List your top 3 for advice before purchasing RC stuff.

[RC fan]

This is an expensive hobby and most of us have limited funds so doing research before purchasing an.$800.00 RC is vital. My top three places for information in order are:
1 Amazon reviews
2 My local hobby shop (Store manager told me to wait for version 2 bc many customers complained after their purches.
3. You Tube influencer: RC DRIVER

I value my moms advice on politics but she’s not into RC.

 

[pug]

I watch Razor RC for reviews, he does a great job at testing out the RCs.

 

[Notorious J]

Google, which usually sends me to a forum that's specific to a brand. YouTube, again using brand specific searching. My bank account, which tells me whether i should be looking at new rc's in the first place.

 

[Jerry-rigged]

My top three -

1 - Forums - but you need to learn to sift out "honnymoon" posts and post from noobs that crash a lot but think they have pro level skills.

2 - Youtube reviews - Again, filter out the "I just got this RC for free and it is the greatest ever!!1!" reviews. Listen to youtube less, use your eyes and see how it runs, jumps, handles rough ground, etc.

3 - Combo of LHS and Local Track. Again, you have to filter out the "I bought it (am selling it) so it must be the best" bias. Ask question, have a conversation, and you can learn a lot.

Amazon reviews are 50% bots, 40% "I just bought it (or a friend bought it) and it is the best/worst thing evar!" with a few real reviews mixed in.

Short answer - you need a good BS filter to learn anything in this hobby.

my .02

 

[gotnitro]

1) Love the style you are buying and why you are buying it in the first place.
2) Know it's not your last RC and buying parts for your existing is always going to happen.
3) Have fun.

 

[Senton_Prime]

I'd just come here, lots of very smart members in here and tons of opinions!! Most, if not all will steer you in the right direction!!

 

[Jerry-rigged]

1) Love the style you are buying and why you are buying it in the first place.
2) Know it's not your last RC and buying parts for your existing is always going to happen.
3) Have fun.

Truth!

 

[N.Mango]

#1 Keep in mind that your budget is way underrated no matter what it is.

#2 Keep in mind that your budget is way underrated no matter what it is.

#3 Keep in mind that your budget is way underrated no matter what it is.

Google, which usually sends me to a forum that's specific to a brand. YouTube, again using brand specific searching. My bank account, which tells me whether i should be looking at new rc's in the first place.

Truth for sure!
I want to add that you should not get discouraged as you see how so much on here seems to be loaded and have more than a few RC's.

 

[morrjr71]

Some local hobby or RC shops recommend the brands they carry, and often put down other brands that they know little or nothing about or have no experience with. There is one RC shop in my area that I stopped using because of that. His customer base buys expensive vehicles (mostly high end Traxxas) they know nothing about, and then pay him to do all the maintenance when they break it. I saw that many times when I used to go in there, before I knew better. I will say he got me into my first Arrma, but only because he didn't have the Traxxas vehicle I was looking for.

Amazon reviews are often put up by people who are not experienced in the hobby, and I can tell it by the reviews. Some people have no idea of what they are buying: they will complain when it doesn't work with their vehicle, even though it says in the description exactly what vehicles the parts work with. I only rely on Amazon reviews when I can tell the reviews are posted by someone who knows what they are talking about.

For online research I use mostly RC Review, RC Driver, and Razor RC, and occasionally Exocaged. These sites pretty much tell it like it is, both pros and cons.

 

[sumguy75]

I only have 2 rc's so far, but have realized the following after spending tons of time reading up in forums and watching youtube videos.

1. Don't buy anything that has just been released. Let everyone else buy it and find out what the problems are because every RC has issues, some more than others. Once you have feedback from people who have owned it a few months, you can make a better decision.

2. Buy rigs that have a shared platform with mulitiple other models, like the Arrma 3s line have better parts support and you can find helpful info a lot easier due to the number of other similar units out there.

3. Do a parts search on major rc store websites and see how readily available parts are. If there aren't a lot of parts options or most of them are on backorder, your better off finding a different rc to buy unless you don't mind parts being hard to get.

When I first got into this, I actually listened to people saying "buy this one, it never breaks" and things like that. Maybe a few people get lucky, but most of them will break and if you bash hard, it will break on a regular basis. Be prepared to spend time and money fixing it, that way it won't be as aggravating when it happens and you can learn to enjoy working on them as much as bashing.

 

[N.Mango]

I'd just come here, lots of very smart members in here and tons of opinions!! Most, if not all will steer you in the right direction!!

Agreed.
Very good knowledgeable people here. I learn something new daily on here even if it doesn't pertain to my particular setup and/or rig.

 

[morrjr71]

Upgrades and maintenance all add significantly to the cost of ownership of an RC vehicle, especially the upgrades. If you think a stock vehicle is going to keep you happy for long, it won't. I have more money in upgrades in a couple of my RC vehicles than I do in the initial cost. But I did my research on my RC vehicles before I purchased them, and I planned and budgeted for the upgrades up front.

 

[RuffRiki]

This is an expensive hobby and most of us have limited funds so doing research before purchasing an.$800.00 RC is vital. My top three places for information in order are:
1 Amazon reviews
2 My local hobby shop (Store manager told me to wait for version 2 bc many customers complained after their purches.
3. You Tube influencer: RC DRIVER

I value my moms advice on politics but she’s not into RC.

This forum.

You can come here and question anything whatsoever regarding RC and get live answers from people who are doing this thing in real time…

 

[grihn]

It really depends on what information I'm after. Generally speaking, I try to get advice from those with actual long-term use/experience with a product. Forums are the best and really only consistently accurate place to do so. Products reviews on Amazon and other websites are horribly biased, because people typically write a review based off of a first impression, not actual experience, and people are exponentially more likely to only write a review if they have a negative opinion of something. It's no coincidence that the number of positive reviews for products has increased since its commonplace for companies to send people free products. Since people perceive (and are usually correct) that they won't continue to receive free stuff for a negative opinion, they are likely to put their interest above yours. This applies for YouTube as well...even the good and "trusted" channels don't usually review something after they've had it for months and have put it through its paces. They often share their opinions after having only used it one or two times, because they need to crank out content while a product is new or still relevant so they can grow their channel and ultimately get paid. That is especially true for channels who do not get free stuff or early access to products...since they are already "behind" the "sponsored" channels, they try to release content as soon as possible. Channels which do received it for free rarely have completely negative feedback...they might have some criticisms, but ultimately the reviews are usually overall positive, because again, they want to keep getting free stuff and I suspect they have certain legal obligations that they have agreed to for positive reviews. But, even with feedback from people on forums who serve to gain nothing by not being honest, there is no better way to learn than through personal experience, so sometimes you just have to "take the risk" and learn how to overcome mistakes and fix something that may be a defect in a product. Unfortunately this is one of those hobbies that, if you aren't willing to do that, at least a little, then you should just stick to $50 Amazon specials.

 

[🇺🇸 DΞזΞפּ 🇺🇸]

This is an expensive hobby and most of us have limited funds so doing research before purchasing an.$800.00 RC is vital. My top three places for information in order are:
1 Amazon reviews
2 My local hobby shop (Store manager told me to wait for version 2 bc many customers complained after their purches.
3. You Tube influencer: RC DRIVER

I value my moms advice on politics but she’s not into RC.

none of these

 

[SrC]

Some local hobby or RC shops recommend the brands they carry, and often put down other brands that they know little or nothing about or have no experience with. There is one RC shop in my area that I stopped using because of that. His customer base buys expensive vehicles (mostly high end Traxxas) they know nothing about, and then pay him to do all the maintenance when they break it. I saw that many times when I used to go in there, before I knew better. I will say he got me into my first Arrma, but only because he didn't have the Traxxas vehicle I was looking for.

Amazon reviews are often put up by people who are not experienced in the hobby, and I can tell it by the reviews. Some people have no idea of what they are buying: they will complain when it doesn't work with their vehicle, even though it says in the description exactly what vehicles the parts work with. I only rely on Amazon reviews when I can tell the reviews are posted by someone who knows what they are talking about.

For online research I use mostly RC Review, RC Driver, and Razor RC, and occasionally Exocaged. These sites pretty much tell it like it is, both pros and cons.

+1

none of these

+1
1000%

 

[TheBadazz]

My choices are forums like here of course (you guys got me to spend lots of $$$!)

You tube (guys like Razor RC, Jay Tee, Kevin Taibot (regardless love him or hate him, he's entertaining, IMO)

No real third choice

 

[MeHurricane]

Presuming that the person is new to the hobby...

1) Buy new and from a LHS (if yours isn't garbage) - I've seen people by someone's used basket cases 'for a good deal' and not know what is right and what is wrong. If you buy online there isn't anyone to talk to if there is an issue. Most RTR trucks are about the same online as in the LHS. The support that you get from having someone to talk to is worth the difference if it's close. Plus supporting the local economy is good too.
2) Decide on your budget and spend accordingly to this ratio. If you have $800, shop for $400 trucks/vehicles. By the time you get batteries/chargers/tools along with breakages and upgrades you will be happier. Note that more expensive isn't better always or a good value. (i.e. Smart batteries are not a smart purchase value wise) If you have a good budget, choose wisely. Get a fun truck but learning on a monster build 8S EXB might not be the smartest thing and you can afford to buy that when you are ready. (when you learned to drive RL cars, did you get a top end Porsche for a first car?)
3) Look for a mentor/friend to help you along the journey. It might end up being a person at your LHS, a friendly forum *hint hint, it might be someone you chat up you see driving an RC. They will help you understand important stuff that gets swept over like Lipo safety handling and storage. Worst case YouTube university has many options. You will have to use your BS meter with all sources.

Have fun with your new RC.
Hurricane

 

[pug]

My choices are forums like here of course (you guys got me to spend lots of $$$!)

You tube (guys like Razor RC, Jay Tee, Kevin Taibot (regardless love him or hate him, he's entertaining, IMO)

No real third choice

Kevin Talbot is pretty good for non-Banggood things as he gives them a true durability test and pushes them to their limits.

 

[SrC]

@RC fan,
when selecting your First RC, knowledge is power. You know this already
That is why you ended up here on AF. Smart move. Before making the purchase.
,Many buy their first RC, whether from impulse not considering much of why they got what they did,, as a surprise gift or just a poor recommendation by others. Many end up here after the fact when frustration with a new RC becomes a bad experience. You are here before the fact. Awesome.
Legitimate user experience from seasoned RC'ers helps much overall. What you have here on AF, especially if considering an Arrma Product.
You need to create a budget. One that is flexible if possible. Watch YT videos to see how these RC's handle and run. Sift through many to find some degree of expectation in what you want. All RC's will break. They are hobby grade and repairable. Fixing and wrenching on them is usually 80% of the the hobby. Driving is the rest of it. In the beginning they will break mores so. Driver skills will develope. Don't be discouraged. It happens to many newcomers. Normal. A learning curve and all as you go.
Keep it all in perspective and RC will be fun. If any hobby becomes frustrating and no longer fun. Put it down and regroup. Decide if it is for you.
$$ is the most important thing here. But all hobbies cost money.
Search around AF regarding all the Arrma rigs. And be careful with LHS's. They are helpful for many in the beginning, And I support most HS when I can. But they are not the be all end all. Pushing what they choose sell in most cases. Been there. Many LHS' are just not truly knowledgeable.
Doing this for 35+ years and I never put this hobby down.
Much of the above posted advice is very good.
Good luck, whatever you choose to buy.
Welcome to AF.

Kevin Talbot is pretty good for non-Banggood things as he gives them a true durability test and pushes them to their limits.

I feel that KT tends to show newcomers how NOT to drive their rigs. He treats many of his RC's unrealistically. Part of his shtick.
KT also has a very large wallet to fund his content.