Metalhack

My Feedback: (1)

I was quite into the hobby 10 years ago having raced everything from 10 scale elec oval to 1/8th nitro buggy. Took a lot of time off to get my wife pregnant twice and have 3 boys(8,8 &10) to show for it. I want to get them into the hobby and all of us do it together but Im kinda at a unsure of what to do. Money is definitely an issue because I have to buy 4 cars,packs,charger(s) and track equipment. I sold all my stuff years ago. I actually started a thread just like this a year ago but never pulled the tripper because my young ones werent ready. Heres the link below..

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/rc-c...by-w-kids.html


I have read many reviews,watched many Youtube Vids and visited my LHS which is quite far away and specializes in Helo. Nice guy but not much help. I have narrowed my choices down to 2 cars. The RC10b 4.2 RS RTR and the Losi Mini 8ight Truggy. Like I said money is definitely an issue as is quality and durability. These need to be RTR, I just dont have the time to build 4 cars. Also an big issue will be drive-ability and run time, my kids will be new to this so I kinda want it to be easy and fun for them.

As for what we are going to be using the cars for...I have a 90x100 ft minibike track in my back yard that will make an excellent track. This is primarily what we will be running on but I do see us hitting the local track and running some races there once they are good enough to stay in the lanes. That track also has an indoor carpeted track w/jumps and supposedly will have a class for the 8ight-T this winter which is cool. The off road track doesn't have a 8ight-T class right now but with the 4 of us showing up we could make it a class...again that's pretty cool I think.

So I have weighed out the pros and cons of each. From what I can see...

8igth-T~$279
Pros:

1. New Design
2. AVC
3. RTR
4. 4wd
5. size
6. brush less
7. I like Spectrum
8. lipo ready
9. inexpensive aftermarket lipo batteries in the 1850ma 2s range compared to what I would use on RC10
10. will charge faster than larger 5000mah batts I would use on the RC10-this is actually kind of important because I will have to charge batts for 4 cars, or I have to get a few chargers.
11. hop ups on the way
12. aluminum chassis-this may be a big one...I can see these cars being driven into a few fences

Cons:

1. unknown durability
2. poor steering servo
3. pinion & spur gears disintegrate easy
4. some need to have diffs shimmed
5. new to market
6. size
7. more $$ initially

Rc10B 4.2~$249
Pros

1. pretty durable
2. Simple but proven design
3. RTR
4. well supported in my area
5. I like associated
6. Local track has a popular 2wd buggy class
7. easy to work on
8. cheaper to fix
9. hop ups
10. will teach my kids how to drive well
11. brush less
12. lipo ready
13. less $$

Cons:

1. older design
2. 2wd buggies are hard to learn on
3. lipo batts more expensive
4. take longer to charge
5. poor steering servo
6. composite chassis

So I have changed my mind probably 10 times...3 times today alone. The Losi has a larger initial investment but may be cheaper in the long run. The one thing keeping me from getting them now is....is this a fad car(not sure that's the term im looking for) that will lose support in a year or 2? I dont think so but you never know...and having to buy 4 makes me a little nervous about that. Whereas the 2wd buggy class is hugely popular, and will prob be forever.

I have also wondered if I should go with the Associated RTR SC Trucks. They seem pretty nice and are well suported. I have to upgrade them to get better run time(again thats important) but its doable. Also, though I have never had any SCT experience I would imagine they are pretty novice friendly. Basically Im open to that idea too if anyone has input on that.


Im just looking to see if any of you have any input that can help my decision. Also let me know if you think im off as far as the pros and cons go...I certainly dont know as much as most of you do here. Honestly, I'm leaning toward the Losi right now...I just think it may more fun and easier to drive for my kids, but who knows. Thanks

BKoz559

My Feedback: (3)

I own an RC10 from '89 and an RC10B4 from '03. While I agree that both are great vehicles and make excellent race cars I believe that a brushless 2wd buggy might be more than a child could manage; considering they have limited RC experience.

I also own a Vaterra Kemora rally car which is based on the Losi mini 8ight platform and probably drives very similar to the mini truggy. Between these 2 options I might like the Losi better for a first car. Durability isn't an issue because it breaks parts no more or less than any other major brand vehicle with similar weight. The 4WD makes the handling more forgiving for a new driver. These things are pretty quick. I clocked mine with the Dynamite brushless sytem powered with 2S LiPo at about 34mph on the street. That's pretty quick for a relatively small car. More voltage or gearing could increase that too.

I've been a fan of your alternate choice, namely the SC trucks in general. I had an SC10RS and currently have the SC104x4 and am building a Durango DESC210R. My proposition for these is that their larger size helps tame them when compared to a 2WD buggy. Not to say that they have lazy handling but, drive each back to back and there is an obvious difference. 1/10 scale SC trucks share the same wheelbase and track width with 1/8 4wd buggies. The tires are the same diameter too and have longer suspension so they handle jumps and bumps better than the smaller buggies. You'll spend a good $300 or more on a brushless SC truck, however.

Get batteries and chargers from either HobbyPartz or HobbyKing. Many of us from this forum buy our batteries from these retailers because the quality is on par with most popular-brands and the value is second to none.