TO MONSTER, OR NOT TO MONSTER? THAT IS THE QUESTION

[carnage 0]

I have been considering treating myself to a monster truck. loved the idea when i was young nipper when i had a nikko. but things changed i got older and wanted to go faster but realised monster trucks arent really for hammering through corners as fast asyou possibly can!!!!. although i want a monster truck that can handle some light-medium off road with some pace and have the characteristics to handle it. i have seen vids of people using monster trucks and just watching them barrel roll when they turn in and there not really going all that fast, i guess its because they are top heavy and high off the ground.i was looking at something like a blackfoot for going over gravel, light dust and a few medium bumps and jumps.

not really looking to get it caked in mud or trying to see if it will swim or anything.so any recomendations would be welcome. i do like the look of the blackfoot as it seems a little lower to the ground and not as stocky as a lunchbox or a midnight.

i would like to know the "cons" as well as the "pros" the former not being discussed much in the tamiya guidbook (naturally!!! its their own propduct)

regards

CARNAGE

[Jcbiker 0]

for a nitro basher... i dont think you can beat a savage.. any of em.

for a high spec basher/racer... LST2

[Allanto 0]

You want to get sharp turns, good handling , and some serious speed for this you need a hot motor and a light vehicle a buggy would handle the the light off roads like you require , sounds like you dont want a monster truck but a buggy would be perfect.

 

I will here specify what i would advise , A tamiya Rising Storm (electric) upgraded with a Orion Revolution V2 Touring 12x1 Hi Speed .. motor on modelsport.co.uk its priced at 56.99 pound

[mymonsterbeetleisbroken 16]

RC monster trucks are great fun []

i was never really interested in on road rc or buggies when i started out, my first taste of proper radio control stuff was with a monster beetle and a clod buster.

now, seeing as you want a truck that wont roll over too easy, has some pace and can handle off roading, i'd say go for something like a twin detonator, wild dagger, blackfoot extream.

tamiyas other monsters, the clod buster and txt-1 are better for either crawling or modifying - although both are great fun, so you might want to look into either of those. the txt-1 is expencive - but very impressive truck, it just wont win any speed records with the stock motors []

you will find that the lunchbox and pumpkin tip over easy, but thats really what they are designed to do [] but for the price they can be picked up for, its worth having one []

so my monster truck recommendations for looking into are...

tamiya - twin detonator, wild dagger, blackfoot extream, double blaze, king blackfoot, pumpkin, lunchbox and maybe the clod buster and txt-1 if you fancey something bigger. nitro trucks made by tamiya include the terra crusher and TNX.

other makes to look out for, the traxxas emaxx, tmaxx, stampeed and the e-zilla.

you could also go vintage and buy a monster beetle, original blackfoot or mudblaster!

a buggy would also do what you want, but they just dont look as cool as a monster truck in my opinion []

[Mad Ax 9329]

I was in a similar situation, always loved the look of big trucks but never liked the handling problems - one fast corner or badly-placed bump and they turn upside down.  That's why I got into buggies when I got back into Tamiya.

I'd be interested to hear what peeps have to say about latest Tamiya trucks, I personally love the look of the Blackfoot Extreme and have a strong desire to own one, however I'm not sure how good they really are out of the box.

FWIW, I recently bought a Midnight Pumpkin and found it to be absolutely awful on anything other than very smooth gravel or tarmac - the primitive suspension isn't up to any kind of rough ground.  Not only does it roll, it also bump-steers, meaning you basically have no directional control once the speed gets up.  And it's really slow compared to a stock 4wd buggy...

In comparison, my first ever monster - a Nissan King Cab - was really planted, went quick and seemed to handle well.  I later bought a Mud Blaster, which wasn't as fast and didn't have so many adjustable parts in stock trim, and was a little more inclined to roll.  The King Cab was a more advanced model and had much better suspension setup as standard, IIRC.

Personally I'm tempted to go for a Blackfoot Extreme or Twin D - basically the same car, but the Twin D has 4wd twin engines, so in theory will handle better and accelerate faster....

hope that helps []

[Allanto 0]

If your using your trucks for off road the logic would quickly sujest TD because of 4wd, but a good suspension and a well placed stock motor and a good chasssis i suppose could outperform an average stock 4wd from tamiya. but if the 2wd blackfoot is just the usual stock set up from tamiya the 4 wd will rule, Especially when you put 3 1/2 or 4inch oil shocks on however this is inclined to roll more but i have read the TD is very capable stable and strong, so on that verdict my final opinion would say the TD. (you can buy the blackfoot plastic exterior body shell i should think if you wanted)

 

I hope this helps Mad Ax

[mymonsterbeetleisbroken 16]

I recently bought a Midnight Pumpkin and found it to be absolutely awful on anything other than very smooth gravel or tarmac - the primitive suspension isn't up to any kind of rough ground.  Not only does it roll, it also bump-steers, meaning you basically have no directional control once the speed gets up.  And it's really slow compared to a stock 4wd buggy...

its true that the pumpkin is no mean off road monster. but the whole point of it is to be a fun to drive, wheelie popping truck [] with some mods they can be made to handle better, espicially oil shocks and adjustment to the front suspension angles. tamiya still make them, so they can't be that bad can they []

i think the twin detonator would be a very wise choice, the blackfoot extream has a hard plastic body, which can break on impacts, and adds weight to the truck. TD has a lexan shell. the double blaze is tamiyas newest truck on that chassis, its basicly the same as a twin detonator as far as i know.

the twin detonator has been critisized for having short suspension travel, but it should be ok as it doesnt sound like you want to go rock crawling []

[Allanto 0]

Yes im getting the td for rock crawling and some good offroad what list of hop up parts should i get, (please specify make if possible and wear to get them, what chassis is the TD because on tamiya.com it says TL01 but many people disagree with that.)

[Mad Ax 9329]

I recently bought a Midnight Pumpkin and found it to be absolutely awful on anything other than very smooth gravel or tarmac - the primitive suspension isn't up to any kind of rough ground.  Not only does it roll, it also bump-steers, meaning you basically have no directional control once the speed gets up.  And it's really slow compared to a stock 4wd buggy...

its true that the pumpkin is no mean off road monster. but the whole point of it is to be a fun to drive, wheelie popping truck [] with some mods they can be made to handle better, espicially oil shocks and adjustment to the front suspension angles. tamiya still make them, so they can't be that bad can they []

I agree - in fact I spent most of yesterday modifying the pumpkin chassis to drop the front suspension (just used some spare rubber tubing to lock it down) and mounted a battery holder under the rear tray, so it now wheelies on throttle without having to reverse.  My efforts to decrease the hideous turning circle and get some kind of control over which direction it goes have failed miserably, tho

[Rabiedmushroom 2]

I have a Wild Dagger (same chassis as Twin Detonator & the newest Blackfoot) and it goes everywhere my husband's Baja Champ goes (i.e. long flat jumps, on the flat, speed, good ground clearance). They only place it is less capable is scrabbling up a steep dirt slope, but that is more to do with a higher centre of gravity and desperatley needing some new grippy tyres!

In some ways it is more capable than my Bullhead & the Jugg2; its quicker, covers the same ground but is much better at jumping stuff.

Yes sometimes it rolls, but that's down to over-enthusiastic driving, but 50% of the time it seems to land back on its wheels.

There are also loads of hopups available for this chassis now; both performance & twinckly bits.

For what Carnage is looking for, it sounds just the ticket. Just a choice between the 3 as to preferred bodyshell.

[Corpse Thrower 16]

I just built a Blackfoot Xtreme, not impressed with those shocks one bit!!

Body looks like it could take a heap of punishment, although I reckon those spotties would go on the first rollover. Lexan is the go for a runner.....If I ever run mine I'll put the TXT body on it.

Twin Det and its derivatives: Does 1 motor run forwards and 1 backwards? Wouldn't that narrow the motor choice down a bit if you wanted to go faster?

With the blackfoot it would seem that you could run any motor you liked, being 2wd.....the gears look like they could take some power, too....same gears in the 4wd's?

[mobias 0]

Hi Carnage

I was in exactly the same position a few months ago and I would without any hesitation reccomend getting a TXT-1. They have recently been disscontinued by Tamiya but if you hurry and get yourself over to Ebay this very moment there is a NIB going for $288 from Hong Kong, a bargain compared to what you would pay in your LHS.

If you get one from Ebay you can ignore the fact that they're a blatant rip off. No ESC, two highly underperforming motors and its not even fully ball raced. HOWEVER it is a thing of wonder when you finally get it built (building it of course is fun in itself, something you don't get with the pre-built trucks obviously) it really looks incredible. You may get a lot more performance out of the box with the T-Maxx's and Savage's of this world but they don't look even half way as good as the TXT. The TXT does almost hark back to the day of vintage Tamiya realism like the Bruiser, the aluminium chassis frame really looks the business. Its a beast of a truck and the Blackfoots and Twin Detonators of this world look tiny compared to it.

And when people say it will drive over anything they aint kidding you. The speed issue might well take a back seat for you once you realise that not even a kerb or a small boulder is going to get in your way. Its a very different and fun driving experience if you are used to a buggy flying all over the place. Anyway depending on the size of your wallet you can get TXT's up to fantastic speeds. Get two low turn modified motors a super powerful ESC and only engage two wheel steering and you'll be wheelying everywhere without to much turning problem, especially if you buy axle wideners, they're not to expensive.

So TXT-1 Pros - Looks amazing and really, really big.

- Arguably the only Tamiya monter truck which is a true monster truck.

- Great driving experience

- You get a free second body with it to customise

- A fun building experience, if that matters to you

- lots of hop up options

-reletively cheap if you get it off Ebay (fast)

TXT-1 Cons - Pretty dreadful performance 'out of the box'

- VERY expensive if you don't get it off Ebay

- hop ups tend to be pricey for all monster trucks, and you tend to want them or at least convince yourself that you need the 'bling bling' you see on everybody elses trucks. Its wallet breaking stuff.

- Tamiya don't actually make it anymore. But it is still hugely popular so spares won't be a problem. Its such a great design that I would be suprised if we don't see a similar truck in the near future from Tamiya.

So hurry and get yourself over to Ebay.

Toby

[Allanto 0]

So what about a TD for off roading is it capable after 4inch shocks are installed or does it underperform. I like the idea of rock crawling, but im not expecting it to do that without spending 100-200 pounds.

[mymonsterbeetleisbroken 16]

So what about a TD for off roading is it capable after 4inch shocks are installed or does it underperform. I like the idea of rock crawling, but im not expecting it to do that without spending 100-200 pounds.

Well...

the twin detonator has independent suspension.

any true offroad fan will tell you that to go well over rough ground, you need solid axels with multi link suspension, just like the txt-1. i'm not sure about the twin detonator as i've never driven one, but my txt-1 has over 9 inches of suspension travel and will climb over just about anything - it is without doubt the best off road monster tamiya make if you want to go over really rough ground.

a truck with independent suspension wont be able to rock crawl as well as a truck with solid axels. the TD is a type of "truggy", a buggy that looks like a monster truck.

if you want to rock crawl, spend that £200 in a txt-1 or modified clod buster - or spend a bit less and go for a modified tamiya tlt-1.

[Allanto 0]

Thanks that helped i suppose i dont really need it to rock crawl as i am strggling anyway to think of somewhere to do it.

 

Im not sure my budget will stretch that far for a TXT-1 as i still need batter batteries paint tools and radio control and a charger.

[carnage 0]

WOW!!!! thanks for all your replies. Well i see alot of you mentioned the txt1but for what i want just dont see the point really. Im not going to be climbing over massive rocks and stuff. i will only really be running it in gravel some slightly bumpy dirt track areas and grass and tarmac maybe with one or two jumps thrown in. i looked at a twin detonator but dont really want to have to deal with two engines and i really, also i would guess the run times are less if your using two motors? would like a 2wd for the dougnuts and getting the back end out a bit. i love the nostalgic look of the monster beetle and the blackfoot extreme. I personally think a 2wd monster truck is what i would like really for light-medium off road running, and would enjoy the task of cotrolling a heavy 2wd off road!!!

looking to buy new in box as well so if anyone knows a good online stor with cheap prices or is selling of something along the lines of what i am looking for then let me know.

thanks again for all your replies.

[HomerJHandley 6]

i have a bush devil i got from fleabay.

in reverse the wheels sometimes like to wobble, at anything other than slow it has dire oversteer, BUT compared to my buggy its great fun!

its quite quick with the std kit, i have only rolled it a few times and the only mod is a lexan shell and oil shocks.

its just fun to play with, though the shocks could do with being stiffer (any ideas how?).

also i bought it on the basis of being a basher only, so whilst its not in perfect condition i dont mind if it has a roll or 2, my nephew loves it (though nowhere near for him to use it safely and learn) and whilst donuts/etc need effort to pull off, its more 'fun' to use than a buggy.

Though i may fit the motor in my falcon into the BD, it makes the falcon fly so wonder what the BD will go like!

go for it, though NIB may make you drive it carefully, buy 2nd hand off ebay, cheaper and may get higher spec than if new! i have my BD with new body and oilshocks (separate) for about £80ish, cheaper than most new MT's!