Jeff Hoy, American » losi

Deal of the Moment: Losi Rebates

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:40:02 +0000

Losi has a lot of rebate deals going on for their 1/8 scale race roller (not RTR) vehicles and the Comp Crawler. If you’ve been thinking about buying a new buggy or truggy now might be the time to do it. Rebates of up to $150 are available.

Here’s the list of rebates. You’ve got until April 30th to buy. Click the link above for more info.

$150 Rebate – 1/8 8IGHT-T 2.0 Truggy Race Roller (LOSA0805)
$75 Rebate – 1/8 8IGHT 2.0 Buggy Race Roller (LOSA0804)
$75 Rebate – 1/8 8IGHT-E 2.0 Buggy Race Roller (LOSA0806)
$50 Rebate – 1/8 L8IGHT Model Race Roller (LOSA0809)
$50 Rebate – 1/10 Comp Crawler Race Roller (LOSA0051)

R/C Photography

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 04:39:04 +0000

I took these photos of a couple of my R/C cars earlier today for a project I’m working on. I thought they turned out so cool that I just had to share them. The first two are my mid-90′s era Kyosho Pureten GP Nostalgia series chassis topped with an HPI Pontiac Firebird Trans Am body in racing trim. The third photo is my early 90′s era Team Losi JRx-Pro restoration project that’s still kind of a work in progress, even though I’ve run it a couple times as you can see from the dirt that the bottom of the A-arms are coated with. I should have cleaned it before taking these pictures.

These were shot in a darkened room with my camera mounted on a tripod. I was using my zoom telephoto 100-400 f/4-5.6 L lens at 300mm f/16. I set my exposure to 6 seconds and then took my Speedlite and manually popped it three or four times for each photo from different positions and angles. The black surface and background was made up of my glass entertainment center top and a pillowcase stretched behind the cars. I did some minor alterations in photoshop, mostly turning the black levels down to get a good match between the backdrop and the table surface. I also upped the saturation a little to make the blues pop a bit more. Looking at them now I should probably go back and clean up some of that dust that is showing on the table.

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.

Did you get a new R/C car or truck for Christmas?

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 25 Dec 2009 23:00:08 +0000

Christmas has come and gone. The presents have been unwrapped with joyous glee. If you’re one of the lucky ones, then hopefully you unwrapped a nice, new radio controlled car or truck. Here’s some of my older articles about how to upgrade and hop-up your new R/C car.

Did you get a Losi Highroller for Christmas? Then you might want to check out a couple of my articles about it. I have written about mine a few times, highlighting some of the ways to make it faster and stronger. Check out my first article about upgrading the speed control to make your Losi Highroller ready to use LiPo batteries. I have also written about upgrading the motor to make your Highroller faster. And finally I’ve shown you three hop-ups to make your Highroller ready for a brushless motor.

If you got yourself a Tamiya Baja King then I’ve got you covered there, too. I’ve suggested some ways to make the Baja King handle better and more durable. I’ve written about how to make your Baja King faster by installing a better motor. And I’ve demonstrated some cheap or free upgrades to the Baja King that you can do with some common house-hold materials and tools.

I’ve also offered Highroller troubleshooting tips and suggestions in the comments to my Highroller review.

Now get out there and have fun.

Building a track for the micro-t

Jeff Hoy — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:28:12 +0000

Somebody recently found my site by searching for how much it would cost to build a track for a Losi Micro-T in a basement. My quick and cheap answer: nothing. If you have some old cardboard boxes, wooden dowels, a roll of duct tape, and other typical crap that people have laying around in their basement then you can make an off-road style track for essentially no cost. You can cut some circles out and paint them to use as corner dot and use some tape, string, dowels, or tubing to mark your lanes. Have some three-ring binders left over from school? Instant ramp. You can form jumps, bumps, banked turns, and more with a little work and creativity.

If your basement is unfinished, a concrete floor can make for a great racing surface. Carpet can also work well, as long as it’s not super plush or shag. Vinyl, tile, and wood floors are a little too slick for micros, unless you’re interested in practicing your drifting.

The bottom line here is to use your imagination. Go through your junk and find stuff that will work for what you want to do. You don’t really need to buy anything to make a track for your Micro-T.

I may expand on this in the future. Maybe I’ll create some templates or something for jump designs that people can easily put together.

My nearly complete restoration of a JRx-Pro

Jeff Hoy — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 00:42:53 +0000

BEHOLD!

It’s got a set of temporary electronics in it. And I’m still looking for some original wheels for it. I know where to find a front set, but the rears still elude me. I also need to get a couple new tie-rods to replace a couple bent and broken ones.

I have run it with the temporary stock motor, it’s pretty slow. I used to hate the thought of owning a car that I never drove. But the difficulty I had in sourcing parts for this has made me reconsider. It’s going to be a shelf queen and I’m very likely only going to take this out to drive it on special occasions.

Micro Awesomeness.

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 06:23:34 +0000

Well, I love me them Losi Micros and I love me them Losi Highrollers. Now two of my loves have become one. The new Micro-Highroller is a teeny, tiny, dead wringer for it’s bigger brother.

It has officially been added to my r/c must buy list.

Finally!

Jeff Hoy — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 06:19:24 +0000

I just noticed that Losi has released a ball differential for the Highroller. If you’ve read some of my previous articles about my Highroller you’ll know that the stock gear differential is probably the biggest issue with the truck. So if you have a Highroller then get over to your local hobby shop and buy one right now. You’ll see a major improvement in your Highroller’s performance. I guarantee it.

Losi’s new preassembled Ball Differential comes fully prebuilt from the factory and is ready to be dropped into Losi’s 1/10 Slider, 1/10 HIGHroller and 1/10 Strike SCT. This differential was designed to withstand high-powered motor and battery setups, and allows the user to make adjustments for enhanced steering and traction.

Click for more: Losi: Ball Diff: SL, HRL, SCT: Losi (LOSB3594)

There’s also another new product that caught my eye: CV Drive Shafts. These drive shafts are a little more efficient at delivering power to the wheels than the stock dog-bone drive shafts. I’m going to assume that they are a little tougher too. Weak drive shafts and axles were another issue I had with my Highroller.

These CV-driveshafts will also improve rear traction since they allow the rear end of the vehicle to work more efficiently.

All parts are made from precision machined high quality steel to prevent the parts from bending and breaking, and come completely assembled and greased for easy installation

Click for more: Losi: CV-Driveshaft Set: HRL, SCT: Losi (LOSB3589)

These two products immediately jumped to the top of my r/c must buy list. After I get them I’ll give a full report.

Losi correcting their mistake?

Jeff Hoy — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 18:01:41 +0000

Losi is finally introducing a proper short course style truck. At least that’s my assumption based on their current newsletter. On July 9th they are going to officially announce

a new 1/10-scale truck packed with performance-driven features like a water-resistent LiPo compatable ESC, an all-metal gear transmission, aluminum oil-filled shocks and a radio system with Spektrum™ 2.4GHz DSM® technology.

And that announcing of an announcement is accompanied by this teaser image.

Losi Highroller vs. Traxxas Stampede

Jeff Hoy — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 06:01:00 +0000

Here’s a direct comparison of Losi’s Highroller and Traxxas’ Stampede. They are backyard bashing specific trucks in the two wheel drive monster truck category. You’re likely not going to find any club or track that races these, though I think it would be a really fun class to have.

Features

Both trucks feature full ball-bearings, oil-filled shocks, independent suspension on all four corners, a 12-turn 550 motor, 3 gear transmission with gear differential and slipper clutch, large 2.8 inch wheels and tires, prepainted body, and a complete 2-channel AM radio system with pistol grip transmitter and electronic speed control.

They are pretty much the same in most regards. The Highroller does differentiate itself by offering some really nice and durable threaded aluminum shock bodies for easily adjusting spring preload without using separate clips that could be easily lost. Another feature that the Stampede is lacking is adjustable tie-rods. For most people the Highroller’s adjustable tie-rods won’t mean much, they are usually used for fine-tuning handling on race vehicles. Still, it’s nice that they are there. Where the Stampede outclasses the Highroller is in it’s waterproof electronics, meaning you can run it in the mud, snow, and rain with no worries.

Performance

Out of the box and using the same type and brand of batteries the trucks are neck and neck in a straight forward drag race. Acceleration and top speed are close to identical.

Both are nearly worthless on high grip surfaces like pavement. Due to their high centers of gravity they are prone to flipping easily. When the trucks did flip, the Highroller had a greater tendency to land wheels down and ready to go. However, the Highroller always spun out more under hard braking than the Stampede, due to it’s extremely loose gear diff. Hitting the dirt was a different story. Neither one is a super performer, but they do handle the rough stuff very well. The Highroller has a slight advantage, but not enough to really matter.

Both trucks fly well, the Highroller is the better of the two though, it has a knack for self-righting in the air when the take-off is less than perfect. When the take-off was good though, both flew straight and landed well. They were responsive to throttle inputs throughout the flight and landed softly, ready for more jumps.

Durability and Maintenance

The Stampede has the advantage here. Running both trucks at the same time, through the same conditions resulted in the Highroller having a broken shock end, bent outer axle, and a bent dog bone. After replacing those parts there have been no further problems with durability on the Highroller. The Stampede showed only cosmetic damage that didn’t need to be fixed.

Both trucks are relatively easy to work on. They include basic tools for maintenance and disassembly. The Highroller has more braces and hardware that needs to be removed to get at some of the major components. Neither one comes with anything more than an exploded drawing for reference.

Hopups

The Stampede, having been on the market far longer than the Highroller, has a much bigger selection of aftermarket parts available. Parts for increasing the durability and performance are available from makers such as RPM, MIP, and Robinson Racing Products. The Highroller only has first-party hopups from Losi at this point, and most of them are only cosmetic.

The trucks have easily replaced electronics. You will have to swap the electronic speed controls in both trucks if you wish to use more powerful motors.

Conclusion

They’re both RTR, requiring only batteries and a charger to get going. They are similarly priced and represent a pretty equal value. The Highroller offers more adjustment options out of the box. Overall they’re both great trucks and the only deciding factor will likely be aesthetics, which one looks cooler to you. Personally, I’m very happy with my Highroller and wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Info

Manufacturers: Losi; Traxxas
Product webpages: Highroller; Stampede
Where to buy: Stormer Hobbies – Highroller ($159.99) | Stampede ($169.95); Your local hobby shop