The HBX 16889a Pro is a highly specced 1/16 scale 4wd offroad RC monster truck from Haiboxing (HBX). It is based on the same car released under the names SG 1601, SG 1602 and HBX 16889 that I reviewed over a year ago here which also won my basher of the year in 2020. This version has many upgrades which I'll cover in full in this article and will let you know how they all come together to make this car better. Recently we've seen a lot of releases in the 1/14 and 1/16 scale off road bashing RC car class; some of them good like the HBX 16886 Spectre and some of them not so good like the Bonsai 141600. Before these we've had the excellent WL Toys 144001 for which I have written over 30 upgrade articles and of course the HBX 16889 which won my budget basher of the year for 2020. This year we are seeing a higher spec version for both of these models - announced but still some months away is the 144010 (a brushless version of the 144001) and the subject of this review is the 16889 Pro - still brushless but with upgrades across the board. I've written this review in such a way so that people new to the HBX 16889 will be able to see all of its features while people who are familiar with the 16889 will be able to see the upgrades. First we'll start with a close up look at the specs and components followed by a review of the car as it actually drives. At the end I'll sum up with which I think is better for different consumers.
A close up look at the components and Specs Size. This truck officially a 1/16 scale and I'd tend to agree, below is an image of it lined up against some of the other popular models in the 1/14 and 1/16 category: From left to right: WL Toys 144001, HBX 16889a Pro, LC Racing EMB-MT, HBX 16886 Spectre, WL Toys 124018 Motor. The motor used in the HBX 16889a Pro is a brushless 2840 rated at 3800kv. This compares to the brushless 2435 3900kv in the regular 16889 or the 390 motor in the brushed 16889. 2840 is a very large motor for a car this small and light, so you can expect the power to match. Remember that brushless motors in cars of this price bracket are somewhat uncommon and are such an improvement. By comparison brushed motor counterparts are slow and inefficient. This means more battery life and more speed in the real world. 2840 sized motors have a larger 3.2mm diameter shaft than the 2435 and 390 motors so rather than a press-fit pinion as in the prior models, a proper grub screw M0.6 14t pinion has been used here.
Interesting that the new, larger motor has a very similar kV to the previous model here, 3800kv, which is fairly conservative. I'll talk more about what this means when I get to the performance section but in short, less top speed, more battery life and powerful acceleration. ESC/Receiver. Like all budget ready to run RC cars the Electronic Speed Controller (ESC) is integrated with the receiver (available here as a replacement item). This helps keep the cost down but can often be detrimental because you are tied to the often lacklustre stock ESC unless you change the transmitter and receiver too. It's pleasing to see then that the brushless unit used here is actually very reliable. Although not stated I'd expect this to be rated at 30a. Regardless I've found this unit to run cool even without a fan with no noticeable cogging, which is due to the clever choice of gearing and kV chosen. I really like where the power switch is mounted too - attached to the side of the chassis away from harm's way but easy to access without removing the shell. It's the little extra details like this that make it really enjoyable to run. Receiver range is good, noticeably better than the SG 1602 that this car was originally based on. As you can see in my original review of the SG 1602, I found the range to be disappointing so it's nice to see it has been improved here. I've been out to about 50m so far without any loss in signal, this is about as far as I wish to drive this car before I can't see it all that well. Servo and steering. The servo is a 3 wire unit meaning if you wish to convert to discrete receiver and ESC further down the track, you can retain this servo (unlike cars that use a 5-wire servo). Better yet this servo is VERY quick, check it out below!! I can confirm this is definitely a 17g sized servo so it's good to know replacements are cheap and easy to find if needed, such as the excellent surpass hobby 17g metal gear digital servo The steering mechanism itself is all plastic but has minimal slop and bump steer so I am happy. Servo saver is integrated into the servo horn. Steering links are not adjustable tierods so you can't adjust toe in or toe out. I don't mind having no camber adjustment but though having an adjustable tie rod here may have been beneficial. Battery and Charger. The battery included with this car is a 2s 1000mah lipo unit. This replaces the 2s 1300mah LiIon unit as supplied with the regular 16889. Although it sounds inferior by way of lower capacity, the different chemistry used in the Lipo pack with this car allows greater discharge meaning more power is available to the motor when needed - not so much top speed but acceleration is where it really shows. The pack itself is quite small, measuring about 55mm long and 30mm wide. If you are looking for a replacement battery you can go up to 40mm wide and 60mm long if you remove the foam spacer. More on that in the upgrade section below. Stock 2s 1000mah battery uses a Deans T-plug connector which is the standard among cars this size and well suited to the power output on this car.
Metal gears. Of all the manufacturers, HBX have the smoothest gears I've come across and this 16889a Pro is no different. This was all the more pleasing when I opened up the gearboxes to find these are both smooth and all metal and I really mean ALL metal - Pinion, spur, diff pinion, diff crown gear and even the diff internals. By contrast the regular brushed and brushless HBX 16889 both use all plastic gears (other than the pinion of course). Not just metal gear but decent quality metal gears. Just look at the quality of the diff pinion and crown gears above I'm usually not a fan of metal spur gears because when done incorrectly they cause more problems that they solve. For example in the WL Toys 104001 the stock metal spur is very heavy and this causes poor motor sensitivity and more susceptibility to drive line damage through increased inertia. Further more when the gears aren't cut well they are noisy and unpleasant. The HBX 16889a pro however does have a metal spur gear that is made properly. It is well cut and meshes beautifully with the pinion so is quiet plus it is very lightweight, just check out the design below. Unlike the HBX 16886 Spectre there is no slipper clutch (see review here) here however given the size and weight of the car, it's not really missed Good design choice for a metal spur gear here. Rather than just using the same die as a plastic unit, the spur is thinner with more cutouts to account for the extra strength and weight of the metal over the plastic. Nice oversized bearing should last well. Strengthened driveshafts. The HBX 16889a Pro uses oversized metal drive shafts front (CVD) and rear (dogbone) plus oversized metal cups. Furthermore they use an oversized wheel stubs shared with larger 1/10 scale cars that results in using an M4 nuts rather than the M3 units typical of this scale.
Suspension. Oil shocks front and rear are standard on the pro version which is an obvious upgrade from the regular 16889. This was the very first mod I did to my original 16889 here and a massive improvement so good choice by HBX. Dampening is good out of the box but perhaps a little too heavy given the car is so light, I may look to reduce oil thickness down to 10wt further down the track. Shocks have not leaked so far which is promising. Shock towers are plastic but have a few adjustment options to change the leverage of your shocks Nice the see double wishbone suspension front and rear. This lacks the camber adjustability of tierods but given this car is designed as a basher rather than a racer lends well to it prioritising strength over adjustability. Since the stock arm length is well set, adjustability isn't really missed here. Just a quick note that the front hub setup is quite cool in that it minimises the number of parts - rather than having a hub carrier and hub like LC racing and WL toys as I am used to, this has one integrated unit as below. Less pieces to break and more simple in the first place.
Chassis. The chassis and all main parts are made of plastic which is fairly common for basher type cars where extreme chassis stiffness is not required (stiff chassis are needed for racing). This makes for a lighter and more durable car since there is less weight to stop and the small amount of flex in the chassis can soften impacts. So far I've not come across a better plastic for this application than what HBX use. As mentioned in my original long term update for the HBX 16889, the chassis design and material makes the car practically indestructible, praise that is echoed by other users of their cars. This is obviously not just for the main chassis but all of the suspension arms and other plastic components. Wheels and tyres. HBX makes uses a really hard compound rubber for their tyres and the 16889 and these are retained for the pro model here. Good for durability but not good for grip however like the other models they overcome this lack of grip by going big on size. This means tyres offer a reasonable level of grip on all surfaces and don't wear down quickly. Rims have a fairly large offset which helps give the car a fairly wide stance and overall dimensions are below:
Body, Wheelie Bar, Lights. The Body (available here) is the sames shape that has always been used on the 16889 however I do quite like the new colours given they match the orange in the wheels. It comes with a decal sheet you can use to decorate further if you wish. It's a fairly strong body which is good because it often lands on its roof! I really like the body colour and the way it matches the wheels This car wheelies a lot and so the wheelie bar is a useful addition but bear in mind you will need to install yourself. No problem it's only 6 screws and they even include the screwdriver! LED headlights are also here but need to be installed. They included everything needed for this installation including double sided tape and cable ties. They are decently bright as you can see below. How does the car run? To make this section easier to follow I'll split it into (performance including speed and efficiency), handling and then durability. Lastly I will talk briefly about upgrades. But first of all, footage!
![]() Performance. Looking straight to the top speed, I've measured a 39km/h when running offroad using the SKYRC GSM020 GPS speed meter. This feels like a decent turn of pace for this little 1/16 scale truck. Funnily enough it's almost identical to the original HBX Brushless as mentioned by Perth West Oz RC in his video where he got 38.8km/h. At first glance is would seem strange that the top speed is the same given the new 2840 motor is over 50% bigger than the 2435. The truth lies in the KV, where the 2435 is rated at 3900kV and the 2840 at 3800kV. This conservative kV choice and the relatively short gearing limits the top speed. Because of this though, this little car hits top speed very fast and in most conditions. As I alluded to, I hit my top speed off road as well as on - the low kv and short gearing makes it super torque-ey and pickup is rapid. The other thing this means is that this car wheelies on demand at practically any speed and on most surfaces, the wheelie bar we installed is not just there for decoration! The other benefit you gain from this efficient setup is massive run time. Even with the little 1000mah battery I got between 15 and 20 minutes from a full charge which is simply class leading in this size. And to think, if you could find even a 1500mah pack that would fit (looks like I've found one, check out the upgrade section) you could probably run for nearly half an hour. It something that we overlook but this efficiency is such a strong point of this car and was one of the underrated features of the original HBX 16889 brushless car as well. I should note that the final benefit to an efficient system like this is that it runs very cool. After 15 minutes of hard driving with the kids the motor, ESC and battery were barely warm. Handling. This car is made to be a basher and that is clear in the handling. The weight tends to be rear biased as a result of the light chassis and having the two heaviest components (motor and battery) rear mounted. The means copious amounts of wheelies which are a lot of fun but on the downside it does tend to understeer a little on less grippy surfaces so you'll need to use your throttle to help balance this. Certainly it wouldn't be suited for racing but then again this car has never pretended to be a race car. Although the oil filled shocks are really a nice addition here, I found the dampening from the factory a little too heavy because the car is just so light. In future I will probably drop to a 10 or 15wt shock oil but don't mind putting up with a bit of bounciness for now. On the flipside they are well set up for landing jumps and that to be fair is more where this car is targeted. Certainly bounciness over rough surfaces is nothing new to the small 1/16 and 1/14 scale cars which is why we tend to look at larger vehicles for very rough terrain. Durability. This car is an absolute tank. Due to it's wide stance it is almost square in stature so it loves to roll which I have done a lot of! If you refer back to my long term follow up article from the SG1602 here, you'll see the only thing I damaged was the rear spoiler. The HBX 16889a Pro does not have a rear spoiler to break, With out trying to put to finer point on it, I have never come across a car that is more durable than this. While all my other cars end up on the bench for repairs and waiting for parts (including crawlers), this one just keeps going. Upgradeability. This section will be short, I don't believe there is anything that needs upgrading on this car. It is strong, plenty fast for it's size which pushes the limits of it's handling and runs for a long time. If you really pushed yourself there would be scope to go to a slightly higher kV motor although this would put the stock ESC under more stress and I thing would push the car faster than the handling really allows for. I wouldn't mind being able to go up a tooth or two in the pinion gear but the motor mount is not adjustable and so would take a lot of work that I don't think is worth the effort. The only factor you may want to consider is a slightly larger battery but the size of the battery tray makes it tricky. I cannot confirm any battery that is an improvement over stock that fits in this space. Update! The WL Toys 144001 2s 1500mah lipo battery just fits but it is a bit heavier, see below. Update 2: It looks like there is variation in the size of the WL toys 144001 battery and some have reported the product that is shipping is larger than what fits in this car now The WL TOys 144001 2s 1500mah battery just fits if you remove the foam padding in the car but is a bit heavier so will make the car wheelie even more Conclusions and Recommendations The HBX 16889a Pro is a simply fantastic small scale RC truck that falls squarely in the "basher" category. It improves in so many ways over the original 16889 brushless which itself was an excellent car. The improvements are mainly focussed on handling, durability and acceleration. The result is a little truck that is quick off the mark, handles like a true basher, runs for ages and is super strong. If you are looking for a car that you can get meaningful upgrades for then this is not the car for you, consider instead the WL Toys 144001 which has shortcomings but is an excellent base for upgrading. However, if you are looking for a well priced basher that performs really well at a fair price then I can happily recommend this car. Thanks for reading and please feel free to join my facebook group and discuss if you wish.
Here are the upgrade parts that are included on the Pro model and not the original. These come to a total cost of $150 retail so you can see there is value in choosing the pro over the regular model. Obviously you need to take into account that if you upgrade a regular model you will end up with base model spares but this should help you understand the value of the pro model vs upgrading the standard model even for just a few of the key parts.
Thanks for reading, if you found this article useful please feel free to like or share, the facebook links below directly link/like this article. I don't believe in asking for money by patreon nor by paypal but if you do wish to help me, the affiliated links in these articles help me buy the bits and services I need to produce this type of content. If you are looking for RC cars, quads or parts check out my coupons and discounts page which I keep updated with only the RC cars, parts and quads I like at a proper discount
171 Comments
Rcfreak
16/8/2021 02:52:56 am
Sounds brilliant it was the original that got me into RC. I will have to pick this up at some point.
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QuadifyRC
17/8/2021 09:36:56 am
Yeah, I love this car. It's just so complete out of the box. I'm actually just about to add a list of all the upgrade parts it includes (and the value)
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Cheong
21/5/2023 01:21:32 pm
Put a 3S on and it's a rocket.
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RC guy
17/8/2021 04:28:58 pm
Hey mate, good review. There's a few grammatical errors though which make it a bit jarring to read. Otherwise good and thanks for the info
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QuadifyRC
17/8/2021 04:41:39 pm
Thanks man! Yeah was up a bit late, will go back through and edit.
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Sam
9/3/2023 04:42:04 am
Yeah eheh also me I found it as a good review but what a pity for the jarring part.
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Deti
17/8/2021 07:12:33 pm
Hi
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QuadifyRC
18/8/2021 09:40:00 am
Hey man, stronger that the and faster than a Teton, I had one of those once upon a time. These things require very little maintenance. Check here for a long term review I did on the earlier, non pro version of this model https://www.quadifyrc.com/rccarreviews/sg-1601-sg1602-brushless-rc-truck-long-term-use-update
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Deti
29/8/2021 12:22:44 pm
Hey!
Christiaan
18/8/2021 10:12:56 pm
Is this a new motor mount for the 2840 motor? Or does the 2840 motor fit in the same mount as the 2435 motor?
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Konstantinos
19/8/2021 02:21:16 am
Hi mate! I really enjoyed your review!
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QuadifyRC
20/8/2021 02:52:44 pm
Definitely this one, the upgraded parts make the small difference in price a really simple decision. This is on a differently level to the 144001 in terms of durability. They code I have at the moment in the article makes the price pretty decent too.
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Chezza
19/8/2021 12:38:54 pm
Mate! Great review.
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QuadifyRC
20/8/2021 02:55:20 pm
Thanks Chezza! Yeah Ali can be a bit of a gamble at times so I wish you good luck haha.
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Christiaan
20/8/2021 05:39:32 pm
Does this 2840 motor sit in the same motor mount as the 2435? It looks the same mount to me.
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QuadifyRC
22/8/2021 12:38:19 am
I believe it's the same but to be honest I actually consider the 2435 to 2840 the least impactful upgrade. That 2435 suits that car really well and the 2840 doesn't add a whole lot more
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Christiaan
23/8/2021 05:25:11 am
Yes, I think you are right. It would give it more initial punch, but with the 2435 it is already pulling wheelies. (especially with a Lipo instead of the stock lithium ion cells)
Mcfu
23/8/2021 09:36:20 am
Nice review, but the discount coupon is not working anymore. Says it can be only used 8 times.
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mmcck
25/8/2021 05:06:28 am
Same problem
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QuadifyRC
27/8/2021 01:02:09 pm
Good news, I have a new code with 8 more available at this price. Use link https://bit.ly/3iBsq2K and code BG799CDA which has just been updated for me.
QuadifyRC
27/8/2021 01:01:50 pm
Good news, I have a new code with only 8 more available at this price. Use link https://bit.ly/3iBsq2K and code BG799CDA which has just been updated for me.
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Shayne RC NZ
29/8/2021 08:59:30 pm
Hey man nice review. TBH I am a bit over the smaller scale bashers, just sold a box of broken WLToys and parts on Trademe but have seen this on YouTube and always liked the 16889 and 16890. The pro version looks to be a decent upgrade but at $200 NZD I was still unsure BUT your code gave me a $28 discount! Ordered. I've found Banggood shipping to NZ 2-3 weeks so can't wait. Be a nice add to my Arrmas. Thanks for the indepth review bro.
Shahar
24/8/2021 02:27:28 am
Thanks for this post, it helped me decide to buy this car. It arrived today and I noticed there is plenty of room for a much larger battery above the original battery place. So you can put batteries with lengths of 70 and 80 mm. You'll need to arrange another way to hold it of course. Do you think it's a good idea?
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QuadifyRC
26/8/2021 09:42:22 am
Hi Shahar, great! Yes you could fit a larger battery there but my thoughts are the run time is already long and sitting a battery higher up would make the car more likely to tumble. All I can say is give it a go, run time may mean more to your than handling but I personally like to keep batteries as low as possible.
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Alexey
19/9/2021 10:03:03 pm
This might be a solution: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4958143
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Js
26/8/2021 04:13:26 pm
Looks like the code doesn’t work anymore, says it can only be used 8 times
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QuadifyRC
27/8/2021 01:01:32 pm
Good new, I have a new code with only 8 more available at this price. Use link https://bit.ly/3iBsq2K and code BG799CDA which has just been updated for me.
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Robert Albrecht
29/8/2021 09:20:16 pm
Hey, this is Robert from Germany again.
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QuadifyRC
31/8/2021 12:20:00 am
Greetings back again from New Zealand, I'm glad you made your way to this article. Yes, if you look at the upgrades it make purchasing this a simple decision. I first starting using this car when my middle son was 5 as well. Perfect learner for him because it was super tough and the battery lasted a long time.
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Steve
31/8/2021 03:39:27 am
Hi, thanks for all your reviews and upgrades. Is there something a little bigger like 1/14 or 1/12 scale that's on par with this out of the box rtr?
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QuadifyRC
8/9/2021 12:43:01 pm
Haha I've been pushing the HBX reps to do this for the last few weeks. A bigger version of this would give the more expensive brands a good run for their money
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Roger
6/9/2021 05:36:42 am
Thanks for the detailed review. This car looks very impressive for the price. I tried using your coupon code and unfortunately it actually increased the price, but got the car anyway without the code.
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QuadifyRC
8/9/2021 12:43:51 pm
Hi Roger, there is a really good flash sale on at the moment for Banggood's 15th anniversary which is what the code actually makes it go the wrong way.
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Roger
13/9/2021 06:50:05 pm
Oh ok, makes sense. Thanks for clarifying.
Zeurdo
11/9/2021 01:58:57 am
Hello, can I find the same wheels to get on my 104001.
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QuadifyRC
13/9/2021 05:11:23 pm
Hi Zeur. Yes and they fit well - review on them here https://www.quadifyrc.com/rccarreviews/wl-toys-144001-upgrade-wheels-best-for-bashing
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Alexey
19/9/2021 10:08:49 pm
Mine is very noisy out the box just because of metal gears, they knock on each other very hard, not sure I agree that main gears are meshed well. And I need to mention that greasing out of the box are very bad, I was forced to fill the diffs and regrease whole drive chain.
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QuadifyRC
22/9/2021 11:30:22 pm
I hear you on the battery bay. A shame it's small but the 1000mah gives a great run time. The 3d printed holder is a good idea but I'd be nervous to raise the COG.
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Alexey
24/9/2021 05:32:00 am
Even if the runtime is great - you still need additional batteries if you want to have fun longer than 20 minutes. Recharging in the field in not always an option and even if it is - 1 hour gap between fun is not good at all, especially for kids. So in my opinion this is just bad product decision from manufacturer.
Cory
1/10/2021 02:42:24 pm
I received my HBX 16689a pro in the mail today and have yet to run it because of the noise coming from what sounds like the differentials. I've included a link to a video with the sound I'm talking about. I doubt this is normal but I wanted to ask before trying to go back after Banggood haha. For what it's worth, when manually pushing my 124019, there is very little noise compared to this.
Roger
2/10/2021 03:15:57 am
CORY, to me that sounds normal for a brushless motor. It does sound very different to a brushed motor like in the 124019. I think it's because of the more powerful magnets in the brushless motor that makes it sound and feel clunky. All my brushless cars sound like that when pushed, but when running it should sound a lot better.
QuadifyRC
28/9/2021 05:10:15 pm
Like I said, the feedback is pretty overwhelmingly positive on these, even in groups that tend to focus on the negative. If you have an axe to grind that is fine but you have already tried to make your point 3-4 times already. Also 20 minute runtime is extremely long in a car that performs like this. If you are wanting something longer I'd suggest looking at a crawler like this one which can run for about 40-60 minutes. https://www.quadifyrc.com/rccarreviews/wpl-c24-116-review-a-cheap-mini-crawler-to-get-you-hooked
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Frank
1/10/2021 11:43:08 pm
Hi Alexey
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Konstadinos
19/9/2021 10:34:26 pm
Alexey, your are 60% right.
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Alexey
20/9/2021 10:17:40 am
Konstadinos, please, be precise: shocks working great FOR YOU. As I said, for me it is not true, one of the shocks not depressing at all, even 1 mm. Potential buyers should be aware that this might happen - and this is the reason why I share MY experience. I also have 144001 and it is just different type of enjoyment, not sure why you comparing them.
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QuadifyRC
22/9/2021 11:28:53 pm
Alexy this is the first time I've heard of this issue with the shocks in these cars including the 3 I've owned. Reducing the shock oil is pretty straightforward anyway and something I'm all to familiar with for the 144001
James
20/9/2021 07:14:00 am
I think it's a good car but am underwhelmed by the transmitter. My car won't always go into reverse and it feels rather cheap in the hand. Already contemplating replacing the combined ESC with a 16BL30 and a DumboRC, but that's 2/3 the cost of the car again! Quadrify, is the DumboRC much nicer than the stock HBX transmitter?
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QuadifyRC
22/9/2021 11:22:24 pm
DumboRC looks very cheap but it nice in the hand. It's currently on special at the moment. This and the 16bl30 would be very nice in this car.
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Clifton Beard
22/9/2021 07:15:33 pm
Hi, great and useful site. I have a few of these HBX16889 following your recommendation, now including this Pro version.
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QuadifyRC
22/9/2021 11:25:24 pm
Mine was lubed well enough from the factory. I'd recommend keeping metal on metal gears greased (where sealed). Packing the diffs with grease gives the added benefit of a little more resistance to the diff and so a little more traction. You could use diff fluid but would need to go pretty high to hope it stays in place.
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Alexey
24/9/2021 05:35:03 am
For my sample it was terribly bad greasing out of the box, I'll recommend you to inspect and fix if required. I use simple lithium grease and it works well.
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Frank
1/10/2021 11:21:49 pm
Does anyone have a guide or some screenshots showing how to disassemble the diffs to grease? New to this and don't want to mess it up - but out of the box both front and rear 'grind' more than I'd expect.
Sam
11/3/2023 05:19:42 am
Just arrived today and still didnt check the diffs but I already purchased a specific lithium grease for gears, I'm just scared if I should add or not cuz I don't want to reduce "too much" the friction to don't breaking it doing the opposite, but so far I'm new in this world I thought to check it and if isn't enough I'll just remove the original and add the new one (for sure better quality)
Roger
24/9/2021 03:30:15 pm
For those interested, this version is better value especially with 2 batteries. Looks like it's identical under the body apart from the motor specs being a little different but I doubt that'd make much difference in practice.
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QuadifyRC
28/9/2021 05:11:19 pm
I agree. There's a coupon that brings it down even further at present: https://www.quadifyrc.com/coupons.html
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James
26/9/2021 07:20:47 am
Hi Quadrify, thanks for the great article. I can't help but crave a bit more speed - do you think a 2845 4400kV would be a worthwhile upgrade for a bit more torque and top end? Not sure if the ESC in particular could handle it but maybe with a 16bl30 - what do you think, or would a better ESC and/or others be needed? The new WLtoys has a 2845 with a 60a ESC but I don't think it's a good one!
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QuadifyRC
28/9/2021 05:13:34 pm
I personally don't think this truck is well setup to handle more speed but maybe I'm a crap driver! If you want to go faster I'd recommend a 2838 over a 2845 as the extra length will give you no real benefit, only more heat, less battery life. I'd go for a 2838 4500kv or even 5000kv but keep a very close eye on your ESC
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James
28/9/2021 08:19:48 pm
Thanks Quadrify, I appreciate you taking the time to reply. My understanding was that the stock motor is a 2840 @ 3800 kV so I thought the 2845 would be better since it'd offer more torque at the same kV (800W power for 2845 versus 600W for 2838). Ideally, I'd like to be greedy and maintain/slightly increase the current torque for acceleration and wheelies but also increase the top end. Otherwise, wouldn't a shorter 2838 @ say 4500kV offer much lower torque in exchange for the top end speed? Please correct me if I have misunderstood!
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QuadifyRC
2/10/2021 12:01:13 am
I think the stock motor is actually a 2838. 2840 motors aren't really a thing, I think they are just measuring it differently. Go for a 2845 by all mean I just think the light weight and limited traction won't allow you to get the power to the ground. A little known fact with brushless motors is that lower kv does not mean more torque. It's actually the opposite. High kv = less winds = stronger electromagnet = more torque.
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QuadifyRC
28/9/2021 10:08:28 pm
I think the stock motor is actually a 2838. 2840 motors aren't really a thing, I think they are just measuring it differently. Go for a 2845 by all mean I just think the light weight and limited traction won't allow you to get the power to the ground. A little known fact with brushless motors is that lower kv does not mean more torque. It's actually the opposite. High kv = less winds = stronger electromagnet = more torque.
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Modular guy
11/10/2021 12:41:52 pm
Have a look at the Arrowmax 2s, 3200mah, 50c Lipo made for the Tamiya Dancing Rider.
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QuadifyRC
19/10/2021 04:16:04 pm
I had a look, that is pretty cool. That should run for about an hour!!
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Frank Doyle
15/10/2021 09:49:28 pm
Anyone managed to bind these cars to anything except the stock transmitter? Is there an OpenTX protocol for this receiver?
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QuadifyRC
19/10/2021 04:17:37 pm
Good question. I have a 4in1 module for my quads, might have a play if I get the chance. Feels pretty old school controlling a car with stick though and incorporating a MPM in a wheel controller would be a pig of a job, even with PPM out.
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Nic
12/2/2022 07:44:08 am
Was there ever an answer to this question? This can help me out right now! Ha ha
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Petar
26/10/2021 01:58:59 pm
It's interesting that on Banggood, if you take a look at hbx 16890 for 71e, although in description it looks like 16889a, in customer reviews it looks like 16889a pro / fc600.
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QuadifyRC
27/10/2021 12:31:46 pm
Just had a look and from the pictures in the reviews I saw I still recognise the friction shocks and plastic drive cups which is not the pro spec.
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Francisco
4/11/2021 02:37:33 am
Hi,
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QuadifyRC
6/11/2021 11:23:15 pm
My pleasure Francisco, sorry I'm a bit slow to these comments! That battery looks like it should work
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Steve
5/1/2022 09:15:44 am
I can confirm that those 1420mAh 2s Hosim batteries fit perfectly in the HBX 16889 (without even having to remove the foam spacer) and have worked very well for me (so far).
Drew
11/11/2021 10:24:13 am
Hello,
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QuadifyRC
16/11/2021 12:14:24 pm
NiMH? I was still using NiCD last time I raced haha. Yes Lipo batteries need a lot more care, you should not go below 3.5v per cell and definitely not lower than 3.0 cell or you do permanent damage to the cells. Included chargers are only just ok. A proper charger like this one will keep your batteries in good condition for longer and are much safer: https://www.quadifyrc.com/rccarreviews/a-better-charger-for-your-rc-car-batteries
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Drew
16/11/2021 02:00:00 pm
Thanks. They may have been NiCd, it's been a long time. All I remember is buying custom battery packs (about 2000 mAh for a 6 cell) with matched cells was the hot ticket. Thanks for the link on the charger, I plan to get something better and try to set it up as simply as possible for the family to use. Is the car safe to run until it stops, or do I need to add an alarm? I can't expect my kids to keep track of voltage.
Francisco Santos
12/11/2021 03:12:23 am
Hi,
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QuadifyRC
16/11/2021 12:15:19 pm
Not worth the hassle. They have a long run time even on stock batteries. The break to change batteries or recharge gives it a chance to cool down
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Matt
12/11/2021 11:11:55 pm
I also just got the FC600 delivered and have to say it's really fun driving it.
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QuadifyRC
16/11/2021 12:16:06 pm
Water resistant at best I'd say - I'd never trust these kind of electronics to be waterproof
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Dirk
13/11/2021 02:01:58 am
Would you recommend upgrading the internals of a 16889 to a 16889A brushless setup?
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QuadifyRC
16/11/2021 12:17:19 pm
Did you see my cost breakdown above? It's just not worth it. The parts are good but not for that kind of money. It's cheaper to buy a new car.
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Ben
17/11/2021 06:37:15 am
Thank you for the comprehensive review! I just ordered a Flyhal FC600 based on you recommendation. $73 shipped from the US warehouse!
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QuadifyRC
29/11/2021 04:27:11 pm
Hi Ben, I strongly recommend the Remo P6973 as reviewed here, they are great on this car as well: https://www.quadifyrc.com/rccarreviews/wl-toys-144001-upgrade-wheels-best-for-bashing
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Francisco
18/11/2021 11:41:32 am
Do you think this battery would be too much - i.e. would 50C be too strong or the 3200mAh run for too long to cause damage to the esc or the motor?
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QuadifyRC
29/11/2021 04:28:26 pm
Not cheap but looks like a great option. This car runs very conservatively so I'd think you'd be fine. Should run for 40 minutes or more!
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Jerry
21/11/2021 02:01:35 pm
I bought an FC600 based on this article. The rear driveline was very rough with lots of binding. In case any one else has this problem, I drilled the rear axle cups to be a few mm deeper using a 13/64" (5mm) drill bit as described in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhtYokH50a0. It worked really well and now the wheels spin smoothly.
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QuadifyRC
29/11/2021 04:29:06 pm
Thanks for the feedback Jerry, I've not heard of this issue before but looks like a good fix.
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Ash
27/11/2021 08:47:45 pm
Hi, looking to purchase the HBX 16889A pro, before use should i pack the diff with grease? What else needs to be greased? What grease and oil for the shocks would you recommend? I'm new to this hobby thanks!
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Konstadinos
27/11/2021 08:53:59 pm
Shocks need no fill at all..they are just fine.
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QuadifyRC
29/11/2021 04:30:14 pm
You don't need to pack with grease but if you use something thick then it'll help with traction. Shocks should be fine as is but try around 30wt if you want more dampening.
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Ash
2/12/2021 09:05:52 am
Has there been different iterations of the hbx 16889a pro? I'm sure i read somewhere the wiring had been upgraded more thicker or something along those lines, any ideas?
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QuadifyRC
10/12/2021 11:18:09 am
It's quite possible, I know WL toys make little tweaks here and there but for the most part HBX seem to be more consistent. Thicker wires wouldn't make much difference on this one, it's a pretty solid package as is.
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Geo
4/12/2021 01:32:33 pm
I’ve just got mine today. Same issue as others. but I think the noise is not the diff like some think it is. it’s the mesh between pinion and spur. If you flip the motor plate around it will give you a tighter mesh. you won’t hear the grinding. One side says 14t the other says 13. It makes it slightly stiffer to push the car than the original config.
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QuadifyRC
10/12/2021 11:19:00 am
Interesting. Given it is metal on metal (and sealed) it may be worth treating with a little grease
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Dunkelmann
19/12/2021 03:57:21 am
Thanks. I have ordered this with three batteries from AliExpress. In anticipation I got some Lucas Red 'n Tacky Lithium grease for the diff, gears and bearings.
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Mitch Thompson
27/12/2021 06:55:22 am
Would you recommend this over the a979 series? Use case is "40yo quad flyer looking to try out cars"...
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CHEZZA
2/1/2022 02:25:23 pm
Hey, I'm a little late to the party but I have had a Pro 16889A for a couple of months now. I agree this thing is rock solid, however I have issues with the gear noise.
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Dunkelmann
2/1/2022 09:13:16 pm
I have now received my 16889. Like Chezza, I find it noisy - and that is before I have run it at all. I dismantled the rear diff to see what was making the noise but mainly just to pack it with grease as others have advised as a pre-run set up.
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Matjes
8/1/2022 10:46:14 am
I have the noise problem too. Any solutions?
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James
11/1/2022 06:44:09 am
Hi Quadrify, any idea what the stock connector is for the lights, and if there's an adapter to JST? I've replaced my receiver with a 16bl30 but would like to hook up the lights to a spare channel on the receiver! Cheers
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Griet Titulaar
12/1/2022 10:12:37 am
Would you rather put oil in the diffs (will it even hold?) or rather grease? I have to replace the differential cups because they are worn out and would like to do some basic maintenance on them.
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auxiliary
18/1/2022 04:44:07 pm
Does anyone know the charge rate of the 1000mah battery that comes with the FC600/16889a pro? I know I can charge at 1C, but had hoped for just a bit more but there's nothing listed on the battery and I don't have the manual. I noticed the USB charger that it came with says up to 1.3a but wondered if anyone had done more safely or found information online.
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Dirk
19/1/2022 01:53:28 am
I charge (and discharge) the batteries at 4 amps / 40c with an ISDT 608C. Works really well. The battery charges within 20 minutes. Discharging takes a bit longer.
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auxiliary
23/1/2022 10:18:23 am
Thanks very much, you haven't had any problems I take it? No swelling, overheating issues with the battery? That's a lot higher rate than even I thought I'd get so that's nice information.
auxiliary
23/1/2022 10:20:50 am
Forgot to add, I'm using a really old charger from when I bought my Revo VXL but it's been solid the entire time. It's a Thunder AC6.
Dirk
23/1/2022 10:30:04 am
Well, I did notice uneven discharging whe I use the batteries in the car. Just now one cell was at 2.9v while the second one was 3.5v. That could shorten the life a fair bit. I've read somewhere that you shouldn't charge above 1.5a..
auxiliary
23/1/2022 10:40:36 am
Appreciate it. Yea, I might stick to 1.5a since that's still slightly higher than the USB charger. I guess I'll see how the cells charge/discharge a few cycles and go from there.
Iain Langley
21/1/2022 10:13:24 am
Hi Quadifyrc,
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Dunkelmann
21/1/2022 11:20:47 am
Iain, that looks like the same car - the 16889A Pro that I have. It is a good price too. I bought mine from AliExpress and love it. It is my first RC car.
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Iain Langley
21/1/2022 07:29:56 pm
Do you know if I'll have to pay import duty on it, when it comes into the UK?
Dunkelmann
21/1/2022 09:05:01 pm
Iain, I am in the UK and I was surprised to see that when I actually bought the car on AliExpress, they added on VAT. But I had no import charges. Make sure you go the point just before committing to see if VAT gets added.
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Iain Hi DUNKELMANN
21/1/2022 10:23:41 pm
Hi DUNKELMANN,
Dunkelmann
22/1/2022 12:15:59 am
Iain, I think the reason you are not charged VAT is because the total sum is above a certain threshold (£135? IIRC) under which foreign firms will take off VAT by agreement with the UK.
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Valentin Stoinov
29/1/2022 07:31:18 pm
After having it for a while and serviced it a bit and after the initial problems i had with mine, i have to share few things that may be helpfull to other owners:
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Dirk
3/2/2022 07:46:42 am
I can underline all the statements you made here. Could you perhaps link a heatsink that would actually fit? I have yet to find one that is smaller than the one for a 2838 motor...
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Andreas Scharl
26/4/2022 02:53:24 am
Can you point me to a tutorial on how to service the shocks?
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Valentin Stoinov
4/5/2022 05:33:47 pm
Check sol rc YouTube channel he have great service video for the 16889 I use 400 cat at the moment, make sure to check all o rings.
Iain Langley
7/2/2022 01:30:11 am
I quite like the look of these rims for the 16889.
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Iain Langley
9/2/2022 06:51:26 am
Bump...
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Francisco
8/2/2022 11:22:49 pm
Hi!
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Dirk
8/2/2022 11:26:23 pm
I wouldn't bother with these aluminium parts. I have a complete blue set which does look the part but isn't as durable as you might think. Plus, the flex of the RC goes out the window making it prone to break on other parts.
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Francisco
9/2/2022 05:56:37 am
Thanks!
Francisco Silva Santos
9/2/2022 06:03:33 am
I was thinking of only using the rear upper links, steering links and servo link, with front steering cup and the rear hubs (links below), leaving the arms in the original plastic.
Dirk
9/2/2022 06:43:53 am
If you really want to, go for it! I found the items too stiff and fragile at the same time if that makes any sense. For example the screws vibrated loose eventhough I used loc-tite.
Ryan
1/3/2022 01:09:59 pm
Greetings from the United States. There is a wealth of knowledge on these pages! I am a 45 year old father of a 7 year old girl, and we are getting into RC cars this year. Back in 2020, I got into toy grade Syma helicopters and quadcopters for indoor use during the Covid-19 quarantine. Regarding RC Cars, my daughter has a Crawler and I have a 16889a Pro. I see that you recommend Remo P6973 tires. Can these be installed without modification? Also, in regard to new, unused batteries, what would you say is the reasonable shelf life? In other words, can one go a year or so before you put a first charge and start using a Li-Po battery, or is it best to start using them straight away? Thanks for your body of work here.
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Francisco Santos
4/3/2022 10:34:32 am
Hi, Yes, they can be fitted without modification and IMO they're the best all-purpose tires for this basher.
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QuadifyRC
3/5/2022 04:14:33 pm
Hi Ryan, Hello from NZ and sorry for the very late reply. Great to get into it with your little girl, so much fun together. Remo tyres have much better grip wet and dry and bolt on with no mods. Should last a year fine but keep at storage voltage (3.7-3.8v per cell)
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Manuel
4/3/2022 08:31:26 am
Hi, how fast is this Car, when you adjust the speed at the Remote Control to the lowest setting? Like to know if it would be ok for an absolut beginner or young child.
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Francisco Santos
4/3/2022 10:35:40 am
Yes, lowest speed setting is perfect for beginners and young kids.
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Drew
13/3/2022 08:21:18 am
Hello all,
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Drew
20/3/2022 03:41:36 am
OK, since I have 2 of these awesome little bashers, I plugged the servo of the bad one into the ESC of the good one and it steers fine. Must be an ESC issue with the first one then? The throttle still works though, anything else to check before I order a replacement ESC? Also, the steering is pretty choppy and hangs up on one side or the other occasionally. It doesn't seem to have much restriction in the system, but does over-center a little. Would a stronger servo fix this?
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Valentin Stoinov
4/5/2022 05:54:06 pm
The stock servo is a bit weak, the servo saver is getting lose after driving there is slop from the linkage and ur front right will have bigger slop then the left.You have few options for the stock situation just tight the servo saver or don't use it at all on your own risk.There are cheap and no so cheap alternatives for the servo the surpass hobby 17g metal geared is cheap especially on sale was like 4-5 euro I have one and was running with that servo until I decided I want something better that can give me full steering on rough terrain and medium grass so I got a savox but it's not cheap one at all, I personally removed the servo saver to eliminate as much slop as I can.
Maxim
18/5/2022 07:55:35 pm
Hey there! I would like to add something rather crucial in my opinion. This car is just the perfect size to run with a 2s 18650 battery! You tested it with the 1500mAh lipo, but a 35A 2600mAh 18650er battery made of VTC5a cells weighs exactly as much, delivers more torque than the original lipo, and runs for well over an hour. It just barely fits into the battery holder, if you remove the soft foam bumper - I wish I could upload a picture. Battery stays nice and cool, even when ESC and motor are hot. I love it. Perfect gear for FPV also
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Andreas Scharl
18/5/2022 08:28:36 pm
Sounds great! Got a link to the battery you used? Maybe a link to the picture (host on some free site)? Does it come with a Deans-connector (T-Plug) or did you have to solder it on?
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Andreas Scharl
18/5/2022 08:53:14 pm
I found this 3s one: https://www.banggood.com/de/URUAV-VTC6-18650-3S-11_1V-3000mAh-15-or-30C-3S1P-Long-Range-LR-Li-ion-LionPack-Battery-XT60-Plug-for-RC-Racing-Drone-p-1790228.html?cur_warehouse=CN&rmmds=search
Maxim
20/5/2022 08:59:19 am
I built mine by my own. With a little practice you don't need a spot welder but can solder them without heat damage. Just needs an 80W soldering iron and you apply it for not more than 1 second, using solder flux. Let it cool before continuing.
George
24/12/2022 11:09:48 pm
Hey man. I'am new to RC. Bought same battery made of VTC5a cells. But still waiting for car and charger. ATM have some questions. How does it performs comparing to factory LiPo? Burst and max speed? i am thinking about c-rate.... Also have you tested it with aftermarket LiPos to compare? I'am just learning don't want to be just user))) Thanks
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Maxim
25/12/2022 03:20:39 am
As long as they are original, they will perform well. With this car, definitely same burst as the original LiPo. I have measured their inner resistance to be 5x lower than the original LiPo, so the voltage sag should be lower, resulting in higher continuous power output and top speed. The c-rate - VTC5A allows for up to 6A charging, 3A is normal charge. Even at normal charge, they charge about as fast as the car discharges them, so you can go forever.
Frank Doyle
18/5/2022 08:18:12 pm
Think it's worth pointing out that the 18859a is almost exactly the same but 1/18th instead of 1/16th - in case anyone prefers something even smaller scale.
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QuadifyRC
28/5/2022 09:23:21 pm
SImilarly specced but otherwise quite a different car thought right? I really need to get on to review.
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Ollie
24/5/2022 09:13:48 pm
Great review! Think you convinced me to go for this one as my first basher. Do you have any current discount codes? Can't seem to find any. Thanks!
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QuadifyRC
28/5/2022 09:24:52 pm
Cheers Ollie. The Flyhal FC600 is the same car and is currently on flash sale: https://bit.ly/3t4olcl
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Francisco
24/5/2022 10:54:54 pm
Hi,
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QuadifyRC
28/5/2022 09:25:16 pm
Aha you bet me to it!!
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Cheapies beginner
29/5/2022 08:35:33 pm
Hey, saw your cheapies post. I'd looking for the better charger, SkyRC - Dual channel - which variant? The T100, T100 with with T, T100 with XT30, T100 with TRX or T100 5 in 1?
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Ben
10/6/2022 05:44:53 am
Has anyone had problems with the front CVD shafts shearing? I thought I stripped the diff, but it turned out one of the front CVD shafts had sheared and the driveshaft was spinning freely in the hub.
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Andreas Scharl
13/6/2022 10:01:17 pm
Same thing happened here, on both sides. I just took the CVD out, wound of the small coil in the hub part (where the wheels attach) and replaced the broken pin with a nail of the right diameter, which I cut and filed to the correct lenght. Once the new pin (nail) is in there slowly wind the coil back one, making sure it sits snug in the grove and prevents the pin from falling out again.
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Ash
13/6/2022 09:57:26 am
Mine is starting to play up, for some reason it's struggling for traction, the wheels are digging into the grass, the car doesn't move as good as it used to. Any ideas what could be the problem?
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Andreas Scharl
13/6/2022 10:03:26 pm
Might be worn tires (less traction). maybe just more slippy conditions like wet grass, stock tires provide like to traction when it's wet on the FC600.
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Joel
13/10/2022 03:49:07 am
Hey Quad, long time reader, love your site!
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Andreas
13/10/2022 07:33:08 pm
Hey Joel,
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Joe
31/10/2022 04:48:10 pm
I got a pair of FC600 for me and my 5yo son partially based on this excellent review. After some very rough driving, we managed to strip out the threading in the motor mount. There is another set of mounts offset 90 degrees but it doesn't fit with the provided screws or with the plastic piece that aligns the motor into the right position with the gears. Is this repairable, or do I need to replace the motor? If I replace the motor, what do you recommend?
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Maxim
31/10/2022 09:20:42 pm
You could repair the threads with helicoils or similar thread repair kits. Luckily these screws are metric. Make sure though to take out the rotor first and clean the stator from the metal spans after repairing.
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George
26/12/2022 06:40:35 am
It'll be my first RC. I don't have any good offline shop, so i'am using Banggood or Aliexpress...as result the shipment time is a bit long. Can someone give me an advise:
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Adam
15/1/2023 02:33:52 pm
Does anyone know what the part on banggood is for the bearings that are part of the diff assembly? I have the FC600 and the book shows the parts for the non pro model with the plastic diff parts so is no help
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Justin
3/4/2023 03:43:11 am
I replaced my fc600 with the surpass metal gear servo you listed and the steering is feeble.
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Stefan
7/4/2023 02:03:31 am
Great review. I received mine a few weeks ago.
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Maxim
7/4/2023 03:58:13 am
Hey Stefan,
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Stefan
7/4/2023 05:34:53 am
Hi Maxim,
Maxim
15/4/2023 05:52:42 pm
Hey Stefan,
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AussieRC
11/4/2023 08:10:55 pm
I really like all these articles I have used them so many times for my rc cars with lots of tips and tricks and appreciated your experienced information about this fun hobby.
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Maxim
11/4/2023 09:26:35 pm
Hey AussieRC, this only happens, if your motor screws get loose and you don't notice. Make sure you tighten them properly and try using some loctite to prevent unscrewing.
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AussieRC
12/4/2023 12:14:01 pm
Thanks mate would loctite prevent the screw from snapping in the same spot on each car?
Maxim
12/4/2023 07:07:18 pm
Loctite prevents loosening, thus they don't snap.
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AUSSIERC
15/4/2023 04:10:51 pm
Hey MAXIM,
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AUSSIERC
15/4/2023 04:46:05 pm
Hello, Broken CVD help please for HBX 16889a Pro.
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Maxim
15/4/2023 05:48:30 pm
Hey AussieRC,
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AussieRC
15/4/2023 08:15:18 pm
Hi MAXIM,
AussieRC
15/4/2023 09:45:54 pm
Hi again,
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AussieRC
16/4/2023 06:22:52 pm
Ok, so I just got back from the skatepark and I have dislodged the motor again on my HBX 16889a Pro after applying thread locker to the motor screws :)
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AussieRC
22/4/2023 05:08:07 pm
Ok, so I put longer screws through the motor mount and into the motor with blue threadlocker.
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Maxim
28/4/2023 08:36:32 am
Hey AussieRC,
AussieRC
6/5/2023 12:41:54 pm
Hi MAXIM,
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