gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

Guess what the courier man delivered this afternoon?

I forgot how big these kits really are!

hellya

those look cool someones guuna have some fun

kidd

did that come with a 27cc ingine. i only ask because the xtm version of that truck does.

snooptalian

My Feedback: (7)

Are the bodies on those already painted? Are they the same size as the FG truck?

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

The bodies come painted black already which may put off some people but for a person like me who has little skill painting, it saves me time, frustration and money for paint - thats at least $50 savings in decals + paint if it were an FG MT. Its not a spectacular job but with the decals on, it looks neat and professional - unlike the rather lame, retro(ish) Marder/Traveller decals. The body on the car actually looks pretty good.

It comes with a 23cc engine, but a 27cc big bore upgrade is only $65 which isn't going to break the bank and still end up cheaper than the XTM's MT from Hobbypeople. Since the XTM MT is on order, it might take quite some weeks to get back in stock - assuming they are shipping them in by sea, whereas the Bigfoot MT is already in stock

The dimensions are identical to the FG Bigfoot MT, not surprising since with the exception of minor items, they are pretty much identical units.

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

More pics....

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

last set of pics

original.mb

very nice truck mate i do believe its 1/6 scale though and not 1/5 scale

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

Yes I know :P but I stick to what the box says to avoid confusion to the buyers

kidd

i've toyed with the idea of taking the dremmel tool to my mb tires and cutting them to a simmiliar tread to those. surely they will hook up better.

i don't know if i need another 1/5 scale but that truck would be it if i did .

Croozer

My Feedback: (1)

I would like to see one in person, it looks a little chessy with the white wheels, and the 23 cc engine, seeing that it is not much cheaper that a FG I would go with the FG.

jeepfreak1972

I did notice that the chassis is straight instead of wide at the back and narrow at the front like the FG MB or MT. It looks like an FG leopard race style chassis. I like the truck and will be getting a set of those tires for my MB when they are available.

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

There isn't that much wrong with white wheels. All racing FG on-road vehicles use mounted PMT tires on plain white rims.

Chrome does look better, no doubt about that but as soon as you go offroading, they'll soon get scored and you'll see the white rim underneath anyhow.

Another quick measurement and its actually a little shorter than the FG MT by approx 3-4cm. I presume the body is a little lower than the FG MT's as the length, wheelbase, ride height, width are identical to the FG MT.

hoppy504

Hi gonsped69,

Looks a nice truck, is the body abs plastic or lexan?. Carson were advertising the shell

as plastic which I thought would be a weakness.

Does anyone know if chrome plating plastic makes it weak and brittle? I thought I read

this a few years ago;.

regards,

john.

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

The body is definitely lexan, not the typical "toy plastic". It is quite thick, approx. twice as thick as the typical 1/8th scale nitro bodies and feels very solid. The factory cutaways are very smooth, without sharp edges. You can see its been professionally spray painted on the inside and the outside is mirror shiny, where ABS should be a dull/matte finish.

With regards to chrome plating plastic, it shouldn't weaken the plastic but you would really need to check how this process is undertaken. If it is sprayed on like a glue/paint, it should make it stronger. If its dipped in hot molten liquid, it should make it weaker by the surface interaction.

However, this shouldn't be a problem as I have yet to hear anyone destroying/breaking their rims with chrome plating in nitro cars where the rims should be subjected to greater forces with the almost instant acceleration of nitro motors.

a_vdk

Are just the bodies available? If so at what cost?

hoppy504

gonsped69,

Thanks for your quick reply.

I was thinking about getting a Carson MT when released (June!), but was put off when I saw it advertised with a ABS shell. Hope the ad was wrong, your lexan body looks very good.

john.

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

Hoppy504,

I believe the ad is incorrect because based on previous knowledge of the Carson large scale offroad vehicles - i.e. the Carson Attack Buggy is actually a rebadged Smartech Traveller.

I've seen photos of the Carson Commanche MT on the web and it looks 100% identical to this Smartech Bigfoot MT with the exception of different decals

Have a look at these photos from this German hobby shop - http://www.rc-car-online.de/carson_mt_eng.htm

Tell me if it resembles photos from the Smartech's website - http://www.smartechracing.com/web_20...05322/main.asp

hoppy504

gonsped69,

You are right there appears to be no difference, just badging.

This line from the German advert had me worried about shell strength.

Flexible ABS-body shell with stickers already applied


The following specs are slightly different, although I would believe Smartech's as the trucks manufacturer.


Carson...
Technical data
· length ca. 750 mm
· width ca. 490 mm
· height ca. 330 mm
· tire width 110 mm
· tire-Ø 180 mm
· engine Carson 27 cm³


Smartech......
TECHNICAL PARAMETERS
Length -------------------- ------ 695 mm
Width ---------------------------- 520 mm
Heigth -------------------- ------ 332 mm
Wheelbase(F) ------------------- 380 mm
Wheelbase(R) ------------------- 420 mm
Weight --------------------------- 9630 g
Engine --------------------------- 23 CC
Tread(F/R) ---------------------- 472 mm
Wheel DIA.(F/R)----------------- 200mm*110mm
Gear rate ------------------------ 7.67:1


regards,
john.

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

I can assure you its not ABS but Lexan

I've yet to see a large scale model being offered with a choice of both ABS and Lexan shells

However, it seems that the Carson uses a 27cc engine vs a 23cc engine for the Bigfoot.

Croozer

My Feedback: (1)

I like the cover over the gearing, that is a nice touch.

1. Will the FG monster wheels fit on the Carson/Smartech MT?

2. Do they plan to market a 4wd conversion?

JRexA

I have been in touch with Smartech Directly.

They haven't answered any questions about an eventual 4WD conversion or 1/5 Zenoah Powered 4WD truck.

As for the wheels. The Smartech 1/5 cars are using the same square wheel driver and is 100% compatible with wheels for the FG's
The Smartech/Carson Wheels also fits the FG's

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

I can vouch with JreXa, although they copied the FG designs, the Smartech large scale offroad vehicles are actually slightly better equipped than its FG counterpart:

* anodized, 100% full aluminum alloy shocks - whereas FG uses the cheap version of their shocks with a plastic top cap and what looked like pretty cheap springs. The alloy shocks looks exactly like an anodized version used in the Sporstline 2004 model or the ones on page 36 of FG 2004 Catalog, centre photo.

* It has a gear cover, I'm sure all seasoned offroaders know the importance of this small cover

* The chassis is anodized, looks better than a no finish aluminum chassis from FG MT

* Body is painted and decaled - a turn off to some, but to a user who wants to drive ASAP and not worry about outstanding painting, its a bonus.

The photos below shows the Bigfoot Tires on a FG Sporstline 2004. It would pretty funky to have a custom body mount for the Opel Astra body

The last photo with the Bigfoot body over the Sportsline chassis still looks good eventhough the wheel wells doesn't quite match. But I do like the idea of a longer, more stable Bigfoot

monster40

When will the Carson Big Foot be available in the UK and who will sell it?

gonsped69

My Feedback: (6)

It should be available in the UK but you'll need to check with your local Carson distributor as to when the kits can come in which probably another 1-2 months.

You can buy the Smartech Bigfoot above (the same as the Carson MT) for £480 which includes 5 days delivery to your door.