RC Chase video

I love these RC "movies" people are making recently. Some are better than others. The production in this one is good but the content could have been better. I can't really judge until I produce some videos. That won't happen any time soon since my director/cameraman/producer is on the other side of the country.

Make Your Own Parts

If you're like me and you run old R/C cars you have probably run into the problem of not being able to find parts. Especially plastic ones. Now a company over in the UK has come up with a solution. They take a bunch of chemicals and mix them into this stuff they call Plastisteel. The name sounds very 80's so I am intrigued.

Nothing is easy so don't expect to start turning out parts like a Play-Doh Fun Factory. You have to make a mold of the original part so you probably need to do that before you break it. It seems painstaking but the result is worth it.

A tutorial on making RC parts with Plastisteel

So if you happen to e building a NOS kit that you plan to run it might be wise to make some molds of the plastic parts so you can always have some spares. You can also modify the molds to make modified parts, like modifying an A-arm to take a different upright or mount to a different chassis. The possibilities are endless.

Awesome Little Video

People have been very creative with their RC videos lately. The special effects are a bit much for me but the overall clip was pretty darn good.

HPI Brings Us the Bandit

I am no country music fan, but there is one song that I know and love. This song is "Eastbound & Down" by Jerry Reed. That is the theme song from "Smokey and the Bandit" a movie that shaped my life. I still don't have a mustache but I have had more than my share of police chases (7-1 that one time I didn't know they were chasing me). I can tell you the police need to be within a certain distance to turn on their lights and call in a chase, never let them get that close. I have also had a few Firebirds. I still haven't got my hands on a Trans Am yet. HPI has now made it easier.

Good News! The Bruiser is Back!

Tamiya gets it. They really really do. They understand that the majority of the people in the hobby started in the 80's. Yep we're old dudes that can't put away our childhood fun. But since we're grown we have jobs, now we can afford to just buy any new kit that catches our eyes. Tamiya has given us some treasures before, but this time they did it. They brought back the Bruiser.

Yokomo Gets Funky!

I like front wheel drive RC because its challenging. The physics of of motion work against the front engine front drive layout. As the vehicle accelerates its weight shifts from the front toward the rear, reducing the amount of traction by reducing the amount of weight over the front wheels. That means chassis setup and driving skill are very important to to getting the most out of a FWD RC car.

Axial's New Super Bad Truck

Yeeee-Haaaaw! Many Americans have an inner redneck. The part that likes Coors and Four-by-fours, talking country and eating pork. I do. I quit drinking but I love my 4X4! Roads are an option and I will park it on your front lawn. I ain't scared! Like I ain't got a compound bow in there. What does this have to do with RC? E'rethang! At least now that they have such awesome and realistic trucks and parts out. My Redcat RS10 is my go to truck. So much so I have not started or finished building any of my other trucks. This one looks like it might be able to out do my truck. Look at it and lust after it. Mind the price too because it won't be too expensive either!

Ballistic Brushless Bashers and a Nitro

RC monster trucks are one of the best parts of this hobby. If you haven't driven one, do it now. Wasn't that awesome? I told you. RC monster trucks started out electric but when they added nitro things took off. The trucks got bigger and gained a few gears too. Now its time to go back to electric with brushless trucks. The sound is gone but the power has been doubled. I still prefer nitro for the play-all-day aspect but I cannot fault these brushless supertrucks.The HPI Savage XS and the Robitronic Hurricane. The nitro is the good ol' Kyosho Mad Force. This truck is older than your kids but its been continually refined and now it is just as awesome as you remember and nowhere near as lame. One of these days I'm gonna buy a Mad Force. Just wait and see.

Tamiya Knows how to Wrangle up Customers

There are so many reasons why I love Tamiya. They are releasing another. I think they have plans to run all of the vintage collectors/hoarders/resellers out of business. Who wants to pay $500 for a vintage kit when Tamiya will rerelease it in a few months? This time they are killing it (slang phrase that I don't fully understand). They are rereleasing the famous Jeep Wrangler! Everybody and their mother really wants this highly detailed body for their scale 4x4 project. I've seen them sell for absurd amounts of money. Now you can score one for probably less than $200.

Tamiya RX-7 is Rotary Goodness

I've been hanging on to an M04 chassis for a while. I want to build a slick mini with it but I can't decide what body to use on it. Tamiya has just made things even more difficult. This has to be the most detailed first generation Mazda RX7 bodies available. If you've never driven a real one do yourself a favor and try one. These little cars are so much fun. They combine go-kart like handling, a smooth buzzy rotary engine, with a pretty comfortable interior to give you an experience that you will not find in any other car. In my area people are buying these up and restoring them. I had an opportunity to get one but the lack of pistons and my previous experience with bad apex seals on an FC3S RX7 convinced me otherwise.