Buying Guides

RC buying guides, comparisons and recommendations. Find the right RC car, battery, charger or accessory with expert advice from Hobbies Direct.

Buying Guides

Apr 14, 20264 min read

RC Car Scales Explained: A Complete Size Guide for Every Hobbyist

RC car scale is the size of the model as a fraction of the real vehicle. A 1/10 scale car is about a tenth the size of the real thing, and the bigger the second number, the smaller the car: 1/24 is...

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Buying Guides
Sep 18, 20267 min read
The Best Drones for Beginners in Australia (2026 Buying Guide)
For most adult beginners in Australia, the best first drone is the Potensic ATOM 2 : a camera drone under 249 g with one-key take-off and landing and precision positioning, the feature that holds a...
Buying Guides
Sep 18, 20266 min read
Best RC boats for kids: the Australian buying guide by age
The best remote control boat for most kids is the Atrek Riptide : a 16-inch boat that rights itself after a capsize, tops out at a listed 30 km/h and comes with its battery, charger and AAs. It sui...
Buying Guides
Sep 18, 20266 min read
Best RC excavators: an Australian buying guide by budget, age and what it can actually dig
The best RC excavator for most adults is the Huina 1594-W : a 1/14 scale machine in metal alloy that weighs 7.2 kg and comes with four attachments and its battery. For a child's first proper digger...
Buying Guides
Sep 18, 20266 min read
Best RC Monster Trucks: An Australian Buyer's Guide (2026)
The best RC monster truck for most people is the Atrek Peak : 1/10 scale, 4WD, with the battery, charger and AAs in the box and a half-speed switch on the remote. Atrek is our own brand. For a smal...
Buying Guides
Sep 21, 20265 min read
RC Gift Guide by Age and Budget
The RC gift that suits the most people is the Atrek Peak : a 1/10 scale 4WD truck with the battery, charger and AAs in the box and a half-speed switch on the remote. It works for a 5 to 7 year old ...
Buying Guides
Jul 23, 20265 min read
Top RC Car Questions for Beginners: Everything You Need to Know
RC stands for radio controlled. To start with RC cars, buy a hobby-grade, electric, ready-to-run car, charge it fully, and drive it at half throttle until you stop hitting things. The rest of this ...
Buying Guides
Jul 23, 20266 min read
The Best RC Car to Start Your Hobby
The best RC car to start with is the Atrek Peak . It's a 1/10 scale 4WD electric truck that comes with the battery, a USB charger and even the AAs for the remote, and the remote has a half-speed sw...
Buying Guides
Jun 30, 202610 min read
ARRMA RC Cars: The Complete Australian Buyer's Guide
If your idea of a perfect weekend involves sending a heavy-duty rig three metres into the air, landing on loose gravel, and powering away with tyres ballooning, you are already speaking ARRMA's lan...
Buying Guides
Jun 30, 20265 min read
The Best Traxxas RC Car for Every Driver: 2026 Australian Buyer's Guide
The best Traxxas RC car for a first-time buyer is the Traxxas Mini Maxx : a 1/16 scale 4WD brushless monster truck with the battery and charger in the box and a Training Mode that halves the thrott...
Buying Guides
Jun 30, 20266 min read
Traxxas vs Arrma: Which RC Brand Wins for You? (Australian Buyer's Guide)
Neither brand wins outright. Traxxas has the wider range, including the crawlers ARRMA doesn't make, and its own plug-in battery system. ARRMA sticks to bashers and street cars, uses standard batte...
Buying Guides
Jun 30, 20266 min read
The Best RC Car for Kids: An Aussie Age-by-Age Buying Guide
The short answer. For a 5 to 7 year old with an adult alongside: the Atrek Peak , on its half-speed switch. For 8 to 10: the ARRMA Gorgon Grom , or a Traxxas TRX-4M if they'd rather climb than race...
Buying Guides
Jun 26, 20267 min read
RC cars for adults: a hobby-grade buyer's guide
If you're an adult buying a proper remote control car, start with where you'll drive it. For a backyard or the local park, look at the Atrek Ambush Pro first: brushless, quick, and everything you n...
Buying Guides
Jun 26, 20267 min read
Best RC drift car: the Australian buyer's guide
The best RC drift car to start with is the HSP Flying Fish : a 1/10 scale all-wheel-drive car that comes built, with the battery and charger in the box, and needs no gyro. If you already know you w...
Buying Guides
Jun 26, 20266 min read
The best RC cars of 2026: top picks for every budget
The short version for 2026. For most people the best RC car to buy is a 1/10 scale 4WD truck that comes with everything in the box, and ours is the Atrek Peak . The best new arrival this year is th...
Buying Guides
Jun 26, 20267 min read
The fastest RC car you can buy in Australia
The fastest RC car you can buy in Australia is the ARRMA Limitless 120 , a 1/7 scale 4WD speed-run car that ARRMA lists at over 190 km/h (120 mph) on 8S LiPo power. The Traxxas XO-1 is the other re...
Buying Guides
Mar 13, 20254 min read
RC Plane Buyer's Cheat Sheet
What is Mode 1 and Mode 2 on RC Planes? All your burning questions answered!
Buying Guides
Jul 15, 20192 min read
What makes an RC car 'good'?
Complaining that a crawler is too slow or a drifter can’t handle gravel is like saying a sandwich is terrible at being a shoe. It was just never supposed to be. It seems like a basic question, and ...
Buying Guides
Oct 24, 20186 min read
Best RC Brands in Australia
A rundown of the best RC brands in Australia — Traxxas, Arrma, Tamiya, HSP and more.
Buying Guides
May 06, 20166 min read
Choosing The Right Hobby Battery Charger For Your RC Needs
Choosing the right battery charger is very important and can be the difference between safely charging your battery, and catching your shed on fire.
Buying Guides
Apr 29, 20165 min read
Electric, Nitro or Petrol - Which One's The best?
Electric (Battery powered, most commonly a NiMH or LiPo battery is used) | Nitro (Nitro fuel is a combination of Nitromethane, Methanol and oil) | Petrol (2-Stroke fuel is a combination of Unleaded...