Acer Racing has just announced the release of their Ceramic Nitride Pro Series Engine Bearings. The Silicon Nitride balls drastically reduce rotational mass for faster acceleration and lower friction. Make sure to check out their site for more details.
It was only a matter of time before Axial released the SCX-10 as a Ready to Run, or Ready to crawl in their case. Instead of pre-assembling the SCX-10, putting it in a box, and calling it a day, Axial went the extra mile to make it well worth the money. The links get the standard Axial RTR treatment, being plastic instead of aluminum. Don’t let that fool you though; this is a full blown, trail ready scale rig. Axial designed awesome looking front and rear bumpers, as well as side steps that bolt onto the chassis. By the looks of it, they should hold up to lots of abuse. Pro-Line Flatiron tires are standard equipment, mounted on Axial 1.9 beadlock wheels. To complete the scale look, the Axial Durango body (no relation to the Dodge vehicle) has a full roll cage, mounted spare tire, fender flares, and a full set of LED lights. A 27 turn motor provides the power through the proven Axial drivetrain. Full electronics are included, just add batteries! If you are looking to get into scale crawling, but not ready to try building your own rig, check out the Axial SCX-10 RTR.
New from Team Checkpoint are their race ready 7.4v LiPo Hard Case packs that meat ROAR standards. They are available in 3200mah with Deans Ultra plugs up to 5000mah.
Check out the Team Checkpoint web site for more info!
Looks like DuraTrax is really starting to crank out the liPo packs! Their 1600mAh LiPO packs can be bought with a mini plug, or Traxxas plugs, and their 1800mAh hard case packs come with a female bullet setup. All for a pretty low price point. They say the packs are designed for the Mini Traxxas Slash VXL and Mini E-Revo VXL 1/16th scale vehicles.
Check the DuraTrax web page for more details.
We don’t do a lot of boat features here, but as bashers we do like to dabble in the water now and then. The new AquaCraft boat called the RIO EP 2.4GHz RTR seemed very worth of news posting. It measures over 2 feet long, it’s electric, and comes with a 2.4 ghz system! How sweet is that?! Whenever we do some water action, we always end up with a nitro getting stuck out in the middle of a lake/pond. I like the larger scale electric!
Check out the official AquaCraft Website for more details.
Looks like the new RC Pro Products have received an upgrade to their look. It sounds like customers had made some suggestions about ring sizes and amounts on their tools so they didn’t have to read, just look, and RC Pro listened! You can now tell with a glance what metric driver you are grabbing. Very cool!!
Well I’m back from a one week hiatus, after taking a much needed break from the depths of rc mongering.
Rumors, rumors, rumors, don’t you love them?
Rumor is Traxxas will be introducing an uber rock crawler at this falls I-Hobby show.
Rumor has it that Associated B5/T5 platform is much closer than you think.
Rumor has it that a forced apology from BigSquidRC to a certain sanctioning body should not have been made.
Rumor has it that Kimi Raikkonen is actually a vodka/ice cream loving human robot.
Rumor has it that Formula 1 will be returning to the North American continent in 2010.
Rumor has it that BigSquidRC has not received enough entries in it’s “Tore Up” photo contest, a contest that showcases rc cars/trucks after they have been crashed.
Remember a few weeks ago that I mentioned that each new week brings an ugly body to the rc market? Caught a glance at the new Robotronics EB-1 buggy? Wow. I mean seriously? Holy cow, just when you think rc cars can’t get any uglier, that old record gets shattered.
Another new entry to the market that has a less than stellar looking body is the Hot Bodies Ve8. While it’s body isn’t nearly as ugly as most, it reminds me more of a UFO than an off road buggy body. Thankfully, underneath it’s less than handsome shell is a lot of new era 8th scale brushless tech. The major difference between the HB Ve8 and the rest of the 8th scale brushless crowd is it’s chassis, as HB has elected to go with plastic, instead of the heavier metal norm. And much like the HPI Blitz, the Ve8 is receiving a very warm reception from the internet pundits. A company known mainly for it’s Savage the last half decade, HPI/Hot Bodies now has a half dozen “hits” on it’s hands.
BigSquidRC/Leisure Hours Raceways Bash-A-Palooza went off last weekend without a hitch. Editor to the stars Brian S. ran a good program, and all the bashers in attendance seemed to have a great time going big and meeting other rc’ers. Huge thanks to all those that attended, Leisure Hours Raceways, and to all the events sponsors.
Word from those that cut the checks around here is that two more BigSquidRC events are in the works. Crawl-A-Palooza will showcase extreme rc rock crawling and is just beginning to come together. Take a normal gnarly rock course, throw in an 10 foot vertical drop and a string section, and you’ve got the makings for the most extreme crawling course ever. The second event, is also in the early planning stages. We’ll keep you informed as we get more information on these events.
How about that Ricky James? Who the hell is Ricky James you ask? Well, back in the day, he was a uber fast KTM factory motocross shoe. Ricky had to give up 2 wheels, and now he’s winning races on 4 in the Lucas Oil Off-Road Series. Oh, and in his free time, he’s out kicking a$$ in Ironman competitions, racing the Baja 500, and winning medals at the X-Games. Not bad for a 20 year old, especially one who no longer has the use of his legs. Props to you Ricky, I wish everyone had the heart and desire that you have.
Our Traxxas Slash LiPo Battery Shootout was a huge success. But, of course some of the keyboard mashing crowd had a few complaints. The largest complaint was, “Why didn’t we use similar capacity battery packs for the test?”. The answer is very simple- we didn’t ask the battery manufactures for a certain size pack, we asked them to submit whatever Li-po they thought would perform best under out test criteria in a Slash. The Slash was selected as the test platform simply because it’s the best selling truck on the market right now. There simply are more consumers looking for a battery pack for their Slash than any other rc car/truck.
That’s it for this week, so keep supporting your local tracks and LHS’s.
Your Cub Reporter
The folks over at ST Racing Concepts have just released their Team Associated SC10 17mm Hex conversion kit. This kit allows SC10 owners to run the 1/8th scale buggy tires like the big guys. They are available in Blue, Red and Silver.
For more information check the ST Racing Concepts web page.
HPI Racing first made its name in the mini market with the Micro-RS4. It’s been some time since the shrink ray has been out, but HPI is at it again with the Brama 18B Buggy. Just like big Brother, the Brama 10B, the 18B is loaded with features. A shaft drive 4wd system provides power to front and rear differentials for even power distribution. The whole drive train rides on smooth ball bearings. This little buggy gets the full RTR package. The prebuilt buggy includes everything you need to get going, just add AA batteries for the transmitter. The body and rear wing come pre-finished, painted and decaled. Knowing HPI, this little car will hold up against everything you throw at it. The center shaft is sealed, making maintenance a bit easier. It should start hitting the shelves mid September.
Check out the official HPI Racing web page for more info!
Keeping up with their awesome aluminum support, ST Racing Concepts has these new 1 Deg. Toe-In rear hub carriers for the Traxxas Slash, Stampede VXL, Rustler VXL in both blue and red. The carrier design prevents wear from the hinge-pins. A set screw is used to help secure the pins.
For more information check the ST Racing Concepts web page.
New from HPI Racing is the Stage-D Mazda RX-7 FD3S Aero Body Kit. This kit adds some features that are popular on the real drift cars like front bumper, spoiler, light buckets, rear bumper, skirt and fenders.
Check out the official HPI Racing web page for more info!
Is that Savage Flux Diff giving you trouble? Well HPI Racing now has a Machined Bulletproof Diff Bevel Gear Set for your bashing needs. It’s created to be super heavy duty for your Savage Flux and XL. Each kit upgrades one diff to the new super strong machined set. If you have a Flux or XL, I can predict one of these sets in your future.
Check out the official HPI Racing web page for more info!
For the ton of people that I know are going to hop on the HPI Racing Ve8 band wagon, there are a few hop-ups already on their way to hobby shops! There are Front and Rear Aluminum Skid Plates, Aluminum Spindle Sets, Center Drive Shafts, and a few other parts. All these parts will fit the Ve8, D8 and D8T! We are really looking forward to getting our hands on that Ve8! I hope it can take a bashing!
Check out the official HPI Racing web page for more info!
Now available from HPI Racing is the Stage-D Silvia S15 Aero Body Kit. This kit adds a cool drift look to the Nissan Silvia S15 190mm body. Kit pieces include front bumper, spoiler, light buckets, rear bumper, skirt and fenders.
Check out the official HPI Racing web page for more info!
New from Team Novak is the Havoc 1S/SS Pro Brushless System in 10.5T, 13.5T, and 17.5T. This setup is very special because it’s built to run on a 1S Lipo! Their new Novak Smart Boost circuitry allows to run cheaper 1S packs which work well for Oval and 1:12 scale racing. The ESC and SS Pro motors have Thermal Overload protection, and are ROAR approved.
Hey all you HPI Baja 5B and 5T owners, it’s time to loose some weight! Pro-Line Racing has just announced a bunch of sweet carbon fiber parts for the Baja 5B/5T! Combined you will save over one pound of weight on your ride! Parts include Carbon Fiber Chassis, Rear Arm Brace, Front Arm Brace, Rear Upper Plate, Engine Mount, Gear Plate, Chassis Plate, Front Upper Plate and Rear Brace. Wowza! Show up with this stuff, and not only will you be lighter and faster, but the bling factor will be huge!
Well the BASH-A-PALOOZA event has come and gone! I wanted to take a moment to thank all the people that helped make the event special! Without them I would never be able to pull it off! Bill S. (Firesprink281) did an amazing job on the ramps and obstacles, while putting up with me yelling and panicking about everything. Thanks man, you rock!! Thanks to Jon at Leisure Hours for his work on the mic and getting everyone registered! Awesome job as always! Thanks to Scott and Bernie at Leisure Hours for letting us use their amazing facility! Hopefully us ‘non-racers’ didn’t mess the place up too bad. Thanks to Matt G. (Our newest writer) Ben, Chris and everyone else who helped out at the track getting things ready.
Thanks to all the awesome sponsors!
HPI Racing, DuraTrax, O’Donnell Racing, RC Pro Products , Pro-Line Racing. All your support has been greatly appreciated! Lets hope we can keep the event growing!
Lastly, thanks to all the bashers and Big Squid RC fans! Without you guys, this event just wouldn’t happen! You guys keep the web page and events growing! See you at iHobby! Thanks to pro driver Tim Mohr , Jim, all the guys from way south (they drove 5+ hours to be there today!) it’s always great seeing you guys.
The turnout of people keeps growing, lets see what we can do to double the amount next year!
I know there were a lot more cars then this there, but I guess a few got left inside since there was some major destruction after the Monster Soccer event. Make sure to visit those sponsors when ordering parts and new vehicles.
There will be a big write up and pictures, and videos sometime this week after I get the videos grabbed and some sleep!
I always love the sales at Acer Racing because I know the pic will grab some attention! 
Anyway, Acer Racing is having a 72 hour sale. From now till Wednesday, August 19, 2009, receive 20% off any order of $200 or more.
Just enter the promo code: custapprec at the shopping cart screen.
HPI Blitz
Tactic 2.4Ghz Radio
HPI Savage Flux
Novak HP Pro Brushless Conversion
Tekin RS Pro Redline
Team Overdose Car Stand
RC Lights - LED Combo
All Other Reviews HERE!
May 28-30th, 2010
NO LIMIT RC!
Your Event Here!
Midwest RC Drag Racing
