Another Reason to dislike Traxxas

[2015GTRBE]

The reason Traxxas does this

Let’s start here... and if you’re going to read this, do it thoroughly.

The reason 98% of you are in this Hobby today is due to Traxxas. The reason why Arrma is moving full speed is because of... Traxxas. Do any of you know why Traxxas is what it is, or do you just go by what people say? I’m a corporate CFO currently who understands business models but this goes beyond just a business model.

1. Traxxas did not invent RTR.... they did invent the idea that they would sell you their brand radio, batteries, ESC, and everything you need in one package, but TOWER HOBBIES invented “RTR” by offering customers packages back in the late 1980s.

2. Traxxas pumps more money and more new blood into the hobby than any other brand PERIOD.

3. Traxxas not only brings in more new blood than any other brand, it introduces more to OTHER brands than any other brand PERIOD.

4. Traxxas from day 1 had bigger aspirations than any other brand PERIOD.

I won’t give you guys a history lesson, but Traxxas is the name you hate because it once was the name you loved. Maybe not for me, I got into the hobby when Losi and Associated were -THE- brand to have (RC10, Jr2) and Tamiya and Kyosho were also huge at the time with Tamiya being a giant. Traxxas entered the scene with a bang because Mike Jenkins was able to see how this hobby was very difficult to enter given how foreign most of this stuff was to any beginner. How do you solder matched cells? What radio and servo? How do you paint a body shell? Imagine being a kid in the 1990s and how absolutely intimidating this hobby looked. You are used to things being so easy now, and you can thank Traxxas for that.

So fast forward all of these years and you had your Traxxas slash that you first saw because Traxxas... not Losi, not AE, not Tamiya, Arrma, or Kyosho pumped MILLIONS of dollars into advertising, magazines, 1:1 scale off road racing, and NASCAR. If not you, your friend, cousin, or however it began was most likely due to some part of Traxxas’ mass spending on advertising. If Traxxas never existed this hobby would have died 10 years ago. Don’t think for one minute that isn’t the truth.

Do you owe Traxxas? Well, they may think so... but, no you don’t. Did your entrance into the hobby through anything Traxxas related eventually get you to purchase a Losi, AE, or Arrma? Yep, it did unless your old school like me. So why hate the company that eventually got you to this point? Arrma, or any other company DOES NOT EXIST without Traxxas.

So why is Traxxas the evil empire these days? Honestly?, they are sick of carrying this hobby on their back. Why do they need to be responsible for you buying another brand? Why do they need to pay 3 million to NASCAR to get fresh eyes on the hobby just for that person to go online and see this “Arrma” car that looks like it may be better? Let’s call a spade a spade here and put the OTHER companies on blast for not pumping enough money into the NON RC WORLD to bring in the new blood and new faces.

Am I a Traxxas fan boy? Nope, I’m before their time, but I do own an X Maxx because I think that is a good product for what it is and I don’t care who made it. I do have a lot of respect for Traxxas because they have kept this hobby that I enjoy so much alive, and anyone who disputes that is unfortunately extremely un-informed and blatantly hating on something they have no brains to be speaking on.

I hope Arrma takes the mantle from them one day and does the same greater good of pulling in fresh faces into the hobby. If they never do that, as much as I respect Jason Dearden, I will never see them as beneficial as Traxxas. Hate it, love it, makes no difference... these are the FACTS.

 

[Slicktmi]

The reason Traxxas does this

Let’s start here... and if you’re going to read this, do it thoroughly.

The reason 98% of you are in this Hobby today is due to Traxxas. The reason why Arrma is moving full speed is because of... Traxxas. Do any of you know why Traxxas is what it is, or do you just go by what people say? I’m a corporate CFO currently who understands business models but this goes beyond just a business model.

1. Traxxas did not invent RTR.... they did invent the idea that they would sell you their brand radio, batteries, ESC, and everything you need in one package, but TOWER HOBBIES invented “RTR” by offering customers packages back in the late 1980s.

2. Traxxas pumps more money and more new blood into the hobby than any other brand PERIOD.

3. Traxxas not only brings in more new blood than any other brand, it introduces more to OTHER brands than any other brand PERIOD.

4. Traxxas from day 1 had bigger aspirations than any other brand PERIOD.

I won’t give you guys a history lesson, but Traxxas is the name you hate because it once was the name you loved. Maybe not for me, I got into the hobby when Losi and Associated were -THE- brand to have (RC10, Jr2) and Tamiya and Kyosho were also huge at the time with Tamiya being a giant. Traxxas entered the scene with a bang because Mike Jenkins was able to see how this hobby was very difficult to enter given how foreign most of this stuff was to any beginner. How do you solder matched cells? What radio and servo? How do you paint a body shell? Imagine being a kid in the 1990s and how absolutely intimidating this hobby looked. You are used to things being so easy now, and you can thank Traxxas for that.

So fast forward all of these years and you had your Traxxas slash that you first saw because Traxxas... not Losi, not AE, not Tamiya, Arrma, or Kyosho pumped MILLIONS of dollars into advertising, magazines, 1:1 scale off road racing, and NASCAR. If not you, your friend, cousin, or however it began was most likely due to some part of Traxxas’ mass spending on advertising. If Traxxas never existed this hobby would have died 10 years ago. Don’t think for one minute that isn’t the truth.

Do you owe Traxxas? Well, they may think so... but, no you don’t. Did your entrance into the hobby through anything Traxxas related eventually get you to purchase a Losi, AE, or Arrma? Yep, it did unless your old school like me. So why hate the company that eventually got you to this point? Arrma, or any other company DOES NOT EXIST without Traxxas.

So why is Traxxas the evil empire these days? Honestly?, they are sick of carrying this hobby on their back. Why do they need to be responsible for you buying another brand? Why do they need to pay 3 million to NASCAR to get fresh eyes on the hobby just for that person to go online and see this “Arrma” car that looks like it may be better? Let’s call a spade a spade here and put the OTHER companies on blast for not pumping enough money into the NON RC WORLD to bring in the new blood and new faces.

Am I a Traxxas fan boy? Nope, I’m before their time, but I do own an X Maxx because I think that is a good product for what it is and I don’t care who made it. I do have a lot of respect for Traxxas because they have kept this hobby that I enjoy so much alive, and anyone who disputes that is unfortunately extremely un-informed and blatantly hating on something they have no brains to be speaking on.

I hope Arrma takes the mantle from them one day and does the same greater good of pulling in fresh faces into the hobby. If they never do that, as much as I respect Jason Dearden, I will never see them as beneficial as Traxxas. Hate it, love it, makes no difference... these are the FACTS.

I agree but i think back in the day traxxas used to be cool seems these days they just want to cut everyone one off i don't think they're as humble as they used to be but that's just my opinion. Nothing to contradict what you said.

 

[2015GTRBE]

I agree but i think back in the day traxxas used to be cool seems these days they just want to cut everyone one off i don't think they're as humble as they used to be but that's just my opinion. Nothing to contradict what you said.

No I agree, humility is not something Traxxas possesses. My post sounds a little angry, it’s really not, I just want to remind all of us that Traxxas has actually done a lot of good and they are just sick of pumping all of this money into the hobby and having their market share swiped by other brands..... but... one can then argue that Traxxas needs to step up their game- and they do need to. I am sympathetic though, I know what it’s like to run a company and in this small hobby it must be frustrating to be the only company trying to grab customers from outside of the hobby.

Just imagine if this hobby was only the Japanese companies and the American racing brands... we would be f——ked right about now. That stuff doesn’t grow the hobby, it actually makes it more “elitist” and smaller.

 

[Mongoose]

Man, @2015GTRBE I think everything that there is to say about the whole Traxxas ordeal was said in your last 2 posts. Right on.

 

[ScaleJunkie]

I have to disagree, yea, Traxxas has pumped a lot of money into advertising, and they have brought lots of new people to the hobby. BUT, I do NOT think that the hobby would be dead without them. My first hobby grade vehicle was an HPI Savage 2.5, I had never even heard of Traxxas back in the early 90s. I had however heard of Kyosho, Tamiya, etc. You can't honestly say that Traxxas has done more than anyone else to bring people to the hobby, that's your opinion, and it may LOOK that way because of their huge advertising presence. Fact is, if someone gets a cheap r/c as a kid and wants to go to the next level when they get a little older, they will go to the local hobby shop like I did and get 1 (back then, now kids have Youtube and online stores). Traxxas as a company has become bullies, realizing they are not the big dogs they so foolishly believed they once were. People are finally realizing how overpriced and poorly made they are, and are going to other brands. Traxxas sees people going away and is lashing out at those companies, did you read over the lawsuit? I did, Traxxas was grasping at straws at best, and they knew it, why do you think they went to a venue in Texas with a judge that normally rules in favor of the plantiff in copyright cases? They are going down and they know it, sad thing is they are trying to take the whole rtr industry with them, they have never been and won't ever be part of the race scene. To say that they are just doing all this because they are tierd of "carrying everyone else" wretched.

 

[slick2500]

I have to disagree, yea, Traxxas has pumped a lot of money into advertising, and they have brought lots of new people to the hobby. BUT, I do NOT think that the hobby would be dead without them. My first hobby grade vehicle was an HPI Savage 2.5, I had never even heard of Traxxas back in the early 90s. I had however heard of Kyosho, Tamiya, etc. You can't honestly say that Traxxas has done more than anyone else to bring people to the hobby, that's your opinion, and it may LOOK that way because of their huge advertising presence. Fact is, if someone gets a cheap r/c as a kid and wants to go to the next level when they get a little older, they will go to the local hobby shop like I did and get 1 (back then, now kids have Youtube and online stores). Traxxas as a company has become bullies, realizing they are not the big dogs they so foolishly believed they once were. People are finally realizing how overpriced and poorly made they are, and are going to other brands. Traxxas sees people going away and is lashing out at those companies, did you read over the lawsuit? I did, Traxxas was grasping at straws at best, and they knew it, why do you think they went to a venue in Texas with a judge that normally rules in favor of the plantiff in copyright cases? They are going down and they know it, sad thing is they are trying to take the whole rtr industry with them, they have never been and won't ever be part of the race scene. To say that they are just doing all this because they are tierd of "carrying everyone else" wretched.

Let us not forget all the people that Traxxas has driven away from this hobby.

 

[Evol_13]

I just want to remind all of us that Traxxas has actually done a lot of good and they are just sick of pumping all of this money into the hobby and having their market share swiped by other brands..... but... one can then argue that Traxxas needs to step up their game- and they do need to.

I do not believe RC cars would be dead without them. The RC world (cars/Helis/Quads) all saw a resurgence around the same time smart phones came out due to the new battery technologies and brushless motors.

I guess I can be called old school, because my entry and re-entry to the hobby had nothing to do with Traxxas and everything to do with Losi and Horizon Hobby and my general love for anything RC. With that said, anytime I hear anyone say they own a "high end" RC and cant remember what kind, I immediately can guess it is a Traxxas sitting in an old box in the garage/basement. BUt that main reason for that is bc the "LHS" mostly carried Traxxas. So my question for you is this.... Has Traxxas' marketing/patent trolling strategies made it hard for other companies to compete, especially in the "LHS" space over the years? For this reason, I wonder if you have given Traxxas a bit too much credit growing the hobby, and may actually be responsible for hurting it (RIP Hobbico).

With all that said. I am no CFO . Just a friendly guy on a great RC Forum throwing out his 2 cents.

 

[ScaleJunkie]

Speaking of Hobbico, the Traxxas lawsuit and subsequent fallout caused my childhood LHS that had been around since 1986 to close. Screw Traxxas.

 

[biggman100]

Maybe not for me, I got into the hobby when Losi and Associated were -THE- brand to have (RC10, Jr2) and Tamiya and Kyosho were also huge at the time with Tamiya being a giant.

I, like you got into this way back when, strictly with Tamiya at first, then Kyosho, and have never owned a Traxxas, but, only because i was always able to find Tamiya and Kyosho locally at prices i could afford, since, back then, everything i had i had to buy second hand, and there were never a lot of used Traxxas stuff around, since they were a newcomer for the most part.

Just imagine if this hobby was only the Japanese companies and the American racing brands... we would be f——ked right about now. That stuff doesn’t grow the hobby, it actually makes it more “elitist” and smaller.

Hey, then it would be the late 80's early 90's all over again. Back then, it was all Tamiya or Kyosho for the Japanese stuff, and Team Associated and Losi for the racing stuff, and everyone was an elitist back then, even me to a certain extent, except, i had at least one of each, so, i was considered an odd elitist by most.

As for all the supposed bad things Traxxas has done or is doing, ultimately it looks like they are only hurting themselves, and, they will either figure that out, or they will end up just another failed company, like so many have become lately. Yes, LHS are closing because of the Traxxas issues, but, at the same time, those LHS could just as easily partner with other companies. Just because Traxxas is trying to push to be the only company available, doesn't mean the LHS has to carry them. If they don't like Traxxas policies, they can then look into partnering with other brands, like the 3 in my area have done. Even a couple of the bigger shops in N.Y. and PA. have gotten away from Traxxas and started stocking other brands.

 

[ScaleJunkie]

Yes, LHS are closing because of the Traxxas issues, but, at the same time, those LHS could just as easily partner with other companies. Just because Traxxas is trying to push to be the only company available, doesn't mean the LHS has to carry them.

All LHS that are closing unfortunatly, aren't partnered with Traxxas. My LHS hardly carried any of their stuff (mostly just parts), mostly race vehicles and aerial vehicles. It was Hobbico filing bankruptsy that was the main factor.

 

[biggman100]

All LHS that are closing unfortunatly, aren't partnered with Traxxas. My LHS hardly carried any of their stuff (mostly just parts), mostly race vehicles and aerial vehicles. It was Hobbico filing bankruptsy that was the main factor.

The two right here in town both closed because of Traxxas policies, but, they also refused to carry anything else, so that was their own fault. As for shops around here that haven't closed, most wont or don't carry Traxxas because of their policies. One is about 30 minutes from me, and they carry Arrma, Redcat, and a bunch of drones, another, about 115 miles from here carries everything but Traxxas, and the owner is very vocal about how he wont ever deal with them again. The nearest shop to me that does carry Traxxas anything is over 150 miles away. The trend away from them around here started about a year or so ago.

 

[slick2500]

I do not believe RC cars would be dead without them. The RC world (cars/Helis/Quads) all saw a resurgence around the same time smart phones came out due to the new battery technologies and brushless motors.

I guess I can be called old school, because my entry and re-entry to the hobby had nothing to do with Traxxas and everything to do with Losi and Horizon Hobby and my general love for anything RC. With that said, anytime I hear anyone say they own a "high end" RC and cant remember what kind, I immediately can guess it is a Traxxas sitting in an old box in the garage/basement. BUt that main reason for that is bc the "LHS" mostly carried Traxxas. So my question for you is this.... Has Traxxas' marketing/patent trolling strategies made it hard for other companies to compete, especially in the "LHS" space over the years? For this reason, I wonder if you have given Traxxas a bit too much credit growing the hobby, and may actually be responsible for hurting it (RIP Hobbico).

With all that said. I am no CFO . Just a friendly guy on a great RC Forum throwing out his 2 cents.

Just as a heads up Hobbico was in financial trouble before the Traxxas lawsuit. Traxxas suing them was more of the final nail in the coffin not the cause of their demise.

 

[bicketybam]

I've never owned a Traxxas and never even heard of them when I bought my first RC.

 

[olds97_lss]

I've never owned a Traxxas and never even heard of them when I bought my first RC.

Ditto. Was 19 years ago when I got mine shortly after getting engaged, Losi XXX-NT at a Hobby Town on a whim. Actually, 18 years ago after getting married. Bought it on our way home from visiting family, which was an 9 hour drive... don't know why, but it popped into my head that I wanted one and it was all I could think about for about the last 5 hours of the drive. Dead of winter... that was not a fun learning experience...

Was 3 years or so later that I got a t-maxx. The LHS guy was telling me how great it was compared to the savage I was looking at... what a jackhole. Then a while after that I found RC forums. lol!

I knew about Associated and Tamiya from when I was a kid. Had a couple "rich kid" friends that ran the rc10 and blackfoot. I remember the rc10 kid being all excited about having an esc vs the mechanical thing.

 

[biggman100]

I've never owned a Traxxas and never even heard of them when I bought my first RC.

The first time i had heard of them was around 1989-1990, but only because a couple local guys had them, and, i wasnt impressed with them even then, which is saying something, since i have had some very bad cars (Tamiya Hornet and Grasshopper come to mind).

 

[biggman100]

I knew about Associated and Tamiya from when I was a kid. Had a couple "rich kid" friends that ran the rc10 and blackfoot. I remember the rc10 kid being all excited about having an esc vs the mechanical thing.

Ok, i have to admit, that "mechanical thing" cracked me up, because i remember years ago people calling it that, because they had no idea what it actually was. It was still technically a speed controller, it just wasn't in a pretty package like today's are, and required a lot more maintenance.

 

[olds97_lss]

Ok, i have to admit, that "mechanical thing" cracked me up, because i remember years ago people calling it that, because they had no idea what it actually was. It was still technically a speed controller, it just wasn't in a pretty package like today's are, and required a lot more maintenance.

Yeah, and it wasn't linear. It was like speed 1, 2, WOT. At least his was... no idea how you drove the thing that way. Then again... I could be remembering it wrong. Was 30 years ago. lol!

 

[biggman100]

Yeah, and it wasn't linear. It was like speed 1, 2, WOT. At least his was... no idea how you drove the thing that way. Then again... I could be remembering it wrong. Was 30 years ago. lol!

His had slower speeds lol. On most of mine, it was, will you go, will you go, will you go already, bang, its gone into a tree. Mine always seem to have one speed, and it was always WOT or nothing, no matter how many times i cleaned it and messed with it. Mine though, i can remember like it was last week, because i still have a Monster Beetle and a Hornet with the mechanical speed controllers. They still only have one speed.

 

[m0nk444]

The reason Traxxas does this

Let’s start here... and if you’re going to read this, do it thoroughly.

The reason 98% of you are in this Hobby today is due to Traxxas. The reason why Arrma is moving full speed is because of... Traxxas. Do any of you know why Traxxas is what it is, or do you just go by what people say? I’m a corporate CFO currently who understands business models but this goes beyond just a business model.

1. Traxxas did not invent RTR.... they did invent the idea that they would sell you their brand radio, batteries, ESC, and everything you need in one package, but TOWER HOBBIES invented “RTR” by offering customers packages back in the late 1980s.

2. Traxxas pumps more money and more new blood into the hobby than any other brand PERIOD.

3. Traxxas not only brings in more new blood than any other brand, it introduces more to OTHER brands than any other brand PERIOD.

4. Traxxas from day 1 had bigger aspirations than any other brand PERIOD.

I won’t give you guys a history lesson, but Traxxas is the name you hate because it once was the name you loved. Maybe not for me, I got into the hobby when Losi and Associated were -THE- brand to have (RC10, Jr2) and Tamiya and Kyosho were also huge at the time with Tamiya being a giant. Traxxas entered the scene with a bang because Mike Jenkins was able to see how this hobby was very difficult to enter given how foreign most of this stuff was to any beginner. How do you solder matched cells? What radio and servo? How do you paint a body shell? Imagine being a kid in the 1990s and how absolutely intimidating this hobby looked. You are used to things being so easy now, and you can thank Traxxas for that.

So fast forward all of these years and you had your Traxxas slash that you first saw because Traxxas... not Losi, not AE, not Tamiya, Arrma, or Kyosho pumped MILLIONS of dollars into advertising, magazines, 1:1 scale off road racing, and NASCAR. If not you, your friend, cousin, or however it began was most likely due to some part of Traxxas’ mass spending on advertising. If Traxxas never existed this hobby would have died 10 years ago. Don’t think for one minute that isn’t the truth.

Do you owe Traxxas? Well, they may think so... but, no you don’t. Did your entrance into the hobby through anything Traxxas related eventually get you to purchase a Losi, AE, or Arrma? Yep, it did unless your old school like me. So why hate the company that eventually got you to this point? Arrma, or any other company DOES NOT EXIST without Traxxas.

So why is Traxxas the evil empire these days? Honestly?, they are sick of carrying this hobby on their back. Why do they need to be responsible for you buying another brand? Why do they need to pay 3 million to NASCAR to get fresh eyes on the hobby just for that person to go online and see this “Arrma” car that looks like it may be better? Let’s call a spade a spade here and put the OTHER companies on blast for not pumping enough money into the NON RC WORLD to bring in the new blood and new faces.

Am I a Traxxas fan boy? Nope, I’m before their time, but I do own an X Maxx because I think that is a good product for what it is and I don’t care who made it. I do have a lot of respect for Traxxas because they have kept this hobby that I enjoy so much alive, and anyone who disputes that is unfortunately extremely un-informed and blatantly hating on something they have no brains to be speaking on.

I hope Arrma takes the mantle from them one day and does the same greater good of pulling in fresh faces into the hobby. If they never do that, as much as I respect Jason Dearden, I will never see them as beneficial as Traxxas. Hate it, love it, makes no difference... these are the FACTS.

Guess what guy..... Traxass has NOTHING to do with why I'm in this hobby.... I started with a kyosho raider in the mid to late 80's. I guess I'm the 2%.

 

[2015GTRBE]

Ok.... let me come at this from a different angle...

Traxxas created the RTR market that you know today. Tower Hobbies at the time was the largest retailer in the world for RC goods as they were a mail order company. Tower Hobbies at that time was 40X the size of Traxxas.

Wait, I must not have been clear... I’m not a Traxxas guy. I’m a hobby guy. K, just making that clear. I was a Losi guy for 10 years and then moved on to HPI for about 5 years, my first car ever being Kyosho. Cool.

Maybe I see this different as I’ve grown up in the mega corporate world professionally, but I can promise you that this hobby exists due to Traxxas - on this scale. I’m not talking about Mugen Seiki or even Losi because they can cater to a teeeny tiny racers market but then there’s the other problem.... where do you race them without a track? The LHS model is a dinosaur. They need to stock your parts, whereas on the internet you have 1,000 online retailers and half will have your part. It isn’t just RC, toys r us is gone, blockbuster, GameStop.... etc. the world is changing you dinosaurs and just like in 1989 when the Traxxas Hawk came with a complete ready to run out of the box, it was a start of something new. Don’t ever think HPI, Losi, AE, Kyosho, or Tamiya ever made such a splash, in fact they COPY the moves Traxxas made. By the time they all tried to catch up, Losi was sold to Horizon, AE sold to thunder tiger, and the small brands like Bolink and Caster etc were out.... GONE -poor. Again, know your history of this hobby.

So, @ScaleJunkie, your first car was a nitro Savage? Why do you think HPI made it? It was because the success of the T Maxx was so strong that HPI who used to only make hop up parts, decided to take the RTR plunge and get some of that money Traxxas was making. Other companies bring in new blood like Traxxas? Uh what? Other companies can’t afford to pay more than 3 team race drivers, Traxxas can afford an ACTUAL 1:1 scale RACE TEAM. Lol... c’mon just because you may have been the few who miraculously stumbled into a hobby shop does not take away the credit Traxxas gets. You hate Traxxas? I bet the founder of Arrma hates them more, but he knows one thing from working at HPI... Traxxas created the segment and the business model to which other companies can exist because for a while this hobby was almost GONE in the early 90s.

I’m fking elated that some of you never owned a Traxxas, I for one never saw the appeal for most of the stuff. Hey did you know the Traxxas Slash is the best selling RC of well... all time? Curious aye? I guess that didn’t keep those LHS owners in business when they could open up a race class with $199.00 trucks...right?

As far as lawsuits, look Im against ANY beef within the hobby because it’s a tiny one. Like I said, Traxxas is at the point that they really don’t need the hobby. They are mega rich, have intelligent people at the helm, and if you think they are going out of business then its obvious why you aren’t in business. They are so financially stable that they could buy horizon hobby faster than you can sh-t after a sack of white castle.

I only felt the need to jump in this post because I know a lot of people weren’t around in the 80s in this hobby and I had to clear the air. You are entitled to your opinions, but I’m spitting fact.

You are seeing this through the eyes of the consumer which is normal. You don’t care about a companies financial statement at the end of the year, you just want to buy a toy car, I get it. You want your favorite LHS and you think Traxxas is shutting them down. NO... progress and technology shut them down. Sucks but true, I’d still prefer a paper magazine but such is life.