Another newbie
 

Hi All

I'm looking at getting back into the hobby after a brief stint 12 years ago but ended having to give up due to going uni etc. Everyone was so friendly on here and helpful someone even went out of their way to give me an RB5 I won at a raffle after leaving my first race early due to the ESC melting...

Anyway I dug out the RB5 a few weeks ago and have nearly built it (I know parts won't be easy to come by but it's brand new and seems a good starting point). I still have some basic electrics from the B4 I bought second hand so was thinking of using the transmitter, receiver and servo from that to get me started. I know they are old but they are easy to upgrade although the trans and rcvr need crystals so not sure if that would be an issue.

I still had a brand new Etronix Probe 12 so bought a 15t brushed HPI motor to go with that and some 3300 NIMH from Modelsport literally just to get me started but starting to think it might be a mistake. I'm only going to be a casual racer going to the odd race meetings that I can so I'm not looking to be the fastest but don't want to be so slow I get laughed at or annoy everyone else. How much slower would this set up likely be than the other newbies at an average race?

I don't mind getting a budget brushless ESC and motor combo but don't want to break the bank, a lot of posts seem to say a 120A esc is pretty essential and motor needs to be 8.5t or below? The other problem is the RB5's battery is mounted in the middle and if it's fan cooled will it fit the RB5 shell in the standard set up?

Also wondering if NIMH will be abit ancient now, would 2s LiPo be adequate and if so what mah would be recommended and how many for racing?

Sorry for the long post but thought I'd better ask now before my order arrives then i can return and upgrade if I need to. If I can get racing using as much as I can of what I have and upgrade over time I would be happy. Any advice would be appreciated :)

Thanks

Josh

So as a new starter this would probably do you?

Hobbywing 10BL120 esc which retail at about £40
Motorwise you could get a speed passion motor for around £35 - £40 or keep an eye on Oople for second hand brushless motors. I bought a couple off here. 8.5 would be a good new starter motor.
Modelsport sell 2S centro Lipo's which are 5000mah for about £40 bang for buck these are really good and what I currently use.
People tend to use 2.4ghz radio gear these days, mid range wheels systems can be had for a decent price, if you use sticks then your options are pretty limited.
Let me know if you want to know anything else.

Hi Lofty

That's great thanks for your reply! Will return the stuff when it arrives and put it towards better elecs. That ESC looks good and Speed Passion's have been mentioned a few times, can only see 6.5t or 10.5t available though. Would 6.5 be a bit much at first, or would 10.5 be abit sluggish?
Would you reckon a 5000mah and a 3000mah would be enough for a race day?
I'm definitely a stick man, could I still use my old transmitter or would it not be allowed? Worst case scenario would this do the job to get me started: https://www.modelsport.co.uk/absima-...roducts/407387

Thanks again

Josh

I would say go with the 10.5 and then go to something faster later down the line.
3000mah should be fine.
I run my vintage car with 3700mah batteries on a 10.5 and I have loads of juice left after the race has finished.

Sticks wise you can pick up a Futaba 3GR with RX for £60-80, a Sanwa Gemini X with RX for around £100 and a Futaba T4GRS for around £150 all second hand. These are all 2.4GHz.

I'd deffo go brushless / lipo having been there and done that coming back after 30 years trying NiMh again first.

There's a super cheap BL 120A ESC at Hobbyking for £20-30 - depends when it's on offer. They come with a vanilla firmware but are a clone of the more expensive Hobbywing ESCs, and you can flash them with Hobbywing firmware to give you boost and turbo. I've two of these in mine and my lad's 2WD and they've been flawless so far, even running a 6.5 in my 2WD.

I've always bought 2nd hand lipos as well as budget is tight, you can pick them up for £10-30 each depending on spec/capacity. Same goes for motors, brushless need next to no maintenance other than possibly bearings. I've paid £10 for some 2nd hand in the past, up to £30 for a corker like new.

Don't forget to factor in a lipo compatible charger. I like the convenience of ones that can run 240VAC and 12V for trackside. There's a cheap IMAX B6 clone that does both, think I paid £25 for mine brand new.

Don't make the mistake of trying to future proof and start with a 6.5 - seen so many newbies at my local track try this and I always tell them they look like they are fighting the car. With new brushless stuff you can run a milder motor for the infield, and the ESC can add "turbo" which dynamically advances the timing on the fly when at full throtte for the straight. :) Not all ESCs can do this though, the 10BL120 posted before doesn't have turbo and you can't upgrade it.

I came back to rc buggies ~6yrs ago and though I only seem to find time to race approx 3-4 times per year, I still enjoy it. I started with a 13.5 and am still only using a 10.5 with a bit of boost on straights. Plenty quick enough

Thanks for your reply Yorkie! Will certainly take a look into that ESC although I'd imagine I'll be a while off needing any boost I'll be happy to get it through a race day in one piece haha. Thanks for the charger advice will take a look into the IMAX it sounds very reasonable

Thankyou, that's reasssuring. I'm sure it will take a while to get to grips with the speed of these new motors etc so seems sensible to start with a slower motor!

Unless there is a very long straight, the absolute top speed of the motor is largely irrelevant! :thumbsup: