1/8th Electric - is it the future?

[stumpy]

I bought the cheapest 1/8 truggy I could buy, the HB D8T (HPI) then installed the cheapest ESC and Motor - Hobbywing 150 amp ESC and 2200 motor, Then bought the cheapest Battery - 4 x turnigy 4000's.

Total cost £625, put a nitro on our track of the same value and do a timed lap, brushless fastest is 29.9 seconds - (my best 30.76) fastest nitro 31.44.

Ignore the propulsion system (nitro/brushless) you still need to set the rest of the car up in the same way but mine will not stall on the start line, I don’t have to spend the first half hour trackside re-tuning because the weather has changed.

I started playing with these things over 30 years ago with a Tamiya grasshopper, 540can and a NiCad battery, then bought my first nitro, all in all I've had about 25 off/on road cars and can honestly say this D8T is the best because I spend more time running it and a lot less time tinkering with the engine.

I still have nitro's but they spend more time on the shelf then at the track, because I want to spend more time racing and having fun then 'tuning' an engine, plus the cost of good nitro fuel is now to expensive.

I was one of the last at our club to move over to the 'dark side' and use that electricity stuff, as I was a nitro man-love the smell and the noise but so glad I changed.

I have since converted my Losi Ten T to brushless - mainly because they are thursty and with a small tank that would not last a 5min heat, it now last's 8min.

The good thing is that manufacturers make both and it's down to the individual to make HIS choice and not be dictated to by out of date club rules.

I believe it's HPI that are working on nitro size engine that runs on PETROL - Something else for the Purist's to ponder and discredit.

As I said I've had and still have both (Nitro & Brushless) and IMO the brushless is best.