Hey guys, I have been looking into racing for quite a while. I dont really like monster truck racing, or stadium truck racing, but what has really caught my is 1/8th scale buggy racing. What is a good KIT version of a 1/8th scale buggy?

Well actually, scratch that! I have always wanted to do a Kit version of an RC. Whats a good 1/8th Buggy KIT?

Any kit is good. Your best bet is to try them. Where you plan on racing? Hobby Action is one of two 1/8 scale tracks and is the closest to you.
Hobby Action carries parts for Kyosho, X Ray, Mugen, Jammin, other OFNA and SportWerks stuff so you’re covered there. There are Pros of each manufacturer that race there too so if you need any help with anything on them the Info is there.

Thanks man. Where is the track located at? Like the address I mean. Which kit would you recommend a buggy newbie, with a lot of nitro experience?

wow.. These Kits are EXPENSIVE! Dang! I'm thinking maybe getting a Jammin RTR buggy and just upgrading it gradually.. Is there a better RTR?

[link=http://www.azpointseries.com/Location.html]Hobby action directions..[/link]


The closest thing to the Jammin in price is the Mayhem, but the Jammin is a better buggy IMO. You can find some sweet deals on eBay or even the local guys selling there's off when they switch sponsors.
Buggies do cost so major money when trying to do it right.

I REALLY dont want to start anything by saying this, but with over 1600 posts shouldnt you know which to get? Or at least search. Anyway, the MBX5 or X-1, or SP2/1

Hmm, so just because I have a large post count, (from 2 combined accounts) means that I should know everything about every type of RC? Hmm... I musta missed that memo. Look at my sig.. do you see any buggies on that list? You know, everybody was new to 1:8th scale buggies at some time or another, even.. YOU! So just keep in mind that if you dont like the thread, there is no reason to come in and stir crap up for no reason. I'm asking a simple question, not hurting anyone!

Hobby Action is a great track, its also my local track (only 30 miles away!). it has a technical layout and pretty big jumps compared to what I have seen from pictures of other tracks.

If you plan on racing, a OFNA Jammin buggy or OFNA Hyper 7 buggy is a great platform to start with. I would say build your own kit if you plan to race, but if you absolutely can't afford it, you can get by with an RTR. RTRs are cheaper than their kit counterparts for a reason. Many components have to be downgraded in quality in order to be able to throw in radio gear, and an engine for the same price. Things such as shock quality, shock tower quality, chassis quality, chassis brace quality, drive line quality are sacrificed to make the kit more affordable. Also, the radio gear and engine are typically just enough to get by, so that costs can be kept down.

To put it in perspective, a Hyper 7 PBS RTR is around 400 dollars. I made a sheet that includes the cost of building up a kit Hyper 7 with average quality components (budget engine, middle of the road radio, proper 1/8th starter box) and the cost comes in at just under $1000.00. So you can see that quite a bit has to be trimmed to come in at budget. You can see the list here:
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=3456130

It dosent matter how many accounts were merged, its still alot of posts, and I figured you would have help out a couple people over the years, thats it. But like I said those are the best kits but for your budget you might wanna look into the X-1 RTR, Mayhem Pro, or you could get a Hyper 7 Pro for $300 on www.rcmart.com brand new. You can get a S3 for $367 too. Its a nice site but I have yet to test them. Oh yea, the new matrix is doing very well at races so far.

A kit buggy will run you 1200 to 1500 with all the running gear requierd, the RTR will cost 500 to 650 ready to go and are most of the time upgadeable to the PR0 kit model. I like to build my own cars and prefer kits and good radio gear with spectrum reciever. I don't know how well you drive but I definatly don't drive to the full potential of my Mugen Prospec, I just buy kits because I enjoy building the cars and like the technical aspect of setup and like to see how what I do affects the car. Once you can drive like Tabo, Bradley, or Matt Gosh you will just drive what they give you and work with that. If the 1200 to 1500 is gonna take you 6 months or more to scrape up go RTR if not you will definatly enjoy the Pro Kits. Back in my day that's all they had were kits. By the way the Jammin would be my choice in RTR.

Hamburglar, I have the same buggy KXRyder is running for sale....and it's about the closest thing to new you'll find w/ all the hop ups I added to it....PM if you're interested....I don't sell junk either and have an excellent reputation from my deals......it will be WAY beyond what you'll find in your price range as well......