New To Micro - Help!

[stucartwright]

Hey Guys
New to this micro world.
I run a GT12 but want to get more stick time so I really fancy getting a micro buggy.

I like the look of the EMB-1. The kit version sounds good, although there is a place a RTR version whilst I don't plan to race, there is a club I go to that does race these, would this be competitive the RTR version? But I assume it would still be possible to mod up and make a bit more competitive if I decided to?

Many thanks in advance for any help or advice.

Best Wishes
Stuart

[alex97]

I've been looking at getting the emb1 and I'm planning to get the kit due to all the upgrades and I want to build it. I think the cheapest I found it was was £103 posted on Amazon.de, that was for the emb1h that has the clear shell.

[stucartwright]

Hi Alex
It's cheaper here...
http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/281678465560?nav=SEARCH

What electrics do you plan to get?
Esc and Motor?

Stu

[stucartwright]

Scrap that... That's the carisma

[Karting]

I've been looking at getting the emb1 and I'm planning to get the kit due to all the upgrades and I want to build it. I think the cheapest I found it was was £103 posted on Amazon.de, that was for the emb1h that has the clear shell.

Dms racing is cheaper I believe?

[stucartwright]

Could you advise me chaps on what motors and sec's you run in the EMB1's chaps??

[alex97]

I think a lot of people run the stock lc racing motor 28mm and any ESC that's 60a+

[mrspeedy]

The EMB-1 kit motor is a really nice motor, good smooth power and lots of it !!

They work really geared high too, think mine was on a 22t pinion !!

Tamiya TC pinions fit the motor and spur gear from memory..

[Danosborne6661]

As above, the LC motor is epic. Can't beat it!

As for ESC, Hobbywing 35a is MORE than enough. A few people run the 60a but there's no need, even in national A-finals my 35a has never got hot.

[stucartwright]

Hey Dan and Co.
This liquid gold info. Thanks so much. Really really like the look of this micro stuff... The GTB feels like the route I'm going to go down, so please advise if you feel I should rethink this choice.
Regarding the LC motor, are you able to offer up a link for that motor. The website I have found that does a large amount of Micro stuff is TrackSideSpares, are you familiar? Once again, any other web addresses would be welcomed, apart from MB and Modelsport...
Thanks again chaos!!
Best Wishes
Stu

[stucartwright]

One last question....
These are sensor less motors too aren't they??

[Danosborne6661]

Sensorless is the way forward in a micro yea.

You won't get the LC motor in the Carisma either. Carisma is a great performer but be prepared to eat through belts and pulleys and have to buy a few hop-ups! In recent months there's been an even amount of LC EMB1's and Carismas in the national A-final so both are as quick in the right hands.

The LC is absolutely bullet proof though! It's built tough, literally NO hop-ups needed and you'll find there's quite a few needed with the Carisma.

Paul Knight is the guy behind Trackside Spares and you can't fault the man :)

[stucartwright]

OK thats really useful once again...
Is there any difference between the blue and black kits other than the colour of the shell?
Also, as I have receiver and TX is it worth getting the RTR kit version, as it seems great value, because it includes the motor as well??

[alex97]

I'd get this one as you get a clear shell with it so you can paint it any colour you want, best thing is that as its within the EU you won't have to pay import tax...

http://www.amazon.de/LC-Racing-EMB-1HK-Mini-Brushless-Buggy/dp/B00LFB3VUO

[stucartwright]

Alex
That is very tempting... However, turning up not built, in German as much as I am bi-lingual not in German, may not be worth the £20quid saving and a clear body...
I assume from my original question, the different colour kits are just the shell.

So my final question on which kit, I am now swaying towards the EMB-1 as Dan has really usefully informed me of all the necessary hop ups with the carisma, I find that frustrating... Would it be good to get the RTR kit as I need the motor etc and Esc, which seems then a decent deal even if I get a decent Esc off Hobbyking with a quality motor from TrackSideSpares...

So many options and so many questions!!

[stucartwright]

The question on Lipos...
Hobbyking do a great little 2150mah 7.4c 2s Lipo with a 25C rating for £5!! Yes, £5!! It is however, 15mm at 121mm, is anyone wise enough to tell me if this would fit??

Thanks again,
Over and out!

[superx]

A lot of racers use these :

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__20390__Turnigy_nano_tech_2200mah_2S_40_80C_Lipo_ Pack_TRA2820_Traxxas_compatible_1_16_models_.html

121mm lipo is to long for the chassis !!

If you already have a transmitter and receiver then i would personally go for the kit version. I`ve seen the RTRs front dog-bones causing problems with binding etc , so they will need replacing for CVDs quite soon ( £24 for the pair !! ) You won`t be disappointed either way. Very strong durable buggy. In more than 18 months of carpet racing i have spend very little on replacement parts :woot::woot:

I did replace the wing with a Carisma GTB wing because the LC wing is very fragile!!

[blue_pinky]

Just to add some more noise to the debate....

There is another forum for Micro stuff that's very handy!

http://microrcracer.com/

I can't comment on the EMB-1 having never run one, but the GTB is actually pretty good out of the box.

There are a couple of good and cheap hop ups that are good for the car if you fancy it...and the only place worth looking for GTB upgrades is Thumbs designs....they do a simple and cheap kit with the most useful hopups....

http://thumbsdesigns.com/product/gtb-essential-upgrades-pack/

Thumbs is Craig Harris, who's a Carisma team driver, and multiple micro national winner who's made all his tricks and tweaks available to the world. Go as far as you like with those obviously...but the most handy ones from memory where just the essential kit and maybe a weight kit.

Craig is very active on the micro forum himself, and always happy to help advise!

[stucartwright]

Blue Pinky
Thanks so much for your input, however, I feel this is similar to the GT12 - Superstox and Zen comparison. I have the Superstox and there is a million and one hop ups but the zen out the box races well with much less hop ups available. As much as I like the GTB, especially the fact it comes with a clear body and not a painted one with the kit, (unless you know where to purchase a kit with clear body in the UK and not Germany, I would be very interested) this ultimately is going to be my second car, behind my GT12.

I want this micro for more stick time at home etc but still the option to race and do the Nationals which sound great, especially the South Wales event if there is still space for one more!

So I think I will stick with the EMB-1, I just want an idea on what is the most common and best performing motor, if someone has this info. With GT2 there is pretty much one common motor that ticks all the boxes. Is there one that is winning for EMB's??? Anyone??

Maximum speed required... :)

[superx]

The LC 4500 kv motor is plenty. But if you want even more speed than the Leopard 5200Kv 28mm from Thumbs might fit the need for insane speed !!

http://thumbsdesigns.com/product/leopard-5200kv-4-pole-sensorless-motor/

[Callum]

Ive sent you a pm Stu:thumbsup:

[stucartwright]

That's the ticket... As my superstox is pretty nifty, want to make it as close to it as possible.
I've been looking at cheap and cheerful Hobbyking 35A Esc's...
Any recommendations on this one too?
Once I've nailed the ESC down I'll be placing my order Tuesday!!
Excited...
Already booked myself in for the 2015 meet at South Wales, 2 day event sounds fantastic.

[stucartwright]

Any thoughts on a Hobbyking 35A ESC chaps? Anyone had any experience? Or recommendations?

[Dombrasky]

imo stick with a Hobbywing esc they are well proven if you can spend a bit more its worth it,not a fan of the xcar range tbh
if you can stretch to the extreme stock you can then add boost or\and turbo with a 4500 kv motor and turnigy 2200 lipo you will have a lot of power to play with :)

[markwilliamson2001]

Well I'm slowly getting kit together after nearly 3 years off.
After looking at both the Carisma GTB and LC Racing EMB1 I decided to go for the EMB 1 RTR and Racing kit separately.

This would give me two cars, a EzRun 35A speedo, and LC racing motor and CVDs for the front end. I also have a shed load of spares and the plastic chassis which I'm using on the car for more flex.

The only other hop up I would recommend would be the Thumbs Crush tubes for the hubs... An excellent car otherwise. They have even updated the diffs to more conventional crown gears which should make the gear diff build a lot easier.

The Carisma is excellent value, but I would recommend the Thumbs layshaft, the metal motor mount.

The micro bunch are good lads and very helpful. I hope to do the micro x this year as well as my son will be 3 a few months after :-)

[bigbaza555]

Hi i decided to get a micro at the end of last year with a mate to race we both went down the EMB-1 kit ( not rtr) as they need nothing out the box we did not have a clue on motors lipos and speedos after atending a meeting local to me we talked to Craig Harris from Thumbs designs and armed with what we needed to know.
we got the leopard 5200 Kv motors
and both got the hobbywing ezrun 60amp speedos
these can be got from thumbs designs direct
lipos we got from hobby king i think £7.00 each

well what can i say i did the last 2 rounds of the nationals and what a hoot in this guise there super fast easy to drive and the cars are bulit proof my mate has since got a carisma aswell but needed to upgrade a few bit out the box but its still a great car.
only thing i will say on the EMB-1 is get a carbon fiber top deck as kit one is crap also space is a premium in these kits so some jiggiling is needed i cut one lug off the servo and mounted it with double sided tape and one servo mount it dont move and there are no issues also the standard servo you get with the kit is more than enough. so massive thumbs up for the EMB-1 :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup: hope this helps.

[stucartwright]

Bigbazza
This has been a huge help.
Hearing a story of a newbie getting into the hobby and giving an account of the EMB-1 experience over a Carisma is priceless, for me, personally. So thank you for adding your story.
You have confirmed my choice of the EMB and with the others on here....
My shopping list looks like;
LC EMB-1
Extreme ESC
Micro Receiver
5200Kv motor
Carbon fibre top deck
Lipo (Turnigy - Traxxas ones)
Phat Body - still decide on which.

If anyone else has any top tips or purchases that would enhance the car, please feel free to let me know.

See you at Micro X!! :)

[alex97]

SOS do somthing for the steering rack that is meant to reduced the amount of slop in the steering. Have a look for them on Facebook as their website is currently down.

[stucartwright]

One question that has occurred to me...
Do the Esc's run with boost and turbo, or is it blinky mode only, applicable at club and national level?
Thanks in advance.
Stu

[Danosborne6661]

You can run turbo, it's legal but no point as the cars are so fast anyway.

The only motor I would recommend is the kit LC one. The Leopard motors are WAY too quick and just make these little beasts undriveable. The top drivers at the nationals tend to run the kit motor too, it has the best feel about it as well where as the power band with the Leopards can be a little odd IMO.

I would also take the carbon top deck off your list. It makes the car way too stiff. It's stiff enough as it is and if anything you want more flex. Other than that, you want a set of tyres which is the Schumacher Rallyblocks in white compound (Or yellows if you want them to last longer at club).

P.S I've just listed the LC ESC which is the same as the Hobbywing 35a on ebay if you want it for £20!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/171802945509?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

[bigbaza555]

Hi Your welcome for the info as for turbo it wont work as the motor is sensorless and it wont do nothing yes you can add timing but really no need the extream stock i would avoid as its a tad bigger and as said space is tight.
yes the leopard is super fast but disagree that its undrivable the kit Lc motor i have not used but have seen them in action and there fast enough.
good luck and maybe i will see you at microx.:thumbsup:

[stucartwright]

Everyone seems to refer to the kit motor, but when I look at all the info on the kit, it says nothing about the EMB race kit coming with the LC Motor... When you refer to the kit motor, are you referring to the RTR kit instead of the race kit?

[Danosborne6661]

You're right there Stu,

The 'Kit' doesn't come with a motor, people are referring to the motor that comes with the RTR. But is also available through Schumacher seperately.

[stucartwright]

Thanks Dan as I thought...

[old jonesy]

You're right there Stu,

The 'Kit' doesn't come with a motor, people are referring to the motor that comes with the RTR. But is also available through Schumacher seperately.

Part no. LCL6048

[stucartwright]

Thanks Jonesy
Going to go with the Leopard 5200Kv

[stucartwright]

Well...
I went with the Carisma in the end. Haha.
Very pleased. What a car!!

[stucartwright]

Hey lads
With the motor leads to the esc, there seems nothing to say which lead connects to which lead, A,B,C?? Does it matter?? Before I connect up...

[Bigbainy]

It doesn't matter but if your motor is running the wrong way swap two wires

[stucartwright]

Fantastic - thanks

[stucartwright]

Hi Chaps
I have got .. my Carisma and I have to say its immense.. SO excited for MicroX!!
One question I have.. my drive shafts in the front seem to be bending, what has caused this? Is there a mod I have to get? My motor is the 5200Kv...
Jeeez she is rapid!

[Dombrasky]

Hi
if your on the std dogbones they are soft ...most people run cvd`s at least on the front

[stucartwright]

Thanks Dom
I ordered them up last night. Also got a new Spur... The one that came in their has got pretty mashed and the mesh was perfect so I thought? Is this common...?

One more question on tyres....

Getting a new blocks, do I glue the rims to the wheels? Haven't got new tyres as yet, as ive been running outside on concrete they are bald to say the least!!

Thanks in advance.

Stuart

[rondoolaa]

i glue my tyres in 4 spots on both sides so i can rip them off the rims again without too much tyre staying behind when i wish to put new tyres on the rims,

upgrades i'd recommend, others may have different views are:

upgraded layshaft which i would get in this kit:

http://thumbsdesigns.com/product/gtb-essential-upgrades-pack/

in that kit you will get 4 x 3mm anti roll bar set screws,
i would use these on the cvd's
replace the pins in the cvd's with the ones in the kit as the standard kit ones snap easily,
put the original grub screw back in the cvd and put a 3mm set screw in the other side of cvd so you have 2 screws pressing up against each other with the pin sandwiched in the middle,
lots i know have done this and never had problems with the cvd's since,

next get the drag link as the kit one seems to flex after a jump and make the steering sloppy out of jumps,

http://thumbsdesigns.com/product/carisma-gtb-aluminium-drag-link-version-2/

i would also run the RW racing spur gears, better mesh and machined so better circumfrance, not eggs like the kit ones, lol

[stucartwright]

Thank you so much...
I will apply all the changes you have suggested; I have the new CVD's and will get the other upgrade kit... I upgraded my spur and my what a difference it is too.. A lot smoother.
New tyres are on their way...
Thanks again for all the sharing of knowledge..
Best Wishes

Stuart

[stucartwright]

Absolutely hanging to do some 1/16th buggy racing..
Is Horsham in Sussex the only place near me (Surrey) that does micro buggies... This is insanley good fun!!!

Help!!! Tell me where you all race....!???

[Body Paint]

There's these guys http://www.wycomberacing.co.uk/Classes/MicroOffRoad/MicroOffRoad.aspx

but they might be a bit further from you than Horsham

I don't know any others in the South East, sorry.

[stucartwright]

Sadly I only got to race this great class once... GT12 has really sucked all my energy and because of this I am now selling my Carisma GTB.. You can check it out at on ebay

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/291523502736?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Sad to see it go but we can't do everything!!

Hope it goes to a good home...

Best Wishes
Stu