Red RC - RC Car News

Coming from JConcepts and made for the XB2 series of Xray buggies is the F2 body shell. Based off of the original Finnisher body, the F2 features a more aggressive look with performance to match. Cut-lines are included on each side of the body to accommodate stand-up and lay-down transmission layouts giving all out versatility. With the evolution of race tracks, complicated circuits combining more aggressive jumps and extremely high-speed corners, JConcepts incorporated many features which provide several benefits in the most critical situations. Increased windshield angle provides a steady force upfront during mid-flight wind gusts on large jumps. Forward cab placement changes performance/visible bias which helps steering rotation in low traction corners. The side-pods have been simplified and JC chamfered to remove unwanted changes in height to neutralise the at-speed handling. The front of the pods have a dual step, scoop treatment which give a first in class look to the F2 body. The rear of the cab has the Finnisher step feature which allows the placement of a secondary side window and also several louver options off the rear which can be trimmed to allow air to escape at the top of the body.

Source: JConcepts [jconcepts.net]

Rusti Design from France have introduced their new range of carbon fibre option parts for the Team Associated B6 series of buggies. Available now are 4mm gullwing and flat front as well as standard and long rear shock towers all of which match the standard suspension geometry. They feature an updated overall design though, making them stand out from the kit parts. Next up is a 1mm front bulkhead shim to lower the suspension mounts for improved steering while a +2mm rear gearbox shim set has been designed to raise the gearbox and shock tower block with an additional shim being provided for the specific laydown gearbox. Using the parts helps to maintain low driveshaft angles while lowering the chassis which can help avoid traction rolling on high-bite surfaces.

Also new are carbon fibre steering blocks for the B6 and B6D that come as a 3-pair set of 0, +1 and +2 items with the latter increasing the Ackermann effect, resulting in improved mid corner steering. Next up is a battery strap made up using carbon fibre and 3-D-printed parts. Utilising the same mounting points as the standard part the plate offers improved battery plug access, better bodyshell clearance and full chassis flex. Last in the line of new carbon fibre parts is a rear wing mount stiffener made from 1mm material and usable on both the B6 and B64 buggies. Bolting the part between the wing mounts and wing will greatly improve the life of the wing. Mandatory on many astro turf and carpet tracks are the B6 and B6D front shock tower sliders, 3-D-printed parts available for the gull wing an flat-type towers that prevent damages to the shock’s “ears” while protecting the carpet surface when the buggy is on its roof. Last but not least comes a set of sensor wire hiding stickers featuring the Rusti Design logo.

Source: Rusti Design [rustidesign.fr]

Italian company Capricorn have introduced the Power Light Kit chassis update set for the TE-03 Evo 1/10th electric touring car kit. The kit consists of a new carbon fibre main chassis that allows the use of special brackets and the new slim motor mount while still utilising the traditional motor mount if needed. Also included is a new upper deck, again to allow the use of the new motor mount and despite being slightly asymmetrical it was designed to have a perfectly linear response in both directions. As for the slim motor mount, the bulkhead moves the motor 6mm towards the centre of the car while also making it also sit 1mm lower on the chassis for an improved centre of gravity. The centre axle mount is now of a two-piece design in order to increase the flex in the centre section of the chassis. Part of the package are also the aforementioned bulkheads brackets. The new parts give the options to connect the bulkheads and the suspension mounts to the chassis for an increased stiffness. Last but not least come the V4 shock bodies and shock towers:. The shocks bodies are shorter, but thanks to the use of a single o-ring together with the new teflon bushings the overall stroke has been increased. The shorter shocks are meant to be used with the new lower shock towers.

Source: Capricorn [capricornrc.com]

Capricorn have announced the return of German frontrunner, Marc Fischer to their electric on-road racing team. After reaching the World Championship A-main in Beijing last August, Marc is ready to be back working together with the Italian company, racing and developing the TE-03 Evo platform through to 2018. Marc has the following to say about the deal:

I want to thank VBC, Victor Law and Carven for the short but good times. Now i am really looking forward to return to Capricorn after the A Main at the Worlds in China. I really want to thank Patrizio Rossi for the chance he gave me to race for him and for Capricorn one more time. My First Race with the TE-03 will be the ETS in Madrid, follow by the Euros, Reedy Race and all other ETS Races which will follow. I signed a contract until 2018 Worlds in South Africa, so I will have the time to prepare and am really happy about it.

Source: Capricorn [capricornrc.com]

The Hudy GP was held at the GLARC track in Los Angeles over the weekend. The 1/8th class final saw a close battle between Mike Swauger and JJ Wang until a costly mistake by the Chinese-American driver gave some breathing room to Mike, who capitalised and started working to keep the lead until the checkered flag.

In the highly contested 1/10th 200mm class it was Ralph Burch who took a deserved win after a side to side battle against DJ Apolaro, with Ralph managing to pull away with 5 minutes to go and crossing the line in first ahead of DJ and JJ Wang.

The popular GT class saw another great battle between Morganti, Dias and De Soto Jr, the latter taking the lead with 2 minutes to go and going for the win. Walter Diaz ended up on the second spot on the podium.

Source: Picco [teampicco.com]

Xray have introduced 2 degree aluminium C-hubs for the T4 line of touring cars. Machined from Swiss 7075-T6 aluminium and coming orange anodised and also engraved for easy identification, the parts are usable with ECS driveshafts, they improve handling on high-bite tracks and are available separately for the left and right hand side of the car.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]

Round 1 of the Victorian Drivers Series was held in the regional town of Wodonga, three hours north of Melbourne with over 90 entries for the event that was held on a red clay track which had been prepared by the small but enthusiastic club. Rain during practice and hot weather during race day meant that the track grooved up perfectly, giving the racers good grip with minimal tyre wear. In 2WD Modified  Ray Munday (Team Associated) took TQ from Simon Heally (Yokomo) and Matt Griffin (Team Associated). The finals were a 3-way battle with Ray, Matt and Q4 Mark Rogers (Team Associated). It came down to a last lap battle and Mark Rogers came through to take a popular win, with Matt 2nd and Ray 3rd overall.

4WD Modified had Matt Griffin (Team Associated) taking the TQ from Anthony Campbell (Team Associated) and Ray Munday (Team Associated). The finals were very close with a win apiece, Ray taking the overall win from Matt and Anthony in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

2WD 17.5 was the biggest class of the weekend with 24 entries. Current 4WD 17.5 national champion, Leigh Cheeseman (TLR)  took TQ and then went on to win A1 and A2 for a dominant victory. Mildura’s Dave Engledow (Team Associated) took a popular 2nd overall after winning A3, while Simon ‘ McHugh (Kyosho) finished a close 3rd.

In 4WD 17.5 Leigh Cheeseman followed up his victory in the 2WD class with TQ and wire-wire wins in A1 and A2 to sweep the 17.5 classes. Ben Howard (Schumacher) took a strong 2nd from Simon McHugh, making the podium in both classes.

In Modified Truck Andrew Adamic gave the new Xray truck a great debut, taking TQ and winning all three finals for his first TQ and win in the series. Damien O-Dea had travelled all the way from Adelaide and was rewarded with 2nd place with his Team Associated truck, with young gun 12-years old Jordan Isergin completing the podium with 3rd overall with his Team Associated.

2WD 21.5, a popular entry level class, had Matt Spencer taking the TQ and win from Mark Casey and Glen Grinter. Matt’s story is unique in that his racing gear was stolen in 2016 shortly after he started racing, but the community rallied together to provide him with equipment to race again.

The Junior scene continues to grow in Victoria, with new racers joining the 2WD 17.5 Junior class all the time. Mildura’s Tyrell McKenzie took TQ from Mitchell Isergin and Josh Ryan. In the finals, Tyrell took out all three mains but was pressured hard by newcomer Nathan Facciol coming from 4th on the grid in only his second race meeting. Josh Ryan took 3rd overall from Mitchell, Fletch Sims, Cameron O’Dea and Hope Densley. Showing the success of the class, the Modified Buggy A-finals included three racers who were in the junior class only two years ago – Carter Sims (13), Jordan Isergin(12) and Lachlan Munday (11).

Thanks to Ray Munday for the report.

HRC Distribution have introduced the Team Magic E5 HX ARR Special Version monster truck kit. Based off of the recently announced E5 HX the ARR comes factory-assembled and with a range of option parts such as titanium-coloured aluminium body posts, CNC-machined aluminium shock towers, aluminium big bore shock absorbers, a centre differential set, CNC-machined stainless steel front and rear chassis guards as well as a heavy duty 46T main gear. Other features include a clear bodyshell, a rear wing including tail light and a wheelie bar. Not included are the motor, speed controller, batteries and RC equipment. The truck will hit stores soon.

Source: HRC Distribution [hrcdistribution.com]

The famous Czypu-Drom indoor dirt track in Bad Oeynhausen played host to the opening round of the West German division 1/8th E-Buggy regionals this past weekend. About 80 drivers signed in for the German nationals qualifier that also saw the running of a friendship race and at the end of the day Agama’s Burak Kilic would bring home the win from Laurin Czypulowski (Mugen) in second while Berkan Kilic (Agama) had to settle for third after the two A-final legs. The three would also bring home the respective Junior class titles.

Thanks to Abdullah Kilic for the report.

Last weekend saw the final round of the BRCA LMP12 national championships take place at the Chesterfield club in the UK. The final round of the series saw all three championships still up for grabs, with David Spashett, Adam Catchpole, Ollie Payne, Craig Nutting and Aidan Ripley all hoping to claim titles. Saturday saw the 13.5 battle commence, with title favourite David Spashett stamping his authority over qualifying. Although Adam Catchpole and Ollie Payne were able to stay close to David’s Roche over the early stages of each race, David’s pace was relentless, and everyone else made small mistakes. This resulted in David taking pole position by nearly a lap.

The A-final saw a masterclass from David and his Roche teammate Adam Catchpole, with the pair pulling away from the field, and lapping the entire grid, up to and including Alexander Hagberg in third position. David’s third win of the season was enough to secure the 13.5 national title for Britain’s most successful on-road racer ever. Adam crossed the line in second, to secure runner up on the day and in the championship. The podium was completed by Xray’s Alexander Hagberg, who after a quiet day by his standards, battled through from eighth on the grid to take third.

13.5 final results:
1. David Spashett – Roche/Trinity
2. Adam Catchpole – Roche/Trinity
3. Alexander Hagberg – Xray/ORCA
4. Mark Stiles – Yokomo/Reedy
5. Ollie Payne – Roche/Trinity
6. Matthew Varrah – Roche/Trinity
7. Luke Burley – Xray/Trinity
8. Jimmy Maddison – Xray/Tekin
9. Andy Murray – Schumacher/Fantom
10.Craig Mawson – Schumacher/Fantom

The largest class on Sunday was the Sports Modified, which saw drivers sticking with the 13.5 motors used on Saturday. In this class Aidan Ripley had to win the meeting to prevent the title going to Craig Nutting. In the end Aidan showed that he and his Schumacher had the desire to claim the title by claiming pole position by just over three seconds from Matt Varrah, with championship rival Craig Nutting in third.

The A-final saw a clean start from Aidan, with the rest of the field tripping over each other. This left Aidan with nearly half a lap lead over Matt Varrah, who had to recover past Luke Burley and Craig Nutting, before heading after Aidan. At six minutes the race and championship looking to be heading to Schumacher and Aidan, but a small tap of the barrier while lapping traffic saw Aidan stuck and Matt through into the lead. This result saw the title move from Aidan to Craig, and as the flag dropped it was a win for Matt’s Roche from Aidan and Craig. This ensured a second title for Roche and a first for Craig Nutting.

Sports Modified final results:
1. Matthew Varrah – Roche/Trinity
2. Aidan Ripley – Schumacher/Fantom
3. Craig Nutting – Roche/Fantom
4. Luke Burley – Xray/Trinity
5. Ben Vincent – Schumacher/Fantom
6. Mark Jewitt – Roche/Trinity
7. Patrick Bandeira – Roche/Trinity
8. Niall Cochran – Zen/Trinity
9. Peter Craig – Schumacher/Fantom
10.Neil Diver – Roche/Trinity

The last title to be decided was in the Modified class, with the Roche trio of Spashett, Catchpole and German champion Ollie Payne all in with a chance of the win. It was Adam who took pole from Alexander Hagberg and David Spashett. The A-final saw an early mistake from Adam leave Alexander to cruise to his third win of the year, from David in second and Adam in third. This result was enough to give Adam Catchpole his first LMP12 national title, and with it Roche a clean sweep of the BRCA national championships in 2017.

Modified final results:
1. Alexander Hagberg – Xray/ORCA
2. David Spashett – Roche/Trinity
3. Adam Catchpole – Roche/Trinity
4. Andy Murray – Schumacher/Roche
5. Mark Stiles – Yokomo/Reedy
6. Chris Kerswell – Roche/GM
7. Matt Lax – CRC/ORCA
8. Ollie Payne – Roche/Trinity
9. Aaron Morley – Associated/Reedy
10.Mick Farrell – Associated/ORCA

Source: BRCA [brca.org]