HAIBOXING Hailstorm - 1:18

Buy HAIBOXING 1:18 Scale RC Car, All Terrain Remote Control Truck 4WD 36KM/H High Speed Hobby Grade Electric RC Car for Adults and Kids with Two Batteries, Waterproof Off-Road RC Buggy RC Vehicle: Trucks - desertcart.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases Review: Super durable, upgradable and it's even got a slow mode! - HOW I PICKED THE HAIBOXING HAILSTORM As a dad introducing the hobby to my kids and reintroducing it to myself after a 20 year break, I wanted something durable. My first look was at the HS 18301. It was durable and priced well. I had seen all the bashing videos on YouTube and was pretty much hooked. I had my eye on that for quite some time but before I pulled the trigger, I discovered the Haiboxing Hailstorm (#18858) which was durable, a bit more expensive, but was upgradable (meaning suspension and electronic components are accessible) has much more parts support and had a slow function feature on the transmitter for my kids just starting out. Best of all words, so it didn't take long before I ordered it. I'm looking at the Haiboxing Rampage as I'm writing this review and it's temporarily discounted now from $69 to $59. Best price overseas is $53 and takes forever to get here, so $59 for the Haiboxing Rampage is the one to get! I paid more b/c I just like the truggy styling of the Hailstorm. WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT IT? Yes, it really is durable. My kids have crashed it into curbs and it's done a ton of jumps off my homemade cardboard box ramp and landed upside down several times. It keeps going. The slow function on the remote is fairly drastic from the normal setting which makes for a great experience when the kids moved up to the normal function (or for when I play with it). The headlights aren't just a gimmick. They're pretty bright and it does help to orient the RC at a distance. Haiboxing threw in an 800mah battery instead of the advertised 650mah which was a nice surprise. It lasts at least 20 minutes. We played for probably 45 minutes on and off, taking pictures/videos, and messing around. If you were on the throttle non stop, it's probably about 20-25 minutes. Longer if you're not on it full throttle. If for some reason, you're still not tired after playing, extra batteries are $11-14. I paid about $11 for a Lipo upgrade. Comes with a Li-On battery. Haiboxing includes extra body pins which is nice. I haven't lost any yet, but it's nice that they think I will eventually. It's a small thing, but I actually really like the height of the body posts. Back when I built RC's, the body posts were way too high. They looked funny and needed to be trimmed down. Not the case with this. The Haiboxing 1/18 scale truggy is perfect. WISH IT HAD: The receiver and ESC (electronic speed controller) is a 2-in-1 component which means you can't change out the receiver to use an aftermarket transmitter without also changing out the ESC. At that point, you may have invested too much into the Haiboxing RC for it to still be worth the value. So I do wish it wasn't a 2-in-1 but rather two separate components so I can just easily swap out the receiver. Really nitpicking and this is just a wishlist thing, but I do wish I had standard hex bolts to secure the wheels. They'd be easier to find aftermarket ones with an accented color. Also less chance of stripping out philips screw head. CONCLUSION The kids actually got the hang of it quite quickly. If I had known, I may have gotten the Haiboxing 16889 which is a slightly larger brushless monster truck for a bit more. Regardless, the Haiboxing ones I've mentioned no matter which one you pick, will be fun and well worth it. Everyone has their eye on larger scale RC's, but the benefit of a small one is not only that it can easily be transported, but that the efficiency on the battery is so much better. Longer run time is always good when you've got kids. This is an impressive starter RC that's designed as an RTR (Ready to Run) kit. Install the spoiler, headlights, decals and you're good to go. Although it's not designed to swap out electronics for upgraded ones, it's very doable if you really wanted to. I like having the option. This may be one of the best value products I've purchased recently. Haiboxing actually reached out to me via Intagram telling me they like my pics. I also had some good correspondence with them via email about availability of additional larger sized batteries. So the company does have a connection with the consumer and that's definitely comforting. I just text a bunch of people about the Haiboxing Rampage that's on sale now for $58 here on desertcart Prime. That's just such an insane deal. Makes me want to buy another for a friend. Review: Durable, high quality, one of the best bashers out there, period. - Wow, what can I say about this little beast. Probably one of the best little basher there is. It exceeds expectations, it is super tough, very quick for it's size and handles great. The "fun factor" of these are way higher than many other faster more "high end" name branded RCs. I have 3 of these myself. After showing them off to my family and friends, they have ordered some for themselves because they were so impressed with it. You can bash these without worrying about breaking them within reason! Even in the rain! Yes they are waterproof, more so than I expected, but still wouldn't advise getting it fully submerged (although I took mine through some huge mud puddles, and still all good). I do suggest you clean and WD-40 after running it in the harsh elements to keep it alive and well. I would say the only weak points or cons so far I have found are: -Body shell is thin and will crack quick. However you can cure this by gorilla taping the inside of the shell. It will do wonders, especially where the body mount holes are. While it does add minor weight, it makes the body able to hold up to the abuse the rest of the RC can endure. -Body clips are super thin and these RCs will shed them the first time you roll or flip it. Highly recommend ordering extras and having them on hand when you go out and bash. I ordered some 1/16 clips by apex on desertcart and they are much heavier duty and will actually stay in, plus they come in a pack of 100 so if you do lose one you have tons of spares. -Battery that comes with it does not give you much run time, maybe 10 mins maximum. It also doesn't unleash the true potential of these little RCs. I highly recommend buying a LiPo for it (search "7.4v 1100 mAh LiPo JST", there are a couple options. These are the batteries for WLtoys A949, A959, A969, A979 and A929 and will fit into the HBX Rampage, Hailstorm, and Rachet. You just have to move the screw up one hole on your battery hold down). These batteries are probably the biggest upgrade you can do along with adding the upgraded oil shocks. Turns this thing into a little animal with added punch and acceleration, along with 2x or more the runtime. Only thing is to be mindful about not running the battery too low as I do not believe the ESC has a LiPo cutoff so if you run it too low it can damage the LiPo. -Shocks that come stock are friction style without oil and are extremely bouncy and make it a bit hard to control, and do not protect the chassis from bottoming out so you will bang it up quick. The upgraded oil shocks available for these are completely worth it. Highly recommend. Makes this RC go from toy to hobby grade. The only part I have broke on these is a part in the steering assembly. I would say this is the only weak link in this whole platform. I wish they had an upgrade for it but unfortunately they do not. Just be aware this is the part to check after hard hits and crashes. I have broke 2 on 2 separate occasions. Both were probably my fault as I'm not easy on these at all but as stated before, it is a weak point. What makes it even tougher is the part is not available from anywhere in the USA and has to be ordered from China. It took about 3 weeks for me to get so if you do break this part be expecting a bit of down time. I would also recommend buying extras if and when you do order it. (HBX part# 18109). Overall, I can't say enough good things about this little RC, it has been one of the best most reliable and fun RCs I have ever owned, period. Highly recommend. Thing will take abuse and just keep going, and has great performance to boot. I always bring one in a backpack when I go out bashing any of my other RCs and always end up ending the bash session with it! (My little Ole reliable!) Just wish any of the parts were able to get faster. Thank you and I hope this helps anyone looking at these great little RCs. The Hailstorm handles better and is a bit more agile than the Rampage MT due to the lower stance IMO.