Aarma….My FURY is Released!….and I’m LOVING IT!

There are people in the RC community who do not think that people should buy a ready-to-run vehicle. Someone who is truly old school believes that you should build the kit. Part of the RC hobby has been the joy of doing the model. It is the challenge the build, paint, and make the car look unique. The ready to run stuff was for the people who did not want to put in the time and build something. Well, I was that guy. Yes, it is true, I have since changed my tune. I bought a ready-to-run. Not a project truck like my Slash, but an actual brand new ready-to-run.

How did I get here?

Well, my son continues to watch YouTube in his spare time. He has been researching Aarma this…. Aarma that. My response, “It is not Tamiya…. It is not the SC10, so it is not worth your time.” My 13-year-old keeps saying… but dad…but dad…. I say, “Listen, there are tried and true models that work. Aarma is not one of them.” he kept talking, and I kept watching with him. Eventually, I thought, “You know if I could get one under 200 bucks, then I might just have to see what this is about.” My problem is that I am cheap and I tend to have strong opinions. Well, I was able to stay cheap, and I have changed my opinion on the ready-to-run vehicles. My take on the Aarma Fury is that acquiring the vehicle will not make you furious.

How Scratched and Dented? What’s in the Box Bro?

So, Tower Hobbies had a scratch and dent sale on these trucks. This sale pushed me over the fence. I figured that I could throw some money towards it, review it, and then sell it on eBay. Guess what? This truck is not going on eBay. However, the nitro Slash might want to worry. I like the sound of nitro, but man it is expensive to run a nitro truck. I also like the fact that I can just charge a battery. If a battery dies, then for the price of a nitro bottle, I can buy a new battery. So, I will give the Slash a few more runs, but I am thinking the Aarma short course truck is the way to go. This truck is fun. I mean, REAALLLY fun right out of the box. It is fun even with a brushed motor and NiMH battery. It is at the fun bar, which means that with every upgrade, it is just going to get better.

I can see that the box has a bit of a ding on the corner, and I almost sent it back. I mean, selling stuff that can get damaged in the mail is just bad business. Well, that is sarcasm to the fullest because I already put the box in the recycle bin.

I looked at the truck, and there might be a few places where the truck has some issues where the decals did not lay down correctly. That is the most that I can find with the truck, and it is so minor that I am not going to lose sleep over it. Mostly I just lose sleep over how I am going to explain buying another RC car….., but a few scratches…. Nah…. I plan to do that on my first run anyway. The good thing is that everything you need to get out and drive is included in the box.

The reality is that this truck is a good buy. I know that the AARMA Fury brushed models are discontinued, so you might want to snag one where you can. I am a little sad that they are being discontinued because this is a great buy that will grow with you in the hobby. I know that Amazon still has some (yes, affiliate link, but so does A Main, last I checked. I just searched Tower Hobbies and they are sold out.

It has a 7-cell NiMH battery that has a weird tumor. I did not know what to do with this battery when I first saw it, but it is a 7 cell NiMH battery and so that is a good thing. The only thing that I could think of when I saw the battery was this scene from Kindergarten Cop.

It has a nice Spectrum controller that allows you to limit the throttle. It is nice when you can limit the throttle for people who want to drive it, but are decent enough to be concerned about breaking your stuff. This is a nice feature because you can continue to let me drive the truck as you upgrade it. The controller fees decent. It will certainly do the job well.

a Spektrum smart charger that will charge the NiMH and LIPO batteries. The charger does not come with a power brick, but I think we all have something like 500 lying around our house or office. The charger is Spektrum’s S120. It is a good bang-for-the-buck charger, but it is not going to be faster than the big ones. So, this is adequate, but it will take some planning when you set out to bash.

It is not fast, but if you don’t have a charger, it works well. I was impressed that it will charge LIPO batteries, which allows you to upgrade to a Spectrum smart battery right away to a 2S Lipo. If you want a 3 s you will have to upgrade your speed control, and probably your motor. Although I do plan to test how long the brushed motor will last. It is all for the name of science, right? The stock speed control is a receiver/speed control with a temperature sensor built in that will shut things down if it gets too hot. What fun is that? Sometimes it is fun to see things smoking. The pic below is the speed control, with the NiMH and LiPo jumper noted. I also added some info from the manual.

It comes with tools that impressed me, a helpful manual, and an exploded view of the truck with part numbers (You can see the part numbers here). I also downloaded this exploded view (click the link to download) in case they take it off the web. The full manual with all the languages is on their website here. I downloaded it and cut out the pages that were not in English. I did this to reduce the file size. The PDF is about 30mb from AARMA, but if you cut out the other languages, you can get it down to 11mb. So, if you are looking into this truck, then check out its manual. I would encourage you to download it, and cut the information that you are not going to find helpful in the future. You can download the English manual here.

So, very well done, Aarma. However, the zip ties and the stand are extra. I know, they always look for a way to screw you, right? Just kidding… this truck is a bargain for what you get.

(Same pic as above)

The body clips are pretty unique in that you do not remove the body from the top, but there are clips underneath. You simply pull the red tabs towards the driver's side wheels. You will feel the body release, and then you can easily remove it.

At first I did not like the body clip system too much, but then I realized that you never really have to take the body off the truck. You can turn on the speed control/receiver and remove the battery from the bottom of the truck. I do like the clean look of the truck without the body posts.

In all honesty, it is not like the removal of the body is that difficult. I do see a plus in having the clips mounted for the body. You can pretty much tell every place I drive or have driven my stuff, as there are 4 body clips/cotter pins in the parking lots. You people who follow me, well, you're welcome. So, maybe Aarma had absent-minded people like me in mind when they designed this system. Personally, it is starting to grow on me. One major downside is that you are only going to replace it with AARMA bodies. However, these trucks are gaining popularity, so it would not surprise me if there are some other options that will be available in the future.

The speed control is integrated into the receiver. They are one unit together. I am not sure how long it will last. I have seen a bunch on eBay with a worn-out unit. This really is not that big of a deal to replace, as these can wear out.

Driving

I have only put about 3 batteries through this truck. I have only used the NiMH battery just to see how it performs. Honestly, it is absolutely shocking. The truck is a hoot even with the slower battery. It is not the fastest thing out there, but at this price point, who would expect that? The truck drove down the stairs in our house. I jumped it off our stoop a couple of times. The truck just took a beating. The best is that on the NiMH battery, it would do donuts on concrete. I did not have the wet the concrete or anything. The truck makes squealing noises like a real truck on the one-to-one scale. The laugh factor with this truck just melts the stress away.

One thing I will say is that you have to commit to doing donuts. At this price point, it does not have enough power to really drift the truck. You can drift it, the brakes are awesome, but you have to really throw it into the turn. This is not really a downside to the truck. If you are starting out, then you probably don’t want to drive something that is a bit of a handful to control. This truck will go over the limit, but then easily be brought back without giving you that, “OH SHEIZER!! moment.” See, Mom, I did learn some German! This is a great truck to get if you are looking to start in the hobby. This is a total Paulie’s Pick!

Potential Upgrades

If you want the truck to get faster, then I have some upgrade suggestions. Yes, they are Amazon affiliate links, so I get some kickback. I would encourage you to check A Main and Tower Hobbies to see if they have some sales, closeouts, or scratch and dent. I get being frugal, so I won’t be offended if you shop around a bit, but I appreciate the kickbacks through Amazon.

I would first get a new battery. If you want to stay in the Spektrum smart battery world, then check this guy out: https://amzn.to/4gvckEk. This will give you a little more oomph, and the power will not progressively die as you run the truck and heat the battery.

If you do get a LiPo PLEASE BUY A LiPo charging bag. Here is one on Amazon (https://amzn.to/4gvckEk), but just buy one or score one somewhere. I have heard many horror stories of people losing valuable items because their LiPo battery exploded, causing a really bad fire. It does not happen much, but it does happen.

If you want the battery to charge faster, then check out the Spektrum charger. This will be an item that will grow with you in the hobby. Yes, they are expensive, but not necessary. The stock charger will charge a LiPo battery, but it will be slow. (https://amzn.to/41W0Kw0).

If you are like, “BRO! I am on a budget!” I would encourage you to check eBay. I would not buy batteries from eBay, but I would buy upgrades on eBay. You might find a good charger if you are patient.

Conclusion

This truck is one that I would say is probably the best bang for the buck out there. The thing that I really love about this truck is that it will grow with you as you grow in the hobby. If you are on the fence with this one, I can assure you that this truck is great. This truck is a total Paulie’s Pick! I might sell the Slash and then save for a Kyosho Nitro touring car. I am thinking this because we have very dry grass here in the summer, we do not have a dirt RC track, and I would not want to start a fire from the nitro.

The Aarma fury might get your blood pressure up, but not because you are furious. This truck in stock form made me compulsively smile. It is a hoot to drive. It is totally worth picking one up to drive. If you do not want to build a kit, then this would be my second recommendation for an RC truck. The first upgrade would be a battery, but just make sure you switch the speed control to LiPo.

Thank you for reading! Remember to use social media to be social, get out there and do something fun, and until we meet again, may the Lord’s blessing and peace be upon you.

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