Getting back into the hobby
 

Hey guys I've been out of the RC racing scene since 2005, before brushless and LiPo became standard. After seeing my buddy's Losi TEN-MT run the other day I was amazed at how fast electric has become!

I have decided to jump back in the hobby and I will buy an Associated 1/8 scale RC8B3e since Stadium Trucks have died off in my area and my T4 is just collecting dust. I need help choosing a motor, and ESC since I don't know much about brushless and all my experience comes from 1/10 scale.

What would you guys recommend for a motor and ESC for a 3s/4s LiPo for under $300? I want a stupid fast car that I can bash around with and take to the track. Thanks in advance!

Hobbywing XR8 plus combo would be a good choice.

I also agree on the recommendation of a Hobbywing XR8 Plus. I haven't tried their new 1/8th scale motors yet, but have heard good things. For a cheap but good quality motor for a 1/8 buggy I can wholeheartedly recommend SMC's 1900 kV motors.

Would this also be a good choice?

http://www.horizonhobby.com/TEKTT231...FU9YDQodF_8Aww

Just want the best bang for the buck. Should I just get the Tekin motor and run it with the Hobbywing XR8? Thanks again.

Well if you want bang for your buck I would skip tekin. While they are excellent electronics, their prices are on the high end. I would instead pair SMC's 1900kv motor with the Hobbywing esc.

A lot of guys run Tekin stuff and like it, but I've also seen a lot of guys burning up RX8s. Granted, maybe that's just because you see a lot of guys running them, but who knows for sure. I've paired a Tekin truggy motor with a Hobbywing XR8 Plus for my RC8T3e because I wanted a truggy-specific motor for it and, at the time, Hobbywing didn't offer them. It worked out to about the same cost as buying the Tekin combo, but I'm glad I got the Hobbywing ESC. For my RC8B3e, I paired an SMC 1900kV with and XR8 and it's been great.

I will say that for my personal taste in throttle and brake feel, I did have to up the punch and dial out quite a lot of brake from the stock profile on the XR8 Pluses, but that's a very personal thing and easy to do with the program card or wifi adapter that's available from Hobbywing (which I would recommend if you do decide to go with the XR8 Plus). Hope that this helps and doesn't just add to the confusion. There are a ton of choices out there and it's tough sorting through them all. Good Luck!

Totally agree! This is honestly probably the best bang for your buck combo out there and both the ESC and motor are quality pieces.

Cool thing about tekin, is you can call them and ask if they have any refurbished motors/escs available, and if they do you can order one for a lower price than new. Plus they come with a warranty.