Big Squid RC

For Bashers, By Bashers!
Recent Reviews

What's new: Friday, June 29th, 2012

thunder innovations 4 shoe
8th scale nitro buggies are a favorite among the bashing crowd because they rarely break. Hobby-Pro USA and Thunder Innovations has a new Pro One 4 shoe clutch that fits most 8th scale buggies (except Kyosho). Their new clutch is said to smooth out power delivery without losing any low end power. The Thunder Innovations clutch system comes with a steel flywheel, plenty of springs, collett, nut and cost around $45. Hit up THIS link for complete info.

Are you a fan of 8th scale nitro buggies? If so check out the PR for the new Duratrax nitro buggy HERE on BigSquid.

What's new: Thursday, June 28th, 2012

MaxAmps Updated 12 Volt
MaxAmps are not only makers of fine batteries but they also have high output DC power supplies. Recently the MaxAmps crew updated their power supply line-up by adding front grills, putting on fresh wraps, and making small internal changes. The 12 volt model shown above is good for 47 amps of output and costs right at $80. For complete specs click HERE.

Want to read our review of the MaxAmps 24 volt power supply? Click HERE.

Hot Racing Wheel TQ
Traxxas has sold untold amounts of ready to run trucks that come equipped with their TQ radio. Hot Racing just happens to make an upgrade aluminum steering wheel that not only increases the looks of the TQ, but also comes with better foam on the wheel for improved grip. The Hot Racing upgrade wheel comes in different colors, is constructed out of 6061-T6 aluminum, and costs under $20. Want to find out more? Then click right HERE.

Ever wonder how a Traxxas RTR transmitter would stack up against after-market competition? If so click HERE.

proline mystery tire
You don’t stay the leader in tire technology by sitting on your hands, and yesterday the hard working crew over at Pro-Line posted a sneak peak of one of their New Tires. As you can see by the pic their new tire is small pinned for track use, but Pro-Line makes a tire for every terrain, Badlands and Trenchers are some of the favs around the office. Hit up Pro-Line’s WEBSITE to view their entire line-up.

Looking for more Pro-Line news here on BigSquid? Take a look HERE.

Cubby

HPI Bullet Parts
Hoi Bigsquid,
Mij name is Jeroen B and i am from Holland. I just read that a part was broken from the HPI bullet. 2 years ago I bought a HPI Bullet MT and a do have a lot of parts. Perhaps I can help you. Can you tell me what part(s) you need?

My experience with this car is great. Until now I only broke 2 parts
- Front hub carriers had a tear. I want to replace it with an upcoming hop up form HPI. I have already seen it at the toyfair in Nurenberg.
- I bent a centre driveshaft. On forums I am reading that the early models have that problem.
- oh ye I broke a shock tower (my own folt. I landed on the back on concreat after jumping 10 feet (skatepark).
For the rest I did do hop ups (anti bending plates en front plate en CVD shaft set). Recently I replaced the esc with the new HPI and that’s much better. Meer power en I like my truck!!
If you need a part and I have it I will send it to you no charge! (because I think you have a great website)
I hear from you

Jeroen B.

Cubby- Well howdy there Jeroen, and mucho thanks for the email. Be sure and send us an email with your mailing address so we can hook ya up with some stickers.

While it is good to hear that you’ve had good luck with your HPI Bullet, ours is still sitting, still broken, and still collecting dust. The parts we need aren’t available here in the states, not via hobby shop, and seemingly not from HPI USA. “Sigh” Truly a shame, it seems like a good platform that would be fun to bash. Trust me, we want to be running this thing!

And… Jeroen, I am very thankful of your offer to send us the parts we need all the way from Holland, but I must thoughtfully decline. We’ll get the parts (eventually) and grade our review accordingly. But… next time I am in Holland I will look you up and we can bench race over a fringed bottle of Dom. Till then my new friend, have fun bashing your Bullet and keep in touch.


flysky
have you guy checked out the now not so new flysky gtb3 most of our club uses them and their great for the money thanks for all the great reviews.
lance

Cubby- No Lance, I am not a big fan of the FlySky FS-GT3B (for you guys who don’t know what it is, it’s a low end transmitter). I really didn’t like the wheel or the spring used on the steering. I am not the type of person who believes everything cheap is junk and everything expensive is great, I’m the type of person that will give cheap gear an honest chance to prove its merit, but after using one for a couple hours there are just many more transmitters on the market I’d rather use. But… I’ve seen several people use them at the track and bash spots, most had good luck with them and one even raved about how much he liked his.

Thanks for the props on the reviews, we’ve got way more stuff around here to review than I think we could ever get too, but if you talk to the guys selling the FlySky transmitters tell’em to shoot one our way, we’ve got another transmitter shootout in the works.


Tire Compounds

I can’t decide which compound I should buy my new tires in. Should I buy a softer compound for more grip or a harder compound for longer wear?

Jeremy H.

Cubby- If you are a “core” basher you’ll probably want to go with a harder compound like Pro-Lines M2. Bashers tend to run on a wide variety of surfaces including on-road, and if you buy a soft compound you simply won’t have any tread left after a few hard runs. If you are a racer type you’d typically look at the compounds like this- run softer for cooler, wetter, or less abrasive conditions, and run something harder in hotter, dryer, blue groove, or more abrasive conditions.


That’s it for this week, shoot me your questions, riff-raff, and whatever is on your mind to Cubby at BigSquidRC dot com. If we use your question on the front page you’ll get some free stickers, and if I pick yours as question of the month I’ll shoot ya a free t-shirt. Btw… we can’t send stickers through email (duh), so yes, we’ll actually need your physical address to send goodies to.

YOUR Cub Reporter

What's new: Wednesday, June 27th, 2012

pivothead glasses

I recently stopped in to our Hobby Town in Orland Park, and Steve (the owner) was testing out some new video recording sunglasses from a company called Pivothead. There are a lot of people in RC that are often trying to record themselves doing stuff, but it you haven’t tried, it’s very difficult to film AND drive or fly at the same time. Trust me on that one, I have done both and it never goes well. The glasses actually are pretty nice seeing them in person, and the video looks good as well. You can do 1080p at 30fps or if you need more speed you can do 720p at 60fps. You can hit the Pivothead for more details, or if you are in the Orland Park IL. area, and your interested, I believe Steve may have the pair there for people to take a look at. He was also showing off some pics and video, so stop by and check them out.

axial exo rtr

We recently posted the Axial news about the EXO RTR coming soon. Well today it showed up at the office, so here are a few pictures before we go beat up on it and start the review process. You can see the Castle system in a few of the shots.

If you haven’t seen our review of the Axial EXO Terra Buggy Kit make sure to hit that link

MIP Tuning Package
The good guys over at MIP not only make the best tools on the market but they have just released an upgraded chassis and tuning kit for the Losi Ten SCTE. The MIP tuning set comes with a new chassis, shock towers, springs, center drive-shafts and more. Performance is improved thanks to less weight, better shock pistons and springs, and proper weight distribution. Price of the upgrade system looks to be around $275 and you can find complete info HERE.

Want to know what BigSquid said about the Losi SCTE in our review? Look HERE.

BZM Losi Motor
The stock engine in the Losi 5ive-T makes decent power, but it does not make loads of torque. BZM has a new motor called the Micro 28.5 CC Torque Tune that puts out the torque you are craving for. Features include reed induction, large phenolic bearings, Nikasil cylinder lining, and it costs around $900. If you are looking to make a major motor upgrade in your 5ive-T the new BZM is well work a look. You can find complete information RIGHT HERE.

Looking for more 5ive-T news here on BigSquid? CLICK HERE.

GPM Savage XS Shocks
The HPI Savage XS Flux is undoubtedly one of the most bash-able trucks on the market today. For those of you looking to add some bling-bling factor to yours, GPM now has upgrade shocks available. These aluminum shocks come in different colors, come with extra springs, and will set you back under $20 a pair. CLICK HERE to get more info and to start pimp’n out your XS.

Want to read the BigSquid review of the Savage XS? If so, CLICK HERE.

Our good friends from HobbyMedia.it posted an interesting story about some new timing system software from Kawada. The software is called ARSA – Advantage Race System, and the idea behind it is that it allows for a handicap of your time and laps similar to the way a handicap works in bowling or golf. Essentially letting the total newbies get out there and race with the guys who know what they are doing, and be competitive by letting the newbie’s do better based on their improvements. I think this is a pretty cool idea for the people who want to race, but hate getting crushed on the track because they just don’t have the experience, or the car/setup to compete. I’m sure all the ‘pros’ will hate it just as much as they hate a newbie getting ‘in their way’. I’d really like to see this show up over here somewhere in the USA and see how it goes.

Thanks to HobbyMedia.it for the post.

What's new: Tuesday, June 26th, 2012

MaxAmps Dual Core 8000 mah
The MaxAmps battery crew out of Spokane Washington announced a new battery to their line-up today, a Dual Core 8000 mah 150C discharge Lipo. Their new battery uses 4000 mah cells that when wired in parallel are said to give the lowest possible resistance while giving outstanding voltage under load. The new Dual Cores are capable of a 5C charge rate and are also waterproof. You can get the new Dual Cores in either hard case or soft pack, and they have a price point of right around $145. The new MaxAmps Dual Cores are available Right Now for your bashing pleasure.

Looking for more MaxAmps news here on BigSquid? CLICK HERE

THE Pro-Line Blockade SC Tire Review

Not every basher is a cul-de-sac aficionado, in fact many get their bash-on at local tracks. Stock sct tires typically feel like you are driving on ice when on dirt, the proper tires can totally make a trip to the track much more pleasurable. Pro-Line just happens to have a tire, the Blockade SC, that they claim works well on a variety of hard pack conditions that you’ll likely find at many tracks. Do the new Blockade SC’s kick your stock tires butts? Let’s take a deeper look shall we?

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