Baja 5b

[jimmy]

How raceable is this thing ? in terms of looks its surely far and away the best large scale buggy ever - it looks like a real buggy!!!!
is it legal for racing in the "large scale off road" classes ? anyone got one ?


Check out this video of it in action, it makes me want it and NEED it! :(
http://www.hpieurope.com/show_video.php?lang=en&videoID=97

[Chris Doughty]

they do look dialled, maybe drop an email to Adam Skelding, he would know a fair bit about this, and most other HPI stuff.

I don't see why it would not be competitive against other 5th scalers, the other 5th scalers look very 'overweight' to me

[bigred5765]

have to say thats probably the best action rc video i have ever seen, need to hear the car engines a bit more, i must say though now i want one how good would that be at batley skateboard track lol.

[jimmy]

Yea the music is a little overpowering isn't it :p good vid tho - makes you want one.
Cool how they have a camera strapped to a model helicopter for some shots too.

[DCM]

I dunno, I just don't get excited by it, it looks great and all, but doesn't look way as much fun as a race speced Truggy.

[jimmy]

but - 40 minutes for a tank ! 40 mins!!! how cool is that, just fill er up and drive it till you can take no more.

[Southwell]

Id break it wayyyyyyyyyyyyy before that :D

[jimmy]

You wouldnt wanna hit anything with it would you :o I had an FG marder a long time ago. I was driving it home because it was too heavy to carry. I hit a lamp post and took off the side of the car ! almost knocked the lamp post over too :rolleyes::p

[Southwell]

Lol, the ultimate bod :D
Ive always wanted a Marder, just the prices put me off as it is essentially a bash car.

[jimmy]

The marder was a laugh but it din't handle very well or jump well. Maybe it was just me.

http://www.oople.com/rc/photos/nook131105/bigimages/nook22.jpg

[Chris Doughty]

seeing vids of the Marder it looks looks completely fat and rigid, it bobbles about like a skateboard.

the Baja looks way better, and it looks a lot more fluid on the track (or dirt)

[jimmy]

Thats what I thought too. I'd really like to do a SHOOTOUT (yeehaa, how american is that), with a standard BAJA 5b and a fully race ready large scale buggy (fg / carson / harm etc etc etc)
Get them on a few different surfaces / situations and see how they go. Make for some ace photos too.


Just need to find a couple of people mad enough to spend a day with me.:p

[PaulRotheram]

i consider my self truely insane. what day jimmy?:D

[johnboy]

Hi there i race large scale offroad and the baja 5b is legal to race. At the last national two drivers had them .To make them work they changed the engine for a 26cc and swaped the servos for better ones . The next round of the Large scale offroad nationals is at the nook Wakefield on Aug 13th.

John Walton

[jimmy]

I think I am in austria at the 10th off road euros then otherwise I'd come down to have a look. How come they changed the engines ? are the kit ones not legal ? or more speed ?

I love the LOOK of the hpi, and it certainly seems to handle jumps and bumps better than anything else ive seen. I still think a side by side with a sorted 6th racing buggy would put things in perspective.

Whether the HPI is competitive at racing or not I'd guess it will outsell all the established brands put together which can only be a good thing for your sport.

[PaulRotheram]

next review maybe.. if o0ple can get hold of a HPI 5b...

HPI 5B shootout :)

[jimmy]

haha, yea! I'll just sell vicky - any takers ?

nah, for this I need a couple of willing owners, since I cant drive and photograph anyway :) few different scenarios like - at a track, jumping, loose / grippy areas, rough / smooth etc.. If I don't do it, someone should because it would be interesting.

[johnboy]

The engine in the car is a 23cc so a 26cc gives more bottom end performance . I have to say the shocks on the hpi work well. Hpi have really helped large scale and i hope more people have a look at the racing.

John Walton

[Mrs oOple]

Sell me hey? You'd have to pay them to take me away! :P

[emzy]

I'll pay 83p.

But does she come with room-cleaning abilities?

[jimmy]

Sorry, I should have said, there is a reserve of 500 pounds on her, so I can at least get a 2nd hand Baja.

You have seen our house Em! and you should know not to ask silly Q's like that. :o

[emzy]

You have seen our house Em! and you should know not to ask silly Q's like that. :o

Very good point... any other special skills worth a mention?

[Mrs oOple]

*lip*
I'll have you know I have very good room cleaning abilities. Well, basic ability to house-clean when it is absolutely necessary.

[emzy]

Is that when you can't actually see the floor anymore?

[Mrs oOple]

No no, long after the floor disappears, I like to wait until I have forgotten what colour the carpet is before I tidy oOp.

[emzy]

No no, long after the floor disappears, I like to wait until I have forgotten what colour the carpet is before I tidy oOp.

... you have carpet?!

[Mrs oOple]

ysys! It is sort of a dark bluey/purple. It's quite nice actually. Currently I can still see it, so not time for a tidy-up yet :P

[jimmy]

now now girls, can we get back on topic of this big toy thing ? I either get this or the 1:1 scale smart roadster, so, whats it to be ?

or can I have both :D

[PaulRotheram]

i think if you want both youl be needing to sell vicky, toe, some organs and 'the big one'.. and you will still need a loan! :D

[bigred5765]

so are u bidding jimmy or me or shall we?
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/HPI-Baja-5b-petrol-car_W0QQitemZ190013226613QQihZ009QQcategoryZ19168Q QrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
looks cool i want one now, anyone wana buy a t4. i found ma new toy

[stefke]

This smells .....:rolleyes:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/NEW-IN-SEALED-BOX-HPI-BAJA-5B-GIANT-SCALE-BUGGY_W0QQitemZ270013177915QQihZ017QQcategoryZ7480 5QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Or it could be the bargain of the century :D

[jimmy]

hmmmmmm! looks a bit too good to be true. There are a lot of scams on ebay now, Ive been using it for many years but its only fairly recently I've seen so many scammers out there. I guess its a lot more popular than it used to be now.

Still, worth a try maybe!? hehe.. VICKEH!!!!

[PaulRotheram]

prft..

Payment methods acceptedhttp://pics.ebaystatic.com/aw/pics/s.gifhttp://pics.ebaystatic.com/aw/pics/s.gifThere are no available payment methods in your country. Please do not bid on this item

[emzy]

If you view it in its original language, its still in English... if you were in China, wouldn't you advertise in Chinese?

[jimmy]

they ship world wide! you just can't pay for it

[emzy]

they ship world wide! you just can't pay for it

Yeah I know, but they're obviously from China, and have a payment option for within China... so you'd think their original ad would be in Chinese, even if it also had a translation to go with it...!

[jimmy]

Look at you, all columbo and stuff.

[emzy]

Lmao, I'm a freak for detail aren't I... SPELLING AND GRAMMAR, SPELLING AND GRAMMAR. Pfff.

[Oscar]

She's a Grammar Queen :)

[stefke]

A good friend of mine is into big Scale racing and he just ran his first national with the Baja. He TQ'd and if he wouldn't have had a bit of bad luck in the final, he would have won (he finished 4th). Now the good part for me was that after the race, he let me run a tank with his car.

I'm very, very, very tempted now. Not only does the Baja look amazing, it actually works !!! And I love the fact that you can run an entire final of 30 min. without having to pit.

I had a talk with his sponsor (the HPI importer here) and found out he's looking for another team driver. Because of my previous 'accomplishments' in the 1/10th off-road scene and the fact that I wasn't exactly slow during my test run, I could be receiving a partial sponsorship to run the Baja in our nationals !

[jimmy]

Nice one, thats great! Let us know how you get on with it and if it needs much work to race with the other big boys.

[stefke]

Nice one, thats great! Let us know how you get on with it and if it needs much work to race with the other big boys.

According to my mate, it mostly needs a good exhaust system and some alternation to the clutch to prevent it from wearing down. The clutch bell has openings in the front which allow sand to enter and wear the clutch shoes down VERY fast. There's also some wheel rub at full suspension travel that needs correcting. A Big Bore kit would be nice but not vital. He claims the suspension is superior to the other 'big boys'. Looking at my laptimes at the end of my test run, I tend to agree with him. Having never driven a big scale buggy before, I've set some very decent times. Credit mostly to the Baja.

I'm not sure yet if I'm going to do it. As said, I would receive partial support but I'm spending enough as it is on my 1/10th and 1/8th buggies. :D

[bally]

does anybody know who imports the Jetpro pipes for the baja
cheers

[BenG]

I belive its Sb racing Micheal, http://www.sbracing.co.uk

[stefke]

Apparently, the Samba pipe doesn't add much performance. He's going to test the Jetpro pipe this weekend. That one sure looks nice enough.

[bally]

thanks Ben

[stefke]

Well, I finally decided : picking up the Baja today.

My relations and experience in the 2-stroke motorcycle world (I ride an Aprilia RS250 stroker) will come in handy, as my first job will be to report the stock engine and find (or weld) a decent expansion pipe.

I hope to have it all ready for the next round of the Big scale nationals over here on the 10th of september.

[Bathy]

I couldn't get the video to play but I found this one on youtube not sure if its the same but it pretty good, not sure how they got the footage from the air! Unless its a big budget pro job maybe.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhBNlEWF9iI

[Chris Doughty]

did anyone else see Adams Baja at telford?

OMG it was massive, it looked so cool too, propper off-roader

[jimmy]

I had to go over and stroke the thing, it was ace. Shame lee martin got hold of it! :p
imagine a track full of those things, that would be sheer madness.. imagine being a marshall! you'd need to sit inside a tank

[millzy]

It was wicked and the sound of it was lush, much better than the nitor whine sound

[jim76]

has anyone seen or driven the Big Bore 29cc version from Modelsport? I'm guessing that shifts a bit!

[jimmy]

Is that the original engine rebored or a new engine entirely ? Wonder what 3cc difference makes to it ? Heck, I'm not complaining, the thing looks good enough standing still. One day!:p

[PaulRotheram]

you not want a jellymould jimmah? :bom:

[jimmy]

hahahaha, surprisingly no! I will settle for this hard edged retro-designed beast

[losidan]

i'd love to run one of these on a bmx track