Kraton this is why you don't go to hobby shops..

[SrC]

I sure hope they shelve the old K8S and ship this new updated version. Shouldn’t pay the same for the non-updated model. I want to buy one but I’ll hold out to later spring when these new ones updated ones are more wide spread haha ??

I am sure some original release K8's are floating around. At LHS's. When I buy one, if it is not revised, I will send it back ASAP. Wouldn't want it any other way. HH direct should have the new ones? I would call and ask before placing the order. Because those in the know don't want the original. Best to confirm.

 

[Tremonti]

I am sure some original relase K8's are floating around. When I buy one, if it is not revised, I will send it back ASAP. Wouldn't want it any other way.

I went through this with my LHS about a week ago. They contacted HH and HH initially said they’ll be selling both versions for the time being. I can’t vouch for this since I didn’t see the e-mail, but I can vouch for my LHS. HH also said they weren’t planning on giving people the new parts free of charge. In the meantime we’ve seen different statements from HH, the most frequent one being that they will offer existing K8S owners the required parts at a discounted rate of $25.

 

[SrC]

Well LHS's need to sell what they have obviously, Orig or Revised. But HH should not waiver on this being the distributor. If you buy direct from HH, and want the Revised only, because you are aware(some are not) HH should sell you the Revised, or include the revised parts for free. IMO. Question:
Does the revised ed. have a different Box indicating the revisions? Is there a way to tell by looking at an unopened K8 box? Is there a model Number change? Anyone know?
Caveat Emptor.

 

[Tremonti]

Well LHS's need to sell what they have obviously, Orig or Revised. But HH should not waiver on this being the distributor. If you buy direct from HH, and want the Revised only, because you are aware(some are not) HH should sell you the Revised, or include the revised parts for free. IMO. Question:
Does the revised ed. have a different Box indicating the revisions? Is there a way to tell by looking at an unopened K8 box? Is there a model Number change? Anyone know?
Caveat Emptor.

The new version comes with the Spektrum DX3 transmitter, which is displayed on the box. It’s also displayed on the HH webshop, so people should be able to recognize the different versions.

 

[SrC]

I just checked HH out. The Verbage is inacurate in some areas pertaining to the Radio. They show both new and old radios. Also they show the 3 brace setup and no mention of the new 4 brace design. Looks messed up whoever re-vamped that web page. But clearly comes with a DX3 that IS DSMR. If you are lucky enough to get the revised. They have to clean up that web page. To anyone who doesn't know better, it doesn't matter. But pictures flip flopping between the old and new radio is kind of deceiving??
Clearly HH is trying to down play any of the changes. That's obvious. They are not promoting or attesting any deficiencies of the original at least. The web page appears to just be introducing it as the first release. They are not advertising the changes made. Damage control. Buisness as normal.
They appear more focused on the Radio change, not the more important chassis issues they addressed. But they did the right thing anyway. Not complaining.

 

[RELIC1]

I haven't been able to find where you can buy just the carbon tubes , all I saw was the ones that come with chassis carbon plate , anyways , I sold a couple Traxxas rigs and my arrma Kraton V-1B ? Will be added to my collection on Friday , I was there when my hobby town ordered it , so I butted in on the call , and said ask if it's the one with the new radio , he said the box says it is and it's my retardedly addicted to GREEN ,,,,, S O L D !!!!

 

[Streetsports]

I went through this with my LHS about a week ago. They contacted HH and HH initially said they’ll be selling both versions for the time being. I can’t vouch for this since I didn’t see the e-mail, but I can vouch for my LHS. HH also said they weren’t planning on giving people the new parts free of charge. In the meantime we’ve seen different statements from HH, the most frequent one being that they will offer existing K8S owners the required parts at a discounted rate of $25.

My lhs owner is pretty heated about this whole situation. now they have "old Kraton" that hobbiests know has issues.

 

[r4nd0m]

My lhs owner is pretty heated about this whole situation. now they have "old Kraton" that hobbiests know has issues.

As I for some unknown reasons - still waiting on the response from HH - cant contact HH directly, I did send an email to my LHS on Sunday - probably don't need to say that they usually respond back within 2-4hrs either via email or phone - and surely it hasnt taken them 48hrs ever to reply to any initial query ...

I enquired about the new parts and that HH told me to talk to them for any support/enquiries ...

 

[Tremonti]

My lhs owner is pretty heated about this whole situation. now they have "old Kraton" that hobbiests know has issues.

That doesn't really seem like a fair response. The 'old' Kraton 8S is still a beast of an RC car. The bending issue is a combination of design and use. For every owner that bend their chassis through bashing, there's another one who drives a bit more conservative and hasn't got any issues. No need to recoup the discussion, but we all know that people tend to complain quicker than leave a positive response. There will be plenty of K8S owners who don't have any complains. My LHS has sold 4-5 units and had no complaints at all. It's clear that ARRMA was aware of the issue and is now releasing a 'extreme bashing upgrade kit', we'll have to wait and see how this holds up. But you can't compare a $65 upgrade kit to a $200 custom CNC'd chassis. So for the hardcore bashers a custom CNC'd chassis, like M2C or JustBashIt, might be the better choice anyway. LHS's can choose to sell the 'old' version at a discount, I've got a 10% discount BEFORE these issues where known. Offering the previous version at a discount seems like a fair solution.

 

[SrC]

I haven't been able to find where you can buy just the carbon tubes , all I saw was the ones that come with chassis carbon plate , anyways , I sold a couple Traxxas rigs and my arrma Kraton V-1B ? Will be added to my collection on Friday , I was there when my hobby town ordered it , so I butted in on the call , and said ask if it's the one with the new radio , he said the box says it is and it's my retardedly addicted to GREEN ,,,,, S O L D !!!!

The carbon fiber sleeve tubing are available outsourced. They are at AMZ and elsewhere. Measure your brace diameter and search for CF sleeving that has an I.D. fitting the O.D. of the braces. Cut to length. Make sure you get the proper length to accommodate the braces for cutting the length down to size. I did this on my 6s Kraton and Noto. No more bending on mine. My 6s CF sleeves were 12"long x10mm I.D. for example. Stock brace has a 10mm O.D. I paid about $14. for a pair. Your CF sleeves will be more.(larger Diameter) Hope this helps.

 

[r4nd0m]

That doesn't really seem like a fair response. The 'old' Kraton 8S is still a beast of an RC car.

its also about competitiveness and loyalty from their customers compare it to eg Apple, they release new laptops all the time and when it happens people go directly to apple rather than getting old stock from retailers ... in the end, retailers are pushed out as apple tends to sell their apple care on top of it, so lost customer, revenue due to not having the new stock on the shelf ... sitting on old stock ...

for models I have seen shops almost giving old stock away at huge discounts 25-30% as they restocked on the last shipment on promising sales before the new version came out - sales stalled as people waited for the new version. Even on here you see threads should I pull the trigger now or wait for a refreshed version ... that tells the story that people want the latest and greatest and not what was previously the best version - maybe to avoid a STX2 vs a Tactic version but even that issue seems to be resolved now with the DX3 probably coming to the other lines as well with the next batches ...

 

[SrC]

Honestly, it may be better/cheaper to pay HH the $25.00 for the revised parts. IMO. I would do that if in your shoes with the K8. Good luck. Bash on.

its also about competitiveness and loyalty from their customers compare it to eg Apple, they release new laptops all the time and when it happens people go directly to apple rather than getting old stock from retailers ... in the end, retailers are pushed out as apple tends to sell their apple care on top of it, so lost customer, revenue due to not having the new stock on the shelf ... sitting on old stock ...

for models I have seen shops almost giving old stock away at huge discounts 25-30% as they restocked on the last shipment on promising sales before the new version came out - sales stalled as people waited for the new version. Even on here you see threads should I pull the trigger now or wait for a refreshed version ... that tells the story that people want the latest and greatest and not what was previously the best version - maybe to avoid a STX2 vs a Tactic version but even that issue seems to be resolved now with the DX3 probably coming to the other lines as well with the next batches ...

In all fairness, The radio was not the big issue, it was the chassis durability that garnered all the negative fanfare.

Or maybe a different motor and esc. Haven't even took out the body yet.

I be using my sanwa transmitter and receiver anyways but this radio seems to be good quality.

Sanwa all the way if you have one already. yes

 

[r4nd0m]

In all fairness, The radio was not the big issue, it was the chassis durability that garnered all the negative fanfare.

I mean for the other lines if the DX3 becomes the new standard potentially

 

[SrC]

My lhs owner is pretty heated about this whole situation. now they have "old Kraton" that hobbiests know has issues.

I could understand his position. He should return them if he can. But I'm not sure how vendors are treated in this situation. Usually the distributor gives them an incentive to drop pricing a bit, so they can pass savings to a potential customer. If I got a deal or discount on the original K8, I would consider it and just revise it myself. The radio I would toss anyway, having my DX5C already.
edit:
Honestly, I think the M2C "crusher" chassis would be my direction. The SWB makes the K8 much more responsive from what I've seen. @Rich Duperbash has proven this. The Difference between LWB and SWB chassis' appear obvious.

 

[jondilly1974]

I could understand his position. He should return them if he can. But I'm not sure how vendors are treated in this situation. Usually the distributor gives them an incentive to drop pricing a bit, so they can pass savings to a potential customer. If I got a deal or discount on the original K8, I would consider it and just revise it myself. The radio I would toss anyway, having my DX5C already.

Heck if I were a shop owner and had V1s on hand, I would order enough $25 kits to retro fit and sell them as a bundle for less than $899. Say $875 and they will sell just fine. You won’t make as much as full retail sales, but at least (I assume) they make a few bucks.

 

[SrC]

Great idea. I would buy from your LHS. That's thinking out of the box. Its all about moving inventory real fast with slow movers or stuff no longer in demand as in this case. Sometimes its better to cut losses, cut some profit and make room for more. I'm sure there are some shops in the know, and they stopped ordering the V1's. Awaiting the v2's

 

[jondilly1974]

Great idea. I would buy from your LHS. That's thinking out of the box. Its all about moving inventory real fast with slow movers or stuff no longer in demand as in this case. Sometimes its better to cut losses, cut some profit and make room for more. I'm sure there are some shops in the know, and they stopped ordering the V1's. Awaiting the v2's

Yep cut bait and try to make a few bucks at the same time. If needed move them at cost.

 

[bicketybam]

I was told that LHS's would have an avenue for upgrading their existing inventory to the V1.5. Now I'm not sure that includes the radio but I think that the radio is being blown out of proportion. It's functional. I actually used the one that came with my Super Rock Rey for a while before I bound it to DX5. No issues at all. The only advantage I see with the DX3 is a foam wheel. I also don't think the DX3 is going to come with the 6S Arrmas with the exception of the Infraction. You will get the STX3.

 

[SrC]

The radio is a moot point. I agree.

 

[Tremonti]

its also about competitiveness and loyalty from their customers compare it to eg Apple, they release new laptops all the time and when it happens people go directly to apple rather than getting old stock from retailers ... in the end, retailers are pushed out as apple tends to sell their apple care on top of it, so lost customer, revenue due to not having the new stock on the shelf ... sitting on old stock ...

for models I have seen shops almost giving old stock away at huge discounts 25-30% as they restocked on the last shipment on promising sales before the new version came out - sales stalled as people waited for the new version. Even on here you see threads should I pull the trigger now or wait for a refreshed version ... that tells the story that people want the latest and greatest and not what was previously the best version - maybe to avoid a STX2 vs a Tactic version but even that issue seems to be resolved now with the DX3 probably coming to the other lines as well with the next batches ...

It depends on where you live. Horizon Hobby has a DC in USA and in Germany, so for most US/EU customers there are no additional costs for ordering one from HH directly. But from pretty much all other parts of the world there’s added cost, shipping and local taxes. Or worse: double taxes, country of origin + destination country. Local hobby shops supply these regions with products at the same or nearly the same price as Horizon Hobby offers their products. There are exceptions of course. My LHS sells the 8S for 10% less than HH, exactly the same model. No defects and brand new. And then there’s the service and reduced shipping times that’s associated with hobby stores.