HPI BAJA 5B CLONES
07-19-2013, 12:35 PM
#61
So if someone purchases a "clone" and replaces, or upgrades their parts with genuine HPI parts, or better, is that not supporting the manufactures and hobby? Most who get into gassers will buy better parts for their rigs, period. My point is that you don't have to drop a grand for a gasser these days. Maybe HPI needs to revisit their suggested retail pricing. Heck they just dropped the Baja 5B Flux from $1200 to a tolerable price of around $600 if you get it from Tower with all the discounts. You should see the upgrades I've put into my rig, mostly purchased from DDM, TGN, Tower, Large Scale R/C, I'm doing my part to keep large scale R/C's alive and well.
Last edited by Chimer; 07-19-2013 at 12:51 PM.
07-20-2013, 05:29 PM
#63
Hpi is going downhill quick...I love baja's and alot of other hpi products but they just arent what they used to be...So buy a clone if you want but remember your killing hpi ability to spend money on r&d, quality control, customer service.. So when they dont make a new model like everyone wants just remember why...They are also now built in the same country, possibly even the same manufacturing facility..
Last edited by chadj1980; 07-20-2013 at 05:30 PM. Reason: added to
11-26-2015, 01:29 PM
#64
Clones
Just wait to they start paying $15 an hour at mcdonalds and you big mac cost $9 dollars it has to be a better it cost more. Ever wonder why they is no jobs in the us. 85% of every thing you use day to day is made in china. I am 100% american and work with 100% americans and todays people do not want to do anything for under $25 per hour does that mean they do a better job? I will buy a clone or a hpi they will all break and buy a better part from who ever makes one and if it hurts the clone or hpi manufacture oh whell they need to step up the game. I ride a harley american made bike and 85% of it it made over seas and that is the only good parts on one. But the big price it cost is the high labor they pay to assemble it in the US buy people that don't care how good it is as long as they make a killer pay check. If i want to buy a HPI or a CLONE i will its my money and i will fix what breaks with a better part and don't care if it hurts HPI or the CLONE or anybody else that don't like it. If you got a hard on for HPI buy it. If you got a hard on for a CLONE buy it.
05-25-2016, 02:32 PM
#65
Honestly I couldnt be happier with my rovan and ive owned an hpi. Plastic and metal quiality is just as good. My hpi was always breaking. The only thing I was dissapointed with was the electroninic quality. As far as making new jobs for people, realistically there both made in china so why not save some money
05-26-2016, 03:56 PM
#66
A few years ago I bought a Rovan 5b, fully expecting to have to throw parts at it. I figured that I'd have to occasionally replace parts with HPI parts as they broke. I must preface this by saying that I've been racing rc cars on and off for 22 years now, just never 5th scale. And I really haven't driven the car hard, mostly the sand lot behind the machine shop I used to work at, and gravel parking lots with cones.
As soon as I got it I stripped it down to nuts and bolts to inspect and put blue loctite everywhere. Among the stuff that was done wrong, the rear chassis plate had a crossthreaded thread-sert in it (which they replaced), and they even had a plastic bushing in place of the #1 input shaft bearing in the transmission. Control arms broke, gears exploded and/or stripped, and eventually after the 3rd time having the transmission out, one of the differential output cups shattered and the car sat for 2 years (im putting it back together now). There were misaligned holes in cast parts (the diff housing), sloppy linkage components, shocks that refused to hold oil, a fuel tank that refused to not leak, no matter how many hpi and aftermarket sealing bits you put on it, and the cylinder surface finish that was obviously done with a dingleberry hone are a few of the other problems. And every once in a while you will come across something that is not HPI spec. The steering linkage uses a different size bearing (bigger) than the HPI parts I bought to remedy sloppy steering, so I had to get HPI bearings to fit.
One of the other interesting failures was when the fan between the brake discs disappeared and I lost brakes on tarmac at full speed. I never did find the pieces of it or evidence of it leaving the car.
I did reflash the firmware on the radio it came with and now use it for everything, and the engine hasn't died (yet, I have a zenoah 27.2 to put in there when it does) and it did come with an actual Walbro carb, which has lasted due to it's steady diet of AvGas. I did try to replace the carb with a Walbro 813, but ultimately went back to the stock one. All in all it has been a very educational 1/5 scale learning experience. The car is now mostly HPI, RPM, and various other known good manufacturers. Probably only 1/4 of the car is still Rovan. I still like the car despite it's flaws. I've built up such a supply of spare parts, tools and fasteners that it's almost self sustaining now. It definitely would have been better to just spend the extra money and buy an SS kit, rather than spend more fixing bad materials, or better yet a Losi truck.
As soon as I got it I stripped it down to nuts and bolts to inspect and put blue loctite everywhere. Among the stuff that was done wrong, the rear chassis plate had a crossthreaded thread-sert in it (which they replaced), and they even had a plastic bushing in place of the #1 input shaft bearing in the transmission. Control arms broke, gears exploded and/or stripped, and eventually after the 3rd time having the transmission out, one of the differential output cups shattered and the car sat for 2 years (im putting it back together now). There were misaligned holes in cast parts (the diff housing), sloppy linkage components, shocks that refused to hold oil, a fuel tank that refused to not leak, no matter how many hpi and aftermarket sealing bits you put on it, and the cylinder surface finish that was obviously done with a dingleberry hone are a few of the other problems. And every once in a while you will come across something that is not HPI spec. The steering linkage uses a different size bearing (bigger) than the HPI parts I bought to remedy sloppy steering, so I had to get HPI bearings to fit.
One of the other interesting failures was when the fan between the brake discs disappeared and I lost brakes on tarmac at full speed. I never did find the pieces of it or evidence of it leaving the car.
I did reflash the firmware on the radio it came with and now use it for everything, and the engine hasn't died (yet, I have a zenoah 27.2 to put in there when it does) and it did come with an actual Walbro carb, which has lasted due to it's steady diet of AvGas. I did try to replace the carb with a Walbro 813, but ultimately went back to the stock one. All in all it has been a very educational 1/5 scale learning experience. The car is now mostly HPI, RPM, and various other known good manufacturers. Probably only 1/4 of the car is still Rovan. I still like the car despite it's flaws. I've built up such a supply of spare parts, tools and fasteners that it's almost self sustaining now. It definitely would have been better to just spend the extra money and buy an SS kit, rather than spend more fixing bad materials, or better yet a Losi truck.
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