Advice Request - Which Traxxas to buy

[pdalowsky]

Novice here looking for a little advice from an expert

 

My son is 13 and RC mad, you name it he's into it - Boats, helicopters, planes, drones, cars etc

 

He started with a maverick phantom (which is still running after god knows how many new parts and repairs by dad)

 

and then went to an Outlaw Fox (again still running after numerous repair jobs)

 

Both cars have had some fair use. 

 

His Birthday is coming and I wanted to upgrade him to a better made car that may take a little more punishment and also give him a better experience. The cars he has are great but its time to up the level.

 

I have narrowed it down to a Traxxas Widemaxx or a traxxas Hoss - although im the first to admit i really have no idea about these things at all outside of a little internet reading. Both are roughly the same price point - looking a little north of £700 with the super battery. 

 

Can anyone offer any advice on which one to go with? 

 

Thanks in advance

Paul

[Lone-wolf]

depends on what he is going to use it for but if you want tough look at Hobao

[pdalowsky]

He's just going to hammer it around our local area, through the woods, do some jumps etc

[Alex97]

There's only one man for this task...

 

@Kpowell911

[Kpowell911]

Hi.  Out of those two, the WideMaxx is better than the Hoss. The Hoss is a bit of an odd ball. I think Id have a Rustler 4x4 over a Hoss (in fact I have). 
 

It depends on A) Your Budget B) what you have now charger wise C) How confident you are at changing connectors. 
 

Im a massive massive Traxxas Fan Boy, but Ill be the first to admit, theyre expensive, arguably too expensive. I buy pretty much every new Traxxas on release, however Ive not ordered a Maxx Slash as I think its over priced. I also do not use their batteries and charger as theyre IMO ridiculously expensive.

 

I couldnt in good faith suggest to someone they sink £700 in to a 10th Scale Maxx and a Traxxas battery. I genuinely think the Maxx is the best truck in the class, I own 2 of them, with literally over a thousand pound In upgrades, but if I was to recommend one, Id personally be running different battery connectors (therefore voiding warranty of the ESC) and cheaper lipo’s, and that depends if thats something you want to do. 
 

Also, I believe the Associated MT10 is sub £400? Ive not owned one, but Ive not heard a bad word about them, and they offer much better value than the Traxxas. 
 

Do you currently have a decent charger? What about Lipo’s? 
 

Of course, the Traxxas system works great. You could pick up a Maxx, a few 4s Traxxas Lipo’s, a dual Traxxas ID Charger. The whole thing will work perfectly and is simple. People slate Traxxas, but the system is absolutely brilliant. It really is. Its just ridiculously expensive IMO. Sorry if any of this sounds contradictory. I think Traxxas is brilliant (not perfect mind!) and their ID System works great, you just pay for it…..

Edited March 8 by Kpowell911

[pdalowsky]

7 minutes ago, Kpowell911 said:

Hi.  Out of those two, the WideMaxx is better than the Hoss. The Hoss is a bit of an odd ball. I think Id have a Rustler 4x4 over a Hoss (in fact I have). 
 

It depends on A) Your Budget B) what you have now charger wise C) How confident you are at changing connectors. 
 

Im a massive massive Traxxas Fan Boy, but Ill be the first to admit, theyre expensive, arguably too expensive. I buy pretty much every new Traxxas on release, however Ive not ordered a Maxx Slash as I think its over priced. I also do not use their batteries and charger as theyre IMO ridiculously expensive.

 

I couldnt in good faith suggest to someone they sink £700 in to a 10th Scale Maxx and a Traxxas battery. I genuinely think the Maxx is the best truck in the class, I own 2 of them, with literally over a thousand pound In upgrades, but if I was to recommend one, Id personally be running different battery connectors (therefore voiding warranty of the ESC) and cheaper lipo’s, and that depends if thats something you want to do. 
 

Also, I believe the Associated MT10 is sub £400? Ive not owned one, but Ive not heard a bad word about them, and they offer much better value than the Traxxas. 
 

Do you currently have a decent charger? What about Lipo’s? 
 

Of course, the Traxxas system works great. You could pick up a Maxx, a few 4s Traxxas Lipo’s, a dual Traxxas ID Charger. The whole thing will work perfectly and is simple. People slate Traxxas, but the system is absolutely brilliant. It really is. Its just ridiculously expensive IMO. Sorry if any of this sounds contradictory. I think Traxxas is brilliant (not perfect mind!) and their ID System works great, you just pay for it…..

 This is very helpful - thank you. 
 

My lad has some very basic Liop batteries - I think around 5000mah and 3200 and whatever came with his Maverick. We have very average chargers too - nothing he has to date has cost a deal tbh so this is the first foray into a more serious unit. I know he loves watching youtube videos of Xmaxx's getting thrown through their paces by the crazy loons over the pond, and loves it so i sense he would be thrilled to have something by Traxxas. I appreciate fully I am going to be overpaying for the brand. 

But to answer your questions I do not believe the batteries and chargers we currently have will be up to the task on the wide maxx and was planning to get a bundle including either the 4s or 3s traxxas battery with associated charger. I know its going to cost a fortune unfortunately. Sadly I would not be confident at all in changing the connectors.....Ive had a fair job on changing broken chassis's on what he has now, and installing new drive shafts, and all sorts. 

I'll have a look at the MT10 

 

Thanks again for your valued help 🙂

[Alex97]

A decent charger can be had for about £40-50 and will last you years. 

[Kpowell911]

37 minutes ago, pdalowsky said:

 This is very helpful - thank you. 
 

My lad has some very basic Liop batteries - I think around 5000mah and 3200 and whatever came with his Maverick. We have very average chargers too - nothing he has to date has cost a deal tbh so this is the first foray into a more serious unit. I know he loves watching youtube videos of Xmaxx's getting thrown through their paces by the crazy loons over the pond, and loves it so i sense he would be thrilled to have something by Traxxas. I appreciate fully I am going to be overpaying for the brand. 

But to answer your questions I do not believe the batteries and chargers we currently have will be up to the task on the wide maxx and was planning to get a bundle including either the 4s or 3s traxxas battery with associated charger. I know its going to cost a fortune unfortunately. Sadly I would not be confident at all in changing the connectors.....Ive had a fair job on changing broken chassis's on what he has now, and installing new drive shafts, and all sorts. 

I'll have a look at the MT10 

 

Thanks again for your valued help 🙂

Traxxas gets a bad rap, some of it is 100% warrantied I agree.

 

 I totally get where youre coming from and Traxxas' branding and marketing has being incredibly successful. I had Traxxas models when they were the plucky innovative underdog. I totally get your son wants what he sees on youtube. This is a massive massive part of it, that people dont get when others say 'get this instead'. It may well be better and cheaper, but if it hasn't got the branding, it doesnt matter in a sense.

 

Traxxas do not make a bad product. Regardless of the reputation, and what people say online, the product is solid. Their ID system makes everything simple, and it all works brilliantly. In terms of their electronics/lipos/chargers. Can you get better? Yes. Can you get cheaper? Definately. As long as you accept you are paying more for that convenience, its a no brainer in my opinion.

 

IF you ask this question on another forum or reddit. Arrma will come up as an alternative. Since Horizon got their hands on them, IMO theyre no different to Traxxas now. They've got their propitary lipo tech (Spektrum Smart).

 

You will not regret the WideMaxx with the Traxxas ID Charger/Lipo. We can make it messy and get better value potentially. As long as you can stomach the initial cost.

 

I also find Traxxas stuff holds its money and is far easier to sell than anything else in RC, an aspect that gets overlooked

[Kpowell911]

Two of my Maxxs for reference

 

 

[Lone-wolf]

Just to chip in here, i totally agree with what mr powell is saying, i have been very outspoken regarding Traxxas but as said nothing wrong with the models, for me its how the company go about their business that stops me from buying the products

[Ross9999992]

I’ll be that guy then and throw the new Arrma 4s v2.5’s into the mix (outcast and kraton). Personally I prefer the v2 because I want my mt to have a center transmission rather than a centre diff but hey ho. They are very good trucks though. Kraton being lwb and outcast being swb.

 

I wanted a new 1/10 mt a while back and was torn between basically 4 different ones. Maxx, outcast, skeeter or mt 10, they all have their advantages (expensive tank, Arrma tough and mental handling, bulletproof drivetrain, cheap and tough). Settled on the outcast myself and love it. 

You couldn’t really go wrong with any of those imho, it’s all budget and personal preference really 😄 

[Kpowell911]

8 hours ago, Ross9999992 said:

I’ll be that guy then and throw the new Arrma 4s v2.5’s into the mix (outcast and kraton). Personally I prefer the v2 because I want my mt to have a center transmission rather than a centre diff but hey ho. They are very good trucks though. Kraton being lwb and outcast being swb.

 

I wanted a new 1/10 mt a while back and was torn between basically 4 different ones. Maxx, outcast, skeeter or mt 10, they all have their advantages (expensive tank, Arrma tough and mental handling, bulletproof drivetrain, cheap and tough). Settled on the outcast myself and love it. 

You couldn’t really go wrong with any of those imho, it’s all budget and personal preference really 😄 

Ill agree. The Arrma also is a good choice. I dont run Arrma stuff as I had a negative experience with their alleged ‘EXB’ range, and I think their latest Horizon/Spektrum stuff is just as predatory as Traxxas but the Arrma 4s  range is solid

[Lone-wolf]

1 hour ago, Kpowell911 said:

Ill agree. The Arrma also is a good choice. I dont run Arrma stuff as I had a negative experience with their alleged ‘EXB’ range, and I think their latest Horizon/Spektrum stuff is just as predatory as Traxxas but the Arrma 4s  range is solid

Totally agree about Horizon, they are big in rc flight and have killed plenty of plane companies

[Kpowell911]

1 minute ago, Lone-wolf said:

Totally agree about Horizon, they are big in rc flight and have killed plenty of plane companies

You wont agree, but Horizon are more dangerous than Traxxas to the hobby……

[Ross9999992]

1 hour ago, Kpowell911 said:

I had a negative experience with their alleged ‘EXB’ range,

Yeah the 6s range seemingly need at the very least a £100++ chassis upgrade out of the box amongst other things. The v2 and 2.5 4s range though are fairly sorted. A bash bar (under chassis brace) is pretty much the only suggested upgrade and even that’s only needed for those talbot esque bashers.

 

The new mojave 4s also seems a very decent option as well going by the reviews.

 

I don’t know/care much about the company politics and all that tbh. I think we all agree that most prices are higher than we’d like nowadays with traxxas being amongst the highest but with that said I do still have my xmaxx and merv . I will admit the outcast has made me a bit of an Arrma fanboi recently though, it is a very nice model 🙂 

[Lone-wolf]

6 hours ago, Kpowell911 said:

You wont agree, but Horizon are more dangerous than Traxxas to the hobby……

I would agree, both firms have a predatory nature, might surprise you that i have not ruled out getting a traxxas the 1/18 hi trail F-150 

[Yrkoon]

gonna suggest a different one that will not dissapoint for 400 think all u would need is some 4s batteries and a charger. 

 

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/hobao-hyper-vs-1-8-rtr-buggy-150a-esc-red-439894

 

that is a cracking buggy for the money and parts are cheap plus 8 scale and has loads of power 🙂

 

 

 

notice the terrain and how their been driven plus mine snapped a boulder in half 😛 lmao

[pdalowsky]

On 08/03/2024 at 18:58, Kpowell911 said:

Traxxas gets a bad rap, some of it is 100% warrantied I agree.

 

 I totally get where youre coming from and Traxxas' branding and marketing has being incredibly successful. I had Traxxas models when they were the plucky innovative underdog. I totally get your son wants what he sees on youtube. This is a massive massive part of it, that people dont get when others say 'get this instead'. It may well be better and cheaper, but if it hasn't got the branding, it doesnt matter in a sense.

 

Traxxas do not make a bad product. Regardless of the reputation, and what people say online, the product is solid. Their ID system makes everything simple, and it all works brilliantly. In terms of their electronics/lipos/chargers. Can you get better? Yes. Can you get cheaper? Definately. As long as you accept you are paying more for that convenience, its a no brainer in my opinion.

 

IF you ask this question on another forum or reddit. Arrma will come up as an alternative. Since Horizon got their hands on them, IMO theyre no different to Traxxas now. They've got their propitary lipo tech (Spektrum Smart).

 

You will not regret the WideMaxx with the Traxxas ID Charger/Lipo. We can make it messy and get better value potentially. As long as you can stomach the initial cost.

 

I also find Traxxas stuff holds its money and is far easier to sell than anything else in RC, an aspect that gets overlooked

Absolutely and given my son isnt an expert on the other brands they will not have that initial 'wow' of a traxxas as daft as that seems. 

 

Thank you for your input - its been a massive help. 

 

One final question. Ive been looking at some bundles for it.....

 

2 options

 

1. the car and a 3s battery and charger - at £721

 

2. the car and a 4s battery and charger - at £836

 

Is the 4s really that much better?

[Shergar]

Get the 3s till he has the finesse of controlling it 👍

[Kpowell911]

9 hours ago, pdalowsky said:

Absolutely and given my son isnt an expert on the other brands they will not have that initial 'wow' of a traxxas as daft as that seems. 

 

Thank you for your input - its been a massive help. 

 

One final question. Ive been looking at some bundles for it.....

 

2 options

 

1. the car and a 3s battery and charger - at £721

 

2. the car and a 4s battery and charger - at £836

 

Is the 4s really that much better?

How good is he currently with his RC's? Maxx is a handful on 4S, but definately will want 4S eventually. IF you go 3S, just bare in mind you may potentially want to go to 4S in the future so budget for that

[Lilredmachine]

I'd sack off all the massively overpriced Arrma and Traxxas tat and buy one of these:

 

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/hobao-hyper-mt-sport-plus-rtr-hw150a-esc-18kg-servo-grey-1343440

 

It's a steal and very, very difficult to break. 

[pdalowsky]

13 hours ago, Kpowell911 said:

How good is he currently with his RC's? Maxx is a handful on 4S, but definately will want 4S eventually. IF you go 3S, just bare in mind you may potentially want to go to 4S in the future so budget for that

He's reasonable, the Rc's he has at the moment are not super powered like this one seems to be so its definitely a step up. The outlaw he has might do 35mph on a good day, and whilst we have some scrapes and some smashes on the whole hes pretty good with them.  Really going for the Traxxas as I heard they can take a good bit of punishment too, but no doubt I'll be buying parts in no time 😉

 

 

[Shergar]

Traxxas are good for part’s support though.

[Lone-wolf]

1 minute ago, Shergar said:

Traxxas are good for part’s support though.

Yep that is a real good point for Traxxas, if you break it the parts will be available in most rc shops and as a rule not that expensive

[Kpowell911]

2 hours ago, Shergar said:

Traxxas are good for part’s support though.

And they hold their value well.