Serpent have announced that former European Championship finalist Mikael Fransson has rejoined their team for the upcoming season, having driven for Mugen most recently. The Swede will run the S120 during the cold winter months before turning his attention to the 733 and 966 in the spring time. He will compete in the Swedish Championships, the Nordic Cup as well as the European Championships for both 1/8th and 1/10th scale.
Source: Serpent [serpent.com]
Italian company Motonica have announced the signing of front running French driver Stéphane Bouche has joined their National team. A 3 time runner up in the French National Championships, last year’s Coupe de France winner hopes to finally capture the National title for his new team. Stéphane had the following to say about the deal:
Firstly, thanks a lot to team Shepherd for their support for the last 3 years. Now it’s a new challenge for me and I’m really happy to join the Motonica team and I will make my best for the next seasons in the different races. The P81 was really performing well and I’m sure that the new RS will be even better for all Motonica’s drivers.
Source: Motonica [motonica.com]
We heard some rumors about his departure from Mugen and today RCAmerica/Xray USA have announced the signing of Mike Swauger for the 2011 season. Mike is a World Champion, Multi-time World’s finalist and has many National titles also. They are very excited with what Mike brings to the table for the 2011 season. Mike will be using the NT1 WE and the all new RX8 this season along with SRC 1/10 and 1/8 tires. The first race out for Mike will be the Winternats in Fort Myers FL and he will also be attending the up and coming 1/8 World Championship in Homestead, FL. Mike had this to say about the deal:
I would like to thank Mugen for the many years of support and wish them the best. I am really looking forward to this next year with RCAmerica/Xray USA. I feel that I will fit in well on the team with follow drivers like Ralph Burch and Paul Lemieux. This will be the start of one of the strongest teams in the US and I am very happy to be part of it. I will be helping Xray USA with R&D and some team management on the West coast. Thanks to everyone that has showed me support thru the years and I am proud to let everyone know that my new home is RCAmerica/Xray USA.
Source: RC America [rcamerica.com]
Saddle packs can offer the flexibility to arrange your power source into different configurations but are not always exactly what you need. Thanks to the size of this Xcelorin 7.4V 3800mAh 2S2P LiPo battery pack, chassis placement and tuning options are in your control. As the perfect power source for the Team Losi Racing 22 Buggy in either rear-motor or mid-motor configuration, it will also be right at home in any 1/10-scale electric application. Chassis tuning can be obtained by positioning the battery either to the front or the back in a standard size battery tray with optional foam blocks to adjust the weight distribution.
View a comparison of this and a standard stick pack
The Malaysian Shepherd Cup 2010 was held recently at the Niko Race Circuit close to Johor. On Saturday heavy rain hit the track but on Sunday luckily the weather was fine and the race started at 9:30 in the morning with very traction at the beginning. After three rounds of qualifying Shepherd driver Niko Cheng claimed the third position in the grid after having some small problems lapping slower drivers. The start of the final was very smooth and Niko was able to overtake the second placed driver immediately. He chased the leader and on the third lap Niko was able to take the lead and pull away. By half way through the race he had extended his lead to two laps and slowed down a little bit for the rest of the race. After 45 min he crossed the finish line in first position, two laps in front of second placed KS Chu.
Source: Shepherd [team-shepherd.com]
KM Racing have introduced this carbon engine heat guard plate for their H-K1 200mm chassis. To be used with the HK441V2 single piece engine block, it helps prevent the heat from the engine from affecting the receiver battery as well as the servos.
Source: KM Racing [km-rc.com]
DnM Tech have introduced this dogbone pin removal and installation tool. A compact design for ease of transport, this user friendly tool has been heat treated for durability and black coated to prevent rusting. Simply place the end with the pin that you wish to replace into the tool and use the supplied attachments to push it out and to press fit a new one.
Source: DNM Tech [dnm-tech.com]
Huge R/C Products, from Surikarn Chaidajsuriya, has released their second LiPo pack, this 5800mAh 50C Race series 7.4v battery pack. Featuring a hard case for crash protection it comes supplied with 4mm bullet connectors.
Source: Huge [huge_rcproducts@live.com]
