New New Bright Site
No, I didn’t repeat myself in the title (and the rhyming is purely coincidental too). New Bright is a major toy manufacturer but for years now they’ve had a really bad website. However, it recently got a makeover and it looks and performs so much better than before.
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Nitro Basics: Get Your Glow Tools
Glow plugs are tiny little spark plugs for the glow engine in your nitro RC. In addition to the plugs themselves, there are several specialty tools for when you’re using glow plugs.
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The New HPI Switch RTR
HPI has gone outside the box with their newest RC RTR kit called the Switch. The Switch is based on HPI’s true tenth scale RCs, the Cup Racer series. I like the fact that it has cool features like adjustable wheelbase width. It’s HPIs first FWD (front wheel drive) vehicle, has McPherson strut suspension, and runs with a 35T Saturn Motor.
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It’s Fiesta Time, with Traxxas
Did you think you’d seen the last of the Ford Fiesta? Wrong. 2011 is the year that Traxxas helps Ford bring their infamous 2 door hatchback back to life. You can get the real thing in plain old green, red, blue, etc. or the new 1/16 scale Ford Fiesta RC by Traxxas with the licensed Fiesta painted body and colorful Ford Fiesta graphics. It has a waterproof steering servo and receiver box, multicolor LEDs, and thermal shutdown protection for those long, hard racing sessions. Ready to race with the Titan12T 550 motor.
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Upgrade Your FM/AM Radio to 2.4GHz
HPI has now made it possible for your older FM/AM RCs to be transformed into the newest 2.4GHz DSM technology, or as they have it listed — DSSS (Direct-Sequence Spread Spectrum). Either way with the RF-20 or RF-30 2.4GHz radio set, this upgrade will get you away from that all-to-familiar problem of crosstalk and other frequency interference we’ve talked about recently. The HPI RF-30 version is for those RCs that use 5 cell (6V) receiver packs. Learn more about HPI here.
Are You Ready-to-RC?
A few days ago I talked about a time in the probably not-so-distant future when DSM rules and most RC enthusiasts have little or no memory of crystals and radio interference. Well, the time has already come when some RC folks don’t even remember when you couldn’t go into your local hobby shop and just pick a box off the shelf, go home, and be driving your RC all around the yard in a matter of hours or even minutes. Yes, there was a time before Ready-to-Run.
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HPI Jumping Into the Desert Scene
Always adding milestones to their portfolio, HPI has created a sure winner with the HPI Racing Mini-Trophy 4WD Desert Truck RC. This RC is an assembled, 1/12 scale, electric, four wheel drive truck. It resembles the HPI Blitz but is slightly smaller and has more details and features like the scale realism of the Trophy truck owned by TSA Motor Sports. Other realistic features that I thought were cool were things like the interior with two driver figures and two fake spare wheels/tires mounted in the truck bed.
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The Whole Spektrum of RC Radios…
There will come a time when some old-timer will be talking fondly about matching crystals and fighting the evils of crosstalk and some RC guy will think he’s getting all New Age weird on him. That’s because one of these days DSM technology will be the only kind of RC radio the youngsters have ever used. It hasn’t made the leap to toy-grade yet, but at some point it surely will. For those of us into RCs right now, interference-free 2.4GHz is still relatively new but it’s growing by leaps and bounds on the hobby-grade side of the fence. And Spektrum is the name behind (and all over) this radio system as used in the RC world. Learn more about Spektrum.
Get to Know Kyosho
My first hobby-grade RC back in the 80′s was a Kyosho. You may know them for the Mini-Z or the Ultima buggies and trucks or perhaps their on-road touring cars. Get familiar with all the great offerings from this long-time player in the RC industry. Learn more about Kyosho Corporation.
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One of the Greatest Toys of the 1960s
Among the most influential toys since the 1920s, as determined by TIME magazine, is the radio controlled car. Are we surprised? Of course not. There are some other pretty nifty toys in the list too, many of which eventually had RC versions or RC-related accessories including Hot Wheels, Transformers, and even Bratz. Even though they list RC cars as one of the greatest toys of the 1960s, like Legos, Barbie, and Silly Putty, radio controlled cars (along with aircraft and boats) are still a hot toy and a great hobby too.
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