lacrosse

I am 13, and i really want to get a MGT, but my parents are not sure if this would be a good hobby for me. They don't want to waste money on something that i use once, and get sick of. I love this kind of thing, (between the driving and especially the building), but I don't know much about engines and stuff like that. Is this worth the time and effort, and if i should get the truck or not.

savage_2.5

I dont think u will get bored of it just u better have alot of money saved up these trucks arnt very reliable compared to atvs or any other recreational toy. If i were u i would go with a smaller truck than a 1/8 monster with a big block, I would recomend a smaller stadium truck. I got my first truck when i was 14 (im now 15), my first truck was a savage .25 ltd and let me tell u there not easy to drive. If u buy one make sure u know how to work on engines, chassis, and seting vechiles up. Me im only 15 but i rebuild motors and work on suspension parts all the time, i race atvs so i have 2. Thats my advice make sure u know what ur doing!

ferrariowner123

i started when i was 14 and i think your choice of an MGT is a great beginners cars for some your age. PLEASE NOTE: do not buy from Hobbbytron they SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THey will never give the MGT to you. so dont buy from them. and good luck getting into the sport.

DaveG55

Are you too young?
Age wise,
No, absolutely not. I got my first nitro powered vehicle at age 10. It was a line control plane and my dad helped me with learning the in's and out's of the engine and flying.
Maturity wise,
Well, only you and your folks can decide that. A nitro powered vehicle, while it is a toy, is magnitudes away from the WalMart r/c toys. They're fast, complicated and finiky and very expensive. Expensive both to buy and to run and maintain. Also a total newbie has a pretty serious learning curve to get thru but it's possable to do. If your dad could be intrested in helping you it will be a lot easier and it's a good hobby for a father and son to do togeather. There are several parents and kids on the boards that have lots of fun with it.
It's hard to fault your folks for their concern as they will easily have to spend $400, $500, $600 on the vehcle and the accessories you'll need. I'd be concerned too that my son would stick with the hobby. And, for the record, while he likes them, he much prefers building computers.

So, no, you're not too young but only you can decide if you're responsable and deedicated enough.

Good luck whatever you decide.

Rc EnthuSiasTs

I dont think you are too young. I was 15 or so when i started, you just have to have some money to keep them running. You will break parts. I have an mgt and love it, but compared to my rustler and stampede, it is a but load more money, and harder to keep.
Just to tell you, it is an awesome hobby, and i think everyone in the world should be able to enjoy the same enjoyment that we all share, but you must have the mon-i-a

Evader ---> MGT

I got my Nitro Evader at 13, and I hated it. But I fixed it, started learning about it, and now have an MGT, and I think if you stick to it, you'll be fine. Don't expect it to be a one time lump of cash though, it'll be at least $50/mo. That's bare minimum. I spend around I'd say $100, but I'm only 14, 15 in a month.

badboy2

My Feedback: (13)

i raced with boy who was only 10 and he was good..he knows his engine settings and all..his dad helped him too..so like the guys said u are in the right age in starting this hobby..and even some of us who started late ,like me i started when i was 28y/o [],i didnt kno what am i doin too..actually until now im like that hehehe

robbo989

If I were you, I'd buy something smaller first. e.g Mini-T, RC18 Basically something that is somewhat cheap and you can see how you like the hobby from there

dirt101

I wouldnt go nitro first. Maybe go with like an emaxx or an esavage. I have nitro but its a lot of trouble. I got my revo when I was twelve. I got so frustrated with it and didnt touch it for a month and a half. took it out and it wouldnt start. I was so fed up with it I took it to the shop. Ends up my noobness made me look like an idiot. Took it there and the guy put some wd40 in the engine and it started write up. I have had it for about 6 months now and pretty much play with it everyday. LOVE the hobby now. Had my noob times though. Let me tell you from experience if you soak your tires to clean them they dont just dry out trust me. Maybe you could spend some time at a track and bug some guy until he lets you look over his shoulder all day so you can see how to tune and read temps and change out stuff. At first I got fed up with my revos engine getting so hot it would just die but some guys helped me and it was just my slipper clutch was too loose. My friend has a mgt and its a pretty good truck. He hasnt broken anything but he babies it. The only thing I have broke is my rear diff. OK so if ur brave go nitro but I think the electric trucks would suprise you. I wish i went electric for about 5 months.

What i would do is get a good emaxx off of ebay play with it for a while or keep it and have lots of fun with it forever
but with ebay you wont lose a whole lot when you sell it, then go nitro after a while. When you have a truck you will meat other poeple with trucks. it just happens

alvinl

+1 for what DaveG55 said. I think the first question you need to ask is whether your dad will be doing it with you. It is a GREAT father/son hobby. My son and I have been playing with nitro cars for over a year, and my son just turned 8. I think it will be easier for you to learn if you dad gets into it with you. But that is not saying you can not learn on your own. And you may have friends that like your new MGT and get one, then you will have a buddy to bash with.

Nitro cars are a lot of maintenance. Read the manual and make sure you know the ins and outs of the truck before you ever turn it on. You will have a lot more fun with nitro rc if you like the cleaning, fixing and tweaking that is involved.

As for going with a smaller electric first, there is nothing like nitro. Electrics are fun, but if that's all I had I would have gotten bored pretty quick.

gkcontra

+2 to Dave

I do disagree with some of the above comments about getting smaller or electric first though because the shorter run times and lower ground clearance becoms frustrating as well.

The MGT is a pretty good place to start. I do agree that having 1 of your parents in this with you would help a ton though.

badboy2

My Feedback: (13)

for me id rather start with the one he likes that way he will learn the in and out of his truck..theres always a first time and u can always go to ur hs for help and tips..

PillowPants

I started with a T-maxx at age 12. I pretty much tought myself how to do everything, with the help of forums. I'm 16 now and I have more RC's than i kow what to do with.

HerrSavage

If you're even interested it's too late. Not only should you definitely get it but you should just accept that you've now got not only a hobby, but possibly an addiction(in the positive sense of course..)

When I was 13 I was addicted to skateboarding. My dad was into RC planes, but that never interested me. RC is more expensive than skateboarding, but at least when you crash your RC, it's a toy that gets smashed, and not your face like with skateboarding(Concussions, smashed up knees, twisted around ankles, you name it...)

So it ain't cheap, but it's a helluva lot of fun..

And you even say you like the idea of building them - I'm not SO crazy about that side of things, and I'm hooked.. Just go for it.

-Inverted-

3+ hours per charge is a pretty decent runtime if you ask me. I wouldn't rule out electric just yet.

HerrSavage

I agree completely. Nitro is a whole different world.. For me(but not for others, I know), minis are for chasing cats around the house. Big nitro MT's are for frightening small children and the elderly and generally just tearing up the country-side.. Just kidding - but IMO anyway the thrill factor with a big 1/8 nitro MT is WAY (WAY) more fun than with some little electric thing..

duckedup

huh?.. 3+ hours on 1 charge??.. did I miss the release of some new super battery pack or what..[sm=confused.gif]

lacrosse

my problem is that i dont know much about engines, but i do know a little about carbs[:@]

alvinl

But you can learn. You may kill your first engine learning, it happens, but you can learn. There are tons of resources out there to help, like this one on engine breakin.

http://www.rbmods.net/enginetempering.php

DaveG55

More than three hours of run time on a single charge???????

How, exactly, do you get that???

Best I've managed is 20 - 25 minutes.

ThermalRD

Well i agree, and disagree with some of whats said here. First off, the age thing. Nope, yer not too young at all. If you're willing to learn, and have an interest, then go for it. I was building my first Tamiya kits early on in grade school. Without any help from my father, or anyone. Now the decision on what to buy. I entirely disagree about the stadium trucks. ANYONE who has seen those run, and raced with them, knows they are very easy to break, and will not tackle the same terrain as a monster. Im shocked anyne suggested that as a first time vehicle, especially with the low price on the current MGT. So i'd say to stay away from the stadiums. The Jato is the ONLY ST i've found to be incredibly strong. The MGT is a good choice. The motors run great, and they are very tough trucks. Easy to work on, and parts are easy to find. I say go for it. After you buy it, go thru the manual, and make yourself familiar with some things. Read the forums, and ask plenty of questions. You can learn alot here, from alot of very knowledgable guys.

Rc EnthuSiasTs

The closest i have got to that kind of runtime on my electric car is my rock crawler, i get about 1hour and 15min. Not bad, but nothing like 3 hours!

SpikeX

I am 12 and I have a Savage X. I just read a lot, and I experiment with my truck. It is not really so hard to learn how everything works, at least for me it wasn't! But, you will get there in the end, and it is a very rewarding experience.

silverman1

Thats the thing, the learning curb of tuning the frustration factor, and you will break some parts. At the same time though if you got the time and the patientance and someone mentoring you, or the stick toidusness attiude it will be great. Im 47 years old and got my first rc nitro truck probabally 6 years ago a hpi rush it had only a single needle to adjust, it was rear wheel drive, but great to learn on. It took a fantastic beating, hardly ever broke, thats what drew me in. Now over 20 nitro vehicles later I can say it is fun but frustrating at times. I still consider myself a newb because I only run a couple times a year. The more you run your truck, work on it and maintain it the easier it will be.

I do agree with a monster of sort how about a Cen magnum nx they are under 300.00 not a full blown monster, but can easily run off road, plenty fast, and extremely durable. I owned the earlier model the cen MT 2 monster. I have all the major ones, a revo, mgt, savage, tnx, genesis, etc truggies, gs storms, kyosho st-s losi LST1.

I always found myself reaching for the Cen because it could truly take a beating.

Bottom line there all fun and reasonabally tough, but you need to make the call for yourself.

Good luck and welcome if you join us!!!!!

ScRacing

what about a hpi 18ss mt. Its a kit so he has to know how it goes together, once he gets it together he knows how it works so it will be easy to work on.