RC Trucks - Radio Control Monster, Short Course and More!

R/C Monster Trucks

Short Course R/C Trucks

Remote controlled trucks are very popular in the r/c hobby. Big and fast, speeds from 30mph all the way up to 65mph. In my database of over 500+ cars and trucks (by no means complete, but quite a lot), here is the breakdown of the rc trucks category.

Category	Electric	Gas	Nitro	Total
Monster	27	2	23	53
Short Course	34	3	6	43
Stadium	16	2	13	31
Truggy	1	1	12	14
Crawler	13	-	-	13
Scale Truck	5	-	-	5

Most popular are monsters followed closely by short course. In terms of power, most popular is electric (96 trucks) followed by nitro (54 trucks) and gas (8 trucks).

RC Trucks - Electric, Nitro and Gas

Let's begin by discussing the various powerplants. All are capable of very fast speed. For beginners, I recommend electric rc trucks for ease of use. For excitement it's nitro or gas powered trucks.

Traxxas E-Maxx (electric) - 50mph

Traxxas T-Maxx (nitro) - 45mph

Photo: Difference between the Traxxas electric and nitro rc trucks. Traxxas.com

Power	Engine / Motor	Fuel / Battery	Speeds
Electric	540 or 550 brushed or brushless motors	2S - 4s lipo batteries	30mph - 65mph
Nitro	.12cc - .21cc two-stroke nitro engines	15% - 30% nitro rc car fuel	30mph - 65mph
Gas	23cc - 30cc gasoline engine	Regular gasoline with 2T oil mix	40mph - 50mph

There was a time when nitro rc trucks were the fastest. But with new brushless motor and LiPo battery technology, electrics are now faster. But nothing still beats the sound and realism of nitro monster trucks.

Once you have decided on electric, nitro, or gasoline, you can then choose your model type (monster, short course, stadium, truggy, crawler or scale rc trucks). It's basicaly a personal preference, buy the model that excites you.

RC Monster Trucks

RC Monster Trucks
Skill Level: Advanced / Experienced Modelers
Engine: Electric, Nitro Powered
Speed: 30 - 60+ mph
Scale: 1/10th and 1/8th

1/10 Electric Monster - HPI Savage Flux XS (65mph), Traxxas E-Maxx (50mph)

1/8 Nitro Monster - Traxxas T-Maxx 3.3 (45mph), Associated Monster GT 4.6, CEN GST 7.7 (40mph), Kyosho MFC, Losi Aftershock (40mph), HPI Savage X 4.6 (45mph), Schumacher Manic 36 Twin and Tamiya TNX 5.2R.

You can race these on off-road rc dirt tracks or even indoor on-road rc tracks.

Monster trucks racing in a big off-road track, jumping and kicking dirt

Monster trucks racing and jumping inside a mall track.

Short Course RC Trucks

Short Course RC Trucks
Skill Level: Beginners/Advanced / Experienced Modelers
Engine: Electric, Nitro, Gas Powered
Speed: 30 - 45+ mph
Scale: 1/10th, 1/8th and mini/micro

1/10 Electric Short Course - Associated SC10 4x4 (28mph), Durango DESC410R (36mph), Kyosho Ultima SCR (32mph), Losi TEN-SCTE (28mph), Traxxas Slash 4x4 VXL (30mph).

1/8 Nitro Power Short Course - Traxxas Slayer Pro 4x4 (45mph), Associated SC8.

1/5 Gas Short Course - HPI Baja 5SC SS29 (40mph)

RC Stadium Trucks

RC Stadium Trucks
Skill Level: Beginners/Advanced / Experienced Modelers
Engine: Electric, Nitro, Gas Powered
Speed: 30 - 65+ mph
Scale: 1/10th, 1/8th and mini/micro

1/10 Electric Stadium Truck - HPI Firestorm Flux (43mph), Losi Speed-T (65mph) and Traxxas Rustler VXL (35mph).

1/8 Nitro Stadium Truck - HPI Nitro Firestorm (45mph), Losi Speed-NT (60mph) and Traxxas Jato 3.3 (65mph).

1/5 Gas Stadium Truck - HPI Baja 5T (40mph) and Losi 5IVE-T.

Mini / Micro RC Trucks

There are also smaller scale versions of all these types of mini rc trucks.

1/36 - Losi Micro T, Micro Desert Truck, Micro High Roller

1/30 - Kyosho Mini-Z Monster

1/24 - Losi Micro SCT, Micro Rock Crawler

1/18 - Associated SC18, Duratrax Vendetta SC, HPI Mini Recon, Losi Mini-Desert Truck, Mini-Rock Crawler

1/16 - CEN MG16, Kyosho Mini Inferno ST, Losi Mini Ready Lift SCT, Traxxas E-Revo VXL, Summit VXL, Slash 4x4 VXL

1/12 - HPI Mini-Trophy Flux, Wheely King, Nitro Monster King, OFNA Jammin CRT .5, Hyper Mini ST, Tamiya Lunch Box

Where to Buy RC Trucks

Visit the manufacturers website. There's usually a dealer's locator page to help you find the nearest hobby shop. Or try buying online at the rc store page.

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RC Radio Control Cars

GUIDE TO REMOTE CONTROL R/C TRUCKS

RC Car Tips.com - Remote Control Cars, Radio Controlled Trucks, and R/C Hobby Shops
Homepage contains lots of articles about the fun hobby of RC cars and trucks.

Online Hobby Shops
Where you can buy fast rc trucks on sale. Big selections and discounts on monster, nitro, and rc electric trucks.

Truck RC
Your guide to buying radio control trucks. Nitro, monster, pickups, accessories and parts for sale.