Getting Started with Radio Controlled Cars

Radio Controlled cars means many things to many people. To some it means buying a great ready to run RC car and enjoying a casual race around the driveway. To others, it means building a great new RC vehicle from the ground up and racing every weekend with fellow RC enthusiasts from around the country.
Building and racing hobby quality radio controlled cars, in both electric and gas powered varieties, can be a fun, exciting, and deeply engrossing hobby for people of all ages, and RC car racing is one of the most popular hobbies in the UK.
Many kids start out with toy RC cars, then move up to hobby quality radio controlled cars after they have gained some experience and some knowledge. Those who make such a switch will find that hobby quality remote control cars are quite different from the toy RC cars.
For one thing, the hobby quality remote control cars and trucks will be tuneable, with various upgrade and tuning options available. In addition, these hobby quality radio controlled cars and trucks, whether in the electric or gas powered category, are very fast and very durable as well.
Most new RC enthusiasts will start out with the less expensive electric powered radio controlled cars and trucks. Many of these electric powered radio controlled cars and trucks are quite fast, many with top speeds of more than 45 mph.

There are many ways to enjoy your new radio controlled vehicle hobby, including many organized races held throughout the country (you can search the Adrenaline Guru Venue Search to find your nearest place). These clubs are a great way to get started in the RC racing hobby. For many enthusiasts, the ability to meet and race against fellow enthusiasts brings an added level of excitement and fun to an already exciting hobby.

Racing, building and fine tuning radio controlled vehicles is a great hobby for young and old alike, that’s why we have included them within the Adrenaline Guru’s Machine Section. Whether your interest lies in fine tuning the machine to go its fastest in competition or just running around the driveway, radio controlled cars and trucks can provide endless hours of fun.

A Bit More Detail:

A 1/10th scale rc car means that it is one-tenth the size of the real car. A 1/8th scale rc car means that it is one-eight the size of the real car. Remote control cars come in many sizes such as 1/24, 1/18, 1/12, 1/10, 1/8 and 1/5. The 1/24th scale is small, the 1/5th scale is large.
Different clubs will race different machines; some race 1/10th scale electric cars others will race gas powered cars.

Electric rc cars use a 7.2 volt battery pack and electric motors. Out of the box, R/C cars and R/C electric trucks can be capable of speeds up to 25 miles per hour. To make it easy for beginners to get into the hobby, many manufacturers have produced kits that are ready to run (RTR). Most of these kits come assembled and completed with radio, batteries, and charger. There are now also RTR  gas powered / petrol powered cars on the market.

The best part is that an electric rc car or truck can be modified with faster motors, ball bearings, high power batteries, and more... pushing the speeds past 40+ mph (these are real miles per hour!).
In addition to buying the car kit, you need to buy the following:
1. radio control unit. The radio control unit is the electronics that control the speed and direction of the car. A basic radio controller may consist of the following:
a. transmitter
b. receiver
c. servos
d. battery holder for the receiver
e. on/off switch
f. servo horns

2. AA batteries for the transmitter. The transmitter will need upto 8AA sized batteries to produce 12 volts. Rechargeable batteries will work, just note that a single rechargeable AA battery produces only 1.2 volts (alkaline produce 1.5 volts). Using 8AA rechargeable batteries will produce 9.6 volts, slightly less voltage than the ideal 12 volts. Still, most transmitters will work fine with 9.6 volts.

3. battery pack. To power the cars, you will need battery packs that produce 7.2 volts. These are either made of nickel-cadmium (NiCD) or the newer nickel-hydride (NiMH) rechargeable batteries. The NiCad is the old battery technology. It is still good for beginners and playing around. The good thing is that these batteries are now fairly cheap. The bad news is that these batteries develop memory. Memory means that these batteries remember their last charge. For example, if you use only 80% of the battery, then recharge it, the battery will only charge to 80% of its maximum capacity. This is not what we want. To work around this memory effect, racers usually discharge the battery completely, before recharging. The NiMH is the new battery technology. These are expensive than the NiCad but do not have the memory effect. NiMH also are designed to have more capacity, usually 3000mAH.
For serious racing, there are matched battery packs. These use cells that have been selected among thousands, and are the best. A few companies that produce these racing battery packs are Orion, Reedy, and Trinity.
Note: Battery capacity is measured in milli ampere hours. For example, an rc car using a 2400mAH battery should run twice as long as a car using a 1200mAH battery.

4. a charger for the 7.2v battery pack. There are two basic types: timer, and peak detection chargers. With the timer charger, you will have to monitor whether or not the battery is fully charged, which can take anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes. The other type is a peak detection charger. It is more expensive, but does a better job of charging the batteries. It can sense when a battery is fully charged and will automatically shut off, preventing overcharging, which can destroy the battery. There are also timer chargers and peak detection chargers. Timer uses a dial to set how long to charge a battery. This is risky, and overcharging is a common occurrence. Despite the higher price, peak detection chargers are recommended for beginners. These automatically detect when a battery is fully charged, then stops charging. This prevents batteries being damaged from overcharging.
Note: Be careful, a NiCad peak detection charger is not designed to charge NiMH batteries. Only use NiMH peak detection chargers for NiMH batteries.

Tip: Sometimes peak detection chargers do not "peak" and overcharge a battery. To be safe, stop charging a battery when it becomes very warm to the touch.

Getting the best performance from your batteries:

Discharge completely before charging;
Use a peak detection charger;
Charge at a consistent rate, usually 3.5 Amps. The higher the charge rate, the higher the voltage and performance, at the sacrifice of lifespan;
Use or cycle the battery (charge, full discharge) at least once a week;
Avoid using a battery more than once a day;
Avoid charging a warm or hot battery. Let it cool first.
What not to do to your batteries?
Overcharging. This will permanently destroy a battery pack;
Do not let the battery get too hot. This may happen if you are over-geared, using the wrong motor, running the rc car in grass or uphill, or not enough air to cool the battery;
Do not "short" the battery. This happens when you accidentally touch the positive (+) end with the negative (-) end. This can be incredibly dangerous, and will almost certainly write off your battery pack;
Do not throw batteries in the trash. Dispose of old batteries at a recycling facility.

Nitro Powered

The nitro powered market has helped grow demand for R/C vehicles substantially, offering speeds some 3 to 5 times greater than electric counterparts without the need for battery charging. Adults who used to consider electric vehicles as only “upmarket toys” are now keen participants in the hobby. This has lead manufacturers to concentrate heavily of these products, whilst at the same time offering many after market cosmetic and performance extras to satisfy this “big boy’s toy” market. Given the leisure nature of the market manufacturers have largely developed “ready to run” (RTR) products which usually include the assembled kit with painted body and radio equipment installed, usually only needing fuel and glo starter to be purchased separately. This has caused complaints from traditional hobby customers who prefer to assemble from kit form as well as some dissatisfaction from “leisure” customers who experience problems by failing to fully read instructions before use.
Nitro powered vehicles are available as 1/10 scale “on road” four wheel drive touring or saloon cars, 1/10 scale small trucks, either two or four wheel drive, 1/10 and 1/8 scale four wheel drive buggies and four wheel drive “monster” trucks. There are limited racetracks available due to the area size necessary and because these vehicles cannot be used indoors.
As with electric touring cars these are only suitable for smooth hard surfaces. The 1/10-scale trucks have ground clearance and tyre patterns for grass or semi rough buggies generally were designed for use on grass and have a lower ground clearance than the trucks but this can have the advantage of the lower centre of gravity offering more stability. The “monster trucks” as the name implies, although not necessarily the quickest, offer the best all round use capable of being used on rougher surfaces and for jumps.
Different sized engines are available to give more or less power. Starting can be either with a pull cord or with increasing popularity by the use of a cordless electric drill or hand held battery powered unit (Rotostart) inserted into the engine. At the same time a glo starter needs attaching to the glo plug to preheat it and is then removed when the engine starts.  

Electric Powered

Moving back to the electric market the most popular area is 1/10 scale “on road” four-wheel drive touring or scale saloon cars for use on smooth hard surfaces. Products are available from a number of manufacturers, all conforming to common wheelbase and width dimensions allowing a wide range of bodies to be fitted. These are usually supplied clear and can be painted, using a flexible paint on the inside to prevent scratching and cracking, to suit personal tastes. It is common for these cars to be supplied in kit form and different specifications are available to meet financial needs and/or competitive requirements.
Club racing for these cars is popular with circuits both indoors and outside allowing all year racing. Heats are for 5 minutes with the winner completing the highest number of laps of the circuit in that time. A good combination of matching battery, electric motor and speed controller is essential. 
Whilst “off road” electric buggies and trucks are available these are often purchased for leisure use by younger drivers or where there is a restricted area for use available. Club racing for these vehicles is rarely available. 
 

Monster Trucks

The “monster trucks” have proved most popular with customers wishing to have the widest choice of after market parts. Such item include alloy replacements parts for original plastic ones, roll cages, over size wheels and tyres, 3 speed forward gear boxes plus single speed reverse and to the extreme of two engines. Customisation can be carried through with a wide choice of bodies mirroring real monster trucks.

Petrol Powered

Beyond nitro powered vehicles are larger 1/6-scale and 1/5-scale buggies and trucks powered by small conventional 2 stroke 26cc powerful petrol engines.When looking into the world of 1/6 (& 1/5) Scale Rc Monster Trucks, it quickly becomes apparent just what makes gas powered radio controlled cars and trucks so special. In a word, it is speed that sets these great vehicles apart from all other radio controlled vehicles. As a matter of fact, there are gas powered radio controlled cars that can reach speeds in excess of 70 miles per hour, right out of the box, with no modification required!

With so many different kinds of radio controlled cars on the market, it is of course important to choose the right vehicle for your needs. If you plan to race, you may want to buy one of the fastest ready to run (RTR) gas powered RC cars on the market, or build your own using your own engine and other parts.

The most common size for gas powered RC cars and trucks is 1/10 scale. This is the industry standard for on road RC racing, and most standard gas powered RC cars are built on this type of chassis. In addition to the 1/10 scale, however, there are larger 1/8 scale models available, and these 1/8 scale vehicles are most frequently seen in off-road monster trucks and buggies. These 1/8 scale vehicles will typically come equipped with a two or three speed automatic transmission.

Gas powered RC vehicles come in both cars and trucks, and the cars break down further into touring and racing cars. These gas powered RC cars are best run on a smooth surface, such as a paved parking lot or an RC racetrack.

The other choice is to go off road with your gas powered RC vehicle, and these off road vehicles include pickup trucks, monster trucks and buggies. Although they are typically not as speedy as the RC racing cars, these trucks and buggies can put up some impressive speed numbers of their own. In addition, these vehicles are built to be extremely rugged and durable. In addition, they can be run virtually anywhere, from a smooth paved parking lot to the roughest and rockiest patch of ground.