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Starting in Dirt

Old 02-23-2008, 02:39 PM
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my indoor track closed this past fall but I have an outdoor track that is a 1/2 mile away.

I am considering switching to dirt, due to proximity of tracks near me.

Keeping in mind, I am setup for electric but run only once a month. I never seem to have fresh batteries.

1.) Truck or Buggy or Truggy
2.) Elec or Gas, keep in mind my frequency of racing.
3.) What scale is most popular to run
4.) Preference on brand would like to stay at 500 range
5.) would you buy a used vehicle as a first purchase or start with new
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Old 02-23-2008, 03:08 PM
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Originally Posted by butrflynlambie
my indoor track closed this past fall but I have an outdoor track that is a 1/2 mile away.

I am considering switching to dirt, due to proximity of tracks near me.

Keeping in mind, I am setup for electric but run only once a month. I never seem to have fresh batteries.

1.) Truck or Buggy or Truggy
2.) Elec or Gas, keep in mind my frequency of racing.
3.) What scale is most popular to run
4.) Preference on brand would like to stay at 500 range
5.) would you buy a used vehicle as a first purchase or start with new
my opinions, i have a 1/8 scale nitro buggy, i dont race:


1.) Truggy. buggies are fun, but a truggy is bigger and can hit bigger jumps, why not.
2.) Gas. doesnt matter how often you race, you can still bash around and have fun, i dont think electric are as powerful/fun.
3.) 1/8 is the most popular. id like to try a 1/8 truggy.
4.) buy any pro kit used, it should be fine
5.) would you buy a used vehicle as a first purchase or start with new. ive only bought 2 used once, both of which i love. theres absolutely nothing wrong with buying used, you just gotta make sure you aernt buying complete junk.

on ebay, most buggy/truggy rollers go for about 200-400$
then an engine is about 150-300
then electronics are 200-300 if you want decent ones.

with that, youll have a lot of fun, trust me, ill post a vid of my buggy in a sec
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Old 02-23-2008, 07:12 PM
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSi2ljegZO8

not the greatest, ill get a better vid in a few days
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Old 02-23-2008, 09:45 PM
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1. truggy or buggy would be your best bet but they are 2 different classes so its your desicion

2. gas

3. 1/8 buggy

4. CEN Racing pro kit buggy @ $349 cant beat that
http://www.headrushhobbies.com/estor...itro%20Buggies

5. so you know excactly what your working with and you know that the problems you run into are not caused by a previous owner
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Old 02-23-2008, 10:05 PM
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Originally Posted by Robert.Hull
1. truggy or buggy would be your best bet but they are 2 different classes so its your desicion

2. gas

3. 1/8 buggy

4. CEN Racing pro kit buggy @ $349 cant beat that
http://www.headrushhobbies.com/estor...itro%20Buggies

5. so you know excactly what your working with and you know that the problems you run into are not caused by a previous owner
nah, most guys that are selling their buggies dont have any problems. 99% of the ones i see on ebay are buyable, theres the odd one that you can tell ur gonna have problems, but things like this you cant go wrong with:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Mugen-mbx-5R-mbx...QQcmdZViewItem

or http://cgi.ebay.com/Mugen-mbx-5-mbx5...QQcmdZViewItem

then you throw in your own brand new electronics, and a engine of your choice and BAM!!!, funnest time of your life!
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Old 02-23-2008, 10:08 PM
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I would still rather buy the kit, that way I have a NEW buggy that was put together right the FIRST time around...by ME
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Old 02-24-2008, 12:01 AM
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Originally Posted by Nik
I would still rather buy the kit, that way I have a NEW buggy that was put together right the FIRST time around...by ME
i think you guys are assuming that ALL second hand buggies are complete POS.

i bought my buggy second hand and it was built right, trust me. same with 95% of the buggies out there.. how would you like it if no one bought your second hand buggy (which was built perfectly, like most of em are) because they thought it wasnt built right or treated properly.

like i said before, the reason people mostly sell their buggies are because theyre bored of the hobby, they cant do it anymore due to work/wife.. etc.., they cant afford it, they have a new/better buggy, NOT because its a wrecked, non-properly built POS....

if youre looking to save money, theres nothing wrong with spending 250$ on a 2nd hand buggy that runs at 97% performance, or spending 500$ on a brand new buggy that runs at 99%... im sticking with second hand still.
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Old 02-24-2008, 07:15 AM
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my indoor track closed this past fall but I have an outdoor track that is a 1/2 mile away.

I am considering switching to dirt, due to proximity of tracks near me.

Keeping in mind, I am setup for electric but run only once a month. I never seem to have fresh batteries.

1.) Truck or Buggy or Truggy
I suggest visiting the track on a race day. See what the popular classes are and where you might fit in or what looks the most fun to you. You may decide one class or another based on the people running them as well.

2.) Elec or Gas, keep in mind my frequency of racing.
Which do you prefer working on? Do like tuning, fumes, oil, cleanup of nitro? There is a lot more prep time and post race maintenance involved with gas. Go for it if you enjoy that part of the hobby. If not stick with electric. You may even consider brushless if there is a class for it as these motors are pretty much maintenance free. There are lots of choices in 1/10 scale electric.

If you go 1/8 scale you'll likely be limited to gas. There are a lot of folks running electric converted 1/8 scale vehicles (I'm one of them) but these are usually very custom and very pricey compared to their gas counterparts. Gas will keep you under your budget.


3.) What scale is most popular to run
As I mentioned above. Visit the track you plan on racing. Popularity varies. If i had to make a generalization I would say 1/8 truggy followed by 1/8 buggy.

4.) Preference on brand would like to stay at 500 range
Do you have a local hobby shop nearby? What parts do they carry? You may want to consider parts availability as a choice. Otherwise we get into the old Ford vs. Chevy debates. Again, see what other folks at the track are running. You may want to run what's popular there. I know it sometimes helps if you need setup tips or even spares from other racers. Some guys don't like what everybody else is racing and get something completely different which is okay too as long as you can figure a lot of the setup on your own - which, of course, is what this forum is for.

5.) would you buy a used vehicle as a first purchase or start with new
I would advise against used unless you know for sure what you are getting. Unfortunately, it seems that every used vehicle out there has only seen one race day and every engine has less than one gallon and still needs to be broken in. I learned this the hard way buy buying a used truck and I ended up having to replace so many well used and worn parts that I would have been better off going new. A good way to go if you are unsure which class to run would be a RTR. I know a lot of people will disagree but I think by doing so you will be up and running immediately and you can decide if you like the class or not. IF you go with a Upgraded Factory Team kit you'll be pushing your budget getting motors/engines and all your electronics. It's hard to get that investment back if you decide you want to race a different class.
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Old 02-24-2008, 07:31 AM
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theres nothing wrong with buying used if you buy it from the right person. or if you buy it at the right price! most of the time, people sell cars because they are getting a NEW one, not because they are bored/leaving the hobby... and they get that NEW one because the old one is starting to get slack/wear on moving parts like suspension, drivetrain, etc.

its fine for someone beating around because you probably wont notice the difference, your not running in an isolated environment, ie, a track with precise bumps and jumps and curves... but for the average RACER, they will notice a difference between a worn buggy and a newly built one, even if the setup is identical.

now dont get me wrong, used isnt a bad way to go to save some money, just be VERY careful what you buy, ask some questions! like how many gallons its been run, etc. the bottom of the chassis is usually a good first marker of a worn buggy. look for scarring and scratches on the bottom.. if the chassis looks fairly new still, it couldve been replaced, look over the suspension parts, check the slack in the a-arms, shock ends, look at the spur gear and make sure it looks ok.

one good thing is its really hard to get burned too bad, since every part is replaceable. so you dont get stuck with something you cant use, it just may cost more to fix it, lol!

but me personally, id rather buy new, lol!



Originally Posted by Mugen MBX-5
i think you guys are assuming that ALL second hand buggies are complete POS.

i bought my buggy second hand and it was built right, trust me. same with 95% of the buggies out there.. how would you like it if no one bought your second hand buggy (which was built perfectly, like most of em are) because they thought it wasnt built right or treated properly.

like i said before, the reason people mostly sell their buggies are because theyre bored of the hobby, they cant do it anymore due to work/wife.. etc.., they cant afford it, they have a new/better buggy, NOT because its a wrecked, non-properly built POS....

if youre looking to save money, theres nothing wrong with spending 250$ on a 2nd hand buggy that runs at 97% performance, or spending 500$ on a brand new buggy that runs at 99%... im sticking with second hand still.
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