If you were a newbie with a $500 budget

[Bigsteezy]

What would you do with it? I got into racing buggies back in the 80's and built my car from a kit back then (rc10) and then about 20 years ago I attempted to get back into racing and built a couple of on road cars. Never went anywhere with those. Now I'm 30 years out of date and bewildered by everything out there. I think that rock crawling is really more my speed now, precise driving over obstacles at low speeds really appeals to me. I've been researching all summer, trying to figure out what I want to get. The more I learn the harder the decision gets.



So, if you had $500 to spend and were just starting out, what would you do with it? Probably the most practical thing would be a Deadbolt or a Honcho with a battery and charger. I'm concerned about all of the plastic parts in the suspension on these trucks though. Plus, when I was a kid, batteries didn't explode so I'm wondering about how much I need to be spending on a pack or two and the charger.



I would step up to the scx10 2 bronco rtr, or even a trx4 rtr if I wanted to spend another 50 or hundred dollars to get the charger and batteries but my lady asked that I keep it low for the time being until I decide that this is a hobby I'm going to stick with long term. I agree with her on that front, I have too many hobbies as it is and this new one is sort of a mid life crisis thing for me. Better than a sports car and 20 year old mistresses.



I feel like I'm totally capable of building a kit, but I would really like to get a turn key solution in order to have some fun with it before winter sets in. I take my time building things and if I went the kit route, its likely to take me weeks to finish it. Months even, especially if I go nuts and upgrade everything.



So, what choices would you make given a set budget and no base to expand from?

[Jim85IROC]

With that budget, batteries & charger included, I'd probably grab a TRX4 Sport ($329), a 2S 4000mah-ish pack $30, a 3S 3300mah-ish pack $40, an Accucell 6 charger from HK for $25, and some amount of the remaining $75 on a better servo for the truck.

[Bigsteezy]

I'll look at the TRX4 sport. I don't think that one has been on my radar.

[2mtech]

With a $500 hard stop, and needing everything...batteries, decent charger, tools...I'd be seriously temped to stay low with a Redcat Everest Gen 7 or an MST CMX or CFX. Feedback from here appears to be fairly positive on the Redcat, and upgrades are out there and increasing.

I have a couple of sub $300 MST's and they serve faithfully, reliably and perform well.

[83trekker83]

I am a total newb to all of this too, and cant refer any other brands, but my trx4 bronco is just plain out amazing.

If you go the sport route and really enjoy it , you can always add in the ability to unlock diffs and 2 speed transmission later on down the road if you wanted those features.

My Bronco was beautiful when i first opened it, like way too nice to even use lol. Now the body is beat scratches dirt, little bit of carnage on the body corners and stuff, but the rest of the truck is still perfect and runs excellent. I was hill climbing and lost control rolled down the hill over rocks , flipped up into the air and finally "smashed" down on some big rocks at the bottom.

I went picked it up spun the tires through it on the ground and start climbing again, besides the body i really cant believe it has survived what i have done to it so far, and it still complete stock, with mods to come soon.

Plus come winter time i am going to get some snow chains for the tires and build a snow track in my backyard for it, so this its a all year around hobby with my trx4.

Just my 2 cents

[svt923]

I'll second the TRX4 Sport, it is a great truck for the price. The weak point for all TRX4 versions is the steering servo so that is a good immediate upgrade. Many people on here are happy with these cheap DS3218 servos:

https://www.amazon.com/DS3218-update...h+torque+servo

A single 3S battery in the 4000mah capacity range will net you about 3 hours of runtime so you can probably get along with 1 battery for now. Imax B6AC chargers are basic AC/DC units that can handle most charging needs and only run about $35.

This part is optional but I feel the TRX4 Sport is overgeared out of the box, I would pick up the 45T spur and a 12T pinion to bring the overall ratio closer to what most other of my scale trucks run (40-60:1 overall gearing). Those parts will only run about $8 but will keep the motor and electronics much happier.

Another thing to note is ebay frequently runs 15-20% off anything coupons, those are pretty much the only way to get a good discount on a Traxxas vehicle. Keep a look out for those and you could have mostly everything you need for under $400.

[2mtech]

Do you specifically want to stay with a ready-to-run or have you considered a kit? I started with a kit not just to save a bit but to learn how the creature worked too. RTRs in general don't come with the best electronics and I've found you can start with a better set up for the same or less money.

[Rekreant]

I’d do exactly what I did do and buy an SCX10.2 Trail Honcho and a good charger and battery.

[KMS]

The Axial DeadBolt is a great starter rig ,One of the best Know guys [ Harley ] on here did a set of videos on YouTube about it and cheap or free mods to get it to preform better, If I was on a Budget [ what ever that is ] I would go Axial rig ,, Axial scx10 II Deadbolt,,
https://www.rpphobby.com/product_p/ax90066.htm

[Jim85IROC]

Keep in mind that the only "budget" part of Harley's builds is that he limits himself to a maximum per week. Most of his budget builds end up in the $1200-1500 range when he's done.

The Deadbolt is a fine truck, but in my opinion, the TRX4 Sport or even a Redcat Gen7 is a better value. The Deadbolt has plastic everything. It's better plastic than the bendy straws that the old SCX10 used, but it still basically needs to be replaced sooner as opposed to later. The TRX4 not only has metal links everywhere, but comes with the portal axles. The Gen7 has its own share of weaknesses, but at 50% less than a Deadbolt, you tend not to mind them so much.

When I did my budget build series for the Gen7, my TOTAL cost, including the cost of the truck came in under $300.

[JatoTheRipper]

People know I love my Vaterra Ascender and that's exactly what I'd recommend in the BND flavor. Then get yourself a Spektrum transmitter. With whatever is leftover get yourself a charger (around $60 for a decent one) and then some HobbyKing batteries. I'd recommend the TRX-4 Sport second. I'd only recommend the SCX10 II as a distant 3rd. The two trucks I mentioned first are world's better than an SCX10 II in terms of build quality. The performance of the Ascender and SCX10 II is very close out of the box. The Ascender has more torque twist, but the SCX10 II has larger pumpkins and gets hung up more often. And the SCX10 II isn't without torque twist. IMO it's a wash.

I haven't driven a TRX-4 Sport, but knowing how well my TRX-4 works with the giant and heavy Bronco body I'm sure the Sport will kick ass. The SCX10 II performs, but the plasticy mess that is Axial always leaves me feeling like I got ripped off. That's why I held out on the SCX10 II for a long, long time. I only bought it when it was on sale and when eBay simultaneously had a 15% or 20% off coupon. I got my SCX10 II kit for $264 shipped.

[Rekreant]

A lot of axial haters for some reason, but I would never recommend a Redcat over an axial, that’s downright silly. None of the other crawlers match its performance out of the box, and portals are super over rated. Compare availability of parts and upgrades and the Trx-4 and Redcat fall far behind. If you actually get in to crawling you WILL want to upgrade any truck and the scx10.2 has the best options and availability.

[Jim85IROC]

Originally Posted by Rekreant

A lot of axial haters for some reason, but I would never recommend a Redcat over an axial, that’s downright silky. None of the othe crawlers match its performance out of the box, and portals are super over rated. Compare availability of parts and upgrades and the Trx-4 and Redcat fall far behind. If you actually get in to crawling you WILL want to upgrade any truck and the scx10.2 has the best options and availability.

I'm not an axial hater in any way. My favorite RC is my Bomber. I just happen to think that the SCX10 II, as good as it may be (and yes, I want one), isn't the best value for somebody that's on a budget. For $200, the Gen7 Sport leaves a lot of upgrade money, and there's enough compatibility with SCX10 parts that there isn't really a loss of upgrade paths when choosing that truck. Box stock the Gen7 tires are better than any of the SCX10 tires, so from a capability standpoint the Gen7 holds its own. Once you start upgrading, both trucks can be vastly improved, and may require different upgrade paths because they have different strengths and weaknesses, but the Gen7 still leaves more cash for upgrades no matter what your target budget is.

The SCX10 is a tried and true platform, and if your goal is to slap a bunch of proven parts onto a proven platform and just go wheel it, then there's absolutely nothing wrong with the SCX10. If your goal is to get the most out of a set budget, or to challenge yourself a little bit by deviating a little bit from the "everybody else" path, then a Gen7 is a viable option.

My Gen7, all in, mods included, cost less than a stock deadbolt. I'd be hard pressed to find a trail that a stock Deadbolt could run that my Gen7 can't.

[Asuckaphish]

I think if I wanted to do a bang for buck truck i'd go this route.

TRX4 Sport $339 (RPP Hobby). Solid chassis and platform to work off and the best start. You can get an Axial deadbolt or honcho cheaper but that ends up a mute point since all the links are junk plastic and would need replacing anyway. A close second choice would be the Ascender K10. It's $30 but if looks are important it does have a better scale look to it than the sport but that's an extra $30 you'd take away from performance and some necessity items IMO.

DS3218 Servo $15 (Amazon) - Replace the stock servo with this right away and keep the stock as a spare or sell it as a new takeoff. The stock servo is woefully underpowered for crawling and as with all servos in RTR rigs are crap and will likely fail anywhere from the first run to the first couple of months.

Imax Charger $44 (Hobbyking). Good multifunction charger that will set you up nicely for the hobby. Sure there are some cheaper chargers but you are very limited with them as far as flexibilty in cell count, battery types, and what I feel is important data about charging. Oh and those cheapies are painfully slow.

2x Turnigy 3S 2200mah 40C $30 ($15x2) (Hobbyking) - You need batteries. These are cheap, good enough and you can get two for under the price. You can get higher capacity batteries but this will keep your overall weight low. Plus if you are driving slow and not bashing around at full throttle the run time should still be decent.

Bowhouse RC low CG battery tray $25 (RPP hobby) - This will get the CG down lower and I feel is one of the better bolt on mods for the TRX-4.

SSD Portal Covers $40 (RPP Hobby) - Get's some unsprung weight down low and gives some forward weight bias. Again another easy bolt on performance mod.

45T Spur gear $3 (RPP Hobby) - The spur gear on the Sport is different from the rest of the TRX-4 models with 2 speed transmissions. Replacing the stock one will give you lower gearing which will be easier on the motor/ESC and will be better for crawling. They put this in so people could bash around and go fast but you said you were looking for a crawling rig. This is a better choice for slow and precise crawling with the added benefit of slightly better run times and being easier on the power system.


Total = $496

Oh yea if you can wait a few weeks RPP Hobby usually does 15% off during holiday weekends. That'll save you a little more. That usually won't apply to the truck because of restrictions by the manufacturers but hey it saves ya about $10.

[Rekreant]

Originally Posted by Jim85IROC

I'm not an axial hater in any way. My favorite RC is my Bomber. I just happen to think that the SCX10 II, as good as it may be (and yes, I want one), isn't the best value for somebody that's on a budget. For $200, the Gen7 Sport leaves a lot of upgrade money, and there's enough compatibility with SCX10 parts that there isn't really a loss of upgrade paths when choosing that truck. Box stock the Gen7 tires are better than any of the SCX10 tires, so from a capability standpoint the Gen7 holds its own. Once you start upgrading, both trucks can be vastly improved, and may require different upgrade paths because they have different strengths and weaknesses, but the Gen7 still leaves more cash for upgrades no matter what your target budget is.

The SCX10 is a tried and true platform, and if your goal is to slap a bunch of proven parts onto a proven platform and just go wheel it, then there's absolutely nothing wrong with the SCX10. If your goal is to get the most out of a set budget, or to challenge yourself a little bit by deviating a little bit from the "everybody else" path, then a Gen7 is a viable option.

My Gen7, all in, mods included, cost less than a stock deadbolt. I'd be hard pressed to find a trail that a stock Deadbolt could run that my Gen7 can't.

Id be wary of that parts compatibility idea, Harley did a video on the fact that most of the parts redcat CLAIMS as being compatible really arent.

[Rekreant]

I went with a Turnigy Reaktor charger and a 13$ power supply on amazon. All said and done gave me 20A charging for under 60$.

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by Rekreant

A lot of axial haters for some reason, but I would never recommend a Redcat over an axial, that’s downright silky. None of the othe crawlers match its performance out of the box, and portals are super over rated. Compare availability of parts and upgrades and the Trx-4 and Redcat fall far behind. If you actually get in to crawling you WILL want to upgrade any truck and the scx10.2 has the best options and availability.

Nice and silky!

Originally Posted by Rekreant

Id be wary of that parts compatibility idea, Harley did a video on the fact that most of the parts redcat CLAIMS as being compatible really arent.

Let's be honest - Harley is (maybe "was" now that he's involved with Vanquish and the fact that they have the Origin) an Axial fanboy. Redcats aren't the only vehicles he's bashed.

[Jim85IROC]

Originally Posted by Rekreant

Id be wary of that parts compatibility idea, Harley did a video on the fact that most of the parts redcat CLAIMS as being compatible really arent.

Yeah, I'm well aware of Harley's video, but Harley's definition of "compatible" is a bit more strict than mine. Harley based it off of Redcat's claim that the parts are directly swappable. That's not necessarily the case. A lot of SCX10 parts fit with minor (very minor) massaging, but aren't a "bolt in" in the strictest sense.

[Bigsteezy]

So much good information here, thanks a lot! I'm really starting to lean heavily to the Trx 4 sport. It seems like the $40 difference in price between it and the deadbolt is all added value and not just brand tax. I'm not all that interested in a truck that begs for a bunch of upgrades right now. If I stick with the hobby, then down the road I'll be a lot more into the idea of a vehicle that I buy with the intention of upgrading many things. Hopefully that 10-15% off ebay coupon happens soon, otherwise I'll be checking local hobby shops. You guys are being a big help.

[Asuckaphish]

Originally Posted by Rekreant

Id be wary of that parts compatibility idea, Harley did a video on the fact that most of the parts redcat CLAIMS as being compatible really arent.

For someone new in the hobby i'd still steer them towards Traxxas or Horizon (Axial and Vaterra) just because of the sheer magnitude of parts, upgrade, and information availability. If you go down to a local crawl spot and people are going to have first hand knowdedge of one of those platforms.