Remote controls

[redfoxer53]

Hello, I’m am new and I got my son a Traxxas slash 2nd last year for Christmas. We have an indoor place we can go to race. My question is what recommendations does anyone have on upgrading the remote control for racing purposes? And can other brand remotes and speed controls work with Traxxas?

 

[9x19]

On a budget, the FlySky and Radiolink brands are both popular, and yes, the motor and speed control will work just fine with after-market radios and receivers.

 

[Tunedfrog]

There are several transmitters that will work, you just need the reciever that is compatible with it.
Most come with the receiver. I use a Spektrum DX5C but a good budget radio is a Flysky as mentioned above. I have three Flysky GT3B transmitters. They work great.

 

[bill_delong]

If you are going to be club racing then I would recommend the Fly Sky Noble NB4:
https://www.amazon.com/Flysky-FS-NB4-Controller-Transmitter-Receiver/dp/B08HJWQC6H/

This is about the lowest budget radio that you can get which offers race grade features where the most important things to me are:

1) antennaless Rx
2) touchscreen
3) adjustable ergonomics

Many other brands I have owned in the past had really short battery life which required me to charge the radio between rounds, the NB4 has something like a 10-12 hour battery life.

Instead of upgrading your Slash, I would get with the local club rules to see what classes they offer. Chances are you may be better off investing in a race grade kit so you don't end up buying twice.

Good Luck!

 

[F.R.S. Ninja_007]

@DavidB1126 can probably help

 

[DavidB1126]

Hello, I’m am new and I got my son a Traxxas slash 2nd last year for Christmas. We have an indoor place we can go to race. My question is what recommendations does anyone have on upgrading the remote control for racing purposes? And can other brand remotes and speed controls work with Traxxas?

I agree with everything Bill stated above
First and always for getting into racing, I would go to the track on a race night, just for a hour or 2, ask questions, see what classes/cars they run, see setups, and what type of classes they are.
Huge thing, what surface? Carpet, Turf, Dirt, Sealed dirt (or known as Clay)?

For radios, any radio system can work with any esc / motor combo.
Just have to make sure the Radio (TX / Transmitter) is the same brand as the Receiver (RX) so it can bind properly.
Most of the pros use Futaba and Sanwa, those are high end and pricey radios.
I use a RadioLink RC8X for all my cars now, Used to have their 4GS V3, and before that I was with the stock RTR Traxxas TQ radios.
Higher end radios like the RC8X gives you a better feel, more adjustments, easier to use, more range and lower latency.
FlySky is also a good brand for cheap and reliable radios. Such as the NB4 as Bill said.

Now for ESCs, thats a whole different story, ESCs depend on what class, what type, and what kind of voltage and motor you are running.

Since this is a slash, you are looking to be in a 2wd SCT class mainly. Or a novice / sportsman class. If they have a box stock / spec slash class, that will be even better to start out in as you already have a slash 2wd, and it is still box stock right?
For main race classes. Under 2wd SCT, you can have stock which everyone runs the same turn motor with only allowed changes. There is Open which is anything electronics and setup wise can be ran, and mod class for faster motors / cars. I raced my slash a couple times. I raced my slash on carpet back in 2016 when I was 7 as my first race, it was in a 2wd SCT Young Guns class. I raced my slash at my old carpet track which was a mixed SCT / Truck / Truggy class. It was only me with the slash, a 4wd SCT (SCT410) and a Mini Truggy (ET410) as we didn't have enough of people, and our tracks only mostly run boring buggies. I also ran my slash on indoor dirt (hardpacked clay) at Beach RC during the summer, I raced in a SCT Mod class, because of people since normal club racing doesn't have alot of rules and people as bigger events.

I also practiced with my slash as seen in these videos:

 

[Greywolf74]

Hello, I’m am new and I got my son a Traxxas slash 2nd last year for Christmas. We have an indoor place we can go to race. My question is what recommendations does anyone have on upgrading the remote control for racing purposes? And can other brand remotes and speed controls work with Traxxas?

Futaba, Sanwa and Ko Propo are all high quality race worth brands. Their high end radios do get quite expensive but they also have mid and lower tier radios. Get whatever fits your budget. Bill and David race so Id assume their recommendations of the Flysky Noble NB4 and RadioLink RC8X are solid budget choices as well.

As for compatibility, Transmitters will only bind to receivers they are designed to work with (for the most part), but you can put any receiver you like in a kit. You just have to replace the Traxxas receiver with the one that comes with the radio.

 

[Xraycer]

Hello, I’m am new and I got my son a Traxxas slash 2nd last year for Christmas. We have an indoor place we can go to race. My question is what recommendations does anyone have on upgrading the remote control for racing purposes? And can other brand remotes and speed controls work with Traxxas?

If he's just starting out racing, the stock electronics should be fine to learn and improve his skill on. He'll appreciate the better gear more once he's used the entry level stuff.