RC Car Action December 2020

Looking beyond the horizon, it looks like we’ve got a very bright future ahead of us. We at RCCA would like to take the time to extend a special thank you to you, our loyal readers. This year has been a wild one and we’re sure it’s been a challenge for many of us to maintain a sense of normalcy in our lives. One of the reasons why we love our hobby so much is that it’s all about fun, creativity and spending time with friends and family. To that end, we are proud to produce this special year-end issue of RCCA for you. As you may have noticed, this issue is over double the size of our regular final issue of the year. That’s because we have combined our December 2020…

1. Reedy Power 1416-C2L Dual AC/DC Competition Balance Charger Reedy's 1416-C2L combines the latest electronics technology along with the design and engineering experience that is responsible for 30 World Championship titles. Contained within is a high-performance microprocessor, specialized operating software, and advanced features that allow it to charge two batteries at up to 14A simultaneously. P/N: 27203 MSRP: $299.99 associatedelectrics.com 2. Tamiya RC Pin Stripe Stickers Tamiya R/C car bodies are among the most detailed replicas available. You can now further enhance the scale look by adding depth with the use of this panel line sticker. The sheet features a number of thin black stickers which can be cut to your desired length and applied on your R/C car body to recreate door, hood and other panel lines. P/N: 54973 MSRP: $7 tamiyausa.com 3. Pro-Line Axis Clear Body for AE…

4 RUNNER CREW CAB CUSTOM HANS HERNANDO « JAKARTA, INDONESIA Hans tells us this build was inspired by—of all things—paint! He was taken by the boldness and subtlety of TRD Cavalry Blue so he decided to build a Toyota-based trail truck to wear it. He liked Pro-Line’s 1991 4Runner body, but wanted something unique so he converted it to approximate a short-bed crew cab pickup. The roll cage and spare tire mount are handmade to fit. Hans hung the customized shell on an Axial SCX10ii chassis, but upgraded it with RockJock axles and a Currie Antirock swaybar—both from Vanquish. There are SSD stainless steel suspension links, and SSD also supplied the Wraith 2-speed transmission. The steering servo is Savox and it is controlled by a Sanwa MT-S radio system. Power comes from…

Husky Precision Magnetizer and Demagnetizer MSRP: $4 homedepot.com What Gonzalez says: “Husky Tools Magnetizer/Demagnetizer tool. I use this to magnetize the tips of my hex wrenches so I don’t accidently drop a screw when removing it.” Leatherman Crunch MSRP: $110 leatherman.com What Gonzalez says: “This is my favorite tool in my box. They work great when you need to hold a nut behind a hidden area or when you’re building turnbuckles.” Makita DF012DSE 7.2V Lithium-Ion Cordless 1/4” Hex Driver & MIP Speed Tips MMakita $188 / MIP Starts at $13.50 eachhomedepot.com / miponline.com What Gonzalez says: “Makita DF012DSE power drill with MIP bits. This is a huge help when you have to make some quick changes to your setup at the track or just for building a new kit.” MIP Hex and Nut Drivers MSRP: Starts at $15.75 leatherman.com What Gonzalez says: “These have been some of the…

Painting Base Head down to the dollar store and nab yourself a cat scratcher to use as a painting base. It’s made of layers of corrugated cardboard that is perfectly sized for skewers or even chopsticks. We mounted alligator clips to bamboo skewers so that they can be used to grip items that you need to paint. Hold the skewers while you spray or airbrush so you don’t miss a spot and plant it into the base to dry. If you have an abundance of cardboard boxes, you can cut them into strips and glue them to make your own base too. Disposable Surface An inexpensive sheet of colorful poster board can keep your work surface clean and help you keep track of small, dark colored parts. Poster board can soak up a…

In this decade or the next, there’s a good chance that humankind will return to the moon and may even visit the red planet, Mars. We hope that when these brave explorers set out on their mission, that they bring with themselves a Traxxas X-Maxx along for the ride. If they knew what we learned from our recent outing with the X-Maxx, we’re certain that they’d agree. Why would an extraplanetary expedition require an RC monster truck like the X-Maxx you may ask? The answer is terraforming. What we experienced during our time with the X-Maxx amounted to nothing less than a practical exercise in planet-scale terraforming. The X-Maxx moves earth like nobody’s business and this gigantic torquey truck easily dug through any terrain that we ran it on. When we drove…