Nitro a dying breed?

[theant]

I also like nitro for the reason that you can just keep refuelling for hours if you want (as long as everything else is going well of course). How long does a charge last on a battery? 30-35 minutes, maybe a little longer for lipos? So to go out for a day of bashing, you need to have what 4 sets of batteries, thats alot of money tied up in batteries!. I hate the highly inflated price of nitro too, but in saying that, its a hobby, these are toys and we are not paying this price for fuel to drive to work or the grocery store. As far as noise is concerned, there are lots of places to go bashing where there are not a whole lot of people around to complain. Bajas havnt been around that long and they are loud as hell, are they a dying breed, not likely, you see those around quite a bit now.

 

[Jeabajuice]

I also like nitro for the reason that you can just keep refuelling for hours if you want (as long as everything else is going well of course). How long does a charge last on a battery? 30-35 minutes, maybe a little longer for lipos? So to go out for a day of bashing, you need to have what 4 sets of batteries, thats alot of money tied up in batteries!. I hate the highly inflated price of nitro too, but in saying that, its a hobby, these are toys and we are not paying this price for fuel to drive to work or the grocery store. As far as noise is concerned, there are lots of places to go bashing where there are not a whole lot of people around to complain. Bajas havnt been around that long and they are loud as hell, are they a dying breed, not likely, you see those around quite a bit now.

Yeah people think that Nitro is expensive because of the tuning and fuel but they do not realize that electric is expensive too because of all the brushless stuff and all the high tech stuff that "you just have to have".:

 

[slowngreen]

All the electric stuff is a one time purchase. Nitro is expensive, not really an opinion, more of a fact. To setup an electric nicely it might be more than to setup a cheap nitro, not a nice nitro, but thats just the initial cost.

 

[HPIguy]

I also like nitro for the reason that you can just keep refuelling for hours if you want (as long as everything else is going well of course). How long does a charge last on a battery? 30-35 minutes, maybe a little longer for lipos? So to go out for a day of bashing, you need to have what 4 sets of batteries, thats alot of money tied up in batteries!. I hate the highly inflated price of nitro too, but in saying that, its a hobby, these are toys and we are not paying this price for fuel to drive to work or the grocery store. As far as noise is concerned, there are lots of places to go bashing where there are not a whole lot of people around to complain. Bajas havnt been around that long and they are loud as hell, are they a dying breed, not likely, you see those around quite a bit now.

I can buy 4 good lipos for the cost of two gallons of nitro fuel, and they'll last about 1000 times longer if taken care of. That's something no one has mentioned in the thread either. Yes, nitros require after run care if being properly maintained. But modern LiPo packs need attention as well, I know, I ruined one by getting side tracked and neglecting it after a run. And Bajas are no louder than a nitro all things being equal (i.e. both have tuned or stock pipes).

All the electric stuff is a one time purchase. Nitro is expensive, not really an opinion, more of a fact. To setup an electric nicely it might be more than to setup a cheap nitro, not a nice nitro, but thats just the initial cost.

Yep, agreed. A good lipo will last hundreds, maybe in the low thousand cycle range. My packs last around 30-40 minutes average when bashing. When you figure how much power it takes to charge them x the Kw per hour price, it's way cheaper in the long run. Plus I can pretty much break out the Pede anywhere, as the noise isn't going to wake up the neighbors baby. I love my Baja, but there's a lot to be said for ripping almost silent wheelies through the parking lot after a rough day at the cube farm.

 

[w bill]

Nitro is expensive but very enjoyable my souloution was 1/4 scale gas $4 a gallon and I'm happy we won't talk about the rest of the cost.LOL

 

[Mastio]

I still love nitro, don't get me wrong. But with the prices of gas still unreasonably high (I remember a GALLON of nitro being just $20 at one time) It makes me wonder if i should suck it up and keep shelling out money for nitro, or switch over to electric? (savage flux ftw)

 

[Rewired]

I Would still rather run nitro/gas probably because I'm a petrol head! Lol. The fidly tuning, exhaust smoke, excessive noise and rundown procedure are all apart of the fun in my opinion and its why i love this hobby. If all i had to do was plug in a battery and go weres the fun in that? I can see why electric is so appealing to sum with the better reliability, speed and cheaper running cost but its just not me, if i wanted to mess around with wires and circuits i would go back to building computers and simulators.

 

[Racer 1966]

For me it'll always be nitro and hopefully someday gas. The main reason I'm in this hobby is because I can't afford to do it on a 1:1 scale. The nitro make it's more realistic and less like a toy,I don't care how fast/powerful they can a brushless/LiPo setup. Electrics can't keep up in the full scale world :

 

[Greywolf74]

IDK where you guys are buying fuel but I can get a gallon of Odonnell's 20% for about 28 bucks and 30% for 31. Theres another brand (can't recall the name right off the top of my head) that I've tried at my LHS that sells for 24 bucks for a gallon of 20%. I've tried it and it works fine. I prefer Odonnell's though I live in Ohio btw.

Nitro might be more of a challange and sometimes even a headache but I love tinkering as much as I love running them so it will always be nitro for me.

I also dont know how you are going through a gallon of fuel in one weekend unless you are letting all your buddies use it too or maybe if you're running from daylight to dusk both days. One gallon of fuel for me lasts for quite awhile.

 

[HPIguy]

IDK where you guys are buying fuel but I can get a gallon of Odonnell's 20% for about 28 bucks and 30% for 31. Theres another brand (can't recall the name right off the top of my head) that I've tried at my LHS that sells for 24 bucks for a gallon of 20%. I've tried it and it works fine. I prefer Odonnell's though I live in Ohio btw.

Nitro might be more of a challange and sometimes even a headache but I love tinkering as much as I love running them so it will always be nitro for me.

I also dont know how you are going through a gallon of fuel in one weekend unless you are letting all your buddies use it too or maybe if you're running from daylight to dusk both days. One gallon of fuel for me lasts for quite awhile.

My only two choices for getting fuel are the semi-local (Three hour round trip, but it's my hometown so I'm there from time to time) hobby shop for $52 a gallon, or mail order. Mail order now charges a $15 hazmat fee on all nitro fuel, bringing that $28 gallon to $43.

I still like the nitro rigs, and I actually miss running my touring car sometimes since nothing else I own is so controllable at speed, or tops out at anywhere near that speed. I'm actually going to see if the LHS got any quarts of fuel in since I'll be over that way this weekend anyway.

The touring car wasn't that bad on fuel either, the Savage on the other hand.....FEED ME!

 

[Chucksolo69]

I don't think nitro is dying. There are always those of us who want some kind of "realism" when running their RC vehicles. Being a NASCAR, Indy Car fan, and a former Motocross racer, I love the smell of exhaust and the sound of an engine at high rpm. Personally I don't find nitro that loud or offensive; I also don't find them hard to maintain or tune either. So many people make running nitro RC into some mysterious, insanely difficult to accomplish process. Notice how all the questions that newbies ask about nitro or electric, most of the people who answer automatically say "Electric if you are new." Bull is what I say. Yes, my first car back in 1999 was a Traxxas Street Sport electric, but after only a few weeks of running that car, I bought a 60 MPH Traxxas Nitro 4-Tec and had that car for a couple of years before I wore the engine out. I think the problem these days is the manufacturers don't advance the technology enough. First of all, do away with the damn pull starts and starter boxes if you want newbies to get into the hobby; leave those to the hardcore racers. Face it, most of us don't race so the myth of the "added weight" of an electric starter to a basher is of no importance. Then, make the break in process as simple as possible. Next, design an engine that will hold a tune no matter what and include some kind of muffler. The closest nitro vehicle I have come to this is my Losi Ten T nitro truggy. Traxxas nitro comes close (I had a T-Maxx and Nitro Rustler as well as the 4-Tec), but, their break-in process is a royal PITA. Heck, break the motor in somewhat BEFORE you sell the truck and formulate fuel to eliminate any need for after run oil. Actually, the only negative thing about nitro is the cleanup afterward. However, my friends Traxxas Slayer Pro shoots the exhaust out the back and so his cleanup is actually a lot easier than mine with my Ten T. These suggestions IMHO would reignite the nitro segment of our hobby and entice newbies who are afraid to try it now.

 

[Greywolf74]

My only two choices for getting fuel are the semi-local (Three hour round trip, but it's my hometown so I'm there from time to time) hobby shop for $52 a gallon, or mail order. Mail order now charges a $15 hazmat fee on all nitro fuel, bringing that $28 gallon to $43.

I still like the nitro rigs, and I actually miss running my touring car sometimes since nothing else I own is so controllable at speed, or tops out at anywhere near that speed. I'm actually going to see if the LHS got any quarts of fuel in since I'll be over that way this weekend anyway.

The touring car wasn't that bad on fuel either, the Savage on the other hand.....FEED ME!

Ouuuch.....I have a LHS that is only 15 minutes from my house

 

[mtaylortank]

the break in process is pretty simple you run 5 tanks and gradually go alittle faster so new people get the chance to get used to the handling!! and if they broke them in before they sold the rigs they wouldn't be new anymore and then you would have some stranger running the nitro you were thinkin about buying. (If it isnt theirs they dont care what happens to them). and I think pullstart is one of the easiest starter for new people because less can go wrong with it in the long run then electric starts!! As long as they are selling nitro rigs and fuel they will be around for along time!!! just think what they said when nitro rigs came out at first, something like those wont be around for long.... and look now alot more houses have them than you can imagine.. even if they are shelf queens (Rolex) they still bought them and spent money on some upgrades.. thats all it takes for something to stick around..

Have a happy and safe 4th!!!!!!

 

[Chucksolo69]

Well, for one thing, I agree that breaking in a Traxxas motor USED to be pretty simple and you are right bout the 5 tanks. But, after talking to 3 hobby shops, the break in process for the 3.3 Traxxas engines is pretty much more involved than that, if you want the engine to last. Of the 4 Traxxas vehicles I have had, nothing ever went wrong with the EZ start as long as you were mindful to clean the OWB regularly and take care of the starter mechanism. I was told by Losi tech support that they partially break in the engine for you at the factory so you won't have to go through such a long tedious (2-3 hour) break in process, ala Traxxas. As for pull starters, I have seen friends with more than their share of blistered fingers to ever want a nitro car with a pull start. You haven't experienced the joy of starting a nitro car until you push the starter button on the transmitter of radio that comes with the Losi Ten T. Sheer nitro heaven.

 

[mtaylortank]

I have 2 3.3 tmaxx's and a classic with a 3.3 in it and I have broke in all my engines and it is pretty easy it has a tag with it that even tells you how to do it step by step and a video al it is, is go stop go stop go stop until each tank is done and alittle more go each time, yeah that would be convenient but I have made a few of my traxxas pullstart and I like that better for the fact of simple incase you need to do something to it. the blisters are from not being tuned as good as it could be or flooding.

and it is better to take a day or two anyways to get to know the rig at slower speeds expetially if you are new it helps alot of people out. from talking to a few people.

 

[srusinek]

Maybe nitro would be more popular if the newest edition of rc caraction had some nitro rigs in their magazine. Not one nitro but they do have a baja but its not nitro so to speak. Maybe there's more profit margin in batteries that are made overseas.

 

[Jeabajuice]

Alright let me try to end this thread by saying this. Nitro will never be a dying breed. There will always be people running nitro. Some people don't like to run electric because they think it is not more fun than nitro. Yeah nitro is more expensive than electric but has anyone ever put thus into mine. When you charge electric vehicles with wall chargers, you waste electricity. You don't waste anything with nitro because it's such a small engine that it can barely ruin the environment. To get to the point there will always be people running electric and there will always be people running nitro. Both have their ups and downs.
THE END!!!!!::\:whhooo:

 

[wacmartin]

What about having to recharge the reciever battery?

 

[Racer 1966]

When you charge electric vehicles with wall chargers, you waste electricity. You don't waste anything with nitro because it's such a small engine that it can barely ruin the environment.

Yeah,I think you missed the mark on that one.

Both have their ups and downs.

That's the true bottom line :yes:

 

[Nitro God]

nitro is better you dont have to wait fiddlesticking 4 hours to charge