New to me

[Jayar]

Hi all.

Well this is it, My wife is on board with me on getting a new rc.
So I thought I would solicit opinions on what the best product would be for me.
I will gather info for about a month and hopefully will come up with a good idea of what i want.

1st its got to be brushless.
2nd it's got to have a 2.4 ghz rx and tx.
3rd its got to be an rc10.

Well fom here on im clueless, I have glanced at the traxxas rustler, a losi mod and the Traxxas slash .
I would like to spend as much as $400 after taxes and shipping but any cost savings will be appreciated.
So there , if I could get some of your opinions as to what vehical will give me the best bang for my buck and where to buy it I would sincerely appreciate it.
Thanks J.R.

[klavy69]

RC10T4.1 or RC10B4.1 both come in rtr models that include brushless and 2.4 radios. My LHS price is around $340 or so. With it coming under budget you could add a few factory team items to beef it up a little like FT turnbuckles with some rpm cups or something like that.

Todd

[Karpouzian]

Buy something used from a reputable seller, or someone you trust, and save 100+ dollars. Yes, there is SOME risk associated, but you can mitigated by finding someone who is selling who is either a regular to the community with good trade/seller feedback, or someone at your local track... If you're in nowhere, IA like me, you rely on the internet for all of your purchases...

[Karpouzian]

1st its got to be brushless.
2nd it's got to have a 2.4 ghz rx and tx.

Another thing to consider when buying used is you can buy a roller (ie sans electronics), and add your own servo, esc, motor, and then buy a 2.4 rx/tx of your choosing...

You may pay a little more than a rtr car, but you are going to get the car you want, and then the motor/esc you want, and potentially get a radio you can grow with!

[Jayar]

I'm not buying a used one, because they are ultimately selling it for a reason.
I am retired now and feel I deserve to splurge a bit.
Of course I cant justify anything over four or five hundred

Also I think I would prefer a kit.
It would give me great pleasure to build my truck from the ground up.
Thanks guy's keep the suggestions comming.
J.R.

[vintage AE]

Also I think I would prefer a kit

Most kits don't include electronics though. I hate to say it, but I think four or five hundred dollars for buying a kit with all the electronics separate might be a hard goal to achieve. I'm not saying it isn't possible, but your options may be limited.

Then again where I live I have to pay 15% tax

[Karpouzian]

I'm not buying a used one, because they are ultimately selling it for a reason..

Of course you can do what you woul like, but quite often you can find cars being sold for the righ reason to meet your purposes... IE selling out, getting out of the hobby, or because their track stopped that particular type of car, but whatever floats your boat. From what I hear, some lhs sell used/"refurbished" rigs, too.

Also, if you want to build something, you can always buy artr, take it apart, then put it back together

[shodog]

Don't rule out a used vehicle. Some people sell their stuff as they percieve that they need to buy the newest bestest for that year. I've bought several really expensive great condition vehicles for probably a quarter of their orginal price.

[Jayar]

Yeah mabe a year old but i'm worried about rippoffs.

Anyway I was wondering also if I should get a 4wd or is 2wd good enough.
I know 4wd will get you out of a tuff spot and help climbing over thing but is it good for racing.
Well so far I hear i should get an rc10t4 or rc10b4 but what about the other trucks out there like the sc10.
Oh yea before i forget, I noticed several types of 4wd systems ie. belt driven, shaft drive, gear, etc
Which one is best in your opinion.
J.R.

[Karpouzian]

I've heard some people dont like driving 4wd, and I personally have only driven 2wd... If it is convenient, go to a local track and ask, heck, someone may even offer to let you test one or the other... Ymmv

As far as getting ripped off, you can definitely mitigate the risk. Only buy from someone with LOTS of positive feedback, try and find something that they are selling because they are getting out of the hobby, or switching vehicle types. Ask lots of questions, ask for pictures, and try to pay by PayPal or a cc, so there is some buyer protection. Make sure they ship insured, and with tracking information.

quote="Jayar"]Yeah mabe a year old but i'm worried about rippoffs.

Anyway I was wondering also if I should get a 4wd or is 2wd good enough.
I know 4wd will get you out of a tuff spot and help climbing over thing but is it good for racing.
Well so far I hear i should get an rc10t4 or rc10b4 but what about the other trucks out there like the sc10.
Oh yea before i forget, I noticed several types of 4wd systems ie. belt driven, shaft drive, gear, etc
Which one is best in your opinion.
J.R.[/quote]

[ljh501]

Here are my suggestions to the list. I've recently rediscovered the hobby and maybe would have done things a little different on the return had I asked questions like this on a cool message board.

I super appreciate you wanting to build a kit. I can't agree more on anything else rc than this. An SC10 Factory Team kit is a good starting point. So being a little old school it's hard to recommend a short course truck, but I see its merits. For a beginner, the wide body protects the wheels and everything else and makes bashing a bit more worry free. They are also all the rage right now, so most all race tracks should have a short course class. I'm going 2WD as its a little easier to build, work on and tune than a 4WD. 4WD tends to handle power better and is easier to drive, but put in the effort first with 2WD. Also 4WD gets crazy power hungry and with that comes more money to start up motor/battery wise.

Radio... I'll admit to over buying a radio when I got back into the hobby. Also radios have little wow factor to me, they just have to work. So I've since found on ebay people that essentially 'chop' rtr vehicles and sell the parts. With that in mind, a very basic 2.4 ghz Traxxas radio can be had for $37. The seller can easily be verified with feedback and you can tell you are getting something basically new.

Servo... I am a little servo power hungry. Having used old 'standard' servos, I do like a nice servo. Traxxas 2075 is a good value for the money... from a similar ebay 'chop' seller you can get one for $18. BTW I'm in no way a Traxxas fan in the least, bu their electrics can be quite a value.

Motor/ESC. So I'll say a stock motor/class is good for new racers. The speeds are still good and appropriate for a learner. That in mind, I don't like stock motors/racing. When bashing a stocker doesnt cut it. For racing, in my experience, stock classes often become crazy competitive and not about similar motors. Because motors ARE limited, batteries, parts and tires become everything. True, driving is everything, but having more power doesn't generally hurt.

So the above being said, I would steer to a modified motor, 13.5ish in a short course truck. I'm a big fan of not cheap speed controls and cheapish motors. Tekin is my speedo of choice but they are pricey to start. hobbyking.com has some decent value chinese options. I've recently used a Castle Creations SV2 esc/motor combo and am very thrilled with the quality of the setup, and it's an American company all for $130.... not bad!

Batteries. I have decent and great batteries. I will say I would recommend as a very good battery is Turnigy . Available from hobbyking.com again. I would go 40c minimum rating and not get too hung up on mah. Higher is better, but any should be suitable for your needs. I think they are under $30 if you get form the international warehouse, they take 2 weeks to come... time to build the kit. I would get 2 if you can swing it. Deans (WSD) Plugs all the way Speed Control included.

Charger. I'd go with a Dynamite Passport... it's $65 and the Honda Accord of chargers. Most people have them, they work well and everytime.

So that's my thoughts... adding it all up, you should be in the $550 range. It pushed the budget a little, but I think you would have admirable and quality stuff right from the start. I sorta didnt include a few items I tend to recommend buying locally, a decent hex driver set, pinion gear and paint for the body. I am a super buy local guy, but my closest hobby shop sucks. If I can do the 1 hour drive to another I do it, but my local local never has what I want or need. If I need to order something I just assume pay less and order online. I wouldn't if I could get it in about the same time, but online is still faster, so no advantage to my local guys. If you get a good feeling for your local shop, definitely work with them and they'll be more inclined to work with you.

[Jayar]

Wow this is really working with your help I'm sure I will be getting the right truck for me.
So far with your suggestions and my research I'm seriously looking at the traxxas slash 4wd brushless rtr.
I agree the sc10 kit looks very nice and I thought I would save money buy providing the labor and I would get to modify it and add my personal touches ie better motor, stronger linkages etc..
But that route dosent seem cost effective.
My local hobby shop sucks also, the two times I've been in there they were condesending and also tried to decieve me by saying a 2wd could not take the power of a brushless motor and there overpriced 4wd was the only way to go.
Another hobby shop further away has people that know what they are talking about and provides great service, but still Im in Ca. and the taxes are killer.
So ebay and amazon are my best ave.
again thanks for the input and if you should think of any tidbit that might help with my final decision please feel fre to post it here, I would like to also invite other people getting ready to buy there next latest greatest toy to chime in with there thoughts.
Thanks. J.R.

[Jayar]

Well I did it
I went and bought a new rc truck.
I want to thank everybody that submitted there input.
I feel like I have strayed a bit from the rc10 arena but I really haven't because I am definately keepinng My vintage team associated gold pan. I'm going to let my wife use it a bit till she gets good or gets bored but Ill be watching for abuse, And if I spot any it will go on the shelf as a memorial of my humble beginings with this hobby that I'm now addicted to.

O.K. Drumroll please

I bought the new brushless 4x4 slash Mike Jenkins #47 1/10 sc truck this Morning.
After all the research I did and your help this was the best bang for My buck and I can drop a Mamba Monster in it later when the smoke clears from this purchase.
J.R.