Mtbtomo

I found buying second hand can be a bit hit and miss. Some people's description of "good" condition is debatable and even what looks usable can still be utterly wrecked. Sloppy pivots, dry gearboxes, rough bearings, ingrained dirt everywhere. If you're buying secondhand then it's difficult at this time but would absolutely recommend seeing the model in person. That said, I would add to above recommendations for something from WLToys. My 144001 is massive fun and rapid for the size straight from the box. If you break something then spares might need to be ordered from China rather than available in the UK but I don't think there is much else comparable for sub £100 all in, batteries and everything. At least spares are available which might not be the case at all for some of the toyshop level toys you could buy off the shelf in the UK.

I know this thread has dragged on, but I have to say @Jack Reacher that your last post about the Senton I found useful and just some of the discussion around the Hobao. I've got a few buggies and then it's a "what next?" kind of question and I never would have thought about the dirt/muck accumulation issue on an SCT. Balls to that, that's an itch I won't be scratching! I would like to know what the difference between the Hobao VSE and the SSE is, because they only look to be about £20 difference in price as a roller?? The SSE seems to have a bad rep, but the VSE gets a good one. For minimal difference in price

I have just bought a pair of those exact Vorjay batteries. First outing was in my lads 4000kv brushless 2wd 1/10 buggy, he must have got half an hour of car park thrashing at the weekend before he broke his car. The battery still seemed fine at that point! Might have got lucky but the internal resistance readings are comparable to my Absima 120c shorty Lipos that are perhaps supposedly a bit more of a renowned brand.

Can't people just buy what they fancy, whether there are a few issues with what product they are buying or not?

@Alex97 - what carbon fibre floor are you adding to that WLtoys? Is the wheelie bar because you've upgraded the motor to something hotter? @J.K Where do get your HB Racing buggy from? Looks good! I can't see much availability or indeed any in the UK? I assume it's 1/8? Where do you race when it's allowed?

Does anyone race 1/10 scale off road Corally? They have a nice looking 4wd but not sure about spares availability in the UK

@Alex97 WLToys 14401 is pretty good (rapid) with stock electronics to start with! I have just upgraded the front gearbox with a metal one, out if necessity after my lad ran head on into it with his 1/10 buggy. His higher car was right in line with the shock tower and the plastic gearbox housing was the weak link. For this kind of car I'd say it doesn't really matter that the screws are Phillips, I'd just replace them as you upgrade parts.

Something can't have been assembled right with the diffs surely? It's always a risk ordering stuff from far away but for the price, at least you can get spares. Other cheapo cars from the toy shop, you won't even have a chance of spare parts. Mine has held up well including flat falls upside down from 7ft to concrete at the skate park in sub-zero conditions. Steering turnbuckles have popped off once or twice. But the real damage was when my lads 1/10 buggy hit it head on and broke the front gearbox. It was probably the weakest point when the shocks and shock mount is metal but they're attached to a plastic gearbox. I've fitted a metal gearbox now, so that should make it more solid, though it probably just chases the weakness to the next nearest plastic part. As a brushed system it's as rapid (based on my GPS speed check) as my lads 1/10th 2wd brushless buggy (nothing fancy but still....) The bigger models look like they lose speed so I'm not sure if some of the fun gets lost?

So I've wrapped gaffa tape round the "snagging" gap between the aluminium plate and the bumper. And then I went to swap out the motor to make.it slower for my lad to use. What a convoluted job that is! The gear cover may be removable but there is no chance of access to the lower motor screw with the car assembled. I had to unbolt the rear gearbox from the chassis and the motor mount plate too. And then hold all the chunks in a position to allow access to the screw. As I said in an earlier post, the car looks solid, but it's just badly designed. Bad structurally and bad for maintenance. At least I can salvage the radio gear and ESC at some point for a other project. The transmitter is pretty well made.

Glad you mentioned Serpent as solid there Bertberr, as I have a 2wd one waiting to try out on the race track 🙂 My eldest lad also has an ECX Boost buggy and that had taken more hammer in the last few days, falling upside down and nose first to flat from 6ft high skate park ramps... And it has survived unscathed. New bumper for the Absima is now here, I'm still thinking about modifying the arrangement somehow - perhaps an extra bumper - or seeing if I can get a thicker plate made.

And I have to say I don't necessarily agree with buy cheap buy twice, spending more here often just gets you something more capable of being raced, with better precision parts, not necessarily any more robust. The Ruckus was cheaper than the Absima and just seems to work even though it is flexy and wobbly - that probably saves it. And I have a few other cheap cars from WLToys and FTX all which are better designed at the front but still cheap.

Having just found this thread having bought the AT3.4 for my son, two days in and the front bumper has already been demolished and the metal plate bashed in. It's like tin foil. It's a shame cos it feels like a pretty solid truck. The AMP MT Ruckus my other son has on the other hand is flexy and wobbly but absolutely bomb proof. Absima must have got their design wrong to rely on the bumper to keep the suspension pivots in place and then add on an after market (or now standard) aluminium plate that is not much stronger than a coke can. Fast enough car for my 10 year old and jumps well, but it's too weak in the wrong places.