Help me sort through this Nitro mess

[space_doc]

Hi guys,

I was out at the Berwyn Bash and loved seeing everyone's cars. In the Berwyn thread, I said I was interested in getting a Nitro after years of shying away.

Let me start by saying I have been in the hobby about 16 years off and on. I have only owned electric, and until 2 years ago never really raced. I picked up a T3 and started racing a bit (stock class) and like it, but with my job, I have never been able to get to the track consistently. So I mostly end up bashing.

With that said, I'm interested in a nitro MT, mostly for bashing, but maybe racing too on occasion. I have no aspirations of winning races, just participating and having fun. Since I own a 1/10 electric stadium, I was leaning away from a 1/10 nitro stadium, and more towards MT. Specifically 4WD nitro MT.

Now, this is where you all come in. I'm confused as to a) what's out there, and b) what people race vs. bash with.

My specific questions are...

1) Are all MT's 1/8 scale? (HPI Savage, AE MGT, XTM Mammoth, etc.) I do not want such a big truck. My wife is already upset at how much space my RC's take up as it is. Are there any 1/10 scale nitro MT's?

2) What the heck is a truggy? I used to subscribe to RCCA until maybe March of this year. I never heard of a truggy until this past month. All the threads I searched had pics of trucks. I assumed a Truggy was a buggy (ofna hyper or mugen or such) with truck tires. Am I wrong?

3) Do people race 2WD nitro MT or 4WD? (Sport Maxx vs T Maxx.) I mean, do you race 2wd against 4wd, or are there separate classes for each? And do you race 1/8 vs 1/10, or are there separate classes for each of those? I ask because where I raced there where classes for electric 2WD buggy, electric 4WD buggy, nitro 2WD buggy, Nitro 4WD buggy, then the same breakdown for stadium trucks, and then an open class for all MT's no matter how big or small.

Anyway, I think the HPI NRS4 MT2 looks like what I am looking for, 4WD 1/10 scale nitro. BUT... thats like the ONLY truck I've found to fit that description. Everything else is 1/8 scale or stadium truck class or 2WD MT. Heck, the HPI looks more stadium than MT to me, and the stadium Maxx looks more MT. Maybe I am looking at this all wrong?

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. And before anyone gets upset, I did a search for " nitro truck" and already looked at other links. I heard the recommendations for the Savage (don't really want 1/8th scale) and the Revo (I'm not even sure what scale it is, and I have the Traxxas catalog sitting in front of me! It doesn't have a scale written anywhere, but it looks big.) Maybe the TMaxx is also what I am looking for, but I am worried its past its time now that the Revo is on the scene.

Well, thanks again for reading this all. And even more thanks if you care enough to respond!

[dominick420]

Revo by far . its 1/10 scale, and the best.

[cemeb4dk]

Welcome, and I will try to answer some of your ??'s. Also search thru some of the older posts alot of your answers maybe answered there also

1. Most Monsters are 1/8th scale but your Tmaxx and Revo's are technically 1/10th scale but they are not stadium trucks. Tmaxx/savage /revo bodies are interchangable. Your LST and MGT are a bigger 1/8th scale. if that makes sense.

2.A truggy is a buggy based mt made for racing. Usually they are wide as they are long and have a low center of gravity and a pan chassis like a buggy

3.There are not enough 2wd mt's to warrant their own class. If someone brings out a sportmaxx they race against a 4wd. There is 3 MT class seperations but most tracks recognize 2. there is small block mt, big block mt and outlaw (arena) this is the truggies. Most track seperate outlaw and mt's(sB and BB combined)

Your MT2 is a good truck but you will be buying a truck that is a dying breed at the track. Since the explosion of MT racing stadium trucks have almost fallen off the planet. Local tracks combine 2wd and 4wd stadiums, just because there is not enough of them. But at bigger races 4wd is not allowed.

I hope this helps, if I missed anything just re ask

[firesprink281]

there are alot of 1/10 scale trucks. the best for handling is 4wd.
a truggy is a mt with a center diff on the same plane as the front and rear diffs. .21+ motors and fast! all are 1/8th. there are rtr truggys, lightning staduim pro, ofna blazer, and a couple of new ones from sport works and ofna.
im not the one to ask about race classes, but i think it goes by motor size. most 1/10 is a .15 base (with the exeption of shumacher)and 1/8th is .21 base.

[space_doc]

Your MT2 is a good truck but you will be buying a truck that is a dying breed at the track. Since the explosion of MT racing stadium trucks have almost fallen off the planet. Local tracks combine 2wd and 4wd stadiums, just because there is not enough of them. But at bigger races 4wd is not allowed.

I hope this helps, if I missed anything just re ask

So, by stadium truck you mean like AE GT and Losi XXXNT?? I thought those only come in 2WD. Would the Jato fall in that class too? Or is it a truggy?

Does anyone know what class Leisure Hours runs, since that would be where I would go to race?

Thanks for the answers so far!

[snakebite46]

Jato would fall into stadium truck class. without the 2 speed and a smaller engine installed. (rules)

Leisure mainly runs Stadium, Monster truck and Truggy seperate if theres enought to run alone and 1/8th scale buggy. They also run electric, but not sure what classes exactly.

[dentguy92]

just buy a savage or a revo...you can race both a LH...and bash with both...a savage is a bit more rugged makes a better brasher... a revo handles better on the track as a race truck...you cant go wrong with ether

[squirrel]

firesprink qualifications for 1/10 (from what i've seen) is .12ci motor and 2 wheel drive with one speed! arena truck is 4 wheel drive or 2 speed. anything that disqualifies a stadium truck qualifies as an arena truck. the hpi/jato could not race my xxx-nt(in a serious race like roar events) for normal liesure they will prob run them together(i honestly don't know) now to truggies the way i see them is they are buggys with different gearing and wider arms and bigger tires, and center diff. i would say go with a revo they seem to be the hot S!@T right now if your looking for a monster truck that can bash and race!

[FreeRideFrosty]

Revo or MGT. Those are what I decide between. I picked the Revo because I am almost positive that I will end up at the track a good bit and probably racing. I also do a fair amount of bashing. If you do a lot of bashing and rarely race then you may shy towards the MGT. I love the revo suspension though...

[space_doc]

Well, I checked out the RCCA Monster Truck issue and see that they compared the 1) Revo 2) Savage 3) LST 4) MGT and 5) TNX. They picked the LST and I like it too, especially since it comes with a synth FM radio, but it it's waaayyyy expensive. I'm trying not to go over $500 since my budget is only $350 and I have to sell some stuff to make up the difference.

I think about $450 is what I'll have to spend in the end and I can easily get a Revo for that much. Since I already own an AE and like their support and quality, I was also thinking the MGT, but the mag said its sluggish, and not as fast as the others. Any opinions? Freeride, why didn't you get the MGT and just change the engine and gearing? And what about the Tamiya? Anyone have it or work with it? I've never owned Tamiya and thought maybe I should get one by the grandaddy of RC, but I'm not sure about how easily tuneable it is. Thanks everyone and keep the opinions coming. You guys are great!

[Tex]

Tamiya TNX.... is a race truck, the only known problem with them is the axles like to break all the time. MIP came out with CVDs and that should take care of the problem...get the pro model


MGT...They came out with a new version "MGT 4.6" which now includes a .28 motor and you better believe it's faster than the previous model. It can also be raced with success and it a very strong truck to boot.


Revo...great handling, pretty tough, definitely the more "race" truck out of the box comparred to others. Very easy to work on. Minimal things need to be done to make it fully race ready:
tires
pullstart
Forward only conversion (take out the reverse)


LST....Awesome truck, fully raceable. Nice radio out of the box. Likes to break a bit more than the others, even after upgrading. Don't get me wrong though, it's a fairly strong truck. Fast stock motor! Easy to work on....


Savage....King of all bashers, wins the tough award (although the MGT is VERY tough as well). Can be raced with a ton of work/mods/hopups done to it. Nice truck if you plan on bashing 99% of the time, a bit of a pain to work on though.

T-Maxx...Don't even bother. Needs way to many hopups to be strong/raceable. Buy a revo



If I forgot some please post up and let space_doc know!

[7THGENDMAN]

If your looking to go nitro mt, then I gotta give this one to the LST. Losi has had some problems with breaking parts, but they have gotten all that fixed up. Check into the LST2. which is the upgraded version. Very easy truck to work on, excellent steering, ranks up there with the revo, and like Tex said, one hell of a motor. Great for racing and bashing.

[DAVEC-NITRO-RS4]

SpaceDoc,

Your first post says "mainly bashing...some racing". I fell into the same category a year ago. I bought the Revo. Still not racing but very tough basher. One thing I like (and almost everyone else hates ) is the EZ Start system. Racers want light trucks and don't mind dragging out starter boxes. I like having the convenience of the starter/glow ignitor built in, with just the control pack to haul along. Sure, this hurts you racing, but makes for easier time bashing. For the beginner racer I wouldn't sweat it (and I won't) until later when every ounce counts. Then the EZstart goes and a bumpbox will come in.

So, it's Revo.

[space_doc]

Well, thanks for the input guys. I put a few trucks on my Wish List at Tower, and the wife picked one out this morning. I'm not supposed to check what she bought as its a surprise, but the Revo, the MGT, the TNX and the Savage made the list. See, I won a bet with her (she would have won a coach or kate speed purse if she won) and the nitro MT is my prize/xmas gift. We'll see what she gets but I seriuosly stressed Revo a number of times. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

[DAVEC-NITRO-RS4]

Let's hope she didn't vote with her wallet. But if she has expensive taste like Coach and Spade, maybe you'll get the most expensive one ! :joy:

But who could wait til Xmas? Get it NOW !!!!!