I'm gettin' all warm & Fuzzy !

[properchopper]

Wow ! New product from ProBoat, Aquacraft, Traxxas, Hobby King, Venom, Insane Boats - did I leave anyone out ? Is FE finally waking up in the minds of the biggies ? I think so ! Is this the new FE Renaissance we've all been hoping for ? After a long time of "slim pickins' " things are really getting interesting - and nice !

[Doby]

Its about time.....ahhhhh...choices.

[Darin Jordan]

Who was it that was on here recently saying that the "manufacturers don't care what racers want"? Or that "the rules aren't going to matter to the manufacturers, they don't build to the rules anyway"???

I have one word to say to that.... WRONG!

[properchopper]

Who was it that was on here recently saying that the "manufacturers don't care what racers want"? Or that "the rules aren't going to matter to the manufacturers, they don't build to the rules anyway"???

I have one word to say to that.... WRONG!

Hats off to you, my Brother !!

[Fluid]

Who was it that was on here recently saying that the "manufacturers don't care what racers want"? Or that "the rules aren't going to matter to the manufacturers, they don't build to the rules anyway"

Darin, exactly what legal, recognized classes were the RTR boats built to compete in? Looks to me like they would be generally non-competitive in the only legal racing classes most of them fit in.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing any of the new RTR boats - I'm all for them and welcome them with open arms. But it seems to me that the market has been driven by the success of quality BL-powered boats by Aquacraft and ProBoats like the SV27 and BJ26, not by some arbitrary set of non-existant "racing rules".


.

[lomdel]

Amidst all these new releases, I (and I believe several others as well) am still searching for a ARTR catamaran with twin 540 size motors and proper 3/16" hardware. The Jolly Twin is just too expensive...

[electric]

Yes, this is crazy. There is a new boat being announced about every week lately. Now the competition starts on who has the best bang for the buck. Who has the best design. Who is fastest out of the box. Who has the BEST QUALITY. To me, that last one is the big one. So far, just about any boat I have purchased RTR usually has some amount of "flaws" right out of the box. Not just minor flaws, I mean stuff like failing ESC's, leaks galore, weak structure, poor installation..etc. Finding a boat that you can buy, put your batteries in, and get at least twenty sucessfull runs with nothing more than greasing the shaft would be an accomplishment.

This is to me, the thing that will justify the cost differences between a lowest cost boat vs. a brand name boat. It will be interesting to see how these new models stack up. I have Stilleto on order and then on the other end of the specktrum I have 180.00 no-name on order. My expectations of each are quite different in terms of quality.

Shaping up to be a great summer for FE!

[Darin Jordan]

Darin, exactly what legal, recognized classes were the RTR boats built to compete in? Looks to me like they would be generally non-competitive in the only legal racing classes most of them fit in.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not dissing any of the new RTR boats - I'm all for them and welcome them with open arms. But it seems to me that the market has been driven by the success of quality BL-powered boats by Aquacraft and ProBoats like the SV27 and BJ26, not by some arbitrary set of non-existant "racing rules".


.

Valid points... Let me rephrase it then... We are making sure that the offerings will FIT into existing, and perhaps soon to exist, racing rules... It should be abundantly clear that there is an effort made to provide the market with boats that can truely be raced.

I mean, seriously... there is REALLY only ONE place where "legal racing classes" are even considered important... Otherwise, Clubs around the country, and even at that ONE event, there are "recognized classes" where these offerings ARE going to be competitive. And, if P-Limited becomes a real class structure, then boom... If not, something tells me people will be racing them anyhow.

[Steven Vaccaro]

Amidst all these new releases, I (and I believe several others as well) am still searching for a ARTR catamaran with twin 540 size motors and proper 3/16" hardware. The Jolly Twin is just too expensive...

You really get what you pay for. If you have ever get to see a Toys-Port hull, you will realize why they are that cost. Hand made one at a time, very strong and mounts and hardware are precisely installed.

[Darin Jordan]

Amidst all these new releases, I (and I believe several others as well) am still searching for a ARTR catamaran with twin 540 size motors and proper 3/16" hardware. The Jolly Twin is just too expensive...

Hahahaha... I actually tried REALLY hard to get them to let me do one of these with twin Stiletto outboards on it!! However, for the RTR market, there apparently is a price-point concern that tends to temper the desires to put something like that on the market.

Still would be REALLY cool, though!!

[electric]

You really get what you pay for. If you have ever get to see a Toys-Port hull, you will realize why they are that cost. Hand made one at a time, very strong and mounts and hardware are precisely installed.

Steven, I agree, I am in the middle of a Triton build. The hull quality is second to none. The hardware, (I have finally tracked down a Triton rudder, used), is really nice. No where else have I seen hardware that is polished to a mirror finish. Really nice stuff.

[tharmer]

The quality problem with RTR's is that everyone wants quality, but almost no one is willing to pay for it. That's what WalMart lives on.
-t

[properchopper]

The quality problem with RTR's is that everyone wants quality, but almost no one is willing to pay for it. That's what WalMart lives on.
-t

Very good point. But consider the challange manufacturers have : striking a balance between build quality and affordability. The old conflict between engineering and marketing/sales. Too often the sales dep't. wins and quality suffers. A good example of this is the r/c heli market.The good news is that things in the world of FE seem to be improving in view of some of these latest offerings. I, for one, am happy to see the spike in new product offerings and think the future will only get brighter . I "got my shades on"

[Flying Scotsman]

All very valid points, for myself quality is the key issue and that is why most most of my hulls are from H&M, Toys-Port and MHZ and I install the hardware etc. of my choice. I have a UL 1 and an SV27 but they both had their failings which are well documented.
I trust that the new bevy of almost and true RTR boats listen to people like Darin who have helped in the design of these boats and that the manufacturers test their OEM components prior to a factory production run.
The Insane boat I will buy and I will take a wait and see look on the others

Douggie

[DPeterson]

Darin

Hahahaha... I actually tried REALLY hard to get them to let me do one of these with twin Stiletto outboards on it!! However, for the RTR market, there apparently is a price-point concern that tends to temper the desires to put something like that on the market.

Still would be REALLY cool, though!!

I guess If you can't by one, build one. Just completed my dual outboard Jolly Cat. Going to send it to an airbrush artist for a fancy offshore paint scheme. Had I had access to the Proboat Outboards I may have used them. I like them very much. Although I already owned the KMB's. These are converted to the BJ brushless.

New class - dual offshore cats! just kidding!

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