Complete Newbie, Looking for Recommendations

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jlvhawk3

RC Newbie
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Hey guys,
I am a complete newbie to RC cars really. My experience really amounts to cheap RC cars bought from Walmart/Target/etc. for my 4 year old son (mostly, can't say I didn't also want them, ha!). We've had fun with these, but frankly, they haven't lasted too long or been very capable. My son is asking for a new RC car for Christmas, and I'm thinking of buying something of better quality this time around. I've spent a couple days reading on here and trying to figure things out, but I'm still a bit overwhelmed.

Here's a bit what I'm looking for...

Budget: ~$100-150 - I'd like to stay in this range, but could maybe stretch to $200 max if I absolutely need to in order to meet our use.

Type/Style/Use: My son is really wanting something he can take offroad. The cheap ones we've had, even if they are an "offroad" model, really only work on pavement or inside. He would really like to be able to take it outside and drive through the lawn or landscaping river rock or mulch, maybe even some muddy areas. Seems like 4WD would be best or is this maybe not as important as I would think?

I've read a lot about RCs that you build and can be customized with aftermarket parts and stuff, but at this point, I think I'm looking more for just something that will work well and be decently reliable/durable out of the box. Maybe someday in the future as he gets older, we'll look in to something with more customization.

Thanks for any help and direction you can provide me. I really appreciate all advice!
 
Here's one that's really close to your price point and is 4WD and is complete it says except for 4X AA batteries for the transmitter. Arma has gotten a good reputation and has support as well as aftermarket support. https://www.horizonhobby.com/produc...ga-4x4-brushed-4wd-mt-green-black-ara102714t1
the Arrma granite is a great truck, very durable, easy to work on (sometimes it can be a pain to get the motor mount assembly to slide off though). it is really nice as it is 4wd.
it is on the higher end of the budget.
i have had conflicting experiences with Exceed/HSP rigs, they are also right around 150-220$, but i dont honestly know how much i recommend them. mine was pretty durable, until it wasn't. ended up snapping a chassis, 2 of 4 rims, diff case, bent ring gear, shock tower turnbuckles. and center drive shaft.
more in your budget, but only available at Hobby Shops is the ECX trucks, they are 2wd&brushed but have been pretty happy so far with their durability. added a 8.4v battery and definitely picked the speed up on it, next upgrade is a brushless system.
 
Thank you D3mon and hamz, appreciate the suggestions! I really think for now, being for a 4 year old, I'm wanting to put a hard stop on 200, and really want to stay more 100-150. Maybe in another couple years if he and I keep interest! The ECX look pretty nice. What are opinions on something like the Traxxas Stampede 2wd (169 on Amazon)?

Its just a little over 150, and I've read good things about Traxxas, but not sure if that holds true for lower end with the use I'm looking for?
 
Oops, I see that one doesn't come with battery and charger so will end up being more than 200 also.
 
Thank you D3mon and hamz, appreciate the suggestions! I really think for now, being for a 4 year old, I'm wanting to put a hard stop on 200, and really want to stay more 100-150. Maybe in another couple years if he and I keep interest! The ECX look pretty nice. What are opinions on something like the Traxxas Stampede 2wd (169 on Amazon)?

Its just a little over 150, and I've read good things about Traxxas, but not sure if that holds true for lower end with the use I'm looking for?
i personally don't care for traxxas, but to each their own and as long as you get an RC and have fun!
as far as battery charger and battery, venom sells a 3000mah NIMH 8.4V battery, and can get a Dynamite Prophet sport mini 50w for 25$ a pop. (50$ for both)
i do think its kind of funny how Traxxas kind of pioneered the "Ready To Run/RTR" (props to them on that) yet i haven't seen a single one of their models include a battery and charger except for promotional stuff.
 
For just starting out I would suggest a Traxxas Stampede 2wd. I have one and it was inexpensive and fun to drive. It comes with everything but the AAs for the transmitter. The brushed motor is pretty slow for our standards but the Grand kids will love it....:)
 
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For just starting out I would suggest a Traxxas Stampede 2wd. I have one and it was inexpensive and fun to drive. It comes with everything but the AA for the transmitter. The brushed motor is pretty slow for our standards but the kids will love it....:)
Did yours come with a battery for the car?
 
Yes, battery and charger. Its a fun truck. I also put a Bigfoot body on it but the wife stole the truck from me...:D

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Arrma Granite Voltage it's on sale now for $84.99 https://www.horizonhobby.com/produc...e-2wd-mega-1-10-mt-rtr-red-blue-p-ara102727t1. It's only 2wd but has big tires so will still go thru most stuff fairly well. Anyway which way you go with the budget you are aiming for if it includes a charger or battery it won't last very long running and the charger won't charge the battery very fast. Add into the cost of whatever you buy the price of another battery and better charger.
 
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Arrma Granite Voltage it's on sale now for $84.99 https://www.horizonhobby.com/produc...e-2wd-mega-1-10-mt-rtr-red-blue-p-ara102727t1. It's only 2wd but has big tires so will still go thru most stuff fairly well. Anyway which way you go with the budget you are aiming for if it includes a charger or battery it won't last very long running and the charger won't charge the battery very fast. Add into the cost of whatever you buy the price of another battery and better charger.
That is a great deal even if it didn't have a charger and battery.
 
Thanks again for the help!

the Arrma Granite Voltage sounds pretty good and like a good price for the quality. If I were to go with that, it leaves plenty of room for an upgraded charger and battery or 2. Would it be worth it to step up to a 2s LiPo for this? What kind of run time increase might that give? Thinking something like this - https://www.horizonhobby.com/produc.../powerstage-bundle---stage-2--2s-lipo-dyn1510
 
I know starting cheap sounds good but ALL my cheap starter crap is now just a clutter in my shop.
Like Tunedpipe I started with a 2wd stampede rtr. battery & charger for $189. now I have over 20 cars & trucks

I get that and usually am not one to want to go too cheap. But when this is going to be almost exclusively for my 4 year old to run around when I'm working around the yard or in the garage, I'm not sure I want to spend too much just yet. I know I'm going to get sucked in and will enjoy driving it around a bit also, but when we're coming from absolute cheap NewBright brand things from Walmart, I think any of these are going to be a huge step up in performance and durability. At least that's my hope!
 
I get that and usually am not one to want to go too cheap. But when this is going to be almost exclusively for my 4 year old to run around when I'm working around the yard or in the garage, I'm not sure I want to spend too much just yet. I know I'm going to get sucked in and will enjoy driving it around a bit also, but when we're coming from absolute cheap NewBright brand things from Walmart, I think any of these are going to be a huge step up in performance and durability. At least that's my hope!

I know the Voltage is cheap but honestly for what it is at it's price it's not that bad. The most common thing is the diff output cups get stripped but they are cheap enough to replace or spend about $15 for some steel cups that will fit and work. It is a step up from a New Bright toy. Replaceable parts and warranty on the electronic parts.

$85 for something he may or not get into or $189 for something that could also end up sitting in the closet the choice is up to you. If you feel you yourself getting into the hobby even if your son doesn't then maybe something like a Stampede would be better. But heck at $85 get one for yourself and your son to go bash together :D

If you don't want to not spend alot on a charger just get a Imax B6. If you feel yourself and your son getting into this RC hobby seriously buy a better charger. Nimhs are best for kids lipos do have dangers and should only be charged and handled by yourself. Having said that lipos would be better for performance than a nimh battery.
 
Alright guys, I'm doing a little bit of rethinking here...

A nice surprise....I knew I'd be getting a work bonus this year, but it turned out quite a bit bigger than I expected! And...I've been reading and watching videos, and I'll be darned if I'm not being tempted a bit :p

I'm thinking about a little bit of future proofing here, whether it be so I can run the RC or that it lasts longer for my son. With this in mind, I'm thinking about jumping to brushless, possibly the Arrma Granite 4x4 BLX. Now I know that my son is not ready (and even me for that matter!) to be driving this thing around with a 3s lipo!

However, I'm wondering if putting in a 7.2v nimh would make this similar performance to what I was looking at with a Voltage on nimh or if the brushless is just that much faster? Also wondering, if I run a nimh in a brushless, it seems like I should be taxing motor and gears much less and could maybe expect less "breakdown" chance and probably longer run times per charge?

Would it be a dumb idea to do this or a nice way of future proofing? I'd say I don't think my son or I will completely quit driving an RC any time soon, so it wouldn't be a wasted RC by any means. But what I don't know is if the performance of the Voltage would be all we'd need for years to come or not...
 
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Alright guys, I'm doing a little bit of rethinking here...

A nice surprise....I knew I'd be getting a work bonus this year, but it turned out quite a bit bigger than I expected! And...I've been reading and watching videos, and I'll be darned if I'm not being tempted a bit :p

I'm thinking about a little bit of future proofing here, whether it be so I can run the RC or that it lasts longer for my son. With this in mind, I'm thinking about jumping to brushless, possibly the Arrma Mega 4x4 BLX. Now I know that my son is not ready (and even me for that matter!) to be driving this thing around with a 3s lipo!

However, I'm wondering if putting in a 7.2v nimh would make this similar performance to what I was looking at with a Voltage on nimh or if the brushless is just that much faster? Also wondering, if I run a nimh in a brushless, it seems like I should be taxing motor and gears much less and could maybe expect less "breakdown" chance and probably longer run times per charge?

Would it be a dumb idea to do this or a nice way of future proofing? I'd say I don't think my son or I will completely quit driving an RC any time soon, so it wouldn't be a wasted RC by any means. But what I don't know is if the performance of the Voltage would be all we'd need for years to come or not...
Just for clarification the "mega" designation is for brushed, NiMh wont really change run time per se, it's all in the Mah rating. LiPo will have a more linear voltage output while NiMh will spike both up and down, and wont be able to hold voltage to the esc as well, it will drop faster under power.
NiMh is nice because it's cheap and more or less maintenance free and less of a hazard if not maintained. NIMH wont be bad as a first battery but eventually you will want to go LiPo. There is always the option of getting a 2s lipo.
 
Just for clarification the "mega" designation is for brushed, NiMh wont really change run time per se, it's all in the Mah rating. LiPo will have a more linear voltage output while NiMh will spike both up and down, and wont be able to hold voltage to the esc as well, it will drop faster under power.
NiMh is nice because it's cheap and more or less maintenance free and less of a hazard if not maintained. NIMH wont be bad as a first battery but eventually you will want to go LiPo. There is always the option of getting a 2s lipo.
all that said i do highly recommend the Granite 4x4 platform, very durable trucks. at this time, my (my lady's) granite is running a 3300kv motor running with a 8.4v NiMh battery. brushless is one of the major factors for run time as well, it started with a brushed setup and would get about 12-15 minutes of run time. went to that brushless setup and now getting about 25-30+ minutes of run time. (stock gearing etc.) with the same battery.
 
Just for clarification the "mega" designation is for brushed, NiMh wont really change run time per se, it's all in the Mah rating. LiPo will have a more linear voltage output while NiMh will spike both up and down, and wont be able to hold voltage to the esc as well, it will drop faster under power.
NiMh is nice because it's cheap and more or less maintenance free and less of a hazard if not maintained. NIMH wont be bad as a first battery but eventually you will want to go LiPo. There is always the option of getting a 2s lipo.

Ahh thanks for the clarification on the mega. Edited my post for clarification.

As far as nimh battery runtime, I guess I maybe didn't ask that very clear either.

So if I put the same mah nimh battery in the brushed Granite Voltage vs the brushless Granite BLX, I was thinking that should get a bit more runtime? Some of the stuff I've read suggests the brushless are more efficient and increase runtimes over brushed, with battery mah being equal.
 
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