themaxx69

Ok, so this will be my first nitro rc I have ever had. I have always wanted one since I saw a grasshopper like 15 or so years ago. I have been doing a lot of reading on different trucks and buggies and truggies etc. But, there are just too many different ones out there.

Basically, I want something that isn't going to break(easily), and doesn't cost an arm & a leg. I don't want to jump 30 feet on concrete or do 4 back flips, land upside down and then keep going. I don't have a thousand dollars or more to spend on an rc truck, at least not right at once. That kinda leads me to another question about price. I see trucks for a few hundred and then something like a losi eight for $800. I read and watch videos of people beating up their 2-3-4 hundred dollar trucks and not breaking anything.

Like I said, I don't what to do insane 20-30 foot jumps or go 50 or 60mph. I'd just like too be able to run around all over, dirt, sand, grass, jumps like at skate/bike parks, dirt jumps, up trees things like that. I can't see doing too much over say 6 feet, IF that. Maybe longer jumps, but not higher.

I am a very mechanically inclined, a quick learner and knowledgeable/experienced with things like bikes, motorcycles, quads, 3 wheelers, electronics, etc. Wish I could ad women to that!

Thing is, there are so many differing opinions out there. I have read totally opposite things on like every truck, nitro or electric. I read good things about savages, traxxas, losi, tower, team associated and others I can't remember. Then I read people saying the complete opposite about them. Go figure.

I also, don't know much about the differences between trucks, buggies, truggies, stadium, monster, other than some obvious things like size and 2 or 4wd. I have seen videos of all the traxxas truck types and some savage and rc-10 gt and gt2 I think, and a losi eight and some losi trucks and more. And I have seen all of them do what I want and more. I don't know if some of those people spent many hundreds of dollar in upgrades. And I don't even know where to get started on upgrades. Some vehicles have like 10x more upgrades than others. I mean is there really that many you need to strengthen your truck other than a handful of areas, like tranny, suspension, wheels and drivetrain?

The price is a big thing too. Again, I've seen stampedes and rustlers just name a couple, doing big jumps and not breaking and those didn't seem too expensive. I'd rather not have to spend $500 or $800 if I can spend 3or4 hundred and be able to jump around and beat it up a bit all day. One thing that keeps popping up a lot though is an rc-10 gt or gt2. I have probably seen more people saying that is a good beginner and pretty tough, but how tough. And what's a beginner? I mean, my Honda CBR929 was basically my first bike, and I do wheelies(among other things) whenever I ride and have never put it down. Just cause I get an rc that will go 60mph or handles different doesn't mean I'm gonna floor it around full speed the first time and then smash it into a hundred pieces. If I can drive home, during rush hour, from west Phoenix to Tempe in the rain, with a blown brake line, and no clutch pedal, and not crash(long story), I can drive any rc car and not destroy it...at least not right away. You just have to be very careful and pay attention, till you get the hang of it. Little off the subject, but see my point.

I'm sure I'm missing something, but I hope that's not too much info

Also, any input on electric is welcome, but from all the reading I've done, I think for now I'd like nitro. Again, people say the total opposite about both. But, my initial impression seems that electric is more complicated and in the long run doesn't seem to save A TON of money. I know they both are great, but from what I was reading, for what I want to do, the main complaint seemed to be just getting the nitro to run right. But, other people say tuning isn't hard. Maybe it's an knowledge thing, I don't know. Don't bash me for that. I'm just saying, a lot of people don't learn how to do things correctly and then think it sucks. Same thing could be true with electric, but that's not the impression I've been getting. Seems like more overall work....for what I want. If I'm wrong, than I will learn and go with whatever suits my needs most.

Oops. Too much babbling, sorry. Think I'll go have some bourbon.....then maybe some scotch......hell, then I'll have a beer

Thanks for all the input and I can't wait to get running with whatever I get!

rcslsafut

i would suggest a monster truck if you want to run on the different kinds of terrain you suggested. the reason why i say that is they have more clearance than others.now for what to buy
this one is tricky, because alot of times its a preferance thing . they; traxxas,associated,losi,kyosho,ect.... all make good trucks. 1 ; what does your local hobby store support? there is nothing worse than have to wait for patrs to be ordered,imo. monsters generally dont go as fast as stadium trucks. so if you want a truck to do 60 mph look at the jato or the xxx or the rc10gt. but those trucks dont go good in grass, and other kind of terrain. they are more suited for blacktop,hard pack,and flater type terrain. truggys have a little more power to motor through that kinda stuff
but if want to " bash" as they call it ,in type of terrain you suggested i would go monster. i have the t maxx , i personally think its a well built truck. i have a savage x ,i think it is a well built truck
i have the s maxx, again well built truck .thats just the ones i have . but its kinda like asking do i buy a chevy, a ford, a dodge ,or a toyota. its a preferance thing near as i can tell . i have trucks from all of the big companys, i have not had any trouble with ANY of them that i can really say ,one is better than another! hope that helps a little

Lurp06x

hey there im kinda a been looking into everything too but after 4 months or so i decided to go with the 1/8 buggy for my own reasons but while doing my research with out having any experince of using any and from just reading different opinions i have come with a few that i would considered to get if i had more money. but the ones i am listings are all below $400.

for a nitro 4wd monster truck i found the team losi aftershock or the savage x4.6 to be of better choices. the savage is a little more so i would of gotten the aftershock an i have found it on a site for only $300 when most price it for $369.99

the next one is the nitro traxxas slayer. i thought it would be pretty cool to have a short course truck with 4wd would be pretty neat. an just the scale look of it is sweet. but i have read that you need to get sway bars an do some adjusting to the suspension but otherwise its good to go.

the other one is a electric monster truck. i chose the e-savage. i was going to go with the e-maxx but from what it sounds like the savage is a better built machine. an by the way electric is much simpler than nitro. the down part to electric is that you have to put out more money to get started than you do in nitro. in electric there are five main functioning things in it. servo"s", reciever, esc, motor, an battery. well there are a few more things but all the other stuff is just gears to make the wheels move. dont get me wrong they are way important but they are useless with out the other five. in a nitro its mainly the reciever, battery, servo"s", engine, fuel tank, pipe, etc. an many of the parts in the nitro are needed to work in conjunction to make the vehicle work properply and to its fullest. in the long run you will also be paying more for nitro because of fuel costs. but dont let this scar you away from nitro.

but remember the choice is solely yours on what you get we are here just to make suggestions.

Jon

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

Man, you are LUCKY! Just remember...it's not IF you go down on your bike, it's when 929's a good choice, though.

Anyway, for beatability...you cannot go wrong with a 1/8 buggy.
In ThunderbirdJunkie's opinion, one of the best ways to go would be to buy a used Mugen MBX5R roller, get an engine and radio gear separately (along with a starter box)

You'll wind up with about $500-700 into the whole deal, which is a lot for a USED CAR, but you'll have something that is unbeatable for bashing.

Also, do they still have that area near the park where the RC guys go?
Check out www.azrcfreaks.com , hung out with those guys a bit when ThunderbirdJunkie lived in Phoenix. Don't know if the site is still up or how active they are, though.

cummins driver

My Feedback: (31)

Dont be afraid of nitro, they are a lot of fun[8D]

It sounds to me like you are in the market for either a stadium truck or a monster truck.

If you are going to be in grass, mud, snow, or fairly deep ruts a lot, a monster truck will handle it better than anything. They ride up over the tall grass pretty well and even though it still slows them down, it isnt nearly as bad as it does most other things. The downside to most good MT's is that they are fairly expensive, and they do require more maintenance because they are 2 speed, 4 wheel drive, dual A-Arm's, etc.... They just are a little more complicated by nature, which isnt necesarilly a bad thing, but something to be aware of. They also use more fuel since they are heavy.

As for almost anything else, like blacktop, concrete, fairly smooth dirt, gravel, thin grass, etc... a stadium truck is a heck of a lot of fun and extremely simple and cheap to work on. They are typically single speed rear wheel drive, and parts are normally cheap, and usually when you break something it isnt as hard to fix because the trucks themselves are so simple, and there just arent as many parts there to break. Thick grass and big ruts are some of the main things stadium trucks dont like too well, but if you put some larger tires on, and gear down slightly to compensate, then they actually do pretty well.

If you were looking to buy a stadium truck, I think I would look at 2. Either the HPI Firestorm, or the Traxxas Rustler. Both are plenty powerful, both are easy to get parts for and cheap to work on, and both are extremely tough trucks. I personally like the looks of the firestorm better, and it does handle better. The rustler however, has a great starting system, and i am a fan of the 2.5 traxxas engines. The EZ-Start really makes it a piece of cake to start these engines. You can put a roto start on the firestorm if you wanted to though which works well also, but isnt quite as easy to use. I have owned both a rustler and now the firestorm, and they were both good trucks. I like the layout and design of the firestorm better though and so far it has proven to be tough and is a lot of fun to run[8D] If you are looking for something pretty cheap, and simple that doesent break often and is fun to run, a stadium truck is hard to beat.

As for an MT, I own the savage and i love it too, but i normally run my stadium truck unless im running in grass, or rough surfaces/big hills. It has been extremely tough though and i love driving it, it is a lot of fun. The Aftershock as mentioned is also a good truck, and i had an associated MGT that was a good truck too.

Honestly, I think by the sounds of it, I would go with a stadium truck if i were you though. Put some larger tires on it, and gear it down 1 or 2 teeth on the clutch bell, and I think it would do anything you wanted to do just fine for cheaper than anything else. I just really like the simplicity of them myself.

I have also owned an 1/8 scale buggy. They are a lot of fun too, but they dont handle grass as well as a stadium truck in my opinion, and with the big block engine and small fuel tanks they tend to need refills fairly often, plus they are just generally more expensive, and as for bashing, they wont really do anything a stadium truck wont do. They are fun and really tough though if you like the looks.

Hopefully this gives you a decent idea of what to keep an eye open for. You dont have to spend a lot of money to have fun. A $600 truggy isnt needed. Just do some research and buy what you think you would like based on videos and others experiences.

Eric

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

ITBJHO, the 1/8 buggy's expensive parts as a con is outweighed by the fact that it breaks less.

Also, tall grass? pffffffffffft

Where we're going, we don't have tall grass!

Argess

If you are not sure what you want, why not start with a less expensive, easy to maintain vehicle? After the "learning period', you'll have a better idea of what you want. So, on the subject of a less expensive, easy to maintain vehicle, I'd stick with your thoughts on a 1/8 buggy. The OFNA Ravager is a good low end vehicle that would be a great learning vehicle and fun too. There are lots of others, but I'd keep the intial investment down until you know more and then can make a better decision regarding a more expensive vehicle.

MTs are also great fun, and I can't recommend enough the HPI Savage. However, it can be a pain to work on as so much has to come apart to change/replace/modify some parts. But again MTs are more expensive, and that's not good if you find out you dont' like it.

Supertib recommends Truggy's a lot. I don't have one, but I think it may be a next vehcile for me. But once again, it's a moe expensive way to start out.

Another thing....you can get carried away with $$$ if you go for a MT or other high end vehicles.....with those "hop-up" parts you will find you just "have to have". A 1/8 buggy won't require much, if any upgrades (unless you get into racing) to have fun.

On the subject of grass, I run all my vehicles on grass because that's what's handy to the house. Keep it mowed and it's fine, although if it's a FLAT lawn, things won't be as much fun. I find my engines do heat up a bit more than normal ... from running those 100 yard WOT runs as well as doing it in grass.

Chris_RC

A 1/8 buggy would be good for you. Get a Mugen 5R or Jammin x1 CR roller for cheap and add a Mach 427 engine/Mach .21 + pipe=$150, decent servos, starter box ($75) and you will be good to go. Not as cheap as soem MT's upfront, but most MT's require alot of hopup parts to be bulletproof while 1/8 buggies are bulletproof from the start.

firebird78

I'll go different then some on here....1/8th buggies are by far my favorite, and can most likely tackle anything you want to throw at it...they are fast and agile and in my experence cut through grass fairly well..also in my experience they are extreamly durable in bashing and racing situations....I'm not a fan of monster trucks at all..and 4wd to me is diff. the way to go

with that said..going by your discription of what your looking to do I would suggest a 1/8th truggy...not quite as fast or agile, but I believe it would suit you well for your first rc..and I think you wouldnt be sorry..I honeslty think you would be happy with your purchase...and later on if you wanted to fiddle with racing you would have a good platform to learn that part of rc as well...

as far as electric being more difficult then nitro..I think its the other way around...sure when you get into lipo and all that you gotta know what your doing while charging or what not...its just my opinion nitro takes more thought and you have to mess with them more....I prefer nitro myself...

cummins driver

My Feedback: (31)

The 1/8 buggy's are definately a strong, and fun r/c. They actually do ok in grass anyways. Probably about the same or a little better than a stock stadium truck, but i think a stadium truck with some bigger tires on it would probably be better in most offroad situations, but still do good in the other situations he is talking about. However, if he is rarely going to be in grass, you are right, the 1/8 buggy will be stronger, handle, and jump better most likely. In my experience, a 2wd stadium truck is a lot of fun to drive too though

As for grass, its probably not the most fun place to run any r/c, but he did say he would be in grass some, so depending on how much of his time he is gonna spend in grass, that could make a difference in the choice of vehicle.

They are all pretty good. Just find what you like and have fun with it!

guys2nv

if your lookin in the 3-4 hundred range-i would go revo 3.3-u can get a used one for under 300 easily-if the motors shot just rebuild it or replace it-piston and sleeve should be 50 for the 3.3 engine-4 less smaller shocks then a t-maxx so less maintence and their very durable. ive never owned a hpi anything but the savage is durable to just from watching vids.

HPI_Savage_RC

For your first R/C, I would go with something that is decent out of the box but not perfect, and has a wide range of aftermarket parts. It may sound ridiculous, but if you buy something that doesn't break, doesn't require any upgrades, and requires minimal maintenance, you won't learn very much about the mechanics of this hobby.

I always recommend a Savage as a starting vehicle, as it is inexpensive, durable, and extremely customizable. It has a number of flaws out of the box, and unless you get someone to spoonfeed you, they all require some thought, research, and knowledge of material properties to correct. That is how I learned, and it's why I now have a very good knowledge of exactly how a durable R/C should be built, right down to the materials and design.

Eventually, you can choose to move on to an R/C that's better out of the box, as many have done. Or maybe you'll end up turning your basic platform into something you're completely happy with, in which case you will have succeeded in more than one way.

firebird78

if you want to learn to wrench on somthing buy a revo...if you can fix a revo you can fix anything...huge pain in the butt to work on...I own one and hate it

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

ThunderbirdJunkie definitely agrees about 1/10 stadium trucks

breezerboat

I use my 1/10 scale MGT 3.0 monster truck when I bash around the neighborhood, parks and ditches. But the buggy is WAY more durable, just doesn't handle the tall grass as well as my MT. You can tell in the picture that a 1/10 MT is about the same size as my 1/8 scale buggies, but bigger tires.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

breezer, how are you liking the MBX6? Have you owned a 5? Just curious how they compare, if it'd be worth upgrading to a 6 just for a basher

breezerboat

^^^ My first buggy was that Ofna Picco buggy. I raced it about 5 races and decided I was going to stick to racing, so I got the MBX6 Mspec. I have only had it for one race now. I got 1st place. It is a HUGE upgrade from my Ofna. So much of an upgrade in performace that I am going to get rid of the Ofna b/c there is no use for it, even as a backup buggy. If you are thinking of buying one, check your PM.

cummins driver

My Feedback: (31)

Nice trucks[8D] I just got my HPI Firestorm, and i had kind of forgotten how fun a nice stadium truck is Its a lot of fun for just beating around in the driveway and doing some jumping. I have yet to really get it in the dirt though, and i have a feeling its gonna be a blast then.

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

Thanks, Cummins. the black/gold truck is an Adam Drake 2, the red/black one is an XXXNT RTR, and of course, you're already familiar with ThunderbirdJunkie's Savage


Also...Have an old HPI Nitro Rush. Was a good truck.
Can't decide whether the Savage is more fun, 2wd stadium trucks, or 1/8 buggies...so ...

Themaxx69, just buy one of each. And then keep them all

cummins driver

My Feedback: (31)

I know what you mean. I never can figure out what style of r/c i like the best. The only thing all of mine will always have in common is that they are nitro I have had 3 1/10 nitro stadium trucks, a 1/8 buggy, and 3 4x4 MT's. I didnt really dislike any of them

I try to limit myself to 2 at a time, but that is hard to do [8D]

How do you like the Losi stadium trucks?

ThunderbirdJunkie

My Feedback: (3)

They're great...best handling 2wd trucks ever. Heartily suggest you try scouring up a used Adam Drake 2[8D]

supertib

I recomend a truggy.... they cost a little more, but they are by far the most versatile of the Offroad RC's.... they can bash and they can race, they climb hills and scoot over grass......... They take rough terrain better then Buggies, Stadiums and MT's....... They are much tougher then MT's and stadiums not to mention they handle better and are alot faster........... Some may claim the MT's go over rough terrain better, but that is simply not true at all, with the high COG a MT will topple over on its lid much sooner then a Truggy will get hung up..... The only time a MT may clear more objects is if your putting around at 5 MPH, but after 5 MPH the Truggy will own the MT and the faster the speeds get the bigger the advantage of the Truggy...The Truggy has more suspension travel as well..........Truth be told once a MT guy drives a good Truggy his MT is going to sit on the shelf or be sold, the Truggy is just that much better.....

edit...Truggies dont like long grass much, but no rc really does well in long grass anyways....

themaxx69

Thaks for all the posts guys! A lot of great information.

I posted this on a couple other websites and the Savage X 4.6 seems to be recommended more than anything else. I'm getting curious about a truggy now. Any more thoughts on the truggies?

Also, I doubt I'll be driving on any grass taller than a half inch, probably much less. Mostly dirt, like dirt lots, school and public parks, streets, skate park, maybe out in the desert once in a while.

cummins driver

My Feedback: (31)

The savage is an awesome truck I think. I really like mine[8D]

As for a truggy, the driveline will be stronger and more maintenance free than a savage, and they dont flip nearly as easily. The savage will wheelie much more(which is fun to me),and it will handle rougher terrain than a truggy because of the extra ground clearence.

The truggy is more of a racers rig although it makes a great basher. I think for all out fun running the savage would be more fun. In 6 gallons i have yet to break a suspension part on my savage, or a driveline part other than the stock unshimmed rear differential. They will both handle the short grass without much problem.

Either way you cant really go wrong. Best thing to do is watch youtube videos of each and see which one looks like it would be more fun to run.

Eric

themaxx69

What about the averge run times of the savage? I thought I read a while ago that the MTs ran for like 10-15 minutes a tank, but I was just reading some other posts and people were saying like 25-50 minutes depending on driving.