What's with all the gen 8 hate?

[No2Mud]

Originally Posted by old man 52

...lowered an tuned the suspension , swapped out the foams...

Hey old man 52, I guess I bookend your experience - first RC, zero time playing with and mod'ing these things. I'd love to hear what you did to the suspension. When, I first pulled the Gen8 Scout out of the box, my first thought was "Wow, that's sitting too high". Also, what foams to did you use?

Thanks!

[Flamnpede1]

So for those wondering. Yes that Karl guy mentioned earlier in this thread is an absolute A$$ Hat. He has trolled on many different facebook groups. Now on to the Gen 8. I have an AXE'ish version mainly just the chassis in the P.A.C.K form running with stock RTR blue body, HH 21t, 1080 esc, 20kg servo, hoovo 3200 3s, chanquish beadlock, deepwoods tires with pro-line dual stage foams and a Flysky gt3. This truck has been phenomenal and climbed / descended many things I never thought it could. I have not added any additional weight because I don't feel it needs it at this point and goes pretty much everywhere I need it to with in reason. Oh, did I mention how quiet this thing is? Yes it get s a little louder under load but overall I don't know what the noise complaints are.

Now onto my son's RTR....Stock foams suck eggs and will either need boiled or swapped. I had some extra club5 dual stage foams that I bought with my deepwoods and found them to be 10mm too narrow. (Wish this guy would test fit crap before selling it) Anyway they worked fine in my son's RTR wheels and tires. The ESC and radio are a bit sketchy when used together so we ditched the ESC and put in a 1080 and now things are bit smoother and not so jumpy. The RTR axle housings are brittle as heck (blew one apart) and if you can find them the HD ones are the way you want to go. We also swapped the lower skid and battery tray to the new style without the hump. Oh and I put aftermarket TRX4 servo horns from RCWORLD on both rigs. On the RTR this eliminated the bump steer on mine it just looks nicer. Any who, that's our experience thus far...No hate here and glad I didn't spend the extra coin on the TRX4.

[Gamer707b]

Ive had it since February of 2019 and have used it A LOT. I do have the Traxxas 4 Tec and enjoy that as well, but nothing like my Gen 8. I was new to the hobby back in 2019 and didn't know what to get. Took a chance on the Gen 8 and its been good to me. I did have to replace the rear axle housing ( 8 bucks) , stock servo, and the front top portal gear (also a few bucks) but other than that, its been very good to me.

So far, Ive put a bottom flat skid plate, stronger front portal gears, aluminum beadlock wheels, a good hefty Savox servo which wasn't waterproof but I ended up waterproofing it myself , a hobby wing esc, some Hyrax prline tires and dual stage foams. Also , I went with body magnets because the Velcro eventually came off.. Currently Im painting and detailing a Axial 67 chevy c-10 body and should have that done by tomorrow. So needless to say, Ive loved this rig. Don't see myself needing or wanting another one. If I did get another one it would eventually be the Vanquish.

[xtreme4x2]

I went the 2.2 route with my Gen8.

List:
TRX4 GTS Long travel shocks - wht springs front/orange rear
Samix brass spring cups
SSD Aluminum knuckles
SSD brass portal cover - front/rear
Hot racing Brass diff cover - rear
InTheWorksRC Brass High clearance lower links
Redcat Underdrive - rear
SSD aluminum shock mounts - front/rear
SSD scale driveshaft - rear
SSD 2.2 D hole wheels w/C.I. foams (Soft/Med) and Pitbull Berserker tires
Club5 12mm brass hex w/extended axles - front/rear
Club5 Aluminum servo relocation and steering links
Aluminum transfer case drive shaft
flad skid
HH 12t crawl master w/stock ESC
25kg amazon servo
Axial tactic RX/TX
2200 3s batts

I think that's it. It runs and crawls great. The SSD Brass portal covers seem like a tight fit around the gears, but she still drive and crawls fine.

[Flamnpede1]

Ok....I can see why some would hate on the Gen 8. The stock electronics are junk except for the radio which lacks key adjustments. The ESC with the 17t motor is twitchy as he77. The stock servo well....same as any RTR in this price range, but it gave up this weekend. I think Redcat needs to just make a Gen 8.2 with the updated skids, axle housings, metal trans gears, updated servo horn, different foams, updated front lower link mounts, and possibly slightly better stock electronics. Then they can sell it for $299-319 Currently I'm finding that I'm having to bring my son's RTR up to the same level as my AXE roller. So anyone reading this if you come across the AXE P.A.C.K edition that is showing up on ebay for $189-200 it is well worth it in the end. Buy yourself the RTR body, some chanquish wheels, deep woods tires, HW 1080,HH 21T and call it a day. Oh, his RTR still sounds like a coffee grinder after 30 miles compared to mine and we have re-greased everything with Lucas red-n-tacky.

[xtreme4x2]

Interesting. I thought the radio was junk, but the ESC is good. I still use the stock ESC. The stock motor is also junk.

[AK KRAWLER]

Originally Posted by xtreme4x2

Looks pretty good as a 2.2 rig!!!

[ferp420]

the brazerkers look good too the size is perfict those are the tires im puting on mine as soon as i turn the austars i to slicks lol

[Flamnpede1]

Originally Posted by xtreme4x2

Interesting. I thought the radio was junk, but the ESC is good. I still use the stock ESC. The stock motor is also junk.

Hmm.....I just didn't like how there was no delay between forward and reverse. Also the granularity going forward seemed to be severely lacking for crawling. However, it might work fine just for trails and occasional technical stuff if you're careful. I agree the radio isn't the greatest because it lacks some very important settings. Especially if you want to keep from breaking portal gears when steering.

[xtreme4x2]

Originally Posted by AK KRAWLER

Looks pretty good as a 2.2 rig!!!

Thanks man!

Originally Posted by ferp420

the brazerkers look good too the size is perfict those are the tires im puting on mine as soon as i turn the austars i to slicks lol

Thanks! I didn't want anything too aggressive. The tires work pretty decent too.

Originally Posted by Flamnpede1

Hmm.....I just didn't like how there was no delay between forward and reverse. Also the granularity going forward seemed to be severely lacking for crawling. However, it might work fine just for trails and occasional technical stuff if you're careful. I agree the radio isn't the greatest because it lacks some very important settings. Especially if you want to keep from breaking portal gears when steering.

I'd be interested in trying a different ESC to see the difference. I can see the start up being a little slower with a better ESC. So far its been good for crawling. The drag brake works well for both climbing and descents.Maybe I'll swap it out when I need a new ESC for another project.

[Scolionophobia]

I just ordered my Gen 8 axe, it will be my first dedicated crawler. I’ve owned dozens of RCs of the years and had a break in RC time due to work and life. No both are clear and I’m jumping back in head first


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[AK KRAWLER]

Originally Posted by Scolionophobia

I just ordered my Gen 8 axe, it will be my first dedicated crawler. I’ve owned dozens of RCs of the years and had a break in RC time due to work and life. No both are clear and I’m jumping back in head first

You will love it, mine has been pretty darn reliable!

[SteveMongr]

Having much fun with Redcats. Added larger tires to the Gen8 and it has just enough wheel speed for fun on the beach. Also swapped the motor for a $15 Holmes 27t.
https://youtu.be/LaHe9hN5lBw
https://youtu.be/T0KmdpHeomw

[Tylus]

Originally Posted by SteveMongr

Having much fun with Redcats. Added larger tires to the Gen8 and it has just enough wheel speed for fun on the beach. Also swapped the motor for a $15 Holmes 27t.
https://youtu.be/LaHe9hN5lBw
https://youtu.be/T0KmdpHeomw

pretty stable. my trx4 is pretty tippy at speed + turns

[Boomer75]

I saw the Gen8 PACK on sale for $150 and had to give it a shot. I have an scx10 ii and an Everest 10. I have a lot of mods on the Everest. I have seen people run the gen8 and the axe edition and they were capable. I just got into this a few years ago and I like the redcat stuff I have so far. It feels like a slight step down in quality and feel compared to other brands but still really solid. The bias seems to be less of an issue for those of us who are a little late to the game.

[hobbyjumper]

I got one about six weeks ago for the reasons you suggest. It's got more points vulnerable to breakage under normal driving/crashing conditions than my 10ii or Enduro, but some good thought went into the design and it sure does crawl nice. So yeah, I think some of the hate is residual, that is, based on historical Redcat legacy. Anyway, before you crawl anything tough, the one mod you should do is brace the panhard mount or I pretty much guarantee the screws will work loose and the mount will separate from the axle. Here's how I did it, and video proving that it works. Both trucks are Gen8s but mine is the orange one.

https://scontent.fybz2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...04&oe=5F39B978

https://scontent.fybz2-2.fna.fbcdn.n...fe&oe=5F37E068

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1JDGxiLxPw

Cheers...

Originally Posted by Boomer75

I saw the Gen8 PACK on sale for $150 and had to give it a shot. I have an scx10 ii and an Everest 10. I have a lot of mods on the Everest. I have seen people run the gen8 and the axe edition and they were capable. I just got into this a few years ago and I like the redcat stuff I have so far. It feels like a slight step down in quality and feel compared to other brands but still really solid. The bias seems to be less of an issue for those of us who are a little late to the game.

[waxen]

i have one along with a few others and I love it, it's tough and capable. Mine is the Axe edition so comes with a lot of upgrades over the standard Gen8, things I've changed are Tyres, wheels, shocks, SSD link mounts and replaced portal housings with alloy. Tyres are Trx4, Wheels are Boom racing deep dish and Trx4 shocks because they lower it 5mm without losing travel


.

[IronOKie]

If you want to part with that Venture I could use the spare parts ;). I've actually had no issues with my Venture, but I never drive it anymore. It is a sad 'what might have been' story.

As for the Gen 8, some of it is Redcat, they have a reputation that was well earned from selling rebranded Chinese generic parts which had questionable quality control..... not really questionable it was flat out sketchy. The Gen7 is just a bunch of those parts cobbled together. Interestingly enough it actually worked ok ish. The gen 8 is their first in-house design and it is a huge leap forward, but they took some shortcuts that really hurt them.

Durability is actually ok, if it's stock, and if you don't do anything too crazy or demanding. The minute you modify it, you will start breaking parts. I pre-ordered the Gen 8 because I am a HUGE International Scout fan and a licensed scout, even the scale was wack was too good to pass up. When it launched, on day 1, the Gen8 page on facebook was FULL of people with broken parts. At the time Redcat had no parts to offer so here you have people going weeks without being able to use their brand new crawler. So what should have improved their reputation significantly, wound up being a mixed bag for them.

I think the Gen 9, assuming there will be one, will probably get them close to on-par with the other RTR manufacturers out now. I agree the SCX10.2 is underwhelming out of the box, but it's an Axial, you are expected to spend at least 1.5x the cost of the rig on upgrades, then it's a beast. I have compared my Gen 8 stock to stock, with an Element Enduro, TRX 4 Sport, HPI Venture, Vaterra Ascender (F100), and Wriath 1.9.

It's solidly better than the Venture, close to but better than the Ascender, and pretty far under the Enduro, Sport, and 1.9 Wraith (Enduro and TRX4 sport are by far the best stock RTR's IMO).

It's good, but it's not great, it has issues and they cut costs in the wrong places if you ask me (the TX/RX being the worst).

The other thing to remember is it's correctly marketed as an entry level rig. If you are new to hobby RC $300 is going to feel like a LOT of money. If you spend that on a rig and it breaks right away you are going to be upset. Some of their reputation is suffering because folks don't understand that sometimes stuff breaks that's just part of it. I like the Gen8 for what it is, but I also don't shy away from telling people it's one of the least durable crawlers out there once you start adding weight, or power. I happen to believe it's ok to like something and still point out it's flaws when people ask. Given the huge uptick in performance that can be had for not much more money ($50) it's hard to recommend the Gen 8 unless someone really likes the scout.

As a side note, I have kept my Gen 8 stock other than the TX/RX and I have not broken a single part on it yet. I very rarely crawl with it because I know if I mod it I will go down the spiral of broken parts, and most of my joy in this hobby comes from building/modding.

[ferp420]

Originally Posted by IronOKie

If you want to part with that Venture I could use the spare parts ;). I've actually had no issues with my Venture, but I never drive it anymore. It is a sad 'what might have been' story.

As for the Gen 8, some of it is Redcat, they have a reputation that was well earned from selling rebranded Chinese generic parts which had questionable quality control..... not really questionable it was flat out sketchy. The Gen7 is just a bunch of those parts cobbled together. Interestingly enough it actually worked ok ish. The gen 8 is their first in-house design and it is a huge leap forward, but they took some shortcuts that really hurt them.

Durability is actually ok, if it's stock, and if you don't do anything too crazy or demanding. The minute you modify it, you will start breaking parts. I pre-ordered the Gen 8 because I am a HUGE International Scout fan and a licensed scout, even the scale was wack was too good to pass up. When it launched, on day 1, the Gen8 page on facebook was FULL of people with broken parts. At the time Redcat had no parts to offer so here you have people going weeks without being able to use their brand new crawler. So what should have improved their reputation significantly, wound up being a mixed bag for them.

I think the Gen 9, assuming there will be one, will probably get them close to on-par with the other RTR manufacturers out now. I agree the SCX10.2 is underwhelming out of the box, but it's an Axial, you are expected to spend at least 1.5x the cost of the rig on upgrades, then it's a beast. I have compared my Gen 8 stock to stock, with an Element Enduro, TRX 4 Sport, HPI Venture, Vaterra Ascender (F100), and Wriath 1.9.

It's solidly better than the Venture, close to but better than the Ascender, and pretty far under the Enduro, Sport, and 1.9 Wraith (Enduro and TRX4 sport are by far the best stock RTR's IMO).

It's good, but it's not great, it has issues and they cut costs in the wrong places if you ask me (the TX/RX being the worst).

The other thing to remember is it's correctly marketed as an entry level rig. If you are new to hobby RC $300 is going to feel like a LOT of money. If you spend that on a rig and it breaks right away you are going to be upset. Some of their reputation is suffering because folks don't understand that sometimes stuff breaks that's just part of it. I like the Gen8 for what it is, but I also don't shy away from telling people it's one of the least durable crawlers out there once you start adding weight, or power. I happen to believe it's ok to like something and still point out it's flaws when people ask. Given the huge uptick in performance that can be had for not much more money ($50) it's hard to recommend the Gen 8 unless someone really likes the scout.

As a side note, I have kept my Gen 8 stock other than the TX/RX and I have not broken a single part on it yet. I very rarely crawl with it because I know if I mod it I will go down the spiral of broken parts, and most of my joy in this hobby comes from building/modding.

redcat did let the engineeres go early that friday before they relesed the truck but once a few minor issues are fixed its a durable rig theres only one must have mod out of the box in my opinion snd thats the lower link mounts the gen8 just needs the aftermarket to jump on board to bring it up to the leval of axial or traxxasss

[RockCrawlingKid]

Originally Posted by ferp420

redcat did let the engineeres go early that friday before they relesed the truck but once a few minor issues are fixed its a durable rig theres only one must have mod out of the box in my opinion snd thats the lower link mounts the gen8 just needs the aftermarket to jump on board to bring it up to the leval of axial or traxxasss

By this point I actually don’t think many aftermarket companies will. Redcat products don’t stay in production for very long. Therefore why would a large company invest in an already dying market. That being said I think the gen 8 is a good truck. I hope it sticks around.


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