big420dog

So I've recently picked up a 12LW and when I go to the hobby store to look at Ni-Cd's/Ni-Mh's and brushed motors I am convinced by the guy behind the counter that the ONLY way I would even stand a chance keeping up with anybody else in a race I have to use a Brushless System with Li-Po's. And he said it wouldnt matter if I was racing on a dirt oval or an on-road course. So I wanted to get some second opinions on this subject before I look in to some good sub-c's and a quality brushed modified motor or a Brushless System and Li-Po's... So could some one else tell me why I might want to go one way or another.

The Mad Modder

Depends on the racing in your area. I know brushed motors are still used more than brushless for racing. To me, he sounds like a slick salesman, though.

mkoresh12

Check out the races yourself. Although brushless is allowed by ROAR and other bodies, it doesn't mean the track uses those rules. If the track doesn't allow brushless don't get one. Also, just because they allow brushless doesn't mean they automatically allow lipo. Best thing to do before any purchase is get a copy of the rules. My track just last year allowed LIPO/Brushless for stock class. They try to keep things competetive and realize not everyone can afford brushless/lipo.

Longhair

I don't race but I can only assume that there are different race classes so things won't be so lopsided.

The Hedgehog

Might as well go brushless so you don't have to keep cutting the comms/replacing the springs of a mod motor. In the end it is cheaper and more efficient.

racer/flyer

My Feedback: (1)

I agree with autoxman. I know from experience it is way funner, and way cheaper. Just check your local track and see what they offer. My track only allows brushed, so I practice with brushless, and save my good brushed motors for racing. You don't have to have lipo. You have to be fast, but all out speed is not always what wins races. If you've got skill, and a fairly fast system, you should be able to keep up.

mkoresh12

Yes there are race classes. My track allowed 13.5brushless against 27t stock brushed. Us brushed guys last year didn't have a chance. There were 4-5 brushless cars last year and all of them were in the A main with the other 1-2 open spots belonging to the brushed motors. From what I hear they may be chaning the rule to consider 17.5brushless stock instead of the 13.5 to keep things more competetive.

I have to agree with the others tho, brushless is nice in that you dont have to change brushes, springs or cut coms. If you want more than a stock brushed motor you need to maintain it well to keep its performance.(could be as often as every 10 runs). With brushless you can oil the bearings once in a while and keep going without or minimal loss of performance. You can run brushless without lipo so don't think you have to get it all at once.

TheTruckingGuru

Well you could always race in the Stock Mini Z class if your area has one. Oh and don't believe everything the salesman say at Ultimate Hobbies

chin

Brushless does not nneccessarily needs to be matched with a Li-po. Of course a Li-po will provide
you with more run time though, considering the vast capacity that a Li-po can offer.

Also you might have to consider the local track/competition rules. To my knowledge, not all
tracks/competitions will allow Li-po usage.

Please do not to believe everything the sales representative says. Listen, make mental notes
of what he claims and ask the veterans on this forum. I believe they are more than willing to advise.

Access

Not really true, unless you are doing something like drag racing or top speed contests, racing is 90% skill and 10% setup, and most of that setup is finding the right tires and traction chemicals, and then making the right adjustments. If it is a really tight track and club level racing, the good racers out there could be winning with brushless and NIMH, on most tracks you could still build a brushed system that wouldn''t max out except on the longest straight, the only thing you have is the 13.5 or 17.5 motor in the stock class.

A good rubber cleaner and rubber traction goop is going to be around $10. to $15., slicks matched to the surface (as soft as you can use, 28''s or 32''s typically) are $39. or so; both these things are so much more important than a brushless. A brushless is a nice thing after that, for the no maintainance required thing, but you can win without it.

Take the time to set up your car right, and practice pleanty on the track; those things are much more important in general racing.

And off-road it matters even less, but again the no-maintainance is a big help esp. if you have never raced before since you'll want to spend a lot of time running for practice.