Best 4wd for starters?

[Shaun_TLR]

forgot to ask, does 410 use saddles? Thats a pretty big thing for me (being a student) I dont wanna have to fork out for a whole new set of batteries when I already have 3 pairs of saddles for the 22. being able to use the same batts for both would be a result.

thanks

ps is there any issues about having particularly tall saddles if so, as mine are taller than the normal 25mm ?

[Chris-S]

DEX410 takes saddles. 25mm is the suggested maximum height, do your batteries have the nodules on the bottom? As you can flip them over to make them less tall, as the battery strap fits round them (e.g. LRP)

[Shaun_TLR]

not sure what you mean, mine have female corrally fitments into the top of the cell?

[/tobys]

what saddles have you got? There is zero margin for running bigger on the 410 on account of the driveshaft...

[Shaun_TLR]

ive zippy lightmax saddles. cheapy ones really, but also taller than most at about 30mm been looking for some nicer ones i.e lrp or orions etc but just funds allowing

[/tobys]

think you'll struggle with those in the 410 mate - sorry

[mes]

In case you'll go for the DEX, make sure that the pin on the driveshaft above the saddles is secured with either the plastic ring in the kit (which seems to tend to break) or some heatshrink. Otherwise your batteries might go up in flames.

[Shaun_TLR]

Originally Posted by mes

In case you'll go for the DEX, make sure that the pin on the driveshaft above the saddles is secured with either the plastic ring in the kit (which seems to tend to break) or some heatshrink. Otherwise your batteries might go up in flames.

nice thanks for the headsup

[Naushad]

hmmm...if the bmax4 was more accessible I would go for this. For me its easier to drive than the DEX and more suitable for a starter.

You CAN pick up a Bmax4 with spares quite easily. Much cheaper than a DEX410.

[TonyM]

The 410 is rock solid. I'm a poor driver and I've had many big crashes, but no major breakages. The spares are easy to get and certainly match, if not better, B44 pricing.

The geared diffs are far superior to the balled diffs in the B44.

[mes]

As somebody said already, there are no really bad cars out there at the moment. You'll read many DEX410 and B44 recommendations just due to the amount of cars on the tracks. Plastic cars, however, may not have the bling-factor of an aluminum or carbon chassis, but are less sensitive to wrong setups and in general easier to drive. Many Shuey drivers prefer the S1 chassis to the carbon one just for the same reason, and Juraj Hudy will not equip the upcoming Xray XB4 with a tune flex chassis just for fun either.

I'd not recommend the cheaper Ansmann kits due to poor material (had a Macnum fall apart in many spots for no obvious reason until I scrapped it on eBay), but otherwise I'd recommend going for a 'soft' car, especially for a beginner. You may want to check out the current Kyosho Lazer ZX-5 SP version, too.
There's a video on the X-Factory youtube channel, in which Paul Sinclair comments on Naoto Matsukuras driving and the great quality of the B-Max4. I think coming from a designer of one of the most innovative companies out there this means a lot!
Parts for the Yoke may not be easy to get on first sight, but you won't need many...

[cutting42]

Originally Posted by TonyM

The 410 is rock solid. I'm a poor driver and I've had many big crashes, but no major breakages. The spares are easy to get and certainly match, if not better, B44 pricing.

The geared diffs are far superior to the balled diffs in the B44.

Why is this, I had heard the opposite?

[TonyM]

Originally Posted by cutting42

Why is this, I had heard the opposite?

All I can go on is my experience with both the B44 and 410. When I had the B44 I had to rebuild the diffs on a fairly regular basis. Once I'd learn't how to build a 410 diff correctly I've just put them in and they run and run.

The B44 front shock shafts were very brittle and broke on a regular basis. I've never had to change one on the 410. The B44 front and rear arms broke very easilly and again I've never had to replace one on the 410.

[Josh1928]

Schumacher CAT SX2! Amazing best 4WD in my opinion going!

[cutting42]

I cannot give a comment on a range of cars as I am pretty new to the current scene and a learner driver really but can give my perspective on the B44.1 as I bought one. I got a great deal from a work colleague who bought a kit and shortly after decided to go 1/8th nitro.

I highly recommend the B44.1 as it was fun to make and very well designed for servicing and replacement parts. However the main reason is that it is so easy to drive and improve my driving on. Setup change lead to big changes in the handing and there are loads of other drivers setups out there on the t'internet.

I have found it extremely robust and have not broken anything yet (probably not going fast enough yet ) even the shock shafts. I have heard that you can use the std steel shafts from the B4.1 and they are much more resilient.

The out of the box setup worked brilliantly at my local outdoor astro course and I can just lower the ride height and go well indoor on a carpet track. Parts are cheap and there are loads out there. Only one Durango I know of and they love it but spares have been harder to get for them.

As someone above said, I don't think you can go wrong with any of the major car makes mentioned here, but worth seeing what is running at your local club so you can share spares/experiences.

Have fun!

[cutting42]

Oh, and your 30mm high saddles should fit in the B44 as well!

[M.Andrews]

If you go for the 410 v3 all you have to get is the alloy servo saver arm(durango or tresrey),alloy servo arm(durango) and alloy rear gear box holder(tresray) then you will have a very solid 410 V3 kit.
When I first had the kit the above bits broke pretty quickly,now its fine!.
The kit also has HD ball ends on it which don;t pop off for me but some people they pop off too easily. If you want these to stay on for sure then get some hpi ball studs and rpm ball ends then they will never come off!.

At my local club(TORCH) alot of people are swapping their 410 kits for the Kyosho 4wd kit and look very good on the track!.

[dpackster1980]

I have a 410R and it now has alloy hangers over the past 2 years I've been buying them when I've got a spare few quid. I've got the carbon shock towers from Fibrelyte. The 410v3 from MB Models is only £260 which is unbelievable valve. They are pretty Mich indestructible and hard crashes where they make you cringe on the rostrum and nothing broke.

I'm currently running all original corners on the car as even though I've had some horrendous cartwheeling at the end of main staights its fine with no slop. However you will need a spare front bulkhead if you land upside down racing on grass or astro where the tower can dig in then it snaps the shock tower mounting lugs off. But that'll happen on any car you'll end up breaking something.

As for setup on the 410 because its aggressive compared to others you'll need to find your own base setup and not follow setup sheets exactly to the letter everyone's different and its quite sensitive to small changes.

I struggled for virtually a whole season its hard work but once you have the base setup then you'll just need to make small changes from track to track and you'll love it. I'll never get rid of mine.

[dpackster1980]

Kyosho kit are stupendously expensive, yes you don't need upgrades but you don't with the Durango. But for piece of mind I got the machine cut crown gears when they were cheap they've gone up a little now not much though.

B44s are ok but the front shock shafts are the Achilles heal and bloody expensive too. Because of them being in a very venerable to impacts and the metal isn't great they snap inside the ball joint so you need them spare to along with shock bottoms plus springs if you loose them. The crown gears are expensive unless you order from abroad. Trackside spares are good but they aren't exciting to drive, you can push hard think you've done a good time only to find it was very average.

The Durango doesn't need to be pushed as hard to get the best out of it. The spares are very well priced in some cases cheaper than the rest.

The 511 seems good if you can get one but they are very expensive if you can get one. The spares are cheap as chips from Hong Kong.

SX3 looks good too but from what I've seen needs more maintenance than the rest plus spares aren't that cheap.

[slow coach]

Originally Posted by dpackster1980

Kyosho kit are stupendously expensive, yes you don't need upgrades but you don't with the Durango. But for piece of mind I got the machine cut crown gears when they were cheap they've gone up a little now not much though. .

you should read the post above your first it states all the bits you need to swap with alu to stop them breaking on the 410

tbh all the cars are good on the market in one way or another, some are cheaper and easier to get parts, others more expensive but dont need many parts due to being built better, none are perfect


just for interest several guys run 410's at our club and they run well, one of our guys cooked his esc in his 410 so borrowed a B44.1 for the final and had his best ever result to date, he doesn't expect to win races as he was out the sport for 20 odd years and has started up again but his driving is getting better by the race, and he reckoned his 410 was better set up than the B44.1 as well, personally i got the ZX5 FS2 SP and now i have the shocks better suited to the track love it but i will agree its pricey