Radio control nuts

How's the reliability/durability been on the 5th scale clones? Any problems finding hpi parts that won't fit?

I got one of the very early ones, and so far I am very happy with it.

I got mine about 4 or so years ago, with the 23cc engine. So far I have only busted stuff you would figure you would bust...A-arms, spurr gears....that kind of thing. Mine is a King Motors, a direct 5B knock off.

On mine I will say that the plastic seems a little more bendy, soft...whatever. Every 5B part has fit like it was made for it. The wheels themself is also a little soft and I did bust the original wheels but no biggie. Tires also seemed to last longer and are harder, but offer less grip.

On the engine I acutally bought a HPI 23cc engine thinking that this chinese thing would not last....I don't know how many gallons...thats gallons not tanks I have put in the thing and it still is smoking fast.

All in all I am VERY happy with the clone, IIRC I paid about $400 for it back then.

Sorry it took so long to get back....I was thinking I posted this all from my phone, but my phone sucks.

Figured I would post up a pic of the car right when I got it

I bet the dog can't wait.

He tried to run the thing down....and he could run down the 1/8 scale....He could push it in one direction....dog never herded sheep but you could tell it was in his blood....it was fun to see him work the car.

Now he is too old and would run himself to death.....I have to take the car someplace where he can't see...or hear it run....he also can't see it leave the house.

Kinda sad he loved it so much....I keep telling him that getting old sucks....but he is my old gray man now.

Thanks for the update....very cool that you found such a good bargain to get into 5th scale. Are they still making the direct clones?

Yes I think they are, but they all have alloy parts, bigger engines and that drove up the costs. I did buy one for a buddy of mine as a thank-you for putting AC, heat and electric in my shop, and he is tickled pink with it. It is one of the basic cars. They are out there but you have to look. Most of the stuff you will find is all alloy and 26cc or larger engines.

Both cars I bought new, one from a guy on RCUniverse the other off of evilpay.

I have an HPI 5sc and have had it for a year. Several of my buddies had HPI and several have clones. The clone plastic seems to be more brittle and breaks more then the genuine hpi stuff. Not bashing the clone, just stating our experience.
As far as the 5th scale ownership as a whole, it is damn expensive and time consuming. If you are getting on the gas, you are going to break stuff when things go wrong. These are heavy, huge trucks and they haul butt.
Engine mods make them even faster. I have had mine a little over a year and am on my 3rd set of rear tires. Tires are expensive! I am in the process of installing a new clutch, ESP championship ported 29cc top end, and new carb. This is my 2nd top end in less then a year. My 30.5cc top end got some dirt in it and toasted it. Dirt entered because of a blown head gasket. Stock head gaskets blow out when you do a large cc top end kit. Lesson learned. Use copper gaskets. Racing these things is a blast. Fun all the way.
If you get one, just expect to spend money on it. Things break and parts are not cheap.
Here is a list of common items on the trucks and buggies that break first. Front a arms, rear arms, and shock shafts. There are tons of aftermarket parts that are a lot more durable then stock. I stay clear of all the alloy stuff. I like the plastic parts because they flex and snap in bad crashes. Alloy sends the impact force to more expensive parts. I have also snapped the whole chassis in half when doing a nose dive off a large jump.
These 2 strokes rev to the moon. 15,000 rpm can be reached. These are not just a chainsaw motor,

They are a kick in the pants, but be prepared to spend money on them if you run them fast.

A few things I want to respond to this.

They do not have to be expensive, if you are happy with stock and fix just the weak points in the cars you will have fun, and not spend more money then you would on any other off road (real) rc car.

23cc's is fast enough, I have found that most that start crying about how expensive stuff is are those that want to stick a 350 chevy in these little cars then gripe about this busting, that busting. Leave the thing basically stock and you will be fine. Better yet upgrade things that are marketed to those that put the huge engines on their buggies and with your stock engine you will be fine.

IMHO they are fast enough right out of the box, I know that is not the route some choose to go with the hobby, and that is what makes it great, you can do whatever you want to do....but I will say I have had my car for around 4 years or so and the ONLY thing I have bought for it has been A-Arms, spurr gears, wheels , tires and shock rebuild stuff.....thats it.

I don't race it but do run it pretty darn hard and it has had some bad crashes, but they are not the wallet empty experence that they turn into after you start screwing in monster horse power.

Just my two bits.

Ok I did a quick little test flight tonight just before dark...first thing....this little sucker is LOUD. Had a little trouble with the launch...could not get the speed up to where it would start to fly...it would dance here and there then nose into the ground. On the second to last mishap it spanked the ground pretty hard with the nose and split the nose right along the mold line....from what I could tell there was no glue in there....or at least very little....but the plane itself was no worse for the impact...it did not even wrinkle the foam....that should tell you how light the impact was. I tuned down the imputs and just gave it a good firm toss at full throttle...It got up on step and off it want....like a fricken rocket. It was almost dark and the dark blue became a little dot pretty darn quick....I got it trimmed and made a few low passes at about 1/2 throttle...it seemed to like it there and looked very scale. On the next pass I was going to land but over shot so went around....it glides better then I thought it would...those little wings do have a bit of lift. Came in on about 1/4 throttle and made a perfect landing....mine is a bellly lander it did not come with any gear. I had a HUGE grin on my face...this thing is COOL...oh and did I say LOUD.

I am looking to pick up the T33 and from what I read it is even better in the air. For $60 you can't go wrong with this little plane...dang it was fun....oh and LOUD

Some of you guys must really run your stuff hard. My 4x4 slash is mostly stock except for wheels, tires, and suspension improvements, and it just keeps going after more than 2 years. It takes an 1/8 scale buggy to out run it in parking lot races, and with the stock tires it is the most fun vehicle I have ever driven for just assing around. And with a decent driver(not me) it has won more than its fair share of races. I cannot imagine needing it to go faster.

Taking me quite a while to get the MERV rebuilt... maybe I should've started with a lesser project. . It's mostly just not getting things together in the right order, then having to back up a step to be able to move forward.

One major concern I have is that I can't get any reaction from the motor. I hooked up all the radio equipment, and the new steering servo's work great... but I get nothing from the motor at all. Double-checked the connections and everything seems okay. Any other reason that a hard hit could kill the motor, but not the ESC or receiver?

Guess not? I ended up just ordering one of these - http://www.hobbypartz.com/96m31-car-2848-3900.html

Looks like it'll do the trick nicely.

My latest build getting ready for Nationals in September @ Lucia Falls, Wa

Body is just in white prime right now to get an idea of what I have left to sand/fill out, interior is next on the list. We have a local club meet this weekend and I am hoping to get it on the trail to get a feel and see what nees to still be tuned.





This truck was a bit of a club sl#t going back and forth between a few people before I cut and modded it to its current form.

When you went over things, did you disassemble the motor? There is a possibility a hard hit knocked a wire loose in teh motor. Had it happen to a plane motor when ti nosed in. Is the battery charged? The low voltage cutoff will allow servo operation, but not motor operation. The only other oprion is ESC failure and I have had them turn on and power the radio system yet not run the motor.

Flew these two this evening, the red one was just tossed together this afternoon.

I have not yet disassembled the motor. Unfortuately, when trying to remove the pinion gear set screw, I stripped the allen head out... so now it looks like I'm either going to have to cut the whole thing apart, or just buy a new mounting plate for the new motor.

Good thought on the batteries, though - I honestly hadn't checked them since I wrecked it. However, both of the 2s packs had a pretty good charge, at around 8v each.

I'll find out if I screwed the ESC's pooch when I get the new motor. Having to eat the cost of a new pinion is no big deal if I can't get the old one off the motor... I already have one in my box-o-parts. The mounting plate, however, will piss me off with yet another week's wait to get this back on the road.

Serves me right for driving like a hoon.

Dremel the heads off the offending Allen heads or can you get a grip on them with a good pair of vice grips? Just a couple of options there. Hate to see you loose a motor plate.

Or are you talking about the grub screw that holds the pinion on?

4x4 on the left, 2wd on the right

Still loving them!

That's the one... Stripped it right out. Must really be stuck in there, or maybe they used some strong Loktite. Once I get the new motor and verify that everything else is working, I'll probably just cut the motor shaft so I can remove the plate.