The two K's - thanks for that - explains the £50 odd price difference then...
Kedal - who / where are you referring to to get the cheap(er) ali shocks???
Kaylon - do you race your Rat? Is it competitive?
I've ruled out the Tamiya Desert Gator now, as while to start with I wanted to ease myself back in to R/C with a bit of bashing, I can see that it wouldn't be that difficult to catch the racing bug..., and while a Rat isn't the ideal basher, I imagine it would at least be ballpark competitive in 2wd racing with a few treaks and careful setup, whereas the Gator, though probably a better basher, would be a bit lost on the track due to the tuning / adjustability limitations.
Just need to think a little more about whether I spend the extra £50 up front, or get the Rat, use it for a bit, and if I really get back into it, then sell the Rat and get an X Pro.
Based on your experiences with Rats, if you were starting from scratch with a new build, what motor / esc combo would you recommend and why (not too expensive or the wife will notice...
).