cobra26

OK, call me nuts! It seems when I started in this hobby in the late 1970's that a Tamiya 1/10th on-road or off-road car was the ultimate in R/C. The short run times were frustrating but about the only nitro alternative to the 7.2V electrics was the Associated on-road RC-100/150.

Then there was an explosion in modified motors for the 1/10th electrics. That got followed by better batteries with higher mAh capacities and faster cars in both on and off-road varieties. Then 1/10th nitro started to take off and the scale in nitro grew to 1/8th. We got 1/8th nitro buggies, then trucks, then "monsters", then muggies, then truggies. Designs got better, engines got better and everyone was modding what the manufacturers didn't modify. Then came the 1/18th scale in nitro and electric, and now the electrics are being delivered with brushless motors and LiPo batteries. In fact, rumor has it that by next summer, there will be 1/8th brushless buggies and trucks out in RTR that can eat the lunch of any 1/8th nitro.

What's my point? Well, the 1/10th on-road races that were so popular in the beginning are hard to find anymore, and the electric 0ff-road series on a local level is becoming just as scarce. Right now, local races are dominated by 1/8th nitro scale but noise is becoming a factor in some places (or so they say), so the pendelum is about to swing back to electric, but in 1/8th off-road brushless.

I've been with this hobby a long time but I'm beginning to get sea sick from the constant product churn! It seems something new in power or scale has to come out every couple of years to keep the manufacturers happy and having something "new" to sell. At least "new" enough to obsolete all that came before it. Instead of truly improving and refining a class of car/truck in this hobby, they have to obliterate everyting they have done in order to stay in business. I don't buy this. Continued improvement of existing classes, with retro-fit when possible, would keep the cash flow moving in these companies and the cottage industry that supports their products.

I think it may be time to focus on another hobby.

SManMTB

Or you could find a time machine, travel 20 years back in time and defect to the Soviet Union. That should be the pinnacle of 'no-options' and stagnation. LOL





We are not being taken for as ride. If there is a ride we're encouraging it by buying new stuff. Stop getting stuff and it will all end. Basically it depends on how we all see it.

Dale Gribble

My Feedback: (4)

That was a lot of information there and was a fun read! I am in the same boat as you and have been in RC for a long time.

Here is my input-

The churning is technology driven, and we as a society are technology driven. Nitro took precedence because it outperformed electric in performance and run times. Now electric is making a big swing because of advances in technology with higher efficiency (brushless motors) and more power density (lipo, li-ion). What's to say that nitro or an alternative fuel platform won't make a revolutionary change and be back in the spotlight in 5 years?

Companies don't flip-flop around by choice. Trust me, companies would much rather innovate and upgrade existing designs. It is cheaper with much less R&D costs. Companies give customers what they want. By design, companies must evolve and offer the products that are new and relevant. It's customer driven.

I am not convinced that the pendelum will swing back to electric in the big events until electric mains are 45 minutes - 1 hour long. Once the speeds and run times provide the long main capabilities then I do agree that electric might once again take center stage.

I do agree it is maddening and seemingly overwhelming but in the end I am not ready to give up just yet.

In the end, just pick what you like and have fun with it without trying to worry about what the hobby is doing.

DaveG55

If you can tell me ANYTHING that has not gone through the same transformations in the last 37 years I'll be surprised.
Heck, RC's are a LOT less prone to obsolescence than anything electronic. My first personal computer - way less than 20 yrs old, was as big as a sewing machine and heavier too and it's not even good as a door stop now. Even my 1 y/o desktop is not worth trying to repair (if it quit). And just try to fix a laptop with a dead screen - the part will cost more than a new laptop. And TV's are no longer made with repairs in mind at all. Even sports equipment is not immune. My 5 y/o Bertha driver looks like a relic on the golf course now and it's nearly not worth regripping it either.

So, go ahead and pick another hobby, you'll be having the same complaints in no time.

RCtruckRacer

The evolution has been a bit overwhelming, for sure. And the racing scene changes from one area to the next. Where I live, electric off road still enjoys a large following.

Soon, Novak will be offering brushless conversions for popular 1/8 buggies. But I do not see brushless 1/8 buggies taking over the nitro class. After all, 1/10 stadiums have seperated nitro and electric for years now, and I don't see those classes ever being combined. I think the same will be true for the buggies. If ROAR or RC Pro decides to include them, my bet is that they will be a new class. So, I still think the emphasis will be with nitro for at least a couple more years.

Most people should be able to be competitive with whatever they are currently racing for some time to come, but the urge to upgrade to the latest and greatest can be hard to ignore. A few years ago, I got the urge to race electrics. Mostly because the winters here are brutally wet so you can't run outdoors. There is a well run winter point series for indoor off road so the decision to get one was natural. But, I held back and waited for the brushless/LiPo combo's to be allowed. Right now I am putting together a XXXT-CR with a Novak 13.5 system. Soon I'll be racing stock truck class. I am glad I waited, because I should be able to race this truck for several years.

If, as a racer, you feel you have to keep up with the Jones' then I hope you have a big wallet. I am personally trying to buck that trend. I do not think we are being taken for a ride, but I do think that manufacturers put out as much or more stuff as they believe people will buy. I'd like to see a few less releases, and a bit more R&D put into race level vehicles. Keep pumping out the new RTR's to bring more people into the hobby, and make the $$$.

JMO

Rob

GerKonig

Welcome to real life, a market driven economy! Good luck finding another hobby to focus on (unless it is colecting coins, stamps, o pebbles). I cannot sepek of hobbies I am not familiar with, but if you look at computers, digital photography, videos, sound, rc airplanes, even golf and boating they suffer the same problem you describe! Everything you can think of evolves, changes, updates and upgrades. We need new stuff to sell it to suckers that have the money to buy it! Like us all. It's the law of the land, enjoy it:-)

Gerry

Foxy

I'm prepared to be wrong but I don't think nitro is going anywhere anytime soon. People like long mains, stopping for fuel. You'd need quite a few batteries to get through a 45 minute main in an electric car, and some quick way of changing them. Plus, a $300 nitro is much faster than a $300 electric. Fine, spend a grand and see the difference, but not many are willing to invest that amount of money on a car they can't get inside.