Nitro VS. Electric
Ive heard so many peeps in hobby stores that are beginning this
awesome hobby come in and go right for the biggest, meanest
nitro RC when they know very little what they are getting into so...
before you take the plunge and spend numerous ammounts of
money on one of these, take these pointers into effect:
Nitro RC's
Pros
No charging a battery pack vs. an electric model.
Very fast
Majority of hobby shops carry parts for these.
Cons
Very loud and cannot be operated within city limits (noise restrictions).
Very high maintenance required.
Very costly to run/maintain.
Fuels & oils that are flammable, poisonous, etc...
Not only are these more expensive then electric models but
consider that they take massive ammounts of maintenance,
know-how and patience. Tuning one of these takes you into
a whole new world that could through you over the edge just
to sell it off because you could not figure it out. Do your homework
and join the forums on a few websites and start reading what
alot have to say about them, check out the tutorials and ask
questions that you may have.
Fuels, glow plugs, etc...
Another thing to keep in mind with a nitro model is other
costs that exceed that of the electric models...
Fuel - 4L jug = 40.00 1L jug = 15.00
Glowplug = 5.00 (These can be destroyed in just one tug of the pullstarter on any nitro powered model if it is far out of tune, you could go through a few of these in just a matter of moments).
Glow ignitor - These are needed for every nitro RC without an
electric starter. Now to start this off the cost of one is 30.00 and
up depending on how fancy you want it (the higher the price or
fancier you go means nothing but pure bling factor or just because
the ignitor came alloy, has a voltage meter, etc....
Anyhow, this also means the ignitor needs servicing from time
to time as they tend to get dirty from use and they also require
a Sub-C battery which costs in the field of 12.00+ depending
on how good a battery you want. I reccomend buying the biggest
mAh reading it has, this will let you start your RC longer for the
day. If you have a battery for your ignitor with a low mAh reading
you probably will be charging in no time at all as the ignitor is
battery-happy per-say!
Batteries
"AA" (usually eight) - Radio
6v hump-pack/flat pack - Reciever (unless you have a x4 batt-pack
that came with your RC model)
Parts - Breaking parts in your journey down the asphalt and/or
dirt track at speeds of 40mph+ will tend to shatter plastic parts
and bend metals/alloys, so also keep this in mind when purchasing
your model RC. Breaking parts goes for both electric & nitro RC,
so this is just another add-on of cash to spend versus the electric.
Oils/lubricants - Not only will any RC take an oil such as silicone
for the shocks, but in the world of nitro you will need more
to keep your RC maintained properly. These oils are:
- After-run oil
- WD40
- Grease (auto all-purpose)
- Automotive carb cleaner (to clean your RC's brake parts, etc...)
- Differential oil
these are required to keep you on top an running and are some
of the examples of more things needed for nitro RC.
Air filters - These take keeping clean to allow for your engine to
breath while running but i
highly recommend that you take
the greatest care in this part of the vehicle. I also think you should
consider throwing out your stock one as soon as you can and
purchasing a stage III airfilter which means:
Stage III motorsaver (airfilter)
x1 foam element (pre-oiled by you) to trap fine particles & dust.
x1 foam element (Dry) on the outter side to trap bigger particles.
The cage also has a mesh screen to keep more debris from entering
the carburetor/engine. These cost 15.00 or so but is the biggest
and most important part youll ever buy for your RC. Considering
a new engine replacement will cost you from 200.00++
Tuning a nitro
Aside from maintenance youll need to try and figure out how
to keep it running. Its not as easy as just pulling the cord and
going in this case. Tuning a nitro engine is very complicated
if you know nothing of it, youll need to know a few things to
get started:
Altitude - This makes a difference in air/fuel mixture and could
make your vehicle run pretty rough or not at all pending.
Glow plug - This is the key to a good running engine, the
element found inside the plug is a very tiny coil and needs
to be in good order to run properly.
Fuel mixture - Youll need to know which needle to turn and
which way to turn it (clockwise/counter-clockwise ,and whether
or not your riching or leaning the mixture). This also plays in
altitude, weather conditions such as moisture, etc...
Electric models
Pros
Very low maintenance required.
Not loud vs. nitro models.
Very fast
No tuning hassles vs. nitro models.
Can be run indoors.
Cons
Charging batteries which take a long time.
Chargers are expensive.
Conditioning batteries required.
Very little maintenance is required on these models, simply
knowing how to charge the batteries for it and keeping it
clean (maintained) will basically be all you need to stay
running in this hobby.
Batteries
"AA" (usually eight) for the radio
7.2v - This is the main battery that runs the vehicle and comes
in a flat-pack/stick configuration. For this battery i highly reccomend
you spend the money on one with a high mAh reading and invest
in a good quick-charger. Batteries with real high mAh readings
will mean longer charge times. For example:
3200mAh battery
Charge time = Approximetly 40 minutes of charge time @ 5A
This mAh reading (3200mAh) is a decent battery to allow for you
to run the vehicle for approx 5-8 minutes depending on your
motor set-up. If you run a faster (hotter) motor the run time
will break-down as it requires alot more energy to power it.
Makes & models
Everybody has a preference when it comes to radio control
vehicles!!
Touring cars (2WD/AWD)
Ex: HPI Sprint, AE TC4, TRX 4TEC
These are the most common found RC and best suited for high speeds on asphalt. Also great for begginers starting out in this hobby.
Pan car
Not recommended for beginners.
These low-profile racers have a power-to-weight ratio which will launch
you into high speeds quickly but also be very touchy to control. Generally
these are found for carpet racing with foam tires.
Drag racing
These "hotrod" style dragsters blasting down a straight stretch at
speeds of 100mph can be found at hobby stores or built custom but
keep in mind that not many different models can be purchased and
finding an event could be a problem as not many sponsor it. Check
your region before buying one as you may find yourself racing nobody
but yourself.
Monster trucks (4WD Electric & Nitro)
Ex: HPI Savage, TRX E/Tmaxx, TRX Revo
Best suited for rougher off-road terrain with larger jumps seeing as these beasts pack a punch. With tires that reach 6.5" tall and 4-wheel drive, oil-filled differentials, and usually 8 oil-filled shocks...they can tackle some of the worst terrain you can throw at it. Monster trucks can take a good beating most of the time compared to most other makes.
Buggies (2WD/Electric & 4WD/Nitro)
off-road racing for mild-moderate jumps.
Buggies react very well in all off-road conditions with the lower profile chassis they can hit fast speeds on dirt but yet still handle almost on rails.
For both begginer & advanced in mind!
Dirt ovals (Electric/nitro)
Driving the dirt, Drift style! This takes great skill and is not
recommended for first time RC beginners. Also note that these may
not be what your looking for as events are rare to find and not everyone
runs a dirt-oval RC.
Stadium trucks (2WD/Electric & Nitro)
Ex: TRX rustler, AE GT2
Best suited for off-road & the beginner in mind. ST's can take a good
number of beatings but is not reccomended for rougher terrain where
huge jumps or ruts are. Chances are youll get stuck and/or break
your model. Generally these are found in 2WD drivetrains!
Helicopters
Experience is a must!
Motorcycles
Suited best on asphalt roads for high speeds. Check your area to see
if anyone is running these before purchasing as events are scarce.
Boats
Usually these are purchased for liesure purposes but some events
are found where racers meet.
Planes
Experience is a must!
Snowmobiles
Not many choices are found for this style of RC but they are a
blast in the snow and some parts will fit from your typical model
such as shocks, electonics, etc...
Micro RC
Ex: Xmods, Mini-Z, Mini-T, M-LST
These miniature RC's are growing in popularity now that aftermarket
vendors are making parts from alloy, titanium, etc...
These little rockets can reach speeds of 100kmh now with the
proper know-how/parts.
RTR (Ready-to-run) models
This means just about everything is included in the kit
with some assembly required, the kit will come something like
this:
- Model (sometimes assembly required pending)
- Wheels & tires incl.
- Electric and/or nitro motor incl. (Aifilter incl. w/nitro)
- Radio, reciever, E.S.C and.or manual-speed-controller
- 7.4v flat pack/stick battery (usually a lower mAh)
- Polycarbonate lexan body (unpainted/painted) w/decals
* Steering servo (electric models)
* Steering servo/Throttle & brake servo (nitro models)
- Fuel tubing (nitro)
- Glowplug, starter (usually pullstart -nitro)
- Battery pack for reciever (no "AA" batteries incl.)
Basically all you will need to buy after a RTR kit is:
- "AA" batteries for your radio and reciever pack.
- Fuel for nitro models.
Pros
Out of the box and onto the race-track in minutes
Cons
You dont get to build the model meaning you arent learning
how to later on fix your model RC.
In some cases the manufacturer installed something incorrectly
meaning premature failure.
Kit form models
Whenever you decide to purchase a Kit-form model this means
nothing is included and full assembly is required. In some kits
they do supply wheels & tires but for the most part you wont see
any electronics and/or motor/engine.
These models are for the more advanced in mind and usually
mean that the individual will have thier own electronics, motor, etc
in mind or already have stuff kicking around for use on this kit.
Another note to take for a kit-form model is that usually these
come slightly "hopped-up" from the manufacturer.
Ex: alloy bulkheads, dogbones, alloy driveshaft, 4-spyder diffs, etc...
Pros
You get to build the model right from scratch meaning you get
the most out of it later on when something fails.
You can hop it up in the build-up as you assemble the model.
Cons
Hours of downtime due to assembly.
Kits do not come complete.
Mechanically challenging & patience and time required.
01-21-2008, 12:28 AM
Choosing Your First R/C! - by Torredo
Linear Mode
