Aato

Hi Guys, Is this the same place as the Bathgate BMX Track (95 Balbardie Ave, Bathgate EH48 4AL)? I've never been but looks good. It shows 43mins drive from where I stay, is it worth the drive? If so, I'll make it my next trip. I've been trying the BMX track in Musselburgh (9 Balcarres Rd, Musselburgh EH21 7SG), but it's always full of bikes.

Hi, Checking in from Edinburgh. I've just finished building my first model a few days ago and, after learning basics of driving it in the back garden yesterday, I decided to give it a proper bash in a larger setting somewhere local. I went to the first spot that came to mind - an empty field between Seafield water treatment plant and Leith ports: https://www.google.co.uk/maps/place/Edinburgh/@55.9750159,-3.1507442,323m/ Unfortunately, it started raining, so the fun was cut short. However, it looks like a brilliant spot. It's a mixture of grass, dirt, gravel, and a few places with tarmac. It's not completely flat, there's a few mounds of dirt. There's also a lot of discarded car tyres and furniture - good building materials to construct a track, or some jump ramps. It's only partly fenced, no fence at all from Marine Esplanade and no parking restrictions on the road (it's a back road leading to the ports and a few businesses there). I didn't see any signs prohibiting entry. Also, it's well away from any residential area/park, so the noise isn't an issue (I know how important it is for the nitro enthusiasts), and I didn't see any dog walkers around.

Thanks for the warm welcome. @oodboo thanks for the tip with the silver - I did that and it does look better. @Stormbringer maybe I'll see you and your son at one of the local events (when they start back again). Since my introduction post a lot has happened (my wife broke her arm -> all of the housework on me, heating at home failed -> new boiler and heating system has been changed, coming out of lockdown -> going back to working 2 jobs, etc.), hence I've not been active. However, I'm happy to report that my model is now finished and working. I took it out for the first drive yesterday and exhausted 2 batteries. I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.

The first part: Hi! The second part: A month ago I knew virtually nothing about RC cars. I knew I had always wanted one, so I decided to treat myself. I began a quick research to choose my first model. Ok, here I have to admit that I'm not counting owning an 1:14 RC Ferrari F40 toy when I was a kid as an RC model. As a plastic modeller I'm a regular at my local model shop, which, quite luckily I think, is Wonderland Models in Edinburgh. Whenever I went to the shop (before lockdowns started), or go on their website, my gaze brushed over the Grasshopper, so it was the only specific model I was aware of. Googled: Grasshopper -> visited some online retailers and model shops, read reviews (many of them fuelled by nostalgia) -> I was pretty stoked. However, the more I read, the more I found out about the hobby. This forum has been one of the main sources of information - thank you for that, admins and users! Dozens of posts/articles/videos later I decided to go for a Tamiya TT-02B Neo Scorcher, mainly due to the fact that Grasshopper is an old construction and doesn't allow for much upgrades, and its popularity is fuelled mostly by the aforementioned nostalgia. The TT-02B seemed a perfect choice for me: an entry-level all-rounder. I don't have a particular type of rc-ing in mind - simply put, I don't know what I'm going to like (on-road/off-road, speed/crawl, etc.). Also, I wanted something I could build myself, not RTR. I ordered my Neo Scorcher, together with a radio/battery/charger package three weeks ago. I could've ordered the whole thing from ebay/online retailer and save a few quid, but I decided to support my local shop (which I think is very important these days) and ordered from them. It arrived a couple of days later. The build took me about a week (double, even triple-checking everything with the instructions), but went without any problems, apart from not knowing how much grease to put in the diffs (btw, I put all the AW grease provided in the set between the back and the front, but saving a little to use for the seal - I know that some of you will say that it's too much and it'll only make the diffs stiffer, but my thinking was it's better to put too much than too little). It's a 100% stock build (I know - bearings - I'll come to that). A problem occurred when the chassis was built, the electronics installed and radio set up. I wanted to paint the shell. Stupidly, I was convinced I can use my acrylic model paints and airbrush to paint the polycarbonate body. Luckily, after checking online resources (thanks again MSUK!), I found out I need a special paint. I put another order in: Tamiya PS-16 (metallic blue) and a set of bearings (the first/compulsory upgrade). A week later, I still haven't received the paint, so I phoned the shop and found out PS-16 is out of stock, they're expecting delivery around 5th March. Apparently the combination of bre*it and co*id are to blame for the sketchy Tamiya deliveries from Japan/Philippines. Concluding: I'm still waiting to finish my model, but I'm hoping I'm only days away from that. The chassis is ready and it all works (tested it on the kitchen floor last week, fortunately the skidmarks are very faint on the lino and my wife hasn't noticed them yet). I hope I can update you with the progress of learning how to drive my RC in the coming weeks, pester you with silly newbie questions and, in time, maybe even contribute to the discussions.