I need help……..

[remote uncontrol]

I have a buddy who would like to get started in Rc and I would like your recommendations. I don’t know where to point him other than traxxas. Are there any other brands with good beginner cars.

 

[Chubaka]

Arrma? What the budget and type of ride is interested in?

 

[TRAT]

Basics first. Simple. Stock. Know your system. Never Gas for beginners. My opinion unless you have the patience for it

 

[turbo27]

Off road, or on? Bashing or racing? 2 or 4 wheel drive? Newbe or experienced? Crawling or faster? Is $ an issue?

 

[9x19]

Traxxas probably has the better support network... Associated and Arrma offer some good cars, but often don't have the same level of local support.

If they are OK with online parts orders, any of the majjor brands would be a good start... personally, aside from the crawlers, I don't recommend brushed setups to anyone.

 

[turbo27]

My 1st modern RC was the Traxxas Hoss.

 

[Smilinbri]

Arrma.....

 

[DavidB1126]

Arrma.
If you wanna get Traxxas, Get the 4wd ones, 2wds need a lot of work to be durable. Ask me, I experienced all of it. (With about 2k in debt because of them)

We need more info. What type of car, price, budget, 2wd or 4wd, what size.

Losi Mini T 2.0 / B are good mini cars. Aswell as LC racing, and AE 14 lineup.

Associated has a few onroad and offroad 1/10 stuff.

Losi is another.

Another thing to talk about is parts support and overall support near you, like local tracks and or hobby shops, what they stock, what they know if you or they need help.

I would get a brushless car, a brushed car, will cost you more to keep running. Yes its cheaper from the factory, but brushed electronics burn up way too easily in todays standards. As its the same tech from the 90s. Just go straight to brushless. Use a less powerful battery first, limit throttle EPA, and then you can raise it more as they get used to it.

 

[Hammer Down]

Tell him to run away, far, far away!! It’ll save him a lot of money!!

Jokes aside the Arrma Granite is pretty fun and tough.

 

[Ramp addict]

A 2wd Traxxas VXL Rustler. Faster than hell and easy to work on. It's a blast to drive on and off road, very versatile.

 

[WoodiE]

Arrma, Corally, Associated, Losi, Tamiya, Kyosho, Axial

 

[J’sCrawler]

I will just have to point out that anything cheap upfront will end up costing in the long run. Losi, axial, traxxas, they all seem cheap to me. My LCracing lc12b1 has been great but wasn’t cheap. My Tekno eb48 has been great but wasn’t cheap. My scx24 was cheap but I have sank a fortune into it. My custom built scx10 chassis was a budget build that ended up being around $500 or more. My sendero HD was a $400 RTR only to upgrade the servo and stock radio. it is still running brushed motor and stock esc. My Losi 22s sct was fairly cheap upfront, I burned up 2 brushed motors, went to brushless, got better wheels and tires, it constantly needs new outdrives because it’s slightly overpowered. I was a novice at selecting motors back then. It constantly needs slipper adjustment on different terrain but that is normal, it’s just sensitive I guess. My son has a Hypergo monster truck from amazon and it is a great bargain, it’s very stout, it’s also the brushed truck.
These are just my experiences and thoughts for a newcomer. It’s all up to how much do you have to spend and what do you want to do?

 

[remote uncontrol]

He said he’d pay up to 400. I would say he’s pretty clueless. He said he wants 4wd a good off-road basher. He was recently smitten with the 2wd stampede but I talked him out of it i guess my main question is what truck is good to start with but can be evolved into something more aggressive. If that all makes sense

 

[J’sCrawler]

Well then I’d have to say Tekno, like an sct410.3 since the 2.0 has arrived and you can probably start finding them on eBay for fair prices. Or perhap an eb48.3/2.0, or whatever looks like a good deal. If it’s just a roller or looks dirty just go through the thing and clean it, grease or replace bearings, and maybe replace some of the ball link thingies. Be prepared to possibly be in the $500 range if it still has electronics but that is still a very good deal.
as for arrma or traxxas I can’t recommend a platform because I don’t own any.
LCRacing has an excellent platform they are just 1/14 and 1/12 scale but absolute tanks.
starting off with 2wd makes you learn to drive, and you will appreciate 4wd once you drive that.
rock crawlers are slow and methodical.

 

[9x19]

From my personal experience, the Associated MT10 has been pretty good, the Traxxas Hoss, or Arrma Granite would be about the same, but again it depends on the level of support they need and have easy access to.

 

[Tunedfrog]

Any of those brands mentioned above would be a awesome choice because it's like a Lays potato chip, you can't eat just one.
My only advice I would give is STAY away from those amazon and Banggood specials.
Watching video's may help his decision but I'm also a firm believer that if there is slow motion footage
then chances are the rig is slow. Hard bashing youtube reviews are much better than manufacture posted video's.

 

[turbo27]

I like the Traxxas rigs for a learning curve. Maybe a Hoss, or Rusty. That's what I did. Then got a Sledge. Love it.

 

[J’sCrawler]

There is a Tekno eb48.3( or 4?) on eBay right now with a current bid of $44. That is a 1/8 scale buggy that can take big power and are absolutely tanks. It is just a roller, and looks a bit rusty but…… the seller has some good parts in it. Tekno also offers a 50% credit on parts meaning, you send them parts from the car that have been damaged or whatever and they give you new ones for 50% of the cost, it’s a great warranty and that’s how I built my eb48.
if you want right out of the box ready to roll, then yeah don’t buy a kit or a roller that you would have to rebuild. I can tell you that it is also very fun to build these things. 9 times out of 10 I end up replacing electronics, tires, and servos on any rtr almost immediately. Building is cheaper in the long run I promise you that.
I like the suggestion of the AE monster truck.
where I live I have zero support for anything in existence. No hobby shops here anymore. I order everything exclusively online.
Over on Warren rc there are good deals on the lcracing platform. Buggy, sct, monster truck, or truggy, they are all good and basically the same chassis. I have nothing bad to say about the lcracing stuff. Kit or rtr you can’t go wrong. They make it easy to put a kit together as well, they sell all the electronics, the chassis kit of course, even extra bodies And spare parts.
My lc12b1 is a drift car today, an sct, then a Baja buggy the next day. For mini scale it’s a very fun badger capable platform for a really good price. Built like mini Tekno tanks. Just go brushless!
Obviously I am biased to a few of your many choices

 

[J’sCrawler]

I'm practically shopping for you now! There’s some used Losi 22s sct’s for sale on eBay as well, not a bad starter rig there…… it’s a 2wd truck with a decent chassis. The brushed motors suck but once brushless they really rip.
The only complaint I have with mine is that it was always hard getting the parts I needed. I call them “team discontinued“. I have stripped a diff and have gone through quite a few outdrives but it’s pretty solid. Mine is just slightly overpowered I think. I think a 2pole motor would have been perfect.
I'm actually contemplating selling mine because I hardly drive it.

 

[remote uncontrol]

Thanks for all your help. I’ll sort through everything and see what we come up with. I’m still open to suggestions