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What's new: Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

RC Car Snow Plow I just wanted to post up this picture we got from one of our readers. First, I’m not sure this would actually work unless you were plowing WHILE it was snowing. My guess is that nothing on the vehicle weighs enough to push any amount of actual snow more then an inch or so. But I think it would be fun to try. Second, I always thought it would be cool to have some sort of lawn or snow plow RC business, where you would pull up the the house, and not even get out of your car, just sit there and cut their lawn or plow their sidewalk. And lastly, because I always wanted to build something like this when I got my first t-maxx, and then plow my driveway from the comfort of my living room. Then I imagined some kid running up and taking off while my truck, and I’d be inside looking out the picture window in my bunny slippers like ‘Hey! Wait! Stop! Aww :(

Thanks for the snow picture Adam! Anyone else have any snow pics they want to send in, feel free. If you have a great story to go along with it, why not post it up over in the forums!

What's new: Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

Scott Hughes We just received word that long time friend of Big Squid RC, Scott Hughes (seen here on the right at our iHobby track in October) has left Pro-Line Racing after 12 years. Scott was one of the major faces with the company, and a great representative. Scott is a great guy, and one of the better guys in the RC industry in my opinion. I’m sure we’ll have more updates on what he’s up to in the near future!

bash night bash night
I normally don’t post stories of us out bashing the night away, but this one had so many interesting things, I felt compelled to mention it. It started out when I get a phone call from Kierre seen in the left picture showing off his winning… err loosing Slash after one of our famous demolition derby improves, anyway, he calls me up and says ‘I think I want to attempt to rent out the track, are you in?’ Since our track has a really good rate for full track rental on Monday nights, I say sure why not! We each make a few phone calls, and suddenly we have a big enough group to break even on the track rental, and a small enough group to actually enjoy the evening to ourselves. You know how Cubby has been ranting and raving lately about all the ‘local racers’, I can’t agree more with him, but it’s nights like these where you really realize how much more fun our sport is without those guys around!

Not one time did I hear someone raise their voice, or yell at a marshal, see them throw a vehicle or get into a confrontation about being cut off in a turn. And EVERY open practice, yes I said PRACTICE night, I see that. I see some moron on the drivers stand cursing out a marshal because he didn’t get to his vehicle fast enough, or he put it down in the wrong spot. I also didn’t see any near death collisions from the same local racers because they couldn’t/wouldn’t’ slow down over a triple when there was a marshal out there trying to rescue a car, and he decided he would rather take the chance at taking the guys head off with a 1/8th scale then loose his 2 seconds of lap time DURING OPEN PRACTICE! You also don’t see those morons down there marshaling after their runs! Everyone was super friendly! Any time there was a broken vehicle in the pits, people were helping each other get back out on the track, helping fix vehicles, helping by donating some extra parts they had in their tool box, doing all the nice and friendly stuff you rarely see on a open practice night! Ok, I’ll get off Cubby’s soap box before he knocks me off it, but seriously people have fun in the hobby, that’s why we do it! When’s the last time you saw a dad and his kids (and his kids friend) having a fun evening at the track?! It’s rare, but I snapped this shot of Paul and his family enjoying the evening of bashing.

We did all of our usual basher fun, like full track tag (exactly what it sounds like) someone is it, and they are it till they tag (ram) another vehicle.
Full track demolition derby, last car able to drive away wins.. congrats to Bill for winning tonight, Congrats to Kierre for taking the most damage! After we brought our vehicles in from the demo derby, someone came up to me and said ‘I can’t believe you guys did that! I could barely watch! I usually don’t even take my car out on practice nights because I’m afraid I’ll break something, or someone will run into me and break it’. *sigh* Those 10 or 15 minutes of us chasing each other around on the track, and ramming into other vehicles at high speeds brings SO many smiles to our faces, and the faces of others watching. Yea we break a lot of stuff… but wow is it fun, and a good way to release some tension! I highly recommend it. Too many racer shelf queens out there!

bash night You want to know what a basher vehicle looks like, notice anything weird in this picture? I took it because this is the FIRST time I have ever seen someone use a tooth brush as a battery strap! It worked for a while, but it didn’t last all night. We do tend to be a little tough on the cars. Great idea though! Might have to add that one to our basher tips!

Lastly, I wanted to mention that since it was a private track rental night we didn’t invite that many people to keep the numbers low enough for us to relax and have fun, I did notice something very interesting, that 4 out of 10 people were running Tactic Radios! You can read our fullTactic Radio Review here. I’d like to think Big Squid RC has something to do with this, and we might since everyone at the track tonight was a Big Squid RC reader, but it’s also possible that the Tactic might just be the next Ice Charger! Think about it.. when is the last time you saw near 50% of the drivers using the same thing? (Not including a Slash). The Ice charger is the only thing that comes to mind! If you haven’t read the Tactic review, or heard of the radio, check it out! It looks like it’s getting popular quick!

Ok, I’m done ranting and raving before Cubby thinks I stole his job! LOL.
Support your local tracks and stuff, err something like that! ;)
Brian

What's new: Monday, January 11th, 2010

Kyosho ultima db Kyosho ultima db
Check out a few pictures of this new 1:9 scale (that’s not a typo, they are saying 1/9th scale) ride from Kyosho called the Ultima DB. The DB stands for Dune Buggy, and is influenced by the actual buggies raced in the Baha area. The chassis is based on the Ultima SC and is stretched enough to be considered a 1/9th scale vehicle! It comes RTR and is supposed to be race ready. I’m not sure if these will catch on or not, but it is cool to see Kyosho trying another direction in the new realism craze that seems to of helped the short course trucks take off.

You can hit the Kyosho America site for more details.

First off, here’s the LINK of the week. CLICK HERE No, I’m not going to Rick Roll ya with a blind link. The link takes you to the Toys “R” Us website.

Did you know that Traxxas is not only sold at Pep Boys, but also now at Toys “R” Us? Did you know that some models of HPI are also sold at Toys “R” Us?

With that said, I’ve heard many “core” hobbists say that Traxxas being in a Toys “R” Us is a big sell out. Those same people argue that Traxxas being in Toys “R” Us makes our hobby look more hack and makes their products look more “Tyco” like. I say WHAT? Every rc car we buy, no matter how expensive or esoteric, is still just a toy car. (If you doubt that, go out and build a full size SCCA car, put your a$$ on the line and go race it, then get back to me) Our hobby IS playing with toy cars, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that, as it is our hobby. If you want to view this in a healthy manner, accept that fact, and accept the fact that the more mainstream our hobby gets, the better our hobby will become. More mainstream will equal more people to race with, more people to bash with, and more money for the research and development department at your favorite rc car manufacture to come up with cool stuff.

Are surface radio controlled hobbies really about to blow up mainstream (I never thought I’d live to see the day)? Well, getting into the local Pep Boys and Toys “R” Us is a HELL of a good start. Traxxas sponsoring the TORC series and getting tons of tv airtime is a HELL of a good thing. The HPI/Tamiya/Kyosho R/C Motorsports Experience was also a nice step in the right direction exposing our hobby to thousands of fresh faces. Are we really and truly on the verge? Based on the evidence shown, we are closer than perhaps we’ve EVER been. If you are some average Joe Blow Basher type, your part in helping us go mainstream is to remember every noob that shows up is the most important person there, so help’em out instead of blowing them off.

girl squid Picture of the week. Yes, hot chics dig BigSquid RC. :)

Quick note, as mentioned in the “Ask Cubby” column, I am getting my s#!% together and going on a solid schedule. Look for the “Ask Cubby” column every Thursday, and “THE Cub Report” every Monday. You can set your watch to it now, and if you are one of those lawsuit happy types, my new set schedule should save your finger a lot of hits on the refresh button. :)

Ever heard of the Tilted Kilt? Well, if you haven’t, you have now, as they are officially the hang out spot for the BigSquidRC crew. The Tilted Kilt is essentially a competitor for Hooters type restaurants. In short, the food tastes great, and well, the scenery is simply wonderful. So if you get a chance, check a Tilted Kilt out, you’ll be glad that you did. Click HERE to find your nearest location.

That’s it for this week rc fans. Send all hate mail and lawsuit threats to Brian, because I’m simply to lazy to read them. Support your local hobby shops and tracks!

YOUR Cub Reporter

What's new: Sunday, January 10th, 2010

First a big thank you to all of our readers and fans for sending in all those Fan Pictures for the Big Squid RC Contest! This year we had entries from 8 different countries and a ton of different states send in photo’s! Thanks for all your support! Also thanks to all of our sponsors who helped make it happen this year!
HPI, O’Donnell Racing, Duratrax, Pro-Line Racing, Team Novak, Team STRC, RPM RC, RC Pro Products! Go buy their stuff!

We had the most entries ever this year again, so it’s great to see it keep growing! I will be contacting everyone via email over the next 24 hours. Because we were a few monthly drawings behind, we are playing catch-up, so I need to wait for the ‘winner’ of the previous drawing to pick their prize before you can pick yours. Of course the Grand Prize and Runner Up Prizes will go out right away once I get your shipping info!

Grand Prize Winner 2009 of the HPI Flux – Samuel J. Buffalo Grove, IL!
Runner Up of the O’Donnell Tool set goes to Cyle B. City/State unknown at this time.

Other winners for the monthly contests who will be contacted shortly:
Craig N. – Rantoul, IL
Jimy S. – Schaumburg IL

Jose S. – Illinois
Beau R. – Brighton MI

Stephen W. – Morgantown WV
Brian M. – Illinois.

Congrats to all of our winners! Look for an email in the next 24 hours with more details. If you didn’t win this year, thanks for the pics and support! Start dusting off the camera for next year’s pictures!

What's new: Saturday, January 9th, 2010

HPI Racing Blitz Review HPI Racing Blitz Review

We have updated the RC Reviews section with the HPI Racing Blitz Review for all those that are looking to get into the 2wd short course scene! It’s a great truck, and one that should really be considered if you are thinking about picking up a new vehicle!

Head over, or click a picture to read the full review!

What's new: Friday, January 8th, 2010

Schumacher Racing mi4 Just released from Schumacher Racing is ths U2582 Car Balancing Jig for the Mi4LP Car. The Mi4LP chassis all have the correct holes to be able to use this jig for super accuracy while trying to get your weight just right or making adjustments for your LiPo’s.

Check the official Schumacher Racing site for more details.

Reedy life 4000 batteriesIf you are looking for some extra power, Reedy has just announced their 5S 18.5v and 6S 22.2V Competition LiPo Batteries. They are 40C packs sized for 1:8 scale vehicles like their RC8e, SC8e and RC8Te. They come just like you see in the picture, no connector with 10-gauge wire leads. Cost will be around $360.

Check out ReedyPower.com for more information.

Just a quick note here, starting next week, and all through 2010, you’ll be able to find the “Ask Cubby” column each Thursday, and “THE Cub Report” posted every Monday morning. Enjoy!

==========
First off this week is a question from one of our most frequent emailers, Cory.

“HEY ALSO ON THE INFERNO VE DO I HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ANY OTHER PPL WHEN I
GO TO THE TRACK LIK ANY PROBLEMS WITH CRYSTALS OR THAT OR WILL I B ABLE TO
PLUG N GO EVERY TIME”

Cory, I dig your writing style. It says “I KNOW MY CAPS LOCK IS ON AND I DON’T FREAK’N CARE!”. But to your question- the stock transmitter that comes with the Kyosho Inferno VE is the Kyosho Perfex KT6 system, which transmits on 27 MHz, the exact same band that nearly every RTR is on. So yes, if you hit a track, or anywhere that a lot of rc’ers are at, you will run into problems being on the same frequency as someone else. When in that situation, do NOT turn your transmitter on until you have asked Every other person there what channel they are on. If there is no one else on your frequency, you are good to turn on your transmitter when you want to, otherwise, you’ll need to either stay turned off when the other person is running, or you’ll want to insert different crystals into your transmitter and receiver so you will not conflict. 27 MHz crystals aren’t real expensive, but there is a better option for slightly more money, going to a 2.4 GHz radio system. BigSquidRC just tested the Tactic RC 2.4 GHz radio. The Tactic will never conflict with another radio because of the way it operates, so you’ll never have to worry about a channel conflict. You can find the entire BigSquidRC review HERE, and the radio and receiver sell for right around 80 bucks.

==========

“Cubby,
I just got my first rc truck an HPI Blitz. What is the best battery for my truck a Lipo or Ni-mh?
Thanks,
Andy”

Andy, fantastic first truck to start this hobby off with. The HPI Blitz is a durable and fun truck to drive. But which battery is best for you? Opinions vary. You could ask 10 different people in this hobby, and you’ll get ten different answers. My answer to you is to go with a Ni-mh. Why? Because modern Ni-mh cells yield good run times, great voltage output, and most importantly for a beginner like yourself, they are somewhat safer than a normal chemistry Li-po. Being a beginner, chances are you might make a mistake or two while learning the ropes, and if you make a mistake while using Ni-mh cells, you might very well ruin the battery pack, but cause no other damage. Certainly, when Li-po’s are charged and discharged properly they are also very reliable and safe packs, but under certain unfavorable conditions, a “normal” chemistry Li-po may go into a “thermal runaway”. To boil it down, it might emit a flame and reach a very high temperature. Ni-mh’s can also reach high temps when mistreated, but they are much harder to get any type of flame out of. There are some new safer chemistry Lipo cells now on the market that utilize a LiFe cathode, but they are slightly less voltage than a normal Lipo. The lower voltage and extra safety might be perfect for you, check out www.MaxAmps.com for more info on LiFe, normal Lipo, and Ni-mh cells.

That’s it for this weeks edition of “Ask Cubby”. Email questions to cubby at BigSquidRC dot com, and see you again next Thursday.

Your Cub Reporter

RPM rear a-arms Mini Revo For those that bought the front A-Arms for their Mini E-Revo from RPM recently, they have now announced their Rear Upper and Lower A-Arms for the Mini E-Revo are on their way! So if you are looking to make your Mini E-Revo even more Bash Proof, RPM has you covered! They come in blue or black, and in a set of four (upper and lower rears).

Visit the RPM RC site for details.

What's new: Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Acer Racing xmas Girl I was going to post up a picture of the Kyosho Lazer ZK-5, but I was pretty sure nobody would stop to read that post.
Anyway, ACER Racing has a new ceramic Ball Bearing kit for the Kyosho Lazer ZK-5, and if you order now, they have a deal going on from now till Saturday January 9th, 2010 to get an extra $20 off an order over $100 with the Coupon Code L20. I believe that will work.. if not, just try 20.

Ok, I mentioned we would start to play catch-up for the prize drawing contests, so here are the latest two random winners from the Fan Pictures sent in for the Big Squid RC Contest!

Thomas P. – From Sweden
Richy S. – From Austria

Looks like our shipping bills won’t be cheap on this one! LOL! Congrats guys! I’ll be contacting you via email in the next 24hours to let you know what prizes you can choose from!

Big HPI Flux Drawing is this weekend! Wooo Hoooo!