Team Associated RC8T CE OR Mugen MBX6T
 

I am looking to purchase a new truggy for the upcoming race season and I have narrowed down my choices to either the RC8T CE or Mugen MBX6T roller . I am looking to get some experienced opinions on either truggy to sway me one way or the other.

What I am looking for in a truggy:
Durability,
Competitive with lots of aftermarket parts. I know the two truggies I am looking at both meet this critieria.
Excellent steering when cornering and doesn’t “push” or understeer through corners when either on power or coasting.
I am a sportman racer, and I am constantly looking to improve my driving and tuning skills. I am looking for a truggy that is going to grow with me, and enable me to hone my skills.

Factors that won’t make a difference in my selection:
I order parts online, due to the fact that there is limited support from any hobby stores near me. Most specialize in traxxas stuff and all will order parts for you online (which I can do for cheaper),

Not may people run either these two truggies in my area so running what everyone else runs to “borrow” parts is not an option for either truggy. I usually stock enough spare parts so that I don’t have to bum parts off of other people.

Has anyone driven both and can give me some insight into each of these truggies, good and bad? I hate to post one of these threads as they usually turn into a flame war or worse yet fanboy chestbeating with no validation of opinion, but I would really appreciate some input from some people that have experience with both truggies.

First of all i have a mugen mbx6t so i am speaking from experience. I will not say a word about the rc8t.

The Mugen is amazing for durability...I have broken 2 arms and they were from extremely silly mistakes. The plastics do not wear out very fast and they are just a very well built car.

Aftermarket parts well you dont need any, but a one piece engine mount etc eould be good (which are readily available)

The Mugen has got TONNES of steering. Its all to do with setup when you talk about "push". The right set up and it is a killer truggy. (jpalessi's set up is good)

The mugen will DEFINITELY improve your driving skills. I know it improved mine. It almost races itself they are that great!:lol:

Cheers Tom.

will I have had the rc8t with all the parts and hop ups
one can put on it.it was a good truck only broke like
one rear A arm hit a pipe stake. but they don't turn
and have no on power steering like my new losi truggy
I just got flustered with it it's like when I was smooth
I was slow but when I tried to push it to go faster
I would spin or just crash. have no say on the Mugen
but for me the losi is a much easier to drive fast than the AE
like a lap faster in qualifying

Thank you for the input, it is VERY much appreciated.

I am still on the fence, but I am starting to sway to the mugen side of the house!

Is Mugen looking to release a new 2010 version other than the M-Spec? I would hate to drop the bucks on the roller available now and then a week/month later a newer version gets released! That was one of the reasons that the RC8T CE was high on my list.

Anyone else with some experience with either buggy?

I can speak only from building RC8T for a friend and there are several things I really did not like:

Font axle carriers have very annoying bushings that are hard to align in their positions

car has just too many colored spacers all around axles to set the geometry.

lower shock mounts are unusual

plastic axle carrier outer bearing inserts are annoying as well

the car just has too many small parts


On the other hand i like how CVDs are protected from pin falling
the CE edition has aluminum shoctowers which is nice I as do not like carbon towers. seen just too many break and when carbon tower breaks, race over. Aluminum mostly just bends allowing you to finish the run.

I am too looking for a new truggy (tho for electric conversion) but I am more inclined towards Mugen even with additional investment into aluminum towers.

Which truck walked on everyone at the Nat's this summer????

Maifield with the RC8T!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vePk_TtltkE

Only took till the 4th person to get a fanboy reply with no validation!

JoeyTheRocket, I appreciate your enthusiasm for the RC8T, but I am looking for VALIDATION and experiences from either truggy. Those races to me aren't a true testiment of a good truggy. The drivers are professionals and could literally take a POS vehicle, tune it and win. They are also biased to their sponsors and rightly so. Of course they would never bad mouth the frame they race especially when its given to them. But I bet after a few beers any driver would tell you their pet peeves and would say they prefer another platform to race.

I do moniter the races to see who is who in the zoo and what kit they are running, but those guys are in a league that I probably will never experience as I dont have the time or money to get to that caliber.

Are we comparing drivers? Or truggies

Very well put.:tire::tire:

I personaly love Associated products, I can't say enough about my RC8T-CE. I just don't like pillow ball steering on the Mugen but that's a personal thing. you can't go wrong with either and I think there all good ,just go with one you like and don't let someone make the choice for you.

I would have to say rc8t. I had one that I purchased used and man this was the most easiest car to drive and setup. I broke one steering knuckle in the year I had it. Plus you cant beat the support you get on here and at most local tracks.

i used to a the mugen fan ,IMO as stated earlier i hate the pillow ball steering ................lately my friends 6T ,2 months of practicing (every week) & a monthly race all the diffs. are dry i'm not impress ,right now i'm happy w/ the ae ,but believe me this 2 trucks are better & easy to drive hope it helps

Both will get the job done. You have more faith in people on here than I do.
There are some people I trust in here and a lot of nonsense.

I have raced AE, Kyosho and Mugen. Drove a Losi it was good. I had no problems with the pillow ball suspension on the mugen.

I know you want to make a wise choice. I investigate as well.

Have fun with whatever you buy.

Thank you for your replies, it is very much appreciated.

I am still on the fence as to which truggy to get. I know both truggies are well made and have excellent support.

Im still leary of the Mugen as I am not a total fan of the pillow ball system for steering. I have a buggy with a hybrid pillow ball system and the steering is not the greatest. The buggy still pushes in the corners when power is put the wheels. This drives me nuts. I know the Mugen system is good as they have not changed it in years, it seems to be tried and true. A lot of drivers can attest to that.

And yeah, I realize the debate between pillow ball and c-hub can be heated! I just have to decide which steering system is going to be suited to my driving style.

I know that both steering systems are not perfect and each has their quirks/pissoffs and good points.

I like the RC8T, I like how its built, it looks like it handles well, but I have heard that the steering is a challenge to properly setup. The different sized bearings that are on the drive train do concern me. I am used to having all the bearings the same size, and in a pinch those bearings can be taken apart, cleaned and repacked and put back into use in a pinch. With the new bearings that are larger diameter but smaller bearings, they look they are one use only and then are garbage. To me that limits my ability to fix a bearing in a pinch (albiet not a permanent solution ) and finish a days racing.

Thanks again for all your input, and if anyone else has some experiences with either vehicle, I am all ears :)

RC8T CE
 

I have one and really like it some off the parts seam cheap to me(radio box).On the track it responds to adjustments.The truck turns well and is very predictable on smooth and rough tracks. As far as durability not sure,I had a rear plastic rod end break for no apparent reason,but the temp was in the 30's.Also I'm no Associated homer its the only rc vehicle I own thats not a Losi product.

I can say from building and driving nearly all brands at one point or another and having raced nearly every weekend for nearly 9 yrs and having operated a track for most of those 9 yrs, they are both OUTSTANDING cars/trucks. By nature the rc8b/t do turn better WITH THE RIGHT SETUP. The mugens tend to jump better and handle ruff tracks better while being calmer and a bit easier to drive fast. HOWEVER, with that said ANY car can be great or suck with the right or wrong setup.


ps , I drive AE rc8b but would go back to a Mugen mbx6 in a second.

I can't speak for AE but mugen quality is 2nd to none and they don't need any hop up parts or wear out in 2 gallons. As for the diffs as some body commented on if you build them right the are as good any as other in my opinion.

The RC8T CE is a great truck. The only issue i had in building the few i have built for locals are the spacers for the Knuckles. Once they are in, just check them to make sure they are tight between rounds. Dont worry about the different size bearings. Most are 8x16, with the inner hum bears being bigger to hold the CVD pin in place.

Also, dont listen to the carbon vs AL tower people. If you break a 5mm carbon tower, you are doing something WRONG. The new towers on the rc8t are great since they have the new upper bushing, and are easier to replace. The lower mounts on the RC8T are great, 1 set screw to release a pin that holds the bottom of the shock. No need for a long screw to release the shock. The pin version makes it quicker to do maintenance.

The shocks on the AE i feel are a little smoother then the mugen. Mugens still have diff seal problems, but with regular maintenance they pose no problems.

I personnally drive a Losi, but i drove the RC8T less then 2 months ago as my personal ride.

me it the rc8t ce!!
i have runnig late in the summer wiht my rc8te(now a rc8tce-e!!)
the only thing have break is a shock shaft because have crash directly under the pit-stop!!)

and i can speak of mugen no one in my track have a mugen!

:ha:What he said!

this is based on what i is see ,if your lazy like me get the rc8t but if you re that kind of guy like to spend more time on this (like maintenance) so i guess get the mbx6t , i tried my friends 6T & believe me i like it the handling everything it so easy to drive & too light but the thing i hate is that you need to always check the diffs., please this is base on my experince so i know someone will comment on my post

what the hell about the diff??
show me pic what you telling??

The MBX6T seems pretty awesome going around the track. I seen one strip the diff out at our club track also, improper shimming was the culprit. If I ever get bored with my RC8Ts, I'd go Mugen.

That being said, I love my RC8T. You never have to re-shim the diffs ( at least not during the first 15+ gallons ;) ) I put aluminum rear hubs on it for strength, and the thing is tough as nails, and is a great track machine.

It reacts well to small changes from what I've experienced. It's my first truggy, and it was a good choice. I'm one of the last guys in our club to jump on the truggy train, and ended up winning our points series in truggy class.

Both are good choices IMO, and it's a tough decision, but my only experience is with the RC8T, so I'm not much help.:D

broken carbon shock towers? on a truggy? the body must have be destroyed too:lol::lol:. i've never seen or heard of the cf towers breaking on the rc8t or any truggy, all the ae drivers run the cf towers anyways. all truggies have their "quirks" out of the box but in these forums are many solutions. i think the problem with the mugen diffs may be the small o rings behind the small gears, they can get worn and the internal mesh gets loose. the pbs suspension needs very little maintenance but has limited adjustability. i have driven the top 3 truggies ae, mugen and losi and out of the box with the box setup the rc8t was the easiest to drive. it goes where i want it to and needs very little correcting coming off jumps or into jumps or bumps. if you play around with the setups any of the 3 can win in any hands. also, there were no mbx6t's in the nats truggy a main.