With a year, and about 1200 miles of riding under its belt, it is time to do a follow on update from my original review.
WHile the number of miles is pretty modest (dealing with my step father’s trust and estate consumed way too much of my time last year), I did get a solid feel for the bike.
(more…)In the last week, the Vanquish Product’s VS4-10 crawler kit arrived, as well as part of the electronics. After a quick purchase of some grease, and a fresh (as in unbent) needle nose pliers it was time to begin the process.
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Like potato chips, RC cars are addictive and you can’t have only one. Part of the reason is that there is such variety, such a range of capabilities, that you really can’t do it all with one car.
And that’s all right. Currently I have a 1/8th scale Buggy, and a 1/5th scale Monster Truck (The X-Maxx). And I have a thirst for more.
Next up:
I am getting the bug to build a kit. Also, the desire to have a good crawler, something like a well set up Jeep Wrangler. I could go with an Axial SC10 kit, but I know that I would end up upgrading a lot of parts.
Instead, I pulled the trigger on a Vanquish Products VS4-10 Ultra (with the portal axles) and most of the electronics to go with it. It should arrive next week, and will provide a couple of weekends of building enjoyment.
Alas, the motor/ESC electronics are all on back order, so until they are shipped, it will be difficult to complete, but that reduces the “rush” and “cut corners” temptations.
Beyond that:
A smaller monster truck. I debated between the e revo or the new Maxx, a little brother to the X-Maxx. I am leaning towards the e Revo 2.0. It is a stunt-y vehicle, shorter in height than the X-Maxx, more agile, yet with ample punch to have fun, jump, and bash.
I am also looking at a high end driver kit. Something like the Team Losi Racing SCTE short course truck. It is a race class kit, with a lot of good parts. Like the Vanquish above, it will come without the electronics, or tires, but I think I will get a great deal of joy building a top quality kit.
Then I have a hankering to grab one of the modest cost Tamiya kits. The Porsche 911 looks tempting. Or, perhaps I will get one of their “fun” kits and build it up with the neighbor kid. He seems to like watching me drive, and one of the funky, but fun Tamiya’s would be a good way to spoil him.
Last, but not least, I am going to have to get a nitro vehicle. I will probably rarely run it, but the sounds, the smells, the experience is something I want to partake in.
This hobby sucks you in. That is a good thing, especially during the shelter in place orders.
We are about to see a pretty major social experiment in the USA. The red state governors are chomping at the bit to lift restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19, and to get their economies flowing again. At this moment, South Dakota (never fully embraced restrictions), Florida, and Texas are about to play the canaries, betting that they will not see explosive growth of infections, and deaths in their states.
(more…)As a denizen of Twitter, I am seeing a few disturbing trends. Since the Orange turd had begun dissembling and looking for others to blame for his fuckups around the Novel Corona Virus pandemic, I am now seeing a new trend.
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A mid year bonus, and approval from the boss (my wife) to allow me to spend a few hundred bucks on something frivolous, I bought a Mavic Mini drone from DJI.
Earlier, the boss bought a $70 Chinese special that worked, but really sucked to use. Some research identified the DJI brand to have the most boob friendly, yet quite capable product.
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Just as relevant as it was the day I first heard this, in 2004. Change the Bush to Trump, and it is fresh again:
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Picture if you will, a desire to enter the world of RC Cars. Perhaps there is a latent desire to drive, or you see someone driving, and it looks cool. Or that you work (or have worked) with an enthusiast, and want to give it a try.
Regardless, we all start at square one. This post will explore a few use cases and some common advice that can be taken or discarded.
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Just a quick post. My first RC car was/is a Losi 8ight v3 RTR. It was pretty pricy for what it is, a 4wd buggy with 4S compatible electronics (at least compared to others in the class). Now I know that a TLR kit will cost more for a comparable vehicle, but it comes with better components, and missing a lot (like motor, ESC, controller, tires) that you will have to buy (so, getting started is like $1,200)
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The RC bug has bit me, bad. I currently have two RC cars, a Losi 8ight 1/8th scale buggy, and a Traxxas X-Maxx that I bought used (barely used) with Traxxas batteries and charger(s).
But this post is more about the Traxxas RC ecosystem, with a Product Manager’s eye on their efforts.
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