namastebuzz

It does have a "boot" under the nose cone. You can fit in a set of golf clubs. Once you've hacksawed them down to the appropriate length.....

Yeah I've always wanted one since that TG test as well. Thing is, I never thought I'd get one. Generally I don't have £40k sitting round to spend on a toy and I never contemplated having the money to run an exotic car either. Two things happened. First, I came into some money that is going to be invested in a house but not for another 3-4 years. Secondly, I'd noticed some of the newer Atom 4s getting sold at well over their initial build cost and, by extension, started looking at the residuals of Atom 3s and noticed they suffer almost zero depreciation. Digging further I figured out that they're about as complex as a Honda Civic. Tyres are £100. A clutch is £220 and a service at the factory is £500. £300 road tax and 30-35mpg. Insurance is reasonable too. Contrast that with running a Lambo or Ferrari. I supposed that I could buy and run an Atom for a year or two without losing a lot of money, especially if I bought the right one. I seriously considered putting a deposit on a 4 because I could've ordered a lowish spec 4 for under £45k and definitley have sold it for a profit after a year (or even 2) of use. However, the 28 month wait for a 4 would eat into my potential 3/4yr window of ownership by far too much so 2nd hand it was. So, the great experiment begins shortly. It's hopefully excellent Man Maths or some sort of reverse-engineered bangernomics. Getting a super low mileage, top spec, carefully owned car with full factory history is a good start. It's gonna cost me a few grand to own and run it for a couple of years but whatever it costs - it'll be less than the friggin 54 plate Volvo XC70 we ran for the last two years. That's for sure. 😬

Ha ha! Indeed. Many years riding motorcycles around the North of Scotland will hopefully have prepared me a bit. Plus, this example has the perspex side panels too. If that fails, heated clothing is next on the list. 👍

Never have so it'll be a bit of a learning curve. 3.5 Supercharged with a good spec. Don't have it yet, it's going to the factory next week for a service then I've got to head down and pick it up from the current owner sometime next month.

Been looking for a car that replicates the sensation of driving a 6S 1/8th scale truggy.........

XL-5 Rustler was my first proper RC car. Still may favourite despite having many bigger, better cars. Upgraded mine to brushless and upped the gear pitch to 32P to stop them stripping. RPM towers. Alloy caster blocks. Proline Trenchers or Badlands and a wheelie bar for 3S and you're good to go. Very easy to fix. Loads of parts quickly available. The Rustler has survived: being on fire, going to the bottom of a lake and driving away half a mile before embedding a a fence at maximum speed. Of all our cars it's missed the fewest days bashing because it's fixed the quickest. Sent from my S88Pro using Tapatalk

Hi again iForest. There's plenty of good advice on here and none of it is wrong. You'll have fun whatever you get. My first RC was a 2WD Traxxas Rustler for £80 off eBay which I later upgraded to brushless. It's still my favourite car despite having three Arrma 6S cars, a Tekno MT410 and a Hobao Hyper ST Pro. It's a right laugh on 3S. Don't get too hung up on what to get. Everything's fun and learning it all with your son will be the best bit. [emoji106] Sent from my S88Pro using Tapatalk

Hi David You don't say what your budget is or how old your son is but I can just pass on what I've learned over the last 4 years. Kids learn fast. Quicker than you will. My 7yr old drives a 6S Kraton as well as I do and my 5yr old seems to handle a 6S Outcast pretty well. You need more than one car. It's more fun and when something breaks it means you can keep going. If you get a better car than your kid - he'll want to drive that. Personally, I'd say get another Stampede. You can learn to fix them together and share spare parts. Get your son his own toolkit too.You can also upgrade to brushless as you go along. There are bigger and better cars out there but they come at a cost. Wait until you know you like it enough to warrant the investment. You can easily sell a Stampede when you come to upgrade. Have fun! Sent from my S88Pro using Tapatalk

Surely you could tow that trolley with a 2nd X-Maxx? Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Yeah it's not great value new and it's not exactly high tech either. Hasn't been changed much in 20yrs. Used is the way to go. Other cars? Arrma Kraton/Outcast /Talion 6S, Tekno MT410, Traxxas E-MAXX and Hobao Hyper ST Pro. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Thanks Kwikuk. Interesting post. Enjoyed reading it. [emoji106] Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Thanks Bajadre. Rear diff is smooth and hub bearings are good. I'll check the rest when I can get to it. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Yeah metal parts aren't always the best. In some applications you'd rather a specific plastic part bent or broke rather than a stronger alloy part didn't break but transferred the load to a more expensive bit that did break. I got a used, brushed Rustler for £80 and gradually upgraded bits that broke mostly with RPM stuff but fitted alloy caster blocks (coz RPM ones flex and bend the pins). Put in a Velineon VXL system coz I got one free. If I'd been paying for it I'd have gone for a Hobbywing Max10. Proline Trenchers all round and a wheelie bar, essential on 3S, and you're good to go. It's fairly bombproof now except driveshafts which break every ten minutes or so..... I sold off the original brushed ESC/motor and the OEM radio and use a FS-GT3C radio on it now. It's been very cost effective and has had far less downtime than the rest of our fleet due to cheap, available spares and ease of repair. If you want to mod it up I'd definitely get a used one rather than waste money on lots of new parts you're gonna junk. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

So, the Kraton V3 has survived continual abuse for 2yrs with only a couple of diff/gearbox housings, shock rod ends and ripped tyres to its name. At the end of a run last week, it lost some power to the rear. Rear diff - I assumed. Fitted new diff internals and reassembled it although the existing ones had minimal wear and no obvious damage. Quick test in the driveway. All good. Only issue was one of the 4 screws holding the diff back together wouldn't tighten. (Have a new cup ordered). Out yesterday with all the cars. It ran fine for a while then same problem again. Lack of much rear drive. Guess it's a heat issue as works initially but goes off? Centre diff? The centre has an alloy mount BTW. Anyway, at work today so no chance to investigate. Any thoughts to get me started? Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

If you want a truggy a used Kraton 6S or a Hobao Hyper ST Pro would get into your budget. Both 1/8th Scale. Rustler 2WD is great. Easy to fix, fun to drive on 3S. Bit poor on wet grass and mud in terms of traction. The standard tyres need to replaced by Proline Trenchers or Badlands. No experience of the Losi so can't comment on the above recommendation but I'm sure it's sound too. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Good stuff. I'm sure you guys will have fun. I guarantee your 5yr old will be better than you soon! Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Yeah the Hyper 7 route will be a LOT less pricey but extremely robust. Mind you, I picked up my MT410 as a roller for £240 on eBay with body shell and a set of Badlands. With used ESC/motor, a £10 Jx servo and an extra receiver for my existing FlySky radio it came in around £330...... Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Kids learn fast. Your 5yr old will be as good as (or better than) you in a few years. You need to get him something comparable to yours in terms of build quality and fixability or else his car will be sat on the shelf waiting for parts while he clamours to drive yours. Personally I'd say a new or used Rustler XL-5 would be ideal. It can be cheaply upgraded to Brushless down the line. Easy to fix. Cheap to upgrade. Loadsa spares available. My 7yr old started driving one 4yrs ago and now he handles a 6S Kraton with aplomb. My 5yr old drives it now, in VXL configuration, and he's making the transition to a 6S Outcast. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

The MT410 is so light (or seems so light though I've never weighed it) compared to my Outcast 6S and E-Maxx that you don't need to overpower it. I'm using a Hobbywing SCT8 with a Castle 1512 motor on 4S. That combo is smaller and lighter than the 6S system I was going to put in and gives you a lot more space to work with too. The 2S batteries are also lighter than the comparable 3S ones I would've used. I only use it for bashing but it's just so nimble and manoeuvrable compared to the other trucks that it's a joy to drive. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

They're pretty good out of the box but the main problem- as Tug points out - will be parts supply. I'd surf the forums and see what breaks most and stock up on spares. Plus it's no good having to wait weeks for parts from HK while your truck sits on the shelf. Banggood usually abandon or decrease spares support over time. There's no reason a hobby grade car shouldn't last a decade or more if it has spares support. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Ha ha! Yeah been hunting around for ages for one TBH. I want to compare it to the Kraton and see if it's as good as everyone says. I'll give you a shout if I don't like it though [emoji106] Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Guy on FB has an SSTe roller. He also had an ST Pro but I've bought it off him. https://www.facebook.com/groups/210134743161451/permalink/779373146237605/?sale_post_id=779373146237605 Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Don't have one for sale but there's an upgraded roller on FB. It looks decent though I'm not a fan of alloy A arms (but you could always sell them and buy RPM). The seller has advertised it a few times so he'd probably take a bit less. Could make a decent car if you stuck in a Hobbywing Max10. https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/304230174056786/ Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Pretty much like Yrkoon says. The XL5 and VXL have the same drive train so you can go Brushless easily enough. Either get a cheapo 1/10th combo of ebay or (much better) a Hobbywing combo for around £70-80. You can sell your XL5 combo on eBay. People always buy them - I don't know why.... It'll be quick on 2S and mad on 3S. You'll need a wheelie bar too. I went to MOD 0.8/32p gears on mine as the 48p kept stripping on 3S. As said, swap any broken plastic bits for RPM parts if they break. The exception would be alloy caster blocks as the RPM ones flex so much the pins can bend. A good shock upgrade are the HongNor copies on Aliexpress 92mm fr and 105mm rr. Tyres? Depends on the surface but Proline Trenchers do well in most conditions. Anacondas can be had really cheaply and are good on harder surfaces. Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk

Yeah I'm away at the moment. A few days hiking in Callander. I'll tear into it when I get back. (PS if anyone sees a Scout for sale on eBay shortly - don't buy it!) Sent from my MIX2 using Tapatalk