Restarting the Hobby

[Titch]

I used to race back in 1995 till about 2000.. Racing a Schumacher BossCat at a local track, more for fun, I wasn't a full BRCA member or went round the country doing nationals etc.. Around 2003 I moved house and just didn't get back into racing. But i've since had a change of heart and would love to get going again.. My offroad cars are the Boss Cat, Cougar and Cat2000. My onroad one is the Yokomo YR4-2 Special..

in the Yokomo I was running a novak cyclone ESC, KO Propo Servo, and a 12 Quad rotor in a trinity can.. The batteries were Orion 2000's

So, a few weeks ago I started looking into a new car.. I would run the YR4 as I reckon it can stilll hold it's own, but my local club has jumps etc, so the tourer isn't an option I told them my buggy line up and they said I could race in the vintage class, that made me feel old..

So I had a quick scan about the 'net and find that it's all gone nuts! What's so good about LiPO's? Whats a brushless motor??? and ESC's have sensors in them..

Booo!! at least my servo is still up to date, will turn a tank will that thing.

So I kind of need some help completing my shopping list..

I had a look at the Losi XXX4 G+, then I saw Schuy had a new Cat out and all of my schuy's have been absolute dreams to drive.. I'll be honest and say "I like stuff that looks a bit flashy" lol, I like carbon fibre, i love coloured alloy etc etc.. The CatSX looks to be a half decent pick right now, but your opinions are needed as you'll all know more about the modern stuff that i've missed.

I like the SpeedPassion GT2.0 Not sure what motor to put with it though..

Are LiPO's worth it? I read in an SX topic that if you ran LiPO's you could run all weekend.. are all ESC's compatible with LiPO's.. what are these new KV numbers on the motors..

Even though I don't enter major compo's or nationals, I'd still like to be competitive, I like an ESC I can tune like my old Novak, I know LRP were always good for speedo's and a motor thats got some oomph to it.

Cheers if you can answer any of the above

T.

[jim76]

if you are starting from scratch again then definitely go for brushless and lipo.
brushless motors need no skimmin, new brushes etc. They just go on and on. They also have longer runtimes.

The speedpassion GT2 is an excellent speedo, one of the best around and certainly the best value by far with its programmer. Their new v3 motors are also the nuts. Which motor you get depends on your club. If it is indoor it may have a motor limit of say 10.5 as the lowest.
Most regular racers outdoors will run either a 5.5 or 6.5 in their 4wd cars.

And the Cat SX is awesome! You certainly won;t go wrong with one. Everyone has their own opinions about which car is best. Main thing is go down the club and see what they run and have a look at things close up. Maybe borrow one for a few laps etc.

Lipo cells are great because they aren't as tempramental as NiMh. You can charge them and leave them for days and they don;t lose any charge. You can also use the same pack again and again on the same day and they tend to get better each charge. They are a bit expensive compared to the old cells, but 2 packs will do you, where as you needed 4+ NiMH packs for a day.
Most modern ESC's are lipo compatible. this basically means they have a built in cut off at 6v. Below this voltage lipos tend to bugger up, so the ESC cuts power when they start to dump to protect the cells. I wouldn;t bother with your old speedo to be honest, just stick it on ebay see it you can get a few quid back

[bigred5765]

any lipos on the brca list will be fine, speed passion make there own, the speed passion gt2 ecs will be fine, motor depends on track size a 7.5 should be fast enough,and the cats sx would be a perfect car,

[GRIFF55]

speed passion gt speedo and the 3.0 motors are an excelent choice. I would go to club and see what cars are popular there, at least that way if you buy a popular car there, you will always have spares. (if thats understandable!!)
good luck with whatever you choose and have some fun, i know i am!!

[Titch]

Cheers guys

Will get some Ebay listings up

the motors, you say 5.5, 6.5 etc.. what does this equate to?

[Marvin]

The advantages of brushless:
-Basically no maintenance: remember skimming your commutator, replacing brushes and springs etc. You don't need to do any of this with brushless (i.e. you can't do any of this with brushless). The only maintenance required is to keep them clean and check the bearings.
-The motors are more efficient which ends up with faster motors that run cooler and consume less power.
-As the motors stay cooler and there is no comm skimming, they have a longer overall lifetime.

NB: The 5.5/6.5T you mention is the 'turn rating' of the brushless motor. They are all slightly different speeds, like brushed (one 27T is quicker than another). 5.5T and 6.5T would be modified, a 10.5T would be the super-stock (19T brushed) and a 13.5T is stock (27T brushed), though they will all be faster than their brushed counterparts.

The advantages of LiPo:
-One pack should get you through a race day, as they will recharge and won't complain like an old NiMH would.
-They are far lighter than a NiMH pack.
-The overall lifetime is higher than a NiMH pack which would lose its 'punch' after about 20-30 cycles, in comparison with 100-200 cycles for the newer LiPos.
-They have a lower internal resistance than NiMH, and have the ability to provide far more current than any NiMH cell. This is what the 'C' rating refers to. A typical NiMH cell has a 10C discharge rating, whilst a good LiPO has at least 30C discharge rating. Therefore it can provide three times the power of an equivalent capacity NiMH cell, meaning cars are again faster.
-They have a higher power-to-weight ratio, even the higher capacity LiPos (like 6000mAh) are far lighter than the highest capacity NiMH cells (around 5000mAh), and are able to provide more power.

PS: I like the CAT SX, though as many have said, check with the club to see what's popular just in case brushless and LiPo prove too much and you hit something very hard, and need some spares.

[jim76]

a 6.5 is around a 10 - 11 turn brushed motor. a 5.5 is around an 8 turn

[Titch]

Excellent I know what you mean about picking a popular car for spares.. Many a time me and other racers would give parts out to fix others with the same car and them likewise for me..

My NiMH's range between 1700 and 3000.. the 2k's and 3k's would last a race and them some.. is this the case with LiPO's.. they last a race then need a recharge?.

[Marvin]

It depends on the motor used. I race in a small hall with a wooden floor with a 13.5T motor. I can get around 3 or 4 heats out of one pack.

However, someone who uses a 5.5T motor outdoors on a large track, might only get one race out of the pack, before having to recharge. You don't have to discharge the pack before recharging - this is another advantage of LiPo.

[Titch]

Cool. Thanks guys

Modelsports in Otley do a pre owned service.. I'll take my electrics down there and see what i get for them.. maybe they'll do a part ex.

I'll pop back to the club this Friday, see what's happening and probably run to Otley on Saturday..

Buzzin! I will admit to being a bit excited again !

[Bungleaio]

To be honest mate I doubt you will get very much at all for your old kit unless it is particularly rare, yo re probably best off getting a forsale add up here, there are a few vintage racers that might be interested.

Brushless and Lipo may seem quite expensive but once you spend your money you won't need to keep spending to keep everything as it should. Life is so much easier with the new technology so you can spend time on working on your setup or just enjoying yourself.

Once you've got setup and are back racing you'll wonder why you ever gave it up!

[Si Coe]

I'd start by dusting off the Cat 2000. I did that with my Cat'98 when I restarted and was surprised to find its still a very capable car. I've got a newer HotBodies D4 now as well, but the Cat is still my preferred indoor car, at least for the small track at Cheadle I often race at. There it proves quite able to compete with the more modern SX.

What I did do was upgrade to modern electrics though. Nothing fancy, cheap Ezrun brushless system and Lipo cells. That has given the car a turn of speed Schumacher never envisioned when they designed it, but the drivetrain can cope. Most spares are still available from Schumacher too.

Doing it this way you can spend the cost, upgrade the electrics first then the chassis later. If not I might know someone interested in your Cat 2000. I lent him my '98 a few weeks back because his Losi wasn't working and he loved it. He's been looking for one since!

[Si Coe]

Lipos wise its important to understand that these are very different to NiMH's.

Firstly they don't need to be discharged - in fact they mustn't be discharged. That means you can just keep topping them up between races. Although 2 packs is preferred, 1 pack and constant topping up is totally possible.

Secondly they have a much lower internal resistance than NiMH's. This means that for any given motor (even your existing brushed ones) Lipos will be faster and last longer than the equivalent sized NiMH. For example, my Cat with its old brushed system would only get just over 5 mins from 3000NiMH's, but nearer 10 mins from 3200Lipos, just because they are more efficient.

Thirdly - They are much lighter. This radically rearranges the balance in some cars designed for heavier NiMH cells but allows you to bring the weight up with ballast, and you can add it where you want for the best effect.

[jim76]

oh, one point about lipos. they need a specific charger incase you haven't read that before! using your old NiMH charger on them would BAD!

[stampede vxlboy]

Originally Posted by Titch

Cool. Thanks guys

Modelsports in Otley do a pre owned service.. I'll take my electrics down there and see what i get for them.. maybe they'll do a part ex.

I'll pop back to the club this Friday, see what's happening and probably run to Otley on Saturday..

Buzzin! I will admit to being a bit excited again !

they dont buy stuff unless its like new .same for buggy if they have been used more than 2 times they will not buy them

[sparrow.2]

Originally Posted by stampede vxlboy

they dont buy stuff unless its like new .same for buggy if they have been used more than 2 times they will not buy them

If it's passed through your able hands I can't really blame Modelsport for not touching it with a big stick...