Plastic bushings or sealed bearings for basic build

[100mega]

I've built about four kits since getting into the hobby and always opted for sets of sealed bearings. I'm about to order my long desired Lunchbox and had a question prompted by something I heard on youtube. I have this fantasy of using my Lunchbox at the beach quite a bit as it's where I first saw a lunchbox wayyyy back in the 80s when I was a small child. I'm planning to keep my Lunchbox stock and run it on nimh for that...old school feel so no crazy power being used here. If performance isn't a huge concern would plastic bushings technically hold up better to sand and maybe a little bit of salt water splashing from moist sand? (ie: less prone to rust) I would clean it afterwards of course.

Would it be worth it to put bearings in the gearbox and use bushings for the wheels? Should I just go with sealed bearings and try to keep it clean as possible? Would love to hear some opinions before I start building.

Secondarily I'd also be curious to hear of people's cleaning techniques especially after running in wet / muddy / sandy area. Thanks!

[skom25]

No. Metal elements will wear bushings really fast when dirt, especially sand will appear.

To be honest, bushings should never exist. It is another perfect method to force people to buy Hop Ups.

[Saito2]

I asked this same question about 7 years ago. Sealed bearings was the general consensus. Bushings prefer grease and grease attracts sand. I've seen neglected plastic bushing actually eat into an axle shaft over time (granted the bushings themselves were worse off). Getting sand particles in between the running surfaces will only accelerate the wear.

 

[100mega]

6 minutes ago, Saito2 said:

I asked this same question about 7 years ago. Sealed bearings was the general consensus. Bushings prefer grease and grease attracts sand. I've seen neglected plastic bushing actually eat into an axle shaft over time (granted the bushings themselves were worse off). Getting sand particles in between the running surfaces will only accelerate the wear.

 

Ah, so should I maybe not put grease on the sealed bearings at the axles? I am always kind of wondering what lengths I should go to in order to clean a car after taking it to the beach. Sometimes the limit is just your available energy.

[Saito2]

1 hour ago, 100mega said:

Ah, so should I maybe not put grease on the sealed bearings at the axles?

Correct. You want the bearing to do the rotating, not the inner bearing races to spin on the axles.

1 hour ago, 100mega said:

I am always kind of wondering what lengths I should go to in order to clean a car after taking it to the beach.

It really depends on if it gets into the wet, salt water infused sand or worse, actually submerged in the water.

1 hour ago, 100mega said:

Sometimes the limit is just your available energy.

Which is why I always take the Lunch Box to the beach over anything else. They're simplistic for easy tear-down, have minimal pivot points, have a decently sealed gearbox, a high protective tub chassis, mostly plastic construction and tires that float over the sand.

[Kowalski86]

Go with bearings and do a bit of maintenance after each run, I usually use "Winter Evening" bearings. There's hardly any in the Lunchbox so if any go bad it's not a big deal.

Plus, friends don't let friends run plastic bushings.