"WARNING" - 1/12 racing can cause smiling!

Horsham RC Club was my destination on Friday eve to give my Corally SP12X its first outing.

I was a little trepidatious as I have heard varying reports about how easy or difficult these little firecrackers can be to drive.

I wasn't expecting anything of the car or myself and had decided I would be happy if I could just get it round the track without causing too much distress to myself or any body else!

I was quite pleased when I turned up to find that, due to the holidays, it was a fairly quiet evening. A good meeting at which to cut my 1/12 teeth.

I bagged a spot next to a pal of mine, Greg Fairlie, an experienced 12th driver and Corally owner to boot. Excellent, just the man from whom to gather valuable advice and to steal Jack the Gripper tyre additive off of, the sauce of choice amongst the Horsham guys.

Gregs Corally on the left with a shiny new shell . . . not for long!

Time for a 1/12 virgin to pop his cherry.

OK it's time for the talking to stop and the driving to commence.

I have managed to get my Corally SP12X ready for battle.

Over the last month or so I have been gathering together a range of budget conscious components.

These include a Team Powers 13.5t motor and a Hobbywing Xerun speedo from the spares box, a Savox SH-1250MG digital servo from flea bay and a Turnigy lipo from Hobby King.

Toastie digits!

OK so this isn't strictly an RC product but for those of us that brave the British weather racing outdoors over the winter it's a great performance upgrade.

 Whilst I am not claiming the message my brain sends to my fingers is the right one I do, at least, like it to get through. The trouble is when my fingers are frozen there appears to be something of a delay.

Not to mention those bloomin' screws and circlips that always develop a mind of their own as my digits succumb to the cold.

Thanks to this baby all my troubles are over . . . maybe.

This little beauty isn't a new invention by any means, indeed as a nipper I remember my dad lighting up one of these before an afternoon on the terraces watching our local footy team, and what's good enough for pop is good enough for me.

All you do is light the charcoal rod, pop it in the case and enjoy toastie fingers for up to 6 hours.

Under a tenner . . . A no brainer.

Merry Christmas & a happy new year.

Well dear readers the festive season is once again upon us.
A time when every racer looks forward to getting loads of RC related gifts but actually ends up with pants, socks and crappy aftershave.

Oh well I remain optimistic . . . This just might be the year when Santa reads my letter and puts the elves to work on the Pipski list!

So happy holidays to fellow RC racers across the globe.
May you all have a great (insert appropriate festival here) and may your 2012 season bring great results and enormous trophies.

Thanks for coming along in 2011.

Keep reading in the new year when I will endeavour to entertain and inform, just for a change!



Apex Winter Open at SHRCCC

I toddled off to Farnham last Sunday to get involved with Apex Models sponsored Winter Open at SHRCCC.

Problem is . . . I forgot my camera . . Doh!
So only a short review and just the one 'show-off' pic of my pot!

As usual the club made good use of the space available putting together a track with a decent selection of features to keep it interesting.

The turn out was reasonable with around 45 drivers making the effort.

I had a decent day with the SX3 managing 3rd overall behind a quick Terry Streeter in 2nd and impressive youngster, Ollie Crew, in 1st.

Dean Mandeville took the win in 2wd.
Everyone in attendance seemed to have a good time, most returning home with a smile, so well done and thanks to the organisers for putting on a good day.


SHRCCC have big plans afoot with a brand new outdoor astro track in the pipeline for 2012. Should be a venue to watch out for with regular Sunday meetings planned in addition to the evening meets of 2011.

In the meantime they continue to run their Thursday night indoor meetings until the weather improves.
Worth a look for your winter fix.

Corally SP12X . . . Moore-Speed Reynard 02S

I have been waiting for the postman to get here, all the way from HK, with parts for my 12th car. The poor so and so will be knackered pedalling all that way on his little red bike.

In the meantime I have flourished the airbrush.

I have procured myself a Hot Bodies More-Speed Reynard 02S shell. It's probably not the 'whoop dee do' shell to have for this class but Nick at Demon had one in stock so that's what I've got! 

Anyway, as a 1/12 novice I am sure it wont be long before I need another at which time I will have some experience and maybe just a little more idea about what I need (or maybe not!).

Bullistorm ESC . . . Bargain or B******t?

In my determination to keep my 1/12 folly to a sensible budget I have just picked this up.

A 60a speedo, made by Bullistorm, that is capable of running all the latest HW timing boost software.

 It is blatant Hobbywing copy and it remains to be seen if it actually works but for the price it was worth a little gamble.

From the outside it looks to be of reasonable quality but of course thats no guarantee of what might be on the inside.

Cat SX3 . . . FAB system.

I have recently picked up a FAB (Front Adjustable Brake) system for my SX3.

The FAB comprises a fixed pulley for the mid belt and a one way pulley for the front belt. The one way pulley is sandwiched between a pair of slipper plates which provides an off power braking effect to the front wheels. The tension, and therefore the brake strength, can be adjusted via a nut in exactly the same way as the more familiar gearbox mounted slipper clutch.

Corally SP12X . . . 1/12 I'll give that a go!

One of the few RC disciplines I haven't thrown a stack of cash at is 12th scale.
Well the time has come to change that.

Horsham RC club is an easy drive from me and they currently run a couple of heats of 1/12 on a Friday evening so, I thought to myself, why not get involved?

I am assured by much better drivers than myself that 1/12 cars are probably the most difficult to drive. Lightning fast reactions and total concentration are required to get these sensitive little cars round the track.
A big ask from a chap of my advancing years!

MKGP ... Indoor off road at its finest.

It was off to Newbury at the weekend, to compete at the MKGP, an indoor off road event being held at the well known Newbury RC club venue.

So after an early alarm I arrived in the dark, bleary eyed, excited and nervous.

This was my first big buggy meeting and it was going to be a big one. Fully booked weeks in advance with 120 2wd entrants on Saturday and 100 4wd on Sunday. I was only attending on Sunday so was playing catch up from the start, most racers had made a weekend of it and the track remained unchanged overnight.

First lesson learned!

It was well organised and with plenty of room, tables and power all provided. I found a spot booked in and settled in. I was off the line in heat 3 at 8.16am.

Spoilt for choice at SHRCCC

I have entered the MKGP which is being held at the home of  the Newbury RC club on 18/19th November.

This is to be an indoor 1/10 off-road event running mainly on carpet, more specifically the actual carpet from SHRCCC.

With this in mind last Thursday I made the trip to Farnham to have a run with some (all) of my cars in an effort to to establish some kind of battle plan with the aim of minimizing potential embarrassment come race day.

Dudders set up a great little track with a variety of obstacles including a cross over, a couple of table tops, one being on a corner and some slippy stuff. It was all crammed into a fairly small space but more than enough to test any car. 

Sweep EX30P-PP Tyres . . Update

At the last Adur MCC club meeting I used the Sweep EX30P-PP tyres. I liked the way they performed so thought I'd write a short update for those that are interested.

Being a parsimonious chap I intend to run these for as long as I can get away with so I  broke them out again for the last round of the Adur MCC summer (?!) series last Sunday. 

It seems my £22 was well spent as they gave me another decent days racing. It wasn't a fast track on Sunday as it hadn't been used for a few weeks and the weather had scrubbed it clean so it was pretty green.

Get a grip Pip!

I think I may have got a little carried away with my buggy fetish.

I am hoping this admission in front of my peers is the first step on the road to recovery.

It all started back in the Summer when I met, what seemed like, a nice guy. His name was Neil 'Dudders' Dudman and he was about to set up a new off road club SHRCCC.

I trusted him when he assured me what he was offering was just harmless fun and that I would meet, and enjoy the company of, other people just like me.

Little did I know then that it would lead to this.

Mi4LP SpecR front gear diff

Fed up with destroying my buggies on a weekly basis I decided to ring the changes at the weekend.

I popped the Mi4 on to the set-up station and prepped it for a days club racing at the Adur MCC circuit.

A bit of a gamble given the preceding weather but one that turned out to be worthwhile as Sunday dawned chilly but dry.

I don't know about you but now the mornings are getting cold and dark a strong will is required to get me to the track on a Sunday!

Part of the resaon for this effort was to try out my new SpecR diff. No not that one, I have treated myself to another for the front.

I built it up, filled it with 500,000wt oil, and popped it in the pit box. (Yes 500,000wt)

I ran the spool in heat one for comparison purposes but then dropped in the diff and ran it for the rest of the day, 3 more qualys and two finals.

It was a slippery day and grip was slow to come up so it's difficult to come to a definitive conclusion but my feeling is that I will not be removing this diff anytime soon. It seemed to suit my driving style, giving me just a little more entry steering and sacrificing almost nothing at the exit all the while remaining predictable.

Nice.

It was a small field but I managed to win all my heats and both finals, just the fillip I need after the last few weeks.

So my money wasn't wasted on another useless 'go faster' item and I had a good days racing to boot, I returned home happy.

This time!

Cat SX3 upgraded 'Bando' belts

SX3 drivers now have options when it comes to drive belts.

Some have experienced high wear rates and fraying on their standard belts,  regular readers might recall that this includes me.

The solution to this problem is now at hand in the shape of some upgraded Bando belts recently released by Schumacher.

Japan based  Bando know a thing or two about belts, they have been making and supplying belts to industrial and automotive OEMs  for over a hundred years. Suffice to say these should do the trick!

The standard 6mm rear belt has not proven particularly problematic so no Bando alternative is offered. A standard 4mm replacement is however available for those keen to ensure as little drag as possible.

They certainly look to be tough as old boots, perhaps a slight sacrifice in flexibility is a small price to pay to guarantee a finish.

Some guys have been sealing the edges of the standard belts with cyno, this is what I have done with the rear belt with no noticable sacrifce in flexibility and maybe a little extra durability.

I will install these in my SX3 over the next couple of weeks and report back.

Oh Schumacher! You are spoiling us.

Details and prices of the new belts can be found here.

Lady Luck's done a runner!

Well readers my luck has deserted me.

Over the last few weeks I've had the kind of run that makes an RC racer wonder why.

Why do I get up at 6.00am on a Sunday?

Why do I drive 50 or 60 miles to stand in a cold wet car park in the middle of nowhere?

Why do I spend hundreds, nay thousands, of pounds in the vigorous pursuit of fractions of a second?

Why do I participate in a hobby after which I return home happy only around 50 per cent of the time?

Because I, like you, am addicted.

Addicted to what?

Those days when I beat my personal best.

Those days when I nail the 'A'.

Those days when I return home triumphant with a 2 bob trophy that's cost me a hundred quid to win.

Those days when the postman brings me an RC package.

 And those balmy summer days chillin' with my buds.

That's why I put up with weekends like the last 3!

Week 1: 10 minutes use with the brand new SX3, the rear belt self desructed and destroyed the rear diff pulley.

Super!

Credit to Schumacher who were excellent, the car is now sporting a new set of belts including the new uprated 'Bando' belts for the front and centre, all free of charge.

Thanks guys.

Durango DEX410R . . . I sploshed some paint on!

Having managed to squeeze everything under the diminutive shell supplied with the 410 it was time to spill some paint all over it.

I decided to go for the 'team' look and try to create something similar to my Losi 22.

These are the results.

Durango DEX410R . . Electrics install.

I put my limited soldering skills to the test at the weekend when I decided to wire up the 410.

My electrics of choice comprised a Tekin 6.5t motor hooked up to an LRP Sphere competition speedo. When I say choice what I mean is 'that I managed to source used for a reasonable price'.

Due to the limited space I had to spring for a Spektrum micro rx.

The juice to power this little lot will be supplied by a pair of Intellect 5400mah 60c saddles that are a perfect fit.

It's a bit of a challenge getting everything just so in this car but I think I managed pretty well.

I went for the de rigeur all black wiring, perhaps not the wisest but possibly the coolest choice.

The respective lengths of the positive and negative wires ensure that once in place it is, thankfully, impossible to connect the cells back to front.

I am happy with the outcome.

 I have the heatsink for the speedo and am waiting for a thermal pad to arrive so I can fit it. I am hoping to get away without a fan if I can.

The final job will be to splash some paint on the bodyshell. I'll get the airbrush out tomorrow, pop back to see the result of my efforts.

I'm getting excited now!

GM90 . . . Smooth as a baby's bum!

A couple of weeks back I picked up a used GM90 speedo. I have seen lots of guys going very fast with these and become convinced that I would be just as fast if I got one.

Of course I wont but my delusional attitude is what keeps RC companies in business!

I squeezed it into the Mi4, I really should invest in a micro rx to replace the housebrick that currently resides therein. The GM has quite a footprint, slightly smaller than a HW but still more navvy than tekin sized ballet dancer.

Losi Luvvin . . . TLR22 hits the track.

I have now had a chance to run my Losi 22.

Twice on carpet at SHRCCC and one afternoon of testing on the high traction astro at TORCH.

Before this I had never raced a 2wd buggy and my entire 2wd experience amounted to about 3 laps on a grass circuit with a Mad Rat. These observations are therefore very much those of a 2wd novice.

Carlos Fandango Durango DEX410R . . Nearly ready to roll.

I have, at last, made time to wield the wrenches in the direction of my Durango DEX410. I picked this up recently at a good price and have been looking forward to putting it together.

Team Durango have just released the V3 version of this car which, I am pleased to report, seems to be an evolution of this platform rather than an entirely new model.

The car remains ostensibly the same with the addition of big bore shocks and a new hex fitting for the wheels, thus confirming my purchase as a wise one.  



Inside everything is as one would expect, mostly divided up into numbered bags that correspond with the build stages in the manual. The exception, and slight pain in the a*** is that the plastics are all in one big bag still attached to their sprues. I laid them out on the bench to make locating the correct part easier.



    



SHRCCC hits the carpet.

Thursday night is now carpet racing night at SHRCCC.

 Located in the Swiftsure hall on the same site as the outdoor track this brand new indoor venue aims to continue its popular weekly meetings regardless of the weather.

To this end Dudders has procured carpet from, the alas now defunct, RC Arena.

Schumacher Mi4 Gear Diff by SpecR

Gear diffs have been very popular this season and SpecR have been capitalising on this by releasing versions for most popular touring cars. Until now Mi4 owners have felt a little neglected, but not any longer.

Schumacher, in collaboration with SpecR have finally released a version to fit the Mi4 range.

Sweep EX30P-PP Tyres

I blew the dust off the Mi4 at the weekend and headed to Adur Model Car Club for Round 8 of their summer series.

It's been a little while since I have run the touring car so needed some fresh rubber.
RC Direct were the trackside retailers and recommended these Sweep EXP30-PP tyres.

They were cheaper than the ubiquitous Sorex 32, and I like to save a quid where I can, so I decided to give them a go. 

TORCH Summer Series Finale

As the summer season winds down I made the now familiar journey to TORCH for the final round of their popular summer series.

This series has been consistently well attended all year and Sunday was no exception, 72 drivers booked in for what promised to be a good days racing under a late summer sun.

There were some nice trophies to fight over for 1st 2nd & 3rd in the A, B & C finals.
Bring it on!

Losi TLR22 2wd Buggy . . . The Build (Part 3)

Now the, not so straightforward, job of wiring it all up.

There are plenty of options for the layout of the electrics.

Losi sell a 'stubby' sized lipo specifically for this chassis that allows a bit more room. There is no way I am buying a battery that will fit only this car so I needed to work out the best way to do this with my saddles, not so easy with an enormous HW speedo and standard sized Sektrum rx.

As the saying goes; 'where there's a will there's a way'!

I like the HW speedos but the size doesn't help when space is at a premium. It is the 60a version and will be running the '119 stock' (with boost) software to spin up an 8.5 turn 'Bullistorm' motor.

This is what I ended up with, I think it's best described as functional rather than pretty but I will probably tweak it over time.

Losi TLR22 2wd Buggy . . . The Build (Part 2)

Suitably refreshed I ventured back into the shed to crack on with the build.

Next on the list was the gearbox assembly.
This is significantly different for the mid and rear mounted motor variants.
Alot of racers are using ceramics in the diff, I decided to build it to kit spec and see how it holds up.
I gently sanded the diff rings with some wet and dry then assembled using the included silicone grease. The end result is silky smooth, at least on the bench, we'll see how it lasts in the heat of battle!

Tip: Don't forget to run your diff in before using in anger, run gently then readjust, it's easy to damage a diff with excessive slip when new.

Assembly is straightforward enough, all the gears run on beefy shafts with what appear to be decent bearings.

Tip: I used a precautionary dab of threadlock on the long bolts that secure the alloy motor plate.

Losi TLR22 2wd Buggy . . . The Build (Part 1)

I have (rashly) entered the 2wd offroad carpet wars at Maritime so thought I had better build, and start practising with, my Losi TLR22.

The last couple of kits I've built have been Schumachers. They have both been good, high quality, builds so the 22, my very first Losi, has a tough act to follow, let's see how it stacks up.

When I hand over a big wodge of cash for a toy car I like to feel like I am getting some value, decent packaging goes some way towards this. The Losi doesn't disappoint, coming in a nice sleeved box.

Upon opening one is greeted by the familiar sight of a pile of numbered bags. They are easily identified by the numbered headers. A nice surprise is the two sets of wheels that are included, an indoor and outdoor set perhaps?

Wet astro . . . Summer, when was that then?

The weather man had, unconvincingly, predicted a nice day for Sunday.

It was indeed a nice morning so I packed up my gear, including my shiny new SX3 and set off for TORCH.

The only problem was that Saturday night hadn't been so good, in fact it had been chucking it down!

As a consequence the track at TORCH was a little soggy.

Oh well, I guess I've got to learn it all so I paid my money and got myself prepared.

Some of the earlier arrivals got busy with some industrial sized squeegies in an effort to clear the surface of standing water. This was a bit of a thankless task given the that the track sits in a bit of a dip.

A good effort nonetheless, well done chaps.

Indoor buggy racing at Taplow

The indoor buggy track at Taplow was my destination of choice this week.

This was one place the awful weather couldn't spoil my racing.

Taplow is a well known venue in buggy circles and is highly thought of by some top drivers who make occasional appearances here.

The track is run by Janos who spends most of Friday afternoon clearing his employers body shop and putting together a testing track. The track changes each week but is mostly carpet, liberally punctuated with testing features including jumps and yumps of varying sizes. The restricted space guarantees a fairly tight technical track that tests driver ability and car durability. 

Schumacher Cat SX3 . . . The Build (Part 2)

So onto the suspension.

Most of these parts come straight from the SX2, thats a good thing. The drive shafts look like they are from a Scania truck, well up to the rigours of off road racing and no pesky drive pins and grub screws to keep on top of.

Schumacher Cat SX3 . . . The Build (Part 1)

(Click on any pic for a full size version.)

Ok then, time to get out the tools and get to work on my new Cat SX3.

I was looking forward to this build. It isn't very long since I built my SX2 and that was a really nice kit so I was keen to see how the SX3 compared.

Upon opening the box I was greeted by a familiar sight. All the parts are well packaged in clearly marked bags. The clear and well written manual gives specific instructions as to which of these bags are needed and when.

Simple as peas! 

TORCH Summer Series - Round 5

I had a trip to TORCH at the weekend to compete in round 5 of their summer series.

This is a well run, competitive, series that continues to gain popularity and this weekend attracted 60 drivers across 8 heats. Part of the reason for this popularity must be due to the fact that for a £10 entry fee every driver gets around half an hour of open practice followed by 4 qualifiers and 3 finals . . . Now that's value!



Dudders and the RC Lazy crew



I couldn't resist it! (Part 3) . . . Losi TLR22

Ok ok . . . I know I didn't need it and I admit I am being profligate but as the title says, I couldn't resist it!

I promise that I will now stop buying and start building.

 There is something of a buzz surrounding the TLR22 just at the moment.

It seems to be the marmite of the rc world, you either love it or you hate it!

I had to find out for myself. So rather than borrow somebody elses car, which worries me as I'm bound to break it, I bought one of my own.

I couldn't resist it! (Part 2) . . . Durango DEX410R

Do you remember what I said about a good day at the track prompting exravagance?
Well I had better start having some bad days soon or I am going to be completely boracic!
(I didn't really mean that oh great gods of RC)

Anyway I blame Michael Ball at MB Models.

Michael has struck a deal with Durango meaning that right now he is doing a cracking price on the 410R.



Shootout Showdown at SHRCCC

On Tuesday, after a hard fought summer of qualifying, the top 10 protagonists in 2 & 4wd faced off at SHRCCC to duke it out for a share of the generous £380 prize fund up for grabs at the Shootout finale.

As I have previously mentioned the track has become testing to say the least, whoever made off with the spoils would be deserving recipients. Yours truly had managed to qualify 3rd in 4wd drive behind James Rumble and Rob Elmes, both of whom have shown consistently good form here with Rob unbeaten since taking delivery of his SX3.

This is what we were after.

I couldn't resist it! . . . Schumacher Cat SX3

It's amazing what a good day at the track can make you do.

I spent Sunday at TORCH competing in one of their club meetings. It's a track I really enjoy. So much so I am pleased to call myself their newest member. 

I ended up being really happy with my day. I achieved 2 of my personal targets on one day. I cracked the 11 lap barrier and bagged myseld a 28 sec lap.

Yay for me!

Regular readers will know that it is only couple of months since I bought a brand new Schumacher SX2. Well I didn't let that stop me celebrating my day and went ahead and rewarded myself with a brand new SX3.

This is the latest buggy from Schumacher and is claimed to be awesome. In fact I fully expect it to make me the next world champion. (Maybe!)

Recognise anything?

This is something I stumbled across.

Some of you may see something of yourselves, if you don't, show your other half . . . I bet they do!

SHRCCC Where did the grass go? .. Let them eat cake!

I made the trip to SHRCCC on Tuesday this week.

It was another good turn out  with about 30 drivers ready to battle it out for one of the nice shiny trophies that Dudders distributes at the end of the evening.

With the ever shorter summer evenings it is also a race against the fading light. Efficient race direction ensures everyone still gets 3 rounds of qualifying and a final. Even so, I would suggest a nice bright shell and carrots for supper if racing in the last final of the night.

Most of the attendees had a good time leaving for home with smiles on faces.

I enjoyed myself and had a good battle with Rob Elmes and James Rumble in 4wd, frustratingly losing out in the end and heading home with the smallest of the 3 pots. . . Bugger!

1/8th scale European Championship Result

This is the preliminary result for the 8th scale European Championship held today in Luxembourg.

They are, at the time of writing, unconfirmed.

It was shaping up to be a great race between Collari, Balestri, Pietsch and Van Gastel until Balestri and Piestch ran into problems around 30 mins in to the race.

This meant that the different pitting strategies didn't get to play out and allowed Collari to keep Van Gastel under control to the flag.

A well deserved and, some would say, overdue victory for Collari.

Nr Vehicle   Pilot                 Country   Laps   Lap time   Absolute time  Best time  Med time

1     5        Collari Lamberto     IT        160     17.088     45:03.506       15.918        16.896

2     3        Van Gastel Ilia        BE       160     16.527     45:09.772       16.057        16.936

3     9        Vrielijnck Rick          NL       158    18.704     45:08.537       16.075         17.142

4     2        Romagnoli Michele   IT        157     17.967     45:04.670       16.121         17.227

5     10       Mack Oliver             DE       154     18.111     45:06.197        16.211         17.572

6     8        D'Hondt Robin        BE        121     20.842    34:32.967       16.283         17.131

7     4        Pietsch Robert        DE       115   1:07.172    33:22.570       16.099         17.413

8     7        Dankel Eric             DE       111      16.303     36:17.410       16.097         19.616

9     1        Balestri Dario          IT        110     17.465     32:21.665       16.123         17.651

10   6        Kurzbuch Simon       CH        96     17.318      31:36.651       16.213         19.756

Kyle Branson and Mark Green were highest placed Brits both running into trouble early and failing to finish their respective finals.