June 22, 2009

Xray T2R Pro FRP Chassis & Upper Decks

Xray T2R Pro FRP Chassis & Upper Decks

Xray have released this set of CNC-machined FRP chassis and front/rear upper decks for the T2R Pro. The main advantage of the FRP material is its flex allowance. Due to the flex, the chassis and top decks create more traction and stability on low-traction asphalt tracks compared to standard graphite material. Knowing that every small detail impacts the handling and performance of a high-performance car, Xray CNC-machines every chassis in-house using the most modern German milling machines. fully robotically-operated and controlled to ensure that every chassis meets the tightest manufacturing tolerances. Suitable for the T2‘009, T2‘008 and T2R Pro.

Source: Xray [teamxray.com]


June 21, 2009

Team Magic G4RS 09 of Raimondo Gilletti

Team Magic G4II of Raimondo Gilleti

Back in February we brought you the first photographs of the new G4RS 2009 edition (formerly dubbed the G4II) from Team Magic, when we were shown Dario Balestri’s prototype car at the Toy Fair in Germany. Last month we showed you a video of that car testing at Gubbio, host of this years European Championship, at the hands of the double European Champion and now we have photos of the final G4RS 09 of Italian TM/Novarossi team driver Raimondo Gilletti. Basically in its production form, the car is very similar to the prototype with the exception of some different materials, such as the plastic front upper suspension brackets, aluminium chassis stiffeners in place of carbon and plastic rear lower suspension brackets. The prototype plastics have of course all been replaced with the final molded versions and overall the car looks complete. The car has some nice touches such as the super small diameter front and rear gear differentials, the low centre of gravity and centralised weight, the large scope for adjustment and the ability to change between a blade or wire type front ant-roll bar. Having been tested extensively by the Italian TM team of Balestri, Gilleti and Mario Spiniello, the car is expected to hit the market at the end of June, 3 weeks before it will attempt to defend its European title.

Click here to see the rest of the photos


June 19, 2009

Christophe Aygon wins French 8th Nats Rd4

Christophe Aygon wins French 8th Nats Rd4

Round 4 of the French 1/8th scale on road Nationals was run last weekend in Limoges, close to the the centre of the country. With the winner of the first 3 rounds, Adrien Bertin busy helping at the Euro ‘B’ Championships in Switzerland, the series would be sure of having a new winner this round. Qualfiying in the Elite class went the way of Serpent/RB driver Anthony Abisset debuting the new 966, followed by Stéphane Bouche, Romain Picard and Laurent Pageneau, while in the National class another Serpent 966 driver topped the time sheets, Arnaud Mathieu, in front of Jérôme Berthelot, Gérald Colinet and Damien Thirion. Following the semi finals, the Elite main final saw Bouche start from 11th having called for a delay. Abisset went off into the lead but on lap 5 came into contact with another car and broke his rim, loosing him a lot of time and dropping him down the order. Romain Picard took over the lead but a better tire strategy from the old guns Christophe Aygon and Serge Christiany saw them take over at the front and claim the win for Serpent and the new 966, with Stéphane Bouche recovering to 3rd by the end. In the National final Arnaud Mathieu sets off at qualifying pace and couldn’t be touched as behind Jérôme Berthelot claimed 2nd and a close battle for 3rd between Damien Thirion and Gérald Colinet is decided on the final corner with Colinet claiming the final podium step by 3 tenths of a second.

Click here for the final results


June 18, 2009

Mickael Pontal wins French 10th Nats Rd3

Mickael Pontal wins French 10th Nats Rd3

Round 3 of the French 1/10th scale gas nationals was held last weekend at Bourg en Bresse in the east of the country, close the to Swiss border, with sunny conditions all weekend for the 104 competitors attending. Qualifying for the Elite class saw Thomas Eytard take the top spot ahead of Basile Concialdi in 2nd, Arnaud Chaussard in 3rd and the final direct qualifier was Thomas Desmaries in 4th. The National class qualifying went the way of Anthony Bruyer ahead of Cédric Guillaud in 2nd, with Ludovic Cesar and Benjamin Brasset rounding out the top 4. In the Elite final, it was pole man Eytard that got the holeshot, but problems with his car dropped him out of contention. Concialdi, who was conserving his tires in 2nd, took over the lead but unfortunately some radio problems also dropped him down the leader board. Steady driving and good fortune allowed Kyosho driver Mickael Pontal to take over at the front and bring home the win, by a lap from Mugen Driver Thomas Desamaries in 2nd and Jacky Mouton, with another Kyosho, in 3rd. In the National class the race was all about Benjamin Brasset as pole man Bruyer had problems with his gearbox and dropped down the field. Benjamin was able to pull out a half lap lead by the halfway point, a gap that would be closed up by 2nd placed Julien Colas by the end of the race to only 4/100 of a second. Brasset just managing to cross the line first to take the win from the hard charging Colas in 2nd with Arthur Leclercq in 3rd, the top 6 covered by just over a lap.

Click here to see the final results


June 18, 2009

Rick V joins SchepisModel team

Rick V joins SchepisModel team

Joining an already strong team that includes Walter Salemi and Guiseppe D’angelo, Dutch driver Rick V has been confirmed as joining the SchepisModel team. The European finalist and factory Mugen driver will participate in this years European 1/10th scale Championships in Gubbio Italy and 1/8th scale World Championships in Lostallo, Switzerland using the SM-Boss engines designed and tuned by Mario Rossi. Prior to this Rick had been running JP engines in his 1/8th scale and Mugen Ninja engines in his 1/10th scale.

Source: SchepisModel [schepismodel.it]


June 17, 2009

Puleo & Nerone win Endas Italian Championship

Puleo & Nerone win Endas Italian Championship

The annual Endas Italian Championship took place last weekend at Segrates circuit near Milan. Under the supervision of Mr. Spatuzzi, Mr. Magni, Mr. Taccani and Mr. Colombo it was one of the best organised and presented Endas race in recent years. Qualifying for the modified class went the way of Andrea Simari, with Andrea Nerone in 2nd and Luca Radaelli in 3rd, while in the 10.5T stock class, after a hard fight Giorgio Montagna took the TQ spot followed by Marco Puleo in 2nd position and Luigi Viola in 3rd. Weather conditions were very hot due to a strong sun during the day and the asphalt temperature reached 56°C with an air temperature close to 35 degrees making it very critical for some ESC and motors. After some strong performances in the main finals, first place in the modified class went to Andrea Nerone with Luca Radaelli in 2nd and Max Micheli in 3rd. In the stock class (above) the win was taken by GP Batteries and Matrix driver Marco Puleo, with Tony Simari in 2nd place and Ruggero Zanusso in 3rd spot. GP Batteries and Matrix tyres supported the event with GP Batteries offering anyone the opportunity to try the company’s new GP4300 and GP5300 LiPo.

Click here to see more photos from the winners


June 17, 2009

Hot Bodies Cyclone TC, D4 & D8 Options

Hot Bodies Cyclone TC, D4 & D8 Options

Hot Bodies have release a whole load of new products for their main line of competition chassis’ but we will start with the Cyclone TC. Now you can adapt your Cyclone and Cyclone TC chassis to LiPo power with this LiPo battery upper deck conversion set, which comes complete with upper deck, aluminium block and all the necessary hardware you will need to get up and running. New rear 0º degree hubs have been machined from billet aluminium and anodized purple for added durability and custom looks. Some new aluminum front spindles are more than just aesthetic, but also stronger and more precise on the track. Finally for the TC are the DCJ drive shafts, that maintain better corner speed while drastically reducing wheel chatter. The DCJ or (Double Cardan joint) shaft breaks the single pivot point into two pivot points resulting in less drag and shallower shaft angles during sharp turning. For the Cyclone D4 and D4 WCE come an aluminium centre cup joint set that helps you loose weight where it counts the most, in the drivetrain. Less rotating mass equals quicker acceleration response and higher top speeds. The buggy also gets a complete set of both front and rear steel universal drive shafts. For the World Champion D8 buggy there are new universal drive shafts made from Japanese steel. Tougher than stock, they are easily identifiable as WCE with a light silver coating and come in 92mm length instead of stock 91mm, which gives a little bit of extra length to prevent pop outs and give an extra bit of down travel. The centre drive shafts also get the Japanese steel treatment.

Click here to see the other options


June 17, 2009

Francesco Tironi wins Italian Nats Rd2

Francesco Tironi wins Italian Nats Rd2

The 2nd round of the Italian 1/10th scale 200mm Championships took place in Messina last weekend and in the expert class it was Dario Balestri, with the new Team Magic G4 II, that took the pole position. In the race however, Mugen Sirio driver Francesco Tironi won the final by a lap, setting a new track record along the way. In 2nd place was Xray Max driver Giorgio De Felici, with 3rd place going to Mugen SM racer Guiseppe D’angelo, 7 seconds further back. Alessio Mazzeo finished 4th driving the prototype Serpent 733 chassis.

Source: F.V.S.S. Racing Team [fvssrc.com]