1/10 to 1/5 is it worth the investment?

[Suprglf]

I've been in to bashing rc cars for about 3 years. I love pounding the ground with my tmaxx and then tearing it down and rebuilding. Lately I've been watching rc sparks and seeing those guys have a ball with 1/5 scale trucks. My question is, has any of you guys took the leap to the large scale trucks and want to share your thoughts as to whether it's worth the big bucks it takes to get into it?

 

[cbaker65]

I've been in to bashing rc cars for about 3 years. I love pounding the ground with my tmaxx and then tearing it down and rebuilding. Lately I've been watching rc sparks and seeing those guys have a ball with 1/5 scale trucks. My question is, has any of you guys took the leap to the large scale trucks and want to share your thoughts as to whether it's worth the big bucks it takes to get into it?

I did ,I still have mine ,an it does still run!

Just like all of the other RC's ,you will still get tired of running them by yourself!
The 5th scale will always need parts ,an you will still want those specific upgrades as well ,upgrades
for 5th scale are quite expensive ,however you can find some great deals on E-bay for them.

I just got the low budget buggy from KM ,a lot of people said it was no good an parts broke left & right
with them on it ,but I have not broke any parts on mine yet other than a rear shock support ,an that
was my fault on hitting a concrete slab hidden in the grass at the park!

My wife bought me this one for my B-day about 8 years ago from a store on credit ,so if you got credit ,
you can get one at your door step in 2 days!.....

 

[olds97_lss]

I tried it. Got all wound up seeing one at my LHS, was a HPI 5B SS. I bought the kit, built it over a weekend, broke it in, then I think I ran 5 tanks through it in 2 years... and sold it. That was after getting a scorpion short chassis for it to shrink it down a couple inches, getting new tires for it that lasted more than 3 minutes on pavement, rpm arms, front bumper, quieter 5T pipe, RB Innovations air breather system to keep grass/weeds from getting all sucked up inside it... Sold the whole thing for $600 I think to a guy on here.

I didn't have anywhere that fun to run it and I store my rigs inside. I bought it with the hopes that it would be less fussy for winter bashing. The engine was, but my stupid brain didn't think about an ass heavy vehicle that was 2wd and 2" of ground clearance may not be well suited for snow... basically spent an hour getting it stuck and unstuck repeatedly. Then I ran it a couple times in the summer and after running, i'd hit it with a garden hose and simple green, but storing it in my office with my other RC's stunk the entire house up with gas fumes for a week.

If I had a moto cross track or something more than a flat park or skate park to run it in, I may have kept it. But since it was single speed, it just wasn't that fun to run around in places I had to run it. Also, 2wd brakes on a heavy rig like that meant planning ahead when you needed to stop. If I did it again, I'd look for a 4wd MT, but I'd still have the issues with places to run it and the smell of 1:1 gas in my house.

 

[Suprglf]

I've got a 5 acre field and a 4x4 Kubota so there's tons of potential as far as having somewhere to throw down. Mostly whats holding me back now is like what cb65 was saying about driving by yourself. Now if I could find a few interested individuals in the area to team up with it would be game on!

 

[cbaker65]

I've got a 5 acre field and a 4x4 Kubota so there's tons of potential as far as having somewhere to throw down. Mostly whats holding me back now is like what cb65 was saying about driving by yourself. Now if I could find a few interested individuals in the area to team up with it would be game on!

When ,or if you do decide to get one ,make sure that you get one that you will enjoy!
I enjoyed my Baja to a certain extent ,If I would had thought about it an taken my time ,I would
have spent the extra couple of 100 bucks an got a 4x4 one!

I've seen vids of people racing both with a group!....

 

[parks450]

I agree with some here. Spend the extra and get one that's 4x4, I purchased the mtxl and love it. They are easier than nitro, but remember parts can be much more expensive but break less. Are they smart investments, not really. They lose value fast and resale isn't good. But if you plan to just beat it up then go for it. I don't buy one planning to make money on it later, but just to beat the hell out of it.

A lot of people I think buy the wrong one and turn around and think they all suck. But if I owned a 2wd buggy I'd get bored and feel that way to. Not knocking those who own them, just Not my cup of tea. Buy something your already into and use that as a starting point to look for what you want. If your into trucks, look at the 5ive, mtxl, rampage. Buggies if look at a dbxl, kraken, hpi among some other good ones.

 

[olds97_lss]

The Kraken looks bad ass. Not sure of it's durability or parts support though. Pretty steep buy in too.

 

[cbaker65]

Don't get me wrong ,my buggy is still a joy to run ,when I get time or get the itch to run it ,but
I've been involved in RC's for more than 20 years an got kind of burned out on them ,an plus my
bro -in law & sister quit coming down to visit with their RC's!...

I'm going to try to get back into planes again ,working on one now in which will be my first electric
plane ,it will help me to get back into the swing of flying ,then get another nitro one going again
as I do have quite a few engines!...

I now have real bad arthritis from working with my hands all these years ,makes it hard to cruch the
little parts & tools!.....

 

[Suprglf]

I'm thinking I'm gonna go for something like the Losi 5ive.

 

[robmob]

If you have the room to run, a 5th scale is the way to go. 40 minutes of runtime per tank and gas is cheap compared to nitro or batteries. All you really need to be concerned with is the receiver batteries and trying to not spend too much money on upgrades.

Lodi 5ive is the way to go for sure. Love mine.

 

[Suprglf]

If you have the room to run, a 5th scale is the way to go. 40 minutes of runtime per tank and gas is cheap compared to nitro or batteries. All you really need to be concerned with is the receiver batteries and trying to not spend too much money on upgrades.

Lodi 5ive is the way to go for sure. Love mine.

I was afraid I would see comments like this! I'm running out of excuses not to get one. Lol

 

[WoodiE]

@Suprglf you're probably not going to like this then... but I have to agree with @robmob. The initial up-front cost can be a bit more out of the gate but the pluses that come with 1/5th scale is just awesome.

With nitro you have to deal with far more engine tuning, whereas 1/5th scale you have almost none - think of it this way, how often do you tune your weedeater? Run times are not only longer but quicker and cheaper - more so when compared to batteries.

The down side is the extra space needed but if you have plenty of space than go for it!

 

[HPIguy]

I'd still have my 1/5 scale is I had people to run with. I did all the known issue fixes on my 5B initially, and other than a broken shock shaft before I had limit straps, I never had an issue with it. And it got bashed plenty hard. The parts on 1/5 rigs are much larger, and thus more durable. But as others have mentioned, they eat up space quickly at speed, so you need a LOT of room to play, and preferably others to run with as well.

 

[Suprglf]

I think my mind is pretty much made up as to whether or not I want to move up. Now it seems I need to research what is available and if I will be satisfied at least for a while with a stock version. Are you guys aware of any good threads heading in that direction?

 

[hamz9561]

I think my mind is pretty much made up as to whether or not I want to move up. Now it seems I need to research what is available and if I will be satisfied at least for a while with a stock version. Are you guys aware of any good threads heading in that direction?

For help with your research, check out our sister site: https://www.largescaleforums.com/

 

[cbaker65]

I think my mind is pretty much made up as to whether or not I want to move up. Now it seems I need to research what is available and if I will be satisfied at least for a while with a stock version. Are you guys aware of any good threads heading in that direction?

Find one that has good parts availability ,an make sure the engine is 26cc an above preferably 30cc!...

 

[Suprglf]

Find one that has good parts availability ,an make sure the engine is 26cc an above preferably 30cc!...

I've looked at a few on Amazon and I'm still thinking the 5t is what I'm after. I believe it comes rtr and a 29cc engine. Is there anywhere to find these things used?

 

[HPIguy]

Before I bought a 5T, I'd make sure that the issues with HPI over the past year have been resolved, and that replacement parts are readily available. I know there were some big issues last year, but haven't looked into it lately. I loved my Baja, but if I were buying a 1/5 scale today, it would not be an HPI. Both for the reasons already stated, and the fact that there are much newer, better designs out there now.

 

[Suprglf]

Before I bought a 5T, I'd make sure that the issues with HPI over the past year have been resolved, and that replacement parts are readily available. I know there were some big issues last year, but haven't looked into it lately. I loved my Baja, but if I were buying a 1/5 scale today, it would not be an HPI. Both for the reasons already stated, and the fact that there are much newer, better designs out there now.

I meant the losi 5ive t but thanks for the heads up on the HPI.

Before I bought a 5T, I'd make sure that the issues with HPI over the past year have been resolved, and that replacement parts are readily available. I know there were some big issues last year, but haven't looked into it lately. I loved my Baja, but if I were buying a 1/5 scale today, it would not be an HPI. Both for the reasons already stated, and the fact that there are much newer, better designs out there now.

I was actually referring to the losi 5ive t, sorry bout that but yeah, thanks for the heads up on hpi.

 

[HPIguy]

No worries, just didn't want you to end up with the heartbreak a lot of others went through. The Losi looks like a great rig, please post some pics and vids of it when you get it!!