ScottStaypuff

I have a 3 year old. He currently has a toy grade truck and its good for him. He's not very good with the steering yet! When he gets better (perhaps in the spring) I might upgrade him to the Duratrax Cliff Climber. I think a rock crawler is a good fit for young kids. I know I would have loved one as a kid! Probably the best bet. Slow and will climb anything! Also the slower speeds mean no danger and probably close to zero parts breakage. The Cliff Climber is very inexpensive for a hobby grade RC too.

If he seems like he can handle a car that goes faster than most people can run the I think the Stampede is a great choice! (Or maybe when he's a bit older...)


I personally wouldn't go with a 1/16th or 1/18th (well maybe the mini E-Revo, it seems big for 1/16th...) Too small and it won't go through grass very well. I'm assuming your son will be driving it mostly in the yard.

kistner

My Feedback: (10)

as you were describing what you wanted in your first post the first truck that popped in my head was the Traxxas Stampede. The second one was the Tamiya Lunchbox. That is what I got my son for his 5th birthday last year and he is still playing with it. Wheelies like crazy, extremely durable, and some monster truck looks. The first one we got my 6 1/2 year old son, shortly there after, was the Traxxas Rustler which has a lot in common with the Stampede. And although I do have a decent size yard, we end up driving them mostly in the street and driveway.

Druss

I'm sorry but unless you have kids you actually have little idea of how smart they are at that age. Whether they are interested is completely different factor but something like this teaches them to take care of it, maintain it... etc. I suggest you look up justin chi sometime when you have a minute to see what a 6-7 yr old is capable of when they have the motivation.

kistner

My Feedback: (10)

some of my favorite times over the past year are running them with the kids, watching them run them and sitting around fixing (and modding) them together. Picking out decals, painting them, picking motors - my younger son picks motors based on color! My older just wants the fastest. we added LEDs, changed bodies, made videos, good times.

Chris_RC

+1. Kids at that age can be surpringly smart at things they are interested in.

teacher brent

Kids WILL learn if it's special to them. here's a shot of Russell at about 20 months. We were changing tires earlier and when we took a break he grabbed the wheel wrench, flipped the Stampede over and poked it into the center of the wheel where it belongs.

cumquat

i agree, younger kids are very capiblee rcers if they are really intrested. ive let my younger cousins (4,5,6,8,14) drive my nitro sport and besides getting tangled in weeds they did very well at speeds of 30 mph (at wich point i ripped the transmitter out of the 5 year old's hand and avoided the suv on comming down the road). i can tell how they will drive by the way they handle the throttle when i first hand them the radio.

go to the nearest hobby shop and ask if you can test a few cars/trucks in your price range and get the one you like for your son best, if you cant quite decide take him and let him drive the ones you like. if they dont let you drive for what ever reason ask if they know of a local track and when the next racde is and see if someone at the race can recamend something. chances are he or your husband will eventually want to race (if you dont beet them to the punch)

rcslsafut

i think that hobby grade is the way to go personaly. have you ever gone to the local toys r us or any of those other places and seen what they have for rc cars .
they are craP they are darn near as expensive as most bottom end hobby grade [around hundred dollars or more ] they take fourteen hours to charge a
battery pack and burn through it in ten mins and when not if but when you break it you have NO place to buy parts to repair it . trust me been there done that
i started out with the stampede loved the thing still do that what i got my ten year old he loved it too . you used to be able to buy it without the radoi and motor
so you could buy cheap radio and a very high turn motor like a 55 turn the thing will be slow but safe and it is always upgradeable

klaze

I don't think you guys are giving the 6 yearold enough credit.. a 6 yearold is 100% capable of handling a Traxxas Stampede XL-5.

I had my first monster truck at 6 it was the Tamiya Big Bear me and my dad built it.. I did most of the work.. And i'm not that bright... I remember my dad being annoyed I convinced a family friend to spend soo much money on me for my birthday.. so he made me build it myself.. hahah..

The negative with the Stampede is it's not 4wd but either was my Big Bear and I ran it on grass all day every day..

The large size made the monster truck that much more fun and easy to repair also.. Especially for parents..

For $150 at Tower Hobbies (very safe company) that leaves money for batteries and a quick charger.. Honestly you can't set him up any better..

I must emphasize the Quick Charger and at least 2 batteries.. 1 hour charger will keep him happy.. 4 hour chargers suck.. I hated that as a kid.. When you buy the batteries make sure they come with the "Traxxas TRA plug" and you will want to get that same plug adapter for the charger.. You can buy this all safely from Tower Hobbies or your local hobby shop..

Traxxas is the perfect brand for a young boy.. If I was the O.Ps son i'd be EXTREMELY happy..

Also with the internet the parents can log on ask a question and get help immediately.. They can also go to the local hobby shop..

My dad had no interest in R/C cars he would just take me to the hobby shop and they did most of the helping..


Now the other side to this is.. It will be almost useless indoors..

monsterbombs

i think before we go any further mum needs to know its not
as scary as it sounds. sure theres lithium batterys and what not,
but the battery that comes with the rc will get you up and running.
there are heaps of options and brands, generic ,hobby grade with or
without batterys 1/16 or 1/10 scale.

1/16 is the smaller "mini" type rc's. 1/10 is about a foot long (give or take).
a 1/10 could be dangerous but so can anything. with a slower motor (i dont think
its that fast to begin with) and correct supervision there is no reason a stampede
wouldnt fit the bill. durable,monster truck style, durable easy to get parts for/common
and durable.

really im sure you want durability. there are heaps of choices but really you dont want
to be pulling it apart you want to plug it in, and let the kids run it. if they do get really rough
with it and something breaks they are simple to work on and there is plenty of help on
these forums. personally i think hobby grade is the way to go. if it breaks it can be fixed
and sold of you dont want it anymore or keep it and get the bug! most toy grade stuff
will break and end up in the trash. the stampede doesnt reqiure that much maintenence to keep it going

stampede rtr seems the winner.

one more thing you will want to decide wether these things are running inside or outside.
as mentioned a 1/16 will have trouble in grass and roughish terrain, a 1/10 can do some
damage if its let loose inside.

happy hunting , monster

monsterbombs

woops double post

cumquat

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXRSJ2**&P=0 just add 8 aa batteries for transmitter. after the pack charges (6 hours) he will be doing wheelies in the street. use that 6 hours to check that all the screws are snug, setup the reciver antenna, make sure the tires are secured to the rims and that its all there.

rebuilder

Lets be a little clearer here...................a 1/16 is around a foot long, 1/16 slash is 14", 1/16 revo 13" etc..........1/10 is from 16" to 21"................on the larger side. I'll still throw the evader out there, under $200 with a good battery.

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...I=LXTXT8**&P=7

babynuggo

Hi, it's Mom here.<div>
</div><div>I want to thank you again for all of your thoughts and suggestions.  As you may have noticed, I'm not taking this decision lightly, and I've appreciated each and every response.  You are all so great and so clearly love this hobby!!!</div><div>
</div><div>The Stampede looks incredible, but I think I have to take it (and all other 1/10 scale trucks) off the table for now.  I just think we're too space-constrained and I am concerned that it just might be "too much truck" for my son for now.</div><div>
</div><div>So, that leaves me with the minis.  </div><div>
</div><div>I took a close look at the mini crawlers that some of you mentioned:  Duratrax Cliff Climber, Losi Mini Rock Crawler, HPI Crawler King, among others.  I think I'm going to eliminate this class of cars, too, mostly because they seem to be designed to navigate very rough terrain at a rather slow pace, and I think I'm looking for something that is a little more zippy.  Of course, all of the videos only show the cars climbing huge mountains of rocks at an excruciatingly (to me) slow pace.  This doesn't give me a sense for how they would run on the road, or handle jumps, etc..  If I'm making a mistake to eliminate this type of truck, please speak up.  I know they're not meant for speed, but I'm wondering if they are sluggish, and perhaps unable to do things like jumps, etc... Remember, we're talking about parking lots and grassy areas...</div><div>
</div><div>So, here's what I've decided upon as my front runners:</div><div>
</div><div>Duratrax Vendetta Buggy (1/18)</div><div>Losi Mini LST2 Monster Truck</div><div>Associated RC18MT</div><div>XRAY M18MT</div><div>Mini Revo w/ brushed motor</div><div>
</div><div>I'm now going to visit my local hobby shops (a new world for me) and see what I learn.  It seems clear from all of you that being able to get parts and support from a local store is a very good thing.</div><div>
</div><div>So, if anyone has the strength to steer me away or towards any of these 5 choices, I'd love for you to chime in.</div><div>
</div><div>I guess my top priorities at this point are that I want it to be:  useable indoor and out;  able to handle gravel, grass and somewhat uneven terrain; able to jump ramps and sustain potential injuries; wheelies would be fun; a truck-like appearance would be good (Revo doesn't qualify here, but so many of you seem to endorse it).</div><div>
</div><div>Of course I realize that by eliminating those Rock Crawlers I'm cutting out the things that really most resemble Monster Trucks... Maybe I should re-reconsider these, but they looked so, well, lumbering.</div><div>
</div><div>If you have the strength to respond, please do.  Otherwise, I'll report back after I've done my research at brick and mortar stores.</div><div>
</div><div>Best,</div><div>Kim</div><div>
</div><div>P.S. I'm thinking that my husband is going to be chomping at the bit for one of his own, too </div>

babynuggo

Oops, I forgot to mention one other contender:  the Kyosho 30086GM Mini-Z Monster<div>
</div><div></div>

DaveG55

You've gotten a lot of input here. I believe that your next step should be to keep an open mind about scale and go to a Hobby shop, preferably a mom-n-pop one as opposed to a chain store, and look at them in person. I said a mom-n-pop shop because most of that kind of store will actually allow you to test drive some trucks to see what the different scales will actually do/not do.
I still believe that a 1/10 scale, while maybe less suitable for indoors, will be what is the overall best fit for what you have outlined as your wants for this.
Whatever you decide, good luck and I know the whole family will enjoy the new hobby.

schlags62

I think that the options you listed are all good. Like they say if you like it buy it. You will allways have a different opion from each member. On a side note, if the Revo looks dont cut it for what you are looking for remember you can always change the body and looks of the truck!

Druss

Out of that list I'd say either the revo or xray. I have both the xray m18mt and the associated rc18mt and I like the xray better.

The Mad Modder

All of these choices are good solid trucks except for the mini lst. It has good handling, but they are kind of fragile stock. Myself, I'd go for the vendetta since it uses standard 12mm hexes which will allow the use of 1/10 sedan wheels. That opens up wheel and tire choices damatically. That's just my opinion, though, the others are good trucks too.

rebuilder

So should we start a poll now ? , Here is her List :

Duratrax Vendetta Buggy (1/18)
Losi Mini LST2 Monster Truck
Associated RC18MT
XRAY M18MT
Mini Revo w/ brushed motor
Kyosho mini-Z Monster

I vote RC18MT

john01374

If you're going to buy a mini then I'd suggest getting the Revo or mini Slash.Get the Brushed version not the VXL. The VXL is way too fast for a 6 yr old. It's too fast for most adults.

Just my .02 but I would seriously advise againist any of the mini's due to how fragile they really are.

lez1troubles

Hey Kim, Kyosho has rc support world wide, thats some thing the others don't have.:-)Still, I hope you tell us what you got for your som, I'm curius, and what ever your decision he will have a scream(fun).Have you gone to check out you tube for some films so that you can actually see the trucks in action, there pretty cool.

lez1troubles

By the way, I think the Kyosho is the only one there on the list that actually takes normal batteries aswell a rechargable batteries, the others all use battery pack which need a special charger that has to be watched and they can get very expensive and explosive. Also with the Kyosho having such a short wheel base it can take alot more side impact abuse than the others who would just break the suspention arms.

mindwreck

another vote for the stampede.[sm=thumbs_up.gif]

Its relatively cheap and cheap parts, its a monster truck, durable, easy to work on and quick but not too fast. You can't really mess up the truck, its pretty straight forward in its build, so even newbies would be fine.. It will go pretty much where the kid wants it to because it has good clearance and once he gets used to it, he can start tweak with it. There are lots of updates and mods you can do to it.

The Mad Modder

The OP isn't considering the stampede anymore, she's looking at minis.