I've recently started tossing around the idea of getting back into racing. I got out of it and started bashing my off road stuff a bit and flying (planes and helis) because I wasn't enjoying myself racing ETC in a parking lot and got tired of taking an hour, rushing to fix the car for a 5 minute heat. I could understand tweaking it to improve the setup and checking it over for any issues. However, after each heat I was troubleshooting something that caused me a DNF, and didn't get the chance for time constraints to do anything more. I never really wanted to do ETC anyway, but kinda had to at the time to race anything. I always prefered off road.

I have bashed on a couple of 1/8th scales before, but never raced one other than in a "monster truck" class at a local parking lot venue (that X-Terminator did VERY well). I have raced a bit of 1/10th electric stadium truck off road as well (at the track that I'm looking at going to). After a couple years hiatus from racing of any kind, I found that the 1/8th scale class is picking up at a nearby off road track. Hence my renewed interest in racing. I'll be starting in the sportsman class, and if I find that I'm too fast for that, I'll move up to their "pro" class (very doubtfull, but hey, I can dream, right? ).

In getting back into racing, I want to do it up right and not cheap out on anything. Hence my choice of either a bare bones race roller or a full on kit, so I can choose my electronics and engine. This buggy will be used ONLY for racing since I have a T-Maxx and Mini-T for backyard bashing. I'm not overly concerned about local parts availability. There is an LHS a short distance from the track, plus a couple more closer to me. If my LHS doesn't support the buggy, I'll go online and stock up on spares.

The track that it will be run on is a combination of technical turns and jumps, and long straightaways. I'm not 100% positive on the track surface and traction, but if I remember correctly, the surface is red clay and is usually pretty gooey. The total racing distance is about 1200 feet per lap. Below is a link to the track.

[link=http://www.capefearraceway.com/]http://www.capefearraceway.com/[/link]

Whatever the buggy, I'm looking at an OS .21VZ-B V-Spec-T(P) engine, Hitec HS-5625MG servos for both throttle and steering, a Venom 7.4V 2100mah LiPo hump pack, and I'm even tossing around the idea of getting a new Spektrum DX3R to replace my old DX3 (first version). I am open to suggestions for better gear, however. If you suggest a different part, please explain why.

The buggies that I'm looking at are:
-Hot Bodies D8
-Ofna Hyper 9 Pro
-Associated RC8B Factory Team
-Mugen MBX6 (both STD and M-Spec)
-O'Donnell Z01B-SG
-Ofna Jammin' X2 Pro
-Losi 8IGHT 2.0 Race Roller
-Tamiya GP TRF801X

I couldn't find a Kyosho Inferno series (I only looked at Tower and Horizon), so if they're still in production and anyone has any thoughts (and a link) on it, it'll be in consideration as well.

Instead of asking which buggy is better than the rest (that'll open up a can of worms, and I'll get a different opinion from everyone that posts), I'm asking what are the pros and cons of each buggy relating to the track I intend to race on?

Thanks in advance for any info.

Shannon

they hyper 9 (or 9.5?) looks like a real winner. smaller narrower shorter chassis, tight setup, redesigned front geometry the whole kit and kaboodle.

from my experience the O'donnell is by far the best one out there IMO. also mugen is a very good buggy, if you go with mugen i would get the M-spec one. i own a jammin x2 pro kit and i like it, its really durable but the odonnel just blows it away in performance. i like the odonnell the most because its great quality buggy, very durable, and parts are also really cheap. also O'donnell has the best costumer service out of anything. my dad got one and asked a question on another forum and steve O'donnell himself called him and stayed on the phone for 45 min giving him tips and sugestion also steve gave him his cell and work number and said if you ever have a question give me a call and ill help you as much as i can. also a part was made wrong in the kit (it was an extra part BTW) and steve said ship it to me and ill send you a new one FREE of charge. i am not a fan of losi at all just because everyone i talk to says they are alot of upkeep but they do handle great. the D8 looks amazing, and handles fantastic but i have almost bought one but still to this day i have only seen one finish three races. the RC8B looks amazing and handles great, its not a loose feeling buggy at all. the hyper 9 is not that durable or anything IMO but i have seen people do really good with them but they still seem to break pretty easily compared to others. also on the tamiya it seems to be a good solid buggy but people that runs them say they are a little tricky put together and take a part at first but once you do it once or twice its the same as the other. out of those you choose i would go with O'Donnell, Mugen, RC8B. but the best thing to do is drive one of each if you can and decide which one suits your driving style the best and go with that one and never look back. you can not just choose one based on other people opinions you need to go with what appeals most to you, after all you are the one paying for it.

I won't comment on the cars because like you said, everyone has an opinion. But I would suggest different servos. In my experience, the standard metal gears in Hitec servos seem to wear pretty quick. I ran a 985 in my 8ight and it was sloppy by the time the season was half over. Ace or Associated XP (they are identical except for the labels) seem to hold up better and aren't super expensive. If you wanna stick with Hitec, I would recommend the titanium gear servos; a little more spendy, but great customer support.

I will say that my 8ight had lightning quick handling. It could change direction very easy. However, in rough corners, it seemed like there was no warning before it would get outta shape and traction roll. I started running an MBX6 late last season and it seemed to be nice compromise; still handled well (not quite as nimble) but I could tell if it was gonna get outta shape on our bumpy sweeper. Seemed to handle the rough better too. I also drove an RC8 and that thing was rock solid in the bumps. But for all I know, all these performance difference could be due to the different setups on each...

And then there were 4. Based on all of your comments, I've eliminated a few from my choices. I did so because I'm a bit hard on the throttle and brake, want a stable and good handling car (possibly even forgiving), and need something that'll be durable. Also, I don't want a car that'll be too much of a pain to keep in the running (I got tired of DNFs racing touring cars). I am aware that some of all that will be part of what type of setup I put on the car, but it does help to have a good platform to start with.

The buggies I've narrowed it down to are:
-Associated RC8B Factory Team
-Mugen MBX6 (Both)
-O'Donnell Z01B-SG

What are the differences between the standard MBX6 and the M-Spec? As far as I can tell, they are the same buggy. However, the M-Spec is a roller, while the standard is a kit. If that's the only difference, I'd prefer the kit.

K_B,
I checked out that Associated servo, and WOW!!! I've never seen a servo with those kinds of specs under $100. I would even put that servo in my .50 size helicopter. Thanks for the tip on that. BTW, next time you're at Chilcoot Charlie's, have a drink for me. I bet ya'll got plenty of weather for that right about now. Then again, you're not in Fairbanks. LOL. Good times, good memories!!!

the difference between the 2 mugens are that the M-Spec is fuly built with the best setup that the pros run. built to exact specs on everything, its worth the extra money IMO but if you like to build the kit then go with the standard kit. but you have the three best kits IMO picked out. ill be switching to one of those three when i get some extra money. also on the servos i have had great luck with the Hitec 7955. i have been running the same one for over a year now on both, switch it back and forth from truggy and buggy.
<br type="_moz" />

I was just at Koot's the other night! It was a good time!.. I think?

Not sure if local parts support is a concern, but the RC8 will probably have the best support out of the three...

might wanna look into the xray 808, best quality kit out there....

I checked out the XRAY XB808, it seems to be a good kit from what I can tell. What would be some pros and cons of it?

I went back and looked at the specs of each of the top choices in a bit more detail. I found that the Mugen is as wide as it is long (18"), while the RC8B, the Z01-B, and the XB808 are about the same length as the Mugen (17"-18"), but only about 12" wide. What are some of the pros and cons of the narrower chassis and the wider chassis?

I've been doing some more thinking of how I want to approach my first (or later) race. Though it would be a couple of months or so after my initial purchase of the buggy, I was thinking that it might be beneficial to not only have plenty of spare parts (including glow plugs), different tread types of tires, different compounds of each tread type tire, different weights of shock oil, different weights of gear oil, different stiffness springs, etc..., but also to have a complete spare buggy of the same type as the primary (not a cheaper RTR version, but the exact same buggy set up with the same gear and setups where all I would have to do is change the model in the radio, fuel it, start it, and race). My thought on this would be that if the primary racer gets damaged to badly to be repaired, setup checked, and re-setup what's not right in between heats, I would have a car completely ready to go for the next heat. The spare would be run just enough to keep it ready to go at the drop of a hat, but not enough to cause extra wear and tear on it or it's components. If feasable, would it be adviseable to do this? Would most tracks allow this (Cape Fear Raceway does not mention this on their site)?

Also, can anyone recommend a good 1/8th scale off road specific setup station and other adjustment tools? Would it also be adviseable to keep a binder with setup sheets with the track raced on, date raced, weather conditions, track conditions, and race results? If you can't tell, I want to take this pretty seriously to give me a better (not gauranteed) chance at success.

Thanks again for all the advice.

Pm me and we can trade phone #s there is just to much info to type out here to
completyl answer your question. i think most everyone has free weekend minutes
and longdistace on the cells.

Unfortunately, I cannot do that at this time. I'm currently in Afghanistan and won't be back for about another month or so.

Right now I'm just trying to get some info for a purchase in a couple of months.

Thank you for the offer, though.

Have you took a look at Cape Fear Raceway's forum and the LHS??
I don't live but 15 miles from track and about 10 miles from the hobby shop.
TOY TOWN HOBBY SHOP is a good place to start if you are look for someone that knows which is a good RC buggy for your money, stop by or give auto a call. He as seen and worked on most all of them. Thay also are dealer for several different brands and carry parts for a lot other brands to also thay service and repair them too. and when there's a race at the track and you need a part you can call and if thay got it thay will bring it to the track

You can have all the fancy stuff and it won't mean diddly if you don't practice. That's the #1 thing that will make you competitive; that and tires. An expensive setup station will not make you competitive. Especially in off-road where things get banged up pretty bad.

The back-up car is a nice idea in theory, but I've seen guys try to do that here and the backup gets canibalized for parts. Some guys have a "practice" buggy and a "race" buggy, but the maintenance becomes too much and usually, they can't seem to get both of them handling exactly the same. An extra car is a good idea if only for the fact that you have an extra of everything.

One thing that I've seen some guys do is get an entire radio tray together complete with servos, receiver and a receiver pack. It's easier to swap out a radio tray than to swap out a single servo. I would also go to the track and see what the fast guys are running for tires. Generally, there's just a few popular styles for various track conditions. No sense in spending money on tires you may never use.

I've glanced through their forums, but haven't browsed the Toy Town Site. Normally, I hit up Hayes Hobby House in Fayetteville. They usually don't have but 1 or 2 buggies in stock (usually the 8ight, RC8b, or Hyper when they do), but can get just about whatever I ask for. They usually have most of the buggy parts I'd need. If not, they can usually have them there in about 3 days or so.

I know I'll have to practice to get good. I plan on practice and don't expect to do good right away. I do agree that the best equipment doesn't necessarily mean guaranteed success. However, in my experience, it makes it more difficult to keep the car together and learn the right way to do things with the cheaper stuff. When I was racing ETC with my Associated TC3 (slightly upgraded RTR version), I couldn't even keep the darn thing in trim. I'd get it as close as possible to trimmed as I could, but as soon as I'd even just brush the PVC pipe barrier, it would knock the dang thing waaaay off leading to more and more mishaps with the barrier as the race drug on (servo centering, loose steering to begin with, etc...). Other times my batteries would give out 4 minutes in to a 5 minute heat (on 3200mah NiMh packs). Yes, I did cycle my packs each weekend before the race and discharged my packs on a discharger before recharging them. That's one reason I prefer nitro, no pack to worry about dropping off before the end of the heat. Just fuel, start, and go. Every time I took the car out, I had to re-trim the throttle 'cause the ESC would set itself somewhere different on each startup. I was spending my entire racing budget just to barely keep the car running each weekend. I understand mishaps do happen. Fix it and move on. However, having those mishaps that could potentially take me out of the rest of the day on EVERY run, then taking an hour to fix for the next run got old quick.

Thanks again for all of the advice all.

Shannon