The RC Deep Dive

Which is the authentic R/C model vehicle philosophy? DIY (Do-It-Yourself) customizers or Box Art Purists? What do these opposing philosophies say about the members of these two camps, and is there a third or middle way, perhaps in the RestoMod Movement or the Box Art Plus philosophy? We put on our referee shirt and lay it all out in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Which way do you mount your motor? What does it say about you? Many Tamiya RC model vehicle hobbyists have strong opinions on why you should always display the motor with the motor decal showing. Why is this important? We stick to motor preferences and give you all the details in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Speed, power, and runtime, three things we all want to increase when running our radio controlled buggies, cars, trucks, vans, and busses. Simply hopping-up one little piece in your R/C model vehicle can instantly improve all of these immediately! We plug-in, power-up, and remove all of the resistance to this key knowledge in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Lilith, whether represented as the first created woman, fully woman and fully demoness, mother of demons, Queen of Hell, or a goddess, she is represented in many ways, but how would she be represented in the ratio controlled model vehicle hobbyist world? It would be a tangible self-portrait with each R/C car a piece of her story and identity. Would she have a Tamiya Sand Scorcher, the Wild Willy,...

It is important to know safety rules for wiring your power and electronics. Such as red hot female which tells you that R/C batteries are always female and ESCs (Electronic Speed Controllers) are always male and Ohm's Law which tells us that the lower r (resistance) goes the higher i (current) gets. However, here at the RC Deep Dive podcast, we also think it's important to know the why behind thes...

You can combine CA (cyanoacrylate) glue, a.k.a. superglue or crazy glue, and baking soda to fix stripped screen thread holes. But how do you do it, exactly? Tamiya has a M3x0.5mm thread forming tap tool to form machine screw threads in your radio controlled model vehicle's chassis and/or gearbox. But how do you use it? We answer these questions and provide step by step instructions in this episode...

Do you know when Tamiya celebrates it's birthday and the anniversary of it's two first radio controlled model vehicle kits? Do you know how they celebrate these important birthdays and anniversaries? We cut into the cake and give you a goodie bag of details in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.

Tamiya famously requires steel pinions when upgrading to a 540 GT Tuned Hop-Up Motor. However, in kits where it is included as the stock motor, such as the Super HotShot 4WD 1/10th scale R/C buggy, a steel pinion is not included, but an aluminum one. Why is this? We gear-up and mesh all the facts in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Many people think that the radio controlled model vehicle hobby community is a boy's club. However, women have been a important parts of R/C works since the beginning of the Tamiya Golden Age/Era. We pop open the bottles and raise a toast to all of the women of radio control in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

F1 (Formula One) and NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) drivers, actors, musicians, basketball players, journalists, rappers, directors. They may be famous, but they also love their radio controlled model cars, buggies, trucks, vans, and buses. Who are they and what is their part in the R/C model hobbyist community? We search the stars and share their famous insights with you...

A listener asked us about choosing the correct specific steel pinion gears to fit in the Tamiya Brat, Lancia 037 Rally, Frog, Grasshopper, Hornet, Blackfoot, Super Beetle, HotShot , Thunder Shot, Grasshopper II, Super Hornet, and more radio controller model vehicles. We crack open the R/C gearbox and make sure we find the best steel pinion gear for you and our other listeners in this episode of th...

Sometimes, the weather isn't conducive to running either your on-road or off-road R/C model vehicles outside, but you still want to bash, crawl, drift, or race. So what can you do other than going to an indoor race track? Play a radio controlled car, truck, or buggy video game instead! We plug in and go pixel deep to tell you about all of your best tattoo control videogame options in this episode...

In many hobbies, including the radio control model vehicle hobbyist community, there are veteran grognards who are the curators of safety, standards, skills,  knowledge, and advice. But sometimes some elder statesmen can turn into hobby gatekeepers that don't want their knowledge shared rather than being mentors or ambassadors that happily share the community knowledge with others who they don't p...

Our "experts" here at the RC Deep Dive podcast have gotten together and made a list of our top 10 favorite vintage radio controlled model vehicles from the golden age of R/C in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. We measure them not in just one specific category. We looked at realism, technology, looks, originality, and fun. Do you agree with our list or not? What are your top  10 favorite v...

Olecranon bursitis, or swellbow, can happen from overuse of your elbow when wrenching your R/C model vehicles. So, if you get it, how do you fix this potentially serious condition, what warning signs should you look for, how can you manage it, and most importantly, how do you prevent it? You'll get the complete swelbow medical advice, prevention, first aid, and cure prescription in this episode of...

Tamiya has a number of fictional racing teams like the 2-member Frog Racing Team, to the 4 member Team Hoppers a.k.a. the Grasshopper Racing Team, to the 3 member Hornet Racing Team. Others exist like the Wild Willy, Pulling Four, and Blockhead Motors Racing Teams. What is their purpose? This episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast is teeming with knowledge of the history of the official and unofficia...

Tamiya Club isn't an official part of Tamiya, Incorporated, but it may as well be. It's just that important to the R/C model vehicle hobbyist community, especially Tamiya radio controlled cars, buggies, trucks, vans, and busses. We log in, search, and get you all the important parts of this invaluable online resource in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Off-road racing and bashing has really changed and diverged since the golden age of R/C of 1976-1991. So-called "true" off-road is driving in natural sand, dirt, rocks, grass, and roots whereas "off-road" race tracks in some cases may be inside and made of perfectly manicured clay, AstroTurf, or carpet. There's also the third or "middle way" in the homemade backyard racetrack. Which do you prefer...

Recently, AE (Associated Electronics) changed the containers that its TA (Team Associated) lubricants came in. The so-called holy trinity of radio control model lubricants, FT (Factory Team) Green Slime, Black Grease, and Stealth Diff Lube changed from squeezable tubes to screw-top pots. Why did they do this? We lubricate our minds and dig deep in to the AE/FT container theory of R/C greases in th...

When the R/C model vehicle kit hobbyist community quickly decided that they wanted to hop-up their hobby-grade radio controlled vehicles, a grassroots engineering revolution turned into garage companies engineering hop-ups for the test of the radio control hobby community. We take a deep dive into this history of a cottage industry that became big business in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podca...

MIP (Moore's Ideal Products) recently rolled out a new version, Gen 2.0, of it's hex and nut drivers. Is this new version the best choice for radio controlled vehicle hobbyists? Likewise, Vessel drivers come in a variety of handles (Megadora, Ball Grip, Crystalline, etc.) and head types (Impacta, Parallel, etc.). Which combination is the right one for the R/C model hobbyists? We dive into the tool...

What's the difference between 2 similar but very different wheels introduced 40 years apart? Both have square treads, both are popular on the Frog, Grasshopper, and Hornet, plus both have legions of enthusiastic fans. We spin our heads right round to give you the differences between the Tamiya BRAT's Sand Blaster squared tread hard tires and the Sweep Racing pink Square Armour soft tires (made har...

The Tamiya SuperShot a.k.a. the Super HotShot famously came without faux headlights. So in the quest to remedy this lack of eyes on this radio controlled buggy, we shine a light in the darkness to find out the best ways and places to add faux and working headlamps to one of the most famous members of the Hot Shot 4WD R/C buggy family in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

The Tamiya HotShot family of RC buggies were iconic and groundbreaking, but had a number of flaws, especially in their steering. Getting the right servos and servo savers can help. We precisely turn you to the direction of the best servos and service savers to install in your HotShot, SuperShot, HotShot II, Boomerang, Bigwig, Super Sabre, Super HotShot, and HotShot 2 Blockhead Edition in this epis...

If you've decided that you are serious about being part of the R/C model vehicle hobbyist community and you want to get some pro level tools. Your local hobby shop will likely recommend MIP (Moore's Ideal Products) for hex and nut drivers. Likewise, for Japanese radio controlled model vehicles, like Tamiya and Kyosho, you'll need JIS (Japanese Industrial Standard) cross and flathead screw drivers...