My husband loves racing RC cars he has lots of the ,Tmax some others. We live in davenport fl he hasn't raced them since we lived here were can we go to race them??

Local hobby shops sometimes host rc tournaments. in my area at least. go to hobby shops and ask around.

I'm interested in learning how to make remote control cars and airplanes (from scratch).Does anyone know a good place to start so I can start learning?
Thanks

If you click on to u tube am sure there will be something on there

The cheeky little Suzuki Vitara was once very popular and especially appealed to younger drivers. I remember college kids who had a bit of money used to buy them and then "pimp" them up to the required standard which usually consisted of enormously oversized wheels and tyres accompanied by some kind of amusing spare wheel cover on the back. Then there was the obligatory sound system which emitted a blue incandescent glow and of course needed to be pumping out the latest hip-hop tune.

I'm not sure what the Suzuki executives back in Japan would have made of all this. I guess they would have just been glad of the sales but for whatever reason the plug was pulled on the Vitara and Suzuki concentrated its efforts on the higher spec Grand Vitara instead. Suzuki must have been aware that along with other baby off-roaders such as the Toyota Rav 4 for example, their cars were rarely used off-road (the cheaper Jimny was always the more favoured mud-plugger) popular with farmers and safari parks alike. I remember when my car broke down in the lion enclosure at Longleat safari park and I was saved from becoming an appetiser by a man in a zebra striped Jimny.

The motoring expression "soft roader" was born out of a desire by people to drive vehicles that were designed for off-road conditions but ended up in our towns and cities. It still provokes a heated debate amongst those in favour and those who are opposed to such behaviour.

Unperturbed though by the anti- 4×4 lobby Suzuki introduced an all new Grand Vitara in 2005 and I recently decided to have a closer inspection of one at a cheap Suzuki dealer.

This third generation model is quite a step up from the model it replaced. It is stylish, better to drive, and compares well on price and specification to models offered by Kia, Hyundai and Nissan.

There are two petrol engines a 1.6 VVT with 105bhp and a 140bhp 2.0-litre petrol. Both offer adequate performance and cruise well at speed, but can suffer from a lack of pulling power between 30-60mph, which can make overtaking a drawn-out affair. A 1.9 DDiS diesel, supplied by Renault, with 130bhp became available from late-2005.

The steering is sharp and body roll is much more under control when cornering, even at speed. The brakes are positive and responsive. As with most off-road vehicles the gear change can be a little notchy at times, but otherwise there's a precise feel to the changes and the ride is much better than the old Grand Vitara which was rather unsophisticated and a little uncomfortable.

The Grand Vitara is longer and wider than before and the interior styling is good. There is plenty of headroom and rear legroom on the five-door, the space in the rear of the three-door is a bit tight though. Road and wind noise are kept to reasonable levels, but engine noise can get intrusive under heavy acceleration.

The wide opening tailgate and high roof means that large and awkwardly-shaped objects are easily accommodated, although loading can be quite tricky as it's quite high off the ground. The load area on the five-door is good, while the boot space offered by the three-door is acceptable for a couple, rather than a family. The seats tumble and fold, which gives even the three-door near van-like practicality. Both have a hidden storage bin under the boot floor which is useful for hiding your valuables. Inside there's a large glove box, centre storage bin and bottle holders in the door pockets.

The Grand Vitara gained an impressive four star rating from Euro NCAP for occupant safety and standard safety equipment is good. You'll find ABS and electronic brake force distribution, dual front, side, and front and rear curtain airbags. All cars have remote central locking and an immobiliser so it should still be there when you return to it.

Like many Japanese manufacturers, Suzuki has a reputation for mechanical durability and like the successful Swift supermini, the Grand Vitara has been designed and engineered for European buyers who now expect a quality interior with a high-grade finish. There are no reports of any reliability problems so you should not encounter anything untoward.

The Grand Vitara has proved to be a worthy adversary against its counterparts from the other 4×4 stables.

Jon Barlow
http://www.articlesbase.com/automotive-articles/suzuki-grand-vitara-the-soft-roader-gets-serious-697292.html

I heard gas powered remote control cars cannot be played on the streets? Is that true? I have a neighbor who lets his son play his remote control car on the street of our house. It is soooo loud! It sounds louder than a lawn mower. Someone has told me that it is illegal to play on the street. I can't find that on the web. Can anyone help?

They should not be on the streets. The instruction manual that comes with them even says so. There are special tracks and places to operate them.

I heard gas powered remote control cars cannot be played on the streets? Is that true? I have a neighbor who lets his son play his remote control car on the street of our house. It is soooo loud! It sounds louder than a lawn mower. Someone has told me that it is illegal to play on the street. I can't find that on the web. Can anyone help?

They should not be on the streets. The instruction manual that comes with them even says so. There are special tracks and places to operate them.

Although the 1961 Lincoln was not the first car to have suicide doors, it marked the beginning of a trend.   Mercury employed the suicide rear doors on the convertible and hard top Lincoln models to eliminate excessive weight hanging on the B post.  ON the HBO show Entourage, the beginning has an overhead shot of the four lead characters exiting a vintage convertible Lincoln and then closing all four doors simultaneously.  This really shows off the openness of the opposing doors.

Since the Lincoln, many hot rodders, low riders and custom car builders have employed the suicide door hinge on their projects.  Most of the early deployment meant plenty of work and planning on the customizerâ??s part.  A few years ago, Autoloc began to produce a kit allowing even the novice car craftsman to trick out his car door operation.

Although the kit simplifies much of the designing and planning, this is not a project for someone with at least above average metal working skills.  A good body man should have no problem installing a set.

Warning:  this involves cutting holes and welding pieces into the holes in both the door jamb and door edges of your ride.  If you feel brave enough, fire up the torch and get started.

Step 1- Before cutting, remove any and all interior, the windows, latches and handles from the doors and anything that you even think might catch on fire.  Scraping away undercoating is a good move as well.  If you insist on leaving the seats or carpets in the vehicle, cover them to prevent damage from sparks.  Itâ??s just better to move them to a safe place.  Leave the doors on with their original hinges.  This will make alignment easier, later.

Step 2-  Mark out the location for the hinges on the door jamb.  Square holes will have to be cut, and these should be located as far apart as the contours of the body and doors will allow. The location should have the hinge pins close but not touching the inside of the body panels.   If you use the single piece hinge assembly kit, the spacing has been determined for the suicide hinge mounting and the alignment of the hinge pins is guaranteed to work.  Using the separate hinges, necessary if the hinges have to be placed close together, it will be critical and more difficult to keep the pins in the same plane.

Step 3- Insert the hinge assembly into the holes from the back side.  Trim the openings as needed and tack the assembly in place.  The hinge pins should be vertically plumb with the door jamb.  If you cannot get a level inside the body work of the car, use one of the hinges butts, installed with its pin and check for squareness to the door jamb.  It should also swing in a flat plane, parallel with the ground.

Step 4- Install both of the hinge butts into their hinges.  Close the door on them and mark where they hit.

Step 5- Cut out the slots for the channel shaped door pieces to be welded into the doors.  These pieces should be too long on the channel legs.  They will be recessed into the slots cut into the inner door panel.  Once aligned and bolted to the hinge butts with at least one shim under each, these should be tack welded to the inner door.

Step 6- Unbolt the new hinges from the inner door and open the door on the old hinges.  Remove the old hinges.  At this point the operation of the door should be verified.  Make any adjustments and weld in the hinges and the channel pieces.  There will be some patches needed where the old latches used to reside.   If the decision was made to reuse those latches, a larger section of the door jamb or edge of the door may have been removed.  The patch material should be of sufficient thickness to reinforce this area.   Some bracing may need to be welded in, to reinforce this critical area.

Step 7- Establish and mark a location for the relocated or new latches and strikers.  They should be centered along the front of the door.  This area may have been filled in to cover the old hinge holes.

Step 8- Weld in the sheet metal to which the latch will be bolted.  It may be the piece cut from the back of the door or the new piece supplied with the bear claw latch kit.  The bear claw latches are simple to use and provide a strong latch for the door.

Step 9- Install the striker pin in the door jamb to align with the latch.  Autoloc has a nice weld in piece, with a captive nut attached.  The piece retaining the nut has room for the nut to be adjusted up and down or side to side.  This allows the fine tuning of the door closing.

Step 10- Reusing the stock door handles could be a challenge.  If you want to go for that Lincoln style, the best bet would be to install the left handle on the right and vice versa.  This would put the front and rear handles facing away from each other.  Or buttons pointed towards each other.  A simpler approach would be to use the solenoid kit and shave the door handles completely.  With a set Autoloc spring loaded door poppers, and the remote control, the doors should pop open at the touch of a button.

Step 11- Align the doors.  Use the shims under the door hinges to adjust the depth of the door in the opening.  Moving the hinge butts in the slotted holes in the channel pieces will raise or lower the door in relation to the opening.  The striker pin gets moved to control the depth at the latch end of the door.

Step 12- Finish welding, reinforcing and patching any remaining holes.  Prep the area with grinder and get after it with the Bondo and the sander.  Get the painter to freshen up the body and enjoy the new open look.

                The same hinge kit can be used to eliminate the exposed hinges on older model cars as well.  The installation is simplified because the latch and handles do not require any work, unless you want to shave the doors.

                These kits are not recommended for the inexperienced.  If you have some metal working skills or have a friend who is talented, this modification could make your ride special.

Clark Olson

My boyfriend wants one of those remote control cars that run on fuel for christmas and i have no idea where to look for them or how much they cost. does anyone have any ideas.

i have one, you wanna buy it, i never used it. if not

http://www.nitrorcx.com/?gclid=CIeHrqnN9Z0CFYJx5Qod0Qz1ow
http://www.hobbytron.com/NitroRCCars.html
http://www.rctoyhouse.com/

and ebay.

Dont forget to buy fuel

Model boats are not those items that you build and leave sitting on a shelf for all to admire, they are actually model boats that can be driven with a remote control. This is more than just a kid game as there are competitions all across the world.

Model boats can be powerboats that have an electric, internal combustion, or steam powered. The boats are fun to create and then place in the water and watch them go. The majority of the power boats are created with kits whereas the builders then add their own radio and gear to actually get the boat and in the water and flying at speeds of over 50 miles per hour.

There are also racing power model boats that are designed especially for maneuverability and maximum speed. Racing is done in various water parks, lakes, rivers, etcâ?¦ with buoys placed strategically for the racers to maneuver around to the finish line. In most cases, the oval is about 1/6 of a mile and has 330 feet of straight sections and 70 feet diameter turns. For competitions, the International Model Power Boat Association and the North American Model Boat Association have rules and regulations that explain the race rules, formats, and the course.

However, instead of the oval race there are also many straight races as well. In this race, the winner is the fastest boat on the water, not the one that must make it around the water track. The speed is determined with a starting light and an ending light, which will be the difference between the start and the finish. For competitions, the International Model Power Boat Association and the North American Model Boat Association have rules and regulations that explain the race rules, formats, and the course.

One other race is one in which the boat is being chased by another boat. The winner will be the one that completes the few miles course against the clock.

The good news is, if you cannot find a competition nearby you can now find many videos of several fast model cars at UTubeVideoClip.com. Here you will be able to see all the competitions, amateurs trying their hand at model boat racing, and of course, other videos to do with model boats. You will be able to sit and enjoy all these fast model cars right in your own home, instead of searching out for a race close to home. Not only will you be able to view all the videos, but you can also upload all of your own fast model boats videos and let others see all the fun you are having with your model boats.

Donâ??t let everyone else have all the fun, create your own model boat, get out there, and race while a friend captures it on film.

Robin Futcher

I bought three remote control cars, one for me and one for each of my two boys. But I ended up taking mine back because it had the same frequency as one of my boys and we couldnt use both of them at the same time. Upon checking the store for a third frequency vehicle I found that they were all either one or the other.

There are only a small set of "public" frequencies that can be used for all wireless devices including remote control vehicles, telephones, wireless networks, and other equipment. These public domain frequencies must all coexist in the same environments, so you will generally find that one device uses one set of frequencies while other devices uses a slightly different set.

It is quite common to see some completely different devices using the same frequencies because the manfucaturer didn't really have much of a choice. This directly limits the frequencies that any particular product can use.

You might look for some wireless devices that use similiar frequencies but have different channels. I doubt you'll find remote control vehicles that use different channels, but you might. They'd probably cost more though because they'd need more electronics inside to let you select which channel each one was on.

Just like most other R/C hobbies, such as trains, cars or planes, remote control boats transcend a simple love of boats but instead embody the childhood dreams of those who make and use these miniatures. A popular way to enjoy remote control boats is by racing the models. Model boat racing is an intense activity, which requires skill, quick reflexes and a near-obsession with speed.

R/C boat racing is, perhaps, surprisingly organized; complete with a (partially) international federation, which has set rules and organizes events. NAMBA, or the North American Model Boat Association, is the largest association of its kind. NAMBA has 20 districts within the United States and Canada , which organize local events for model boat racers.

A second major organization for the sport is the International Model Power Boat Association, or IMPBA, which was organized before NAMBA was formed. The International Model Power Boat Association rules were actually copied by NAMBA when that organization was formed. Interestingly, the International Model Power Boat Association and the North American Model Boat Association primarily serve the same area â?? the United States and Canada .

When you compete in an event, either in the IMPBA or in NAMBA, you compete against other boats in your class, providing for a fair race. The classes are determined by the overall design of the boat as well as propellant as both have a considerable effect on the ships speed.

Events organized by these two organizations follow oval tracks with buoys marking turns. For sprint boats, short, straight, tracks are used.

If you prefer the slower pace of sailboat, racing there is also an association which organizes events specifically for wind-powered boats. Radio controlled sailboat events are governed by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF), the same organization that governs full-scale sailing races. The rules for R/C boats are identical in every way to their full-scale counter parts (the only difference is a special section specifically for R/C events).

The ISAF recognizes four classes of sailing ships which can be used in events, the smallest being the â??International One Meter.â?? Just as its name suggests, boats are restricted to being 1,000mm long. To keep costs down, hulls must be comprised of wood or fiberglass. This allows for very competitive homebuilding of boats.

The second class is the International Marblehead. Slightly larger than an International 1 Meter , this classâ??s maximum length is 1,290mm with a maximum draught of 700mm. The two larger classes are the International 10 Rater and the International A class, which is the largest class of r/c sailboats.
Finally, for those who enjoy building fast, agile, ships and have a (perhaps unnatural) love affair with destruction, there is a competition designed for you. Though combat-style involves no racing, it requires the same level of concentration found in racing events. These model boats are specifically designed for easy repair after they have been sunk by competitors. Their hulls are balsa wood so projectiles may easily penetrate the boats while projectile speeds are kept at a safe level.

For more information on boating, visit http://www.boatscale.com and http://www.shipscale.com.

John Parks
http://www.articlesbase.com/sports-and-fitness-articles/model-boats-690088.html