New to the forum/ need some info and opinions to help make an RC purchase.

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JesseK

RC Newbie
Messages
2
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0
Location
Grand Haven, Michigan
RC Driving Style
  1. Bashing
  2. Flying
Hello,
I am new to the forum. I am from Grand Haven, Michigan. I am getting back into RCs now after taking a few years off. I joined the forum to connect with people in my area and also I am sure I will need some repair support soon. Right now I really need some info/ Opinions making a decision on a new RC purchase.

A few years back I was really into RCs and I had a VXL Stampede 2wd. I absolutely loved that truck but I had to sell it to get through college. I am now out of college and have been an engineer for 5 years and looking to purchase a new electric RC truck or buggy. I have done a ton of research but I would like some input from people with experience to make sure I make a good purchase. I am mainly interested in offroad racing, bashing and doing stunts. I live close to Silver Lake Sand Dunes and will probably go up there often as well. I am mainly interested in Traxxas vehicles because of part availability and support. The 2 RCs that I am torn between are the vxl stampede 1/10 2wd/4wd and the E-REVO vxl 1/10. I enjoyed the 2wd stampede that I previously owned because it was decently fast and could wheelie amazingly. The only thing that I did not like was that it was difficult to pitch forward/backward in the air when jumping. I am concerned that if I purchase the 4wd stampede vxl it will not wheelie as well as the 2wd. I am considering the E-REVO because it seems to be much better at jumping and flipping. I am leaning more towards the E-REVO but I have read that they are way less reliable. I have the money to upgrade components and do repairs but I dont want to be working on it all the time. I broke things on my stampede but it seemed to be fairly reliable. I guess the questions I am really interested in knowing are:

1. Is the 4wd Stampede vxl decent at wheelieing?
2. Is the 4wd Stampede vxl easier to control in the air compared to the 2wd?
3. Is the E-REVO noticeably better at jumps/flips to the point it is worth paying nearly $300 more than the stampede?
4. Is the E-REVO reliable?
5. Can you put a wheelie bar on the E-REVO to do decent wheelie? I have seen videos of them doing standing backflips so I know they have the power but every E-REVO wheelie video I have seen has been super sloppy in comparison to the stampede.

If there are any other vehicles that I should consider please let me know. I am not really interested in the X-MAXX because it is nearly double the price of the Revo and doesn't seem to perform any better in jumping or flipping.

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks
 
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Hello!


(More info about what kind of RC'ing you want to do would be helpful!)
 
I'll grant you that Traxxas parts support is nice, but nicer is finishing the day without breaking the truck. If you like the E-revo, check out the Arrma Kraton or Outcast. They are built around a more traditional truggy chassis layout , which makes them much easier to work on. And Arrma likes to overbuild stuff, so they are TOUGH. No, Arrma parts are not as available as Traxxas, but most of the bigger on-line shops carry them, and most of my LHS stock them too. So parts support is not really an issue. Kraton vs Outcast - they are 90% the same, parts wise. The main difference is the wheelbase - the Outcast is 1/8 buggy/SCT length, the Kraton is truggy length. This makes the Kraton more stable at speed, but the Outcast will 'stunt' easier.

I have a Kraton v1 and a Typhon v1. In almost 3 years, I have only broke 1 rear arm on the Kraton, and 1 front arm. Plus wore out all three diffs. Not blown, just worn out after lots of running. In my Typhon, I bought it used, and it came with a diff case with some stripped screws. in 2 years, that has been the only plastic part I have had to replace. I do drive my cars on 4s only, so that helps durability, but they are still 45mph cars...

A few videos (not mine)
Outcast - wheelies, flips, and jumps-

Outcast vs Kraton review-
 
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Another truck in the "too tough to need parts support" (Ok, I exaggerate a bit... :) ) would be the Tekno MT410. It is a Outcast-sized MT, so 1/8 SWB. But Tekno is another level of durability and quality above the already tough Arrma. The downside to a MT410 is cost - it is a full racing quality kit, so $$$. The kit is about $500, but you still need to buy body, tires, and all electrics, so $800-$1000 all in.

Also, when I talk about beefy, see this pic. I took this pic of some spares I have for a SCT discussion I was having on another forum. The arms are Tekno SCT410, Arrma Typhon (buggy), and Hobao SC10e (SCT). The steering knuckles are from Arrma Kraton, and the Hobao SC10e. The Hobao is what I would call "standard" for a SCT in terms of durability.
 

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The revo isn't nearly as durable as the stampede. Takes quite a bit of effort to make it hold up as well.

I have the version 1 of the revo, ERBEv1 (electric revo brushless edition version 1), the "vxl" is version 2 (ERBEv2). Version one was marketed as a 6S vehicle, but it would grenade the driveline if you weren't really good at feathering the throttle. The V2 has all steel axles, better differentials and more bracing. Basically a lot of stuff people complained about and tried to remedy for 10 years from the first one.

Still though, it has the cool but retarded revo suspension. Bottoms out super hard off very small stuff, which is fine, but things grind away on a frequent basis due to the ass end dragging on the ground all the time. Suspension parts break a lot still and people have a hard time not overheating the motor or esc or both when running hard on 6S.

I've never tried running 6S in my v1, 4S only and aside from the "typical revo shortcomings", it's done fine. I also have a savage flux which I run on 4S. It's a far more durable machine than the ERBEv1.

3 months or so ago, I got the Arrma Outcast. I also run it on 4S, but man... night and day difference to what I can get away with with that truck. I can just air that thing out and as long as I land on all 4's, I can jump all day long. The revo or savage would easily blow shocks apart at half of what I do with the outcast. Also, with the short chassis (similar to the revo/savage), it's very responsive to throttle in the air. Wheelies all over with the right diff oil as well.

After 20 years in the hobby, if anyone was to come up to me and ask what to buy, I'd say the outcast or kraton. Just really great design and simple to work on. With a few key upgrades, they are tough as nails.

I have a stampede 4x4 vxl. It's fun too, but it's small and very twitchy at speed. I recently started running it on 3S. Now it's a real handful, but still fun and can take a retarded amount of abuse as well. I attribute that to it being so light and having short arms. It's a very "square" truck, so if you land bad, it cartwheels easily and dissipates the energy well. It needs a decent amount upgraded though to be durable. $120 worth of cvd's (MIP Xduty) to start, $100 worth of shocks (GTR's), then figure out a roll bar or you will be going through bodies on a frequent basis.
 
Wow thanks for all the help! Very detailed responses. It sounds like for the money there are better options out there than the revo. I looked into the vehicles you guys recommended and most of the info I have read has confirmed that they are much stronger and more reliable than the tracks products. I am going to go to a couple local hobby shops and see if they have anything in in stock to take a look at.
 
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