caster rtr truggy ..

shaun m · #1 04-11-2009

hi are the caster racing rtr truggys any good and do they have much in the way of hop ups , that you would exspect for the money ... is the 2.4 radio any good as well ...

Marvin · #2 04-11-2009

Apparantly the car itself is alright - looks like an MBX5T copy to me - which is no bad thing.

The ESC probably isn't quite up to the job. It's a Hobbywing 80A ESC capable of 4S max. If it were me, I'd put a Hobbywing 150A ESC in there instead, or better, a Mamba Monster Max, as that 80A will be overstressed.

Also, the motor is too short to use in a truggy without issues (it doesn't have enough torque). It is Feigao based - so it'll run hot anyway, but worse, it is a 36mm diameter can that is only 65mm long! You'd need at least a 70mm motor for a truggy. A 36-70 Medusa would be far better.

The kV is right for 4S though.

The motor just doesn't seem to have the torque required. When I did my first brushless conversion (on a Losi 8ight, with an MMM, a Medusa 36-60-2000 motor, and Flightpower 4S LiPOs) it could wheelie on tarmac easily, and was quick to boot. I came across one of the Caster RTR buggies, on 4S, with a 2000kV motor (the same as the truggy), and it could not even lift the front wheels on tarmac, and it was also slower.

In my opinion, I'd get the Caster Pro, pick up a good condition used MMM off RC-Tech, a Medusa if you can still get it, and do it properly with good LiPOs. It will initially cost more, but you will get more satisfaction that way.

shaun m · #3 04-11-2009

so even for the money , the electrics let it down then ....

i would have only run it on 7.4v lipo's , as that is what i already have .. but i geuss it wont be quick or the stock electrics will let it down ....

steelie600 · #4 05-11-2009

if you want a good electric truggy, get the rc8te, fit a good MMM or castle, or speed passion brushless system and some 4s lipos and enjoy!!.

Personally i wouldnt touch a caster due to what ive witnessed, but if your dead set on a caster, get a Mugen mbx5t same car yet lots better and the original

Marvin · #5 05-11-2009

Remember the kV must be matched to the voltage! 6S isn't always quicker than 4S! If you use an appropriate motor on both, with correct gearing, they will be effectively the same, same torque, same top end etc. What 6S will have over 4S is that it is more efficient, and so you should get a touch more run-time, and the components will stay cooler.

The electrics do let it down though.

I wouldn't bother with the Speed Passion system. The ESC is the same as the one in the Caster! Speed Passion are a brand of Hobbywing, and the Hobbywing 80A ESC is the same as the Speed Passion Silver Arrow ESC (only the Silver Arrow has a bent piece of aluminium on it, and no fan). The MMM is far superior.

Pitman · #6 06-11-2009

The car itself is a brilliant bit of kit I have not had any failures during the entire hong nor cup < 3 days > and 5 full sundays racing aswell

until the weather killed all my fun and i am to girly to race a wet weekend

as for the electrics i cannot comment as i have never used them or enough knowledge to compare specs but whenever I have seen one go it had plenty of power

the kit is designed to be rtr not pro race

check this vid out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JjVHb...layer_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwKS9...eature=related

StwBald · #7 06-11-2009

i've got a brand new boxed never run caster truggy complete with brushless system all you need is radio, reciever and battery.

pm me if you interested.

Cheers Stewy

Marvin · #8 06-11-2009

What system is it?

steelie600 · #9 06-11-2009

Its the OE caster one iirc

Marvin · #10 06-11-2009

So... considering what I've said above, this probably isn't the thread to try and sell it in...

StwBald · #11 06-11-2009

Marvin · #12 06-11-2009

THAT motor is better! 1880kV, (almost a 5S motor), and quite a bit longer. It'll still overheat and won't have that much power though

.

Still better than nitro...

steelie600 · #13 07-11-2009

ARE YOU SWEARING MARV?????

LIPO BETTER THAN NITRO??

How very very dare you!!!!!

Marvin · #14 07-11-2009

It's true. It is just better.

adrictan · #15 08-11-2009

I would suggest getting the F8T Pro. U save quite a bit if u try to upgrade it later. I've been racing only a few months but with my terrible skills, I've not experienced much failure other than my own building faults which caused parts to fall off during race. Heck! I've even managed to get a 3rd place placing for this month's race. Get the Pro Truggy and use yr spare cash to invest in a Tekin RX8 combo and if there's any more left, I'll go with the RCM Slipper Diff; all of which I use. Either way, do your research and look around. Enjoy yrself.

BRS · #16 09-11-2009

Soooo I've bought Stewy's Caster for my lad for christmas

I race nitro and know all about that but not got much idea when it comes to these leccy jobs!

Can anyone post a link to batteries that will fit this truck (two bat trays) no idea what all this 2s 4s 6s means or what power that motor will require.

Help appreciated

Marvin · #17 09-11-2009

Judging by the motor's kV, you'll want to run the truck on 4S LiPo. This means that the battery used must have 4 cells in series (at 3.7V per cell).

As it has two battery trays, I'd use two LiPos designed for 1/10 scale in SERIES.

The wiring diagram will look like this:

For batteries, I'd use some of Trakpower's new Dark Series packs (the 7.4V 5000mAh 40C ones), or some Thunderpowr 40C 5000mAh LiPos, or some Intellect/IP 5000mAh 30C+ LiPos. The 5000mAh bit is the capacity. All of these LiPos are '2S' - they have two cells wired in series. As you need 4S, you need two of these wired in series, so you'll have a 14.8V 5000mAh pack. The two LiPos must be the same age (IE how many cycles (charges/discharges)), and have the same capacity and discharge rating (the 'C' rating).

BRS · #18 09-11-2009

Thanks very much for the info Marvin much appreciated. I understand this may well go up in smoke at some point so will this kind of battery setup still be ok with a Mamba combo if and when it comes to that?

Just been looking not cheap these batteries are they!!! How long do they last? What do you do with that other plug I see coming out of alot of these Lipos?

thanks

steelie600 · #19 09-11-2009

Sam youve gone to the dark side!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Anyway the lipos are lasting a lot longer now you should get atleast 300 charges out of them (early ones you were lucky to get 100!!) and the small connector your describing is the balance lead, which enables all the cells to be charged at the same rate and to exactly the same voltage. One thing i will say tho is get the best batteries you can afford, i run Kong Power in my 6s heli and they are awesome, and have over 250 charges on one of them and its still as powerful as ever. One thing i have noticed about flightpower/trackpower, is the seem to be peaky, ie give out more power at the start of the useage and peter off, where as the Kongs i use are very consistant through out the charge.

Marvin · #20 09-11-2009

The other plug is the balance connector. This is used when charging on a 'balance charger' to ensure that the cells all remain at the same voltage level as each other, to help safeguard the pack from one cell dropping below the 2.9V minimum voltage.

The life time of these packs is hundreds of charges, way more time overall than about 3-4 seasons worth of race use.

A Mamba Monster set-up would be better, and if you go for the 2200kV combo, your current batteries (assuming you buy decent batteries like the ones I mentioned above) will work perfectly with that too. The 2200kV motor will want to run on 4S too, though you may have to change your gearing.

1 14.8V 5000mAh pack should get you 15 minutes run time on a track, or about 25 minutes when mucking around in a field.