Jeff Hoy, American » 2.4 GHz

My SC18 review is up…

Jeff Hoy — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 00:45:11 +0000

New Truck: Robitronic EST- BL Truck

Jeff Hoy — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:38:42 +0000

Robitronic, the makers of the excessively cool 1/18 scale Scalpel pan car, have decided to branch out a litte bit. They have announced a new 1/10 scale RTR stadium truck targeted at newbies called the EST- BL. But just because it’s a beginner’s truck don’t expect it to skimp on performance or high tech goodies, it’s brushless powered and includes a 2.4GHz radio. As with most RTRs you’ll need a battery (2S LiPo or 6 cell NiMH) and charger to complete the package. Unfortunately there’s no word on MSRP or ship date, check with your local hobby shop or keep an eye on Stormer Hobbies and Tower Hobbies.

Features & Specs

RTR – out of the box
Brushless Motor
2.4GHz Radio
2WD
Painted Body
Oil filled shocks
Ball Bearings
Wheelbase: 11.4″
Length: 17.7″
Width: 12.6″
Height: 6.7″

SC18 Now Available!

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:33:23 +0000

Tower Hobbies has the Team Associated SC18 in stock right now this very second.

Remember that you’ll need to buy an appropriate battery and charger (don’t forget the charger adapter) to go with it if you don’t already have them. (See update 2)

So what are you waiting for? Get to buying fool.

[Update: I ordered mine, should be here within the next week and a half, expect an unboxing on arrival and a full SC18 review to follow.]

[Update 2: Well slap me silly and call me Susan, they did include a battery and overnight wall charger... the charger sucks, so consider buying a better one if you don't already have one, but having the battery in the box is nice.]

Deal of the Moment: Futaba FASST Receiver for $10

Jeff Hoy — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:29:49 +0000

When you buy a qualifying FASST radio system.

Here’s the pertinent parts:

Receive a second R603FS receiver (a $119.99 value) for $10 when you purchase a FASST 3PK or 4PK 2.4GHz system.

and

Receive a second R617FS receiver (a $124.99 value) for $10 when you purchase a FASST 7C, 8FG, 10C, 12FG, 12Z or 14MZ FASST system.

If you have a couple RTR RC cars and are thinking about upgrading your radios to a single 2.4 Ghz, high end radio this is a pretty good deal. Both the 3PK and 4PK radios are solid systems, which I recommend to anybody looking for something that offers greater control and the security and ease of use of a 2.4 GHz signal.

Read the fine print though:

This offer is available only at participating hobby retailers in the U.S. and Canada from February 1 through April 30, 2010, or while supplies last. This is not a rebate offer and it is not retroactive. You will receive your $10 receiver at the point of sale. There are no substitutions.

So make sure your local hobby shop is supporting this promotion before you lay out the cash.

New truck: Losi 1/18th scale Mini Highroller

Jeff Hoy — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 00:01:31 +0000

The Losi Highroller family is now complete. Take your pick and get it in 1/10th scale, 1/36th micro scale, or in the new 1/18th mini scale.

The Mini Highroller is a fully assembled RTR 2wd monster truck with a tubular styled, narrow chassis, very similar to it’s larger 1/10th scale brother. It’s driven by a RS280 motor controlled by an electronic speed control. Also included are a 2 channel, 2.4 GHz DSM radio; an 1100 mAh NiMH rechargable battery, a wall-wart charger, and some AA alkaline batteries for the transmitter. It will be available in 3 colors, blue, orange, and green and should be on your local hobby shop shelves some time in March.

This little guy is the spittin’ image of it’s larger, older brother, the 1/10th scale Highroller. It looks to be some good fun for those times when the weather outside is frightful and your garage or basement are your only options. Check out the video below.

New Product: Team Associated RC18 Late Model

Jeff Hoy — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 23:53:01 +0000

Team Associated’s stable of 1/18th scale cars has just grown by one. Hot on the heels of their awesome looking SC18, AE has dug deep and come up with the RC18 Late Model. It’s an RTR with a 2.4 GHz radio, built on the new SC18 belt driven chassis. Just like the SC18 it seems that batteries and a charger are NOT included, you’ll have to supply those yourself. MSRP is $279, street price will likely be closer to $180, the release timeframe is March of this year. Here’s a link to Team Associated’s press release (PDF doc).

Team Losi has a 1/18th Late Model car as well, so this class will be gaining some momentum in the coming months. AE now needs to get a sprint car to market and the classes will be complete. Dirt oval as a whole, I believe, is under-represented in this hobby.

The 1/18th scale sector of the r/c hobby keeps growing despite the fact that some industry “insiders” see it as just a fad. Everything is getting smaller, cars, boats, airplanes, helicopters; simply so people can find more places to use them. The days of needing a huge empty lot are at an end, nearly everybody has a backyard, basement, or garage big enough for these small vehicles.

AHA! SC18 Announcement at long last…

Jeff Hoy — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:12:34 +0000

On the heels of Associated’s other new cars and trucks comes the final, official announcement of something we’ve all known about since October. Team Associated’s SC18, a 1/18th scale short course r/c truck. What has been announced isn’t what was advertised though, there have been some changes.

As I suspected they did change over to a 2.4 GHz radio system which is a cool and welcome addition. The more important change, in my opinion, is that they are NOT including a battery and charger with it (see update 2 below). Which is strange, considering all the other 1/18th scale RTRs from Associated include them. I’m kind of sad about that fact, but it’s not a great loss considering the probable price point. MSRP is $289.99, but the potential street price according to Tower and Stormer might be as low as $180, with your local hobby shop prices varying from there. That’s actually much cheaper than I was expecting, so adding the cost of a battery and cheap charger won’t add much to the cost and will still likely come in cheaper than Duratrax’s Vendetta SC. You’re looking at about $20 for a battery pack and another $30 for a cheap AC/DC peak charger, so a total of around $250 for the full setup, which is closer to the final price point that I was expecting. Look for it to be in stock just in time for Christma… er… nevermind. Some time in March it’ll be on store shelves.

So you now officially have two choices in the 1/18th scale short course market. You might want to wait for some reviews of the SC18. RC Driver has a review of the Vendetta SC in the February issue, which all subscribers should have now, newsstand buyers keep an eye out for it. But based on cost alone I think I’ll be going with the SC18.

Update: Oh, just for the heck of it, here’s the link to the official press release [PDF].

Update 2: See my unboxing video at Big Squid RC, and guess what, despite it not being in the announcement, the battery and charger ARE included.

Two (more) new RTRs from Associated, still no SC18…

Jeff Hoy — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 22:40:51 +0000

Team Associated announced two new RTR packages today. Both are based on the highly successful RC10T4 stadium truck RC10B4 off-road buggy with some changes and dubbed the RC10T4.1 RC10B4.1. One is brushed motor powered, the other is brushless. They both come with a new 2.4 GHz radio system as well. MSRPs are $339.99 $329.99 for brushed and $399.99 $389.99 for brushless. Street price would likely be closer to $250 and $300 (update: Tower and Stormer are showing street prices at closer to $200 and $250, your local hobby shop‘s prices will vary). They’re nice looking rides and the RC10T4 RC10B4 has been a dominator in the racing scene for a long time.

RC10B4.1 Brushed RTR

RC10B4.1 Brushless RTR

Still no news on the SC18 though. I’m a bit surprised that it’s not out yet considering it’s been advertised for three months now. I’m fully expecting it to ship with a 2.4 GHz radio now though, instead of the advertised 27 MHz.

Two new RTRs from Associated, still no SC18…

Jeff Hoy — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 07:06:01 +0000

Team Associated announced to new RTR packages today. Both are based on the highly successful RC10T4 stadium truck with some changes and dubbed the RC10T4.1. One is brushed motor powered, the other is brushless. They both come with a new 2.4 GHz radio system as well. MSRPs are $339.99 for brushed and $399.99 for brushless. Street price would likely be closer to $250 and $300 (update: Tower and Stormer are showing street prices at closer to $200 and $250, your local hobby shop‘s prices will vary). They’re nice looking rides and the RC10T4 has been a dominator in the racing scene for a long time.

RC10T4.1 Brushed RTR

RC10T4.1 Brushless RTR

R/C radio frequency use and restrictions

Jeff Hoy — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:44:43 +0000

This is a simple run down of how common radio frequencies and bands of the r/c hobby are used and restricted.

27 MHz is open for surface or aircraft use (specifically on 26.995, 27.045, 27.095, 27.145, 27.195, and 27.255 frequencies) but must not cause any interference of CB radio.
49 MHz (specifically 49.830, 49.845, 49.860, 49.875, 49.890) is open to surface or aircraft. Any transmitting device operating on this band is limited to 100 milliwatts of power. Because of that it is not recommended to use this band for r/c aircraft.
50/53 MHz, also known as 6 meter band, is open to surface or aircraft use by licensed amateur radio operators (HAM radio licenses) only.
72 MHz radios, specifically frequency channels 11 through 60 in the 72 Megahertz band, by FCC rules, are restricted to model aircraft use.
75 MHz band radios on frequency channels 61 through 90, by FCC rules, are restricted to surface model use only.
The 2.4 GHz band is open to surface and aircraft model use. So if you have an eight channel airplane radio system that you want to use in a custom r/c car or truck you are free to do so. The 2.4 GHz band is considered by the FCC to be unlicensed spectrum.

27 MHz, 49 MHz, and 2.4 GHz are consumer product bands. All kinds of consumer equipment, beyond r/c vehicles, make use of them. Garage door openers, cordless phones, wireless networking equipment (Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, etc.), walkie-talkies, baby monitors, and a lot more use these bands. In general the only restrictions on usage are devices must accept all interference, must not cause interference on adjacent frequencies, some limits on transmitter power output, and what types of information can be transmitted.

If you aren’t in the USA, this info doesn’t apply to you, check your nation’s laws.

Sources: AMA, FCC, Futaba, Vantec, Wikipedia