Polobear

Hey guys. I'm thinking I will add a vehicle that is slightly less wind/weather dependent to my garage, so I'm looking to make a move to the ground. I've been lurking here a while and trying to read up before I threw out my first question. Well, the time has finally come...

So I've been trying to narrow my choices some and I think I'm making headway; I am pretty sure that a MT isn't quite what i'm after. Just a little too big (ugly) for my taste.

I like some of the STs and buggys but I'm not looking to sink a fortune to get started. I also will probably never race so that's not a huge concern.

Here are some of my thoughts at the moment, I was wondering if any of you had any specific thoughts or comments on what I seem to be narrowing to.

I like the Traxxas Rustler (the new version). Part of what I like about this is it seems like parts will be very easy to find. A reasonable banger, but I'm not sure about the EZ-start system. Anyone have any experiences w/ this (good or bad)?

I like the Duratrax Overdrive but I'm a little concerned it will be underpowered and buying a rig to upgrade the powerplant in a month isn't what I'm looking for here.

I like the new MBX Pro from Ofna (the one w/ the big front wheels) but most of the Ofna sentiment I have read has been extreme one way or the other (it's great/it sucks). I'm a little concerned about part availability for this (especially the odd-sized wheels up front).

The Losi XXX-NT looks kinda nice but I'm not sure if I want to sign up for quite that big a project (it seems to be more from the racing line and I will extrapolate that works out to mean more tinkering). I'm afraid the RC10GT sorta falls into the same category.

So anyway, those seem to be the 3 choices I am currently considering my front runners. I have read some nice things about the hyper 7, etc. but I don't have that much cash to share (my planes would probably become jealous).

One more quick question: does 4 wheel drive (as in, the MBX) really make an appreciable difference in handling, etc. for most banging around? I could expect to drive on a lot of gravel roads, grass, maybe a few rocky areas but most of the territory I frequent gets way too rocky to drive on, so you have gravel or BIG rocks. Would there be much of a handling advantage on gravel/grass w/ 4x4?

Thanks, look forward to your replies!
polobear

hoodiegadoo

I'm sure several people would dissagree with me But I LOVE the new rustler....The only thing thats bad about it is that the rear shock tower breaks....other than that I think its the best truck I've ran.....However I'm getting the new Mugen MST-1 so I'm hoping that will be a nice addition. Of course the mugen is more a racing truck so i wouldn't reccomend it. But you seem to be doing a good bit of homework so I'm sure you'll come up with the right truck for your needs.

crash_me_over

My Feedback: (16)

I have the 2.5 Rustler (haven't run it yet due to crappy weather) and I also have the XXX-NT. I really love the XXX-NT...right out of the box and the overall quality of the rig. I also have the RC10GT Plus but don't have as much time on it as the XXX-NT....and as you said...they are allot alike....in that they are both stadium rigs.

I also have the 2.5 TMaxx and by the sounds of it....the kind of terrain that your looking at driving on....you may want to re-consider your dislike for their looks as they are the big boys for rough terrain. They will handle the rocky stuff better than a stadium truck due to the ground clearance and 4x4 drive train.

airwethead

Like CMO said, I know they are ugly and all, but you just can't beat the Monster Trucks for bangin around, especially in rocks and grass. I have a Losi NXT (predecessor to the XXX-NT) set up for racing, and I can't get it to go through grass very well. But my neighbor's T-MAXX sails across lawns, curbs, over cats, etc...

Polobear

Eek!

My hair nearly stood on end when I read that your Losi isn't a strong grass performer; why do you think that is? Is that mostly a 4x4 vs. 4x2 thing? I can't imagine that these beasts don't have enough gusto to get over grass, and it doesn't strike me as a clearance issue.

But I could envision this being a footing issue to some extent. Still nobody with experience w/ the Ofna? That one has really piqued my interest but like I said, that brand seems to have no middle-ground in its representation.

If a MT is a better fit, I can't in good conscious exclude it purely on the basis of looks, but I can practically hear the 'joe dirt' jokes from my wife already. I have to believe it's more of a 4x4 thing than a clearance thing on grass (??).

1fstxnt

I think airwethead needs to mow his grass a little more often. I have a xxxnt and it has NO PROBLEM WHAT SO EVER in grass. Of course his is set up for "racing" I would go with the losi, its a fast truck that handles very well. They seem to take crashes pretty well also



p.s. wonder what he's racing against if he can't even get his xnt to go through grass???????????????

Dlock

Another truck you might want to take a gander at is the HPI Nitro MT or NMT as a lot of people call it. I have never seen one of these in real life, just seen a lot of pictures and some videos. It looks like a stadium truck, but has a bit more agressive stance from the looks of it. Here's the link http://www.hpiracing.com/kits/nitromt/nitromt-m.htm Take a look, it might be the cross between stadium/monster trucks you want. Oh yeah it's 4wd too.....

Polobear

I think the HPI bodies look cooler that just about any other 'stock' bodies I've seen, and their stance looks very spunky, too.

But I'm a little concerned with 3 things about that rig/brand:

-part availability (haven't seen much of anything at the LHS)
-durability (have read on some other forums of ppl breaking the shock posts a lot)
-stock power (while I'm not consumed by raw power availability, I know it can get you out of a lot of sticky situtations--on the plane side anyway).

Love the input, tho, thanks!!

pb

airwethead

LOL

And yes, I usually can find better things to do than cut the grass. Most of my problem is the race setup. It rides pretty low, and the Novarossi engine has so much power that it starts to spin very quickly in the green stuff. I have never tried a more aggressive set of tires to see if that changes things, but running across the lawn is not a priority for me.

Polobear, if you want a stadium style truck, you really can't beat the XXX-NT sport RTR. For about $300, you get a well designed truck, great motor (Mach .15) and an excellent controller. Every Hobby Shop has parts for it too. I am sure you could put some larger/more aggressive tires on it, and it would do what you want it to do and more.

My brother-in-law has the HPI nitroMT. The 4 wheel drive makes a huge difference in grass and other slick conditions. It is a nice truck, but it has a lot of breakage issues. If you go that route, go to tower hobbies and buy every aluminum part you can find for it!

grampi

Polarbear

The nitro Rustler is the fastest ST out of the box. For all around performance bang for the buck, the xxx-nt and RC 10GT are probably the best. Both are fast and will outhandle the Rustler. The RC 10 has an edge in durability (I'm laughing while I'm writing this because mine's broke), while the xxx-nt comes with a better radio (if we're talking about RTR kits here). Nothing compares to the RC 10 in terms of parts availability for factory or aftermarket parts, which helped with my decision to go with the RC 10. I've been hopping it up ever since I bought it and having a ball doing so!

I've been thinking about adding another vehicle to my current collection of one, but as of right now, I haven't decided what I want, nor do I have the funds appropriated. Good luck.

1fstxnt

Hey airwethead, A great tire for playin' in the yard is Losi new Smasher. Great traction!!!! I have them on my xxxnt with a os 15cv-rx it will ride wheelies all day long on grass.....

Polobear

Ok, so here's the momentum shift I am feeling so far w/ these choices...

Rustler: still a contender; I have been reading some of the forums on traxxas' site and heat is a problem (stock, anyway), and the consensus is that they don't handle as well as some of their counterparts (i.e., RC10GT or Losi).

Duratrax Overdrive: no longer a contender, one reviewer (on the MT forum here, i believe) described the rig as fragile... not what i'm after.

MBX Pro: an unknown. So far I have had no new input on Ofna at all.

T-Maxx: probably a nice rig (insert Joe Dirt joke here) but darn it, it is just a gawdy thing to look at. Same for savage. I don't doubt they are good trucks and a lot of fun but I'm not sure I can bring myself to owning one. Plus, I have to think my 'driving style' would be better suited to a lower center of gravity.

Losi/RC10GT: I was ready to toss these out as too high maintenance (for me) but I'm reconsidering that... There have been some good points made on these forums (handling certainly comes to mind) and in reviewing these things vs. the rustler, I'm led to believe that parts will be slightly more interchangeable w/ these rather than the rustler (particularly in the event of, say, an engine change). Am I way off the beam here? From what I can tell (mind you I have not held any of these things in my hand yet), there is some amount of modification to make a regular .15 engine fit in the rustler (more than the others anyway).

I am also relieved that a 2WD truck CAN actually drive thru grass =)

Sigh, so much to read to make an intelligent decision!

pb

grampi

And just to complicate your decision even more, buggies are said to be like John Wayne toilet paper..............tougher than nails and don't take no ***** from anything!

hoodiegadoo

I haven't had any problem interchanging engines in either of my rustlers but if you get the new 2.5 I CAN assure you that you won't be looking for a new engine.....Also about the grass thing...the 2wd stadium trucks CAN'T go through grass as easily and do have a tendency to run ALOT warmer when doing so...as far as driving without getting stuck in grass. they can....but they don't go through the grass near as well as say....the T-MAXX or Savage.

trey3670

My Feedback: (10)

polobear
id recomend the rc10gt,i know its not on your list so forgive me but i think its a great basher truck,where in northern colo are you? im in nunn

grampi

Hey Trey, there's another guy in the forum with trey in his handle, he lives in Cheyenne, and he's about to pick up a couple of off road nitros. Another friend of mine is about to buy an RC 10 off CMO. If we get a couple more guys, we could start a club! I should get my parts late this week, or early next week, and should have my RC 10 up and running about an hour after I get the parts. We'll have to keep our eyes open for some decent weather on a weekend so we can get together. I'm looking forward to driving that dominator.

vwtrey-RCU

are we going to be able to setup a day-care service...for wives? mine gets cranky when i go have fun, for some reason. im up for driving to ft. collins to play around if i gotta....

trey...#2?

grampi

treys, both of you, there's got to be a track around here somewhere. Not that I can drive on one, but I'd sure like to try. Know of any?

Polobear

trey3670, I'm not far from you, I'm in Johnstown (about 15 miles S of Ft. Collins and east of 25).

I must admit there has been a lot of nice things said about the RC10GT. The big knock on the Rustler keeps coming back to how it handles and most of the reviewers seem to say the handling is sub-par... Lots of power but if you are upsidedown, what good is it

My biggest gripe about the Losi (versus the RC10) is that it has yellow wheels. While I KNOW those are easily changed, they made them yellow on purpose and not even a good looking yellow, but an easter-egg yellow. I mean, c'mon...

So right now I am trying to weigh the good/bad/ugly of 4WD vs. 2WD (and that darn Ofna that I keep pulling up in a browser).

pb

crash_me_over

My Feedback: (16)

Huh???....You don't like those yellow wheels?

I like them when I drive mine....it looks pleasantly cool and helps you track it when it's hauling a** across the terrain. Actually....I think it's a good idea.

My Tmaxx has white wheels and looks ok....of course there so big you can't loose sight of it as it's rolling around the lot.

Polobear

Make em red. Make em blue, heck, make em BRIGHT yellow for that matter, but when you make em look like tires wrapped around easter eggs? ick!!

:thumbdown:

crash_me_over

My Feedback: (16)

LOL....I understand.....and I think the manufacturers do also. I wonder how many sets of new wheels they sell because of the same reaction you have shown toward the icky egg color wheels?

grampi

Polarbear, you can improve the handling of the Rusty with aftermarket parts to make it handle like an RC 10, or you can install a more powerful engine in the RC 10 to make it fast like the Rusty, but I don't know if you can make the rusty as durable as the RC 10.

caseyddr

My Feedback: (13)

buy some used Losi XXXT MFE rims.. they look bad ***** I think those will fit on a XXXNT, and it'd totally improve the look of it. I also think you should go XXXNT, the radio it comes with is probably the best AM radio out there. its definately a keeper.

1fstxnt

If your going to get a stadium truck in the RTR form the losi xxxnt with the JR XR2 radio is definitely the way to go. Great truck+good radio=happiness. RC10GT great truck+crappy radio= run away truck!!!!! I like to spend more time running the truck rather than running after the truck!!!!!!!!!maybe thats just me though!