Ironman Lives!

"Boxer_4" (Boxer_4) 09/21/2020 at 20:46 • Filed to: None

1

21

I finally got the MRC Ironman up and running again after something like 8 years. Amazing what healthy batteries will do, let alone healthy batteries that are over double the capacity of what you previously ran. And happily, nothing broke!

Hiding in the background is my friend’s Team Associated RC10 T3. After a bit of reassembly ( r ead, a lot of reassembly ), it ran great, too. The only real issue is that the rear tires are completely bald, which while good for drifting, makes taking corners fast a bit interesting.

Looks something like this.

I’ll be honest, I missed running the RC cars.

Mark Tucker > Boxer_4 09/21/2020 at 20:58

1

Nice! I’m putting back together an early Traxxas Stampede right now. Have a bunch of vintage Tamiya and Kyosho cars as well...

PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 > Boxer_4 09/21/2020 at 21:07

2

Nice.

My son (6yo) saw my RC10GT the other day and both kids now want me to get it going. I’m tempted to get a new 2.4ghz radio (I’m rocking 20yo AM tech, I know you’re jealous ) and servos. Only problem is that even with a n ew radio, nitro cars are still finicky, which can be frustrating especially when showing the truck to others.

sony1492 > Boxer_4 09/21/2020 at 21:13

3

That ram body is very fitting, wish that was around for the 1:10 short course

Bylan - Hoarder of LS400's > Boxer_4 09/21/2020 at 22:38

1

Ah I miss RC’s . That hobby was WAY too expensive. Honestly real car parts are often cheaper lmao

I still miss it. I have one of these somewhere in the garage, with a traxxas brushless system I think:

shop-teacher > Boxer_4 09/21/2020 at 22:53

1

Awesome! I've been itching for a stadium truck again.

shop-teacher > PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 09/21/2020 at 22:55

2

I cut my RC teeth on an RC10GT. That was such a great truck to learn on. It was so easy to service, and parts were plentiful back in the day. You really do have to be patient with the nitros though, and love working on them too.

I took the one-way out of the pull starter, and used a drill to start it. That helped a lot.

PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 > shop-teacher 09/21/2020 at 23:17

2

I should go the drill route, there's only so much I'm willing to yank the pull starter but I gotta be honest, the nitro fumes are weirdly enjoyable (to an extent).

shop-teacher > PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 09/22/2020 at 07:12

0

Yeah, they definitely are :)

Thisismydisplayname > PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 09/22/2020 at 11:24

1

Yeah the nitro vehicles are a lot more work than I had anticipated. I have a couple losi trucks electric that my dad and I used to race, but for fooling around, the 4-5 minute run times weren’t all that enjoyable. So I went to a nitro truck and thought it would be simpler, but nope, starter box, fuel mixtures and all that makes for a bit more work to get going. But once they’re dialed in, it’s not too bad, but too fast for amateurs and kiddos.

I’m looking to refresh the electric trucks with new brushless gear...  I hear you even get reverse nowadays...  these kids have it so good ;).    

Thisismydisplayname > shop-teacher 09/22/2020 at 11:25

0

The drill trick would’ve been an easier way to go, I went the starter box route, what a pain.  But it works.  

Thisismydisplayname > Boxer_4 09/22/2020 at 11:27

0

Nice!  I need to dust off my Losi trucks.  So much fun.  How much run time do to get now with the lipo packs?

PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 > Thisismydisplayname 09/22/2020 at 11:56

2

You definitely speak the truth here. I never went the starter box route but it’s still a lot of stuff.

Getting a   1:18th scale electric truck for my son would be fun.

Boxer_4 > shop-teacher 09/22/2020 at 12:40

1

It’s a lot of fun! I used to have a ~1 foot plywood ramp back in the day - repurposed from stuff my dad used to remove the amateur radio antenna that was on my parents’ house when they bought it.

I feel like if I have continued interest in RC again, I might look into getting something more road focused. I’ve seen some interesting Tamiya based rally builds recently...

shop-teacher > Thisismydisplayname 09/22/2020 at 12:46

2

The drill is where it’s at!

shop-teacher > Boxer_4 09/22/2020 at 12:46

1

That would be fun!

Boxer_4 > Thisismydisplayname 09/22/2020 at 12:50

1

I’m still running NiMh. This setup dates back to ~1998, and nothing has been upgraded except for the esc early on. My friend’s setup date to around 2002 or so and is a similar story. Lipos may be in the cards later, but at this stage neither of us wanted to spend more than the minimum to get them back up and running.

That being said, we’re probably getting 15 or a bit more minutes of full on running - we didn’t time them, however. The new NiMhs are 3600 mAh vs the 1600 mAh we used to run.

Thisismydisplayname > Boxer_4 09/22/2020 at 14:37

1

That’s not bad at all.  Good enough for some decent running.  Maybe that’s where I will start too.  I’ve got all the charging gear for the Nimh batteries anyway.  Where did you source new ones?

Thisismydisplayname > PyroHoltz f@h Oppo 261120 09/22/2020 at 14:41

1

They’re relatively inexpensive, and you can find good deals on used kits too. Mine are from the early Losi stadium truck days, I think mine had the two piece wheels originally. I think all the parts are there, just need new batteries.  

Boxer_4 > Thisismydisplayname 09/22/2020 at 17:47

1

That was my though process - with both cars sitting for quite a while, ~$15 a piece seemed like a reasonable price for re-entry.

I bought a 2-pack on Amazon - branded as Powerextra. I have used and recharged these a few times now, and they haven’t caught fire yet. So far they are exceeding all expectations!

Thisismydisplayname > Boxer_4 09/23/2020 at 20:55

1

Awesome! $30 for 2 batteries, perfect. Just ordered a set.

Thisismydisplayname > Boxer_4 09/23/2020 at 20:55

1

Thank you for the info.