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Well, I went and picked up that Traxxas Stampede today! It needs some work, one of the electrical connections to the motor is charred, indicating that the PO had it hooked up loosely. That same connection also has a slice in the insulation, and is only hanging on to the motor by a thread. All in all though, its good, and the issues it does have are pretty easy to solve. The truck itself is in good shape. The other thing is that the batteries are pretty tired, probably from being charged on the wrong amperage constantly  The PO was running a 4 amp charge into 2400 packs.My brother in law has a 8.4V 3000MAH pack that he can hook me up with thankfully. So, with some work to refresh it (new batteries, different motor, general tightening up) I think it will be pretty sweet! Thankfully I still have a lot of stuff left over from my RC airplane days, including a very nice computerized charger. Here it is on the way home:  I've already started nerding out on the maintenance, which is actually pretty fun:  I'm pretty excited to be back in the hobby, I've missed it since I got away from planes a few years back.
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Apr 23, 2010 05:23
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| # ? May 13, 2024 05:23 |
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So what do you do when you buy a used truck, and the body is pretty trashed, but you havent had a chance to get a new one yet? You buy the single best product available at Wal-Mart: Digital Camo Duct Tape.
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Apr 26, 2010 15:04
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Phat_Albert posted:Digital Camo Duct Tape. Awesome. I want me some of that! Not for RC or anything, just to have.
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Apr 26, 2010 16:27
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Phat_Albert posted:So what do you do when you buy a used truck, and the body is pretty trashed, but you havent had a chance to get a new one yet? This is incredible and awesome. Hope you are enjoying your new ride. I just sold my AX10 Scorpion. I am going to get an AXIAL Honcho next week. I will post some pics from the build. I do already have my tires that I will be using for the truck (manufacturers photo):  They just are too cool looking to pass up. I will also eventually pick up the new Jeep Cherokee body that Pro-Line is releasing this month too. Also, just some news that was announced today that I am WAY stoked about is this: Team Durango announce N.American Distributor
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Apr 27, 2010 23:34
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Wow, good catch  should have known 
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Apr 27, 2010 23:39
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Good to see Durango finally got a distributor in the States. The few Durangos I've seen always look awesome on the track, and I'll definitely be getting a DEX410R when it comes out along with the DNX408 (I hope they make a DEX408 electric conversion kit) and the DEX210. The lack of support from them was keeping me from getting one along with their prices.
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Apr 28, 2010 01:38
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Hey guys, check out this bitchin body that SGT Squeaks (http://skyreedracedesign.com) sold me I spent pretty much all day getting compliments about how good my car looked. Kickass work SGT Squeaks!
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Apr 28, 2010 03:30
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Did you take credit for the paint? Looks good though, I don't usually like 'RC paint jobs' but that one is pretty nice.
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Apr 28, 2010 11:48
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Awesome man! Cool to see it all mounted up. Glad you like it.
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Apr 28, 2010 17:14
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Somewhat Heroic posted:This is incredible and awesome. Hope you are enjoying your new ride. I am, I'm glad to be back in the RC world again. Of course the mod bug has bitten me as well, and I'm eyeing a brushless system for the Stampede, and I've already put a metal geared steering servo in, as well as a Kimbrough servo saver, and a wheelie bar. I've been correctly charging the batteries that the PO constantly overcharged by 2x, and they've been picking back up. Their performance is already better than it was a week ago. I'm also looking for a case to carry my stuff. A tackle box would work for tools and parts, but I'm looking for something that can do my TX, charger and batteries as well. Any suggestions?
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Apr 28, 2010 23:14
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http://reviews.canadiantire.ca/9045/0581068P/reviews.htm is very popular at our track. Hobbywing released new firmware for the Xerun line of speedos and it now has to rate as maybe the best speedo value out there. It has dynamic timing advance and turbo (called supercharger) and so on, just like the big boys. You can get the 60A version for way under $100 (plus 15-20 for your programming box option of choice). I ran my 120A today in my 1/10 pan car. I used the recommended factory settings on a Novak Ballistic 10.5, and couldn't believe the performance coupled with the low temps. Completely on par with the Tekin boys. In the end I dialed up the settings a touch and the thing was a rocketship, pretty close to the 4.5 motor I have but so much more drivable. The 4.5 has pretty much uncontrollable rip, the 10.5 is much softer until you tip into it. As much as I like tinkering with all the settings on the Tekin, I appreciate the quick setting of the Hobbywing. Plus, you don't need to haul a laptop or netbook to the track to change everything.
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May 3, 2010 04:33
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I'm just glad I stopped racing TC before the BL/firmware wars started. It used to be the tire/motor/body of the week, etc., now it's the speedo of the month. I know it's just a simple thing to upgrade, but it's still crazy expensive. From what I understand, foam tire TC racing (in the US, the only place it was popular) died because of the costs and speeds (just like 1/10th pan car), and there's at least one series in the UK that restricts speedos because of the issues with people feeling they had to keep 2 or 3 expensive speedos in their pit box, depending on what was the most recent firmware. I'm not against speed or anything, don't get me wrong I just think there should be a 'normal guy' class at every club/track where you don't have to run new tires, latest speedo, newest body, etc., every week. It's hard enough with console games and other summertime activities to get new kids at the tracks without asking for $1000 to get going racing.
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May 6, 2010 18:20
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Eh, I'm still competitive with a TC4 and a Sphere TC. I guess it just depends on how good your local racers are.
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May 6, 2010 20:28
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krushgroove posted:I'm not against speed or anything, don't get me wrong One of my local tracks has a bunch of spec classes. For instance they have a spec Traxxas Slash class where everything has to be stock, and you can run either a 6-cell NIMH or a 2S lipo. Apparently its great fun and hugely competitive, because it really comes down to who is the best driver, not who has the biggest wallet. The pack of cars also stays pretty clumped together for lots of passing and action.
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May 6, 2010 22:12
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krushgroove posted:I'm just glad I stopped racing TC before the BL/firmware wars started. It used to be the tire/motor/body of the week, etc., now it's the speedo of the month. I know it's just a simple thing to upgrade, but it's still crazy expensive. From what I understand, foam tire TC racing (in the US, the only place it was popular) died because of the costs and speeds (just like 1/10th pan car), and there's at least one series in the UK that restricts speedos because of the issues with people feeling they had to keep 2 or 3 expensive speedos in their pit box, depending on what was the most recent firmware. Yeah, I can sort of see this, but honestly the speedos are not that expensive. The Hobbywing is maybe a little more than $100, and motor choice is not all that restrictive. The Black Diamond and LRP really drive the costs up, but a Tekin RS can be had for less than $150. Castle is also inexpensive - $120 or so and it comes with a coupon for a programmer. And there's no body, battery or chassis of the week because they're all basically the same now. I frankly think stock is a lot easier on the wallet to be competitive at now than ever - when I ran off road in the early 90s there were guys running NiCD packs once and throwing them in the garbage, and remember the B&R Bullet "stock" motors? Stock in the last days of brushless was at least as brutal, turning the comm every 10 runs, brush tuning, exploding NiMHs...now, your speedo is about the only "x" factor The biggest legitimate gripe is that the Tekin requires a laptop to change any meaningful settings, and I think the Castle does too. The LRP speedo release was a disaster, mainly because the firmware is not user upgradable. And for the rest I don't think a firmware upgrade every 6+ months is all that onerous. That said, there are plenty of spec classes to choose from now (Vintage Trans Am and RCGT to name two), and a number of clubs are going with a "novice" class for beginners, disallowing advanced speedos and often using spec motors and batteries. The Speed Passion Citrix system caters to that - less than $100 for speedo and motor (brushless).
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May 7, 2010 01:10
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krushgroove posted:I'm not against speed or anything, don't get me wrong You should see if any of your local tracks run 1/10M cars like the Cup Racer, Genetic, or M-05. These cars were designed to be a spec class like you're describing and all feature really beautiful bodies from the seventies. You could get one of those together with a 17.5 brushless system, 2S Lipos and a 2.4ghz radio for under $400 and you'll be running rubber tires that wear a helluva a lot slower than a touring car with a 6.5 on foams.
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May 8, 2010 23:13
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krushgroove posted:I'm not against speed or anything, don't get me wrong
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May 9, 2010 01:24
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I don't know where else to ask this, and my Google-Fu is failing me tonight. Does anyone remember a TV show geared toward kids in either the late 80's or early 90's that contained model car racing? They weren't slot cars, but rather uncontrolled electric cars that ran in channels of the track. The cars were around 6" long. I sort of think this was just a segment in another show, or possibly a very short program used to fill time between other shows.
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May 9, 2010 05:20
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NVaderJ posted:I don't know where else to ask this, and my Google-Fu is failing me tonight. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIOqy2h2kOU James Woods fucked around with this message at 07:49 on May 9, 2010 |
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May 9, 2010 07:44
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James Woods posted:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIOqy2h2kOU In the related videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gr-T2bHLO4s&feature=related
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May 9, 2010 08:59
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T1g4h posted:In the related videos: I had a hyper driver back in the day, but no track for it. All I remember is that it ate batteries like nothing else.
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May 9, 2010 20:45
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Just a bit on the speedo thing, ROAR have specified a sportsman setting on the speedos used in ROAR sportsman classes: http://www.roarracing.com/?p=655 Looks like a good thing, and from what people are saying ITT a lot of clubs are already doing similar things already, which is a good thing. It really sucks when a fun class or series with a lot of potential is scuttled because of people thinking they need the fastest stuff to have fun. Right now in the UK the F1 class is taking off (thanks Lewis and Jenson) but all the club drivers want to run foams with fast motors, I'm hoping things turn around and go back to rubber tires and spec motors.
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May 10, 2010 09:53
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So in the DIY & Hobbies forum I found some scale modelers that thought I would snap out of the static model frame of mind and posted this guy: I figured I would cross post it. That is the Hilux with RC4WD goodies. In other news, I put the new aluminum shocks on my BLITZ from HPI. I still think they are priced high, but I have never built a shock that was so easy to assemble, and were so easy to bleed (and I have built Losi shocks before). I also installed a NOVAK HAVOC 3S/Ballistic 10.5 in it last night. It was too dark to run it when I got it done, but so far it seems VERY snappy! Also I bought my SCX10 Honcho today  so I know what I will be doing tonight!
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May 13, 2010 19:10
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I wonder if you could do a similar thing to a Tamiya Hilux
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May 13, 2010 23:46
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Somewhat Heroic posted:So in the DIY & Hobbies forum I found some scale modelers that thought I would snap out of the static model frame of mind and posted this guy: I refuse to believe this is anything other than a real, full scale truck.
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May 14, 2010 04:55
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That is awesome The new Axial truck has been debuted, kind of what I thought as far as motor-on-axle crawler, but some folks think another kit is on its way (I wouldn't doubt it)...anyone wanna buy a never-run Scorpion?
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May 14, 2010 10:46
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WOW. I put a VXL-3S waterproof ESC and Velineon brushless motor in my Stampede tonight. Unreal. On my 3000mah 7-cell it will start pulling a wheelie at like 20mph. Its so crazy compared to the brushed motor and esc.
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May 15, 2010 05:04
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T1g4h posted:I refuse to believe this is anything other than a real, full scale truck. Until I see someone holding it, I agree. Even then I'll probably think the truck is real, and a giant is holding it.
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May 17, 2010 05:55
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I'd like to share a race report: Yesterday I went up to R/C Madness in Enfield, Connecticut for an outdoor offroad race. I ran 1/8 electric buggy which isn't a very popular class yet, however there was a decent heat consisting of 8 buggies including myself. This was my second race with the car, an Associated RC8e that I'm slowly upgrading to RC8Be specs (I currently have the 16mm shocks, shock towers, and lightweight top plate installed). I'm running the LRP SPX8 ESC with the Vector 8 2500kv motor, and while the ESC stays around 140ºF, the motor gets very hot with the recommended gearing of 46 (spur gear) and 15. (pinion) The setup is powered by a dual 2S battery setup, SMC 5200mAh 24c packs. Yesterday I decided I'd go down a tooth on the pinion and that lowered the motor temps to around 170ºF-175ºF, a big improvement from my previous temps of 190ºF with the recommended gearing. The car still had plenty of power in the infield sections and it was never an issue. I ran my normal chassis setup: 5k oil front diff, 7k oil center diff, 3k oil rear diff, bronze springs all around, 25wt. oil with stock pistons all around, and silver sway bars. The track was somewhat hard packed with a dusty top layer, I ran AKA City Blocks in the super soft compound and they worked great all day. In the first round of qualifying I managed to lay down a clean run without any mistakes and set the TQ time of 9/5:07. The second and final round of qualifying had a reshuffle which didn't work out in my favor as I caught up to the slower cars quickly and had a few bobbles with them. My lap times had improved but because of the bobbles my time in round 2 was a 9/5:09. I still kept the TQ time, only one other driver managed to do a 9 lap run. In the A Main I got away with a clean start and drove a smooth race with few mistakes. I drove alot easier than in qualifying because by this point in the day the track developed a ton of ruts. (it didn't help that our main was right after the 30 minute 1/8 nitro buggy A Main) I was also extremely wary of my heating problems and I wanted to be sure the car would last the entire 10 minutes. 4 of the 8 cars that started dropped out by the 7 minute mark and by that point I had checked out. I won with a final time of 18/10:28, 3 laps over the second place car. I temped the motor immediately after the race and it came off at it's lowest all day, though the ambient temperature had also dropped a bit by that point. All in all it was a good day, and I got a nice shiny plaque too!  My next race will be in a couple of weeks at Control Freakz in Chaplin, Connecticut.  Above is a picture of my buggy at its first race at a track in New York, photo courtesy of Barnstormers RC.
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May 18, 2010 03:07
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Congrats man! Sounds like a nice race. I just finished my move to Atlanta, Georgia and can't wait to get out to some of the local tracks. My throttle finger is getting itchy.
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May 18, 2010 03:34
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why_I_dont_run_nitro.jpg: local fast guy, taken on Sunday. Also saw my first runaway nitro car. The guy smacked the boards right where I was marshalling at the at the beginning of the straight. That jammed his throttle open, and he ran around the outside boards like they were a Hotwheels track, right through the pits at the far end until it hit a right angle. Still took some figuring and eventually a screwdriver to jam the flywheel of the 40,000rpm engine.
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May 26, 2010 03:02
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I recently bought a Slash 2wd, and my roommate has the slash 4wd. What a blast.. The only issues I'm having are the battery doesn't seem to last too long (I have a 8.4v 4500mah nimh) and I can't seem to get the steering neutral- It will hardly turn left but has no problems turning right... is there anything I can adjust inside the servo? I've got the trim set to neutral and doesn't seem to help at all. Also these trucks are pretty much invincible... Ran into eachother at full tilt and nothing broke!
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May 26, 2010 04:01
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There shouldn't be anything 'in' the servo, but if the servo itself isn't centered when you connect the linkage, it could run out of travel before your steering does. Unhook the steering from the servo and make sure it has full, free travel in both directions. Then center the servo with your radio and keep it as centered as possible.
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May 26, 2010 06:26
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loving LRP, connected battery to a brushless ESC (an LRP NiMH battery, too!) and the ESC burned, again. this is my second LRP ESC to go tits up. eugh
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May 26, 2010 20:40
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Frobbe posted:loving LRP, connected battery to a brushless ESC (an LRP NiMH battery, too!) and the ESC burned, again. this is my second LRP ESC to go tits up. eugh
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May 26, 2010 23:32
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You Am I posted:Sure you don't have the wires crossed? considering i've been using the ESC a bunch without issue, i doubt it's a wiring issue. i blame their crappy "A.I" system.
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May 28, 2010 23:32
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Did some maintenance on my Tamiya 415 today, it had been a while (nearly 2 years) since I have touched it other than replacing broken parts. New oil in all the shocks, replaced some parts in the front shocks, rebuilt the front unis, cleaned the com on the motor and checked droop and ride height. Droop was way out to what I have it, which probably answers why it was so understeery. Hopefully be able to give it a run during the week to see what the results are.
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May 29, 2010 07:20
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I was into r/c's many years ago and finally decided I need a hobby. I picked up an HPI Nitro MT from a friend of mine that had been sitting in his garage for the longest time. It's the first nitro I've ever owned so I've learned a lot from it. To begin with, tuning a brand new motor can be a massive pain in the rear end but it's rewarding once you get it running properly. Another thing I learned is that old plastic breaks easily. Every time I run the fucker, something else breaks. Whatever, spare parts are useful to have. I had to replace the motor in the HPI so I replaced it with a brand new OS .15 CV X. Tuning a little nitro motor for the first time ever was an experience. Frustrating, time consuming but ultimately satisfying when I got it right.  I don't really like the body that much so I'm plastering random stickers on it. Mr. Beer ftw  Cleaning it up so all the electronics are removed. I put new wheels and tires on since that photo. Zoey helps me clean ;D Trolling Craigslist, I found a Traxxas Emaxx for pretty cheap. It's nowhere near as fast as the HPI but it's way tougher.  The guy who owned it before me has bashed the hell out of it but it's running great. I'm replacing a few things like a new spur gear, new bumpers, new skid plates and new shocks and a new radio system. Besides that I've already given it a proper beating and it's holding up great. For whatever reason, the guy replaced the 3 channel radio with a 2 channel. I replaced that with a 2.4ghz Spektrum 3 channel radio and it's so awesome. I want to replace the radio in the HPI with a 2.4ghz radio since I've had it few away from me a few times. Last time I took it out, it took off and hit a loving golf kart!    
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May 30, 2010 18:27
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hahaha, love the pedobear
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May 30, 2010 21:00
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Posted this in the what have you bought recently thread in PYF, thought it would be interested to use on my bike/RC cars:  That's a spy video camera. 30fps color AVI video, 720 pixels wide, 1.2 megapixel still camera. I'm going to try attaching it to my bike helmet or handlebars to capture rides, for the hell of it. Youtube review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dt10cFk0C8c, but there's several different versions of it, some supposedly have voice activation so it records only when there's activity. Paid £6 for it and had to spend another tenner to get an 8gb micro sd card. US eBay link: http://shop.ebay.com/items/?_nkw=Spy+Car+Key+Chain+Camera+DVR+covert&_sacat=&_ex_kw=&_mPrRngCbx=1&_udlo=&_udhi=&_sop=12 or just search car 'spy car key chain camera' on eBay where you live
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Jun 1, 2010 10:50
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