RC Car Action October 2021

One thing I love about the RC hobby is its endless variety. No matter what kind of RC you’re into, you’re bound to find something or many things to fit your tastes. What kind of RC do you love? I’m a 80s buggy guy, but I’m into a little bit over everything else. Crawlers, check. Stadium truck bashers, check. On road racers, check. Similar to our RC hobby as a whole, this issue is chock full of variety too. In this issue, we take our first look at Tamiya’s all-new Super Avante off road buggy, which rides on the company’s groundbreaking TD-4 chassis. We also hit the streets in a Traxxas Factory Five ’33 Hot Rod Coupe. Check out why we’re really excited about this release. Because we’re never short on dirt…

1. RC4WD 1/10 WARN 9.5CTI Winch WARN is one of the most iconic names in off-road. This 1/10-scale winch made by RC4WD is a scale ddown version of the beloved Warn 9.5CTI winch. This winch offers ultra scale looks and is backed by RC4WD’s superior quality and craftsmanship. Officially Licensed by Warn. P/N: Z-E0119 MSRP: $36 store.rc4wd.com 2. Hobbywing QuicRun Fusion FOC System Hobbywing’s QuicRun Fusion FOC system is a motor and ESC wrapped up into a single unit. The integrated design of the ESC allows the entire unit to be only the size of a 550 motor and its overall weight is only 210g, which makes the layout and wiring of the car frame simple and clean. This compact 2-in-1 system perfectly solves the difficulty of wiring the small internal spaces commonly found in RC…

Matthew snagged this Axial SCX10.3 and Pro-Line 1966 Chevy body as a 4th of July raffle prize last year. It came with pretty much all the upgraded hardware except wheels and tires so he selected a set of RC4WD Landies wheels with Pro-Line’s 1.9 BFG KM3 tires with some Crawler Innovations dual-stage foams. He tells us that by painting the body shell on the outside using Tamiya colors he was able to achieve the level of weathered detail he was looking for. He hit first with a layer of Tamiya PS flat clear, then laid down a coat of deck hull red as his “rust” base. He then sprayed it white and back sanded down to reveal some of the red beneath. He added a layer of salt to produce…

Brian saw the rally car version of Tamiya’s Citroën 2CV on the shelf at ACS Hobbies and thought it would be something different to build. Once he got the 1/10 version of the famous “Deux Chevaux” home he found the original road car bumperettes were also included in the box, so he started searching the web for photos of CV2s for ideas. He decided on the two-tone color scheme of the upscale Charleston special edition 2CV as well as the idea of cutting out the rear wheel openings and building the chassis in the "low ground setting" and mounting the body extra low on the body posts. He swapped out the knobby rally tires for Tamiya 60D radials and painted the wheel centers to match. The M4 acorn nuts help…

This transformation began when John’s 11-year-old son decided to swap the stock wheels on his Slash 4x4 for a set of Pro-Line 2.8-inch Trenchers. They picked up a 2WD Slash body mount extension kit from their local hobby shop and trimmed the body shell a bit for extra clearance. They also added a set of adjustable camber links and just like that the Slash was transformed. He had his son do most of the work himself, and he was pretty excited by the look, which John credits mostly to the Pro-Line wheels. He figured they ought to adjust the gearing a bit to compensate for the larger-diameter tires so helped his son swap the stock 11-tooth for a 9-tooth pinion and after thrashing it around for 20 minutes they figured…

Share the wealth, submit your Pit Tips: pittips@airage.com Brush It Keep the grime out of your bag or car by brushing the gunk off your RC before putting it away. Paintbrushes are great for dusting off dirt, dust, grass or any other substance after running your RC. We found this brush at the hardware store for only a buck, which also makes it a low cost tool too. Bag It The bags that clear RC bodies come in are huge enough to not only contain the body, but it can also be used to protect your hand and arm from errant paint too. Use the bag that your RC body comes in like a sleeve to quickly and easily shield your hand and arm from overspray. Chuck It Yes, you know this tool well. In fact,…