This comprehensive guide to R/C bead lock wheels examines their mechanical principles, weighs their pros and cons against traditional glue-on alternatives, and analyzes their specific suitability for diverse applications including rock crawling, bashing, high-speed racing, and drifting, to help radio-controlled model vehicle enthusiasts make an informed choice in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.

When applying a CRP (Custom Racing Products) rear bumper on a ORV (Off-Road Vehicle) chassis gearbox with a gearbox support gear tensioner, like the ones from Skibby's Performance Mods, depending on the direction you place the metal pieces, your white dyeable nylon bumper will either bend outward or inward. In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we check all perspectives to see which of these options, convex or concave, is best for your Subaru BRAT, vintage Lancia 037 Rally, Mighty Frog, Blackfoot, Super Beetle, etc. by using material science and the laws of physics and geometry to give you the best bump for your buck. 

A popular hop-up option is to replace the stock faux headlamp buckets on radion control cars, trucks, buggies, jeeps, busses, and vans with real working LED (Light-Emitting Diode) headlights. There are PnP (Plug-and-Play) hop-up options from companies like Tamiya, but DIY (Do-It-Yourself) options are widely available as well. We unwire and illuminate the step-by-step directions on how to assemble and install these enlightening hop-ups in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Tamiya's the (Mighty) Frog radio-controlled 1/10th scale 2WD (Two Wheel Drive) model buggy kit has box art livery and instructions that direct you to paint it like the Mazda K360 three wheeled delivery trucks that were famously called Frog Delivery Trucks in Japan. We drive deep into the swamp, below the lily pads, and get you all the details on the correct information for Tamiya's first national off-road R/C buggy race winner in this mighty episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

On the RC Deep Dive podcast we constantly talk about how Tamiya, AE (Associated Electronics), Kyosho, Schumacher, Losi, Arrma, and Traxxas are hobby-grade R/C cars, trucks, buggies, tanks, busses, vans, and jeeps. But what is the exact fine line between toy-grade radio control vehicles and the superior hobby model kits, and how has this line changed over the last half century? In this episode we define this moving point of hobby-grade and toy grade radio-controlled model vehicle separation. 

We have covered the Tamiya Electric Handy Drill in a previous episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast, but today we still drill down to the route of when and where you should use another handy tool, the Tamiya Electric Handy Router. They absolutely are not the same and should not be used for a job associated with the other handy craft tools. However, some, but not all of the same suggested hop-ups are applicable to both tools. Let's take a deep dive together! 

In this episode of the RC Deep Dive we power up your knowledge of how toroidal inductors, known as ferrite rings in the R/C hobby, serve as a cost-effective and essential solution for suppressing high-frequency EMI (electromagnetic interference) from powerful electronics to prevent control glitches and ensure reliability in high-performance vehicles. 

While women and girls are welcome to participate in the R/C hobby as much as men and boys, there are certain patterns and preferences that are different among the majority of female radio controlled car, truck, buggy, van, and jeep builders, bashers, collectors, crawlers, displayers, drifters, on-road and off-road racers, and speed runners. We identify these differences and lean into the women's point of view on radio control in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Did you know that whether you see them on the screen or not, that R/C cars, trucks, and buggies have long been an important part of professionally made music videos like the ones that used to be played on MTV (Music Television) and VH1 (Video Hits One)? You may want your MTV or want it off the air now, but we pump up the volume and give you the jamming details in this hard rocking episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Did you know that Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, and Girl Scouts around the world can earn merit badges and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) awards by building, repairing, and hopping-up their radio controlled model vehicles? In this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast we take a hike into the depths of the twin international Scouting and Guiding Movements and explore the badges, merit badges, and other awards that radio control enthusiast Scouts and Guides can earn for their participation in the diverse R/C hobbyist community. 

The acceptance of female R/C hobbyists in Japan evolved from a male-dominated beginning, sparked by media representation in the 1980s and 90s, that normalized their interest. This has culminated in the modern era where dedicated "Girls Class" races and nationally recognized female competitors are now a visible part of the hobby. We dig into the divide and explore the history of the acceptance of girls and women in the Japanese radio controlled model vehicle hobbyist community in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

During the golden age of R/C, for the ORV (Off-Road Vehicle) chassis radio controlled model vehicles, Thorp Manufacturing a.k.a. Dirt Burners was the solution for putting a bulletproof Ball Differential in your gearbox. In the rere (re-release) era, the answer is the MIP (Moore's Ideal Products) Super Ball Diff plus UJs (Universal Joints) or CVDs (Constant Velocity Drives).Which option is better for your vintage or rere Tamiya ORV radio control car, truck, or buggy? We break down the engineering of both amazing products in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Schumacher R/C Racing was sparked by the invention by Cecil Schumacher of a ball differential for his son, Robin. Then, when his Robin Schumacher started winning all of his radio controlled car races, local hobby shops started asking for ball diffs to sell and Schumacher R/C Racing Cars was born. Cecil's ball differentials would prove unpatentable and so Thorp Manufacturing Dirt Burners, AE (Associated Electronics), and eventually MIP (Moore's Ideal Products) JConcepts, and Tamiya started making them for themselves and others as well. We slip into the history of Schumacher and radio control diff gears in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.

American Hop-Up manufacturers like CRP (Custom Racing Products), Pro-Line, Parma, and Thorp Dirt Burners were wildly popular in the Western world, especially for Tamiya radio-controlled model vehicles, but how popular were they in Japan and the Far East during the radio control golden age? What about now? We stamp your passports and take you on a global journey of discovery in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

This episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast tackles the frustrating search for plus-size R/C hobby apparel, a common problem for enthusiasts seeking to represent their favorite brands in sizes 3XL, 4XL, and larger. We provides a comprehensive roadmap, detailing specific products and purchasing strategies from major retailers, niche specialists, and online marketplaces to help you gear up in your size. 

The unlikely cultural overlap between the straight edge hardcore punk scene (often shortened to sXe, XXX, or just X) and vintage Tamiya RC car enthusiasts is rooted in their shared 1980s origins, a mutual devotion to a DIY (Do-It-Yourself) ethos, and strikingly similar visual aesthetics. We clean up this connection that provides a constructive and sober-minded recreational outlet that aligns with straight edge values, allowing adherents to express the same principles of self-sufficiency and creativity learned in the punk scene through the technical hobby of building and collecting in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Beyond Tamiya's own 540 motors like the Tuned and Super Stock hop-up options, there is a wide array of 3rd party aftermarket 540 motors you can use to hop-up your site and torque. But which ones are any good? Which ones should you avoid? We rev our engines loud and dig deep into all of your motor hop-up options for your radio controlled cars, buggies, trucks, vans, busses, and tanks in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

Tamiya, during the golden age of R/C completely ignored the standard type 1 Volkswagen Bug, instead focusing solely on the modified Type One Beetle, the Baja Beetle. Why is this, and do the body shells of on-road Beetles fit on these off-road Baja Beetles? We get inside the people's wagon and put our coleopterologist hats on to answer all of your many questions about the iconic radio controlled bugs in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast. 

This episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast brings out the spooky and analyzes the best Halloween-themed Tamiya R/C monster trucks and cars, comparing the nostalgic charm and delightfully chaotic handling of iconic classics like the Midnight Pumpkin and Monster Beetle against the superior all-terrain performance of their more modern radio controlled counterparts like the Squash Van and the super popular Blackfoot III.   

What is causing Gen Z and the Alpha Generation to get into vintage and rere (re-release) Tamiya R/C buggies, vans, jeeps , trucks, cars, and busses? It's not just Gen X parents introducing radio controlled model kits to their kids, but also from their peers on TikTok. Maybe not too surprisingly to a veteran radio control hobbyist, there's a digital detox and psychological or mental health advantage to youth getting into this hobby from the 1980s. We investigate the reasons that these younger generations are embracing vintage and rere Tamiya RC  in this episode of the RC Deep Dive podcast.