I've been away from RC racing for the better part of 15yrs now & just found out there's a local track that runs indoors on carpet during the fall - spring season. checking the rules and doing some research into some of the changes since my tc3 last chased for podium spots (she's still got the same P2k 19t in it, XD ) anyways I found that they run USGT & other classes. I know the tc3 is a dinosaur these days but it's not like I'd be running in the nationals. basically looking to get back in the saddle without selling a kidney.

So I've got a few questions for anyone in the know:

1) why is it that there's only the GRC2000 as an approved motor? checking A Main there's 4 lower priced fixed timing 21.5t motors from Trinity, Reedy, Hobbywing & Ruddog(?). while it's nice to have only 1 stock spec motor it's kind of a monopoly considering that gravity also is the exclusive tire supplier as well. the reason why this is an issue is that in Canada the only places that have inventory available for the GRC2000 are charging 15-20% more than the stores that are sold out. (sold out stores are selling at msrp converted from usd to cad)

2) Roar approval of blinky ESC's. checking the approved page they seem to be lacking in approving. For example the oldest info I could find on the quicrun 10bl60 was 2018, checking the manual it has a zero timing mode and according to internet search it does blink in that timing mode. Again due to living in Canada the amount of available esc's is less / overpriced compared to south of the border. I can get a 10bl60 for half the price as the "roar approved" next lowest priced Hobbywing.
Is this a normal thing or am I finding an old "approved" list?

It kind of seems like the hobby has taken a step backwards, instead of having a spec class where multiple companies vie for our business by producing good products and competition drives the price down. we have classes & organizations that promote certain brands to have monopolies & thus are charging more.

So total to get the tc3 back on the track in full compliance of USGT rules:
$50 for a set of USGT tires
$130 for a GRC2000
$100 for a XR10 Justock GS3

Cheaper to go buy a TTGT car. no wonder they're so popular

Motor of the month. While I was just starting at the time. There wes a lot of fuss about what was the hot motor. Eventually the one in charge made a decision to go with one motor. VTA is now joining that as they are going to one motor. I don’t know what involved in choosing the company

Improved it a little.

Novak. Before my time on the racing side

People were unhappy then, people were unhappy with open motors later - it just shows that whatever you do, people will complain.

As for prices, thats a discussion you need to have with your Government.
You pay them when you order out of country.
The stocking hobby shops pay them to stock their shelves.
The Manuf/Distributors have to pay them to be allowed to sell in your country.

Lots changed in the world since you last raced.

First of all, I can understand complaining about the cost of insulin, blood pressure, or other medications. I refuse to commiserate with any concerns of the cost associated with a recreational hobby.
That being said; Spec is Spec and there is no value in arguing what has been established, supported, and successful for the past few years.
In Canada - the majority of local and online stocking hobby stores are seasonal when it comes to equipment - especially USGT required spec components, since most of the indoor tracks operate during the fall/winter seasons. Around that time you'll see stock levels bump back up.
Additionally - especially in Ontario, the spec classes have been well supported, so demand for esc's, motors, wheels/tires, bodies, etc ..spikes around the end of summer as guys transition from outdoor offroad to indoor on-road gear.
Peruse Facebook marketplace as the season approaches, you'll find several bits of quality gear pop up for sale in Canada that can help you keep your kidneys, as club members upgrade to newer revisions, or distill the number of classes they mistakenly thought they could manage

^kinda this ya. I happen to agree and to add to this, welcome to the days of the internet where monopolys and capitalism happen. Stores like fleabay and the flaming river or even store with online webstores sell most.
Not only is it a recreational hobby. It is a form of racing and racing isn't cheap. Don't expect it to be. No one is saying go buy it all over night.
Go to the track and race some rookie classes. Enjoy it. Buy some used components over time. Not used electronics and move to other classes. Spend your retirement money over time not one big swoop to find your not enjoying. My .02 to your trouble.
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Paul and team at Motiv does an excellent job to make sure the USGT motors being offered today spec out the same as the motors from years ago. Buy a motor once, run it for years. With an open motor you're buying a more expensive motor to be competitive every year or so. People that are complaining they want open motor are the guys not winning and think they can get that special new motor to beat everyone.

Thanks for all the great reply's. I've been keeping an eye on marketplace as well as kijiji. Racing does cost a lot and my points of contention were more to do with how one company was effectively having a monopoly in a certain class. All USGT motors can be subject to timing testing as per the usgt rules (seems like you can even get DQ'd with a virgin motor that doesn't meet testing) So I fail to see how the industry/ officials couldn't have set specific resistance and timing spec tests to still allow consumer choice in motor selection. But I do get having one supplier keeps the field totally neutral.

@ Monkey. Racing RC is a recreational hobby, and racing can be expensive. however when they establish spec classes such as usgt or ttgt usually that's to keep costs down and have competition equal. spec motors & tires means no shelves of tires so that you have every compound / shore rating ready for the track conditions and you don't have a horsepower race with the motor companies. At the club level and the driving skills involved, tires don't make that much of a difference as long as you're running a compound meant for your track surface. especially since everyone is using sauce. In reality one fixed can brushed brand to another didn't make any difference back in 2007. those who could afford lipos (and the chargers) usually had an advantage but not so much that good drivers running NiMh packs couldn't be competitive. a proper setup car and driver skill are far more critical.

Overall it was more of a "culture shock" kind of moment for me when going over the rules and then checking prices. I think I'll pass on the USGT class and see if the local race director will let me run my brushed setup in the 21.5 stock class as they seem to be about the same punch as the old 19t on lipo. Or see if they have enough drivers for an open class and swap in my losi xceleron 13.5t. or maybe since TC3 is ancient maybe I'll make it CVTA compliant car. or maybe I'll just go buy a tt01/tt02 and just enjoy driving. y'all have a good one.

The 10BL60 is not approved. To get approval it needs to do more than blink. The manufacturer or distributor needs to submit the ESC to ROAR and pay a fee to get it tested for compliance. The 10BL60 is not intended for spec racing so nobody bothered to get it approved.

There's also 2 different products with the 10BL60 name. One is sensored, one is sensorless. The sensored one isn't that much cheaper than the Justock G3S. If you're seeing it at half the price, it's probably the sensorless version, or the pricing in your region just sucks.

Are those prices in US Dollars or Canadian Dollars? Plenty of places here have the motors in stock, HobbyWing Justock G3S's and tires that would ship anywhere.

The USGT motor is leaps and bounds better than the fixed timing Trinity, Reedy Sonic and Ruddog motors. The USGT motor is @ 30* timing (per rules must be less than 33*). Since the class is open gearing, the timing doesn't make as much a difference as rotor and stator asymmetry. Most guys here in the US will send the motors to a tuner to align the sensors for $30-45 (if they are not close from the factory). The motors make a TON of torque and pull a LOT of gear. So doesn't really matter if all three sensors are at 29.0* or 32.9*, the lower timing motors will pull more gear. On our local Asphalt track here in NJ (145' x 65') many guys are running FDR's in the 2.55 to 2.75 range) usually with larger MAH packs. Guys running FWD with the USGT motors are running even lower FDR's.

Made by gravity rc right?

Not sure who that question was directed to, but if me, then yes the USGT motor I'm referring to is made by Gravity RC (Motiv).