What were the hot things when you got started in r/c?

[norcalracer_707]

Hey all, I thought i'd start a thread like this seeing as i've never seen one like it (and if there is one, i'm sorry). Here we go.

The cells: 1700mah nicd

The drivers: Matt Francis was still AE, his brother Mark was still racing (A side question, what ever happened to Mark?), Brian Kinwald was doing was he does best, kicking butt.

The cars: The AE T2 and B2 were the hot cars, and the competition, the Losi XX and XX-T, Duratrax was still an aftermarket parts company, Kyosho has the first truggie, the nitro usa-1, as well as the ep usa-1. The T-Maxx, MGT, Revo, and the other monsters were still sparkles in the eyes of the designers.
AE and Losi drivers were running Tenth Techology buggies and Yokomo touring cars.

BTW, I got started in 96, or around there, i'm 21 now.

[TEM]

Before a moderator throws this one out the window, I'll throw in my 2 cents! You are way too young for this kind of thread! There are still people running cars older than you are! And besdies, 96 is still rather recent!

[AE_racer38]

Let's see, when i got started the rc10 buggy had a gold chassis, a tranny with six gears in it, and tires that were as hard as real car tires. Jammin Jay drove it. There were ads with him standing next to the buggy signing autographs. I was stoked when the first 10t came out, and 1400 scr cells were the bomb! at that time i was about 23-24.

[norcalracer_707]

wow, sorry, feel free to delete it then

[one]

I was in attendance of the '88 ROAR nationals :D

I remember when they Clodbuster was "the new truck of the future"

I own a "Draggin' Wagon"

One of my oldest cars is an RC10 with the stealth CONVERSION and I still have the box the conversion came in.

For the same rc10 I also have an MIP steel stealth tranny I purchased new.

When RCCA tested the Big Brute, I picked the mag up off the newstand.

I was one of the first to own a Tamiya King Cab in my state once it hit the shelves.

I remember Brian Kinwald's first race, then a year later I was buying the state of the art white Kinwald triple wet 9t modified with green writing.

Oh, this could go on forever............

[Ultima Pro XL]

The RC-10, Ultima Pro XL and JRX-2 where the cars at my track when I got into it.

The JRX-T came out about a 1-2 years after I got into it and then stadium trucks exploded

Everyone had Losi X pattern tires and they lasted all summer.

Joel Johnson stock motor was the motor of choice for many people

Novak T4 and T1 speed controllers. Some people had the Novak T1X in modified

The Turbo Optima Mid SE was the 4WD car I saw the most of. A few Cat's here and there

I think all the people I raced against had Futaba Junior or Magnum transmitters

[Fat Old-Guy]

I got started in 1985... typical batteries were 1200 mAh Ni cads, speed controls were mostly mechanical, although my first RC-10 came with a resistor and wiper... BEC meant soldering two diodes between the battery + lead and the + lead of the receiver... RC-10s ruled the off-road buggy classes, RC500s were kings of the 1/8 on-road niro field, Tamiya and Kyosho were neck and neck, but no touring cars had been intro'd yet...Losi hadn't yet produced their first rc-10 flattery... Batery chargers had mechanical timers and adjustable current out-put... it only took 15 minutes to completely charge the battery. Jammin' Jay Halsey (with his RC-10) was the kid to beat in the 1/10 off-road class.

[Philster]

I paid 55 bucks for a 7.2 volt 1800ma Tamiya Gold Series NiCd pack in 1987 for my Tamiya Road Wizard F1.

[4DMNYC]

The Grasshopper was the hottest thing when I first got into hobby grade rc. So was the RC10. Infact, when the RC10 came out, offroad tracks started popping up everywhere. It was quite amazing. I was so young that I didn't fully appriciate what was happening(the explosion of the hobby), but now when I think back, I'm glad i was part of it.

[rocknbil]

(Don't mind him norcal)

JRX2 was one of my first buggies.

The 10T and XX was the big competition on the track.

I still have all my Tekin ESC's from those days - the original Tekin - 410 S, 412 P, G-12, etc. - and they all still work really well. The only thing that came close was the Novak 410M (got one of those still too!)

And because the track owner totally mud-bogged the track, these were the rears to run, Losi large double step pins. As you can see the first pins are almost gone, but you can't get these anywhere any more (that I know of.)

[TBone77]

I got into the hobby with a RC10 gold tub and Futaba Magnum Jr. I had ONE pack of 1400's that I beat the living daylights out of (though I didn't know it then) and had a charger with a 15 minute timer. I, too, had the manual speed control (wiper/resister) that I constantly fought to keep together. A year later, my parents bought me the Stealth transmission and I still remember incredible the car was after that upgrade. I accelerated much quicker, ran a lot longer, and was FAST. I beat the crap out of that car.

I got into the hobby with a buddy of mine who bought the JRX-2 (I think that's what it was). I lived on a cul-de-sac, and instead of racing, we simply lined our cars up opposing one another at opposite ends, and would just ram them together to see who broke worse. Then we'd ride our bikes to a Hobbytown USA - owned by a crusty bastard of an old man - and fix 'em back up. Wash, rinse, repeat!

[rocknbil]

..... and instead of racing, we simply lined our cars up opposing one another at opposite ends, and would just ram them together to see who broke worse.....

OW! OW! OW! The horror! :D

[tec_41]

Hot things when rocknbil got started? RC Rocks...:D

[TEM]

wow, sorry, feel free to delete it then

No, I mean my post for being a bastard!

[GT Freak]

lets set the wayback machine for 1988 (hum and whrrrs explode) aahh,here we r..

just found my LHS :cool:
bought a used tamiya frog for150 :eek:
2 wks later got a radio,charger and 1 1400 bat pak
drove it at the local high school parking lot...hit a curb...that was the end of that :(

saw my first r/c mag that yr...RCCA with the 10T in it...WOW!! that things neato!! (whurrss and cliks) .....and that was the yr in r/c...1988 :)

[sasonrally]

Too bad I've been doing this for the past 4 years so I have little history to tell. But the hottest thing I knew then was the T-Maxx and the Serpent 705. Soon thereafter the Savage. I am 28.

[RichieRich]

When I started in 1986, the buggy to beat was the Tamiya Fox. Then it was the RC10 which was so quick it was almost unfair. There were 50% less 75 Mhz channels to run on back then. 15 min chargers were all anyone had. We used to run Diamond or Twister motors. Those were the bomb. Parma used to make 10 different lexan bodies for the RC10, Tamiya Frog, Hornet, Fox. Everyone had a different body. I wish they would do that today, everything is so plain. For some reason, bearings used to cost and arm and a leg. I bearing set for my Frog back then was $50!!! Ah...memories.

[James_the_robot]

I got into this stuff back in the late 80's/early 90's. I owned a Kyosho Big Brute and two harbingers of the touring car craze, the on-road Kyosho Ultima 300zx and a rare version of the Kyosho Slingshot which came with a lame Chevy Lumina body. That Slingshot is set-up very very similar to touring cars that came out around 5-6 years later, but unfortunately it is quite wide and doesn't accept modern touring-car bodies. I'm just getting back into this stuff after 14-15 years and I'm trying to restore my old cars. I just went through the Slingshot rebuilding it...If anyone knows of any 230mm+ wide bodies that might fit I'd like to hear about it.

I don't remember what exactly was hot back then, but I think the Kyosho Lazer had just come out and there was the Ultima Turbo, JR-X2, and the Stealth version of the RC-10. I remember wishing there were cars to drive on-road that weren't pan cars back then. If the touring cars had come out earlier I may have stayed in it longer.

-James

[^j!nx^]

bruiser

[Alfalfameister]

I had a Tamiya Super Champ...

[Grandturk]

I had the Tamiya 1200mah 6 cell hump pack for my Subaru Brat. You remember those - that hard plastic hump case. Oh yeah - LiPo's got nothing on it.

[RaceTrackRat]

God I feel old! :( I remember the debut of the RC10 !!! :eek: I was on my 2nd or 3rd car by then and I couldn't wait to get my hands on one! But I couldn't save my pennies fast enough! I remember going to the hobby store and picking up the premiere issue of RC Car Action... I still have it! I got into the hobby in the early 80's!

[Dr_Isotope]

I ran a Turbo Ultima, which I made a custom fiberglass chassis for out of one of those "Danger! Gas Pipeline!" warning signs. :P Neighbor had Turbo Optima (chain drive, woot!), and the rest of the neighborhood was littered with Tamiyas: Frogs, a Grasshopper, a Hornet, a Lunchbox, a Midnight Pumpkin.

Batteries were lord knows what, timer charger, running in the rain with mech. speedos and silver cans... charging the same battery pack 7-8 times a day... ahh, those were the days. Musta been around '85, I guess. I was completely out of R/C by '89, and didn't get back in until around 2000.

[highroller]

Lots of things have changed from two basic classes (1/12th onroad or 1/8th gas) offroad was just starting with Tyco & Tamiya - things really changed when the RC10 came out (more manufacturers), one battery GE Saft, mechancial speed controls to early esc (Novak T4), jumper cord for charging to early timed or peak detect (Peak Master) devices.
Many offroad vehicles were converted and raced as 4wds, dirt oval, NASCAR oval (gearbox), onroad (early touring car) and stadium trucks which lead to specialty built vehicles of today. Along with the changes in rc a few companies fell by the wayside (Advanced, CRP, Hot Trick, Thorp etc) while others have remained strong (parma). Trinity was a little unknown company becoming one of the top three manufacturers, RCCA was first published in quarterly editions (couldn't wait for each new one) the other two Competition Plus and RC Model Cars folded. Racing was simple then - there was no need for high end equipment, had more time then to go racing; sometimes racing as many as 3-4 days a week or at least twice.

[z-man280]

my first hobby class car: traxxas trx-10 bullet,..bought itt used, with a trinity monster horsepower motor in it, a pro-tech 702 charger, and a magnum jr.( pretty sure that was the default radio in the day)..the bullet even had the dual wheel adapters and skiis for the front for winter driving.( that worked well,,lol).1400 packs were it, and i was eagerly waiting the release of the sledgehammer, which i bought as soon as it came out.( i think 90-91)i started in 1989, so i have seen alot of changes as well,...

biggest thing i remember, my LHS was a almost an hour and a half away, so you made your list and came prepared. bought my first ESC there, the novak 410-m5, and it was close to $100,.
from what i remember, the hot things were the RC-10, JRX, and the USA-1 monster truck. midningh pumpkins and blackfots were everywhere, ( still got my original blackfoot) and 6 minutes was a good run time with a clod..jammin jay, and joel johnson were who to watch, along with cliff lett, the hot motors to get were for stock class: the B&R bullet pro and for mod: TWISTER........

not as far back as some, but a ways.

[twistedtrik]

1st car was a Grasshopper, then I moved to a Blackfoot (ended up with 5 of them somehow) then I got an AYK Pro Radiant. Had a Hot Shot, an original Hornet and an Inferno 10.Then my 1st brand new car was a Kyosho Raider Pro. Ended up with an RC10T and a Traxxas Hawk. Then decided to get a Sledgehammer. My 1st real motor was a Trinity Toxic Waste or something. 1200mah Ni-Cad 7 cell humps were the king then. I started in 86ish.

[one]

God I feel old! :( I remember the debut of the RC10 !!! :eek: I was on my 2nd or 3rd car by then and I couldn't wait to get my hands on one! But I couldn't save my pennies fast enough! I remember going to the hobby store and picking up the premiere issue of RC Car Action... I still have it! I got into the hobby in the early 80's!
issue #1 Winter 1986

[adam lancia]

my first was a kyosho optima mid se with a 1200 mah sce pack plus a new 1400 mah scr, 20 minute timed charger, le mans 480 gold can motor, an unnamed esc and servo (hitec now that i think about it) with the old short fat white connectors into the receiver. ah the memories......