Help with first time 1/10 carpet racer

[Speedtester]

Hey everyone, I guess I need to jump into carpet racing this season and need a little help on my shopping list. I plan on running the stock class and decided on the AE rather then the Losi. Can you post any feedback on anything you would suggest swapping or any upgrades you could suggest. I'll be using my KO Mars radio and reciever. And it would be nice if any suggestions were from tower hobbies so I can combind shipping and use a $50 off coupon.

Thanks in advance.
Tony


LXGGJ2 Novak Orange Power GP3300VE NiMH Matched Gold 6C
2 54.99

LXWL81 Associated TC3 Factory Team Kit
1 279.99

LXJZ90 Trinity 6-7 Cell Battery Assembly Kit
2 6.99

LXUZ82 Hitec HS-5925MG Coreless High Speed 2BB Servo S/JR/Z
1 89.99

LXTX45 HPI Nissan Skyline R34 Body 190mm
1 20.99

LXFRA5 HPI Foam Tire w/Mesh Wheel White 26mm Front C 35 (2)
2 20.19

LXFRB1 HPI Foam Tire w/Mesh Wheel White 26mm Rear C 35 (2)
2 20.19

LXCUM1 Novak GT7 Electronic Speed Control
1 134.99

LXAVJ2 Trinity P2k2 Pro Stock Motor
1 28.99


Total $709.67

[dalejrfan8]

You can get some batteries from some other matchers for a lot less than the novak batteries. I can't think of some of the names but I know someone else does.

[uncle_jo3]

i would go to ebay and by the car to save some money
second i would go with some lrp speed contol to save money
amd last i would use a standard steering servo to cut cost down
=D

[tec_41]

Yea, i would deffinatley go with a standard servo also.

[Speedtester]

Thanks for the feedback so far guys, I have decided on another retailer for the batterys http://www.kinetixrc.com/

I really dont want to go through the hassle of ebaying a entire car again. I bought one earlier this year the said like new condition and had the pics to ensure me. When it arrived it was covered in red clay dust, had bald tires, wrecked body and bent shock towers, not to mention the water that I squeezed out of the tires. The way I look at it is the tower price is 279.99 but since I'm buying a bunch of stuff I save another $50 bucks. I dont know about the servo though, is a cheapy one good enough to had witht he rest of the pack or is it going to break and slow down my steering? I dont know how much speed is needed in carpet racing.

[RC10racer89]

You know the new novak GTX is out, and they have it at tower. Not that the GT7 is a bad ESC, its actually far from it. Its just that when your already spending 700+$ it may be worth the extra 50$ for the latest and greatest model.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHRG7&P=7
The LRP quantum competition2 is also a very good ESC. I just can't find it at tower.

[Speedtester]

Is that better then the AE LRP comp 2? I have that one in my shopping basket now.


You know the new novak GTX is out, and they have it at tower. Not that the GT7 is a bad ESC, its actually far from it. Its just that when your already spending 700+$ it may be worth the extra 50$ for the latest and greatest model.
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHRG7&P=7
The LRP quantum competition2 is also a very good ESC. I just can't find it at tower.

[AlexV2024]

no one other then novak factory drivers have run them yet so not many people would know. but being novak i wouldn't doubt thats its better. i would stick with novak becuase their service is amazing and so are their esc's. ill be switching to gt7s or gtx's soon from 7.1's. 7.1s are great and all but they arnt as good for mod as gt7s and aren't adjustable.

as far as bodys and tires go i would go to your local track and see what they are running, and get a set like them.

also get a monster stock rather then a p2k2, they are much faster and better for TC's

if you want a reliable servo dont get a hitec. some people get good ones but others are just horrible. my friend had 2 and his fist would slow down and his 2ed wouldnt always center and would also slow down. my own wouldn't center so i hit a wall and stripped it so i pitched it. i run a futaba 9252 thats a little faster then a standerd servo and its almost too much for me in TC's so a satandered servo is fine.

for batteries promatchracing.com and surgebatterymatching.com have great packs. you also will want good chargers. the novak millenuim is a great budget charger.

~Alex

[gizmoguy303]

For batteries, check out Surge, Kinetix, or Pro-Match. I would get the LRP Quantum Competition 2 and a Fantom-tuned Monster Stock. What charger are you planning on using? Discharger? Equalizing tray? You should get these items if you don't have them to keep your packs in peak condition.

Another thing - you may want to wait and get the new TC4. I wouldn't want to buy a new TC3 right now when the TC4 is coming soon. Just a thought. Good luck!

[Speedtester]

I only have a Intellipeak digital charge, not the best charger but hopefully it'll get me through a couple months. It has a 2amp/10a discharge rate.
I know the tc4 is on its way out but carpet starts the week after next and I need all the training I can get. The tc4 looks nice but the tc3 factory team has some goodies the the tc4 doesnt. So now I narrow it down the the following items.

Novak GTXOr LRP Comp 2
Mazda 6 Body or Dodge Stratus
Batteries are most likely going to be Kinetix unless someone tells me otherwise.

[Hachi_Roku]

As far as servos go, I would recommend that you spend a little more and get a higher quality servo. In carpet racing, a fast and responsive servo is a must if you want to be competitive with the faster poeple. Torque is not that important but its still good to have a fair amount of it. KO and Futaba both make great servos. I would also recommend that you get the mazda 6 body as it is stable and gives good amount of turning.

[Speedtester]

Ok I updated my list, lmk what you think. I'll be ordering the Kinetix 3400 mah battery in a few days and hopefully my Intellipeak Digital Pulse charger will be fine for a bit.

LXFBD4 Associated Quantum Competition 2
1 159.99

LXGCZ5 Protoform Mazda 6 190mm
1 20.19

LXWL81 Associated TC3 Factory Team Kit
1 279.99

LXRP33 Trinity Blue Foam Front Bumper Associated TC-3
1 4.79

LXFRA5 HPI Foam Tire w/Mesh Wheel White 26mm Front C 35 (2)
2 20.19

LXFRB1 HPI Foam Tire w/Mesh Wheel White 26mm Rear C 35 (2)
2 20.19

LXDDA1 Trinity Monster Horsepower Stock Pro Motor
1 28.99

XJZ90 Trinity 6-7 Cell Battery Assembly Kit
3 6.99

LXH295 Futaba S3401 Servo High-Speed Car
1 34.99

LX3092 Associated Racing Pinion Gear 48P 21T
1 5.79

LX3090 Associated Racing Pinion Gear 48P 18T
1 5.79

LXPA04 Associated 72T Spur Gear Standard Kit
1 3.89

LXPA05 Associated 75T Spur Gear
1 3.89

LX3306 Associated Silicone Shock Oil 40 Weight
1 3.39

[AlexV2024]

look for the robinson racing pinon gear 6 pack of odd or even pinions on tower, for $2 more you get 4 more pinions which you need if your racing.

again i dont know if those wheels will work at your track, i would go there and see what the fast guys are running. For example at my local track every one runs purple and plaids for foams, if you get a softer tire its just excessive wear and too hard you dont have egough traction.

the mazda 6 is a much better body, it wont let your rear end spin out ( a big problem for both of my cars despite much tuning) and still has good steering.

I would go for the GT7 my self. its tuneable (you dont have to if you dont need to) for stock and mod, and the latest runs of them dont have any problems. also their warrenty is great.

and for the batteries promatch and surge batteries have much more punch then the kinetix and are only a little more expensive. plus i know the promatch packs will last for a long time becuase my frist pack from them lasted for 2 years w/o much loss in power. pmr or surge have much better power.

any piece of equpiment listed though would be great im just helping you to get the best performance for your money

~Alex

[gizmoguy303]

Looks good to me! Make sure to get a Deans Jig to assembly your battery packs. I use Deans Probar 3.0's but I'm sure the Trinity bars will work just fine.

[RC10racer89]

Sounds like a great list to me! I would say that the QC2 is a better ESC, and its smaller, so it should be good for the TC3. I just reccommended the GTX, because in your original list you seemed to have this thing about novak. Good choice on the LRP :D Also the TC4 is available for pre order on the tower website if you care. Personally I wouldn't go ahead and get it at this point. It dosen't seem all that different. The car you setting up to build should still be very competitive, the TC3 is still a big competitor, the TC4 just tweaked some things.

[Speedtester]

Thanks for all the help and support guys, I am going with the LRP rather then the Novak, not that I have anything against novak I just like the LRP warrantee and looks a bit better. I'll be sure and get the battery jig and might get a 30 pack of the deans bars also, it'll save even more money. I'm going to wait on the tires/wheels till I get to the track, they just better have them in stock or I'm going to be pissed (they should since the track is right there) I was debating on waiting for the TC4 but there is no official release and no one really knows if its any better then the TC3. Besides that it gives me the option of buying it next year.

Thanks again for all your help

Last thing, where is there best place to buy Promatch and Surge batterys?

[AlexV2024]

http://www.promatchracing.com/ http://surgebatterymatching.com/ are the best places.

LRP's warrenty looks better but if you ever need to get something seriviced its like pulling teeth, but unless you get it wet, or some accident it probably wont burn up. I have had 2 7.1s and they have been great and the Q2 looks awsome, id like to try it.

~Alex

[rcguy2477]

I wouldnt get a tc3 at this time since in one month it will be outdated. I recomend something like the xray t1r, or if you have the money, a xray factory. If you want to stay with associated, I would personally wait for the tc4 if you are investing this much money.

For a tc3, a 18 and 21 tooth pinion is way to small. you want pinions in the higher 20's, I used to run a 28t pinion on a smaller size track.

The servo should be fast, .10 or less is ideal.

For the tires, dont get the hpi 35's. They are way too soft for carpet. If you are getting the batteries from kinetix, pick up some monotuning tires. For 11$ a pair, you can get 2 more pair for what you are currently paying for the hpi's. I would run 40 shore's on a tc3. The tires are also available on www.downeyhobby.com(the buttons should be up shortly, but you can just email them to order)

For the spur gear, the one with the kit is fine, you wont need an extra one unless you accidentally stripped it.

For the esc, the lrp is good, but dont go by the warentee. Its a "limited" lifetime warentee. Novaks warentee is just as good. I have not had to pay anything for repair even when the warentee was up.

The kinetix batteries are good, and by far the cheapest i have seen.

[gizmoguy303]

Make sure to get some paint for your body too. ;)

[Cain]

I am going to differ on what others say about the hitec high end line of ESCs. I have had no problems with my 925MG and I have run it for over three years now in touring, truck, an 4wd buggy. It has some of the fastest transit times out there, .08 sec at 6V and you get high torque too. The lower end stuff however can go bad, seen it, seen it also with airtronics and futaba.

As for what kit to get, AE is coming out with its new sedan which will correct issues that the older model had. Personally having raced a TC3 after being dissapointed with my XXX-S if you really still decide to go with a TC3, I would look into the BMI TC3 chassis conversion. This gives you a better motor mounting system ( no cam ) , moves the batteries in closer to the center as well as the motor, and is significantly stiffer than the stock chassis and won't warp due to heat. It also isn't that expensive ( about $100 or so ) and can be had in colors . Right now though, I have been most imprssed with the X-Ray. highly durable, and super high quality.

I would also contact AE to make sure that you get the newer style diff cases as AE said they were redesigned, hopefully to stop pinching the bearings. If you can't be sure that your FTTC3 has these, pickup Warpspeed Diff cases. I think they are about $30 bucks but they don't strip and don't pinch the bearings.

As for your motor selection, this was shown to be the most powerful current stock motor on the market based on Big Jims tests. The Monster is very RPMish and the P2k2 is more on the torque side. You may however want to get a motor that is pretuned for you. Even a pro model direct from Trinity really isn't that good. Team Paradigm or Putnam do good jubs on tuning up motors. If you are interested, I have a brand new in the case P2k2 Team Paradigm motor ( they go for $40 ) that I have never used as I race mod now for $35 shipped in the USA. You get a much better motor then for only a few bucks more.

For Speed controls, I would probably pickup the QC2 for my ESC as seeing it around the track I have been pretty impressed by it.

For batteries, Promatch or Fukuyama have great packs. I like Promatch the best as they have a great warranty on the packs, 30 days no questions asked, 6 months no dead cells ( check and make sure but that is what it was when I purchased packs ). Promatch can also assemble the packs for you.

As for tires, There are cheaper places to buy tires from. personally even with towers coupons, I can still find places that sell what I want for much less. Don't be afraid to shop around.

Good luck and have fun racing!

[cr250]

Another good battery source is SPC (http://www.specpointbatteries.com)

[HauntedMyst]

I buy tires from this guy and have never had a problem. $11 a pair shipped

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=34063&item=5918675631&rd=1

[Speedtester]

Thanks for the links guys, I appreciate the help.

I hope I dont regret ordering the FT TC3. I just dont think the Xray has the wide parts support around here in case I break something. I couldnt see ordering the TC4 right as it came out because half the time there are defects/improvements that happen the first few months of the production of a new model. I found this the hard way with my LST. Perhaps next spring the TC4 Team will be out with any possible bug worked out.

Someone please insure me that the FTTC3 I ordered is still a higher grade RC that is still competitive. I would hate to buy a new chassis and not really notice any difference (Remember I'm a Touring Noob) I wanted to buy a higher end servo right off the bat but others told me it was unnessesary is this going to hurt my control with the futaba 48oz/.15@6v servo? I mean its going to have enough power to turn the wheels and hold position right?

Thanks again for all your feedback, there is so much more to learn in this hobby.

[highroller]

Here are a list of some battery & companies to try SMC Racing (sold throught Tower and Stormer Hobbies) for touring car stay with the 30amp matched, Integy avail direct or through Stormer, Pro Match (direct, Stormer carries them but are out of stock) also sell batteries in bulk quanities of 12 and 24 (89.99), Fantom Racing (avail through Stormer), Cheap Batteries avail on ebay and direct, TQ batteries, B&T racing and someof the others guys have mentioned. The bulk cells are the inexpensive way of getting some practice packs and you may get one or two decent to good packs from the bulk cell route, while the cells aren't the best numbers wise for modified they are fine for stock or 19turn racing of the 2 boxes I got mostly were 1.15 voltage with a few 1.16-1.17 with the higher voltage cells low in the 390 to 403 range.

Also another charger to check on are the Integy line products are carried by Stormer Hobbies, RNL Hobbies and available direct. Most racers use the 16x5v6, 16.7v6 or 16x9v6 charger either the DC or AC/DC each has a 20amp discharge, and adj voltage detect setting with max charging at 7amps.