Noob needs Christmas help

[chem_fun]

OK, I'm a bit of a research-a-holic. I've already been reading quite a bit on the forum and on the manufacturers sites, downloaded many videos. Here's my goal, let me know how I've done. My kid has a toy RC car, and loves it. Picked it up at a yard sale and he immediately started thinking about jumps and speed and all sorts of fun things to do with a new toy. Talking with the wife about Christmas presents, I'm looking to get two inexpensive quality cars. He's never had a real RC car (and neither have I for that matter).


We live in MI and it's bound to snow soon (maybe we could run them on the packed snow and ice), but we have laminate floors over the entire house.

We've got a fairly large yard that's full of grass, and a long (150 ft) asphalt driveway.

In the summer we frequently go to the beach.

Oh, and we live on a dirt road.

So...I'm not looking for a street car, I'm looking for something more robust. Monster or Stadium Truck.

I'm considering on of the Losi Baja's. Seems nice that they come fully packaged. However, I've also noticed that both baja's are discontinued. Why? Were there problems with them. They can still be found online, but I'm yet unsure if that will void any warranty or if there's a better option available now.

From the videos I've seen, they should hold up to jumps. Will the both hold up to medium height grass and weeds (we don't have any dirt patches, but there's a corn field out back we could use before they plant)?

Can I get the sand tires for the monster and stadium versions? Will they both hold up the same.

I'm not looking to upgrade soon (don't laugh...I don't have the bug yet), but have read that there's an abundance of upgrade and replacement parts (this is important to me).

Will I have any problems with the controllers if I get two identical cars?

What other brands/models should I consider???

For a father an his 7 year old son, how many batteries should we have for 2 cars, and be able to play for quite some time? I've read that the batteries only last about 10 minutes.
And that a charge takes about 2 hours. Yikes....

What's the top speed on these cars on blacktop?

What spare parts should I get...weak spots? I'd rather be prepared.


THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR HELP...I'll warn you in advance...I really appreciate the assistance, but it's probably going to spark more questions.

[Welshy40]

Hiya,

I would if i were you consider a traxxas truck for what you want as it can take a lot more punishment than the other nig named brands. On u tube someone got one to hit over 60mph but youll need some skill to keep it straight at that speed

Obviously its going to be electric so id consider buying the bushless combo if one exists or by a losi motr and speed controller package with something like an 8.5 or 9.5 motor, as they dont need much maintanence as long as kept clean.

Batteries well id also advise buying a lipo battery charger and the batts you can get lipo stick packs with 5000 or 6000 mah so twenty or thirty mins run time if geared right and make sure the esc has the lipo cut off set so the cells dont die as lipo should never be fully discharged. As long as they are left fully charged after use they should be fine and can be left for months without losing any power. No memory on these lipos

duratrax also do good club trucks and then you can spend more on a losi or associated but my own opinion would be traxxas as they cant take a hammering and just keep going. I would advise upgrading the tie rods to titanium

[chem_fun]

the Traxxas 1/16th E-Revo VXL Brushless looks cool, and being waterproof we could use it in the winter outside. The price is a bit steep.

I know, I could spend WAY more money...

I was hoping to find two like this...

https://www.ssl-stormerhobbies.com/c...pl?pn=LOSB0218

And then talk Grandma into helping me finance it. If we had two, we could race.

[Marvin]

What about a couple of these or these?

They're the same as the VXL editions minus the brushless ESC and motor. You could upgrade these later if wanted, but they'll be plenty fast enough at first.

For just under $200 you could have a Traxxas Rustler, which, again, isn't brushless, but you can upgrade this later. However, the Rustler is far bigger, more durable and more versatile than the 1/16 scale cars.

[shanks]

Traxxas slash but go for full size - 1/10th - it will handle rougher terrain better than the 1/16th

go lipo straight off funds allowing

two packs each would give virtually none stop running - ok maybe 15-20 mins whilst first finshes charging

[chem_fun]

You're right. I'm leaning more towards the 1/10th Slash or Stampede. I've read/heard that they're close to the same car (correct me if that's not the case). But the Stampede would have a bit more clearance in the corn field out back. I'm quite keen on the fact that they're waterproof, we could have a blast with it in the snow if it was hardpacked.

I'd love any input between these two cars, or other options if there's something better.

I don't think I can afford the LiPo's straight off. I'm thinking about higher mAh NiMH and a quick charger with a condition cycle. Keeping in mind I'd like to get 4 batteries and two cars so we could keep runing for a while as long as the car is cool.

[stampede vxlboy]

i got the stampede vxl and the rustlervxl bandit vxl and good car plus i got nimha battery charger fast chargers forsale and 5 packs battery there good car but the slash is alot diffrent to stampede are you get the xl5 brushed or brushless go for the brushless . rustler vxl and stampede vxl are the best bashing trucks

[poopers]

I’ve got a Traxxas Slash (1/10th ) I purchased it as my first car getting back into RC after 16 years away (used to race 1/10th buggy).

A great point about the slash is that it can cope with diverse terrains. It’ll do some pretty good off-roading, though not as good as a stampede might, but it can also be set up for fun on the road too, whereas the stampede has a higher ride height and monster tyres so isn’t as much fun on road. It also has a huge knowledge base of information online at various forums for setting the truck up and overcoming any little issues that can arise (like diff leaks). They’re also cheap with spare parts readily available.

The Slash responds remarkably well to set up changes, so you can learn the basics of setting a car up quite easily (sand tyres are available). The speed control and servo are waterproof and the receiver is very well protected but the motor isn’t. That said, I’ve seen cars completely submerged in water, and while I wouldn’t recommend it, there don’t seem to have been any noticeable adverse effects. Snow’s not a problem.

Don’t worry about LiPo and brushless too much just yet. The stock Traxxas motor is relatively quick and you can change the gearing if necessary for more speed (30mph they say). It’s also a very durable motor too, so maintenance is not a worry.

The XL-5 speed control that comes with the truck doesn’t have a LiPo cut off to prevent discharging the LiPo beyond a safe level, so it might be best to sick with NiMH. I currently use 3600 and 4200mAh NiMH and get around 10/15 mins on both, I’d recommend two packs per car.

The key for me is that the Slash just great fun straight out of the box. I’ve had mine since January and felt no need to upgrade it in the slightest. Though I will be putting a brushless speed controller in it sometime, it’s more for convenience than performance upgrade.

Here are a few of the forums I use for info:

http://monster.traxxas.com/forumdisplay.php?f=62 (the slash forum at traxxas)

http://www.rctech.net/forum/electric-off-road-4/ (have a look for slash threads)

http://www.rcshortcourse.com/forum/

Let me know if you want more information on all things slash

Cheers

poopers