Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Fast Electric RC Cars – RC Drifting

Drift is considered to be when car wheels slip either only rear wheels or both ( front and rear ) wheels then the car started sliding sideways while taking a high speed in the corner.

History of drifting car was started somewhere in 1970’s in Japan. Drifting has ability to get rear tires to slide more than front tires meant it could power much faster than another car around corner. this techniques was adapted on the winding mountain roads and this make car drifting is very popular in Japan.
And now this popularity has spilled over to rc cars. If you have ever watched rc cars drifting, you will be instantly hooked.

This new challenging driving skill has made the Electric RC car drift one of the most popular cars in the RC world. If you can master the drifting technique with these cars, you can even join the RC Drift Car Competition,

For drifting, electric rc cars are better than nitro models. It is because of their lighter weight , motor durability and easier to control the throttle during a drift. Nitro rc cars would probably burn out the clutch and overheat the engines if used for drifting.
There are advantages of Electric RC car models. Electric RC drift cars offer more consistent torque and faster throttle response than nitro models and make them the better option for RC drifting.

Electric RC Car Advantages:
-Consistent Torque
-Faster Throttle Response
-Relatively Clean
-Indoor Operation

Electric motors effectively produce instant torque, where nitro engines, take time for the engine to spool up and clutch to engage. Electric RC drift cars use high capacity compact batteries to drive a brushed or brushless motor via an electronic speed control.

It is recommended that you use a shaft drive rc car rather than a belt driven transmission for your drifter. The shaft drive provides good throttle response compare to belt drive. But don’t worry about that because many RC community use belt drive cars for drifting without problems. But if you are starting from scratch, shaft drive cars may be the best drifters. Also, use a 4 wheel drive machine if you want to go drifting. 4x4 is easier to control and drift. The only item you need to convert your touring car into a drift car is to change the tires. RC drift cars use tires that are made out of PVC pipes. You can also buy specially made drift tires made by Yokomo, HPI and Tamiya.

Proper control may be difficult at first, but with some practice it will gives you a better experience because practice is the basis of a great drifter. Creating your own videos is a good and easy way to view progress, and learn from your mistakes.

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Fast electric rc cars - Painting the body shell.

When you painting your fast electric rc car body shell by your self, at the same time the design and color that you has choose are represent of your creativity, patience and talent. Remember the more color you had selected to used, the more difficulty you will face on doing this work.

There are two ways to paint your fast electric rc car body shell :

1.Masking tape - This is ready made masking tape and can be find at rc cars hobby shop. You can choose from various design and suit for your fast electric rc car body shell.

2.Own design - You can make it difference by your own identity, creativity and design. Normally painting fast electric rc cars body shell look more beautiful and professional when you make your own design, even it will take your times and more effort but you deserve to get a pride of your time and effort.

There are a few steps to follow to painting your rc car body shell.

1.Prepared all tools you will need.
Dish soap, Clean cloth or paper towel, High quality masking tape (3M), Permanent marker, Straight and curved scissors, Sharp hobby knife, Body reamer , Pencil, Compatible paint, Window masks, screw driver.

2.Cut off body wing.
Normally your body came with a wing or spoiler molded into the excess material, you must cut it off. Some wings are molded in the opposite direction of the body. If this is the case you must remove the protective film, and paint the reverse side.

3.Marking your body post.
Mark your mounting body before you paint. Drop the body over your chassis, center it and use a permanent marker to mark the body posts. You can also mark the wheel wells. Touring car bodies sometimes have no rear wheel well outlines, this give you freedom to make a perfect fit for your chassis. A great tip is to make a wheel well template, and use it to trace 4 wheel well shapes. They can be made from either scrap of your molded body or cardboard.

4.Wash your body shell.
After all the handling and cutting, wash the body ( Inner surface ) to remove all chips, dirty and oily from your hand. Wash the body and wing sets with dish soap and water and pay attention to the tight curved and corners areas. Dry it thoroughly with clean cloth or towel. Make sure your body completely dry before the painting process.

5.Painting your body.
-Apply the window masks to the inside the body. The masks keep the windows clear while you paint.
-Apply masking tape for the design you would like for your body.
-Apply spray on your body surface evenly and wait until the paint completely dry.
-Peel off masking tape.

Tips.
-If you would like your body design look beautiful, normally it can be more than 2 or 3 color. The masking tape can be design by your own or you can choose to buy from hobby shop. Keep in mind that the more color you will use the more difficulty for you in doing this process.
-When painting, you usually work from the darker to the lighter color to avoid the subsequent coat from showing through.

6.Trim and Mount the body.
Trim out your body using curved scissors for the wheel wells and straight scissors for the lower lines. Use the body shell reamer to make the body post and body wing holes, remember not to make that hole too large.

7.Remove protective film and window masks.
After all work has finish remove the protective film, and the window masks.The protective film will help keep your body from getting scratched during your work.

8.Finishing.
Apply or stick all cosmetic sticker included with the body.