firemanmatt

Hedllo, this is my first post here, and I hope there are many more to come!

After seeing a fellow co-worker and his LST tear things up behind our station at work, I decided I would be asking Santa Claus for a Nitro Monster Truck of my very own, and am looking for advice from everyone here about what one to get.

Before you get into sharing your opinion on which is the best, please let me share a little about my experience in RC and tell you what I want out of this truck before.

-This will be my first RC truck ever. I am looking for a RTR model.

-I have medium wrenching and mechanical abilities at best. My co-worker is above average at fixing things, and will probably be able to help me out here and there, but I need somthing dependable and reliable.

-I am looking for somthing that skims the grass like a bat out of hell, and has a rated top speed around 45mph or so (faster is better in my opinion, but will listen to those who say I shouldn't get too worried about it right now!)

-I dont plan on racing this in any sanctioned or official event, so a good racing vehicle isnt necessary.

-If I had to rate my priorities of what I want out of this truck, this is how it looks in my eyes:

1. Top Speed
2. Acceleration
3. Reliable
4. Good back yard bashing machine
5. Easy to maintain and find new parts for it
6. Good selection of aftermarket bodies and parts
7. Cost (keep it under or around $700 before all the extras I need.)

#6 and #7 aren't really a big deal to me personally, but it may convince some of you to steer me to a specific vehicle.

All I know about these trucks comes from extensive research here and in magazines, and through my buddy at work. Everything else is going to be a learning experience for me. I certainly understand that these are not just toys you fire up and drive, but somthing you need to be willing to put time into to keep working correctly.

Of the reasearch I've done so far, I have narrowed my choice of truck to the following trucks (and CURRENT order of what I THINK I want.) THIS is where you all come in! Please look this over and tell me if I am making a mistake, or if you would recommend a first time RC owner to go with a different list of trucks, or prioritize them differently.

Here's my list in order:

1. Trinity Spyder
2. Traxxas Revo
3. Genesis 46
4. Losi LST
5. Traxxas T-Maxx

Matching these up to my list of what I want out of the truck (see previous priorities), PLEASE let me know if I need a serious attitude adjustment, or if I am on the right track. I HAVE alot of experience on forums like this for snowmobiling, so I know I am asking for a lot of different opinions, and many of which probably conflict with each other. BUT I want to hear any and all opinions and reasons why you feel that way.

I hope I've given you all enough info to help me out, and THANK YOU in advance for your help here!

oatmealman

My Feedback: (1)

get ride of #4 #3 #1 and #5.ok here's the list i would go with


savage 25
traxxas revo
asscoiated mammoth
cen mt2 fun factor
duratrax warhead(when it comes out in late jan)

the savage not the best for speed but hpi just came out with a 3 speed tranmission
revo perfect as it is durable,fast and will take a beating
associated mammoth,pretty fast for a huge truck,and bashible
cen mt2 funfactor FAST not as durable as the other one though[]
duratrax warhead,when it comes out it is SUPPOSE to be fast and durable,but we can only wait for the truck cause it comes out in late jan

oatmealman

My Feedback: (1)

oh ya btw i have a house in sturgeon bay wisconsin,we drive right through green bay were are u located maybe we could hang out for a hour or 2

tamiya08

My Feedback: (10)

on your list the trinity spyder and revo, are the best 2 for you, now the spyder and revo would both require you buying a charger and battery, because they are eletric start, the trinity spyder however, come with almost everything you need to get started in this hobby. the mag. rc car action, said the spyder is estimated to go around 50 mph. and the revo is about 40 mph. not many people have the spyder yet, so its not that easy to get a review from someone. the spyder is also only 20 bucks more than the revo.
i dont think i answered all your questions, just giving you some general info.

chris

oatmealman

My Feedback: (1)

well i got ride of the spyder for 2 reasons,i got ride of it because it's new there could be alot of bugs,and also not alot of people own them so it will be very hard to get a review

tamiya08

My Feedback: (10)

yea, but if you are willing to wait until more people get them, then you can get a better review.

oatmealman

My Feedback: (1)

thats tre but it will probably take a couple of months because it price,most the people are too young to afford that kind of stuff,like me

tamiya08

My Feedback: (10)

lol, someone on here already has the spyder tho.


chris

oatmealman

My Feedback: (1)

oh ok,but i would still wait personally

firemanmatt

EXCELLENT! When I get the truck, we'll have to get together sometime and you can show me a few pointers here and there. I live pretty close to Highway 172 and I-43.

Form Colorado and have a house in Sturgeon Bay huh? Now THAT is nice!!! My wife and I went to Door county for the first time this summer, and we will be back there hopefully as soon as the snow melts!!! We went to Washington island and hope to spend a day up there again soon!

Thanks for the help so far guys! I forgot to add the Mammoth to the list of trucks I was looking at. Anyone hear anything bad about the Mammoth?

tamiya08

My Feedback: (10)

the mammoth, i thought was a could truck, but i guess they can break easily from what i have heard from people on this forum. i dunno tho, i dont have the mammoth.

but heres what i found, mammoth going 30mph into a pole



your best bet is to check out this website http://globalservices.globalhobby.co...forum.php?f=10 its a whole forum made for the mammoth

silverman1

I would have to say, that I would remove the LST, and Genisis because of the issues they have. Before people get fired up I own a LST, also the Tmaxx because of frail plastic, again I owned one of these also.

1. The Revo, great truck highly durable and reliable. Yes I own one.
2. Tamiya TNX, awesome truck big time power in grass on hill climbs, on the street. Great truck. I own this one also.
3. The Savage, Hpi builds good products, i've had good luck with them. the savage runs good but don't like high center of gravity, flips easily.
4. CEN MT 2, not a true monster in size, but very bashable, very fast, and cheap.
5. Associated MGT, A good truck well built, and tough. not the fastest.
6. The Mamouth is made by (XTM) GLOBAL, Very fast 50 mph, huge. weak point needs upgraded shock towers.

The trucks which will have the most immediate parts availibilty will Be the Savage, and the Revo.

Your not far from illinois, so if you had to order parts mail order from, for some of thses trucks, you have Tower hobbies online. You would get your parts in no time at all.

I own trucks 1 through 5. 1 and 2 are my favorites.

The only truck i don't own is the Mamouth.

firemanmatt

None of the magazines I read had estimates as to how fast the REVO goes in terms of top speed. Any ideas? Faster or as fast as the LST? Seems like it could be on top of my list if it could hit at least mid 40s with little or no mods on it.

Beefy92028

I wanna buy the Trinity Nitro Spyder RTR. Anyone have any new info on it?

RCtruckRacer

No chance of a Revo going faster than an LST, (I owned 2 Revo's as well as the LST) without an engine upgrade anyway. If speed is really your thing, you should go ahead and look into getting a good buggy. You said you wanted an RTR, but I don't think you'll find one that meets your speed requirements. Besides, building them isn't really that hard, and it helps you become familiar with the truck when you have to start wrenching on it. Consider: suppose you get the toughest truck on your list - the Revo (IMO). Once you get it all broke in, you will find that it will do about 40, maybe a little less. So, you want more speed. OK, you decide to do the forward only conversion - less rotational mass, and a wee bit lighter = more speed. You're already wrenching on it and it hasn't even broke yet. And this would be just the beginning! Then there's all the dremel work to get it to corner better, cutting a bunch of stuff to limit the weight even more... Then you decide it STILL isn't fast enough and you go for an .18 or even a big block engine. The list goes on. Go for one of the top buggies. Or, alternatively if speed is the ONLY consideration, you could get a nitro sedan. Granted, this doesn't fit into requirement #4 but some of them will do over 60 as an RTR. Empty parking lots aren't too hard to find...

Shocker1000

My Feedback: (2)

I would definatly recommend the mammoth st, I own one and I love it. The only problem I have had so far is the pullstarter breaking, but I replaced it with a rotostart and I have had no trouble since.

Beefy92028

what about the duratrax warhead for a first time car? It has a freakin huge engine and is tough. but i am worried that when i get one, because of all those 64 different mounting positions that it would break easily on a big jump. what do yall think?

cman9toes

I know from first hand experience as to the durabiltiy of the Revo. If this is your first time in RC I highly reccomd you not worry about speed unless you have a huge smooth area that is all you will drive on. Realisticly 30mph is what you will drive at if just screwing around. Or you will be spending alot of time flipping the car back over, running into stuff etc..
People talk speed but it is unrealistic to control a RC going 50mph in a bashing envorment. unless you are a construction site with big jumps and the like, but then you are just asking for trouble, fun, but guarentee of breakage.
I know little about the Spyder it is still new and parts support is limited.
If you are still stuck on speed I would go with the Revonot because it is the fastest, but because it handles much better than the others. Revo is race inspired and as such built for speed.

Desert Racer

My Feedback: (5)

Ok here is my list I have a mammoth st it is strong sure you go wot with any truck stock you are going to break parts so here goes my lis

1 revo great basher tough as nails and is fast
2 mgt it is also tough and is a nice piece of a truck I own this truck
3 mammoth st it is strong and fast and it is cheap so you can upgrad the stock steering servo and get a recharageble back for it I also own this truck
4 a t-maxx I know people say it breaks to easy hu I have had mine foe 3 years my first nitro truck didnt break in the motor and it still runs strong I ran it in to the side walk a t 30mph broke a shock cap I also own this truck so that is my list hope this helps you on your desicions you may also want to check out the mt cha to help you

EG1

I agree that the REVO turned out to be a tough truck. At first glance I(like many others) thought man that thing will be a great racer but it will brake faster than a grasshopper. But many videos have shown the Revo to be a tough machine.

I love my savage because I ONLY bash, but it's such a 1 dimensional truck. Handles like poop really, and why spend a bunch of loot to make it racer when you can just buy a racer.

+1 for the REVO.

Desert Racer

My Feedback: (5)

you can be a revo have a racer and a basher for a lot less then a salvage

marshon50

My Feedback: (2)

21 posts and only one mention of the TNX...funny. I'm not saying that the others mentioned aren't good but I own the TNX and its great. It wins races every time out even when running against big blocks. I bash the hell out of mine and the only real problem is the spur gear, which supposedly has been addressed and is now wider to minimize stripping. For a first timer you can buy a RTR TNX for around $300 or go with the PRO edition for $400. For my money I'd go ahead and get the PRO because that's what you'll eventually want. Parts support at lhs in my area sucks, but lMO LHS in my area suck, I use mail order (Tower, SpeedtechRC, RCBoyz, Nitrohouse) and ebay.

RCtruckRacer

Marshon, you forgot to mention that the TNX just did a 'clean sweep' at the Monster Truck Madness III placing 1st and 2nd in BOTH big and small block MT class! Congrats to Tamiya team racers Jun and Jacobson! The TNX is definately the 'Truck of the Month.'

marshon50

My Feedback: (2)

I couldn't remember the name of the race, but that was definitely what I was referencing!!

cman9toes

Clean sweep?? A clean sweep would Revo at the RC PRO Series. The only MT's that sat only the podeum.... REVO....
Plus what was the truck the ruined the "clean sweep" at Monster... REVO.....
Props go to the Tamiya drivers. I can't remeber their names, but I know that they are always stff competion