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My 4yr old is showing far too much interest in my vintage Bush Devil.

Can anybody recommend a car suitable for kids?

 

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I think most of the Tamiya off-roaders with bigger wheels should fit the bill. 540 motor in them is not too powerful, TEU-101BK is a good speed controller for them, and big tyres can help soak up the bumps and bangs they are bound to suffer.

I have seen a couple of Mad Bull's being hammered on practice nights at one of the local tracks and they seem to soak up pretty much any abuse. Also the Blackfoot Extreme is current and has a similar look to your Bush Devil.

Another thing to bear in mind is the controller - some controllers are better suited to small hands than others, so have a look at them beforehand. I recently had the misfortune of driving a car with the most recent Acoms stick transmitter - the sticks were about 2 inches long and even my hands (I am over 6 foot) struggled to turn full lock left and right! However the Futaba Attack 2ER and latest Kyosho Perfex wheel radio seem well suited to small hands.

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When my son turned 3 I bought him a Pajero XB and it seemed an ideal car for a someone that young and he is now almost 7 and the car is still running with some cracks in the body of course.

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I can also recommend the Mad Bull: bought one for my lad when he was 5, and it took a fearful pounding over the last 2 years as he (and all his buddies) learnt to drive. Total replacment parts required to date: 1 stripped spline hub, one front shock. Sure, i have tightened things up now and again, and i had to revive the ESC after the entire car got submerged in a puddle one soggy afternoon, but i can think of few Tamiya cars that can take such a pounding.

 

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I suggest:

  • rerelease Grasshopper
  • rereleae Hornet
  • blackfoot extreme
  • rerelease lunchbox
  • have a look at the line of XB Expert Builts
  • TamTech Series 

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The Hornet and Grasshopper are weaker than the Lunchbox/Midnight Pumpkin. The front shock towers are a weak point on the buggies.

The TamTechs are small and that makes them very limited when it comes to off road running. Unless you plan och racing indoors I would not recommmend them for a child.

I would definitely go for a Lunchbox (which I believe has a sturdier body than the Pumkin) if I would get a model for a 4 year-old. This weekend I will give my girlfriends nephew an old rwd nitro truck when he turns five.

I really second the comments on a small transmitter! It's a more important factor for how much fun the kids think RC is that most of us think. The Futaba 2ER is good for kids as is the old Hitech Challenger 250. The smallest wheel type transmitter I can think of is the old Hitec Challenger 260. For some reason the wheel type transmitters have only become bigger and bigger since the arrived. Not very child/small hand friendly when you think of it.

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The Hornet and Grasshopper are weaker than the Lunchbox/Midnight Pumpkin. The front shock towers are a weak point on the buggies.

Well, I've never had a problem.  But I don't drive off of cliffs. Let us know what you choose & how the little one likes it.  

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I would go with an old clodbuster. With the econemy switch on they are pritty slow and are really thougth trucks, great for abusing. If you're kid gets board of it you should be able to sell it on easily or you could make a crawler out of it. Just my 2p.

Tupers

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Honestly I would start out with a toy store type of R/C car.  They will be slow enough for them to control and durable enough to take some hits.  Once they have gained confidence, then move on to something bigger and faster

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I would agree with those saying Mad Bull. It's not pretty but they are tough, easy to get bits for and can go on a variety of terrain.

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Wild willy would be pretty much indestructable. But not alot of fun due to all the rollign over.

 

The Clod is not something I would have thought of at all, but infact, I think that is a super idea. The points are all valid. Just a bit heavy and fiddly if soething does break.

 

Otherwise a hornet re re with max 1600mAh batteries.   Low spec batteries are your best bet to keep WHATEVER car you give in one piece longer.

 

Cool gift! [:)]

 

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Good call "Shodog" Tamiyas might be a little on the speedy side even with the ancient 540 installed. A toy store car or truck would be a little better for handling and front yard running.

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Good call "Shodog"

 I just speak from experience of what happened with my son when he was 7.  We bought a falcon at a garage sale and within a few runs, it ended up smacking a neighbors brick wall.

 

img34_09062003164216_5.jpg

 

img34_09062003164216_6.jpg

Now he has an Associated T3 which is much more durable

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My son got a reissue Lunchbox at the age of 5 1/2. (last christmas)

He has no problem controlling it after a few practice runs on a football field. Learn them the basics first (like the brake function...), and joint them when racing, then you'll have fun with your son, and you will be able to teach him as he goes.

Nothing has broken yet on his LB, even after some serious confusion about what's left and right [:)]

Now he is chasing my Avante 2001 whenever we drive together...

-Lars

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Wild willy with a 380 in it I reckon. Thats what I'm going to do. Looks comical enough, and still robust.

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Honestly I would start out with a toy store type of R/C car.  They will be slow enough for them to control and durable enough to take some hits.  Once they have gained confidence, then move on to something bigger and faster

I would have to disagree about the "toy" grade cars. They may be slow and relativeley sturdy, however they are also effectively unrepairable and you don't get the same level of fine control on the steering and throttle as you would with a "hobby" car. Those last two points are very important if you want longer term satisfaction from the car, and if you want the child to learn to drive better with it.

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The only 'cheapy' cars I would consider are the TL-01b clone chassis buggies and trucks sold on eBay.  These things are great to train the kids before they get a hobby class RC.  The TL-01b clone I bought has lasted through all 4 boys (under supervision with each use).  They come complete with ball raced car, 7.2v batt 1800mAh, wall charger, radio gear, low end ESC.  Only thing you need to buy is some AA rechargables for the transmitter.  The transmitters are the same style as a Kyosho Perfex, just smaller, perfect for a 5yr old's hands.

The one I bought cost a total of $89AU including the postage.  Can't build a real TL-01b Baja King for that.

In the hands of a good driver they will keep up with a stock Tamiya, build quality and finish however is not as good as a kit you would build yourself. After the kids are finished with it and moved on to a real Tamiya, it becomes a perfect 'visitors' car for when everyone is driving and a visitor is left out.

Mark

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Well I'm with Shodog on this one. Start 'em slow and let them work up to something more advanced as their skill improves. Also, if you issue them with expensive stuff to start with then you'd better have pretty deep pockets when they decide they want to get something "better".

I started my kids off with a couple of old-school Quick-drive Thundershots, which they drove to death.  They have moved on to Hornets now, and a Baja Champ. Hornets are pretty tough and can be fixed with spare bits of plastic, hotmelt glue and rubberbands!  They also have an old Clod to run around. They are nice and slow, can go over most things and they can carry stuff - very important when you are a kid!  Sometimes it looks like a big green rabbit:

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.a...356&id=2193

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Thanks for the massive respose, we have a large rugby field & cricket pitch out the back so space isn't an issue.

 

Think i'll go for a tamiya, just need to decide whuch one.

 

Thanks again.

 

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the RC boys cars are great for little people, I just built one for My mate's lad, I left him with the stickers and painting the dude and he did a pretty good job of both.

The small motor means a reasonable speed and the uncomplicated build lends itself to a strong bashable unit.

The bearings cost more than the car and I had a spare ESC soi was cheap enough to put on the road with a 35 quid radio set.

I totally agree with the madbull but this costs a little more for what could be a passing fad.

I've seen the RC boys cars for as cheap as 18 USD NIB.

RF

They also have realy good looking wheels and tyres

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The rerelease grasshopper comes with a 380 motor (nice & slow & controllable) and can easily be upgraded to a 540 size as the young one grows accustomed to it.

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If your going to be using them mostly on grass then get something with a fair amount of ground clearance, The Midnight Pumpkin and The Lunchbox are a ton of fun and run well on grass....Provided its not to long of course. Grass creates a massive amount of drag and it doesn't have to be very long to cripple a buggy.

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I would recommend the Mad Bull, handling is not fantastic, but my 2 lads started off with Mad Bulls, both buggies have withstood the pounding which they have suffered, and I've only ever had to replace a few bits and pieces, all of which have been very cheap to buy.

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