RE: "Knockoff" or HPI
Thanks for the intelligent and thorough reply. All of what was said makes sense to me, and I thinkk you hit the nail on the head. Maybe people buy E-Maxx's and bash them more heavily than the knockoff buyers. Maybe they expect more from hobby grade trucks. Or maybe the knockoff buyers treat theirs a little more gently knowing that if it breaks they're kinda out of luck.
Whatever the case, I still think I will buy an e-savage over either the e-maxx or the knockoffs.
You can usually tell the value of something by watching eBay for a while. Knockoffs go for $100-$150. E-maxx's go for $175-$250. E-savages go for $230-$300. I'm talking about standard RTR examples with no or few modifications. Of course heavily modded e-maxx's go for more.