jmelton98

ok, so i know this question has probably been asked a million times, but i am stuck deciding between the Traxxas Revo 3.3 or the HPI Savage X. i have searched all over for a side by side review, but i haven't found anything. i know i am not the only one who has had to suffer through trying to decide between these 2 awesome trucks, so i would like to make this thread act as a resource not only to me, but to others as well. So please post any pro and cons, thoughts, experiences, links, specs, resources, (or pretty much anything that pertains to these two trucks) that you think would be helpful for myself, and the many others out there, in deciding which is the top truck!

with that said, here's the big question:

Revo 3.3 vs Savage X, which is better?

jnev

I was deciding between the two trucks myself and went with the revo. so far I couldn't be happier with my choice. I work at my lhs and I see a lot of people's cars. a LOT more people were bring in savage x's than revo's. if you search around you'll see that the savage x has a lot of problems over the previous savage 25. the savage x ss should hopefully fix all of these problems.

the revo is faster and has better handling out of the box. so far durability hasn't been an issue for me and I have had a few fairly gnarly crashes already.

jnev

btw, where in SD do you live?

jmelton98

found these two awesome reviews. the revo review is for the Revo RTR, but the only difference from the Revo 3.3 seems to be the engine size (but i could be wrong).

Review of Revo RTR:
[link]http://www.rcuniverse.com/magazine/article_display.cfm?article_id=409[/link]

Review of Savage X:
[link]http://www.rcuniverse.com/magazine/article_display.cfm?article_id=729[/link]

jnev

the only difference between the revo 2.5 and 3.3 is the engine (obviously) and the 3.3 has a longer wheelbase by 30mm so the handling is a bit better. other than that it's the same.

whereabouts in SD are you located?

SAVAGEJIM

Finding a side by side review of these two great trucks are virtually non-existent. You can find threads in which people asked this same question, but keep in mind in which forum the question was asked and which people answer. For example, if you went to the HPI monster truck forum, you will encounter alot of Savage fanatics (including me) who will give you praises all day long about the Savage and bash on the Revo. But then again, if you go to the Traxxas monster truck forum, you will find Revo fans who love the Revo just the same.

Don't get me wrong, you will find some very informed and unbiased posts about both trucks, you just have have to read all the replies and know how to cut through the BS (believe me, there can be some serious bull since each forum has a mix of experienced, newbies, and just plain ole' show offs). Take the time to read as many of these posts as possible (It's a daunting task, there are thousands of posts just on Savages and Revos alone). After reading up on each, you will get the feel of which posts are genuine truths about each truck and which ones are made up.

Now, for my biased opinion, I say get the Savage X SS and buy a mid to higher end radio with quality servos. I do not have the new Savage X SS kit, but from what I have seen and read, it is tougher than the X RTR and the older non-X SS kit. If anything, the X SS kit will be at least on par with the non-X SS kit. As such, you will not be disappointed. Just remember that the Savage truck is just that, it is a beast and meant to be bashed. It can be made a racer with upgrades, but I'm not sure if that is what you have in mind now. The Revo would be a better racer right out of the box. If you want to bash Revo, I highly recommend you get RPM suspension arms for it; you really have to do something stupid to break those.

nitroracer82

Well put SavageJim. I agree but for the revo you don't really even need the rpm arms. I took some nasty hits that put lots of stress on the arms and never had a break (this was before I tricked it out for racing only). Rpm arms will only add more weight anyhow. Also, I would prefer the arm to break rather than the stress transfer up to the pin or bulkhead.
Jmelton; I have both, and love them both... but use them differently. Read up and make the decision as to you main intrest (racing or bashing) and go from there. Each truck is great for both but each has advantages over the other.

jmelton98

jnev,

i'm in la mesa.

i went to my lhs today to check out the revo 3.3 and the savage and i found out that there are no nitro tracks in sd, only an electric track in santee. they said the nearest track was in hemet. that sucks! i was originally leaning toward the revo 3.3 as i was planning on spending half the time racing it on a track and half the time bashing. but now finding out that there are no local nitro tracks, that changes things. where people go in sd to run their trucks? i originally had a kyosho usa-1 electric about 10 years ago and now i'm getting back in to it. (usa-1 was a nice elec basher, but poor design. i ended up having major problems with the gearbox and haven't touched it since). i was looking for something that has the best of both worlds , speed/performance and basher/durability, but it seems like most trucks are built for one or the other.

jnev, what do you run, and what do you recommend for what sd has to offer?

jmelton98

savagejim,

thanks for that detailed info. the last truck i built was my kyosho usa-1 which was the electric model and that was fairly easy. whats your take on building the savage x ss? are nitro power kits more difficult to build than electric?

Chronic

I would have probably recommended the Revo 3.3 for you until you brought up the X SS as an option. The SS brings alot to the table, to say the least. It's going to cost alot more than a Revo 3.3 to get it up and running if you use quality electronics, but if it's an option... SS all the way.

jnev

well, I work at the hobby people in san diego (off convoy street). as for tracks, we really don't have that much surprisingly. on saturdays family hobbies (the track in santee) allows nitro, though I haven't yet asked if they'll allow the revo there (traxxas says it's 1/10 scale, though it's definitaly a big 1/10). there's a really good track in merrieta (slightly closer to hemet), though that track and the hemet track are VERY competitive and many pros race there.

if you want to take a closer look at the savage, we have on display at our shop that you can look at and play with. no revo's on display, though if I'm in or someone else with a revo is you can probably look at ours.

jmelton98

jnev,
thanks for the info. how do you like your revo? i think i am leaning toward the revo 3.3? i check out the website for the track in murrieta, it looks pretty sweet! i couldn't find a website for family hobbies though. i saw on hobbypeople.com that they have a coupon for $25 off good through monday. do you know if they are always running different specials like that, or is this a one time deal?

jnev

family's website is www.rcpowerhouse.com.

about the coupon, not sure. I only come in there about once or twice a week because I'm so busy with other crap, and we're always having different coupons and stuff. if this one ends on monday we'll probably have another during halloween or something.

I love my revo.. yesterday I was bashing it at a construction site and was just skying it. second-gear lauches off a curved 45 degree 3 foot launch ramp = big air. the ones I landed the suspension just soaked up like butter, the ones I didn't land looked like they would at least snap some a-arms (many people say the revo has weak a-arms. if it does, I haven't seen it yet). nothing broke at all, and I was running it for like 3 tanks of this (not that much but I ran out of gas, gotta buy some more ). if you get a savage I'd only recomend a savage x ss, do not get the regular x, wayy too many problems with it. the x ss should be even more durable than the revo.

Surfrider

I cant comment on the Revo. But if you go with the Savage, definitely go with the X SS kit. The X RTR is a good truck, but it comes with a few common issues that are addressed and revised in the X SS. (Spur Gear, Diff Case, Diff Cups, etc)

It may cost a bit more when buying good electronics, but it should be the epitimy of a "basher" truck, as its quite a monster.

jmelton98

sorry so long being away from the forum, been super busy at work.

well, after going back and forth between the revo 3.3 and the savage x/x ss, i finally decided to go with the revo. I wanted something that had the best of both worlds (racing and bashing) and i felt the revo had the best balance. although, i did really like the savage x ss, but when factoring in the additional componeds needed, it would have put me over what i wanted to spend.

thank you for all your help.
jon

p.s. - jnev, i stopped by family hobbies in santee last weekend and found out they are under new ownership since 2 months ago. I asked them about racing a revo on their track on saturdays when they allow nitros, but they said it was too big. after looking at their track, i could see that it is too small for the bigger r/c's. i think i'm going to check out the track in murrietta after i break in my revo, and see what its all about. thanks for the help.

RCaeroguy

My Feedback: (4)

I tried to set the Savage X up for racing at my local track. No matter what I did, it didn't perform nearly as well as the Revo 3.3's. Now if I was to jump a house with one, it would hands down be the Savage X. Way more durable in the bashing arena than the Revo 3.3.

jnev

yah, I heard about the new ownership. a guy I work with races at family all the time (electric). one time one of the owners of family stopped by our shop, and he said that they were considering moving further down south somewhere, maybe around chula vista. that would make it a lot farther for me since I'm in del mar. too bad about the revo though, guess that means I'll have to travel to murrieta to race.

good luck with the revo! mine's still running strong and is starting to make more and more power (~20th tank). seems to be holding up really well so far.

drifta

i dont think so from tower hobbies i got a savage x ss with quality servos good futaba 2ch vennom battery pack and charger for 550 usd or 700 aud (i live in australia)

Chronic

Drifta, you can certainly do it cheaper than what I was talking about, but it all comes down to what you consider "quality electronics". I should have said "top quality electronics". You are correct, I could have been more precise with my statement.

What kind of steering servo did you go with? Flubbing up on the servo choices is a common mistake with Savages. Unless you have one with at least 180oz of torque and a 16s or faster sweep time, a stock Revo(and most other RTRs on the market) has you outgunned in that department. I'm not trying to throw off on your setup at all, and I'm sure it does fine, I'm just explaining my recommendation.

clshades

So as a rookie getting into the RC hobby... something i've been wanting to do for years and im just gonna dive in ffs... which would be a good buy for me? I can learn anything i need to as i go... however i do want something with get up and go. I was concidering the Baja 5b however... after watching a ton of utube vids they seem to have issues with the front tires blowing off on bad hits.

From everything i've read over the past few weeks everyone seems to like the revo over the savage x... and the xss is probably a little outta my league at this point.

Clymer122693

Dude you brought up a two year old thread. Theres a couple of these Savage VS Revo threads up right now. Just use the search feature and read up.

clshades

yeh wutever mate... i googled it

black mamba

Goes to show you that as long as you can buy a Revo or Savage, these debates will go on and on and on and on and on and on and on. It's a RCU tradition.