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ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

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Old 06-23-2004 | 03:28 PM
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From: madison, WI
Default ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I own a nitro xtm x-terminator buggy. I was very fun when it worked but i ran into many problems with it including a blown engine. I loved the fact that i could drive it then just add more fuel and keep on going but it is so finiky and costly to run that im thinkin an electric might work better. I would just like to know what you guys think. Also im in high school and im saving for a car so i got a tight buget.
Old 06-23-2004 | 03:36 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

nitro all the way .
Old 06-23-2004 | 03:39 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

if you could explain your reasons it would be helpful thanx
Old 06-23-2004 | 05:25 PM
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From: hamilton, ON, CANADA
Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

it all depends..if u decide to get a nitro then buy expensive and quality...BUT do not get a duratrax MAX ST they are the bigger unrealible hunks of **** out there on the market
Old 06-23-2004 | 05:53 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I have used both..
they both have their up's and down's but when said and done.......NITRO (for me) is more fun....
exhaust...smoke....loud engine....50mph.....Ya just cant beat it[8D]
Old 06-23-2004 | 08:52 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

max-st thanks for the tip but i already own a nitro buggy im just deciding if i should put more money into a new engine or sell the chassis and switch to electric.
Old 06-23-2004 | 10:42 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

if your on a budget but still want performance id sell your rolling chassis and get a T4 or B4 from ae.with that chassis and the electronics and such you might make enough for a T4 AND B4. jsut buy one remote and another reciever then you can use the same remote for both R/Cs. or you can get a cheap and crappy nitro,or you can get a lower quality electric like a rustler or evader and hop it up beyond belief.i dont know for sure but i think with about $500 you can make a COMPLETELY aluminum rustler.as long as you dont jump it to high(10 feet or higher) itll be fine with all aluminum cause of how light it is,but id never go all aluminum with a nitro because of the weight of them.i woundnt get acheap nitro though,like a nitro sport or nitro evader,or MT2 from CEN are all really low quality adn i can garanty you will have problems with them.
Old 06-25-2004 | 02:02 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I think nitro is more fun because it is more like real cars (as in they actually have an engine), and i like the revving 2 stroke sound. Also, if you want to run all day you can, whereas electrics must be charged (and my GP3300's took about an hour each charge). They are both cool, but if you want a really high performance car, go with nitro unless you have the capability to spend lots of $. Electrics can be just as fast or even faster, but it requires much more cash than a nitro would. I just prefer nitro.
Old 06-25-2004 | 05:20 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

N-4-Speed said what I think. Electric can go just as fast, but it costs alooot more money. For club racing, you can race a Nitro out of the box with maybe nothing more than a steering servo upgrade. But with electric, they are waaay too slow out of the box to do anything but get laughed at for not being able to make the doubles.

Nitro takes more experience are is much less idiot proof, but it is so much more fun.

But if you cant handle the responsibilities of a Nitro (tuning, cleaning, more parts to take care of), then an electric is much better.
Old 06-25-2004 | 05:34 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

i'd say nitro, speed is much better and people keep saying its more exspensive...if u keep it maintained and it might be around teh same...sure u hae fuel but it lasts a while...

to get a electric to go fast you will have to go brushless which is over 100 bucks...then upgrade servos, and electronis to handle it and gears...a nitro engine of high performance will be cheaper so i would say stick with nitro and keep goig...i am only 15 and will be turning 16 in october which means i need to get a car but i am using my bday and x-mas cash for that.....its always fun to have a toy to tinker with when your bored
Old 06-25-2004 | 05:40 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

Nitro.
Old 06-25-2004 | 06:42 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

Neither is better!

If you just want to fill and go and like big messes, sound, and speed then Nitro

If you want to run and pit and charge and run again, up til 11 oclock pm in your driveway, then Electric.

I prefer to bash nitro and race electric.
Old 06-27-2004 | 03:41 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

It really all depends on what you want. Anyone that thinks nitro is faster than electric needs to compare lap times. 4wd mod electric buggies will turn the fastest laps of any class on a race track so be careful about thinking nitro is faster. Electric is much simpler to deal with when it comes to maintenance, and to do either costs about the same to get started so it really depends on how much time you want to spend driving versus wrenching that should be the deciding factor.
Old 06-27-2004 | 07:34 AM
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From: hamilton, ON, CANADA
Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

The starting cost for a nitro and electric are about the same. But to get an electric truck straight from the box to beat a nitro straight from the box is unlikely. And if u do get an electric to beat a nitro from the box, then usualy the electric would cost more.
Old 06-28-2004 | 02:58 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

4wd mod electrics dont have the fastest lap times...at least not on the track that i race at. The track records for: 1/8th scale buggy is 53.24seconds
4wd mod electric is 58.42 seconds
1/10 scale gas truck is 57.88 seconds
That info is from the track that I race at. 400+ guys race there and thats the fastest laps recorded at all the events. mind you that we have a guy that is insane with a 8th scale buggy and blows every one away with how fast he is.(he scares the crowd because it looks like ist out of control and going straight to the bleachers[X(])
But I guess it all depends on what track you race at.
Ok back to the question...I think both are equal. the only down side is having to buy expensive motors and batteries and esc's and stuff for electric for it to just keep up with a nitro out of the box(excluding that crappy nitro from the makers of the "brain" battery chargers that only goes 23mph out of the box[:'(])
But with notro you have more broken parts(at least me anyways[]) and the cost of fuel is killer if you run your nitro as much as i do(about a gallon every two weeks)and the fact that i live in Canada raises the prices...but whatever floats your boat
Old 06-28-2004 | 07:38 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I run mine atleast once a day and usually twice everyday and my fuel lasts over a month. Could be b/c i have a small block though... Sportmaxx is easy on the fuel [8D].
Old 06-28-2004 | 10:04 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

Again, Electric CAN be just as fast as nitro but it costs alot more. Its true that Electrics can turn just as fast of times. But my BONE STOCK XXX-NT got 2nd in the A-Main at my local track, and that was against like 20 other Nitro STs. You will never see a stock electric do anything like that. It costs hundreds of dollars to get an electric up to par with the others, but most nitros go about the same speed out of the box, so it puts it more down to driving skill. However, if you were really serious into racing, they could prolly end up costing the same since you can buy 600 dollars worth of electronics for a buggy (only icluding one battery) and you could also buy a 300 dollar engine and a 300 dollar radio system so in that case they would be about the same.

But for a novice racer with experience with electronics AND engines, a nitro would cost less to be at least a semi-successful racer than an Electric.
Old 07-03-2004 | 10:07 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

i know what u guys are talking about electric is fun but i hate charging the stupid battires and when u are running a tamiya juggernaut with the biggest fastest motors possible u get tired charging a 3000 gp 7 cell battire every 4 min that is a LITTLE ROUGH i have had electric for 2 years and now i think i can go to nitro but i had a choice of nitro when i started but i learned way to hard for someone who is starting so i got a t2 with tons of upgrades cheap cheap and i bashed and tore and paid money just small mistakes which i say where so dumb i don't see how i did it.....[:@][:@][:@]but now i am going to nitro buying a brand new nitro bx buggy soooooooo cool[8D] but yaaaa nitro is so much better i know from seeing both.

hope i helped someone out ya...
Old 07-03-2004 | 10:58 PM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

They are the same basically as everyone else has said....i like nitro better because i enjoy wrenching on a engine....i just got my first nitro touring car, and i already like it better than anyother electric that i have used or owned.........got to love the smell of burnt nitro[sm=biggrin.gif][sm=biggrin.gif]
Old 07-04-2004 | 01:15 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I prefer electric, without the hassle of tuning and maintenance of engines, just charge up and go, cleans up easily too, in short minimal maintenance. Btw, the noise and smell factors of nitro doesn't work on me, quietness and odourless is just as good. Don't burn up your packs though, i'd bet you won't forget that smell.
Old 07-04-2004 | 07:53 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

ORIGINAL: RayRayraycer20

I have used both..
they both have their up's and down's but when said and done.......NITRO (for me) is more fun....
exhaust...smoke....loud engine....50mph.....Ya just cant beat it[8D]
Indeed.

*nods head*
Old 07-04-2004 | 08:22 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

ORIGINAL: adr_ian64
4wd mod electrics dont have the fastest lap times
I forgot to add that they will turn the fastest lap times on tracks that don't favor nitro. From what i've seen of the tracks in canada, most would favor nitro. We are starting to see more and more tracks like that here in the US, but there are still by far more tracks that don't. There have been a few tracks open in the last year that are so big an electric would be lucky to turn 4 laps in a 5 minute race.
Old 07-04-2004 | 08:30 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

I have both a nitro XXX-NT and an electric XXX-T. Although I have a blast with both, I prefer the nitro..same reason as some of the others...the smells and the sounds! I have more fun wrenching the nitro. The biggest drawback for me is learning how to properly tune the engine...but now that I have it down pretty good my XXX-NT flies!

The electric is better for the neighbors...they don't hear a thing!

I've had to put more money into my nitro...I'm guessing it's because I drive it more often and harder.

Anyway...that's my 2 cents...[8D]
Old 07-04-2004 | 11:11 AM
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Default RE: ELECTIC OR NITRO? WHAT IS BETTER

It depends on what you want to do,And your skills tuning and working on nitros,If you race and want to be competitive Nitro is really cheaper and easier..You just have to sit down and READ up on tunning Nitro motors..a temp gun is a MUST Have,I do race both nitro and electric,I like electric more..but I'm a clean freak.On electric your support equipment does cost alot of money..I would stick with your nitro and learn how to tune and take care of it.

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