hobby shops dont carry stuff.
Any parts you need can be bought off ebay, Redcat's site or off a few of the dealers that have their own sites. So getting the parts isnt an issue, just waiting for them to be shipped is.

I havent owned a jammin myself, but have seen a couple of ofna's up close and was impressed by the build quality.

The backdraft is fairly durable (i have owned one) and handled well. If you want a tougher buggy, the hurricane XTE is the way to go.
With either buggy, plan on upgrading the stock steering servo. Its weak. a MG996R servo ($10 on ebay) is metal geared and higher torque.

jk47

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Ok do you think the tranny and diffs in the XTE will hold up to potential 5 and 6s later on?

Foxy

There is nothing on the market that can stand up to 6S bashing long term. Some last a bit longer than others, I would strongly recommend steering clear of the cheaper brands if you have ideas involving 6S. Even a Mugen or Jammin drivetrain will one day just say 'ENOUGH!' and explode. It is...inevitable, Mr Anderson.

nitrosportsandrunner

I pretty much agree with foxy.
The truck will last a long time on 4s. But if you upgrade the ESC/motor for 5 or 6s im sure you will start to break parts.
Even those who have the savage flux admit to shredding diff gears.

IMO if you want a crazy speed machine, go 1/10 scale. Less money to start with to get high speeds (since they are lighter and require less power to do so) and less breakage if they crash, or at least less money to repair.

The backdraft does near 50, the XTE better than 40 (both on the stock lipos included)
If you want more speed for the money then just pick up a rustler vxl and a 3s lipo pack...good for 75mph. Youll just be giving up the handling a 1/8 4wd buggy has.

yakfish

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For $400 you should have no problem picking up a used brushless 1/8 scale buggy. and by going used you don't have to settle for an off brand. you can get a good quality name brand that will last longer and perform better than a brand new off brand. Take a look at Ofna, Kyosho, Associated, Losi, Mugen and Xray just to name a few.

nitrosportsandrunner

I know im gonna regret this, but how is Redcat an off-brand?
Yes, they dont do all the design work on the models they sell (tho they do chose the electronic gear and make changes to the designs based on feedback)
Other than that point, everything else about redcat is the same as other RC companies. They have a warehouse, provide spare parts and upgrades, have a warrenty on all electronic gear as well as covering DOA items. They have a phone number where you can talk with an actual person to get issues worked out ect. They grow in sales every year (in fact they are moving to a larger warehouse right now...and should have several new models out this year) and I have even heard talk that they want to start working on models which are 100% their own design.

Yak, dont take the personally, but have you driven a backdraft 8E, or a hurricane XTE? These models are no joke. They are fast and handle well out of the box. I feel like many people judge redcat by their very budget oriented 1/10 nitros. Those models are the most basic you can get, and not that durable. They are fun for the money, but not as durable as other 1/10 nitros which often cost twice as much. I mean, what do you expect out of a $140 RTR nitro buggy?
The 1/8 scale lines are much more like other brands in terms of design and construction...especially the XTE and XTR line.



So, how are they an "off brand"?

yakfish

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Well.. to be fair I didn't even mention Redcat. And I can't speak for their quality or how they compare to other models since I haven't owned one. Which is why I didn't mention them. But they do have a reputation for being lower quality and parts being more difficult to come by. Its always great to see smaller companies improve and maybe that is what Redcat is doing. But they still have a reputation of being a lower teer company. Would you make the argument that Redcat is on par whith say Losi or Mugen in the quality department?

jk47

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Anyone have a background with the ZD racing 1/8 buggy and Truggy? They seem to be pretty legit for thier price. I'm actualy bidding on a Zd racing truggy roller...

jk47

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just paid $90 for the ZD racing truggy roller! please sombody tell me that its a decent way to spend $90

Foxy

I've never heard of ZD racing, must be another Chinese cloner.

A quick read of other sites about this product does not look good I'm sorry to say, but then you know that, I see you posted in just about the only other thread on the internet about this car. If you had $200 I'd say get one of those, but you had enough budget for something good. Why did you cheap out?

jk47

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Well I figured at $90 it was worth a shot. and Thought I could make it somthing special with the right electronics and better diffs but I guess we shall see. It will either become a long term project or a short lived pain in the neck.


Like you said foxy I posted in the only other thread and from what I read the axle carriers and the diffs were real problems. I wonder if I could fit losi 8eight bevelgears into this truggy's housing, or maybe a whole diff swap with one of hpi's savage diffs. I know that Zd's diff gear is 38t. the only alternative I found at that size are the diff gears from the hpi Rs4. everything else is like 43t.

Foxy

Yeh, finding good diffs and turnbuckles seems to be the trick for that car. No idea which would fit, but if I were you I would be trying to make Jammin's CRT diffs fit before I tried the losi ones. Jammin diffs are hard as nails (and cheaper than the Losi ones too I'll wager).

jk47

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these?

http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...rs-Small-Large

Foxy

I'm pretty sure you will need entire diff assemblies, I doubt that the stock diff casings, pins, etc will be compatible with other brand parts, but I could be wrong, in fact there's likely to be something out there in the way of diff gears which are direct drop-ins, unfortunately I have no clue which brand they would be.

When I said Jammin diffs I meant the whole units (and they are NOT cheap sadly, no completely assembled diffs are). Here's a plan, don't buy anything yet, run the crap out ofit and see what breaks first, then see what your options are. Cos I doubt you want to spend $80 a diff x3 for a sub $200 car. Wait and see what breaks.

jk47

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sounds like a plan.

SyCo_VeNoM

A year ago I picked up 3 jammin diffs (center, and front/rear) in perfect shape for $15 shipped for all 3

So yea you can get them cheap if you look around, and are not in a hurry

Foxy

Wow. [X(]

You must be a patient bargain hunter!

SyCo_VeNoM

well it was more luck I was actually looking for a crt.5 diff, saw a full set of X1 diffs and bid $10(opening bid, shipping was $5) on them. Honestly didn't expect to win em seeing I saw them for $25 each