mutalisk46802

Im thinking about giving up on nitro and going electric. This is because my first nitro car was a smartech magic wheel (monster truck). It was pretty cool and didnt have much problems until 2 drive shafts broke and it still runs, but it doesnt move and i cant find any smartech parts anywhere.

My second truck was a t-maxx i got off of ebay. The guy said he only ran it about 5 times and then he rebuilt the engine, drained it, and let it sit. Well when i got it it didnt run so i bought some new parts for it like a tuned racing turbo pipe, new gas tank primerless (its primer was broken), new fuel lines, and a new piston and sleeve. Now i still cant get the truck to run!!! Ive tried to run it but even if it get it to start it just dies in less than a second. I did put new gas in it and try it and i drained it of all old gas the guy left in it (he lied about draining it). The gas ive been trying is Blue thunder (i think) 20% im pretty sure.

The reason i want to go electrick is because ive been checkin out the e-maxx and i see it goes 30+mph stock and i was like ***!!! I never knew electrik trucks could ever exceed 25mph without any hopups or anything. Also they are a LOT cheaper, i could get a brand new never been used in the box e-maxx for under 200 USD, maybe even under 150 USD if i searched hard. Also it seems like its much easier to get them started and you dont have to worry about nitro gas.

The only thing i regret is the sound of the nitro's. Around my neighborhood no one has ever seen a nitro car, if someone has an rc car then it was bought at walmart and doesnt even go 10 mph LOL, but it is true. I remember when i had my smartech car people would just stare at it how fast it went (only around 30-35 mph) and that sweet sweet sound.


So what do you guys think? Should i go electrik or should i just keep worken on nitro? If you do say i should go electric then what truck do you think i should get. I want a monster truck that has dual engines, not an on road car. I think the e-maxx is pretty nice though.

Oh and sorry for the long post!

capone12

My Feedback: (1)

If you go electric then theres not many trucks out there that are dual motored. The emaxx, ezilla, and twin force and some tamiya ones are the only few I know of. If you get an emaxx be prepared to dump a bunch of money into it to make it be able to withstand any sort of crash. Ive heard many bad things about the durability of this thing and that its a major issue. The twin force is discountiuned and I heard the c-hubs break alot on the ezilla. But if you have a bunch of moeny to use, get a emaxx with a gorilla maxx chassis and then its gonna be extremly nice. All aluminum and heavy you just need some good motors to power it along with good batteries. That 30mph stock is a lie unless you are running top of the line cells (14 of them total) and going down a large hill. You should talk to the guys on rc-monster.com as they have a whole bunch of stuff emaxx. If you quit nitro know that it costs more to get started in electric but its cheaper after that. The inital cost is the highest and you dont want to skimp on batteries and a charger because that is what powers your vehicle and you get what you pay for. The better the batteries the better the performance.

Dale Gribble

My Feedback: (4)

Nitro is a test in patience and perseverence, but you can overcome the challenges.

Have you ever taken an engine apart? If no, it's time to. Maybe the engine is worn out, maybe the glow plug is worn out who knows without getting into it? Stay with nitro as long as you are willing to get your hands dirty and keep learning. Nitro RC is not something that you can't do continuously without learning the physics and tearing into it.

The common misconception about Electric being cheaper is basically untrue... It is for entry level, but as far as the Emaxx is concerned, your spending is the same. You are probably gonna want 2 sets of good 3000mAh niMh packs about $30/ea, that's about $120 right there, and a good peak charger for around $100. That's $220.

THEN if you want to go faster, it gets much more expensive to get Electric as fast as Nitro. Brushless setups are $250 plus, and the truck wil need durability mods to handle it.

Stick with what you have for now and see it through for a while.

capone12

My Feedback: (1)

Or he could just go to somewhere like boomboom batts and get the batteries for about 75 for two and then get a intellipeak charger for about 55. Then you can just get the hvmaxx brushless system for 200 (i think) and that emaxx is set for awhile. If you already have the tmaxx and you are still willing to get it running than I say you keep trying. Then maybe stop investing so much into and pick up an electric truck so you have something to run when your nitro is down. If it was me, Id probably still try to get the t-maxx to work and after about 3 weeks of saving money, when you have enough go for a rustler or stampede when you have the moeny and then just hop that up every now and then so you have another and cheaper option for when the tmaxx doesnt feel like running. Yes these rc cars have a mind of their own![X(][:-]

mutalisk46802

Dale, i have taken the engine apart, thats how i got the new piston and sleeve in there... It didnt look worn and i cleaned it out as good as possible when i did take it apart. I might just stick with nitro because i never knew electric was so expensive! I always thought nitro was the more expensive one but i guess i was wrong. In a couple days I'll go to my hobby shop and talk to the guy there about it and see if he can get it started and if he knows what i can do to fix it. The last time i did that with the hobby shop guy was before i put the new piston sleeve in so i might be able to get it to run if he knows how to fix it. Oh and if you put some nitro in the fuel tank, how long can it sit in there without neutralizing? I think its about a week but im not sure.

Mad Wax

Nitro is ok, as long as you use a decent engine and make sure fuel line and tank is free from bubbles. I can't stress the difference between the POS Kyosho bundled engine and the OS CZ-11, not only difference in power but easiness to start, continue running (until tank is empty) runs whilst upside down etc.

However I would get rid of Nitro and move to petrol engines...and wouldn't go back. :-)

Electric cars do seem cheaper initially but remember you need several high capacity packs (expensive) most likely need to fast charge them so as two or three are charging using another pack. Then need a good multiple output fast charger (or several 1 output chargers) The packs won't last that long either with fast charging/discharging with electric. But with Nitro you have expensive fuel, especially when using 10% or higher. 5% is pretty cheap. Petrol is still cheaper though esp in the US (bah humbug!) over here it's probably close to 5% nitro fuel cost.

R/C fan-addict

dont leave fuel in the tank! it will kill the tank, dont do it! as for electric being expensive:
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXCUH3&P=ML

two sets of these $70

a decent charger:

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXAVN1&P=ML

total price 115+300 of truck costs bring you up to 415 which is way less than you'd ever spend when starting up in nitro

I own an emaxx and love it! no durability problems at all!

I believe an Novak HV costs 250 and people say that once you have a novak you really fly!

as for the 30 mph figure it really goes more like 25 with 12 cells on flat ground.

or instead of getting into electric you could just give up on your old maxx and buy a new one and install the motor and stuff you bought for it and depending on how much money you want to spend you could get both

mutalisk46802

I have seen a couple petrol cars that were all very massively large. How much could you buy a petrol car for??? Also how fast can they go. Give me some details on these petrol cars!

R/C fan-addict

maybe 40mph tops for offroad but they are damn expensive something like 1500+ for a good one

_iceman_

um the magic wheel is a t-maxx but made in china or somewhere so it is cheaper.

Mad Wax

Not sure of petrol RC vehicles in the US, but Tower have one RTR @ $900. Over here though Marder Eco is £404, Marder Race £530, Leopard Race £630. Plus radio gear required- transmitter & receiver, at least one high torque quarter scale for steering, high torque for throttle & brake. Switch. Batteries for transmitter and a 5 cell 6v Sub C pack for the car. Sprays for those models with poly bodies.

About 30-40mph? but they have lots more torque than nitro, so they'll climb better.

Prices from RC Online (Germany)
http://www.rc-car-online.de/autos2eng.htm

Evader 53

On your t-maxx, have you tried adjusting the high/low end needles? Have you adjusted the idle? If worst comes to worst, take it into your LHS, have them work on it and get it running, then go home happily ever after.

Electrics are actually pretty expensive to get started into. You need a quality charger (anyhwere from $50+), good, high quality battery packs (gp3300 from radioshack $25), a truck that has many replacement parts for ($150-infinity), and most likely new motors etc...

I have heard that the E-maxx breaks easy, and is expensive to repair. I was actually on the edge of buying one but the guy at the LHS told me about his experience with the truck which wasn't so good.

I then decided to get an electric stampede. I have recently bought upgrades, including a new motor, and from my guess the truck now goes around 30-35 mph. Wil a brushless system, you will be able to get up to 50+mph, leaving many nitro cars in the dust.



I have slowed down on nitro recently, and picked up the interest in electric. I just don't like to do too much tuning, but my engine was starting to get old and I spent a half hour tuning the ST after every run.

You may want to try and get the t-maxx runing, but if all else fails, and you are looking at going into electric, go for it. It is just as much fun as nitro, the speeds are as good as nitro if you invest the money, and electrics don't require near as much tuning.

I am most likely going to be sticking with electric for a while, the price is overall cheaper once you get started.


--Pede

R/C fan-addict

a stampede can not go 50+ unless its the nitro version, maybe if you stuff a wad of cash into it you can get it to that speed but it just isnt meant to go that fast and will roll every few seconds so its pointless

mutalisk46802

Well im probably going to stick to nitro because i dont have the money to buy all the expensive things for an electric car. Oh and iceman, the magic wheel does look very identical to the t-maxx, but all of its parts are worse quality. The engine has SMT 1.5 on the side. The parts do look almost the exact same though except for the t-maxx runs a lot better (99.9% sure by what ive heard) and is a lot easier to find parts for. Also a lot of the parts dont fit on the other truck, like the fuel tank for example. But yes i do think Smartech copied the ideas of the t-maxx or had some sort of agreement with traxxas to do it.

J_D

don;t stay with nitro

and don;t goto electric.

Goto GAS!

1/5th scale cars are awesome! they run "weed whapper" engines, and run on normal petrol/gasoline that you buy a petrol station. Fuel is very cheap - the engines last years and never require tuning - the cars are big and very stong.

My mate has had a smartech traveller for ages and the only thing he broke was a spur gear...

And I'm going to buy one soon as well cos I'm fed up with nitro junk as well

d2cs2mdw

My Feedback: (-1)

I plan on going to gas down the road, I just want to stick with nitro for a while though...

michelob78

When you put the new piston/sleeve in, did you install the piston correctly? Was the small hole in the connecting rod facing the carb? I have seen that more than once.... the hole is very small above the bushing on the conn rod. Check it out..... With a new tank and fuel lines you shouldn't have a problem there, what shape is the carb in? If it is ok, and the tank and lines are new, and a new glow plug you should be able to start it.

You will get the hang of nitro, as long as you stick with it.

mutalisk46802

Well the glow plug is ummmm, well i havent replaced the one that i got with it since i first got it... But it still does glow but it might be worn out too. Ok when i put the new piston and sleeve in, there was a small hole, in which there was a very small "coil" that kept the thing in. I dont remember what direction i put the hole in, i didnt think it would matter. So are you saying that little hole which has the little "coil" in it should be facing the carb?? Also my carb look likes its in decent shape. The only problem i can see is that the little rubber peice (on the end of the throttle bar, it connects the throttle bar to the carb) comes off of the carb easily, i have to push back the sides of the rubber and put it back on and secure it but it comes off easily still. I also cleaned out the carb when i put the piston and sleeve in so it should work fine.

Today i went to my LHS and the guy told me to leave my car and radio there so he could try to get it running, i had to leave it there because he was busy at the moment. Well the only problem is i cant find my glow plug igniter, but ive went to the LHS and the guy used his ignitor, so i know that wont be a problem and ill buy a new one soon.

If i have to buy a new engine, should I just buy the trx 2.5 because right now my t-maxx has the old .15 pro engine in it.

P.S. Ill reply again once i get a phone call from the hobby shop about my car.

R/C fan-addict

http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXLNG0&P=7
there really is no point in buying the stock engine again so just get something with more kick like the engine above alothought that one is expensive

annie_himself

Don't leave nitro, just don't buy off of ebay unless you are experienced, get it from your LHS.

mutalisk46802

Yeah im never going ot buy off of Ebay again, unless it says brand new in box, never been used. A lot of people on there say theyve only used it a couple times and it runs great and everything, but then they said it hasnt been run in a year and that just messes it all up unless they drained it and put after oil engine in, which of course they probably didnt.

Well i still have'nt gotten a call, i hope to get one today because i want to be able to run my car over the weekend and before it gets too cold out.

Should my t-maxx be able to start easily in temps as low as 40 degress fahrenheit. If you dont use fahrenheit then 32 degress fahrenheit is freezing so 40 is just a little over the freezing point. Or should it be harder to start??

Oh i saw some team associated NTC3's on ebay (brand new in box so it HAS to run) for less then $200 USD. Is there something wrong with it or is the NTC3 just not a great car? Im use to atleast $300 because i mostly only look at monster trucks but are on-road cars actually THAT much cheaper???

ender164

The Nitro TC3 has actually dropped a lot in price. Its getting up there in age and a lot of people just arnt looking for it anymore. Their still a great car on the club lvl and just as fast as anything else out there with the same motor. Mine has an OS CVR that needs to be replaced this comming season.
Keep in mind the kits dont come with a motor, and the RTR ones come with a RELIABLE motor, not a RACE motor. If it is the RTR version you are looking at, check with the track you plan to race at. Make sure the .15 is leagal for racing if you plan to do so because thats what the RTR comes with. Most clubs run a .12 size motor. they run about 45mph out of the box. If you put a .12 OS CVR or better you can top out around 55mph or mabey even higher.