David Allen

A missed opportunity by Futaba in my opinion. Nice to see the possibility of using modern (cheaper) 2.4GHz receivers with a stick set - but why the fragile external antenna? Why no fingertip controls for steering rates (or other settings)? Still not a match for the 3VC in terms of ergonomics.

I think you underestimate the allure of the top of the range cars. I'll wager there are 10

Ask at the track about the most popular class that is raced. You will also get some good advice about what tyres suit the surface. There is a huge range of electrics out there so impossible to give advice without knowing your budget. When in doubt, run what you can get trackside assistance with.

That's a very old video. The 418 has DCJs as standard and I expect the 419 will too. So not really sure how a Spec R "upgrade" to a lower quality version of the same part is newsworthy.

Rotors are usually specific to the motor, also for BRCA rules you can only use the correct rotor. Have you tried ordering one from abroad?

There are a couple of permanent outdoor tracks that you can practice on if you are a member. Cotswold club is closer to Chippenham - http://cotswoldmcc.co.uk/ and there is also the Mendip club - http://www.mendiprcraceway.co.uk/

"Vintage" touring hasn't happened as a class (yet), the cars are mostly a bit too recent although when you look at those old tourers they are very different to modern cars, much more variety in the design than you have now, so maybe in a couple of years people will want to race them again. You can still race them, or drift them, only problems are that the cars are not designed for square-cased LiPo's and some cars will struggle to fit a brushless motor neatly due to the shape of the endbell. And you can't get spares.

I race at Chippenham from time to time, very good club, great venue. You'll get lots of advice about the possibilities if you visit, 17.5 Blinky TC is generally the most popular class but there are usually GT12s, Mini's and 13.5 boosted cars knocking about too.

Double check what the class they actually run is. A GT14 carisma is a very different car to a Mardave.

So what class is it you will be racing in? GT14 suggests a micro buggy?

They have been running them at the "Essex" one-off meetings, haven't seen them at any other events.

Suffered from many flaws in the first place. Not worth buying as a runner. M06 is definitely more interesting.

Is there any particular kind of wheel you were trying to fit? It looks like the Siege has the Associated style of front axle, nothing wrong with these and there are plenty of tyres available to fit that sort of wheel. If you really, really want a 12mm hex you may be able to find parts from a different 2wd buggy and fit them, probably more hassle than it is worth, and the offset may not be right for the kind of wheel you want anyway.

First step should be to find a club to race at. If you haven't looked already, go to the BRCA website, or look at the map on the Schumacher website - http://www.racing-cars.com/sitepage/uk_rc_clubs.html Bear in mind that neither of theses lists are kept completely up to date so it is worth talking to local shops and racers, Facebook is where a lot of club activity happens nowadays. If you want to run indoors it has to be electric, and that's what the majority of racing is now anyway. I don't think any of the electric indoor classes have to be that expensive, I race Mini's, Touring cars and 2wd bugggies personally and the initial cost of each car is quite similar, but the buggies tend to need more tyres and suffer more breakages.

You can use the discharge function to check the capacity of your battery. A 7.2v NiMH will run anything that a 7.4 lipo will, you just have to bear in mind that the NiMH packs are much less capable than Lipo. I wouldn't spend money on NiMH, they are OK for an rtr or to get a model going,but not as an upgrade.

Most chargers are a "peak" type of charger which will charge Nickel cells automatically, however a "false peak" is quite common. If the pack is cool to the touch after the charger has stopped, then the battery is not charged and it is safe to start the charger again. I don't personally think there is any point in discharging a NiMH stick pack. Back when we raced with NiMH's we discharged each cell individually to 0.9V but you can't really do that with a stick pack, and if you over-discharge a NiMH you kill it.

Sounds like radio problems then. Is the radio 2.4Ghz or AM/FM? And what kind of motor is fitted? 2.4Ghz is normally quite safe from interference but if you have a damaged antenna or cabling that is running too close to signal wires then that can cause problems. Brushed motors can also be a source of interference due to the sparking, more so as they get worn out or if the motor is not fitted with capacitors. Low voltage to the receiver can also be a problem, for example if there is a heavy load from the electronics or a weak battery pack.

The Carisma M14 on-road car might be worth a try.

Since it is a Slash, it sounds like your gear ratio is in the right area, but changing 4 teeth at a time to tune it is far too much. 1 or 2 teeth maximum at a time otherwise you will end up with a cooked motor. Also, since it is a Slash, the faster 540 motor is definitely the wrong way to go, the Slash is heavy with big wheels and is a big load for the smaller motors to deal with. I think you are right on the limits already.

What car are you running it in and what gear ratio? Is it calibrated to the radio properly? The 4000KV motor should be pretty rapid on 2s if set up correctly. Troubles on 3s are probably because you are pushing the combo too far, the 8.5 on 2s will be close to the limit already on a 60A speedo. For that reason I think that buying the 6.5 would be a waste as it is beyond the capabilities of the ESC and isn't much faster either.

Wouldn't be surprised if it has a reverse delay of some sort, these normally end up behaving like that. First pull on reverse doesn't work immediately, so you take a second pull, but your second pull is always harder because you think it isn't working so the car shoots back.

I would watch a charge and see what is happening with the current as time goes on. Your charger should be able to charge a 2s pack at 6A with no problems, and as you say it should only take an hour from flat. Some packs will take a long time to balance, sometimes it can be an issue with the charger, sometimes it can be that the cells inside the pack are well out of balance. But it is unusual for the normal charge to take so long. The chargers will tend drop the current towards the end of the charge to try and prevent overcharging in non-balance mode, watch and see when the current starts to drop. A charger issue can sometime be overcome by checking the contacts on the leads. I'd be wary of any battery that regularly takes a very long time to balance, it suggests that there is a weak cell in there. 3.2-3.4 is a nice safe cutoff voltage, don't change it, and you will gain very little by doing so, the cell voltage will drop very suddenly towards the end of a run and very little capacity is left to be used.

The Proline glue is very good. Don't forget to make sure the tyre and wheel are cleaned/degreased and seated together well to give the glue the best chance.

We have a strong scene here in the West. Most of the local clubs will get a heat and we have the CWIC series as well. Seems to be a big class up in Carlisle as well.