VRC Pro = FUN!

It's been quite a while since I've posted anything, so I thought I might post my newest toy. I bought the latest version of VRC Pro a week and a half ago. This is the first time I've ever tried an RC car simulator, and I must admit, I am very impressed with it! I bought it being a huge skeptic, thinking for sure I would be disappointed by the physics. Was I ever wrong!

I also purchased the VRC USB donggle. You simply plug it in to an open USB slot, and plug the two 'servo' wires into a spare receiver. (the grey box in the pic) I set up a model profile on the transmitter, and now I can control my VRC cars/trucks using my DX3! Last night I raced and chatted with 6 other racers from around the world on a server called "OVERCLOCK RC" It was so much fun racing with other real racers!

 There are also onroad cars/tracks. More than offroad, actually. There's 1/8, 1/10 & 1/12 onroad racing. Both electric & nitro are featured. For offroad there is only 1/10 4WD Short Course racing. From what I understand they plan on adding mnore types of offroad racing in the future. There are several on and offroad tracks available to choose from.

Here I am taking a lap with a 4WD Short Course Truck, on the Mikes Hobby Shop track:

If you ever see an online session called TSanRC.com, drop in for some racing!

[/Tim Sanderson]

2WD/4WD A Mains @ CHEO 2012

Here are a couple of videos from the CHEO  race in Ottawa, Ontario this past weekend.

2WD A Main:

 4WD A Main:




I've got a good battle between JB and Rhode on vid as well, and also the 4WD SCT A Main as well. I'll upload those as soon as possible
Sorry for the lame video quality... After my vado died, I had to shift over to my phone to capture the races.

[/Tim Sanderson]

anecdote #1

Sometimes a salvaged LiPo battery doesn't work worth shit.

New Digs

I'm almost ready for the CHEO/Canadian Nationals in Ottawa this week! Here are my new digs:

I've decided to run a B4 Factory Team instead of changing my TLR 22 over to a dirt setup. The decals used for this paint job are the SKULLS & ROSES from XXX MAIN.

See you in Ottawa!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Birdseye View of MMFC

It seems I've been doing more flying than racing these days. I've recently become a member of the Mississauga Model Flying Club. Here is some video I took yesterday by mounting my Creative Vado to the front of my T-28 Trojan. Here's a view of it before I flew it or mounted the camera:

And here is the video:

The lines you see across the screen are from the propeller. I'll have to buy a smaller camera soon, one I can mount on the wing, to get it out of the way of the prop.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Tire Salavging (Semi) Fail

You've heard of the 'Acetone' method for removing tires from wheels. I'm also sure you've heard of the 'Oven' method. Well, not wanting to stink up my house by baking tires off of their wheels, I decided to try out my own method: The 'BBQ the Rubber Off of the Wheels' method.

I heated up the barbecue for 15 minutes. I wrapped up both sets of wheels/tires in foil, (one set of front, one set of rear) and dropped them onto the grille. I probably should have turned off the burners, but instead laid the tires down with the fire burning strong.

The result: The front tires came off of the wheels like a charm. They practically fell right off. The rear tires were another story:

I guess I had them too close to the burner. When I opened the foil, the tires practically poured on to the floor.  Melted to the max! It's a good thing I had them wrapped, or else all that rubber would have made a mess of the barbecue. It'll take a bit more experimenting, but I am positive I can master the BBQ method.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Sutton Aviation RC Track

Here is a peek of the track layout for the 2nd Annual Canadian RC Offroad Championships held in Ottawa this July:

 

 I super-can't wait for this one!!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Pole Cat For Sale

I've decided to sell my Park Zone Pole Cat BNF, not because I don't like it anymore, but because it's time to try another plane tomorrow. (I’m thinking Corsair for my second plane) She's a little beat up, but still flies great. This video was taken just one hour before posting this sale:

Box has been modified to hold a full sized transmitter. (not included in sale)

Includes Plane, charger and one battery.
I'd be happy with $40 for the plane by itself, or $55 for the plane + a brand new wing & tail set. Plane is BNF (ie no radio included)

Pick up only. Mailing this would be too expensive to be worth it.
tsanrc (at) hotmail (dot) com

 

[/Tim Sanderson]

$10 DIY RC Airplane

After recently taking baby-steps into the world of RC flight, I've started becoming more and more interested in projects like the one below. This guy made an RC plane for for $11, (he went a dollar over his $10 budget) and gives very good step-by-step details.




[/Tim Sanderson]

Velocity RC Mag Free Article

Velocity RC Mag Free Article <<< CLICK HERE FOR AWESOMENESS

That's right, that is yours truly show on the first page of the article. This is one of the articles I helped photograph for Velocity RC Magazines first edition. Give it a read, then tell me why you haven't spent $2 to buy the entire 123 page magazine yet!

http://vrcmag.com

[/Tim Sanderson]

Pole Cat

Well, I've put about 20 batteries through the Pole Cat, and she's still flying. Like a prostitute that was in a car accident, she's a little banged up but still performs great.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Kyosh RB5 (second chapter)

I decided against running my 22 on dirt, and decided to run a Kyosho RB5 again. Between this and my original RB5, I should be able to come up with something good for racing.

[/Tim Sanderson]

TLR 22 The Guide

I'm getting my TLR 22 ready for some dirt racing, and came across another great guide from petitrc:

THE 22 GUIDE.pdf
 
What you'll find in this guide:

1. Build Tips From the Experts
2. The Build
3. Problems you May Experience, and What to do
4. Custom Mods, and Upgrades
5. Pro Setups & Sheets
6. Completing Your Ride

Enjoy!

[/Tim Sanderson]

A Few Laps With Chet Kelsey

I had the day off work today, so I thought I’d head over to Sid’s Raceway to burn a few laps. I haven’t switched my TLR 22 over to the rear-motor layout yet, so I just had fun running the Torment. Chet Kelsey was there as well, so I got a few pics and some vids of him turning some laps. He now runs a Durango DEX210. 

Enjoy!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Park Flying

A couple of weeks back I bought myself my first RC plane. I bought a Park Zone Pole Cat. It's a very aggressive  acrobatic flyer, and not usually a good first-time plane. However I taught myself on the Real Flight simulator and  was ready to fly it by the time I bought it. Joel (a buddy from work) and I went out to do a bit of flying after  work on Saturday. It was pretty windy, with gusts at least 15+ kph. I had the Pole Cat and Joel brought his Super Cub Here's a bit of footage of the Pole Cat in  action. (sorry for the terrible quality... they're cell phone vids) On my third battery I clipped one of the  basketball backboards, scoring myself a 3-pointer. It was pretty tricky getting it back down.

Joel was Flying his Super Cub. During a landing-gear-less landing Joel broke a blade off of his propeller. (almost  one entire half of the blade) A little CA glue, and it was back up and fling in no time. It actually held up for  quite a while, but at the end of the video you can see/hear the glued piece brake off.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Spektrum S6100

I picked up a servo for my Hot Bodies D8. It's a high voltage Spektrum S6100. If it works well for the steering, I'll likely pick up a second for the throttle/brake servo.

 [/Tim Sanderson]

Sid's First (and free) Race of the Season

Sid's Raceway's first race came and went this past Saturday. It started off rainy, and was very cold all day, but went very well. The race started later than planned due to the rain, but once it started to dry off a bit, the racing started. Unfortunately the weather contributed to a lower turnout than hoped for. There were 22 entries, with 4WD SCT and 2WD SCT having the most entries. 

While many people had a hand in rebuilding the track, it is Michael Johnson (TractionRC) who deserves most of the credit for organizing the event. He also did a great job in getting Sponsors aboard.  JB Catricalla brought the FastCats timing system, and set things up. Yours truly was happy to call the days racing. 

The track was actually in very good shape by the time it started to dry up. I took JB's Tamiya 201 for a few laps and was surprised how 2WD-friendly the track was. I decided to take the ol' Torment for a spin before the track dried up, and filled it up with a ton of mud. (check out the pic below) However it ran very well before the mud built up. A lot of people were surprised to see how quick it was around the track. I bet it would have done pretty great in the 2WD SCT races. Next time! 

 I'm looking forward to more racing over the summer months. I might just have to pick myself up a 4WD SCT! Here are some pics and vids, taken by Michael Johnson, Will Parsons, and Ryan Luna.

Some pics by Michael Johnson:

Some pics by Will Parsons:

More pics can be found on Will's Flickr site. Click here.

See you all soon.

[/Tim Sanderson]

A Collection of Hint's, Tips, Mods for Venom's Creeper

I've recently started reading up on some of the very cool things you can do with a Venom Creeper, on a forum called RCCrawler. Some of these guys do some some seriously crazy stuff. Check it out here:

  A Collection of Hint's, Tips, Mods for Venom's Creeper

Find the entire Creeper thread here:

Hot Bodies D8

Well, I've decided to try 1/8 nitro racing this year. This is the car I'm buying from my buddy Peter.

It's only got a day's worth of running on both the chassis and the engine. I need to learn nitro for work, so I figure it's best to just jump in head-first. Next year I'll convert it to electric.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Creeper Paintjob :|

It's gotten a little better. I added an XXX Main wrap that helped cover up my blemishes.

Now if I can just do something about the glitter roof...

[/Tim Sanderson]

Creeper Paint Job :(

Oops, I messed up my paint job. There are bleeds all over the place, and I accidentally painted the roof with sparklie paint. Oh well, it'll do for the time being.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Velocity RC Premiere Issue!

It's here! Velocity RC's first issue is available for purchase!

It's only $1.99, so please buy yourself a copy. If not just because it's an awesome magazine co-founded by my good Friend Jeff Eveleigh, do it for the fact that yours truly had a (very very) minor role in this issue:

That's right. I'm practically famous! Now if only something like this impressed the ladies...

Go to http://vrcmag.com to get your copy of 123 pages of RC goodness greatness.

*EDIT 04/16/2012*  Ha! I forgot about the 'Buying Your First RC' article. GORGEOUS!*

[/Tim Sanderson]

HPI SC-15WP

For the Venom Creeper I decided on going with an ESC made by HPI called the SC-15WP. It retails for $51. The servo is waterproof, is LiPo friendly, and can be programmed with drag-brake. This should do just nicely. 

I still haven't decided on a steering servo, so until I do, I probably just use one of my Spektrum 6040's. It's a little overkill in the speed department (0.08s @ 6v), but they're the torque-iest servos I have. (167.0 oz-in @ 6v)

[/Tim Sanderson]

Venom Creeper

I finally got around to wrapping up my Venom Creeper build. All that's left is to install the electronics  and paint the body. I'm thinking red/black/silver. I haven't decided on a servo yet. I'll probably pick up a Hitec from work today. The motor I installed is an Axial 55 turn brushed motor. Until I buy something a little more suited to crawling, I'll probably just run one of my Tamiya TEU-101 ESC's.

[/Tim Sanderson]

KO PDS-2413 ICS

Sweeet! The stuff you find while cleaning up! This is why I hate to throw stuff out. I was about to throw out a box of old RC parts, but then at the last minute decided to go through it. I found this,
a KO Propo PDS-2413 ICS.

Specifications

Torque: 118.0 Ounces

Speed: 0.10 S @ 60°

Length: 1.61 in

Width: 1.38 in

Height: 1.00 in

Weight: 1.58 Ounces

Bushing Or Bearing: Bearing

Bearing: Dual

Gear Type: Metal

Damn, so much wasted time using a non low-pro KO in my 22. It's like Christmas, only I don't hate it!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Torment Prepping

I've started getting the ECX Torment ready for some dirt racing this summer at Sid's Raceway. Here's a sneak peak of it so far:

[/Tim Sanderson]

SID'S RACEWAY - dirt offroad in Mississauga!

It's official, Sid's Raceway is kicking off this years 1/10 scale dirt racing with class... 

FREE PRACTICE from April 10th until April 20th, then a FREE DAY OF RACING on Saturday the 21st! Sorry, track is only open to electric 1/10 scale buggies and Short Course trucks. (you nitro/e buggy guys already have a few tracks to run on!)

Here's the flyer for more info: (click for larger version)

 

Hope to see some of you guys out there. For more info, contact Michael Johnson @ michael.johnson@tracktionrc.ca.

[/Tim Sanderson]

I Heart Kyosho #2

Keep 'em coming, rcspecial!

 

[/Tim Sanderson]

Original Tamiya Hornet

I got this in a trade the other day. It's an original Tamiya Hornet:

 It's in pretty good shape. What you see here hasn't even been cleaned up at all. The body is painted box-art and is in great shape as well. The only downside to the shell is that the windows have been painted black. I might try the old brake fluid trick to see if I can make them clear again. I don't plan on doing much with it, I'll probably add it to the collection just the way it is.

[/Tim Sanderson]

I Heart Kyosho!

Thank you RCSpecial!

 

 

[/Tim Sanderson]

Brew's and building

Having a few beers while building my first crawler. I picked up a Venom Creeper. I'll be posting more pics and vids after it's built.

[/Tim Sanderson]

Tamiya Volkswagen Type2 Wheelie: VRCmag.com

 Here's the Velocity RC build video for the light-at-heart 'Tamiya Volkswagen Type2 Wheelie'.

I had the privilege of helping Jeff film the final action sequence for this video, as well as help with photography for this article in the up coming first month's magazine. Actually, I mostly did the stunt driving, but had at least had a little bit camera time. If I'm lucky, a photo or two of mine might make it into the article! 

This video shows the awesome camera work and editing by Jeff. The pre-build sequence was very well done.
If you enjoy reading T San RC, please show your appreciation by buying a few copies of VRC Mag. :) Be sure to buy the first month's digital magazine, available in the very near future.

http://vrcmag.com/

(P.S. ask me about the crazy guy we met in a church parking lot, and I'll send you a link to the grade-A conspiracy theory conversation between him and Jeff.)
[/Tim Sanderson]

2012 Elite Electric Challenge 2wd Mod A main

I'm not a huge fan of dirt offroad, but this looks like a track I'd love to run!

There was some pretty good action in this race. Lots of great passing. Check out the pass on the last lap of this race. (not to mention the sweet maneuver at the end of the race)
[/Tim Snaderson]

Another great video

Here is another great video, this time onroad. This time by stewnoblefilms.
Enjoy. :)

 

[/Tim Sanderson]

Swag!

I did much better at the Canadian Onroad Nationals après qual dinner last weekend than I did at the actual qualifying. I won a bunch of prizes. Check this stuff out!

A Trinity Nemisis 7.5 motor, 2 sensor wires, a 2.5mm TRF hex driver and a novelty flying disc. All good stuff!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Incredible video!

This video is amazing!.

I don't care if you like RC or not, this is a fantastically well produced video. It looks like the author is a guy named Marcus Gelhard. Such a fantastic eye for setting up interesting angles, and the remote aerial shots are some of the best I've seen. (not to mention some pretty bad-assed music to go along with it) Be sure to check out his You Tube channels at:

http://www.youtube.com/user/MarcusGelhard

[/Tim Sanderson]

Hell has frozen over...

That's right, I've signed up for FaceBook.
facebook.com/TSanRC


[/Tim Sanderson]

dBoot Terrabyte tires

I'm pretty excited about this. Hobby Hobby is now able to order in Arrma dBoots multi surface tires! I picked up a set of Terrabytes and plan on testing them out tomorrow at Universal Raceway. We'll see how well they compare to the yellow Schumacher Mini Pins!

I'm a little worried that these tires may be a little too soft for long-term life. No doubt these tires will have awesome grip on the carpet and Masonite 'ice' section, but I may burn through them a little too quickly. We'll find out tomorrow!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Velocity RC Magazine!

Check it out, my buddy Jeff from XXX MAIN and some of  his colleagues from Xtreme RC Cars / RC Car Action have started a new online magazine called "VELOCITY RC Magazine". The first official issue is slated for February, but there's some content you can see for free right now!

Be sure to go to http://vrcmag.com/ to check it out!

[/Tim Sanderson]

Google+

I'm not sure how to use it yet, and I'm not even sure how you can find me, but I'm on Google+ now.

My page is called TimStuff, and my Google email is timdansan(at)gmail(dot)com. If you can find me, add me!

[/Tim Sanderson]

HOW-TO: painting with xxx main decals

The last body I painted for my TLR 22 using a xxx main decal sheet got a lot of attention while at the tracks. Seeing as that body is now too beat up to run, I thought I'd do a how-to showing how I get from this:

   

to this:

Enjoy!

[/Tim Sanderson]

2nd Annual Petre Memorial

Yesterday was the 2nd annual Martin Petre Memorial race, at Ferraro Speed World, in Hamilton Ontario. This was the first time I saw the new, larger track. It's pretty great! The drivers stand has been moved to the other side of the track, and the pit space has been rearranged.There was a great turn out, with (I think) 14 heats. Being my first day out in over a month, I did super terrible. But I did at least record the 2WD A-main race.

Enjoy!



[/Tim Sanderson]

REVIEW : ECX Torment

Here it is, the first T San RC video product review! Special thanks to Joe Bielski for helping with the camera work and driving during the shoot.  The first review is of an entry level short course truck called the ECX Torment. We were actually pretty impressed by the durability and performance of this $160 rtr truck! Despite our rather aggressive bashing, we didn't break a single part. I picked up a few spares from Hobby Hobby before heading out to Toronto for the shoot, but never needed them. The only thing we changed was the battery. We swapped out the 1800mah NiMh battery pack, for a 5000mah LiPo, so we didn't have to stop to charge during the shoot. This may have changed the speed of the truck during in the video.

So here it is. Enjoy!

If you are looking for an inexpensive RTR RC truck, I'd say go for it! I don't think you'd be disappointed! I'd rate it somewhere along the lines of a 7 or 8 out of 10 for a beginners truck. (not being waterproof lost it a point or 2)

Part two of this review will be turning the Torment into a competent racer.

STAY TUNED!

[/Tim Sanderson/]

COMING SOON!

 

That's right! Tomorrow, Joe Bielski and I start work on our first video product review! I won't say too much, but what I will say, is that we will be reviewing an entry level RC, and putting it through it's paces.

Stay tuned!