Redcat Racing has a new MT coming out called the Terremoto its a 1/8th scale brushless monster truck

Well at this moment there are a few facts about this truck out and a few possible facts .

Yup here it is being displayed at the IHobby show in Chicago.

Soon some info was posted on Redcat's website stating that the truck should be released Oct.31.2013  
so at least we won't need to wait too long for this one to be available . Here is all the info listed on the website. 

The new Redcat Racing Terremoto is coming soon and it is Redcat's largest 1/8 scale vehicle to date.  

At just under 2 feet in length and a wheelbase of about 15", the Terremoto is huge!

Everything is included and ready to run right out of the box.  Fully assembled including KV2260 brushless motor with 80A waterproof ESC, dual 15KG metal gear steering servos, dual 7.4V 3200 mAh LIPO batteries, battery charger, painted lexan body and 2.4GHz radio.

Specifications

Motor Type

Electric Brushless KV 2260

Transmission

Forward and Reverse

Drive System

4 Wheel Drive

Length

550mm

Width

460mm

Height

240mm Without Body

Wheelbase

376mm

Ground Clearance

95mm Adjustable

Shocks

Qty 4 Big Bore Oil Filled Aluminum Adjustable

Speed Control

Waterproof 80A ESC

Battery

Qty. 2 - 7.4v 3200mAh 20c LIPO & Charger Included

Radio System

2.4GHz Radio System

So far no pictures of the chassis have been officially released but some pictures were posted on URC that seem to meet match several features of the truck and given the poster it seems these maybe from someone affiliated with Redcat or has access to the truck .

No matter the source the pictures. They show a promising chassis and design so lets hope this is it .

Well redcat racing Tsunami 1/8 Scale Brushless 2WD Sand Buggy A competitor for the VATERRA Glamis Uno ?

Well Redcat Racing perked my interest today because of a post showing a few pics from the  Ihobby show in Chicago .  It contained 2 Vehicles I hadn't seen before A Monster truck that seems a bit bigger than the Earthquake trucks and a buggy so I started checking out their Website to if any info had been posted . Sadly no info on the MT but I did find the buggy . 

Tsunami 1/8 Scale Brushless 2WD Sand Buggy

Seems they have decided to make a buggy to compete with the Vaterra Glamis Uno and from several feet away and at first glance this buggy may appear to be a clone but in reality this buggy is pretty different once you really look at it .

 Specifications

Motor Type

Electric Brushless KV 2750

Transmission

Forward and Reverse

Drive System

2 Wheel Drive

Length

490mm

Width

310mm

Height

155mm

Dry Weight

5.5 LBS

Wheelbase

345mm

Ground Clearance

38mm

Shocks

Aluminum Body Oil Filled Pro Style

Speed Control

Brushless ESC

Battery

11.1v 30C 3000mAH LIPO

Radio System

2.4GHz Radio System

Since there are no body off shots and since the specs given are the bare minimum everythings up for debate till someone buys one and starts running it but given that this buggy's is running on 3s it most assuredly is faster than the Glamis as it comes with a 2S lipo but what happens when the Glamis has a 3S installed. Well this is pure speculation but I have the feeling the Glamis will still be out gunned as it is powered by a 4 pole 540 size 3300 kv motor and after seeing the extremely long canned motor in the Mirage I have my doubts that that the Glamis is packing something smaller than a 550 size motor . I will also speculate that like the Mirage this originally meant to accept a 4S battery as a upgrade to the system but given the problems associated with the 4s ESC this has also been downgraded to only a 3S compatible ESC. 

Update OCT.08.13
Got a response back confirming a few things I speculated about a few days before . So I copied and pasted it here for you.

Hello ,

-Yes the battery does load from the bottom of the chassis, similar to our Mirage and Twister vehicles.
-The ESC is a 60a splash resistant HobbyWing ESC that is also used in the Mirage, unfortunately the max voltage for the ESC is rated at 11.1v.
-On the motor, I will have to get back to you on that one, unfortunately I don't have the exact dimensions, and we don't have the motors in stock quite yet. I did buy one that I have been beating around, so I will see if I can pull mine apart and get you the dimensions on it.

Let me know what other questions you have, and I would be more than happy to help you out.

OCT.09.13
Parts have been listed on the site but not in stock yet http://www.redcatracing.com/Search#cv=TSUNAMI%20PRO This brings 2 things to light the motor is suppost to be a 540 size motor , it shares a few suspention parts with the Mirage, it has beadlock wheels, the gyro is a add on and not part of the transmitter, the transmission gears are plastic but if the description is right on the pinion they are at least mod 1 pitch, and the battery compartment looks large enough for a 4S power 2 me.

Am I the only one that doesn't think the (Vaterra Halix 4WD Monster Truck 1/10th RTR) is worth $429

Vaterra just announced their new monster truck . Of course the truck is 1/10th scale and 4wd and it has a brushless power system. To be blunt the only things that differentiate this truck from its competition are two acronyms  AVC and VTV . So what are these systems really well AVC is pretty much a gyro and a traction control system .I'm sure there are some people out there that like docile easy to drive RC's but to me these features are kind silly on a Monster Truck . So we have VTV left and it stands for Torque Vectoring Differential how VTV
stands for TVD I don't know but thats what they say. So here is the quote from there web page .
http://www.vaterrarc.com
The innovative VTV™ differential prevents wheel spin on loose surfaces when you're taking on corners or pounding the throttle. Its smooth actuation and consistent feel provide extra confidence over a variety of surface conditions. It is fully sealed and can be fine-tuned using different weights of silicone oil.

Pretty much I'm left with the feeling of "sealed differentials already do that " but to be honest there is the possibility of something new and innovative here and that the guy they paid to describe it laugh and ran away with the money they paid him in advance .

So what would impress me when this truck starts getting reviews. If the differential can actually compensate for varying terrain .

So lets look at what it has to compete against :

1: The Traxxas Stampede let's face it its probably the most popular 1/10 MT on the market ad for good reason .You can get parts just about anywhere and there is a substantial number of aftermarket parts for this platform. $387.99

 2: The HPI Bullet trucks have became very popular . Cant say it has huge aftermarket support but most shops can order replacement parts.$345.99















3: The Helion Invictus probably ranks lowest as it is a Hobby Town Exclusive and they are the only source for replacement parts but if you have one down the road that shouldn't be a problem. Currently there is little to no aftermarket support for the Invictus but Hobby Town does have a healthy list of upgrades for there truck. $289.99

Turnigy Power Systems 5000 , Think You've got a Quick RC car Prove it ! ( HobbyKing Speed competition.

Well I have been thinking about this competition a lot since it was announced and despite me making my mind up early on that I would not be competing  I still had several thoughts as to what I would build.

Now most people are going to go after the 2S class simply because most people have chassis and power systems that will put them there. I do think lots of people will want to run in the unlimited class but most will not officially enter as it takes a unbelievable amount of power to push a car to 150+ mph and the bigger and heavier it is the more you need . So I really feel those that actually enter the Unlimited class will primarily be made up of people who really have experience in this and already have a purpose built high speed car.I can say I could be completely wrong  though . So if you have plans to run in the unlimited class more power to you but don't get your hopes too high.

If you need inspiration on the power needed the current high speed champ is Nick Case . He used a  NEU 1521 motor with a 1577kv rating running on 12S or roughly 50 volts .

Now I would like to point out http://scriptasylum.com/rc_speed/solver.html    Has a lot of calculators that will greatly help a person with there fighures if they want to do speed runs .

So what would I build for the unlimited class. well so far I decided I would need a chassis that is cheap and has the flexibility to be geared really high and that could be set up with lots of room for a high voltage system .  At this point i think I would be looking at the Sakura D3 CS drift. In stock form it would need lots of modifications just like any other chassis but I feel the front mounted motor provides a lot of advantages . Since its mounted in front of the front wheels it opens up the center of the chassis to allow more space for batteries.  The fact that with a simple front diff gear and center gear swap using essentially stock  parts will give it a 1.36 diff ratio makes it look even better. Basically that means you could have up to a 4.77 rollout with common parts and that equals a lot of wheel speed.

So what would be my main fear with this chassis?

The belts .They have several advantages over a shaft drive chassis but can they handle the load that would be put on them powering a car at triple digit speeds? I have no Idea .

 Wait what about 2S? Well thats pretty simple You want a mixture of the minimum and maximum you can get. You want the minimum chassis  in other words you want it light weight and the most powerful motor you can get your hands on a small front profile helps also. Since this is so much simpler I actually have a parts list containing most of what would be nice for someone on a budget to buy .

1: RJ Speed 24" dragster Kit $99.99 

2: Turnigy Trackstar 4.0T motor 8240KV $32.63

3: Turnigy Trackstar 120A Turbo Sensored Brushless ESC $41.25 

4: Turnigy Nano-Tech 2S lipo 2650Mah 45C Constant / 90C Burst $17.26

5: Turnigy TGY-4409MD metal gear servo    $12.84
6: Bearings (4) 1/8 x 5/16 flanged and (2) 1/4 x 3/8 flanger (Avid brand: standard $6.00)
7: Transmitter and receiver of your choice .

Theoretically using the included 20 tooth pinion and spur gear and the motor listed above the car should theoretically top out over 100 mph . Another option if you can wait would be the Turnigy Trackstar SCT 4T 550 motor as its rated at 960 watts and it has a theoretical top speed of 140 mph with proper gearing.   Of course these speed are not actually as far as things could be pushed as this is going off of motor specs for a one shot run they could be pushed much further. The main problems at these speeds would be maintaining control and finding a proper area to run .