Radio Control! RC trucks, cars, planes, boats, whatever tickles your pickle!

[Gamma Ray]

I went to Frost Woods today. I had poo-poohed the place as nice but boring yet good smelling. I went exploring the unmarked trails in the western part of the area, and it was actually really great! There wasn't a lot of super hardcore off roading, but it was interesting and fun to see where the Trailrunner could go and the little things I could discover. I found loads more bicycle stunt spots that look like fun except they're not fun because I'd totally kill myself on them! There was more varied terrain than I expected to find, including a couple big sand areas, and there were even some significant elevation changes. And in the one video where I try climbing up that one spot, believe it or not I actually got up it in a few seconds on my first try. It took me over a minute on my one-handed try. And on top of all that, I saw a woman on a bike who looked like the teacher from the old Pete and Pete TV show and she fake chastised me for driving a motor vehicle in the woods like the teacher on the show did. All in all, I'm really happy I went to Frost Woods today!

 

[Gamma Ray]

I did a couple outings today. I went to John A. Phillips Open Space Preserve before Easter lunch and then Kennedy Park after lunch. I did the big northern loop at Phillips, and I went all over the place at Kennedy Park. Kennedy Park has some new interesting terrain left over from the construction on a walking bridge that was recently done. I wonder how long the terrain is going to last.

 

[Gamma Ray]

I went to Raritan Bay Waterfront Park today. Some of the terrain and scenery has changed. It's a nice beach run no matter how you slice it.

 

[Gamma Ray]

I went for an epic hike at Jamesburg Park Conservation Area yesterday. Now my ankles are trash. It was just trails, but it was fun. I went off on one unmarked trail. It was supposed to loop back to the main trail. I found no evidence of the loop, but it did go off onto a dead end by a nearby main road. There was even a nice place to change batteries.

I swapped out the rebuildable motor for a stock motor late last night. The rebuildable one was giving me problems yesterday. I don't think I'm ever going to use a rebuildable motor again.

 

[patkelly4370]

I almost bought (still might) a JBL Cheetah.
It would be my first "hobby grade" car.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[Gamma Ray]

I took my Trailrunner out for a wet post-rain trail run. It started out fun when I passed by two cops chatting with their cars 69ing in the dirt. I waved and walked by. That's a great way to start your day. The trails were wet. Really wet in parts. I'm glad I recently switched back to the stock motor because my previous rebuildable motor would have choked on the muck this morning. There was a spot with a new barricade deterring dirt bikes or whatever. I was able to drive around it. Right behind that was the longstanding fun barricade. I got stuck on that one today. Oh well. There were some spots with smoothed over sand from the rain. There was another really challenging spot with a little stream running through the sand. I was side hilling where I could. Even myself. I thought I was going to slip and fall a few times. I got the Trailrunner almost all of the way through the wet sand challenge area, but it got stuck at the very end. Oh well. I feel like a TRX4 2021 Bronco would take it more easily. I then found some more big puddles and eventually went onto a short trail I never went on before. Then I headed back home after about an hour and a half. I hit the big puddles and even used one to clean my truck off by driving through it really fast a few times.

The cops were gone by the time I finished, and I used the parking lot area to exercise my 4WD low range on my real truck. One spot was butt puckering. I thought I was going to have to unpack the MaxTrax, but I got through. I had it in low and kept my speed low.








\

 

[patkelly4370]

I have bought a couple of "toy grade" RC cars in the past. The better ones from Radio Shack and Walmart.
Recently ordered a "hobby grade" car, JLB Cheetah, the upgraded version.
Tracking shows it might be delivered today. Fortuitous in that I am now quarantined with Covid.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[Gamma Ray]

I have bought a couple of "toy grade" RC cars in the past. The better ones from Radio Shack and Walmart.
Recently ordered a "hobby grade" car, JLB Cheetah, the upgraded version.
Tracking shows it might be delivered today. Fortuitous in that I am now quarantined with Covid.

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

Bummer! Get well soon! Should've gotten a Mini Z 4X4 4Runner so you can play with it inside while you're quarantined

 

[patkelly4370]

Bummer! Get well soon! Should've gotten a Mini Z 4X4 4Runner so you can play with it inside while you're quarantined

"Quarantine" means staying away from others. Ironically, the 2 adult kids that live with us tested positive too.
That leaves my Wife, who was vaccinated and tested positive last year.
So I haven't left the property. But I haven't stayed in bed the whole time either. Our fenced yard encloses 2½ acres. We have horses and chickens to tend to. I've been whittling away at the carport on the new slab. Been painting parts to go on the 4runner once the carport is done.
The only real Covid symptom I've had is fatigue, and I have three comorbidities. Old, fat, CAD.
I'll be back to work Sunday.
And that Cheetah is a BEAST! It can/will wheelie at will at any speed. I think it can do a backflip from a standstill if it can get traction. Next time they grade the road out front I may try some speed runs. It supposedly can do over 50 mph, if you can keep it on the ground. (it's 1/10th scale, would 50 mph equal a scale 500 mph?)

Sent from my SM-G955U using Tapatalk

 

[Gamma Ray]

I finally got out with my new hiking boots today, and I did two outings! Julian L. Capik Nature Preserve in the morning and Tamarack Hollow Preserve in the afternoon. It wasn't very hot in the morning, and even in the afternoon it wasn't bad. I was mostly in the shade both times, so it was nice. I set my new motor's gear mesh too tight which I was hearing this morning and the previous time I went out. I did a readjustment this afternoon, but it was too late. I began losing my spur gear most likely while at Tamarack, and I babied it home. I'm going to change the gear this evening. My new boots performed great during both outings.

 

[Gamma Ray]

I finally made it out with my Enduro Trailrunner again. This time I did a quick outing at NJ Devils Way. My truck needs work, which I knew, but I still need to do it! I'm losing power when starting moving. I think I've probably got a chipped gear in an axle. I've been rough on it. It's going to be a lot of dirty work to fix, though. I've been putting it off.

 

[jdt519]

I went down to Toms River today. I stopped by Hobbytown for a bit first and picked up a few Mini Z parts. Nothing major. I just happened to be in the area. I also ran into the organizer of Jersey RC Racing Promotions who was setting up the Mini Z track there. I then went to Unreal RC and checked out the 1/10 scale crawler course there. It was very, very challenging for my Trailrunner with its still-stock tires, ride height, etc. I was able to get around much of the track without too much hands of god, though. It's a punishing track! That much is for sure! My truck was making all kinds of sounds. It's a good thing I got the upgraded driveshafts. I bet I snapped one of those wheel hex rod things at the course, though. I also briefly tried running my Mini Z 4Runner, and it was... It went as you'd expect. I want to try the course again with a Traxxas New Bronco if I ever get one. Maybe this spring. I also brought a couple Mini Z cars and drove around the track for a while. I actually ran into the same people I saw the last time I went there. We raced our cars a bunch. The one guy even picked up a Nismo Skyline R33 AWD while he was there. Really cool dude.

I then went to the nearby Cattus Island County Park in all of its freezingness today! A friend of mine said I was a madman! I just know that I have to get my Trailrunner time in when I can. Much of the snow has melted or washed away in the past week, so my Trailrunner was able to get around. The trails I took weren't super crazy or anything, but they were nice. There are plenty of trails that I didn't take, though. I'll have to get there again one day. I also had to change a tire while I was out. I think the busted bearing that I had been running was the main culprit, but there was a sharp point on my lower arm modification. I've since smoothed over the sharp point and inserted an older but functional bearing in place of the busted one. I'm glad I kept it after I made the switch to ceramics last spring.

you make me want to buy one too lol cool photos

 

[Gamma Ray]

you make me want to buy one too lol cool photos

Thanks! I don't know how much off road fun you're going to find in NYC, but part of the fun is finding your own fun. Maybe an SCX24 would be better for the city.

Brooklyn Hobbies has Mini Z car racing. Check it out!

 

[Gamma Ray]

I went for a shorter outing at Walter D. Faith Memorial Field this morning. My Trailrunner needs an overhaul, but it's overall doing well. I'm looking forward to giving it the work this upcoming week.

 

[Gamma Ray]

I gave my Trailrunner a light overhaul over the weekend. I thought I chipped a gear in one of the diff housings, but I was able to get it rolling smoothly without having to take everything apart. I just did some work on the pinion and spur and oiled some easily accessible bearings. I then went out for a little outing this morning. I was going to go to Jamesburg Park Conservation Area, and I did for about a minute, but the bugs were too aggressive, even with my insect repellent on. I went to NJ Devils Way instead and had some fun there. Even in the one pic where it's really tight with foliage, the bugs weren't nearly as bad. Yes, I know, you might see some poison ivy in the pics. I was pretty well covered up.

 

[Gamma Ray]

Today was an Ireland Brook day. I took my Trailrunner there this afternoon. I went to the bigger part of Ireland Brook, of course. It was hot but not too hot. You can see the temperature was showing as 100 when I got back to my truck, but you know how those things aren't really accurate. It went down below 90 after driving for a while. Ireland Brook was still rather dry, though. It made utilizing alternative lines a lot easier. The *gasp* illegal ATV tracks were really useful since I couldn't always get the Trailrunner up onto the wood foot paths.

I also saw a few *gasp* illegal dirt bikes. Honestly, I can't get upset about them. The people I see on ATVs or dirt bikes are always riding responsibly. That means keeping it slow enough to not endanger pedestrians and wearing safety equipment of their own. I see more than enough people riding bicycles when out and about that aren't wearing at least a helmet. Even some people on motorcycles on the street that are wearing shorts and stuff. These guys on the trails are suited up properly, and that's better than I see anywhere else. They're not very noisy, and they go away fast enough. Anyone complaining about these guys ruining their hikes is a whiner. They're not seriously tearing up the trails, and it's not like the trails are exactly natural constructs to begin with. Any tracks you see in my pics are adjacent to the trails, so people who are just walking don't have to worry about a rutted out trail.