Time to jump ship? 🤷🏻‍♂️

[Littlemotor]

Been a hella loyal, and happy Tekin guy since the late 1980’s, but it’s been 8.5yrs since Tekin released the Gen 3 RX8 ESC.. I love my Tekin stuff, never given me any issues whatsoever, but lately I feel like the guy with the smokin’ hot chica, who’s been noticing other ladies when I’m out & about..

I’m not talking about dumping all of my equipment, and starting from scratch, and again-I really don’t have anything bad to say about them, but 8.5yrs on the same ESC is a lonnnnnnnng time (as is 35 with the same company-period).. I’ve got two new 1/8 E-buggies coming this way very soon, and I’m definitely kicking around some other options..

Reds Racing Z8 Gen 3 $240

Elceram Oxide 1/8 $250

-and after Cayote gets their Shatner together, the Crest 8 $218

Not sure eleventybillion% just yet-Almost wanna see if something shakes loose from the Tekin camp on a possible Gen 4 unit, as I have a sneaking suspicion that it’s coming.. At least then I’d be choosing from the best possible options for me.. Then I’ll decide on what I plan for motors, and batteries.. Tekin motors have been arguably the fastest available in 1/8 competition, but Cayote is about to release theirs finally, the Reds is is a missle for sure, and I’ve secretly wanted to try out an Exalt as they are no doubt NASTY… As for batteries; it may be tough to beat the Cayote offerings, but I require a single 4S pack, and they do not offer that. I’ve also been thinking very hard about going to NitroPro for my packs.. We shall see..

 

[CertifiedMike]

Those Elceram escs are awesome!!!
Cayote's specs are amazing too! Good stuff on this wish list!!!

 

[Littlemotor]

Those Elceram escs are awesome!!!
Cayote's specs are amazing too! Good stuff on this wish list!!!

Yeah buddy-but they sure are proud of that joker..

The Reds is a VERY serious contender, & should DEFINITELY not be slept on, but so is Cayote if they can get their shiit together; there have been a few guys that’ve hit thermal shut cut-off for no apparent reason. When they are working 100% though, they’re crazy fast..

If I go with the Reds, then I’ll pair it with their motor too. Same with the Cayote. If I do the Elceram, it’ll either be the Exalt, or a Tekin T8.. I’ve got a bit of time before I decide like I said, and in full disclosure I honestly DO hope that Tekin releases the Gen 4 to make the draft pick a true “Royal Rumble”..

 

[CertifiedMike]

Yeah, Elceram $$$ is no joke. I still want one tho. It will be perfect in a Mid!!!

I'm def watching to see which way you decide to go!!!

 

[WickedFog]

You can't use the Red's. It's red

 

[Littlemotor]

You can't use the Red's. It's red

You know me mannnnnnn!

I’m still always function over form, and it’s a shag nasty setup, but you are absolutely correct-it will definitely bother me if I go with their setup.

 

[WickedFog]

You know me mannnnnnn!

I’m still always function over form, and it’s a shag nasty setup, but you are absolutely correct-it will definitely bother me if I go with their setup.

The Cayote bothers me because they made a typo in their name, and still haven't caught it

 

[Tunedfrog]

The Tekin company is 1 1/2 hours from me in McCall Idaho. I've never been there but some day I'll make
the drive and check them out.

 

[Littlemotor]

The Tekin company is 1 1/2 hours from me in McCall Idaho. I've never been there but some day I'll make
the drive and check them out.

A good friend of mine lives just NorthWest of Boise, in Middleton on a massive ranch.. I wanna say he’s likely had some Tekin stuff as well.

 

[Lucifur10]

I remember Tekin being the "Gold Standard" back in the 80's-90's. Drop dead reliability.

 

[Tunedfrog]

A good friend of mine lives just NorthWest of Boise, in Middleton on a massive ranch.. I wanna say he’s likely had some Tekin stuff as well.

I know Middleton well, the Middleton Vikings kicked are arse in football.

 

[hood52]

I had tekin esc's in 2 of my rc's. I fried one of them but that was my fault, the other still works fine in my sct. But I have HW's in all my other rc's, HW has more tuning options then the tekin esc's. But I am running G2 HW's, I know some people are having issues with the new G3's. That being said, I still use tekin motors in my ebuggy and etruggy.

 

[RustyUs]

Jumping ship, are ya? Onto a new boat it shall be...

I vote for the Oxide, only because red doesn't work for you.

 

[Lucifur10]

Jumping ship, are ya? Onto a new boat it shall be...

I vote for the Oxide, only because red doesn't work for you.

Glad I don't drink sangria!

 

[RustyUs]

Great. Now I'm being tempted to jump...

Everywhere I go, they keep popping up.

I'm always this close from veering from my norm. One of these days though, I'll maybe splurge for a most excellent ESC. Having finally completed my RC toy bucket list, I can focus on upkeep and making dirt fun again.

I can't wait to see what arrives at your doorsteps.

 

[Littlemotor]

You’re welcome..

Yeah-I’ve been steady on my motor/ESC loyalty for a lonnnnnnng time now.. The more time goes by though-the more I kinda feel like Tekin is resting on their Laurels.. 8.5yrs is kind of ridiculous if you ask me.. Doesn’t seem like they’re trying too hard.. They’re down to MAYBE (3) pro drivers now (I can only recall off the top of my head-Lutz, Bourdon, and Wiggins), and it really was not many years ago when half the Pro A-main drivers field was Tekin 100%.. They DID have some issues with a “bad batch” of RX8’s a year or two ago now, but their customer service is top notch as I’ve said before, and they made those right with the consumer.. The Hotwire app can be finicky, and occasionally slow to connect-but once you know your way through it; it does the job. I have heard a LOT of folks complain about it though.. Their batteries are INSANELY expensive, but that’s ALL “top tier” company labeled packs, and there are some still that are higher than Tekin’s.. Recently I have seen several puffing issues out of them from other drivers through apparently, no fault of their own-and at less than a handful of runs before happening.. @ $177 a pop, I sure do hope that never becomes an issue with mine-and I have more than a few. The motors are some of the fastest, and most bulletproof out there hands down. There can be no argument made there when they’re properly taken care of/maintained (like anything else)..

Like I say-I’ve had not a single issue with Tekin, nor with my own equipment in 35yrs with them. They have been great on the phone, and via email, fakebook, etc.. I've always been kind of a “if it ain’t broke-don’t fix it” kind of guy with many things, but that being said; the 8.5yrs thing I guess is what has me looking around ..

The Reds ESC is made by ZTW, and is very good. It also offers some numbers (which as we all know are easily & COMMONLY inflated in RC electronics ). I have zero first hand experience with Reds badged electronics, or ZTW. I can say that it was VERY obvious that Bootsie had the fastest car at the Worlds in Portugal this past weekend by far…

The Cayote stuff has been getting a LOT of spotlight here for about the past 6mos or so.. A LOT of guys have left Tekin, and especially Hobbywing for them, and could not be more impressed with their stuff. There’s been a fair amount of arguing that they ARE made by HW, and then that they’re not… Who TF knows.. I personally am NOT a fan of HW, and that’s why their stuff isn’t in my list of possible options. Most certainly not “just a Tekin fanboi”, and the perpetual pissing contests in RC over brand just makes people look stupid imo. I’m typically just run whatever makes you happy withOUT having to throw the competitor under the bus in the process .. ANYwhoooooo, if they can get their shiit together, then they’ll be seriously considered by me. The Crest 8 has shown some shortcomings when used in truggy in some instances, but they’re supposedly bringing out a 1/8 truggy specific ESC to take care of that. Maybe it’ll simply replace the current version-I cannot say.

As for Elceram, I like that it’s different than anything else on the market for starters (which could also be a bad thing ), and that it’s got a LOT of features that the Tekin does not. That price though … I can say that currently I am leaning pretty hard the direction of the Elceram Oxide ESC, paired with the Team Exalt XLR8 2050kV motor. That may very well change in time, as I get more serious about my homework, and comparing. As I said-I’ll give Tekin another month or so, as I truly would like to see a Gen 4 RX8 be in the running..

Gonna be open minded when it comes to batteries too-and hopefully Cayote drops a 4s Brick.. NitroPro is definitely in the running too as far as packs are concerned for me. Hell-I may even consider some more modestly priced stuff, and give them a whirl..

 

[Stickel]

Cayote seems nice, notes taken.

 

[aklindeman]

I bought a Reedy Blackbox 600Z-G2 2S when I put together my B7 race buggy. It was working great for me, until I brought it out to Utah and raced at IRCR. The larger and faster track ended with me melting it down in the main. I slapped in a Cayote Crest RS120. It's been a great little upgrade. Great unit. It makes me sad that Tekin is falling behind, and that Novak went tits up. But you gotta run what's current.

 

[Littlemotor]

Little update here…

Spoke at length with the owner/operator at Elceram this afternoon.. I think I’m gonna give his ESC a whirl.. I’ll start with the Elceram Oxide 1/8, and pair it with the Team Exalt XLR8 2050kV buggy can motor in the new Tekno EB48 2.2..

If that pans out the way I believe it will, then I’ll be grabbing their new Elceram Nitride 1/8 ESC, and pair it with the Team Exalt 2350kV truggy can motor. For the new Tekno ET48 2.2.. It will be a few months before they release the Nitride, but it’s coming.. It’s intended use is for heavier 1/8 race truggies with larger can, higher kV motors (<2300kV), and On-road 1/8 GT, and Pan-car’s..

Gonna grab a couple new LiPO packs from NitroPro, as well as from Team Exalt, and see what I prefer..

I have a number of Tekin ESC’s, Motor’s, Servo’s, and HV LiPO’s that I’m replacing.. Not sure yet if I’ll sit on them for spares, use up the packs, or sell everything one by one..

 

[CertifiedMike]

I've been looking for a deal on a 1/10 Nitride Gen 1. Otherwise, waiting til next month to see if they drop and I'm gonna buy one too.
I've wanted one for long enough. Time to fix that!
Let me know if you find a good deal. I am hoping Black Friday will be a good time to buy.

Amain told me they will not be discounting any Gen1 stuff.

I've been watching a lot of vids on Elceram features and set up. They look like everything I do want in an esc and nothing I don't want.