Before we close the book on 2018, I wanted to take a quick look back at the year, from where we started and what we have to look forward to in 2019. As always, thank you for the support over the past year, from the fun conversations to the insight and answers you provide, I greatly appreciate the community that this hobby has created.

Here's to an amazing New Year!

Thank you to this episode's sponsor, Pro-Line! To save an additional 10% off your next order at prolineracing.com, use coupon code RCNEWBAP10 at checkout.

Time for a quiz! What's the most important part of your R/C vehicle? While that question can have multiple answers, I'm in the camp who believe tires have a major hand in how a vehicle performs and handles. Over the past few months, I've been testing out a number of scale R/C tires, swapping out a variety of ready-to-run (RTR) sets with aftermarket options from Pro-Line and Duratrax.

No matter what type of radio-controlled vehicle you drive, taking a look at your tires is a great way to get more performance out of your machine. With that in mind, tires are the topic of the day for this episode of the RC Newb Podcast.

Chatting about the hobby never gets old. When an on-road R/C question came my way, I had one person in mind to help provide some information. Josh Howard, my first guest on the podcast, was eager to share his on-road racing knowledge and bring me up to speed on what he's been up to throughout the past two years.

It was a great catch-up chat and it sounds like Josh has some fun and challenging plans in store for some of his radio-controlled vehicles.

This episode of the podcast features a guest that I've known online for quite a while and have been a big fan of his photography work and approach to the hobby. Nick Coward (aka The Toy Car Creative) captures R/C action through the lens of his camera and also hits the track with his own radio-controlled machines. The images that he creates are simply stunning and they encapsulate the energy that is found on-track at many racing events.

This show was a long time in the making (on the part of my schedule) and I'm thrilled to have had the opportunity to chat with Nick and learn more about his story. If you're interested in both photography and the R/C hobby, this is a great episode to listen to.

I love it when a plan comes together, even if the plan takes a while to come to fruition. I'd been hoping to chat with J. Scott Curlin (aka AceofAxe) for quite a while. After a bit of planning and an early morning wakeup call, I sat down for a virtual chat with the man himself.

As a longtime hobbyist, Scott has seen (and done) just about everything in the hobby. He's currently a team driver for Carisma Scale Adventure and Boom Racing and will be helping out at the 2018 UK RECON G6. If that weren't enough, he shares his love for the hobby through his social media channels. An all-around great guy, I hope you'll enjoy listening to this episode as much as I had recording it.

No R/C vehicle is perfect and there are times when our expectations far exceed what these models can do. That said, there are some radio-controlled cars and trucks that can surprise us.

When it comes to picking out a new R/C vehicle, the possibilities are almost endless. For those of you looking to save some money on your next radio-controlled model, you may find the allure of off-brand machines too great to resist. While you can save money on some of these models, there are a few items you should keep in mind.

In this episode of the RC Newb Podcast, I share some pros and cons concerning off-brand radio-controlled machines.

Wow, Traxxas is really going all-out with their model releases and updates. Not only have they added new branches to their TRX-4 lineup, but they've also revamped bashing classics such as the E-Revo and Summit (1/16-scale). In this episode, I run down some of their latest releases, along with a few new models from Team Associated. In addition to that, I'm thrilled to announce a new podcast project that I'm taking part in, as well as giving a shout-out to a Patreon patron.

The fun of the R/C hobby doesn't stop once you've bought your first vehicle. Making sure you have the right tools and accessories to repair, upgrade, and tinker with your radio-controlled machines is a crucial aspect of the hobby. During this episode of the podcast, I share my "must-have" tools and gear for any hobbyists workspace.