Hobby Central's Blog

Engage in Aerial Combat with Realflight G5

hobbycentral — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:58:38 +0000

The latest version of Realflight G5 RC flight simulator has shipped. One of the awesome new features of Realflight G5 is several versions of combat including fireing rockets, machineguns, paintballs and streamer cutting. You can even fly with other G5 owners across the internet. Better yet you can save $10 with the coupon code HCBRFG5(entered during checkout) at www.ihobbycentral.com/real-flight-g5-simulator-pr-30945730.html

Bill

Indoor RC Track Survey

hobbycentral — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 00:00:48 +0000

Here is one of the results so far from the survey Hobby Central is running to establish how much interest there is in bringing indoor RC Racing to the Emerald Coast.

Desired Race Classes For Proposed Indoor Track

Looks like 1/8 electric Buggy and Truggy are not in demand. I’m surprised at h0w many want on-road. We are still running the survey, if you are interested in racing in the FT Walton Beach area, please fill in the survey: https://app.icontact.com/icp/sub/survey/take

Bill

Hobby Central

www.ihobbycentral.com

Indoor Racing Facility Fort Walton Beach

hobbycentral — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 05:42:42 +0000

Here at Hobby Central we are considering opening up an indoor rc racing facility. The facility would consist of one or two indoor tracks. Something along the lines of an off-road track with oval and a micro/mini track or a on-road and oval carpet track. It could possibly have outdoor touring/oval racing. We are just looking into the idea right now. I beleive it would be the only indoor racing facility within 200 miles or more. It’s a big endeavour and a weak economy, and so we are not ready to commit to it yet. We are surveying customers and past and present racers to see if there would be enough attendance. We have a couple of Ambrc timing systems and a store already in the Ft Walton area and so it would be great to have a racing program again. We sent out a survey by email. We have looked at doing it in Pensacola or GulfBreeze, but it’s hard to find a building big enough, but cheap enough LOL. Let us know what you think.

Bill Hobby Centra www.ihobbycentral.com

New Realflight G5

hobbycentral — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:52:04 +0000

Great Planes has released the new G5 Realflight and it will be here Monday. Use this coupon code HCBRFG5 for a special discount on Realfligth G5 at www.ihobbycentral.com .
Here is their announcement: ‘The world’s most advanced R/C flight simulator, RealFlight delivers such amazing accuracy and realism that it doubles as the finest R/C flight training tool available. Now RealFlight goes beyond its famous “at-the-field” accuracy to offer combat and new multiplayer options that make Generation 5 even more fun and further increase its broad appeal. Plus all the standard features that have made RealFlight the #1 flight simulator are still here – like night flying, water takeoffs and landings, collision detection, and TruFlo Wind DynamicsTM.

G5 is packed with exciting, new enhancements!

Fly with up to 31 other pilots – using the Multiplayer and your Internet connection.
Four different combat events – test your expertise.
Six new aircraft – bringing the total aircraft to over 75.
Three new 3D flying sites – bringing the total number of sites to over 30.
Manage Multiplayer sessions – describe the airports, aircraft, activities and time limits. Invite pilots and automate the session ahead of time.
Create your own online “pilot’s license” profile – choose a name, select an avatar, and create a profile to share.
Targeting System – select a single opponent and track his movement throughout the virtual arena.
On-board cameras – add cameras and change the video angles from the controller.

First Person Video – puts you in the pilot’s seat and lets you enjoy views from the cockpit. No other simulator offers this feature.
Four different combat events

Machine Gun

Rocket

Paintball

Streamer Cut

Six new aircraft

ThunderTiger Innovator, Sopwith Pup, Sig® Senorita,
DynafliteTM Super Decathlon, Multiplex Parkmaster 3D, and Easy Star.

ThunderTiger Innovator

Sopwith Pup

Three new 3D flying sites

Boneyard

Apocalypse

Construction Site

First Person Video

First Person Video View Forward

First Person Video View Right

Targeting System”

Realflight has been in the top 10 best selling products in all of our stores. It looks like Realflight G5 will be a nother winner. It will sell for $199.99 and owners of previous versiosn will be able to purchase an upgrade for about $100. We have it on order and will be available at www.ihobbycentral.com soon. Here is a discount coupon code for $10.00 off of Realflight G5 (full version) HCBRFG5 . This coupon code can be used towards the purchase of Realflight G5 when it becomes available at www.ihobbycentral.com

Bill

The Return of Touring Car Racing

hobbycentral — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 04:38:04 +0000

I miss hosting Touring Car racing. We held races at our track for almost 9 years and had as many as 6 touring classes. On-road racing was so popular that at one point we didn’t carry many off-road vehicles. Now, we rarely see anyone asking for a serious touring car. For the first couple of years we would see Dodg e Vipers, Corvettes, AMG MB’s, Porsche’s, Saleen Mustangs, Lotus Elises, Lamborhini and just about every muscle or exotic car that you could think of. All kinds of rims were used and a lot of racers tried to make their cars look somewhat scale. Then along came the Dodge Stratus body and aerodish rims and finally foams. It was great for the racing purist, but it took a lot of the fun out of racing for the spectator and the car enthusiast/casual racer. Once the Stratus became the body of choice, we saw our other body sales slump. We also saw a decline in rc’ers coming in and buying a couple of cans of paint and maybe a paint mask. It is apparent that the popularity of touring cars has waned over the last 4 years. There are fewer cars to choose from, and the big racing manufacturers like Team Associated, HPI and Team Losi don’t seem to be spending much time on the touring segment.

For the longest time HPI was our primary supplier of touring cars and 95% of the bodies, rims and tires that we sold. I’m sure this was the same in a lot of hobby shops with tracks. Now we sell very little HPI (comparitively speaking).

Not surprisingly HPI has taken notice of this. HPI is promoting a new class of racing called RCGT. The intent is to return to the original concept of touring car racing. The basic idea is that you can use any 1/10 4wd touring car chassis. But you have to use a touring car body similar to what would be used in full scale racing. You cannot use a Stratus body, Mazda Speed etc.. In my opinion that is refreshing – 10 cars all running at the same time with different bodies. Sure beats 10 mulitcolored scalloped or dripping Stratus’. Two other requirements is that you have to use spoked wheels and X-pattern rubber tires. Which in most cases alleviates the need for the most expensive engine and pipe. Most sport engines will reach the limits of rubber tires with ease. We sure would like to see the popularity of this class of racing grow. How about you?

Bill

Hobby Central

The New Team Losi Strike Has Arrived!!

hobbycentral — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 05:28:30 +0000

Everyone involved in radio control racing knows that one of the fastest growing classes is Short Course truck racing. These trucks are based upon full-sized short course race trucks as seen on TV. The craze was started by the Traxxas Slash and the Team Associated SC-10 trucks. Now Team Losi has entered the fray. Unique to the Losi Strike is that it comes with a 2.4 ghz radio and costs less than $229.99. We hav e both the ready to run (RTR) and the Bind n Run versions in-stock. You can purchase them on-line at www.ihobbycentral.com . Here are the specs from Team Losi:

Overview

Even if you have never hit the track before, fun and exciting racing action can now be yours with the ready-to-run 1/10-Scale Strike Short Course Truck. The Strike SCT RTR is perfect for anyone who loves the thrill of RC racing, even newcomers. Its rugged body comes out over the wheels, allowing you to bump, nudge and aggressively race without tangling and flipping other vehicles or getting hung-up on curbs and obstacles.

The Strike SCT RTR features a water-resistant LiPo and NiMH battery compatible reversing electronic speed control (ESC). Capable of handling up to a 7.4V LiPo and an 8.4V NiMH, the ESC features ultra-low resistant EC3 power connectors and one-button setup for simple operation. The Strike SCT RTR also includes a Losi receiver and transmitter with interference-free Spektrum™ 2.4GHz DSM® technology.

The transmission in the Strike SCT RTR houses high-quality all-metal gears, full ball bearings and the adjustability of a slipper clutch with the strength and reliability that will stand up to the power and abuse expected of a short course truck for performance lap after lap. The Strike SCT RTR gets its muscle from a 12T 550-sized modified motor for amazing acceleration and top end speeds for high-flying jumps. The motor houses an internal cooling fan that keeps the operating temperatures low improving performance and motor life.

Keeping the Strike SCT RTR’s handling as scale as possible is an innovative chassis design. The Strike’s 12-turn 550 performance motor is mounted in line with the chassis and in front of the driveline, so it sits closer to the center of the vehicle. This keeps the center of gravity down, allowing for some scale body roll but much quicker cornering

The 1/10 Strike SCT RTR also features oversized captured ball ends and adjustable aluminum oil-filled shocks. The threaded adjusters on the shocks make tuning the suspension a breeze because no tools are required to adjust the vehicle for various types of terrain. The Strike SCT RTR achieves increased traction and acceleration thanks to a greater degree of toe-in at the rear of the vehicle. The toe-in is supplied at the rear pivot block, not the hub, making the design generate more traction than what the competition can offer.

The Strike SCT RTR also sports a strikingly detailed and decorated body, available in red and blue, for pure scale realism that will turn heads at the track. The wheels feature 12mm hexes and finish out in chrome to mimic the style of a full-scale off-road setup with the long-wear off-road tires providing ample traction on multiple surfaces. Scale front and rear bumpers help round out the package.

Features

Losi receiver and transmitter with Spektrum 2.4GHz DSM technology
Water-resistant LiPo and NiMH compatible reversing electronic speed control
All metal 3-gear transmission with full bearings and slipper clutch for effective power handling
12T 550-sized high-speed motor performance motor
“Internal” mounted motor and transmission design
Adjustable, aluminum oil-filled shocks
Multiple shock and upper suspension link mounting locations
Narrow, center channel chassis for ultimate handling
Adjustable battery placement to tune vehicle handling
Custom screened Short Course Truck body in red and blue colors
Realistic front and rear bumpers for racing protection
Scaled chrome wheels equipped with all-terrain SCT tires
Vehicle tangles limited by Nerf wings lateral body support
Precise, digital steering servo
Full ball bearing equipped for efficiency and speed
Metal universal joints provide incredible driveline strength in race and bash conditions
Super efficient planetary differential
Adjustable turnbuckles for fine-tuning the handling
Oversized, captured ball ends for ultra smooth suspension articulation

Bill

Hobby Central

Hello Hobbiests.

hobbycentral — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:45:34 +0000

Welcome to Hobby Central’s hobby blog. Hobby Central is located in Pensacola Florida and Mary Esther Florida. We operate two websites: www.hobbcentralrc.com is our general info sites for our stores. Hobby Cenbtral also operates a hobby e-commerce site at www.ihobbycentral.com where we sell a complete line of hobby items. Everything from radio control boats, cars, trucks, airplanes, helicopters, plastic models, puzzles, hop-ups, science kits, metal detectors and more. We stock all the main brands such as Traxxas, Team Losi, HPI, Axial, Team Associated, Futaba, Spektrum, Hangar 9, Great Planes, Hobbico, Seagull, Sig mfg, Integy, Team Orion, Pro-Line, Protoform, Revell, AMT, Italeri, Hasegawa, Tamiya and too many more to list. We will be adding info about our stores and the products that we use and carry. Feel free to leave your comments.

Bill