I need schooled.

[Bubb Rubb]

Hi all, been reading the forum a few days and decided to post finally. I'm basically new to the hobby. I got a Grasshopper for Christmas when I was 10. I saved and saved ( I grew up dirt poor) for a Frog. Finally got one and then I spotted an RC10, I had to have one. I started saving again, by now I'm almost 12, then something else caight my eye, breasts. The RC10 and the hobby as a whole was dead to me after that. I think I spent the money I had saved on some Swatch watches and some JimmyZ or something. Anyway now I'm old, married, and decided to give the RC10 another shot. I bought a roller off ebay, havent recieved it yet, should be here any day. It looks to be fairly complete, but I really dont know since I never had one. I do know that I will need all the electronics. I'm hoping you guys can point me in the right direction. What I am hoping to get is a set up that will allow me to go to a local track, run the car (not trying to win any races), and not get laughed at for being the old guy with one battery and a slow charger (my set up back in 84). So I figure I need a good FM Radio, but dont know which one, a servo, one of those electronic speed controllers, some batteries and a good charger. I noticed batteries are different now, no more nicads I guess. Would one of you be willing to point me in the right direction, I'm hoping to avoid costly mistakes and buy the right stuff I need the first time. I'm sure theres other stuff I will need along the way so this wont be the last time I ask for help. If theres any other must have R/C stuff I should get please let me know. Thanks in advance.

[scr8p]

hey, welcome to the board.

well, in my opinion, i'd wait until you get the car. just to see if that needs anything first. then, go hunting around for the electronics. i pretty much let the rc electronic technology pass me by, so i won't even give you advice on any kind of that stuff. there's plenty of other guys on the board who can steer you in the right direction, though.

i still like my trusty KO ex-5.

[badhoopty]

welcome to the board dude. i so remember swatches and vision street wear.



i dont really run my rc10's much, so my advice is real basic.

first if the buggy doesnt have the stealth tranny i'd put that first on the list. if the rear end has dogbones i'd swap those out for mip cvd's as well.

i have no idea whats race legal or anything, but i would get a nice entry level brushless system (like a novak ss) and some nimh sport packs. chargers for nimh range from 30 bucks to lots. nimh/brushless setups are alot more efficient and powerful and require less maintenence. you pay a little more, but its worth it. much longer run times with the new tech stuff.

for fm radio, i have a couple magnum jr futabas that work pretty good. you can get them for pretty cheap off ebay.

[Bubb Rubb]

Thanks for the tips so far, unfortunately I already have questions. Badhoopty, you mentioned a brushless system, is that the motor and esc? You also mentioned getting some nimh sport packs, well I looked on Towerhobbies.com and noticed they have different mah ratings, like 3300 mah, is there a bad mah number? Do I want the highest mah I can get? Are there any crappy battery brands I should steer clear of? You basically have to break this stuff down like you were explaining it to a stupid 8 year old. I do catch on pretty quick, so hopefully I'll only need this stuff explained once. Thanks again. Heres a link to the car I bought. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=002&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWN%3AIT&viewitem=&item=120071285359&rd=1&rd=1 I picked that one cause it was ending soon, I'm not knowledgeable enough to have any other selection criteria.

[Asso_man!]

a very nice find, I was looking for that one too... it has got front and rear Andy's a-arms (the white ones are the rarest), graphite chassis, Losi aluminium steering, vintage Novak electronics, a really nice Trinity Joel Johnson motor (if you plan to get rid of this one, please send me a PM, I'm after it for my Ultima) and an original box... nice find and welcome to the board, beware, some people here fall in love with white parts and even get horny just looking at them

[Eau Rouge]

Considering the car is 20+ years old, it's tough for me to honestly suggest racing it. If you break something, they will never have anything at the track to help you out with repairs. You're pretty much on your own finding old cars as part supply. A newer Associated RC10B4 can be had for less than you bought your RC10 for, and will be ready to race. It's current tech, too.


Now, having said that, if I were to take any naked chassis and want to bring it to the track for some fun and no worries, here's what I would do...

1. Novak SS5800 Brushless Motor & ESC Combo (about $200):
Will have enough power to mimic a really fast brushed or old style 19T spec motor, which in wayback terms, is faster than any mod motor you EVER ran back in the day. The best part of brushless is ZERO maintenance—ever. Set it and forget it. For real. No brushes, no springs, no cutting comms, no worries.

2. Spektrum DX2 DSM Radio System (about $165):
This will include the transmitter, receiver and 2 servos (you could sell the other one), and put you on the cutting edge of radio technology, again, with nothing to think about. In my opinion, Spektrum DSM the single greatest R/C invention since the RC10. It uses 2.4ghz instead of FM or AM radio waves to communicate with the car. Literally no glitches, no reception issues (up to 3 miles of reception), no capacitors, no changing crystals ever again. I have been using one in racing for over 3 years and I will never go back to standard FM radios.

3. Batteries: Any NiMh sport stick pack from anywhere will work perfectly for off road. 3300mah or above is fine, and give you more running that you will ever need in a race, with no dumping. Batteries go up to 4300mah now, but the cost isn't worth it if you aren't competing and only running off road. Radio Shack actually carries GP (Gold Peak) 3300 sport packs for like $30, and they have proven to run really well. One or two packs is all you will need, the NiMh cells are pretty durable and like multiple charges. Two packs allows you to charge one while you are using the other one and then allowing it to cool down. Don't spend over $35 a pack on batteries here if you don't have to. For off road, you will never need the big dollar packs. Higher mAh rating gives you more run time. Higher numbered batteries also generally have more average voltage, too. If you can find cheap 3700s, they are still one of my favorite cells.

4. Charger: All you need is a simple peak charger that will handle NiMh batteries. Your local hobby shop can point you in the best direction. For home and track, I wouold recommend anything that can handle AC/DC inputs. Don't spend more than $65 or so on this. You won't need more, and if you do, you are already spending a lot more on everything else.

5. Tires: Check your local track to see what everyone else is using. You are at a serious disadvantage, because current wheels and tires are going to be for current model cars, and will not fit on the old chassis easily. You are pretty much limited to finding the 2.0 wheels on eBay and at hobby shop closeout bins. Tires will be even tougher, as current tires are VERY soft compared to what we used to use. All tires today use foam inserts because they are so soft. Mini pin spikes in the softest compound you can find to fit your wheels, plus a ribbed front tire, will get you close. This is going to be your most difficult issue with the old car, unfortunately.





Hope this helps,


doug

[Bubb Rubb]

Asso_man!, I cant believe how much you can tell about that car just from the pictures, the A-arms and steering are a nice surprise (I think, if thats good stuff). If I do get rid of that motor I will definately let you know.

Apexspeed, wow, thanks for taking the time to post such a detailed response. You not only answered all my questions, but all the questions I would have had if you just listed the 5 things I should get. About the car being 20 years old and not being able to find parts easily, I've thought about that. Still havent figured out a solution to that one. Im thinking (and I know I'm probably being very naive) I might be able to machine some simple parts to solve things like the wheel issue, like maybe make some adapters that allow me to run newer wheels which would allow me to run newer tires. We turn out some prety trick stuff at work, getting the time for "government jobs" is the hard part.

Thanks you all for helping me.

[knucklebuster]

Suggestion re tire size... add b2/b3 cvds and 3/16 x 3/8 flanged bearings for the carriers and run newer rims/tires. As for the front, associated 2.2 rims (9481) with 3/16 x 3/8 unflanged bearing (3977). I have yet to upgrade rear for newer rims/tires but I trust I will be corrected if I'm off the mark.

[badhoopty]

i was hopin a guy like doug with alot of actual experience would chime in!!

after seeing what you bought i would HIGHLY recommend you get a later version stealth transmission and replace that antique 6gear trans.

Suggestion re tire size... add b2/b3 cvds and 3/16 x 3/8 flanged bearings for the carriers and run newer rims/tires. As for the front, associated 2.2 rims (9481) with 3/16 x 3/8 unflanged bearing (3977). I have yet to upgrade rear for newer rims/tires but I trust I will be corrected if I'm off the mark.

yep, you can change up to b2/b3 rear cvds/wheels and run more modern tire/wheels. b2 rear wheels for sure, i'm not positive if b4 wheels will fit.

i have no idea the part #'s and all that since i just dug around all my junk and found the right bearings and whatnot but it can be done.

[Eau Rouge]

Yes, a current B4 rear wheel will work on a B2/B3 axle setup. That's what we run on the dirt oval cars. A front B4 wheel will take the proper bearings, but will also fit on an original axle. You may want to swap out front spindles and carries for B2/B3 items, but the proper bearing size in the front should get you what you need.


Then for tires, find out what everyone is running at your track and then buy those. Foam inserts, too. You'll be 99% there if you use what everyone else is using.