Zip Zaps forum...

[V-Mac]

I picked one of these lil 1/64 scale suckers up the other day, and im very impressed. Post your pics, mods, or anything to do with Zip Zaps here. I bought the yellow mustang kit ($19.99) and the "fast and the furious tune-up set" ($12.99) wich came with two bodies (a green eclipse and a red RX-7), two motors (21,500rpm red, and 23,500rpm yellow), three gear ratio sets, suspention bars (3 tensions), four different spoilers, two sets of tires, and two sets of wheels!! You can get Zip Zaps at radio shack, or check them out here: www.zipzaps.com

-Vince

[racer13]

I asked my mom to get me one as an early christmas present for fun.. since my brother has a bit-char-g he plays with on the table i figured i could race him!! i made a list of what i wanted and the total was $59.94, These things RULE!!


Neon Blue Honda Civic Starter kit- $19.99
"The fast and the furious" Street tuner kit- $12.99
"the fast and the furious" body kit- $6.99
Pit kit carrying Case- $9.99
Tool and cleaning kit- $4.99
custom tire and hubcap upgrade- $4.99


http://www.radioshack.com/images/ProductCatalog/ProductImage/60/60-7503.jpg

[SC-18_Racer]

How do the ZipZaps compair to the Hobbico Mini's.. The ZipZaps are cheaper than the Hobbico.....They look the same?

[V-Mac]

Actually, the ZZ's are 1/64th scale, and the hobbico's are like 1/80 scale, so the ZZ's are a little bigger, but they handle lots better.

-Vince

[RC New Guy]

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:
stupid zipzap and radio shack:mad: :mad: :mad: http://www.gamers-forums.com/smilies/contrib/dvv/pissed.gifhttp://www.gamers-forums.com/smilies/contrib/dvv/po.gifhttp://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gifhttp://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gif
not in canada!!!!!http://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gifhttp://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gifhttp://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gifhttp://smilies.uniquehardware.co.uk/contrib/ruinkai/screama.gifhttp://www.gamers-forums.com/smilies/contrib/dvv/pissed.gifhttp://www.gamers-forums.com/smilies/contrib/dvv/po.gif

[SC-18_Racer]

Ok I pick up one at Radio Shack, boy they are hard to find! 13 stores around me were sold out.... But I got the blue Honda Civic, I also picked up the performance booster upgrade kit and the custom tire and hubcap kit. The car is fast for something so small. I will post pic's soon.

It is fun to play with!

[SC-18_Racer]

My ZipZap

[TeeBee]

After seeing this thread last week, I decided to pick up one of these cars. Easier said than done. The Houston area LHS's have plenty of Microsizers, but finding a Radio Shack with a selection of ZipZaps is challenging. I must have called 10 R/S's and visited at least 4 looking for them. I became somewhat intrigued with the challenge. Everyone wants these little cars and they fly off the shelf upon shipment. I have managed to scrounge up a 49Mhz PT Cruiser, a 27Mhz Porsche 911, a Performance Booster Kit, and a custom tire and wheel set. I haven't scored a Fast and Furious Tuner Set, but I'm not giving up, yet. Gotta have that NOS motor! :D Some stores are hoping for more cars and parts this week.

I've never had a Bit or Microsizer, but these ZipZaps are a blast. The bodies look convincing and are licensed for production by the auto manufacturers. The front and rear wheels are the same size, unlike the Micros. The wheels come in many styles and are easily interchanged. 3 tread patterns are available(must look closely, very small tires). 3 gear ratios and 4 motors are available with the upgrade kits, and are easy to change out for a variety of performance characteristics. The Turbo(21,500rpm) or NOS(23,500) motor with the red gear set will give high speed(that's relative of course) and the Control(10,000rpm) motor with the blue gears will allow running around a table top full of obstacles with a fair amount of precision with a little practice(spelled F-U-N). I've found myself swapping gears and motors frequently and running on different surfaces as part of the fun. I purchased a kid-size soft lunch box and some foam at Wally World and made a cool custom carrying case for my ZZs. It's got 35mm film canisters with color-coded labels to hold all the gears, motors, wheels, etc. It's neat. I guess I've got a disease.

I got interested in microsized cars recently with the introduction of the Yokomo Puchi Maru. It looks really cool with its proportional control, but the ZipZaps fit my bang/buck requirement for now. My previous R/C cars have been nitro monster trucks and a nitro 1/10th on road car. My son and I don't race, but enjoy running the cars at home. I've been a little frustrated lately with nitro car maintenance(Thunder Quake transmission is acting up). Seems I've been spending a lot on broken parts and getting little run time. I also recently gave my 13 yr old son a Mini-Z for his birthday. He loves it. Now that he's spent all his birthday money on Mini-Z parts, the ESC has burned up. He's upset. Maybe Tower Hobbies will make it right, but that's another story. For now, it's ZipZaps. They don't need fuel, clutches, or bearing kits. And they run indoors on the kitchen table or living room floor when it's raining outside. I even sneak them to work and run them on the control room table. Can't pull that off with a 1/8th monster truck.

If you want to read more about these ZipZaps, go to the TinyRC.com forums. Lots of good info there.

Things of interest:
It's seems the 49Mhz gets better range than 27Mhz versions.
TinyRC.com forums has antenna mods to improve this. My 27
works ok stock, but the range is definitely shorter. If I was
only to purchase 1 car, it would be a 49Mhz model.

It's rumored that ZipZaps will be HOT HOT HOT for Christmas this
year, like Cabbage Patch Kids and Tickle Me Elmo dolls. I'm
inclined to believe this since I worked very hard to find them
myself. During the purchase, I watched people grabbing them
off the rack while others were simultaneously calling the store
clerk looking for them. They even had a life-size poster of Shaq
O'Neal promoting them by holding two of the tiny cars in his
huge hand.

TeeBee

Thunder Quake(broke)
Street Force w/TransAm body(broke)
Mini-Z(broke)
ZipZaps(zippin')

[Insane Rival]

ok me and my cousin will both be running ZZ's with the NOS motors. im gonna be running the red gears, he prob will be too if he is smart, but what tires, sway bar, etc should i run to get a better chance of winning since we will both have the same motor and gears???

[BudBartos]

Bet all those zip zaps are still on the boat from China :(

[TeeBee]

Here's my ZipZap update. I've been playing with these little cars for nearly 2 months now. I've got a 49Mhz PT Cruiser, a 27Mhz Porsche 911, and a 49Mhz Mustang. I've also scored a wheel and tire kit, Fast and Furious Tuner Set, Performance Booster Upgrade kit, and the official ZZ carrying case since I outgrew my smaller, custom-made case. I've been trying to buy a 27Mhz black Civic for weeks, now without any luck. The stores remain out of stock in my area. My goal is to have 2 cars in each frequency to increase the odds of keeping enough parts to keep a couple of these things running for a while.

After many hours of use, I've had no failures! The most frequent problem occuring is the hair(dog) that winds up in the front axles. It's easily removed with pointy tweezers or a razor blade if necessary. I made custom lengthened control sticks on 2 transmitters so I can run my cars without killing my thumbs. A very worthwhile mod! There are a number of ideas for this on tinyrc.com zipzap forums.

If you can find these cool little cars, I still recommend them as a cheaper alternative to the Bits and Microsizers. Several people who've seen and played with mine are now ZipZap owners as well, or at least waiting for Radio Shack to get some in. I'm starting to think it's a little contagious. Have fun.

TeeBee
Thunder Quake(broken tranny)
Street Force w/TransAm body
Kyosho Nitro Tracker(back from the dead!)
Mini-Z
ZipZaps

[raindrops89]

I have a Fast and Furious Supra body with a dual pager motor that i customized and turbo gear and new wheels and a new NIMH battery and it lasts for 10 minutes! i took the charger jack and connected it to 4 AA batteries and now it charges n 10 seconds and i have won 8 competitions with it.

[TeeBee]

Those sound like cool mods. I've just stuck to a few cosmetic mods and the Radio Shack hopups. I finally got a black Civic. My set is now complete.:D

Tee Bee
Thunder Quake(broke)
Street Force w/TransAm body
Nitro Tracker(back from the dead!)
Mini-Z
ZipZaps

[CK9887]

I have been looking into buying one of the micros, im just not sure which one.

How much faster is the NOS motor on the zip zap?
Would the Nos motor on the zip zap make it about the same speed as a microsizer? cause the stock rpm on a microsizer is 22,000rpm which is close to that NOS motor, right?

There was also a few other micros on the interenet i was looking at. One came with a 2.6 motor (26,000rpm) and it was only 15$. So i think i will get that. The only reason i would get a zipzap over that is because of the realistic bodies and all the upgrades, but you would probably be able to use the zipzap bodies for the other micros since they are the same scale (1:64).

The built in rechargable battery is about the same in all these different micros, isnt it?

[CK9887]

I just called the local radioshack and they have them in stock!

Im going to get one now!

[CK9887]

I got to radioshack and they sold out, so i went to another radioshack and they said people were lining up for them at 5:45am and the store didnt even open till 9:00am. So i went to target and got a microsizer:D

How fast are the zip zaps compared to the microsizer?

Also, my microsizer turns really sharp right, but not as sharp left, anybody have the same problem?

how much faster is the 2.6 motor?

[NitroMTO.S15]

Anyone know any info about quickzaps?i'm wondering if the battery form them which lasts 10 minutes and charges in 45 seconds would fit in my microsizer?Also would bodies from zip zaps or quickzaps fit onto my microsizer?any ways to change the frequency on my microsizer so that i can run 4 different ones at once?

[StangRacer67]

those sound like fun but in mph about how fast are they?i used to hove this thing that it was a plastic road and 2 cars ran on them,ud press a buttonand they would go pretty fast are they anything like those?

[robc]

Zip Zaps AND Micro Sizers are both made by Tomy. The Zip Zaps come with the weakest motor, the 1.1, that's why the Micro Sizers are faster out of the box.

[RCBandit77]

I just bought a second zip-zap, cuz my friend busted my first one, AND IT IS REALLY SCREWED UP. I put new batteries in the controller, and it stops about 6 inches away, and it doesn't steer! I have had no luck what so ever with it , and I NEED HELP:confused:

[SC-18_Racer]

Take it back to the Shack and get a new one.....I had one that was the same way == nothing you can do!!!

[RCBandit77]

yeah. but i ain't got no mo' packaging. all i gotz is my car, W/ the fastest moter, and gears, and the toyota supra body kit. I still have the receipt though

[RCBandit77]

One minor prob.......... I AIN'T GOT A BOX!!!!!! ONLY THE RECEIPT

[pottymouth]

It was a micro christmas at my house. I got a Zip Zap a while ago and was pretty disappointed. I bought a MicroSizer for my brother for christmas hoping it might be better. My Dad had no idea so he bought us both one of the generic brands. Of course, he put batteries in em to "make sure they worked". He liked em so much he had to have one of his own and bought some other generic brand. We threw out all the boxes so I have no idea what brand they are. Ours came in an oval shaped package with a plastic dome an oval shaped controller. I know he got his at the As Seen On TV store...it don't get much more generic than that!

My conclusion: Zip Zaps are slow, expensive, and have horrible range. MicroSizers are much faster, smaller, and better range. The generic brands are 1/2 to 1/3 the price of the name brands, are way faster and have great range! I feel like a sucker. My dad paid like 10 bucks for the ones he got and they blow away my $30 ZipZap. Honestly, the controllers feel a bit cheap tho.

Another thing I noticed is that I get much better range with my ZipZap using the generic controller. That was my biggest complaint about the ZipZap. I never got more than about 3 foot away with the original controller. The generic one works fine as a replacement and reaches WELL across the room.

I also got my girlfriend the SpongeBob Squarepants body set for the ZipZap. It's pretty schweet. One of the bodies is Patrick sitting in an innertube and it's hilarious watching him zoom around the floor : )

[CHEVYMAN07]

Do you think that my controller will work with the microsizers kit for 17 bucks? I got a z-car yesterday for x-mas and its been a blast, just that now the range is about 3 foot. It was like 10-15 now somethings wrong? please help

[pottymouth]

I guarantee nothing. One of the other pairs actually drove the car reverse when you pushed forward but nothing when you pushed reverse and no turning at all.

It was suggested that range could be improved by upgrading the antenna in the ZipZap controller. Take it apart and head down to Radioshack.

[chevyman]

on ebay I found an off road Zip Zap hummer I also saw a army jeep but I dont think they a real Zip Zap Its some other brand heres a link to look at the hummer http://**************/ws/*******************************3110455925&category=2565

[murphy3688]

i made my own drag stip on my kitchen floor for mine. it's not to scale because i dont have 20.xx feet (1320'/64) or 15.xx feet (1320'/80). it's 6' 7.25" long. its in corralation to my kitchen tiles basically. my best time was 1.51, whereas my friends bitchar-g (a little lighter chassis) went a 1.43. it was fast... we were runnin low 1.5's a lot, then "tuned em down" to a 1.90 index class.
measure it out and post your times

-murphy
slotforum.hyperboards2.com

[iwannarc]

I have two stock Microsizers, an Evo and an STI *the Evo mine, Sti my dads* My Evo has a steering problem. Whenever I try to turn right it takes a foot or two to react, but when I turn left it reacts immediatly. I have adjusted it every way I can, but they all result the same. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. I am also thinking of upgrading my motor, what should I get? I want to fast but I don't want to lose all my acceleration. What gearing should I run as well. Thanx, LAter.

[iwannarc]

Also, will ZipZap motors fit in my Microsizer? Which is faster the 2-speed Microsizers engine or the NX ZipZap Motor? The NX ZipZap pulls 34,000 RPM's, what does the Microsizer engine pull? Just wondering, hope someone replies. Thanks, later.

[Maxxcrazy]

Might get a zip soon, but here are my 4 microsizers. I thought I'd let you guys see mine so you can get ideas for body modding. To make a body kit, just put a huge amount of putty on, let it dry and cut it with a knife.

Here are my cars:
http://www.******.net/media/sr4.jpg
On the far left is my custom made bus body. I took a standard body, and glued peices of plastic sheet on. I smoothed everything out with putty. It has 8.25 gears.

On the middle left is my clone body. I cut the top off, added a body kit, lowered it and put a 2.2 motor in. It won 10th place in the best street and race competition on this board last month (june)

On the middle right is my Skyline microsizer. I lowered it, added a body kit, put rear wheels on the front.

On the far right is my clone body. I added a body kit, lowered it, took off teh front suspension arm and made it from a sedan to a hatchback.

Best site on the net for bits (not zips) is bitPimps (www.bitpimps.lixlink.com)

[R3VoLuTiOn]

wuts the diff between zip zaps and microsizers.:confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused: :confused:

[microrcdude]

size

[microrcdude]

my zip zaps are monster trucks. are yours?

[littlebuddha]

hey guys, do you know if they sell individual parts of the mini z. i have a se, and i screwed up the front axles and broke the ear off the chasis where it attachs. do you know if radioshack may have parts? thanks.

[T-EVO RACER]

On the se zippers. Take that right side off, (dremel, pleirs and pullit off) then put a 9v in there and zip tie it on. It works GOOD!!!

[h00ch]

Will any Microsizers parts fit on ZipZaps cars? Like gears, suspension, wheels/tires, etc. I know the motor will, sort of...

thanks!
h00ch

[AirBoston]

Has anyone successfully modified a Zip Zap Monster Truck? I bought a few (for my sons and myself). They're pretty good stock, but I just wonder if they can be made better.

[loganberry]

i havent but one of the most common mods is to put an iwaver board on em to make them proportional. then you can but a lipo because it can handle the extra volts. i love mine. real fun. you try taking out the front gear to make it 2 wheel drive? yet? i guess these go really fast in two wheel drive. a lotta peopl;e put wheel bars, which i think im going to do so it doesnt flip so much. you get the motor upgrade? that really helps. later

[AirBoston]

Well, I'm almost done with my CSOB mods. The truck is quite a bit lighter and has another mm of travel in the front. I need to reattach a couple of wires, strap down the batteries, and paint over the cheesy bigfoot paint job. I'm still looking for lighter springs too. After all that, I'll see if I can get a few RS mods like motors and gears.

[loganberry]

the springs dont hardly do anything. there too stiff and not enough travel on them. i think im going to do the spring mod too. later

[Wedge598]

I bought a couple of the Monster for my kids yesterday. I was skeptical at first because unlike the SE's they don't have propotional steering or gas so I figured they might not be as much fun. But I found out that the 4 wheel drive and slower speed (than the SE's) actually made them quite a lot of fun. At the slow speeds the proportional steering isn't as big a deal. I may even pick one up for myself. :)

[AirBoston]

Ya know, It's amazing what these little things will climb. My older son and I stacked up books and blocks and these things took it all.

I still need to fix some wires on the modified monster and repaint the body. I did a pretty cool paint job but it rolled onto it's roof before the clear was dry. :(

[AirBoston]

here's a little of what I've done...

[AirBoston]

pic #2
removed inside cover and most excess plastic. Also trimmed the front uprights to allow another mm or two of travel. should get softer springs.

[AirBoston]

even the bottom got trimmed a little.

[CurveTracer]

I have quite a few ZipZaps in my collection. They seem to be ok for the price. There is a variability in the cars as far as handling goes. In fact that has been my biggest compliant about them. There are a few techniques that can improve the handling, but the bottom line appears to be a manufacturing issue.
As far as range is concerned, I am getting about 15 foot range for all of my cars.
I only own the SE version of these cars, so I have no experience with the other version.
These are still much more fun than slot cars. After I set up a ZipZap road course, I got rid of all of my slot car sets.

[need for speed]

Hey can anybody help me I was driving my monster truck and my dad stepped on it and destroyed the front left steering arm shock and all. I was just wondering if any of you could help me out on telling me where I could get one on the internet or anyware in arizona. Thanx for your time. BY! :cool:

[need for speed]

Wow nice mt truck body where can I get it Air Boston?

[AirBoston]

That is one of the stock bodies. All I did was mask over the wondows and airbush a coat of gold. Then I applied a candy green over that. After the green was dry, I applied a camelion gold. I them pinstriped a cross on the hood and an ichthus on the doors and tailgate. I used testors black for the grill and window trim, applied with a very small brush.

[2mcgrath]

i have two of the 4wd monster truck zip zaps..and the 27 runs out of range fast and glitchs..i took it back got another new one it does the same thing..i have the red motor and red gearing in one and the orange motor and orange gearing in the other..stock form they are very very slow..with the hop up motors better but still slow..im just not very happy with them just not fast enough for me..rather take the money they cost and put towards getting a mini t or something that you can get some speed out of.

[Birdchased]

I also have two of the monsters. I switched the "Monster" Bodies with stock modified truck ones. The Black Chevy has a three cell nimh, yellow motor and orange gears, with a length of guitar (E) string (Twice as long as stock) for an antenna. Great range, and is VERY fast! The red Dodge has a four cell nimh in it, green motor, and red gears. VERY powerful and fast, but not as fast as the Chevy, because of those big honkin tires I put on it. Scavenged those off of a Tyco "Gravedigger" Micro. Both are 49s, because 27s run like crap here. Yes, I get a full one hundred foot range with the long Guitar string antenna. Ill be changing the Dodges soon as well. :D

[Birdchased]

hmmm... Having trouble posting pics of my two lil beasts.... :confused: :confused: AAhh... File too big. Tryin again, here ygo. :D

[microrcdude]

nice. What mods do they got?

[Le2005]

I had like 2 of the original ones all fully modified and 1 with lights the 2 originals broke and the one with lights I gave to freind with all the mods from the other 2 cars , and I have right 1 opf the monster truck ones with all the mods and it is way to fast for somthing that small .

[AtomicZombie]

I used the electronics in a ZipZap to build a spy robot that can send back audio and video to a base station 500 feet away. The unit is small enough to drive under any furnature, yet powerfull enough to drag a D-Cell battery across the carpet. Oh, and it also has night vision using infared LEDs.

Hope to modify a nikko racer as well soon. The robot is called "spyro" and can be seen under the "spy gadgets" section of my gallery at...

http://www.atomiczombie.com

Anyone else using micro RC parts for robotics?

Cheers,
Brad

[chestnut007]

omg dudes those things are awesome!!! i only have the orginal ones with the purple motor. I have like 20 of them, me and my friend used to have drag races. FUN things

[dk14]

were is the forum i cant find it????? :huh:

[damisdad]

75550

75551

75552

[chestnut007]

now that's awesome! you could call it a pebble crawler! how did you manage to power/control the servos?

[damisdad]

Thanks Chestnut007. I removed the pots from the servos, took out everything but the motor and gears and wired it directly to the motors. The servos now just act as a driven gearbox and this thing does not want to stop. Done the same with the steering servo so I could use the stock elctronics.

[chestnut007]

cool...

[damisdad]

75571

[GT Freak]

Custom "pebble crawler" in action

http://youtube.com/watch?v=HRr4GTsgrcY

[chestnut007]

lol are you actually going to call it that? (I would!) I love that the roll cage and that thing can sure handle those rocks! That's the coolest thing I have seen in a while! Good work.

[Ibjamn552]

Pretty cool. Do you have any more ZipZap stuff?

[skunkworks2006]

Well, I did it. I finally got a Zip Zap. I picked up the Transformers "Barricade" today on sale for $10. I figured I could give it a shot for that price.
I am really impressed and wish I had gotten into these little rides sooner. I'm bummed that there seems to be a lack of upgrades or variety today. Still, a ton of fun for the $. It reminds me of slot-car racing without the slot track (plus the flips from too much speed).

[30percent]

Who wants to race?

http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p176/OGlonniesexton/DSCF0265.jpg

[skunkworks2006]

nice little track
I discovered while playing HOTWHEELS with my 2 1/2 year old that the zz drives along the track just perfect. I think I would have jumped out of my skull if I had a RC matchbox car when I was a boy! :)

[juntom10]

wow. that track looks awesome...

[chestnut007]

i agree!

[Ibjamn552]

Cool track, but I'm not going to need smooth surfaces with my SE......:D

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h242/ibjamn552/RC%20projects/IMG_1498-1.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h242/ibjamn552/RC%20projects/IMG_1496-1.jpg

http://i66.photobucket.com/albums/h242/ibjamn552/RC%20projects/IMG_1492-1.jpg

And a short video in the apartment, soon to have a vid out in the dirt...
http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=8995585046846742376

[hs748]

All are brand new, in package.

1 command logic lights ($4)
1 chevy camaro ss past and present body kit ($7)
3 american favorites body kits ($5 each)
3 fast and the furious nissan skyline gt-r body body kits ($7 each)
2 pontiac trans am past and the present body kits ($7 each)
3 german imports body kits ($5 each)
2 fast and the furious honda civic coupe body kits. ($5 each)
2 european sports body kits ($4 each)
11 custom tire and hubcap kits ($3 each)
11 performance booster upgrade kits ($3 each)
4 street tuner upgrade toyota ae86 kits ($3 each)
23 super street 2003 acura rsx body kits. ($3 each)


email:

mux@mts.net

[hs748]

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150229588670&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT&ih=005

Have 60 new in package sets for sale.
Email for a complete list.

mux@mts.net