Many would argue that the golden age of R/C buggies in the 1980s was truly golden, a standard set by Team Associated’s RC-10 – a racing buggy which featured a gold-anodized aluminum tub. As a kid, I couldn’t afford an RC-10. I kept hacking away at my intermediate Kyosho Raider, upgrading parts piecemeal as I could afford them. But my friend Adit convinced his parents to buy him an RC-10. He had never driven one, but he knew it was the best – probably because I told him so. Continue reading →

I can’t say enough about pascallanger and others who have worked to put together the open source 4-in-1 multiprotocol module. It’s a collection of all of the transmitter protocols that are open source, or have been reverse engineered, compiled into one. Combined with the 4-in-1 module hardware, you can control a huge variety of models with different receivers and protocols with the same transmitter.

With my 9x and the 4-in-1 I’ve been able to fly:

1. Inductrix (Tiny Whoop) bind-and-fly (DSM Protocol)
2. Assault 100 (HiSky HT-8 Protocol)
3. FT Flyer with FlySky receiver
4. FT Snowball with FlySky receiver
5. FT Tiny Trainer with HobbyKing HK-T6A-V2 receiver (FlySky protocol)
6. XK K110 bind-and-fly micro-heli (Futaba SFHSS Protocol)

It will work with several other protocols including SLT for AnyLink models and RealFlight simulator.
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Here is a summary of my findings regarding the powerplant history for the US Vintage Trans-Am racing series, as well as our Minnesota variant. Some of the comments are moot-point as the previous series manufacturer, Novak, is no longer in business. But it may provide useful insight for the newcomers out there. Continue reading →

The year was 1988, I was 11 years old. The Minnesota Twins were fresh off a World Series win. After taking my Sears Lobo II to it’s limits (whatever that means to an 11 y/o), it was time for an upgrade. I had purchased a copy of Radio Control Car Action magazine from the local hobby shop – Jolly’s Toys and Hobby in Apache Plaza. Inside, I found this article with all of its 80s flair: Continue reading →

Now that I got my ham license and some FPV equipment, I needed a way to set it up so that it’s usable at the flying field. Also, don’t let the title fool you – most of the money ($75) was spent on the FPV system itself, (including camera!). Other parts I was able to borrow or steal…

I started with the two-monitor portable DVD system that my kids use to watch movies on road trips. The 1st monitor is the “brain” that has the DVD player. The 2nd monitor simply accepts power and an A/V signal from the 1st. I stole this monitor for use with my ground station. I tested it by powering it on through the cigarette lighter jack and then hooking it up to the FPV receiver. With the FPV transmitter off I saw static instead of the dreaded “blue screen” – which is good!

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