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#1
02-08-2008
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Starting again....A few questions...
Hello, been away from the sport for 17yrs now, racing 1/10th 4wd and 1/12th mini stocks with some success. Anyway i want to get back into racing again and have been trawling the forums/reviews for advise on cars, electrics, set-ups etc but ive got a few questions to ask and would like your input/advise please...
1. I know a general one but which buggy? ive narrowed it down to b44, d4we, MR-4bx, xxx-4 or wait for the cat sx? 2. Would you start off in li-po or not and what batt/charger recommendations? 3. Start off going brushless and which esc/motor combo (wouldn't mind reverse but with the ability to switch off for racing)? 4. Is my old 27mh radio gear old news now is it all 40mh? 5. What equipment gets taken to a club meeting now by competitors i.e batteries, charging equipment etc I want to do this properly so i don't want to buy anything that would be replaced in the near future so on that basis in not too bothered on the cost im just really after a good race set-up that with practise would get me competing at a decent level. Im thinking of joining the Bury club as il be moving to Radcliffe/Bury area in the near future and its also my nearest club with maybe Southport. Sorry if there's any dumb ass questions  Thanks in advance Stu 
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#3
02-08-2008
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Hi
1. What sort of money do you want to spend on a car. 2. If you want to go Lipo what will you be doing next year. Regionals and nationals or just club meetings. Charger i would recomend the LRP Pulsar 3. Has Lipo charging on it. 3. Losi Excelorin. Has reverse on it and can be taken off via programming card and is reasonably priced. 4. 27 Mhz is still being used. 5. Take charger, table, chair, spares, food, etc.. 6. Do not listen to or take any advice of Ash, He is very biased to Losi and the kit he uses.
__________________
Associated SC10. Associated RC8. Atomic Carbon S4. Paint by Wezzer. 
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#4
02-08-2008
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if u dont get lipo and use normal batterys then spintec is a good charger as it does each cell seperate and it does charging/discharging/equalizing
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#5
02-08-2008
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To be honest im not too concerned about the cost just want a decent car and i guess they all are i suppose
Id be racing at club level mostly as what talent i had would have deminished considerably after 17yrs Im mainly concerned about esc batt and motor options as i don't want to purchase, for example, a motor that wouldn't be quick/fast enough to compete with what most people use.
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#6
02-08-2008
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well i think the lrp brushless esc and novak motors is a good combination in 4wd id go for a 6.5 but u might want somthing abit quicker so a 5.5 try and get sintered motors batterys are personel choice i use east power cells 4600
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#7
02-08-2008
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Quote:
 ) tomrrow and have a look what people are running these days, you'll be amazed how much faster the cars are now!Ask around to see if someone is selling a B4 2nd hand, you can pick good ones up for way under £100. Try starting with a 10.5 turn (19t brushed equivalent) brushless, that might sound slow but it will be loads faster than anything you were using 17 years ago! You dont need to spend loads on cells these days either, as even the cheaper cells are more than good enough to get you going. In 2wd you will be able to do two seasons worth of racing every week even on £35 cells and have more power than you can use
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#8
02-08-2008
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Quote:
4,get your self some 2.4ghz equipment so much less hassle
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#9
02-08-2008
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Hi Mate, welcome back to the sport. Youve found a really helpful site to get you going here.
Car wise, see if you can have a go of someones and see if you like the model. Personally i use all nosram products and have had no problems at all apart from a sensor wire which got water in. A 6.5 sintered brushless motor will be ample for coming back to the sport, it did me fine for the first season. I've never had any lipo experience but they seem very good, on the other hand you will be able to get some very cheap second hand cells now the nationals are nearly at an end. Whatever you decide on, most of all. HAVE FUN!!!
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#10
02-08-2008
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griff hit the nail on the head with his last 2 words HAVE FUN
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#11
03-08-2008
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I started up again last year after a longish break and had the same questions you have.
I would go with lipo if I were you as they are so much easier to handle and give great power in combination with brushless. The Losi, GM and SpeedPassion speedos have a reverse feature you can disable. I use a SpeedPassion GT1.1 LPF and it really is great (and cheap )Most of the newer chargers will do lipo and you can usually go with one of the cheaper ones if you are only using lipo because they really don't need all the bells and whistles used for NiMh. An integrated balancer would be a good thing to keep your lipos balanced. If you are just starting out again try one of the recent 2WD's. So much better than that long ago and a lot less work  As for motors, 6.5 in 4wd and 7.5 in 2WD is more than enough power to get you going and you can turn it "mental" by running a hotter power profile later on. Your radio gear will be fine for the time being as long as it still work but if you want something new go for some of the new 2.4gHz kit, as it does really make your life easier. HTH
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#12
03-08-2008
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Ive just started back since a break of around 16 years as the last pack of cells i put in my Tomy intruder back then was 17oo scrs.
I popped down to our local club and introduced myself , asked what the guys were using and went from there. I purchased second hand off here actually from racing dwarf a yokomo mr4bx and im slowly building up some pretty decent gear. The difference now is there a great array of second hand gear available now due to every one being on the internet .17 years ago you either had to save , make do with what your local hobby stockist had or wait for a members best equipment to go off and buy that off him. Who said the futures looking bleak !
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#13
04-08-2008
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Thanks for the tips guys it's making interesting reading
How many batt packs is the norm to have on a race day? as im reading, (correct me if im wrong) that charging/looking after nimh packs is alot different to nicads from yester-year which i just seemed to quick charge after each race? Also im thinking of purchasing a second hand S4 but the battery formation is alot different to the "norm" i understand that i would need to make up the cells myself but is there anyway that a lipo pack can be used in there? Christ things have changed so much! 
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#15
05-08-2008
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I have also come back into the hobby after a good few years break.
If you are looking at an S4 then you will need to use the NMIH cells. There has been significant leaps forward in technology making life easier at the track so you can concentrate on your setup and driving ability. Lipo - These have massive capacity and are really easy to look after, as long as you don't discharge them below 6v (make sure you esc has a lipo cut off) you can't really go wrong. I use two packs to make life easier but you can get away with one. There's no discharging to be done and they are happy being charged as often as you want, plus they don't really lose their charge over time so you can charge up on monday and they will still be completly fine for racing at the weekend, no top up required. They can be a bit volatile if they are over charged but by using a balancer and ensuring your charger is in Lipo mode then all should be well. They are currently not legal for regional/national level but most clubs are allowing them to be run at normal club meetings, just double check with them 1st. Brushless- No skiming the comm, no brushes to keep changing and no regular cleaning. Plus the torque they produce is immense. I'm running a 6.5 in my B44 and it's plenty fast enough, I think its equivalent to about an 8 turn brushed, a mate has a 4,5 turn and he's looking to get a slower motor as its too fast. 2.4ghz radio - The main point to this is no interferance, the reciever locks onto the signal that your radio is giving out and will ignore everything else, it's basically the same frequency that wifi is using, 40mhz is still widely used though but the cost of 2.4 is dropping. I just bought a 2.4 module to fit into my 40 mhz radio so you could upgrade to this at a later date. Personal transponders - Pure luxury really as the handout transponders work just as well but it saves you having to collect and return them all day, plus you can't forget to put it in the car. I've been racing again since march and I'm really enjoying being back in it, but remember what ever your budget is expect it to be blown!
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Lets Off Road!
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#16
10-08-2008
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Popped down to Southport today to watch the racing, i must admit things have certainly moved on from when i was racing!
 Cars are seem alot more quicker now unless thats my old age but the racing is still the same, competative but fun!
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#18
14-08-2008
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That's funny, because I also started back into the sport after 17-18 years absence (I forget exactly). Now that budget is less limiting than when I was a teenager...
 I went with a B44 (best bang for your buck in 4wd IMO), with 2 lipo packs (they are allowed where I race; if they are where you will be racing, I strongly recommend them), a hyperion charger (does it all pretty much and is cheap) and a Mamba max 6900kv setup (they are allowed where I race and a great deal for the price) which is insanely fast. I think any of the cars you mentioned will be race worthy. Maybe parts availability should be considered here in your choice? I was amazed at how fast I got back into the groove of racing! My racing skills were still there. It's a small club, but within 1 race I was back being competitive up there with the leaders posting some of the fastest times. Only thing needed is to improve consistency between laps! Anyways, all to say that I'm back and having a blast! You will too! Cheers! CODMAN
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#19
14-08-2008
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I too am in the same boat as most of you 'mid life crises' boys, usual script, got into girls and big cars in late teens, gone full circle and now want a taste of the old rc fun again.
Most of the advice I'd agree with, you can make do with 27 meg radio or by a cheap 40 meg set off ebay (as i did cause as i had some food to buy that month too!) or off here, or if you want complete hassle free and the bank balance can accommodate go that bit further and get the 2.4 ghz, just finds an available frequency and that's it. Batteries I'd agree if you're not intending to do Nationals for the rest of this season then li po i would suggest are far easier and as far as i can tell have no real negative. The main reason cars are quicker now is that battery capacity is not the issue it was back in those days and races are still 5 mins so consequently you can go as fast as you dare or as conditions allow really. I used to run a Tomy Intruder and a cougar on 1700 SCE's or even 1400 SCR's, and the problem then was the sponsored drivers had the advantage of the best cells etc. which then was critical because you had to choose your motor/gearing so as not to 'dump'. Now the playing field seems much more level, especially with control tyres at nationals as well. I agree that brushless combos seem to be the answer, i went for 6.5 in my losi 2wd and it's more than quick enough, perhaps a little too quick really, you just need that little more thumb control than back in the old days, which i'm enjoying learning (slowly ). I don't think there is much betwen them in terms of brands but just get one that gives you the most options if you decide to go for a hotter motor further down the line. One thing I have noticed is that although the cars look essentially similar there are so many more subtle setting than there used to be and it's all a bit much for me to take in at the moment, but to be quite honest i think you could keep it fairly simple with a few basic set ups and let your thumbs do the rest.I used to race at Bury from time to time too, on that old shale track that was later grass (that may be the wrong way around! ), they were good times. I'm sure i've got a couple of A final win trophies in my mums loft (probably when nobody turned up!)Anyway, as I've just done what you've done as have quite a few it seems, you know where to come for advice. Feel free to pm for any totally unbiased opinions. Good luck and happy racing Chris
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#20
20-08-2008
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Cheers Guy's,
Well i took the plunge last week and bought: B44 Factory Team Losi Xcelorin S 6.5 motor/esc combo Futaba 3gr radio set with a s3050 servo 2 x Trackpower saddle lipo's 1st Hobby power charger 5 Trackpower balancer And ive got on order diggity designs lipo braces. Just finished assembly and paint just wanting to go racing now
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