Hiya Pete! Really enjoyed you honest review - of a truck you paid your own well earned cash for! Great that you included info about how to improve things, nice touch. I also like how you showed some alternatives, and they included some bosting Tamiyas! Agreed, ultimately you get what you pay for, but if you are on a tight budget the Bugsta does tick a lot of boxes. Just a pity about the flawed drivetrain. Gonna have a glass and then chill before bedtime! Keep 'em coming mate, thumbs up from me! :))
Hiya matey. Yeah I think that the main problem with this is that it's hard to hop up the gearbox whereas with the Tamiya's you can hop up the weak points like the shock towers quite easily. Thought it was worth doing a follow up video as the first one was quite popular and I had more to say about it. Anyway, how's it going with you and yours? No news on the half term circuit breaker as far as I know. All mostly ok here although I think that cases are on the rise in Bournemouth. On the RC front I've got plenty of little projects on the go. Will keep me busy if we do get locked down again. Cheers for watching mate. Best wishes to you 😁
Hello there, First time viewer...I'm 30 year's in the hobby this year 2022. For the price point you can't go wrong when you go for FTX machine's...Aluminium oil filled shock's,Waterproof electric's,Ajustable wheel geometry and you can go to Lipo batterie's without spending anymore if you have some already. It's amazing how much you can get for sub $150 compared to back in the day. Great ohnest review and best wish'es to you and your's.
Hi there. Yeah this is certainly good for the money. It's just a shame that the gearbox wasn't just a bit better. I would have paid a bit more for it if the gears were better sealed and the bevel gears were stronger. The handling with those shocks is great but because of the gearbox issues this is languishing in a box slightly broken and I really ought to sell it for spares. Many thanks indeed for your great comments. Best wishes to you also 😁
@@PeteWylieRC , Thank's for the reply Pete...my first was a well used and abused Mardave Ministock with a Stator speed controller. I'm currently on my second FTX machine and I'm torn between which I am going to get next buddy...I love these Cheep'n'Cheerful thing's.
Hello again Pete, I hope you and yours are all keeping well 😊. Just dropped in to ask a couple of questions. I finally got a Bugsta from my local Hobby shop and I was wondering if I should add a Cooling fan to the Stock SC before I attach it to a Lipo???
Hi Pete, really enjoyed the straight talking review, detailing the pros and cons. Excellent attention to the details of making the model more water proofed, especially in that rear spur and pinion gear area. Watched it a couple of times to absorb the detail, great work. Until next time, keep yourself well. 😉
Hiya John. Yeah it's a shame with this one becomes a few little design changes would make it really decent, especially for the money. As it is it doesn't go out that often as explained because I don't want to be prizing off all that sealant if I need to sort out the gears. Many thanks for watching (twice!) and your great feedback. I haven't been over to your channel for a bit but I will check to see what you've been up to. Hope you are staying well. Best wishes mate 😁
Hi Pete. Great review. It does seem that FTX do like there pinion gears to be open, I have the FTX Hooligan another off roader and it has a completely open pinion gear. All the best mate and stay safe!
Yeah I've noticed on some of the big powerful cars of various brands have completely open spur and pinion gears. The theory is that the dirt comes flying out but in my experience it gets jammed in there and wears it out. Anyway cheers for watching matey. Best wishes to you 😁
Hi my friend ! Thank you for this review in detail, it was clear and informative. The look of FTX is great but that's not everything ... Good idea to put it in competition with an Arrma. When I bought parts for my cars, I kept trying to find the lowest price especially on the Aliexpress platform. Then by dint of having trouble with some of these parts, I said to myself STOP! Now I put the price but at least I have something of quality with some durability. Thank you again Pete I had a great time watching your video, thank you for sharing your experience. I hope you're okay. I can finally rest and watch the videos posted by my friends! Take care mon ami !
Hiya Alex. Yes sometimes it's 'buy cheap buy twice' as my Nan used to say! It's a shame about the Bugsta/Carnage because it's nearly very good. The trouble is that unlike things like the shocks and tyres etc. the gearbox not being sealed isn't easy to solve with hop up's. That's sort of what I was trying to say with the Tamiya's. They have tough sealed gearboxes and you can hop up any problematic parts. Anyway how goes it with you? Are you finding it any easier with work? Like I was saying before it's all getting to the stage where we are thinking that this is going on forever. I'm sure things will get better with improved testing and all that. All good here really. Plenty of RC projects to keep me going. Many thanks for your comments. Great use of the word 'dint' ! Best wishes to you my friend. Take care 😁
@@PeteWylieRC Thanks Pete, I'm doing better. I can rest a bit this week. I will work from home. I also have many very exciting RC projects. I have started the resurrection of my DT-02. This is my very first buggy and it deserved a major renovation. Thank you very much Pete for your moral support it made me feel good. Take care of you and yours my friend.
Really useful feedback. I was thinking about getting a first RC car to play around with my kids - Just aiming for better than cheap no-name so I can get spares easily. Do you know if the gear box flaws have been fixed in the FTX Carnage 2.0? I understand the bugster is a FTX Carnage 1.0 with a different shell. It looks like the 2.0 has the CV joints at the back now rather than the dog bones but I can't tell on the pics I can see if the gear box is better sealed.
Hi there. I don't think that they have sealed the gearbox in any better on the newer ones. Somebody was telling me about an after market motor plate which didn't have gaps but I don't thing that will solve the problem entirely. You can do that thing I did with the bathroom sealant although it's annoying if you need to get in there for maintenance. I don't know if you are better looking at WL Toys as they seem good for the money and you can get spares. I haven't owned one but I've driven them and they drive very well. Trouble is that they are small and have small electronics and batteries rather than the standard 1/10 stuff. There are Maverick RC's that look good for the money but again I haven't owned them. Not sure if that helps. Good luck :-)
Hi Peter,seems we have very similar tastes in Rc👍😂this was my very first purchase in December last year.I ve progressed slightly since then and I gave it to my son,who s 33 by the way😀 however,I love the buggy shape and was considering the brushless version,hence how I found my way here again👍😀 I also have the arrma big rock and as you rightly say,it’s a lot tougher and probably well worth the extra.Having watched this I m now having second thoughts,so I have a question for you😂will the bugsta body fit on the granite chassis ok? If not I m considering fitting one to the mad van chassis as you did,but as we both know that chassis comes with its own issues too😂😂 I m not against modifying stuff in fact I quite enjoy it,I do nt think out of all my 8 rigs that I ve got one that is original,I ve modded and upgraded all of them with better electronics,wheels and tyres,custom painted bodies etc. I m no expert either😂😂👍but love messing about with them.I ve just finished doing a maverick quantum flux in Mercedes f1 colours,looks a lot better than the original!! Will post a short video shortly👍👍😀 Thanks again for another cracking review mate👍👍😀 Paul
Hi there. I have just had a look and the Bugsta will fit on the Granite if you adjust the rear posts. I wouldn't go for a brushless Bugsta after my experience of the gearbox. I just don't think it's up to it. Also the grit getting in is a pain. The Granite is so much better than the Bugsta and the Mad Van. Mad Van is better than the Bugsta although I haven't taken it out enough to really see how it lasts. Thanks for your comments. I will check out the vid when I get a mo 😁
Hi. I nearly ordered one but after watching Your review decided to look again on the market. Im new with hobbies so can You advice which can be the beat choice with budget up to £200? And what is the second rc recommended by You in this video. And on the end that You make a great job in this video. Enjoyed watching it.
Hi there. I'm not sure which one you mean but I talked about the Arrma Granite Mega, Tamiya Lunchbox, Tamiya DT-02 (mine is a customised Nissan Titan), Tamiya DT-03 Aqroshot. Thing is with the Tamiya's is that I have customised them and don't really know what I spent. I have got various videos about the changes I did to these. Are you hoping to get the whole thing with battery and charger for under £200? If so then there isn't really anything that I have personal experience of as they tend to be over that by the time you have all the bits and pieces. The Tamiya's are kits and need everything including electronics, paint, bearings etc. to be added. Also what is best depends where you want to run it. Have you been through what they have at Modelsport and Wheelspin? Good idea to go through all the electric ones in your price range and then see if anyone has done a review on TH-cam. Kyosho Mad Van just under £200 but no battery. Haven't had this one myself but I'm going to buy the brushless version when it comes out. Not sure if this helps but good luck with your search.
Great video. If doesn't seem like it's worth the time required to maintain and fix these cheap RC cars. Better to spend double the amount and do less repairs.
Thinking of getting one of these as my 2nd rc car, good choice for the £100-200 range? Currently have the WLtoys A959B but want something a bit bigger and offroady
Well it's probably ok if you leave it with the brushed motor but not really up to the brushless set I put in. Personally I'd get something more expensive and more robust which is what I did!
Hi Alex. Yes it's a great shame because a few design updates could make this a great budget RC. As it is I would rather spend more on something better like I was saying in the vid. Many thanks for watching and your comments. Hope all is well with you too 😁
I like the basic platform a lot but that spur gear thing is it's fatal flaw. Its a shame because it's so close to being amazing for the money. The overall design and spec is great for the cash, if you went with a bigger name brand you'd be likely to get friction dampers and plastic, non-adjustable linkages, no clutch etc for that price. I was hoping they would address the issue with the version 2 of the Carnage but it seems to be the same basic design sadly. It's daft in a way because it makes it most vulnerable in the conditions it performs best in. I have an HSP Bronto which also has crummy spur gear protection but the spur is at least made of metal so it's managed to munch it's way through most of the grit and dirt. Hopefully they bring out a v3 eventually or at least give you a metal spur to start off with. I've heard that shimming the front end helps with that second issue but I haven't owned one personally. I agree about breaking being really hard on the front end, some 4wd stuff will even flip right over if you aren't careful. Especially stuff with a high COG like the E-maxx and E-Savage. Anyways, all rambling aside, great video as always!
Hey, ramble away 😁 Yeah like you say it's a shame about the issue with the gears because a lot of it is really good. Be worth an extra £20 if they put in a tough sealed drive train. Anyway I think I was fair on it in the review. Thought it was worth doing this one as the original one was quite popular. Many thanks for watching and your comments 😀
@@PeteWylieRC That's what always frustrated me when I ran one. It only needs slightly better metals in the diff gears and a 32dp sealed spur. Mine was an absolute money pit and has been chucked in my garage somewhere, though I kept the shocks for something else.
@@thevisitor6267 hi there. Yeah I do think that if/when mine breaks down again I might break it up for spares. Like you say, not worth throwing money at as I have other ones to use. The Arrma has actually got plastic bevel gears but they must be really tough because I've already used it for more hours than I ever used the Bugsta and no issues as yet. Many thanks for watching and your comments 😁
Well I've not really tried any others that are around this price. I like the Arrma Granite as I talk about in the video but even the brushed Mega version is much more expensive than the Bugsta. Tomley RC does a lot of reviews of RTR RC's so his channel might be helpful.
If you changed the spur gear to metal and the brass one you changed to metal there is no dust or small stones with cause any problem . Brass and plastic rubbish change it to metal end of problems as I have run mine in sand .gravel dust. water . And never had a problem . Metal all the way . Same with the arms change them to alloy .
Hi there. Well I think that changing the gears to metal might stop them from breaking but wouldn't stop them from getting clogged up. I've had another car where the gears weren't sealed and they would get clogged up and the car would stop. The bigger RC's can get away with it better as they have gears with bigger teeth that can grind and throw the grit out. I just think with this one that it's not worth spending money on it as I've got better RC's that I like better. Many thanks for your suggestions though.
I've not had any of those cars but they do seem to be good from what people say. Obviously quite a bit smaller than the Bugsta but might be a better bet 👍
Hi there. I always use the Absima Thrust 3420kv bl eco waterproof combo as it's been reliable and drives well. I did have the problems with the drive train as mentioned in the video so be careful!
Tbf the FTX range is great for the price, the spares are pretty cheap as are the hop-ups, if you use your brain and a bit of research/ingenuity the flaws can be corrected and is a fantastic car for the price of it, spending triple the money on something like the granite isn't a valid point as it is TRIPLE the price.
Yeah I hear what you are saying but my point was that for me I'd rather spend 3 times as much and get something I can really go mad with. Now that I've got the Granite (and all the other Arrma 3s cars) there isn't too much point in me keeping the Bugsta and it mainly lives on the shelf now. I think I did say that they are good for the money and they are. Probably quite reliable if you leave it brushed. Many thanks for your feedback. Much appreciated 😁
Oh yeah that gearbox not being sealed is quite a bad fault with this. Shame as a lot of it is good for the money. Many thanks for your great feedback 😁👍
there's steel versions of the spur and every youtuber i've seen that's upgraded one of these 1/10 ftx's to brushless has regretted not upgrading the spur. but ur pinion got smashed too! i reckon the hole at the bottom is for the brushed fan, so rocks (ironically) can drop out of the motor, so maybe the brushless chassis doesn't have it - edit nope i can't see a part 10381 without the hole
Hi there. Yeah the steel spur would be good but I think that the plastic spur gear would be fine if the grit didn't get in there. All my other cars apart from the 4s Arrma have plastic spur gears and they last for ages. Just a shame about this flaw because otherwise a good truck for the money. I must admit that this has been stored away in the loft and what I need to do is mend it and sell it. Many thanks indeed for your great feedback. Much appreciated 😁👍👍
@@PeteWylieRC PopalongRC were recommending a steel pinion as well - they started their channel on racing with this chassis, on the vantage buggies. A bit of grit is fine with regular maintenance I reckon. I'm bringing a bugsta back to life, its only ever been run on the nihmi batteries lol
@@shadyhazza Yeah I did get the steel pinion which is better. Be ok on grass and generally non gritty places. Maybe I should bring mine back to life but I think I'm still going to sell it because I've got others that are more robust 😁
@@PeteWylieRC if you can find someone like me to buy it go ahead :D i paid around 60gbp/70usd for it with non-working servo. but i could see it hadn't been thrashed
Many thanks. Yeah it is an issue for sure. I've still got this but don't run it very much because I'm afraid of breaking the gears. Not sure what else you can get for this sort of money though. WLtoys maybe which are really good but smaller and non standard electronics. The answer for me was to spend loads more money on an Arrma!
@@PeteWylieRC Yes....the granite seems really good value....liked the tamiya blackfoot as it wasnt too fast at 24mph...for me this is better.....how fast is Granite ??...senton is 50mph...way too much speed !!!
@@richardbradley2335 The Granite is near 50mph too on 3s! Maybe get a Granite Mega which has brushed electronics so slower and also cheaper. Really tough trucks and great handling.
Yeah it's a pretty good RC for the money and just has those issues with the gears that I talk about in the video. Probably ok if you stick with the standard electronics. Hope you get on ok with yours :-)
or you could do this;- th-cam.com/video/DBj0uP2ybIw/w-d-xo.html ...which is two Bugsta kits and a lot of patience.... your video does describe the gearbox problems well though! I have an all steel spur to go back in, but they are noisey as well as durable.
@@PeteWylieRC cheers! I use mine to climb, not jump. Funny the older carnage chassis has a hole under the spur, and I seems to let more grit OUT than it lets in. How did you seal the gap at the back of the gearbox? that's the one I have problems with.
@@carlbModels Yeah the gears would almost be better completely open and then you could clean them up easier. I'm not sure which hole you mean on the back of the gearbox. I've just used that sealant stuff everywhere that was a gap.
![[Gegagedigedagedago] NEW Help Gegagedigedagedago Nugget escape from Nikocado Avocado Challenge](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/hJWnwRC2Fz8/mqdefault.jpg)
Hiya Pete! Really enjoyed you honest review - of a truck you paid your own well earned cash for! Great that you included info about how to improve things, nice touch. I also like how you showed some alternatives, and they included some bosting Tamiyas! Agreed, ultimately you get what you pay for, but if you are on a tight budget the Bugsta does tick a lot of boxes. Just a pity about the flawed drivetrain. Gonna have a glass and then chill before bedtime! Keep 'em coming mate, thumbs up from me! :))
Hiya matey. Yeah I think that the main problem with this is that it's hard to hop up the gearbox whereas with the Tamiya's you can hop up the weak points like the shock towers quite easily. Thought it was worth doing a follow up video as the first one was quite popular and I had more to say about it. Anyway, how's it going with you and yours? No news on the half term circuit breaker as far as I know. All mostly ok here although I think that cases are on the rise in Bournemouth. On the RC front I've got plenty of little projects on the go. Will keep me busy if we do get locked down again. Cheers for watching mate. Best wishes to you 😁
Hello there,
First time viewer...I'm 30 year's in the hobby this year 2022.
For the price point you can't go wrong when you go for FTX machine's...Aluminium oil filled shock's,Waterproof electric's,Ajustable wheel geometry and you can go to Lipo batterie's without spending anymore if you have some already.
It's amazing how much you can get for sub $150 compared to back in the day.
Great ohnest review and best wish'es to you and your's.
Hi there. Yeah this is certainly good for the money. It's just a shame that the gearbox wasn't just a bit better. I would have paid a bit more for it if the gears were better sealed and the bevel gears were stronger. The handling with those shocks is great but because of the gearbox issues this is languishing in a box slightly broken and I really ought to sell it for spares. Many thanks indeed for your great comments. Best wishes to you also 😁
@@PeteWylieRC ,
Thank's for the reply Pete...my first was a well used and abused Mardave Ministock with a Stator speed controller.
I'm currently on my second FTX machine and I'm torn between which I am going to get next buddy...I love these Cheep'n'Cheerful thing's.
@@rcfanaticdublin Ooh I'm not sure. Maybe your next FTX should be an Arrma Granite 😂 It is cheerful but not exactly cheap 🤔
Hello again Pete,
I hope you and yours are all keeping well 😊.
Just dropped in to ask a couple of questions.
I finally got a Bugsta from my local Hobby shop and I was wondering if I should add a Cooling fan to the Stock SC before I attach it to a Lipo???
Hi Pete, really enjoyed the straight talking review, detailing the pros and cons. Excellent attention to the details of making the model more water proofed, especially in that rear spur and pinion gear area. Watched it a couple of times to absorb the detail, great work. Until next time, keep yourself well. 😉
Hiya John. Yeah it's a shame with this one becomes a few little design changes would make it really decent, especially for the money. As it is it doesn't go out that often as explained because I don't want to be prizing off all that sealant if I need to sort out the gears. Many thanks for watching (twice!) and your great feedback. I haven't been over to your channel for a bit but I will check to see what you've been up to. Hope you are staying well. Best wishes mate 😁
Hi Pete. Great review. It does seem that FTX do like there pinion gears to be open, I have the FTX Hooligan another off roader and it has a completely open pinion gear. All the best mate and stay safe!
Yeah I've noticed on some of the big powerful cars of various brands have completely open spur and pinion gears. The theory is that the dirt comes flying out but in my experience it gets jammed in there and wears it out. Anyway cheers for watching matey. Best wishes to you 😁
Hi my friend ! Thank you for this review in detail, it was clear and informative. The look of FTX is great but that's not everything ... Good idea to put it in competition with an Arrma. When I bought parts for my cars, I kept trying to find the lowest price especially on the Aliexpress platform. Then by dint of having trouble with some of these parts, I said to myself STOP! Now I put the price but at least I have something of quality with some durability. Thank you again Pete I had a great time watching your video, thank you for sharing your experience. I hope you're okay. I can finally rest and watch the videos posted by my friends! Take care mon ami !
Hiya Alex. Yes sometimes it's 'buy cheap buy twice' as my Nan used to say! It's a shame about the Bugsta/Carnage because it's nearly very good. The trouble is that unlike things like the shocks and tyres etc. the gearbox not being sealed isn't easy to solve with hop up's. That's sort of what I was trying to say with the Tamiya's. They have tough sealed gearboxes and you can hop up any problematic parts. Anyway how goes it with you? Are you finding it any easier with work? Like I was saying before it's all getting to the stage where we are thinking that this is going on forever. I'm sure things will get better with improved testing and all that. All good here really. Plenty of RC projects to keep me going. Many thanks for your comments. Great use of the word 'dint' ! Best wishes to you my friend. Take care 😁
@@PeteWylieRC
Thanks Pete, I'm doing better. I can rest a bit this week. I will work from home.
I also have many very exciting RC projects. I have started the resurrection of my DT-02. This is my very first buggy and it deserved a major renovation.
Thank you very much Pete for your moral support it made me feel good.
Take care of you and yours my friend.
👍Nice bugs, 80's plastic is FANTASTIC!
Ha, 80's plastic might be a bit brittle by now! Cheers Steve :-)
Really useful feedback. I was thinking about getting a first RC car to play around with my kids - Just aiming for better than cheap no-name so I can get spares easily. Do you know if the gear box flaws have been fixed in the FTX Carnage 2.0? I understand the bugster is a FTX Carnage 1.0 with a different shell. It looks like the 2.0 has the CV joints at the back now rather than the dog bones but I can't tell on the pics I can see if the gear box is better sealed.
Hi there. I don't think that they have sealed the gearbox in any better on the newer ones. Somebody was telling me about an after market motor plate which didn't have gaps but I don't thing that will solve the problem entirely. You can do that thing I did with the bathroom sealant although it's annoying if you need to get in there for maintenance. I don't know if you are better looking at WL Toys as they seem good for the money and you can get spares. I haven't owned one but I've driven them and they drive very well. Trouble is that they are small and have small electronics and batteries rather than the standard 1/10 stuff. There are Maverick RC's that look good for the money but again I haven't owned them. Not sure if that helps. Good luck :-)
Hi Peter,seems we have very similar tastes in Rc👍😂this was my very first purchase in December last year.I ve progressed slightly since then and I gave it to my son,who s 33 by the way😀 however,I love the buggy shape and was considering the brushless version,hence how I found my way here again👍😀 I also have the arrma big rock and as you rightly say,it’s a lot tougher and probably well worth the extra.Having watched this I m now having second thoughts,so I have a question for you😂will the bugsta body fit on the granite chassis ok? If not I m considering fitting one to the mad van chassis as you did,but as we both know that chassis comes with its own issues too😂😂 I m not against modifying stuff in fact I quite enjoy it,I do nt think out of all my 8 rigs that I ve got one that is original,I ve modded and upgraded all of them with better electronics,wheels and tyres,custom painted bodies etc. I m no expert either😂😂👍but love messing about with them.I ve just finished doing a maverick quantum flux in Mercedes f1 colours,looks a lot better than the original!! Will post a short video shortly👍👍😀
Thanks again for another cracking review mate👍👍😀
Paul
Hi there. I have just had a look and the Bugsta will fit on the Granite if you adjust the rear posts. I wouldn't go for a brushless Bugsta after my experience of the gearbox. I just don't think it's up to it. Also the grit getting in is a pain. The Granite is so much better than the Bugsta and the Mad Van. Mad Van is better than the Bugsta although I haven't taken it out enough to really see how it lasts. Thanks for your comments. I will check out the vid when I get a mo 😁
Hi. I nearly ordered one but after watching Your review decided to look again on the market.
Im new with hobbies so can You advice which can be the beat choice with budget up to £200? And what is the second rc recommended by You in this video.
And on the end that You make a great job in this video. Enjoyed watching it.
Hi there. I'm not sure which one you mean but I talked about the Arrma Granite Mega, Tamiya Lunchbox, Tamiya DT-02 (mine is a customised Nissan Titan), Tamiya DT-03 Aqroshot. Thing is with the Tamiya's is that I have customised them and don't really know what I spent. I have got various videos about the changes I did to these. Are you hoping to get the whole thing with battery and charger for under £200? If so then there isn't really anything that I have personal experience of as they tend to be over that by the time you have all the bits and pieces. The Tamiya's are kits and need everything including electronics, paint, bearings etc. to be added. Also what is best depends where you want to run it. Have you been through what they have at Modelsport and Wheelspin? Good idea to go through all the electric ones in your price range and then see if anyone has done a review on TH-cam. Kyosho Mad Van just under £200 but no battery. Haven't had this one myself but I'm going to buy the brushless version when it comes out. Not sure if this helps but good luck with your search.
What the hell that's so coincidental I have upgraded my Bugsta to an Arrma Granite too! Definitely worth spending a bit more money if you have it 👍
Hi again. Oh yes the Granite is a different class of RC and well worth the extra cash. Thanks again for your comments :-)
Great video. If doesn't seem like it's worth the time required to maintain and fix these cheap RC cars. Better to spend double the amount and do less repairs.
Yes agreed. Going to change this one back to a brushed motor and sell it I think. Thanks for your feedback :-)
Wow .. !! Excellent job. Those cars look great.
Many thanks indeed :-)
I don't dare going anywhere near grit again with my Bugsta 🤣 great review btw
Hi. Yeah mine is ok with the sealant but such a flaw in the design. Many thanks for your comments :-)
Thinking of getting one of these as my 2nd rc car, good choice for the £100-200 range? Currently have the WLtoys A959B but want something a bit bigger and offroady
Well it's probably ok if you leave it with the brushed motor but not really up to the brushless set I put in. Personally I'd get something more expensive and more robust which is what I did!
Good looking truck shame it's got some real bad design flaws. Thanks for the vid Pete. Take care and keep safe 👍🤘🤙
Hi Alex. Yes it's a great shame because a few design updates could make this a great budget RC. As it is I would rather spend more on something better like I was saying in the vid. Many thanks for watching and your comments. Hope all is well with you too 😁
I like the basic platform a lot but that spur gear thing is it's fatal flaw. Its a shame because it's so close to being amazing for the money. The overall design and spec is great for the cash, if you went with a bigger name brand you'd be likely to get friction dampers and plastic, non-adjustable linkages, no clutch etc for that price.
I was hoping they would address the issue with the version 2 of the Carnage but it seems to be the same basic design sadly. It's daft in a way because it makes it most vulnerable in the conditions it performs best in.
I have an HSP Bronto which also has crummy spur gear protection but the spur is at least made of metal so it's managed to munch it's way through most of the grit and dirt.
Hopefully they bring out a v3 eventually or at least give you a metal spur to start off with. I've heard that shimming the front end helps with that second issue but I haven't owned one personally. I agree about breaking being really hard on the front end, some 4wd stuff will even flip right over if you aren't careful. Especially stuff with a high COG like the E-maxx and E-Savage.
Anyways, all rambling aside, great video as always!
Hey, ramble away 😁 Yeah like you say it's a shame about the issue with the gears because a lot of it is really good. Be worth an extra £20 if they put in a tough sealed drive train. Anyway I think I was fair on it in the review. Thought it was worth doing this one as the original one was quite popular. Many thanks for watching and your comments 😀
@@PeteWylieRC That's what always frustrated me when I ran one. It only needs slightly better metals in the diff gears and a 32dp sealed spur. Mine was an absolute money pit and has been chucked in my garage somewhere, though I kept the shocks for something else.
@@thevisitor6267 hi there. Yeah I do think that if/when mine breaks down again I might break it up for spares. Like you say, not worth throwing money at as I have other ones to use. The Arrma has actually got plastic bevel gears but they must be really tough because I've already used it for more hours than I ever used the Bugsta and no issues as yet. Many thanks for watching and your comments 😁
Good honest review Thanks
Many thanks for watching at your feedback. Much appreciated ~:-)
What do you recommend as a better alternative 4x4 off roadie ??
Well I've not really tried any others that are around this price. I like the Arrma Granite as I talk about in the video but even the brushed Mega version is much more expensive than the Bugsta. Tomley RC does a lot of reviews of RTR RC's so his channel might be helpful.
If you changed the spur gear to metal and the brass one you changed to metal there is no dust or small stones with cause any problem . Brass and plastic rubbish change it to metal end of problems as I have run mine in sand .gravel dust. water . And never had a problem . Metal all the way . Same with the arms change them to alloy .
Hi there. Well I think that changing the gears to metal might stop them from breaking but wouldn't stop them from getting clogged up. I've had another car where the gears weren't sealed and they would get clogged up and the car would stop. The bigger RC's can get away with it better as they have gears with bigger teeth that can grind and throw the grit out. I just think with this one that it's not worth spending money on it as I've got better RC's that I like better. Many thanks for your suggestions though.
How do these compare to say the MJX models you can get for 100 to 150?
I've not had any of those cars but they do seem to be good from what people say. Obviously quite a bit smaller than the Bugsta but might be a better bet 👍
Hi, I have a Carnage 2.0 brushed and would like to upgrade to a brushless motor & esc set. Please can you recommend one ?
Hi there. I always use the Absima Thrust 3420kv bl eco waterproof combo as it's been reliable and drives well. I did have the problems with the drive train as mentioned in the video so be careful!
@@PeteWylieRC thank you 👍😊
Hi, have you looked at the sealed aluminium motor mount from modelsport.
I haven't but I will check it out. Many thanks :-)
Tbf the FTX range is great for the price, the spares are pretty cheap as are the hop-ups, if you use your brain and a bit of research/ingenuity the flaws can be corrected and is a fantastic car for the price of it, spending triple the money on something like the granite isn't a valid point as it is TRIPLE the price.
Yeah I hear what you are saying but my point was that for me I'd rather spend 3 times as much and get something I can really go mad with. Now that I've got the Granite (and all the other Arrma 3s cars) there isn't too much point in me keeping the Bugsta and it mainly lives on the shelf now. I think I did say that they are good for the money and they are. Probably quite reliable if you leave it brushed. Many thanks for your feedback. Much appreciated 😁
Cool vid, thanks for sharing 👍
Thanks young Pete. Hope all is well. I'll hopefully see you for that RC day if leaving the house is still allowed by then! Cheers mate :-)
@@PeteWylieRC Absolutely.
Check your emails for two latest builds 👏👏
@@cw-01creations46 Ok mate :-)
I just put a little plastic plate across the hole at front 😊, back just filled lol
Oh yeah that gearbox not being sealed is quite a bad fault with this. Shame as a lot of it is good for the money. Many thanks for your great feedback 😁👍
there's steel versions of the spur and every youtuber i've seen that's upgraded one of these 1/10 ftx's to brushless has regretted not upgrading the spur. but ur pinion got smashed too!
i reckon the hole at the bottom is for the brushed fan, so rocks (ironically) can drop out of the motor, so maybe the brushless chassis doesn't have it - edit nope i can't see a part 10381 without the hole
Hi there. Yeah the steel spur would be good but I think that the plastic spur gear would be fine if the grit didn't get in there. All my other cars apart from the 4s Arrma have plastic spur gears and they last for ages. Just a shame about this flaw because otherwise a good truck for the money. I must admit that this has been stored away in the loft and what I need to do is mend it and sell it. Many thanks indeed for your great feedback. Much appreciated 😁👍👍
@@PeteWylieRC PopalongRC were recommending a steel pinion as well - they started their channel on racing with this chassis, on the vantage buggies. A bit of grit is fine with regular maintenance I reckon. I'm bringing a bugsta back to life, its only ever been run on the nihmi batteries lol
@@shadyhazza Yeah I did get the steel pinion which is better. Be ok on grass and generally non gritty places. Maybe I should bring mine back to life but I think I'm still going to sell it because I've got others that are more robust 😁
@@PeteWylieRC if you can find someone like me to buy it go ahead :D i paid around 60gbp/70usd for it with non-working servo. but i could see it hadn't been thrashed
Hi, can i upgrade battery to 7.2V 5300?
Yes that would be good and give a better run time 👍
Bloody brillian tvid...heard about the gearbox....really not sure to buy it
Many thanks. Yeah it is an issue for sure. I've still got this but don't run it very much because I'm afraid of breaking the gears. Not sure what else you can get for this sort of money though. WLtoys maybe which are really good but smaller and non standard electronics. The answer for me was to spend loads more money on an Arrma!
@@PeteWylieRC Yes....the granite seems really good value....liked the tamiya blackfoot as it wasnt too fast at 24mph...for me this is better.....how fast is Granite ??...senton is 50mph...way too much speed !!!
@@richardbradley2335 The Granite is near 50mph too on 3s! Maybe get a Granite Mega which has brushed electronics so slower and also cheaper. Really tough trucks and great handling.
Put an under tray on it
I'm not exactly sure what you mean?
I paid 160 for Brushed
Yeah it's a pretty good RC for the money and just has those issues with the gears that I talk about in the video. Probably ok if you stick with the standard electronics. Hope you get on ok with yours :-)
or you could do this;- th-cam.com/video/DBj0uP2ybIw/w-d-xo.html
...which is two Bugsta kits and a lot of patience.... your video does describe the gearbox problems well though! I have an all steel spur to go back in, but they are noisey as well as durable.
I have looked at your video and what you have done is really clever. Looks brilliant. Thanks for your comments :-)
@@PeteWylieRC cheers! I use mine to climb, not jump. Funny the older carnage chassis has a hole under the spur, and I seems to let more grit OUT than it lets in. How did you seal the gap at the back of the gearbox? that's the one I have problems with.
@@carlbModels Yeah the gears would almost be better completely open and then you could clean them up easier. I'm not sure which hole you mean on the back of the gearbox. I've just used that sealant stuff everywhere that was a gap.
I see you are using 25 kg servo. haha. Mine is 20 kg.
Yeah those DSservos are so cheap and pretty decent. Don't think I've had one fail on me yet. Thanks for watching :-)
@@PeteWylieRC I am curious what is different between 25kg and 20kg servo?
5kg 😂
@@PeteWylieRC Wow Pete, your maths is so GOOD! :P
Definitely don’t buy it again lol
Ha, yeah yours didn't last too long!