Hi-
I am completely new to the RC world, and am looking to buy a fun Monster Truck/buggy for my 9yr old son's bday. He has no experience, and would use primarily it around the garden and in the woods behind our house (so basically cobbelstone, grass, dirt, leaves, puddles, etc. as underground).
I contacted 2 retailers and got the following recommendations-

• Traxxas LaTrax Teton 1:18
• Traxxas LaTrax SST – 1/18 Scale 4WD Stadium Truck RTR
• Himoto 1:18 Mastodon Monster Truck
• Himoto 1:18 Barren Desert Off Road Buggy

I noticed that the Traxxas trucks are substantially more expensive, but assume this translates into durability/reliance?
Any thoughts on this (or better recommendations)?
Thanks for any input you guys can give me!

Welcome to RCU.

First RC, and picking from your list...Traxxas makes a better choice solely for parts support.

I know not a thing about those 1/18 scale RCs that you have listed. I'll let you do the homework on watching video reviews and what not. If I had a choice between a mediocre 1/18 mini 4wd RC and a great 1/10 scale 2wd truck (monster/stadium/short course)...A 1/10 scale wins in my book. I feel a 1/10 scale truck will open much more possibilities in durability, and where a person can drive the RC.

My personal opinion of course, and if I had only $130 to spend on a 4wd mini RC, Traxxas would probably be my first choice.

Also note the DC charger that comes with the Traxxas...The included DC charger will not work with in-house AC outlets unless something like
is used.

Get out there and throw some dirt!
Good luck.

thanks! Any specific 1/10 scale trucks you would recommend/suggest so I can take a look? Are they in the same price category?

[h=1]New to RC Trucks - I need some advices ASAP
1st RC Car fir 12 year old
Any tips for a beginner?[/h]
I can only give one little piece of generic advise to anyone new to the hobby... buy new; from a reputable online source until one gets comfortable with the hobby. Where is that? Lots of places to go and buy from, but my two top picks for a person looking to enter the RC world would be Tower Hobbies, and Horizon Hobby.

would do so if i lived in the US.... :-) So no specific 1/10 models you can recommend?

Well then, since this thread is in the monster truck section, and I don't know what brands are available to you, I say get the biggest monster truck that fits into your budget. Just take a close look at parts availability for any model you are looking at. I've seen a lot of people buying something super low priced, and end up putting the RC on the shelf, in a box, ...waiting 3,4, 6 (extreme cases) months for parts to become available.

Just my opinion.

The smaller RCs that I've dealt with, weren't all that impressive to me. Sure they may go just as fast as some larger scale RCs, but I like to take in all the visual aspects of off-road RCs. Watching the suspension soak up bumps/jumps gets my blood going when I'm at the wheel of a transmitter. The 1/18 monster trucks I had were fun? Yes, but they gave me less what I needed. I need larger tires, with lots of suspension travel, throwing crap everywhere.

Every scale of RC has it's place. Just watch videos of the RC you think you would like to get. You will get the feel for if it's right for you. As long as the terrain is not