Hey All! Tassem from Bangalore - India's open forum for RC flying, aeromodelling, cars and hobby stores

« on: March 18, 2011, 12:40:10 AM »

Tassem

Nitro Addict experimenting with LiPo!
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City: Bangalore
State: Karnataka
RC Skills: Intermediate
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Join Date: Mar, 2011

Hey All! Tassem from Bangalore

Hi All!

Though I registered and lurked around this forum the last week and have been prowling around a lot, this is my first post here! I was primarily browsing around to see how much the R/C community has developed in India and I must say I'm very impressed! More Proud than impressed really

Well onto the topic. The last three - four days have been quite stressful to me as I was trying to decide on an R/C car for my younger brother. I wanted to get a car that fit a budget of 20-25k. I had read up a lot about the Traxxas Rustler VXL and was quite impressed with it. But I guess it wasn't meant to be. I have a soft spot for Traxxas since my first Nitro was the T-Maxx 2.5 which I bought used. While it was a love hate relationship, it was always fun!

I found out about the Traxxas Dealer in Bangalore and called up Jayanth for details. He was such a helpful bloke and had me come over to his place for an audition of the different Traxxas models available. He made sense in whatever he said and I saw the Slash 4x4 and the Revo. We had some test runs as these were his cars. Somehow the Slash did not excite me much and that convinced me that the Rustler would also have a similar effect. Somehow electrics while being insanely powerful will never live up to the rush that a Nitro provides. A Nitro is fun even when it sits in the corner, just idling!

The Revo on the other hand was just beautiful! I loved the way it held its stance while driving and that goes to prove that it will be a veritable track tool to say the least! Unfortunately it was outside my budget. While the new T-Maxx has its share of upgrades, I was not very keen since it won’t really be "NEW".. to me ie.

Anyways I took all the info I needed from Jayanth (A big thanks to him btw!) and headed home to do more homework.

Next day, while researching I stumbled upon the new HPI Savage X and was impressed to say the least. Read online about it and also checked out a few reviews and videos. Another quick search of the forum gave me Siddharth’s number. He explained about his professional R/C outfit and answered all my questions. He then put me in touch with Manoj who is the Bangalore distributor for HPI. I explained what I was looking for and more importantly what my budget was. They assured me that something can be worked out.

Since I got off late from work and had some personal errands to run, I could not meet Manoj on time. But I was adamant that I needed to make a decision in another day as each passing day meant more options and more decisions! Now that’s not fun I tell you! However, Manoj agreed to come back to the store just so that I can have a look at the car! This was around 10pm I guess - Now that’s just awesome!

Me and bro drove over to the store which is incidentally just 6-7 km from my home since they relocated from their previous location. So he’s my lhs! We met Manoj and Rohan just outside their store. As luck would have it there was a blackout! We stumbled down the stairs with just our cell phones to give us some light and Manoj opened up a new box containing two Savages. I wanted to see the red and so asked him to open that up.

The lack of lighting never meant a lot but in this situation it was unbearable! Imagine having to check out a Monster Truck with what light a cellphone can throw! Rohan did a bit of fiddling with the inverter and somehow turned the lights on – only for a second though as it was not charged! I caught a small glimpse of the Savage but that was it. Sad

Manoj went out back and got his own Savage so that I can have a look at the innards and the build. Again the lack of lighting made it impossible. While we stood there wondering what to do and almost listless by now, the power came back! I was half expecting it to die again, but it didn’t.

So here we were. Me, my bro, Manoj and Rohan. Admiring the Savage and checking out the minutest details. Well Manoj and Rohan were tired after a long day and were probably grumbling at having been dragged to their store so late! I’m just kidding, they were such a great help! Anyways the Savage was on a different league altogether from the T-Maxx as far as build was concerned. The T-Maxx is not a weakling by any means and that must say a lot about the Savage’s build quality. It felt heavier than my T-Maxx as well. All I needed now was to see it run before I decided whether it will be the New T-Maxx or Savage. Will the 4.6 live up to its Big Block reputation? Well we just had to wait and watch.

Bad luck strikes again! I completely forgot that the Savage Kit does not include the Glow Igniter or a battery for the Roto-Start 2. To make things worse, there was no fuel in stock as it was all used up last weekend. Bummer of a situation I must say. We spent close to an hour contemplating what to do. I wasn’t ready to take the dive before I saw it run or at least get it started. I give a call to Jayanth to see if I can come and pick up some fuel. I explained to him why I needed it as well. One thing I must say here is how impressed I was with the professionalism of all the people I spoke with starting with Sid. Nobody badmouthed their competitor’s product. Not once! Everybody patiently answered all my questions and left me to make a decision on my own. That just brilliant! Anyways Jayanth said he’d have to check as getting into his storage facility would require waking up his neighbors for a key to the gate. I said I would wait for his call.

About 10 minutes later Jayanth called with news on the negative. However he asked me to feel free to drop by any time after 5 in the morning to pick up the fuel. Now what can I say about how helpful these guys are! The R/C community is blessed! At least in Bangalore Tongue

I stood there wondering what to do, worried that another day would mean more options and more decisions. Went down and had a chat with the guys about the situation. Manoj and Rohan did not rush me though. The understood my stance and helped me through. In the meanwhile me and bro decided that the Savage would be the one. It looked great, felt great and we were sure would run great. Even if it wouldn’t be better, it would still run just as well as the T-Maxx. So the decision was made. However, I still wanted to test the new one to see if it started fine and that brought us back to square one!

Almost half an hour went by discussing where to get an igniter, battery, charger etc. Model Art was the quickest option but they’re not very famous for their quality of goods - as I know from personal experience. Anyways while we were discussing, Manoj managed to find half a tank of fuel somewhere! We salvaged a battery for the Roto-Start and Rohan found a glow igniter! Now that’s good luck my friends! There was a minute of trepidation when we wondered whether the battery and igniter was charged. The Roto-Start was not running as it should but it appeared to have some juice left.

So, amidst anxious onlookers, the tank was filled, the igniter attached and the Roto-Start inserted. Will it start?

Try one.. no go!

Try two.. no go!

Try three.. no go! The Roto-Start held up but perhaps the igniter had no charge..

Try four.. there was a hint of fire in the engine.. but no go

Try five.. Vroooooom! It started! And boy was it loud in the confined store!!

The deal was sealed! I own a Savage dudes!

Thanked Manoj and Rohan and took it home. Being the nut that I am, completed the necessary installation the same night. (Roll Cage, Receiver Box cover etc.)

The next day, got a Gallon of Tornado 20% Nitro, A Himoto glow igniter kit (Contains the igniter, charger, two wrenches and a fuel bottle) and also a charger for the Roto Start Battery. Got some AA cells for the receiver and transmitter. Will be getting a hump pack for the receiver/servo and perhaps an upgraded steering servo in the near future.

Running in and first bashing session over. But that’s for another day friends! Sorry to bore you with this long post! But hey, as they say, first impressions matter a lot!

A Big Thank You to Jayanth, Siddharth, Manoj and Rohan. You guys rule! Bow


« Last Edit: March 18, 2011, 02:00:56 AM by Tassem »	Logged

Terrain? If I cant Slash it, I'll Savage it!!

« Reply #1 on: March 18, 2011, 01:16:27 AM »

anwar

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