Newbie here need Info on set-up.

Jerry,

The best bang for the buck system is the Mamba Max. They are available in 4600, 5700 and 7700 kv versions. A MM system can be had for around $135. Since you are just starting out, you'll really need to do a bit of research to decide what is best for you. What I usually do is to figure out what size battery I can fit into my vehicle. Since you're running the TC3, I'd suppose that you'll be limited to 2S lipo and they best choices would be either a TrakPower 4900 pack or an Orion 3200 pack.

The 3200 pack was designed to mimic the form factor of a 6 cell nimh pack and the 4900 is just a rectangular box with the cells inside. Get the biggest one that will fit. You'll have to look up the specs to determine that or just do a search and find out what people are running in the TC3.

If you are limited to 2S lipo, it makes motor selection pretty simple. Pick the 4600 for milder speeds and long runtimes. The 5700 for a bit more speed and a bit less runtime. The 7700 for stupid speed at the expense of runtime.

I really don't remember what I kind of runtime I was getting, but with the 4600 and a 4900mAh pack, you should get around half an hour, I think.

As for the charger, they really vary in price and features. You should do some research and figure out what features are important to you. I should say that a good charger and balancer combo will get close to around $200 and the battery packs are around $125 each. Getting into lipo isn't cheap.