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What's new: Thursday, April 29th, 2010

Electrifly SafeCharge LiPo bag

By Jeff @ 8:20 pm. Filed in: Electrifly

If you’re using LiPo batteries of any type you need to be using a fire resistant container while you’re charging them. The most popular type is of the sack variety. Electrifly‘s got a new one out for you at a low cost. Featuring fiberglass fabric that’s been coated in heat resistant silicon and stitched together with heat resistant thread, their new sack should be able to contain and snuff out a raging LiPo fire if you’re ever unlucky enough to experience one. The pack is 12.5″ x 9″, so fitting most 1s – 3s packs inside shouldn’t be an issue. Check your local hobby shop shelves in late May, the MSRP is $24.95.

Hit up Electrifly’s web site for some more info.

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Muchmore USA Folding Pit Lamp

By Jeff @ 8:12 pm. Filed in: Muchmore Racing

I am of the firm belief that there is no such thing as too much light. All my home light fixtures have two 100 watt bulbs in them (60 watt limits… pshh… what does UL Labs know… nothing… that’s what), my curtains are opened any time the sun is out, and when I’m at my workbench I wear a super bright LED head lamp. But with Muchmore Racing‘s new 12V LED Folding Pit Lamp I may just be able to dump the goofy head lamp.

The pit lamp features a lightweight and durable aluminum frame, sturdy fold out feet, it’s fully adjustable so you can shine the light where you need it, and when you’re done it folds up nice and compact so you can throw it in your pit bag and go. The lamp can be powered by sources from 7.2V up to 13.8V. You’ll be able to get it in black or blue, and the MSRP is $99.99.

Check with Muchmore’s web site for more info.

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Hitec Aggressor 3DS

By Jeff @ 5:46 pm. Filed in: Hitec

Looking to join the 2.4GHz bandwagon but don’t have a lot of cash to spend? Hitec might have the answer to your prayers with their new low cost Aggressor 3DS radio. Being a low cost radio it doesn’t have all the wizbang features that other, more expensive radios have. It’s still got that 2.4GHz goodness you crave though, along with a 3rd channel, dual rate steering, and EPAs for steering and throttle. As with other Hitec radios, it’s available three ways: as a servo and Atom 3 micro receiver combo, a lone receiver, or two receivers combo.

Hit up Hitec’s site for more info.

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Hitec Aggressor SRX Pro

By Jeff @ 5:31 pm. Filed in: Hitec

Hitec‘s goods are generally considered to be great gear at reasonable prices. They have also been a one of the few companies that pushes technology and gives bashers what they need and want (see for example their recent monster torque servos).

To that end, we thought we’d tell you about Hitec’s latest addition to their Aggressor radio line. The Aggressor SRX Pro is a 2.4 GHz, 3 channel radio loaded with all kinds of useful features. It’s got EPAs for steering and throttle, dual rate on the steering, 10-model memory with four character naming, a 7ms high speed repsonse mode, and a dual mode 3rd channel.

The Aggressor SRX will come in three packages. The first one comes with the transmitter, one Atom 3 micro receiver, and an HS-5485HB servo. The second (and cheapest) combo is the transmitter and Atom 3 receiver alone. The last is the most expensive, but it features the transmitter and TWO Atom 3 receivers.

If you haven’t made the jump to 2.4GHz, and you need more features than other entry level packages provide then give this one a look. For more info check out Hitec’s web site.

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ASK Cubby, A Weekly Q & A Session, Version 04.29.2010

By Brian @ 10:54 am. Filed in: Ask Cubby, Traxxas

“Cub Reporter, What is better a Traxxas Summit or a Traxxas E-Revo? Thanks.
Roger Blakely”

Oh yes, the age old question of what is better. Well both are Traxxas, meaning they’ll have good customer support, will be tough as nails, and most importantly, most hobby shops will stock plenty of replacement parts. The Summit is better suited to low speed action, can crawl up a snot covered water slide, and is fairly waterproof. The E-Revo, especially the brushless version, is a freak’n animal. It handles as well on track as it does blasting around a baseball diamond. To boil it down, if you are looking for 30 mph plus action, get the E-Revo, if you like driving in the mud and crawling over tough obstacles, get the Summit. And yes, you’re welcome.
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“What weight of oil should I use in the center diff of an RC8E?
Eddy The Slayer”

You have no idea how many times we get asked that question and the writer does not include what type of car they own, so congrats, you are above the curve on the RC evolutionary chart.

Ok, here’s the scoop. The weight you use will depend on how you like your buggy to handle, how much power you have, and how much traction is available. If you like pulling wheelies, the heavier the better, but you can’t steer while your front tires are staring at the sky. Too heavy of oil will also lead to your buggy being overly sensitive to throttle inputs while in the air. If you use too light of oil, when you punch it your front tires will turn into pizza cutters and you won’t accelerate very fast. If you are using huge 6S power you’ll need heavier oil, if you are using a softer power set-up, you’ll want to go lighter. If your track has a lot of traction you’ll want to go slightly heavier. So to finally give you an answer to your question, start with what your manual recommends then adjust accordingly. If you don’t have the manual, start with 5,000 and go from there.

That’s it for this week, submit your questions to cubby at BigSquidRC dot com!

YOUR Cub Reporter

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What's new: Wednesday, April 28th, 2010

AXE Rossi Engines at Robitronic

By Brian @ 8:59 pm. Filed in: Robitronic

Looking for a little nitro power? There are some new AXE Rossi engines now available that cover 1/10th on-road to 1/8 off-road. Seen here is the AXE Truggy 4.0.

Check out Robitronic’s site for more info.

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Robitronic Speedstar Brushless ESC Programmer

By Brian @ 8:56 pm. Filed in: Robitronic

Have a brushless Speedstar speed controller? Robitronic has a new ESC programmer for you. It can save the settings in it’s internal memory, and it’s ready to download all the settings to your ESC. It will also display maximum and current temperature and even maximum speed. Kinda cool.

Check out Robitronic’s site for more info.

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What's new: Tuesday, April 27th, 2010

Duratrax Gatekeeper Chassis Review is up!

By Brian @ 10:58 pm. Filed in: Duratrax, Losi, RC Rock Crawling

If you own a Losi Mini Rock Crawler, and it’s been collecting dust, this may be what you need to spark a little life back into it! The Duratrax Gatekeeper GC-3 Chassis conversion!
Head over to the RC Reviews section or click the image to check it out!

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Dialed Inc. Car Bags

By Jeff @ 5:48 pm. Filed in: New Products, News

Who has an awesome looking line of r/c bags? Dialed Inc. does! Check out these compact travel bags for various types and sizes of r/c cars, tires, and fluids. Dialed has constructed their bags out of polyester to make them durable and easy to keep clean and all of them feature strong nylon handles. The tire bags come with either cans or strong zip lock bags to keep your stuff organized. These look to be some high quality goods. If you’re in the market for some new travel bags you might want to give them a look.

For some more info about these and all the other bags they offer, be sure to check out the Dialed Inc. web site.

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Psycho Nitro Blast 2009 Video

By Brian @ 12:16 am. Filed in: Events

Bill mailed me a link to this video from the Psycho Nitro Blast from 2009. This is only the first few minutes of the A-Main buggy class, but what’s cool is just insane air and layout of this track! I can see why so many people go to this event! The jumps are HUGE and so is the track.. with buggy’s they have about a 50 second lap time! Imagine that with a 10th scale SC truck! LOL. It looks like a ton a fun, I wish more tracks tried this once in while.. I know they would get more bashers! Although I could here the racer locals crying foul already!

Might have to hit up this event next year!

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What's new: Monday, April 26th, 2010

THE Cub Report, Version 04.26.2010

By Cubby @ 10:52 am. Filed in: cubby, Events

First off this week, huge congrats go out to Scotty Ernst for putting on one hell of a short course race at Trackside Hobbies in Wisconsin. Scotty is arguably one of the top race promoters in this hobby, and widely considered the best race announcer walking the planet. Scott’s race drew around 250 (yes, two hundred and fifty!!) entries this weekend, with everyone from kids to the legendary Jared Tebo racing. I’ve always said you can judge the health of a track by how many kids they have racing, if that is truly the case Scott’s track is doing Awesome! How many kids do you have racing at your local track????

So Jared Tebo pwned the field at the Trackside short course race. His Kyosho was totally dialed, and not even Associated’s Scott Brown could stay on the same lap. Brown is no joke in short course as he won several classes at the short course nationals at RC Madness in Connecticut last summer, but Tebo was not to be denied this weekend.

Props should also be given out to all the companies that supported the Trackside short course event. Traxxas showed up in full force, as did Associated, RC Car magazine, Novak, and lots of other companies. Short course is good for the hobby, it was fantastic to see lots of factory and racer support at the Trackside event.

While the BigSquid crew was running around the short course race this weekend we congratulated HPI on winning two Basher Approved awards (one for the Blitz and one for the Savage XL). To win a Basher Approved plaque from BigSquid means the trucks were jumped off roofs, plowed into parked cars, and used for full speed demo derby and they thrived on the abuse. HPI makes some of the most durable cars and trucks on the market, if you hate breaking parts give’em a look.

On a completely different tangent, ever notice that rc racing has no off season? NASCAR has one, F1 has one, AMA motocross has one, why not rc racing? I know a whole lot of burnt out racers and industry types that could use a couple months off the road. Just say’n….

Are you in the Chi-town metro? Do you enjoy X-mods and Mini-Z’s? Then you should really check out the Chicago Mini R/C Club. Show up with ten American dollars and they hook you up with a car to drive. If you break that car, they hand you another one! Check them out HERE!

Are you a hard core basher in the midwest? Well, here’s a cool event to hit this weekend- Slot and Wing Hobby in Champaign Illinois is having a bash fest this Saturday. Events include mud drag racing, high jump, long jump, high speed run, drifting, and the ever popular DEMO Derby! Be there or be square, click HERE! for more info.

Did you know that Charles Colton coined the phrase “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”????

That’s it for this week, as always support your local hobby shops, tracks and bash spots!

YOUR Cub Reporter

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Trackside

What's new: Sunday, April 25th, 2010

Trackside Hobbies – Short Course Showdown

By Brian @ 12:51 am. Filed in: Big Squid RC, Events, pictures

So we headed out to Trackside Hobbies to watch some racing during the Short Course Showdown this weekend. We snapped a bunch of pictures, talked to a ton of people, and had a great time.

First I’d like to thank Scotty Ernst (seen here on the left with yours truly) for organizing and promoting such a great event. Scotty does an amazing job of running the show. Besides being one of the best (if not THE best) announcers in RC, he really knows how to create and promote a friendly atmosphere. While Trackside isn’t the biggest rc venue in the industry, I have to say it’s one of the friendliest! We have written many times about the jerks we see at the RC tracks, but under the Trackside roof, we saw none of it. There were TONS and TONS of kids, not only spectating but racing and participating!

It’s rare that we see an environment like this, and I wish other tracks around the US would follow in their footsteps. Whenever Big Squid RC has an event, or a race night, we invite as many kids as possible! Remember it’s a hobby, pass it on! I couldn’t be more happy to see Trackside has the same attitude!

A great thing about these big events, is that we get to run into a lot of people we only get to chat with a few times a year in person…
READ MORE

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What's new: Saturday, April 24th, 2010

Even More Basher Approved Products!

By Brian @ 11:13 pm. Filed in: Basher Approved, HPI Blitz, HPI Racing

While we were out at the Short Course Showdown we had a chance to hand out two more Basher Approved ™ awards. It’s always more fun to do these in person, then to just mail them out.

On the left is Erik Shauver from HPI Racing accepting the award for the HPI Blitz. He was one of the major designers behind the Blitz, and it was pretty cool to meet him, and have a little chat. On the right is John Schultz, also from HPI accepting the award for the HPI Savage XL. Both of these vehicles have really held up to some amazing abuse. We own three Blitz vehicles, and have barely busted a thing on them for months of abuse. The Savage XL is just a beast! Besides being super powerful and fun to drive, it’s really easy to work on, and brings a smile to our face every time we fire it up!

Congrats to HPI on two amazing vehicles.

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