Originally Posted by SlowerOne
Spot on, there's one thing missing from your comparison with the Playstation - availability. Walking into the average model shop are you offered anything like the cars you race? And how many model shops are there compared to computer game shops? And in the model shop, how does anyone know where to race? (Gas RTR sales are booming because the cars can be run anywhere!) And how much advertising do model manufacturer's do compared to computer game companies?
I am in pursuit of the goal, and all this talk about LiPo, brushless, 4/5/6 cell, etc., etc. is taking you away from the goal, not towards it. RC is much, much more than electric TC, which is the electric class suffering right now. 12th is expanding, and so is Off-Road (certainly in the UK).
There has never been a long-term, successful lo-cost class ever, and you'll not invent it now by dreaming up classes racers aren't asking for.
It is a very interesting conversation you 10 people (out of tens of thousands that race) are having, but nowhere does it include a beginner, who knows why they either stayed in RC, or left it, or went into another class, like gas Rallycross. Until that conversation is heard, this is a purely academic conversation.
Since 10 people cannot agree on one single thing we could do, in this thread, are you surprised that nothing gets done? I'm not. You'd do more good getting your cars out to a local school or college, and racing TC in a demo, than typing posts on here.
I am not against what you are saying, nor for it. I work inside an RC organising body and I try to understand why we are where we are. I don't think that anything is 'the future' at the moment, because unless TC get out there and promote your class, it simply doesn't have one. Forget the conversation about TC classes, go out and promote your sport - that's the goal.
Great feedback.
I am the beginner...as far as racing goes. I one of the l people, the sport should be trying to attract.
I've spent years bashing around with different RC's...on road and offroad. Raced informally with friends. Bought my kids RC's...built them with them and raced with them.
I'm the guy who has read a bunch of RC magazines. I've spent a lot of time reading forum postings. I'm the guy that comes to the track occasionally and watches the guys work their setups and race.
I've came close to racing at the track but have lacked the time, or been turned off by things I've seen, and never taken it further.
Alternatively, I have raced in video games (lots of fun) and raced gokarts at a track ($20 bucks a race is still cheaper when you take into account the investment.)
Here were some of my turnoffs...and I'm sure other newbies have gone through the same thing as me.
1. Expensive batteries, chargers and maintenance that goes with them. Watching guys selling off batteries after a few cycles to get the next latest battery with slightly higher voltage.
2. Motors that require maintence, motor timing, brush replacements, comm lathes...etc.
3. Tires, tires, tires...soft this, hard that...replace after a race...
4. Parts braking as cars smack into the unforgiving plywood track walls. I've bashed for years with only braking a part here and there and was amazed to see one car taken out after another as they smacked the walls.
One of my solutions was to set up a home track with soft walls where I race with my kids and their friends. I built "spec" cars to be as equal as possible and we all had loads of fun.
Even that got to be a pain as the boys (and myself) would leave the batteries in various stages of discharge and invariably when you pulled them out a few months later one battery would be dead...another require cycling...brushes would start to go on a motor...etc.
As far as nitro goes, I've tried that too. It didn't really work out. There were two issues. First was the maintenance. The engine break-ins, constant engine tuning, rebuilding, having fresh fuel on hand etc. Second was the noise. In a small neighborhood the screaming nitro isn't a welcome sound.
The recent introduction of Lipos and brushless motors got me interested again. Here are cars we can drive, set aside and pull back out a year later and they are as ready to go then as the day we stored them.
Addressing the access to shops, and tracks I think that is more of the chicken/egg syndrome. There aren't enough people joining the sport to replace the ones that are leaving. Shops and tracks close. We just had a hobby shop close that was to my house close last month.
The web has helped some...but it is always better to have a brick and mortar.
I believe there can be an affordable, low maintenance, class of racing...and an affordable class above that one to move up to. If I knew I could buy this outfit or that, roll out on the track and race I'd be more inclined to do it.
In the meantime it is entertaining, albeit with the frustration of an outsider, to read the minutia of arguing going on about cell count and battery windings when the whole sport really needs a "swift kick in the pants" as my Dad used to say. Wake up and smell the Java! There is a whole population of people out there, that could be candidates for the next generation of racers but who are, like me, turned off by the huge cost of entry (in both time and money.)