Modern 2wd bashing buggies

[asciibaron]

i'm looking for a modern 2wd bashing buggy. something i can enjoy running on the street and in the alley behind my house. something that brings me back to when i first got interested in the mid 80s when i was 14 years old. back then we had the Grasshopper, the Hornet, and if you busted your butt mowing lawns or delivering papers, the Frog. or if you were a Kyosho fan, the Pegasus and Icarus were your choices. you could beat the heck out of these cars, and boy did we, and they just kept going. they were cheap but well built and we loved them.

sure i could get a re-re Grasshopper, Hornet, or a Frog, but i'm more interested in the offerings that are as modern today as those cars were when first released. in the sub $200 range, Tamiya has the DT-02 bathtub and the DT-03 monocoque frame 2wd platforms, Traxxas has the RTR Bandit, and Kyosho has the.... well nothing. i guess the DT-02 would be the modern Grasshopper/Hornet and the DT-03 the modern Frog? i know nothing of the Traxxas Bandit.

are these really my choices in 2022 for 2wd modern design bashing buggies? are there brands i should be aware of? i'd love to get a car that is as exciting as the Frog was for my group of RC nerds in 1986.

tldr; old man yells at clouds.

-Steve

[Frankentruck]

I would splurge and go after an RB10, but I'm kind of a budget buster by nature.

[GoMachV]

Honestly the bandit as far as a basher goes is pretty great. The bloodline goes back to 1993-94 and 95% of the parts are compatible. If you are able to break it, you won’t be hard pressed to find parts either. They are fast, handle well, and aren’t terrible on the eyes.

That said, the bandit is boring.

If you really want to relive your memories, pick up a hornet or frog. Maybe a Blackfoot or beetle. The building from kit form is fun, and they way they bounce around just makes an old timer giggle remembering the good old days.

The modern tamiya buggies are fun but I don’t think they offer much in terms of upgrading (in a significant way) or being durable (same old plastics). If you were set on something newer, their 4wd buggies are built pretty well and are reasonably priced. Check out the plazma edge or the neo scorcher.

Associated RB10 is a good platform with decent support but as a rear motor race buggy it is sort of without a class to really be competitive in, and yet not really meant for bashing.

The other option is a rerelease from Kyosho. The scorpion, ultima, and optima are amazingly well built and will take modern brushless power while looking just like the originals. I am amazed at how well Kyosho did on these. Very highly recommended.

[asciibaron]

I would splurge and go after an RB10, but I'm kind of a budget buster by nature.

the big turn off for me for the RB10 is the look. i like the classic buggy style... the RC10 has the right styling, the RB10, meh. there is also the issue of my liking brushed motors and NiMH batteries

and i have splurged plenty i the past few weeks... i have a Turbo Optima Gold kit i picked up last week, i just bought a 3D printer, i'm restoring 3 vintage cars, and i picked up a 2.4 GHz wizbang radio setup. i also built a workbench, added wall shelving to display my collection (with plenty of empty space for expanding the collection), and bought a bunch of RC car specific tools. i just want something that is carefree, has some upgrade options, and is $200 or less. and yes, i'll be getting a Frog at some point in the next 6 months

i need something carefree to take my mind off of all the money i just spent.

[asciibaron]

If you really want to relive your memories, pick up a hornet or frog. Maybe a Blackfoot or beetle. The building from kit form is fun, and they way they bounce around just makes an old timer giggle remembering the good old days.

my vintage cars are a Blackfoot, AYK Radiant, and JRX2. getting the Blackfoot running last weekend was awesome, it's just too fragile to bash. adding a Frog is inevitable and comes with the complete experience i'm looking for, but i'm all too familiar with the weak points of the design. part of the reason i invested in a 3D printer is the ORV chassis

i have a Turbo Optima Gold kit to build and am waiting for a Turbo Scorpion kit to be available. Kyosho has hit it out of the park with their re-re's. i'll probably end up with a DT-02/03 platform car. and i still want an RC10 to play with, never had one.

i should probably delete my account, the mania is starting

[1911Colt]

Maybe you are the target audience for the Genova (aka Jeg's Stinger). It is a modern-ish buggy with vintage looks.

I know very little about it and have never actually seen one in person, so don't take this as a recommendation. The reviews I have seen have been mostly positive. The most often repeated complaint is that it is not legal for vintage racing, which does not seem to apply in your case.

Sounds like you have some pretty cool cars already!

[juicedcoupe]

IMHO, parts availability is the most important thing for a basher.

There is no question about if it breaks, it will get broken. Being able to quickly (and hopefully cheaply) get it back going will greatly increase your fun factor.

And this is where the Traxxas 2WD platform (Bandit, Rustler, Stampede, and Slash) shine far and above all others. Their parts availability and aftermarket support are second to none. And to top it off, they are already tougher than most.

[asciibaron]

the parts availability is a real concern and that is what makes the Tamiya stuff attractive as parts are easily had for the modern cars. i'm leaning toward the Tamiya Sand Viper, but Genova has my interest. not sure why, but i don't really connect with the Traxxas buggies, maybe it's because they are RTR and not a kit? thanks for the suggestions so far, keep them coming!

while trying to decide which basher to pick up, i purchased a Kyosho Turbo Scorpion kit... that car just looks super cool and was one of "THE" cars when i was into RC back in the 80's.

-Steve

[juicedcoupe]

If you plan on bashing with a Tamiya, there better be lots of parts available.

Don't get me wrong, I love Tamiya cars. But their plastic is extremely weak. Even 3D printed parts are generally stronger, and neither compare to the nylon used by most.

[Dadio]

You won't be disappointed with the Turbo Scorpion , I've had the Re Re Scorpion for a few years and I've given it hell , it's not a bad basher and I don't feel guilty as it's a modern copy , it won't handle like a modern car but it's great fun .

[XLR8]

I have a re-re Turbo Scorpion daily runner and while I agree that it's great fun to bash around in the yard, it's far from perfect. The front axle beam tends to bend easily and can become loose and rotate which makes the wonky steering and suspension geometry even worse. I ran my car with a 3500kV brushless motor and 2s lipo and I find that it's actually more fun to drive with a more mild brushed motor with specs that are closer to stock. The spur gear is rather small and its proximity to the motor shaft greatly limits the available final drive ratios for this car. If powered with a high kV motor, it's difficult to gear down enough to keep the motor cool.
Anyway, more power seems to magnify the faults with this car - more so than other cars I have.

[asciibaron]

I have a re-re Turbo Scorpion daily runner and while I agree that it's great fun to bash around in the yard, it's far from perfect. The front axle beam tends to bend easily and can become loose and rotate which makes the wonky steering and suspension geometry even worse. I ran my car with a 3500kV brushless motor and 2s lipo and I find that it's actually more fun to drive with a more mild brushed motor with specs that are closer to stock. The spur gear is rather small and its proximity to the motor shaft greatly limits the available final drive ratios for this car. If powered with a high kV motor, it's difficult to gear down enough to keep the motor cool.
Anyway, more power seems to magnify the faults with this car - more so than other cars I have.

i picked up a Kyosho G20 brushed motor and i use NiMH batteries, not ready for the brushless and LiPo world, yet.

i have a Kyosho Turbo Optima i picked up a few weeks ago that i need to build and with my three vintage cars from back in the day (Blackfoot, AYK Radiant, and JRXT/2) i have plenty of projects for the winter. at some point in 2023 i'd like to pickup a vintage RC10, i always wanted one but they were out of reach in the mid 80s and by 89 my local track was all about Team Losi.

when i decided to get back into RC cars, i set my limit at 8 cars and built shelving... i am not sure what will go in that last spot.

-Steve

[juicedcoupe]

when i decided to get back into RC cars, i set my limit at 8 cars and built shelving... i am not sure what will go in that last spot.

-Steve

I used to do stuff like that. Now, I just build more shelves. It's less stressful to not have to choose.

[asciibaron]

when i decided to get back into RC cars, i set my limit at 8 cars and built shelving... i am not sure what will go in that last spot.

-Steve

I used to do stuff like that. Now, I just build more shelves. It's less stressful to not have to choose.

i have some other interests that like to sneak off with my wallet in the middle of the night... the limit of 8 keeps me from going overboard and hording kits. you should see my vintage analogue synthesizer collection

i've never owned a Grasshopper or Hornet, and i know they are "toys" but it would be a bunch of fun to run one around the alley out back... i better build more shelves.

-Steve

[juicedcoupe]

i have some other interests that like to sneak off with my wallet in the middle of the night... the limit of 8 keeps me from going overboard and hording kits. you should see my vintage analogue synthesizer collection

Believe me, I understand. In addition to my rc collection (currently 35, plus a brushed motor collection), I also have a full size street/strip (slowly progressing more towards strip) car, a boat, and a modest collection of reels and rods.

My last "uh-oh" with the full size car was a couple thousand dollar one. Comparatively speaking, rc's are fairly cheap.

i better build more shelves.

-Steve

That's the spirit.