The RC Deep Dive

If you added either the Parma International Front Mono-Shock or the CRP (Custom Racing Products) Dual Vertical Shocks to your vintage Tamiya ORV (Off-Road Vehicle) chassis R/C model vehicle, such as the Frog, Subaru BRAT, or Lancia 037 Rally Car, you know that they leak like a sieve. So how can you stop that from happening? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we walk you through the process step-by-step to make a perfectly sealed damper using Tamiya TRF (Tamiya Racing Factory) x-rings and Arrma or Losi shock damper parts. 

Radio control used to be known as R/C in it's abbreviated form throughout most of the twentieth century. However with the rise of RTR (Ready-To-Run) radio-controlled vehicles like those made by Traxxas, Losi, and Arrma, the abbreviation of RC started to be used. Why did this change in abbreviated nomenclature happen and who to l do many companies like Tamiya and many in the vintage and rere (re-release) radio-controlled hobbyist community still prefer R/C over RC? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we give you all the many reasons for this. 

[NOTE: Because both R/C and RC are pronounced the exact same way, we pronounce them the exact same way in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. We actually found it hilarious talking about how things switched from R/C to RC with both terms sounding exactly the same. We hope you will get a kick out of it as well.]

While we at the RC Deep Dive podcast do not use LiPo (Lithium Polymer) batteries in our Tamiya vintage and rere (re-release) radio-controlled model vehicles, preferring NiMh (Nickel Metal Hydride) and LiFe (Lithium Phosphate) R/C batteries instead, we know some listeners want to do so, but only with the safest LiPo batteries available. So in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we investigated the two absolute safest LiPo options available for your vintage and rere Tamiya radio control cars, trucks, buggies, jeeps, vans, busses, and tanks. 

No tricks, just treats in this happy Halloween episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast where we go over the alternative clear Lexan polycarbonate body shells that Tamiya and other 3rd party aftermarket hop-up option manufacturers made and still make for vintage and rere (re-release) Tamiya R/C model vehicles like the Porsche 936, the Mighty Frog, Grasshopper, Hornet, Blackfoot, Boomerang,  ClodBuster, Thunder Shot, Terra Scorcher, etc. 

CowRC started way before it incorporated. And by CowRC we aren't talking about the Tamiya 1:10th scale Hornet Jun Watanabe Special Edition radio-controlled buggy. It originally was a garage hop-up options part manufacturer. However, they made a huge pivot and transitioned to manufacturing the things that every single R/C model vehicle hobbyist in the entire community needs and made the best quality for us by fellow radio control enthusiasts. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we dig into the products and history of R/C accessory maker, CowRC.

Play ball! In today's episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we build the perfect defensive baseball team (pitcher, catcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, left fielder, center fielder, and right fielder) using vintage and rere (re-released) Tamiya R/C cars, trucks, buggies, and from the radio-controlled model vehicle golden age. 

Why were Tamiya's experiential radio-controlled truggy (truck and buggy combination made popular by Traxxas, Arrma, and Losi) and futuristic buggy known as the Vajra and Leonis such a rare failure for Tamiya? And why in 2026 are they such highly desired rare R/C model vehicles? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we investigate these 1/10th scale experimental anomalous radio control failures. 

In a previous episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we have already covered why you need an analog turntable, record player, or phonograph in your R/C hobby workshop, but in this episode we go over exactly which of these hi-fi (high fidelity) vintage music players are three best to have onto of your radio-controlled model vehicle hobby workbench. 

In today's episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we go over step by step how, as well as what sandpaper products to use, to perfectly sand your expertly or amateurishly cut or snap lines on your radio-controlled model car, truck, buggy, jeep, van, or bus as well as going over exactly how not to do it, and what can cause a less than perfect R/C sanding. 

There's lots of misinformation on various forums about the few options for replacing the dogbones in the Tamiya HotShot family of 4WD (Four Wheel Drive) 1:10th scale R/C buggies with CVDs (Constant Velocity Drives) or UJs (Universal Joints) driveshafts. So in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we look at some of the often suggested options and explain why half of the hop-up options suggested in some Tamiya radio-controlled model vehicle hobby community forums are playing wrong and which options will actually work in your HotShot, Super Shot, Boomerang, Bigwig, HotShot II, Super Sabre, Super HotShot, or HotShot 2 Blockhead Motors Edition.