Newer Companies VS. Established Ones
05-07-2008, 03:27 PM
#17
I've owned both an OCM and a Mugen and can say that the OCM is NOT a copy of the Mugen. Anyone that has had pieces of both buggies apart can tell.
The costs of manufacturing vary hugely between Asia and other parts of the world.
I've been to China sourcing plastic parts. The Chinese could deliver the parts to us in our facility here in the US for less than the raw materials cost us here.
I suspect that much of the cost difference is in how the parts are sourced and some in how the parts are distributed. The big guys kits pass through another level of distribution than the smaller guys if I'm not mistaken.
The costs of manufacturing vary hugely between Asia and other parts of the world.
I've been to China sourcing plastic parts. The Chinese could deliver the parts to us in our facility here in the US for less than the raw materials cost us here.
I suspect that much of the cost difference is in how the parts are sourced and some in how the parts are distributed. The big guys kits pass through another level of distribution than the smaller guys if I'm not mistaken.
05-07-2008, 04:14 PM
#18
The truth is...we can beat this dead horse until we all are dead as well. If you like a c-hub design better then I would strongly suggest getting a vehicle with c-hub steering. I think you would be more than happy and satisfied with the adjustability and performance of our products....but it seems as if you don't like pillow balls..and that's what we have. As Domit has said...most buggies are pretty much the same in layout and very similar in basic design...so find one that you like and go for it.
Just for the record....I typed all of this with a smile on my face.
05-07-2008, 05:59 PM
#19
Generally speaking you get what you pay for. I race at a track that draws a very fierce competition of talented drivers and seen most of the vehicles and engines run. When I buy a vehicle number one thing I look for is durability! I admittedly am not a good driver and in order to get better I have to run a vehicle that stays together. After running my mugen mbx5t for 2 months 5 more people bought them cause they couldnt believe my truck stayed in one piece and didnt break! Some say Mugen should sponsor me not because Im a good driver but because I drive terrible and it is a testiment to mugens quality.
I have only seen one OCM buggy and it looked very nice but it broke numerous times. I have seen several caster buggies and while they are very much like a mugen they certainly didnt stay together like one. I saw drivers much better than myself carrying their broken buggy to the pits while I ran months with not one broken part.
I also see the same trend in engines. The makers like go tech(not to pick on them but just as a example) are very similar to a novarossi and are much cheaper in price. However they simply(from what I have seen) dont hold up in the long run like the novarossi.
As far as parts supply at local hobby shops to me that is a big thing. I am lucky and the hobbyshop I go to in Evansdale Iowa carries parts for all the major brands and has excellent service and as a extra bonus is cheaper than ANY online shop I have found yet on most kits,engines and parts. Now some people dont have a hobbyshop close and so they order online. I live 5 minutes from one hobbyshop and 20 minutes from another yet I spend my hard earned cash at a hobbyshop 1 hour away because of their great service,price and selection.
In the end I always tell people to buy what they like and what they can afford, but if you can afford mugen over caster and novarossi over go tech that is my recommendation as you will be happier when your stuff is reliable and not breaking.
Just to reinforce I am not flaming caster,ocm,go tech or any other brand I have mentioned, I just am answering the above question about why myself and others continue to support the major brands as apposed to some of the new companies coming out with copied/similar designs.
I have only seen one OCM buggy and it looked very nice but it broke numerous times. I have seen several caster buggies and while they are very much like a mugen they certainly didnt stay together like one. I saw drivers much better than myself carrying their broken buggy to the pits while I ran months with not one broken part.
I also see the same trend in engines. The makers like go tech(not to pick on them but just as a example) are very similar to a novarossi and are much cheaper in price. However they simply(from what I have seen) dont hold up in the long run like the novarossi.
As far as parts supply at local hobby shops to me that is a big thing. I am lucky and the hobbyshop I go to in Evansdale Iowa carries parts for all the major brands and has excellent service and as a extra bonus is cheaper than ANY online shop I have found yet on most kits,engines and parts. Now some people dont have a hobbyshop close and so they order online. I live 5 minutes from one hobbyshop and 20 minutes from another yet I spend my hard earned cash at a hobbyshop 1 hour away because of their great service,price and selection.
In the end I always tell people to buy what they like and what they can afford, but if you can afford mugen over caster and novarossi over go tech that is my recommendation as you will be happier when your stuff is reliable and not breaking.
Just to reinforce I am not flaming caster,ocm,go tech or any other brand I have mentioned, I just am answering the above question about why myself and others continue to support the major brands as apposed to some of the new companies coming out with copied/similar designs.
05-07-2008, 06:02 PM
#20
as a customer and a club racer and driving less expensive to more expesive rc products you notice where your monnies go towards. true quality (i think) is in a pricer product. lol or perhaps i've been duped. after all the bitternes of poor quality is remebered LONG after the sweetness of low cost is forgotten
05-07-2008, 06:06 PM
#21
Also nowadays you can get parts online anywhere that it does not really matter if you LHS carries what you got or not.[/QUOTE]
I do not mean to single this guy out but this is the attitude that is closing our local tracks. Many local tracks rely on hobby shop sales to keep the track running. You hear all the time about good tracks and hobbyshops closing much more than you hear new tracks/hobbyshops opening up and that is the reason. Just remember next time you place your order at a major online retailer for your race product that you might be contributing to you closing the very track you rely on to race. Sometimes you dont have a choice, like for instance my hobbyshop can not get Fioroni parts so I have to order my stuff online but the rest of my money will go to the LHS so I continue to have a top notch facility to race at.
Also ask yourself when you run brands that your LHS doesnt carry parts for if you wanna leave or watch a race from the sideline cause you broke a $10 part that you have to order online and wait for.
I do not mean to single this guy out but this is the attitude that is closing our local tracks. Many local tracks rely on hobby shop sales to keep the track running. You hear all the time about good tracks and hobbyshops closing much more than you hear new tracks/hobbyshops opening up and that is the reason. Just remember next time you place your order at a major online retailer for your race product that you might be contributing to you closing the very track you rely on to race. Sometimes you dont have a choice, like for instance my hobbyshop can not get Fioroni parts so I have to order my stuff online but the rest of my money will go to the LHS so I continue to have a top notch facility to race at.
Also ask yourself when you run brands that your LHS doesnt carry parts for if you wanna leave or watch a race from the sideline cause you broke a $10 part that you have to order online and wait for.
05-07-2008, 06:14 PM
#22
trout....
in regards to the OCM RTR. How can you make those statements/claims when our rtr has yet to release?
Fact is it is very well packaged, is basically a pro kit with a few plastic parts, comes with a race quality mill, Futaba radio, metal gear servos with plenty of torque, etc....
The body actually looks really good but that is merely opinion...
I'd be willing to put it against any RTR on the market out of the box.
Thanks,
Alan Burton
Team OCMUSA
in regards to the OCM RTR. How can you make those statements/claims when our rtr has yet to release?
Fact is it is very well packaged, is basically a pro kit with a few plastic parts, comes with a race quality mill, Futaba radio, metal gear servos with plenty of torque, etc....
The body actually looks really good but that is merely opinion...
I'd be willing to put it against any RTR on the market out of the box.
Thanks,
Alan Burton
Team OCMUSA
05-07-2008, 06:36 PM
#23
I'll make a post on this title based off of facts as some of you have very legit points and some of you are shooting into the dark.
Yes, I truly believe there are new companies out now with product at an equal with some or all of the top companies. I am not one to say our OCM is better than any brand. I truly feel we have came a tremendous way in the development of our product.I truly feel a driver can be just as competitive with our kit as any other. Yes we had some issues in the beginning but I think we proved we are dedicated to fixing issues and making a name in the USA. Look at the first generation kits compared to our current kits...
with that said, the reason these newer companise like us have a solid product at a cheap price is very simple. Mugen, kyosho, etc is just that...huge names with a solid back ground, high paid drivers, etc. So if we want to sell kits in the USA we have to introduce them cheap, work hard with customer service, product, team and start a name. THen as time passes by maybe we introduce a "factory team" kit that gets close in price to say the mugen, AE, etc. At the same time we go over the top and include much more for the money. But you first have to prove yourself. Then you get all of your product line going, and with this comes more income. More income means you can afford names that people recognize to race for you. These drivers win races and put you in the spotlight....
IT all starts small and grows as all companies did. Some will not make it, some will. I work very hard to help people better understand OCM's goals and what our product is about. I love my job and hope we are hear for years to come.
What also makes it hard on small companies is people who say "I seen the OCM, it looked good but broke". Well, that is often overlooked on bigger named companies. With any kit your car is only as good as the mechanic behind it...bottom line. How can almost every guy on my team, including myself take a stock kit, build it and race it for months and months and not have any issues, yet John Doe can not finish a race? Preperation is a majority in this hobby. All these little things make it hard starting out. So you have to catch customers in a sense.
ANother thing I would like to set clear...Caster is not OCM. OCM is not caster. Nothing bad at all to Caster but OCM is OCM. We are located in different places in the USA and have different factories. It is also two very different buggies.
At this point I am very confident as a racer and from a business standpoint on the OCM buggy. We are getting ready to introduce a factory team edition that will be very impressive, the price will be out of the "new company range" but it should still be an attractive price.
I feel we have great customer service and we have just sat a plan in motion to make it even better.
We have held back the release of the truck to assure the public is truly happy with it. Once out a bit we will work to make a factory edition for it as well.
Some of you have great points and seem to know a little about how this industry operates.
Have a good night guy!
Alan Burton
Team OCM USA
Yes, I truly believe there are new companies out now with product at an equal with some or all of the top companies. I am not one to say our OCM is better than any brand. I truly feel we have came a tremendous way in the development of our product.I truly feel a driver can be just as competitive with our kit as any other. Yes we had some issues in the beginning but I think we proved we are dedicated to fixing issues and making a name in the USA. Look at the first generation kits compared to our current kits...
with that said, the reason these newer companise like us have a solid product at a cheap price is very simple. Mugen, kyosho, etc is just that...huge names with a solid back ground, high paid drivers, etc. So if we want to sell kits in the USA we have to introduce them cheap, work hard with customer service, product, team and start a name. THen as time passes by maybe we introduce a "factory team" kit that gets close in price to say the mugen, AE, etc. At the same time we go over the top and include much more for the money. But you first have to prove yourself. Then you get all of your product line going, and with this comes more income. More income means you can afford names that people recognize to race for you. These drivers win races and put you in the spotlight....
IT all starts small and grows as all companies did. Some will not make it, some will. I work very hard to help people better understand OCM's goals and what our product is about. I love my job and hope we are hear for years to come.
What also makes it hard on small companies is people who say "I seen the OCM, it looked good but broke". Well, that is often overlooked on bigger named companies. With any kit your car is only as good as the mechanic behind it...bottom line. How can almost every guy on my team, including myself take a stock kit, build it and race it for months and months and not have any issues, yet John Doe can not finish a race? Preperation is a majority in this hobby. All these little things make it hard starting out. So you have to catch customers in a sense.
ANother thing I would like to set clear...Caster is not OCM. OCM is not caster. Nothing bad at all to Caster but OCM is OCM. We are located in different places in the USA and have different factories. It is also two very different buggies.
At this point I am very confident as a racer and from a business standpoint on the OCM buggy. We are getting ready to introduce a factory team edition that will be very impressive, the price will be out of the "new company range" but it should still be an attractive price.
I feel we have great customer service and we have just sat a plan in motion to make it even better.
We have held back the release of the truck to assure the public is truly happy with it. Once out a bit we will work to make a factory edition for it as well.
Some of you have great points and seem to know a little about how this industry operates.
Have a good night guy!
Alan Burton
Team OCM USA
05-07-2008, 06:43 PM
#24
Aburton, if you want someone to show OCM is durable you should sponsor me I would promise you if OCM sponsored me and the car proves to be durable in my hands people would be buying them like mad.
I would promise you if OCM sponsored me and the car proves to be durable in my hands people would be buying them like mad.
05-07-2008, 06:43 PM
#25
While I am here....
should anyone have questions about the OCM product just email us at [email protected].
should anyone have questions about the OCM product just email us at [email protected].
05-07-2008, 06:43 PM
#26
hey alan, I see you mention the buggy, does that mean OCM is still focusing on the buggy market first?
I am having a hell of a time finding a new truggy for me, I want to race with it, but I want something durable and a performer, anyways.
back to my question, is the truggy second on OCM's agenda? You mentioned a factory version of the buggy, yet if memory serves me right the truggy isn't even out yet.
whats the news on the truggy?
I am having a hell of a time finding a new truggy for me, I want to race with it, but I want something durable and a performer, anyways.
back to my question, is the truggy second on OCM's agenda? You mentioned a factory version of the buggy, yet if memory serves me right the truggy isn't even out yet.
whats the news on the truggy?
My driver Shane sucks at driving but he can wrench a little...hahaha
