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Considering a non-Tamiya for the collection

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I’m really happy with my rere Tamiyas, however being new to RC cars I’m curious to test out one of the others. I originally wanted to go for something bleeding edge technology, but it seems like most reputable cars have a history. I considered the Redcat Racing Tornado, but there is a lot of negative reviews out there. Then I stumbled over a preowned Team Associated B44.3 with tons of spare parts for a very good price, however a friend said there is a reason to hoard parts when owning these, and they require constant maintenance. And they are not really for bashing. So now I’m considering the Traxxas Bandit VXL (for twice the price of the B44.3) Anyway it will rarely see a track, if at all.  I would appreciate any opinions or insight on the matter. 

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I've tried a few other brands and models; here are my thoughts:

- 3Racing (Sakura D3 and Sakura D4 drift chassis):  The initial price is relatively inexpensive, but typically upgrades are required to fix small issues -- add another 30-50% to the kit price.  With the D3 I needed to add center and rear aluminum belt tensioners, a better steering rack, and optional Bando belts.  Once finished, I couldn't even install a full-size hardcase LiPo to run the car because the rigid side hoops and position of the upper deck forced the battery to come in at an angle.  In the end I had to cut the side hoops off the chassis to be able to slip in a LiPo from the side.  The D4 was a step up with most of these issues corrected.  The one odd thing I found with the D4 was the plastic threaded shock bodies were slightly undersized and the threaded ride height collar would skip and lose its setting.  I had to install leftover Tamiya CVA clips above the threaded collars so they would hold position.  Very weird.  I've been reading other build threads and comments on the latest FGX 2018 EVO F1 chassis, and it sounds like the front camber/caster block is weak; lightly tapping the boards on a track will cause that block to break and then the suspension just dangles.  Overall impression:  Their plastics leave something to be desired, but the designs have been more exciting lately with their 2K18 Advance, Mini MG Evo, and M4 releases.  The starting prices are attractive at times, but expect to spend something to fix basic issues here and there.

- Associated (B4 Factory Team):  For an old-school 2WD rear-motor buggy this is the gold standard for me.  When building the kit I had one part with quality control problems (slipper layshaft and internal gear - sawtooth shaped), but a replacement part was perfect.  The slipper has a full range of adjustment; the ball diff is robust even with a 5000kV brushless system installed.  All the plastics were carbon-reinforced and threaded easily with the included fasteners.  Overall the build experience is very good, driving it is pleasant, and it is durable.  Associated has a good following in the USA so it's likely one will find other racers with the same buggy and can swap setting information with each other.  I can't comment on the B4, B8, RC12, F1, or TC families.  Overall impression:  Associated's racing products look as good as ever, but they are becoming more specialized due to changes in track surfaces both off-road and on-road.  I'm suspicious of some of the less-expensive RTR products because I'm only guessing they're rebranded Thunder Tiger products (Thunder Tiger owns Associated).

- HPI (Blitz ESE Pro and Wheely King):  I haven't looked into short course trucks in years, but when they were getting a lot of press I read a lot of reviews about Associated SC10, HPI Blitz, Kyosho Ultima SC, and others.  In the end I opted for the Blitz ESE Pro as a compromise truck between track performance and basher durability.  During assembly I had one steering bellcrank fastener strip, but I think that was my fault and it drove me to replace my 2 mm hex driver.  Overall the build was good, and the parts were high quality.  My main complaint with the Blitz was the included MIP ball diff was weak.  Given MIP's reputation this surprised me, and I bought a complete diff kit to try a second time.  It still barked and went gritty pretty quickly, so I swapped in an Associated SC10 gear diff.  Since then the drivetrain has been perfect.  It's a fun truck to drive, durable, and a good build with the exception of the diff.  The Wheely King was purchased as a RTR; I later extended the wheelbase with HPI's crawler conversion set.  The plastics are on the soft side, but this helps it absorb impacts.  It's been a durable truck.  At this point, about 7 years after purchase, I find the O-rings in the dampers are possibly swelling as the shafts are sticking.  It takes some movement to free up the dampers again.  I have a Savage XS SS kit still NIB, but most build threads I've read suggest it's a pretty good truck.  Overall impression:  I like HPI based on these products (and the numerous on-road bodies I bought); I wish they were as financially stable and prevalent as they used to be.  I'd buy more HPI product if parts support was better and I had a sense they would be around longer.

- OFNA/Hong Nor (NEXX8 and JL10e):  OFNA used to sell Hong Nor and Hobao product, but OFNA doesn't exist anymore.  Hong Nor disappeared as well, but they reappeared last year and are working on their distribution network.  The NEXX8 was my first 1/8 e-buggy, and I liked it.  It came as an 80% roller, but I tore it down and inspected everything.  The diffs needed more oil, but overall the car was in good shape.  I liked the narrow chassis design and dual 2S LiPo pack arrangement; it was reasonably balanced from side to side.  Durability was very good; I bashed it a lot and the straight-cut pinion and ring gears for the diffs held up very well.  The plastic spur gear also held up well.  No complaints about this buggy at all.  The JL10e shaft-drive touring car chassis also shipped as an 80% roller, but had some minor issues.  The first thing to do before even running it is rebuild the ball diffs with better thrust bearings.  The dampers have more friction than normal.  The steering bridge was a little close to the front pilot shaft and would rub; it needed adjustment to clear the pilot shaft joint cup.  The battery tray design was very inconvenient.  I bought an Exotek graphite conversion kit on closeout, and that combined with some hex screws and better dampers made it a very nice touring chassis.  Overall impression:  I'd buy a Hong Nor 1/8 again; the first one was that good.  As far as touring cars go, I would not buy another JL10e as 3Racing's Sakura XI Sport has clearly surpassed it.

- RJ Speed (Sport 3.2 and Digger):  These are really basic FRP pan car designs that show their design age -- this is basically resurrected BoLink product.  The quality of the materials is fine; the assembly process goes very quickly.  They're pretty durable thanks to the simple design and materials.  Two things kind of bugged me; first, these only run foam tires or capped foam tires.  If you wanted to try touring tires it would require designing your own conversion.  Second, the body posts are plastic hex bolts.  This means the body post holes are pretty large.  Suspension movement is minimal, like most pan cars.  Realistically the Sport 3.2, LTO, and Legends are best for spec-class racing on carpet.  The Digger was never a serious car; it was meant for goofy bashing.  The dragsters and sprint car kits are pretty specialized.  Overall impression:  They're a niche brand with some entry-level products.  Materials and design are fine.  Application are limited to specific settings, not general street bashing.

Given I live in the USA and have access to certain retailers more easily than others, if Tamiya disappeared tomorrow I'd still get my RC fix through other brands as follows:

  • Associated:  2WD and 4WD buggies, 1/8 e-buggy and truggy (they win races)
  • Axial and RC4WD:  trail trucks, crawlers, monster trucks (installed fan base = lots of custom parts)
  • CRC:  pan cars and F1 (they win races)
  • 3Racing:  touring, drift, and Mini chassis (most improved/interesting in the last 5 years?)

There are definitely other brands that may be more local to you (ala Serpent, Schumacher, etc.).  I have no sense of benefit/cost with these brands, so no comment.

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17 hours ago, MICHAELs TopForce17 said:

If going traxxas check out the slash starts at 189usd and lots of videos on YouTube for upgrades etc. If you want to save a little you can get a roller on eBay for like 100usd or less.

The Bandit and the Land Rover is the only Traxxas designs I can tolerate, the others look like over-inflated plastic pool toys. 

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Another Traxxas fan.

I changed 3 of our families bashers from WT-01's to Stampedes (over inflated plastic pool toys) but they JUMP soooooo good on a BMX track. if your not after the Jumping and crashing that I need them to stand up to- then the Rustler or Bandit are great as well.

I have not had any problems with ours.

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12 minutes ago, Baddon said:

Another Traxxas fan.

I changed 3 of our families bashers from WT-01's to Stampedes (over inflated plastic pool toys) but they JUMP soooooo good on a BMX track. if your not after the Jumping and crashing that I need them to stand up to- then the Rustler or Bandit are great as well.

I have not had any problems with ours.

I can see the fun in having a car that jumps good. I just have wierd preferences when it comes to design. The B44.3 is still for sale with racing motor/esc/lipos and a ton of stuff for a lot less money, but I’m really on the fence if I should get such an advanced car for non-track use. 

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Update: In Norway there was 2 remaining Kyosho RB6 among all the shops here, Kyosho discontinued these completely. I managed to get a good deal on one of them as it is superseded by the brushed 6.6. Additional bonus with this one is that it takes stick packs, so I can have the same batteries for all my cars. 

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I believe  when all said and done, to me it[s more of what you want to see, the flavors are endless for all RC vehicles (that's why i build).

when you read on longevity of any RC take into consideration how many of these are produced. i read some where "that this one is stronger and tougher then than that one"  one brand maybe so, but also more of the other brand is in the hands of more drivers thus more broken parts, so personally i remedy this whole problem by owning many different models.

 i like diversity, keeps everything interesting if i had to keep one and only one (a choice i know i'll never have to make) would be my Kyosho MAD FORCE. Now that is indestructible as it gets, for me anyways. 

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Lost Baja Rey is next for me, I think. I think that's the only 1/10 scale four-link suspension that reviews well out there...or at least, easily available for me.

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