6yr old son xmas gift on a budget

[UKRobster]

Hey folks.

Have tried my boy with my Firestorm this summer and he found it a bit too sensitive and quick for him. He struggled to get to grips with it.

Want to get him something for christmas to see if he can get the hang of it with something more suitable.

 

I've read through a few threads with similar situations. Dad wanting something for their young son. Unfortunately my budget is even more restrictive to consider some of the suggested options. Plus the mrs. will go mad if I spend too much and he doesn't take to it.

I've seen the Absima Hurricane which is more my budget. Watched a few different you tube videos. It seems to look fairly decent for the money.

Only slight drawback is it's seems perhaps still a little too quick. Doesn't look as though the radio gear has any option to restrict the speed. Would need to invest in a different TX to alter/restrict it.

Seems to have plenty of spare parts available as no doubt it will need them.

 

Question regarding the battery. If they come with a USB charging lead will it charge from a USB power bank? You know, the same as mobile phone type. Woudl be handy to charge whilst in the field as it were.

If he takes to it I'd maybe look to upgrade the batteries later on, but that's not important right now.

Any opinions welcomed as are any alternative models.

[RadioFish]

In my eys a faster car would teach him throttle control not to push the stick all the way all the time
Wl toys make a nice buggy type car...... Or get him a cheap crawler?

Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk

[stretch]

When my lad used my firestorm with factory transmitter which didn't allow throttle adjustment I just stuck a bit of foam behind the trigger so he couldn't pull it all the way.

 

You can buy a transmitter with adjustment for around £20

[fnknan]

2 hours ago, RadioFish said:

In my eys a faster car would teach him throttle control not to push the stick all the way all the time
Wl toys make a nice buggy type car...... Or get him a cheap crawler?

Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk
 

Yeah the wltoys cars are great but I'm thinking that might still be too fast as they jam big motors in those tiny cars.

 

Im thinking maybe the FTX siege, it's really cheap and I think I heard somewhere that some parts from the firestorm are cross compatible with it. Don't quote me on that though.

[300bhp/ton]

12 hours ago, UKRobster said:

Hey folks.

Have tried my boy with my Firestorm this summer and he found it a bit too sensitive and quick for him. He struggled to get to grips with it.

Want to get him something for christmas to see if he can get the hang of it with something more suitable.

 

I've read through a few threads with similar situations. Dad wanting something for their young son. Unfortunately my budget is even more restrictive to consider some of the suggested options. Plus the mrs. will go mad if I spend too much and he doesn't take to it.

I've seen the Absima Hurricane which is more my budget. Watched a few different you tube videos. It seems to look fairly decent for the money.

Only slight drawback is it's seems perhaps still a little too quick. Doesn't look as though the radio gear has any option to restrict the speed. Would need to invest in a different TX to alter/restrict it.

Seems to have plenty of spare parts available as no doubt it will need them.

 

Question regarding the battery. If they come with a USB charging lead will it charge from a USB power bank? You know, the same as mobile phone type. Woudl be handy to charge whilst in the field as it were.

If he takes to it I'd maybe look to upgrade the batteries later on, but that's not important right now.

Any opinions welcomed as are any alternative models.

What is your budget?

 

And do you have batteries, chargers, radio gear already or are you wanting to get everything in that budget?

 

As for charging from a power bank, it should be possible, but obviously it will depend on the capacity, if you have a 2000mAh power bank and a 3000mAh battery to charge, it isn't going to work apart from a top up. USB charging is also likely to be painfully slow..... I'd recommend getting a charger than allows you to charge in 40mins - 1 hour, rather than overnight. As it will allow so much more use of an RC, as will having a 2nd battery.

 

I'd suggest considering a crawler if you want to keep the speed.

 

Something like this is under £150 all in and is capable and something they shouldn't grow out of too quickly:

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/ftx-outback-2-rtr-trail-vehicle-tundra-2/rc-car-products/425370

 

If that is a little too much money still.

 

Then maybe a basic RTR buggy like this:

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/ftx-comet-1-12-brushed-2wd-rtr-buggy/rc-car-products/433831

 

£65 all in. Honestly it isn't the best buggy in the world and if they get into it, they will likely out grow it. But for the price it is likely to suit a 6 year old rather well in my opinion.

 

For slightly more money you could also opt for something like this:

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/tamiya-grasshopper/rc-car-products/23142

 

£80 and you'll need a servo, battery and radio gear. So will work out slightly more money than the FTX Comet. But IMO the Tamiya is a truly classic design and step up in many areas. I have one of these, only got it the other year and despite some of it's design limitations I'm amazed at how well it goes. It will need assembling though, but this is a fun activity in itself, but probably not for a 6 year to be doing. It should only take you an evening or two to get it fully assembled however.

[UKRobster]

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Have started looking at some of the cars. I have seen the FTX already which is a good contender.
The WL toys brand I hadn't come across so will have a serious look into those too. Although the A959 does have 540 motor in it, so is likely to be fairly fast. But is only £36 on ebay!

So unless I do go for a crawler to keep speed down (although they wont really have the same WOW factor). I think I'm going to have to accept the fact that it's going to be fairly quick and teach him throttle control right from the off, rather than try to let him suss it out himself. Not a bad thing I suppose and will mean plenty of practice 👍

[300bhp/ton]

WLToys are ok, I have some of their  heli's and quads, all bought from places like Banggood/Gearbest, etc.

 

There are a couple of things to be aware of:

 

-Not every model they produce is good. So you need to research them individually before buying.

 

-Spares are usually available, but generally only from online shops in China (like those mentioned above). This is fine, but you need to be aware that shipping from these places usually takes 2-6 weeks (average of 4 weeks). So can mean your RC might be out of action for a long period. Even more so if there is a problem with the order, such as late dispatch (many of these places will claim stuff in stock when it isn't. And you won't really know this until you get a dispatch email 3 weeks after ordering). Or if a package gets lost or they send the wrong part. Their customer service is normally very poor, so make sure you only pay via PayPal.

 

-Little to no visibility of when something becomes discontinued. The model line up can change frequently and this can impact parts supply. So you may suddenly no longer be able to get parts, or they may not be available for a year, to then suddenly become available again.

 

As long as you understand the risks, there are some bargains to be had.

[Mack1]

If speed is the problem would it not be possible to run from a lower voltage battery pack say 6v instead of 7.2v?

[fnknan]

4 hours ago, UKRobster said:

Thanks for all of the suggestions.

Have started looking at some of the cars. I have seen the FTX already which is a good contender.
The WL toys brand I hadn't come across so will have a serious look into those too. Although the A959 does have 540 motor in it, so is likely to be fairly fast. But is only £36 on ebay!

So unless I do go for a crawler to keep speed down (although they wont really have the same WOW factor). I think I'm going to have to accept the fact that it's going to be fairly quick and teach him throttle control right from the off, rather than try to let him suss it out himself. Not a bad thing I suppose and will mean plenty of practice 👍

Yeah a kid will get bored of a crawler real quick I wouldn't bother. He'll need something that feels fast for him and crawlers don't feel fast for anyone out the box 🤣

Edited November 27, 2019 by fnknan

[fnknan]

46 minutes ago, Mack1 said:

If speed is the problem would it not be possible to run from a lower voltage battery pack say 6v instead of 7.2v?

Most car escs aren't designed to take anything lower than 7.2 volts. Most cars will state voltage or cell boundaries in the description and 7.2v or 6cells is usually the minimum

[fnknan]

3 hours ago, 300bhp/ton said:

 you need to be aware that shipping from these places usually takes 2-6 weeks (average of 4 weeks). So can mean your RC might be out of action for a long period. Even more so if there is a problem with the order, such as

Yeah 2/3 of my banggood orders didn't show up :(. Its a shame because all the items the actually showed up in that one order that arrived were all really good. It's just a pain actually getting them to your door.

[UKRobster]

Aah some gotchas then to ordering cheap items. Bargains come at a cost. I have a feeling that spares will be required at some point. So maybe the FL models won't be suitable if supporting it is potentially going to be tricky.

Thanks for the info regarding cells and voltages. I've only got a nitro so will be a bit of learning for me to adjust to electric cars. All good stuff though!

No-one has commented on the model I was considering.
Is that because it's awful and I should steer clear? I think its going to come down to the Absima or an FTX.

Is there much difference in handling between 4wd & 2wd. I know traction and off road capability would be.
But what about the handling? Any difference with steering control? Or indeed any preference between the two?

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[fnknan]

1 hour ago, UKRobster said:

No-one has commented on the model I was considering.
Is that because it's awful and I should steer clear? I think its going to come down to the Absima or an FTX.

Well I own an absima but it's an ab3.4 the plastics are quite flexible which means that they won't snap as easily. Can't confirm that it's the same on the hurricane as I have no experience with it but it looks like it would be perfect for a 6 year-old. Thinking back to when I was 6, if I got a truck like that I'd be delighted. It seems more toyish than a normal hobby grade car but that's not a bad thing for a 6 year old. 

 

The only issue I can see is that the servo is a 5 wire servo. Which means that upgrading any of the electronics will be a pain because you'd have to upgrade multiple things at a time. The standard amount of wires as I'm sure you know is 3. And let's say you wanted a new servo, you'd have to buy a new reciever and radio. The ftx comet has a 2 in 1 esc/reciever meaning that to change the servo you'd have to buy a new ESC, reciever and radio. And at that point you may aswell go brushless. So it's hard to do it bit by bit in terms of electronics. Although I doubt your boy will need any sort of upgrades for a while, I'm just speaking long term.

 

Long story short the hurricane would be a good car to get started on, but it's not the most upgradable. And I'm not sure it would even be worth upgrading. The FTX siege or comet will give you more for your money and definitely have better parts support. Although the comet is more of a pain to upgrade than the siege as the siege has standard electronics you'd find in any 1/10th scale, I feel it's still worth doing so as it's a good platform. I'm actually gonna buy myself a comet soon as it looks like a heap of fun 👍

1 hour ago, UKRobster said:

Is there much difference in handling between 4wd & 2wd. I know traction and off road capability would be.
But what about the handling? Any difference with steering control? Or indeed any preference between the two?

Never owned a 2wd so I'm not so educated. I believe 2wd is definitely harder to drive but it builds up skill more and is easier to work on due to less moving parts. 4wd is stupidly fun because it can be thrown into any corner at any angle and it'll just slide through, it's also a lot better on rougher terrain. You'd struggle a lot with the hurricane on rough terrain.

[300bhp/ton]

2 hours ago, UKRobster said:

Aah some gotchas then to ordering cheap items. Bargains come at a cost. I have a feeling that spares will be required at some point. So maybe the FL models won't be suitable if supporting it is potentially going to be tricky.

Thanks for the info regarding cells and voltages. I've only got a nitro so will be a bit of learning for me to adjust to electric cars. All good stuff though!

No-one has commented on the model I was considering.
Is that because it's awful and I should steer clear? I think its going to come down to the Absima or an FTX.

Is there much difference in handling between 4wd & 2wd. I know traction and off road capability would be.
But what about the handling? Any difference with steering control? Or indeed any preference between the two?

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
 

Sorry missed the bit about the Absima. It looks ok to me, do note it is 1/18th though. Which means, despite its chunky looks, you'll need something like tarmac or smooth dirt to run it on. It won't like grass of any sort. The wheels will be just too small.

 

As for the Tx, just get some foam/rubber foam and stick it on the trigger/casing to prevent full throttle. Cheap and easily removed when ready. 4wd is generally easy to drive, but can and will spin out still.

[UKRobster]

Thanks for the additional comments. I appreciate the time you've taken to post such detailed responses.
Definitely some food for thought. Future upgrades are a consideration along with ongoing repairs.

As there doesn't seem to be any deals on any of these cars I will take my time to weigh up the options. As I'm not restricted to get it in time for black Friday.
I'll make sure I post back which one I go for and how he gets on with it [emoji6]

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[UKRobster]

Been looking online and the FTX comet & seige are both 2WD. I was beginning to think that a 4WD would be the better option until I realised that they weren't.
Seige is currently in black Friday deal but is probably still a bit pricey. Considering I would want an additional battery for what ever car I get, therefore pumping the final price up slightly.

There's almost too much choice!
I'm also trying to consider what will appeal to him and provide that wow factor as he opens it on Xmas day.

I think initially the most use will be on tarmac and short grass. I'm thinking of the most common places that I go bashing. No where really has long grass.
Gotta sleep on it and revisit tomorrow [emoji43]


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[300bhp/ton]

I wouldn't worry too much, both 2wd and 4wd work well. At this sort of power level I wouldn't make it a decider at all so go for whatever "package" you like the look/spec of most.

[fnknan]

8 hours ago, UKRobster said:

Been looking online and the FTX comet & seige are both 2WD. I was beginning to think that a 4WD would be the better option until I realised that they weren't.
Seige is currently in black Friday deal but is probably still a bit pricey. Considering I would want an additional battery for what ever car I get, therefore pumping the final price up slightly.

There's almost too much choice!
I'm also trying to consider what will appeal to him and provide that wow factor as he opens it on Xmas day.

I think initially the most use will be on tarmac and short grass. I'm thinking of the most common places that I go bashing. No where really has long grass.
Gotta sleep on it and revisit tomorrow


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I think the comet looks the coolest. He'll open it and just think wow. Who doesn't love a buggy with a huge spoiler. But then again the siege looks like the firestorm and he might like that his looks like yours.

[Ollykamakazi]

Been looking online

 

There's almost too much choice!

I'm also trying to consider what will appeal to him and provide that wow factor as he opens it on Xmas day.

 

 

My advice would be, pull some up on the laptop and ask which he thinks is the coolest.

Exactly what I did with my lad.

He doesn’t need to know you’re buying one.

I was surprised by his choices. Which goes to show we are all very different.

Have fun.

 

 

Bash, Break, Build, Repeat...

[UKRobster]

Was seriously considering the FTX Comet today. So searched youtube and found a very in depth review/upgrade video series by @Praetor  a member on here. He won the truggy version earlier this year from his gold membership.
His youtube channel " RCing Around HQ "  has a bunch of videos on it. The most conclusive one is the part 3 review https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xus_ez2Clds&t=599s

Basically he spent another £60 on it to get it running satisfactorily. Swapping the ESC,receiver, radio gear and battery. Which I know is all about personal preference. He wanted to get it running to its full potential and has the skills to do so.
The most concerning part was that fact that it kept cutting out. Loosing power or RX/TX, but it would stop dead for half a second. He thought it was due to the ESC/RX combo. But that's not good, it will only lead to frustration.

Now it is hardly a fair comparison in the depth of reviews. But the unboxing/review videos I've seen of the Absima Hurricane don't indicate any issues of this kind & I'm not naive to think that it wont have its own or similar issues. Also it has a 5 wire RX/ESC so upgrading it would be the same outlay as the FTX. But it seems to have a tight turning circle and I actually think that combined with being 1/18th scale will mean he can play with it outside of the house on our street. (Quiet cul-de-sac). Which means he would get more use out of it. A couple of vids have pointed out it really is only toy grade rather than hobby grade. But at this point in time I think that is perfectly suitable.
I just keep coming back to this car.

 

Think I will also try to build a small ramp so he can jump it. Some of the vids I've seen tonight have shown some inexpensive ones! Another little project for me 😁

Edited November 28, 2019 by UKRobster

[UKRobster]

Christmas has now been and gone and Santa left my boy a spanking new RC car in his stocking.

 

After much deliberation ended up ordering the FTX Comet buggy version.

Final nails in the coffin for the Hurrican were:  the standard tyres were quite hard, resulting in poor grip & the shocks weren't oil filled.

So I figured that the FTX was at least hobby grade, with many spares available and upgradable in the future if required.

Oh, also my boy had written his letter to santa and asked for an RC with a 'big bumper' - he meant spoiler 😝 so the FTX fit that perfectly.

 

Glad I did, he loves it.

My fears about it being too fast were squashed straight away, it's perfect for him. First run out was on grass, which obviously slowed it a little compared to gravel or tarmac.
He's only had a couple or three runs out with it yet. We've been away so not had the oportunity. But each time he does his handling of it improves.

Thanks to everyone who provided input

[Snfu]

Excellent 😊.   Really glad little un"s enjoying it.