Please help with RC Car choice
Discussion
Hi All,
Hoping some of you might be able to help finding me an RC car suitable for my needs.
It's been a long time since I've driven an RC car but got a RC helicopter for christmas (just a small indoor one) which was brilliant fun and it's made me really want to get a car again.
I'm lucky enough to live mins walk from Crystal Palace so would be intending to join the club and race there.
I'd like to get something around £200 that wouldn't be massively slower than everyone else. Watching the cars at the track they look incredibly fast - much more so than when I raced as a child.
Do I get nitro or electric? - as a child i always wanted a petrol car, they seemed faster and no waiting for batteries charging. I've read that the nitro cars aren't as reliable as electric and can be troublesome though so am unsure.
What scale to get? - What's the most popular for racing? Again from watching at C.P. it often looks like the smaller cars are much quicker than the bigger ones. Think 1:10 is fine for me and maybe cheaper too. The 1/5th scale cars look fantastic though.
Type? - I like the look of touring/rally/saloon/sports cars and was wandering if its possible to have that type that's good on track and ok off road?
Using in wet? - I've seen on some cars they're advertised as having waterproof servos but not on others. Does this mean you should not use any car not advertised as'waterproof' in the rain? Used to use my old RC cars in the rain, maybe I shouldn't have?
Hope none of these questions are too stupid and thanks in advance for any help.
I searched these out and would be grateful for any feedback:
http://www.hpieurope.com/kit-info.php?partNo=10594...
Is there any difference between these 2?
http://www.modelsport.co.uk/thunder-tiger-ts-4n-sp...
http://www.modelsport.co.uk/thunder-tiger-tomahawk...
Please if anyone has any ideas or link for info etc please share.
Many thanks,
Sam
Hoping some of you might be able to help finding me an RC car suitable for my needs.
It's been a long time since I've driven an RC car but got a RC helicopter for christmas (just a small indoor one) which was brilliant fun and it's made me really want to get a car again.
I'm lucky enough to live mins walk from Crystal Palace so would be intending to join the club and race there.
I'd like to get something around £200 that wouldn't be massively slower than everyone else. Watching the cars at the track they look incredibly fast - much more so than when I raced as a child.
Do I get nitro or electric? - as a child i always wanted a petrol car, they seemed faster and no waiting for batteries charging. I've read that the nitro cars aren't as reliable as electric and can be troublesome though so am unsure.
What scale to get? - What's the most popular for racing? Again from watching at C.P. it often looks like the smaller cars are much quicker than the bigger ones. Think 1:10 is fine for me and maybe cheaper too. The 1/5th scale cars look fantastic though.
Type? - I like the look of touring/rally/saloon/sports cars and was wandering if its possible to have that type that's good on track and ok off road?
Using in wet? - I've seen on some cars they're advertised as having waterproof servos but not on others. Does this mean you should not use any car not advertised as'waterproof' in the rain? Used to use my old RC cars in the rain, maybe I shouldn't have?
Hope none of these questions are too stupid and thanks in advance for any help.
I searched these out and would be grateful for any feedback:
http://www.hpieurope.com/kit-info.php?partNo=10594...
Is there any difference between these 2?
http://www.modelsport.co.uk/thunder-tiger-ts-4n-sp...
http://www.modelsport.co.uk/thunder-tiger-tomahawk...
Please if anyone has any ideas or link for info etc please share.
Many thanks,
Sam
I used to race 1/10th touring electric but the batteries, motors and chargers became like an arms race and I couldn't keep up, so I went racing nitro touring with an HPI RS4 and did pretty good.
HPI are good kits and have good hop ups and spares back up, they also handle getting a bit beat up, make sure you fit a foam bumper guard (I used to cut up garden kneeling pads) don't be too worried about people having mega money cars, your driving will be the key factor for quite a while, I won my first race with a standard RS4 electric with just a set of ball races and a 17t single motor.
HPI are good kits and have good hop ups and spares back up, they also handle getting a bit beat up, make sure you fit a foam bumper guard (I used to cut up garden kneeling pads) don't be too worried about people having mega money cars, your driving will be the key factor for quite a while, I won my first race with a standard RS4 electric with just a set of ball races and a 17t single motor.
Thanks mate, good to hear.
Realistically I doubt I'll ever get to do more than a couple of races a year but there's usually a lot of folk that go and practice. Always seems a fantastic mix of cars there..
It's the same at track days - all about the driver - not necessarily how much you spend..
lol - I'll be slow at both then!
Realistically I doubt I'll ever get to do more than a couple of races a year but there's usually a lot of folk that go and practice. Always seems a fantastic mix of cars there..
It's the same at track days - all about the driver - not necessarily how much you spend..
lol - I'll be slow at both then!
Wheels and tyres is what you'll need a few of, foam inserts for the tyres of different compounds and superglue the tyres to the rims to stop them ripping off. Get a few spares for the drive line when you race.
Just get the car built and practice with it first or go to the races and see others with the sane chassis and get some tips on common improvements etc.
Just get the car built and practice with it first or go to the races and see others with the sane chassis and get some tips on common improvements etc.
With touring car style rc, the biggest advance for me came with the understanding of set up
Once I had a set up and the gauges to ensure it was the same each week and after any major crashes I could concentrate on driving and speed
Got to be pretty good at club level
Think you'd need more than £200 to compete even with the indoor mardaves if you're starting from scratch
Once I had a set up and the gauges to ensure it was the same each week and after any major crashes I could concentrate on driving and speed
Got to be pretty good at club level
Think you'd need more than £200 to compete even with the indoor mardaves if you're starting from scratch
With touring car style rc, the biggest advance for me came with the understanding of set up
Once I had a set up and the gauges to ensure it was the same each week and after any major crashes I could concentrate on driving and speed
Got to be pretty good at club level
Think you'd need more than £200 to compete even with the indoor mardaves if you're starting from scratch
Once I had a set up and the gauges to ensure it was the same each week and after any major crashes I could concentrate on driving and speed
Got to be pretty good at club level
Think you'd need more than £200 to compete even with the indoor mardaves if you're starting from scratch
Most clubs welcome new members, and will do a lot to help you get started. They might even have a spare car available for you to race.
Chances are someone at the club will have a spare setup for sale. The top guys are always upgrading to the latest cars, and some replace their batteries a couple of times a year.
You might even get a decent secondhand 40meg radio setup, as a lot of people are switching to 2.4gig.
Even at a small club like ours (WCRCCC), we have enough spare kit to get a new racer started.
Chances are someone at the club will have a spare setup for sale. The top guys are always upgrading to the latest cars, and some replace their batteries a couple of times a year.
You might even get a decent secondhand 40meg radio setup, as a lot of people are switching to 2.4gig.
Even at a small club like ours (WCRCCC), we have enough spare kit to get a new racer started.
2.4gig radios search for a free channel each time you switch them on, so, in theory, a frequency clash is impossible. No crystals to swap.
Something to be aware of, though. We have had several instances of 2.4gig receivers playing up after a crash. They can become "un-bound" from the transmitter, so the car will refuse to run until you go through the binding process. This means your race is over.
I'd rather have a decent secondhand 40meg radio than a cheap new 2.4gig.
Something to be aware of, though. We have had several instances of 2.4gig receivers playing up after a crash. They can become "un-bound" from the transmitter, so the car will refuse to run until you go through the binding process. This means your race is over.
I'd rather have a decent secondhand 40meg radio than a cheap new 2.4gig.
-thanks for eplaining that - really helpful
I've spoken to a chap at modelsportuk and he has explained a lot about nitro/electric.. Given the high maintenance of the nitro and my lack of time ive decided to go electric. Apparently these are faster and you can get 30mins of run time with the lipo battteries.
He recommended going for the HPI sprint 2 flux as a good starter car and that if i did get serious about racing it would be ok. Also, parts are easy to get hold of and its in budget
However, I've been in contact with my local club and they have advised against the hpi saying even if i modded it it wouldn't be as good/quick as a standard xray t2/t3 suggesting i should go for one of those instead. Of course i'd like to have the best but am unsure if i need it to just have fun.
Also, I discovered i can get a Nissan Skyline R32 body shell for the hpi (the love of my life lol).. Not sure if it would fit on the xray..
Thanks again for your help folks
I've spoken to a chap at modelsportuk and he has explained a lot about nitro/electric.. Given the high maintenance of the nitro and my lack of time ive decided to go electric. Apparently these are faster and you can get 30mins of run time with the lipo battteries.
He recommended going for the HPI sprint 2 flux as a good starter car and that if i did get serious about racing it would be ok. Also, parts are easy to get hold of and its in budget
However, I've been in contact with my local club and they have advised against the hpi saying even if i modded it it wouldn't be as good/quick as a standard xray t2/t3 suggesting i should go for one of those instead. Of course i'd like to have the best but am unsure if i need it to just have fun.
Also, I discovered i can get a Nissan Skyline R32 body shell for the hpi (the love of my life lol).. Not sure if it would fit on the xray..
Thanks again for your help folks
vx220 said:
Providing body is 190mm wide it'll fit most things (tamiyas are only 185)
Xrays are beautifully put together
My last tourer was the first xray, never broke, so smooth and easy to drive fast (once set up)
Thanks again... Really good to hear.. It just so happens there's a xray t3 2012 on eBay that im very tempted by... Comes as a roller but I have no idea what esp, motor, radio etc to get ... Xrays are beautifully put together
My last tourer was the first xray, never broke, so smooth and easy to drive fast (once set up)
Also there's aanother that has just come on that's cheaper and has spares etc..
Do you think it makes more sense going for a second hand xray over the hpi?
Looking at the club it seems they dont have specific rules to run to. Almost anything goes.
as a beginner you could buy a complete used set up for £200 and then upgrade as you get more into it and know what you like / get on with.
Touring cars have two options. Belt or shaft driven. Most (if not all) new cars are belt driven but shaft drive make excellent wet weather cars. Similarly some of the older cars are less precious and easier to weatherproof if you intend to run in all weathers.
Tamiya mini's / mardaves and that ilk of car will be too slow around that track. it was built with nitro in mind!
Something like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/schumacher-mi4-/17097217... would be reasonably competitive. Certainly the car will be more competitive that the driver for at least a season.
In additon you'll need a radio, motor / esc and lipo's. Either trackside at a local club or one of the busier forums will come up trumps.
I am very sure you can can everything one season old for under budget, and have a set up that would not be embarrissing on the track.
happy to help you source stuff if you want, a wanted post on www.eecc.co.uk or www.wlrc.co.uk should resolve everything
as a beginner you could buy a complete used set up for £200 and then upgrade as you get more into it and know what you like / get on with.
Touring cars have two options. Belt or shaft driven. Most (if not all) new cars are belt driven but shaft drive make excellent wet weather cars. Similarly some of the older cars are less precious and easier to weatherproof if you intend to run in all weathers.
Tamiya mini's / mardaves and that ilk of car will be too slow around that track. it was built with nitro in mind!
Something like this http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/schumacher-mi4-/17097217... would be reasonably competitive. Certainly the car will be more competitive that the driver for at least a season.
In additon you'll need a radio, motor / esc and lipo's. Either trackside at a local club or one of the busier forums will come up trumps.
I am very sure you can can everything one season old for under budget, and have a set up that would not be embarrissing on the track.
happy to help you source stuff if you want, a wanted post on www.eecc.co.uk or www.wlrc.co.uk should resolve everything
Gassing Station | Scale Models | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff