Hobao Hyper H2 . . Electrics Install

For the electrics in the H2 I resorted to some familiar components.

The Hobbywing V2 speedo is a great favourite of mine, HW have been really good at updating the software for this unit so it remains competitive and is easy peasy to programme track-side via the digital program box.

Sweet!

I am using a full size 2s pack in the H2 so there is no choice in mounting location, it goes on the hinged battery plate. I was a little worried that with the fan fitted it might foul the body shell. I needn't have as there is plenty of room.

Depending on the brand stubby users may be able to squeeze in the esc on the chassis behind the servo. 

I used some snazzy blue wire to hook this up to an LRP X12 8.5t motor which, with modern software, should suffice for most tracks. It's a clear run so was quite straightforward.

Hobao Hyper H2 Build . . Part 2

So I am back in the shed to complete the build. it's bloomin' freezing so my little fan heater is working overtime!

The H2 comes with all the parts to build the car in mid or rear motor formats, I have chosen to build my car as mid motor as I will be racing primarily on astro. 

(If you decide on the rear motor configuration some of the following will still apply but keep an eye on the manual.)

At this point the H2 offers something a little different from the norm in the shape of a hinged battery retaining system. 

Tip: It is possible to use either full size or stubby type cells in the car, the small L shaped retaining piece can be fitted to the forward or rearward pair of holes in the top plate depending on your choice.

The hinged top plate also acts as the mounting plate for the electrics, this can be seen in the electrics install blog post.

I assembled mine to accept a full size 2s pack.

From this point onwards a little 'interpretation' of the manual is required, hopefully the following will help with  your build decisions.

Hobao Hyper H2 Build . . Part 1

I am often heard to exclaim "How (expletive deleted) much?" when being shown or told about the latest hot new kit on the market, and this time was no exception.

However, the reason for my surprise at the new Hobao Hyper H2 Pro was not how high the price is but how low.

This kit, with a little shopping around, can be delivered to your door for just 135 English pounds!

So it's off to the man cave for a bit of wrench time to establish if this kit is the bargain it appears to be.

Hobao Hyper H2 Pro . . Thanks postie!

Whilst most of us lust after a DB1, a Vega, or even an RB6,  many of us have to be more modest in our aspirations.

With this in mind the postie paid me a visit this week.

Under his arm he was carrying a Hyper H2 Pro, the latest offering from the Taiwanese 1/8 rally cross experts Hobao.

This kit, distributed in the UK by CML, has an RRP a sniff below £150 but a little scout around the net can see it winging it's way to you for only £135.

My initial un-boxing suggests my money has been well spent. There are lots of sturdy looking parts and a beautifully machined and engraved alloy chassis, reminiscent of a Losi 22 and not massively dissimilar to an RB6.

There is even a full set of wheels/tyres and inserts.



Over the next few days I shall be retiring to the man cave to wield the wrenches in the direction of this box of goodies.

 I plan to find out if  it's the bargain it appears to be.

I'll take some pics and make a few notes so I can write up a build report so be sure to check back. 

2wd Mid South Regional at Stotfold

Sunday was an exciting day for me, I was visiting a track that I have never raced at before.
Stotfold Model Car Club were playing hosts to the 5th and final round of the popular 2wd regional series.

I love to go to new tracks even if it does mean dragging myself out of bed at 5.15am . . I must be mental!
Rob Elmes was to be the driver for the day despite my reservations about sharing a cab with him and JR on a Sunday morning. If we ignore JRs navigating our journey was fraternal and relatively odour free!

(Click on pics for full size version)

We arrived in the sunshine at this secluded countryside venue and set up camp amongst many familiar faces. The host club had clearly spent some time preparing, the grass was cut and wherever one sat there was a speaker not far away keeping all informed of ongoing events.

Schumacher Cougar SV2

Well folks the long wait is over.

The nice chap from UPS came knocking this week cradling in his arms my new Schumacher Cougar SV2.

This has got to be one of the most hotly anticipated buggies of recent times and I can't wait to get stuck into the build.

Things are pretty busy in my 'real life' job right now but I am determined to make some time to bolt this beauty together over the next week or so.

I will be taking plenty of pics and writing a few words so please check back regularly for updates.

I am a lucky boy!

Bullistorm ESC update ... "The Test"

I had decided to use the 60a version of this Bullistorm speedo in my 12th car. A change of plan means it has now been replaced by it's bigger 120a brother.

This is destined to end up in a sportsman stock touring car but in the meantime I wanted to give it an outing so I wired it into my spare Cat SX2. 

Today I gave it a spin at TORCH, an off road club at which I am a member.

Here it is all snuggled up and ready for some off road action. 

"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.

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.

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.

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.



    



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.

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.

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