Buying Advice

[Jerold]

I have a Slash and it's good. It's durable, inexpensive and easy to fix, you can find parts everywhere, and upgradable.

The only thing with that particular one, is you can definitely have fun, but it's not going to be that fast out of the box. Which is fine. You can learn to drive it, work on it, crash it, etc. Then upgrade as you get into it more.

 

[Beto S.]

I haven't read the whole thread, but to clarify a couple things I did read:

mAh is the battery capacity. Think of it like your fuel tank in your car. The bigger it is, the farther your car can go on a tank of gas. But it needs to fit in the car. Typically, the more mAh a battery has, the bigger the battery will be.

Voltage (1s, 2s, 3s, etc) is like the fuel octane. The higher it is, the faster your car will go. 'S' represents the number of LiPo cells the battery has. A single normal LiPo cell has a nominal voltage of 3.7V. When charged it will have 4.2V. So a 2S battery has 2 LiPo cells in it and has a nominal voltage of 7.4V (2 x 3.7V), and a charged voltage of 8.4V (2 x 4.2V). A 3S will have 3 cells and have a nominal voltage of 11.1V (3 x 3.7) and a charged voltage of 16.8V (3 x 4.2V).

When first getting into RC, it will be pretty expensive no matter what you buy because you will also need a charger. And buying a cheap charger is not only a bit risky, but you're just throwing your money away when later on you realize you need a better charger. You can buy LiPo chargers for less than $100, but there isn't a single one out there I would recommend because they are all the same cheap crap. The only entry level charger I would recommend is the Hota D6 Pro, which runs around $120 or so.

But even before that, as recommended, you need to educate yourself on LiPo charging, care, and safety. LiPo's are completely safe, but if not cared for and charged properly, they can be very, very dangerous. You could stick with brushed motor RC's and just stick to NiMh batteries, but NiMh batteries aren't that good compared to LiPo batteries as far as run time and performance are concerned.

The two trucks you listed: one has a brushed motor /ESC (electronic speed control) in it, and will do fine on NiMh battery packs. The Raptor is brushless, and will have to be ran on a LiPo battery, because brushless motors will draw a lot more amperage from the battery, and a NiMh battery cannot deliver that amount of amperage.

You did the right thing by joining here and asking questions before jumping into this great hobby. Keep asking questions. The more you learn before you buy, the better your entry into the RC hobby will be

You’re the man! So many questions answered on one post! Just got a slash for my son and the whole 3000 battery lasting 15 minutes is pretty lame. Do you know if it will handle the 7600 battery or should we stick to the lipo 5000

 

[WickedFog]

You’re the man! So many questions answered on one post! Just got a slash for my son and the whole 3000 battery lasting 15 minutes is pretty lame. Do you know if it will handle the 7600 battery or should we stick to the lipo 5000

As I said, the mAh can be whatever will fit in the RC. The bigger that is, the longer your run time will be. But higher mAh can also mean a bigger battery. The higher mAh also helps with the C rating, but let's not get into that yet. Typically, most bashers stick to around 5000mAh for their 2s batteries. But if you can find a 7600mAh battery that will fit, you're fine.

More mAh also equates to more weight. So at some point you might notice a little more sluggishness. But I doubt you will notice that going from 5000mAh to 7600mAh.

By the way, they do make a battery strap for the Slash to accommodate bigger batteries. Traxxas sells one. Part number TRA5827X. This will allow for batteries that are 42mm tall.

Also, the higher the C rating is, should mean the ability to deliver more amperage, meaning a better battery. But even a battery that claims 100C is typically only delivering around 35C max. So for C rating, just stick with anything over 60C, which should be more than fine for a 2wd Slash. But it is typically considered that higher C rating is better.

So what charger did you end up with?

 

[Beto S.]

Thanks man!

Charger wise, it comes with one in the box but seems to be charging slow even with the 45w adapter. I’ll be looking into purchasing the EZ Peak Dual and buy couple extra batteries.

 

[WickedFog]

Thanks man!

Charger wise, it comes with one in the box but seems to be charging slow even with the 45w adapter. I’ll be looking into purchasing the EZ Peak Dual and buy couple extra batteries.

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I would highly advise you to steer clear of Traxxas batteries and chargers. Unless you don't plan on any other RC cars.

 

[Beto S.]

Uh oh! I don’t plan on it but I heard it’s pretty addicting

 

[9x19]

The brushed motors and NiMh batteries like you have are a little different from the brushless and LiPo batteries.

The mAh ratings still directly affect your run times, and your charging time. It simply takes longer to pump a higher mAH battery full of juice.