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The RC Deep Dive

RC Deep Dive

Welcome to The RC Deep Dive podcast, your daily masterclass in the world of Tamiya radio-controlled model vehicles in under 30 minutes.

This is the ultimate anti-fluff resource for Tamiya RC builders, bashers, crawlers, collectors, drifters, racers, and speed runners. We publish a new, concise episode every day, focusing on the vintage, classic, and rere (re-release) models that have defined the radio control hobby.

We go beyond the RC hobby workbench. One day we're detailing HOW-TO guides for hop-ups, CVA dampers, or MIP super ball diffs, and the next, we explore the applied physics and chemistry of why they work. We also uncover the lost RC cultural history of the Golden Age—from the Tamiya-Futaba alliance to the transfer of CRP's business assets to a new entity, Team CRP, or Parma PSE (Parma Speed Experts) International being bought by Mid-America Products.

This is your daily dose of R/C knowledge. No fluff, just the deep dive. We are all about that RC life!

Got a Tamiya question you can't solve? Ask it in the reviews or comments. It might become a future 5-15 minute deep dive. Subscribe now so you don't miss tomorrow's deep dive. It's the perfect anti-fluff way to start your day at the RC hobby workbench.

Be sure to check out our esoteric written word project, ... and the World 🌑

A NOTE ON CLARITY: This podcast is 100% human-researched by lifelong hobbyists. To deliver a crystal-clear, professional-sounding, anti-fluff episode every single day, we use modern AI-assisted production tools for maximum listenability. Our focus is on the knowledge, not the noise.

SPOTIFY LISTENERS: Welcome! Please note that Spotify does not carry our full daily episode archive. For the complete list, searchable back-catalog, please find us on Apple Podcasts, Podbean, YouTube, or any other podcast aggregators via our Linktree https://linktr.ee/rcdeepdive

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54 episodes
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English

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#538
Today · 14 min
The R/C Hobbyist's Ultimate Guide to Anti-Fatigue Mats
Scientists have recently figured out that sitting too long can actually shorten your life and as such you may have moved to a stand-up R/C hobbyist workbench or an adjustable one so you can split your time between sitting and standing. But standing on concrete is horrible not only for your feet but for your ankles, your knees, your hips and your spine! So that's why you need a anti-fatigue mat to stand on when wrenching at your bench. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast We rank the top five anti-fatigue mats and explain The physics, chemistry, and material science of why many of them that you may have seen in the kitchen or in an industrial plant are not the right choices for the radio control model vehicle enthusiast.
#537
Yesterday · 14 min
What is the Best R/C Model Vehicle Hobby Workbench for You?
In previous episodes of the RC Deep Dive podcast, we've talked about why 24" deep and 72" wide are the perfect measurement for your radio-controlled model vehicle hobby workbench. We've also covered the ideal height For standing up at your R/C hobbyist workbench in another episode. So now we put it all together and find the top five workbenches for radio control model vehicle enthusiasts and help you find your perfect R/C workbench no matter what your budget is.
#536
Saturday · 6 min
Why are More and More Girls and Women Getting into the R/C Hobby
It seems like each year they're are more and more girls and women getting into the R/C model vehicle hobby, especially in the vintage and rere (re-release) Tamiya radio-controlled cars, buggies, and vans builder and bashing enthusiast portion of the hobby. Why? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we dig into the annual year over year increase of female R/C enthusiasts, builders, and bashers in the ever more inclusive radio control hobbyist community.
#535
Friday · 5 min
Let's Get into AMain Hobbies and Hobby Town Unlimited
AMain Hobbies started as a proof of concept project in a garage and became a giant in online radio-controlled cars, buggies, trucks, vans, jeeps, busses, tanks, boats, planes, helicopters, and drivers as well as hop-up options, replacement parts, accessories, tools, and more. But now that they have bought the largest franchise chain of local brick and mortar hobby shops, will this mean a change in the name for either one? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we all what's behind a name and what the future holds for both AMain Hobbies and Hobby Town Unlimited.
#534
Thursday · 5 min
R/C Clubs in Elementary, Middle, and High Schools
Radio-controlled model vehicle clubs have existed since the 1980s both inside of primary and secondary schools around the world. But in the 40 years since they broke in to schools, a lot has changed with the flourishing clubs dedicated to radio control. They now are more S.T.E.A.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics) focused and corporate sponsored groups trying to build career skills. We investigate these changes in R/C car, boat, plane, helicopter, and drone clubs in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.
#533
Wednesday · 4 min
The South Park Kids and Their Radio-Controlled Model Vehicles
In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we talk about the boys and girls of South Park and their radio-controlled cars, buggies, trucks, jeeps, and vans that completely match their personalities, identities, and how they are seen and known as by the rest of the denizens of South Park, Colorado. You'll be surprised how perfectly these kids align with the Tamiya R/C model vehicles that have been expertly chosen for each of them.
#532
Tuesday · 5 min
The Purist's Paradox: Solving the Frog and BRAT Weak Front Damping
If you are a Tamiya Frog purist and want to improve the front damping on your R/C buggy but don't want to ruin the look of your Frog by adding tall shock mounts and vertical shocks, your only hop-up option on the 1980s was the Parma internal front mono shock. But since they are now discontinued and rare, there's only one option: the RC Channel expert level shocks hop-up. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we review these more discreet front shocks giving you their benefits and possible liabilities for your vintage radio-controlled Tamiya Lancia 037 Rally car, or vintage or rere (re-release) Subaru BRAT, and Frog.
#531
September 7 · 5 min
The Importance of Mild Bashing for your R/C Shakedown, Calibration, and Driver's Education
It's called the R/C golden triad and it requires mild bashing in your backyard or in a vacant parking lot: doing a shakedown, calibrating, and drivers education of your radio-controlled car, buggy, truck, van, jeep, bus, or tank. That's why once you complete building your radio control model vehicle, whether your first or your one-hundredth, whether you are 8 or 80, you don't immediately take it to a skatepark or the R/C club race track. We tell you why in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.
#530
September 6 · 6 min
Why Use Pine Beach Raceway 380 Tuned Motors?
The PBR (Pine Beach Raceway) in Japan is all about healthy and clean running of R/C buggies, cars, trucks, and fighting against the escalating war and costs of speed. The PBR teaches that fun is created by embracing limitations. To that end, this Japanese raceway has embraced that all racers should only use 380 motors, not 540 motors and came up with a new style of deathmatch racing that has become a clean, high stakes demanding race that is beginning popular around the world now. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we review their tuned 380 motors, their motor mounts, and explore the unique history of Japan's Pine Beach Raceway and their vintage and rere with racing programs.
#529
September 5 · 6 min
Does Zealous Nano Ceramic Bearing Grease Make Sense for R/C Crawlers? e
Zealous Downhill Products makes ball bearings with a nano ceramic grease that not only can repair scratched, cracked, it deformed balls in the balls. But also protects the back bearings from water, dust, mud, sand, salt, and dirt. Although Zealous only makes these technologically advanced ball bearings for skateboards and longboards, could this technology help radio control model vehicle crawlers? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we look into the physics and chemistry of this nano ceramic bag bearing grease and come to a possibly surprising concluding for R/C enthusiasts.
#528
September 4 · 7 min
Always Cut Away From Yourself For Safety!
Many of us are taught early on the safety rule to always cut away from yourself with a knife to stay safe. But is there an exception to this rule in the radio-controlled model vehicle hobby? Can scoring R/C model vehicle Lexan polycarbonate body shells and cutting out intricate decals be done easily and effectively while cutting away from yourself? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we dive deep into cutting safety and how the exceptions can sometimes prove the rule. NOTE: We recommend always using a finger blade for any cutting on your R/C model vehicle, when possible, and only moving the decals, not the knife. whenever possible for both safety plus the best biomechanics and ergonomic control.
#527
September 3 · 18 min
The Best R/C Pin Vices and Low Speed Electric Drills for the R/C Hobby
In the radio-controlled model vehicle hobby you never want to use high speed electric drills, as they can melt plastic. So your options are either a low speed drill or to use a pin vise. But what are the best low RPM (rotations per minute) drills and pin vices for use on R/C cars, buggies, trucks, vans, jeeps, busses, tanks, etc.? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we review and rank the best radio control model hobby pin vises and electric drills and the results night shock you!
#526
September 2 · 5 min
Sport Vs. Subversion: The Synthesis of the Diverse Styles of the R/C Hobby and Skateboarding
Streetstyle and Crawling, Vert Ramp/Park Skating and Bashing, Freestyle and Drifting, Contest Skating and Racing, Downhill Racing and Speed Running, while skateboarding and the R/C model vehicle hobby have diverse disciplines, these diverse styles match one another in some very interesting ways. In this episode of the RC Deep we connect those dots and show the connections between these passionate, seemingly different hobbies of radio-control and skateboarding.
#525
September 1 · 15 min
The National Championship R/C Race that Made the Frog Iconic
In 1984, something happened that made the Tamiya Frog a truly Mighty Frog and an icon in the radio-control hobbyist community. In the A-Main finals of the German National 1/10th scale R/C off-road Deutsche Meisterschaft, 6 of the 8 finalists were Tamiya Frogs vs. a Kyosho Scorpion and Tomahawk. Not only did these Mighty Frogs qualify, but they also claimed the entire podium: 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place! We dig in deep to give you all of the details of this epic race that turned the Tamiya Frog into a champion class radio-controlled 2WD (Two Wheel Drive) racing buggy.
#524
August 31 · 6 min
The Digital R/C Hop-Up: Upgrading Your ESC, Battery, Charger, Radio Transmitter and Receiver Firmware and Software
Hop-ups used to only be about physical upgrades, but these days there are digital hop-up options in the radio-controlled model vehicle hobby. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we plug in to the many firmware and software updates that can bring huge feature enhancement gains to your R/C cars, buggies, trucks, vans, jeeps, busses, and tanks' ESCs (Electronic Speed Controllers), batteries, smart battery chargers, as well as your radio transmitters and receivers.
#523
August 30 · 4 min
X-Country Face Off: Tamiya's CC-01 vs. CC-02 Chassis
Tamiya's CC-01 (CC stands for Cross Country) chassis was the x-country choice for Tamiya for decades, but recently they replaced it with the improved new generation CC-02 chassis. What are the differences in these two iconic chairs and what remained the same, allowing them to share some hop-ups? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we answer all of these questions and more about these cross-country classics.
#522
August 29 · 18 min
HOW-TO: Upgrading Vintage and ReRe R/C Model Vehicles to Brushless Motors
Upgrading your vintage or rere (re-release) radio-controlled car, buggy, truck, jeep, van, bus, or tank to brushless motors isn't as easy as a plug-and-play hop-up. There's many other things you need to be aware of including the limits of your R/C model vehicle, ESC (Electric Speed Controller), and gears in your gearbox. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we go over all of these specifics including giving specific advice for some of the most popular radio control vintage and rere icons.
#521
August 28 · 7 min
Why are Tamiya R/C Shock X-Rings So Superior to O-Rings
X beats O every time when it gives to shock rings. But why? What makes x-rings so superior to o-rings and which shocks should immediately upgrade from o-rings to x-rings? We cover this and more in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.
#520
August 27 · 5 min
HOW-TO: Properly Change Damper Oil in Your R/C Shock Absorbers
Changing your damper oil in your radio-controlled model vehicles shock absorbers is not a simple drain and refill prices, even if you are staying with the same color and cSt (centestoke) oil. On this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we explain why and give you step by step directions in how to properly change your shock's damper oil properly for perfect results every time.
#519
August 26 · 5 min
Are There Really Hop-up Reservoirs for Buggy Aeration Oil-Filled Dampers?
On some R/C club forums they say that you can and should upgrade your Tamiya TRF (Tamiya Racing Factory) Buggy Aeration Oil-Filled Dampers to TRF Fluorine reservoirs, but this is absolutely incorrect advice. You should avoid these Fluorine dampers for your off-road buggy. However, there is an actual HL (High Lubrication) damper than you can upgrade to and Tamiya even recommends this upgrade path for radio-controlled buggies. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we explain why fluorine fails for off-road and when HL is actually the appropriate R/C buggy hop-up, because it isn't always the right choice.

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