chase044

My Feedback: (1)

does anyone have one of these. they look prety cool. the size is smaller thana mini-z but bigger than a zip zap and thats why i like them. i was wondering if anyone had one b/c i was looking into getting one but dont know how good they are or if they are even worth buying. my lhs has had a couple go in and out of their store and they've had this one on the self for a while and dont know if i should get it. im not accactly getting it to race against other poeple but to drive around my house or get 2 of them and race my dad. (he will win since he has has over 20 years experience and wooped my butt when we got the hpi micro rs4s) we got 2 of those m rs4s and they were a blast to race (they were modified). back to the topics. what kind of mods have you guys do too. please tell my all you know about these epoches or what is needed to know.
thanks,
Bryan

Cory Ream

i have seen them the detail is amazing on them

chase044

My Feedback: (1)

yah they do have prety good detail but i dont care about the detail. i car about the performance. even though im not going to race anyone other than my dad i still like to have a good performing car.

Cory Ream

i have the Digi Q, its extremely fast for its size. but the turning on it is horrible. I got mine here www.sigmaautomotive.com , they have a lot of mini cars boats submarines helicopers and some other stuff

chase044

My Feedback: (1)

your link doesn't work.

BovineD

I have two models the Mitsubishi Evo VIII rally version and the Acura Integra road version which are both spec 2 cars. The spec 1s are the older version and I would stay away from these because the spec 2s are superior in everyway.

The cars are fully proportional for both steering and throttle. The cars come with a controller but is pretty crappy in my opinion, however the cool thing is that it uses standard AM crystals so you can use your favorite AM radio like the Kyosho TXs for MiniZs which is what I use.

There is a rear diff so handling is smooth and responsive.

Hop ups are a bit hard to come by but the main distributor is in my home town so it is relatively easy to get them. Even with that however there are not many hopups and hardly any third party hopups which is kinda dissapointing. The cars are relatively quick especially compared to bits, zaps, digiq and the micro breed but max out at about 5-6mph about half of a stock miniz.

There are user mods the most popular which seems to be adding a fourth cell as the cars come with 3 and from what I have seen it definitely gives it an impressive speed boost. The most attractive thing abou the Epochs are that you charge them for only a couple of minutes and you get a good 10~15 mins of run time from the little car. A definite plus if you have used bits and zaps.

What does suck about the Epochs is that you cannot dismantle the real gear differential. If you get hairs or carpet fibers in there good luck getting it out. You are better off buying a new rear pod. This sucks as I run onlow pile carpet but if you are on hard surface that would be perfect.

The tough thing about the Epochs are that they are in a class all by themselves and it is hard to compare as it dominates the bits and zaps but cannot compare to the MiniZs or even Xmods so it kind of gets left out in the cold.

The bodies are beatiful however and the main thing that gets in the way is the price. IF you can find a spec2 for 50 or under then I would definitely say pick one up but for 90 I would have preferred a better TX.

If you have used nothing but bits in the microworld and your next step up is 1/10th then I would say get a MiniZ but if you are looking for something that can run in a smaller space and can race with all day without having to wait for batteries to charge and motors to cool down and you can get it at a decent price then by all means pick one up, er, I mean pick 2 up becaue what fun is one??

I lucked out as my LHS was having a GREAT deal where I picked up my two epochs two for 90 bucks! Also around the same time the website was having a great offer where if you bought a complete spec 2 you were give another chassis set (no TX but that was better in my opinion) and a free case and charger!

Let me know if you have any questions on the Epochs.

If I get some time at work I will snap some pics or maybe post a movie somewhere to compare.

Devedander

I got 2 Epcohs, one spec 2 and one Spec 1.5 (Speed racer set). I say go for a speed racer set, they go for about $30, the electronics and design is a little inferior to spec 2 but they still drive and control great and you can get into the diff on a 1.5. Darn good cars, can't think of any reason not to get these accept lack of competition... but get spec 1.5 and you can easily get 2 to race (they even have 2 bodies, so you can race just like in the cartoon!)

Cory Ream

hmm maybe they stopped selling the stuff

chase044

My Feedback: (1)

ive been looking at them for a couple days now. thanks for the big review BovineD. i do like that the spec 2 has the udjustible suspension and you can take off the tires of the spec 2 but not the spec 1. if i do get one i will be getting li-poly batteries for them. i have heard that the included charger doesn't complately charge them all the way. its a timed charger tat it comes with so it either charges too much or too little. also another reasson it doesnt charge all the way is b/c it charges at a high mah so the batteries get hot. so to keep them from getting hot it limits the charge. but ive heard that people charge them with a peak charger and they get 20-25 minutes of run time. the li-poly i would run is this one from http://www.b-p-p.com/Batteries.htm .
its 145 mah. so since its so small (thin) i would double it up and get a 1 cell 2 pack and get 290 mah.
Thanks,
Bryan

Wheelnut

My Feedback: (81)

Boy!! its been a long time since anyone has talked about these. Does anyone know where to get them?

B18c_tuner

I have some BNIB if any1 is interested. they are only chassis and body sets tho as well as some parts. they can be seen here: http://ripper7racing.com/r7rforums/s...ead.php?t=3688
I will try to post in the marketplace shorty.

B18c_tuner

no1 is interested in these anymore?

BovineD

still race mine on a monthly basis on my RCP Tracks...actually we still have 3 so its a good break when charging the batts for the miniZs. Wish someone would make this size and quality of RC but I think the new Kyosho dNano's are a good fit for that...

B18c_tuner

yea the d-nano's are a superior car but the price is just rediculous, i heard its like 300-400$ for an rtr set...

forrest225

they are 240 not batt or radio: http://www.dnanoshop.com/Kyosho_dNaN...errari_360.htm

BovineD

I just hope that they let another US distributor carry them soon so it will drop the prices. Also the Kyosho Lit's seem like a comparable choice but I cant find those anywhere either.

B18c_tuner

the lit seems more of an epoch to me while the dnano seems like a step into the future for the micro r/c world. i was watching some vids on youtube and that **** runs like a mini-z lol. but the price needs to be around 150-200$ for an rtr to be competitive in the market. After all it is like 4 inches long by 2.5 inches wide. I don't even think that mini-z's retailed this high when they were released, we're they? sick car for the micro world nonetheless

BovineD

For some reason I think the speed is a bit low for the dnano's...couple guys have them at my local track and they barely seem faster then the epochs were. I know they have way better electronics and the 2.4ghz but handling wise and speed seemed about the same. I should have raced my epoch alongside it to see how they performed but I know for sure they will have many more hop ups and parts for the dnano. They definitely need to come down in price however for me to even consider one.

tyhodge07

ive been on the i want of the dnano for a couple months now. ofcourse 400+ for one is what has held me back. the dnano priced at 200-250 than the starter pack priced around 100-150+ is just ridiculous and pushed me away from wanting one. maybe they will be lower of half the price in the next year, than ill grab one.

B18c_tuner

thats interesting BovineD i'd like to see also how a modified epoch would run beside a dnano. Maybe a 3 or 4 celled turbo equipped shotgun motor mounted epoch or even a lipo charged epoch. also I agree with you tyhodge07 on the pricing. I think epoch should released a spec 3 car... Something that would be more of a competitive chassis against the dnano. Im thinking a lower center of gravity for the chassis and also the upgraded electronics along with a few more hop ups like carbon fiber chassis (upper and lower). More variety in the motors we use and also gearing... not to mention a ball diff. Also an upgraded sterring motor wouldn't hurt. The suspension would need work too only the rear tho. I'm thinking a smaller version of the mini-z mr 02 chassis for the rear suspension. The t-bar suspension isn't ideal for racing in my eyes. Mayb even different tire compounds too. what do u guys think? I think instead of a dieing brand we should have it compete against the best in the business.

mikeross1

Hello first time posting. Ive read where one person says that the US distributor for the Epochs in his home town of Newark. Ive read where someone said that you can't disasemble the rear dif. Ive read all kinds of rumor and speculation about the Spec-2 So I thought I should post here and maybe it will help. I live in Santa Maria Ca. and guess what? I'm the US distributor for the Epoch Indoor Racer Spec-2. I thought I would clear up some stuff about the Epoch. One you can disasemble the Dif. You can get hop up parts for them. The cars can be converted into 1/32 the Mini-Lit difs and bearings and other parts will work with the Epoch and so will several other parts from other R/C cars. We manufacture Lipo Battery packs with plugs for the Epoch Spec-2 we also build Dual coreless aluminum motor mounts with turbo boards that will make this little wonder flat out give a mini-Z a run for it's money. We have bearing sets and you can even turn the 27Mghz to 2.4Ghz. I'm posting because I would like to know if there is any interest in our company building a Spec-3. I would love to hear you folks and I would love to know what we can do to make the Spec-3 the perfect car. We want to build it with a removable battery pack and motor mount. We want to have bearing sets and different options to make the Epoch an even better R/C car. I have about 250 body and chassis sets availible. I agree with the observation that a better radio makes this a better car. This car will work with about any 26 - 27Mghz radio. If the radio has a brake it will work with the epoch-spec-2. If the radio has degrees of turning the Epoch will work with it. The best thing we ever did was convert it to 2.4Ghz using the KYOSHO 2.4Ghz board and radio. I have also converted several 1/32 slotcars into R/C using the Spec-2 chassis. For what the Spec-2 is and what it cost I think the Spec-2 was way ahead of it's time. The dNaNo (which I have two) is bascially what we presented to Tiny-r/c website two years before KYOSHO even built it. I love the dNaNo's I think it's a great little car. However I think with a Spec-2 with bearings a Aluminum Motor mount using the coreless motors you folks just might like it more than a dNaNo for only one reason the Cost. yet you would find a car that is a joy to drive and with a lipo you could see run times as high as 25 minutes. The charger that comes with the Spec-2 is ok yet if you charge it using a real charger you will get better run times. Good or bad I love reading all the posts about the Epoch and it's good to see some of you still interested in the Spec-2. Let me know if there is anything I can do to help and or clear up about the Epochs. Thanks agian to all of you who post about the Epochs. look forward to your thoughts and suggestions. Best Regards, Mike Ross CEO/Managing Partner APEX USA LLC

B18c_tuner

hey Mike! its Brandon from Torrance. I have tried to get in contact with you and also Phil but to no avail. I would love to help you guys out in coming out with a spec 3 chassis. Please give me an email @ [email protected] if this is possible. Thanks again.

BovineD

OMG this is what happens when I dont check posts after a year! Did anything happen from this? Mike can I but these parts directly from you? I would love to max out my epochs and turn some heads at these dnano races!

chase044

My Feedback: (1)

dang what an old post. i was just browsing look for new rc car that have come recently since im not too into rc anymore. and saw this thread and was like hey i got a epoch. and then i relized i started this thread 6 years ago! wow. i still have the darn thing, but its in pieces cuz i was going to mod it and never got a chance to do it. i wonder if they came out with that spec 3 like he was talking about. its been over a year since he wrote that thread.

mikeross1

Hello, I happen to get an email about these post. So Anyway I still have cars and some hop-up parts. I, like Brandon, have been trying to get in touch with Phil and no luck for months now. As far as a Spec -3 it will happen someday the problem at least for a while there was the cost and then the economy. The only way A Spec-3 happens is you guys and gals having any interest. If I do a pre-sale of 15,000 units then The Spec -3 can happen.

As far as hop up parts there are all kinds of parts from Kyosho that will work with the Epochs. I really like converting 1/32 slotcars to R/C using the Spec -2 chassis. I use the Mini-Lit dif and Phil built around it 2 coreless motors. We used the Mini-Lit hubs and bearings and King-pin. In some conversions I used the Epoch rims shoved into the back of the 1/32 rims that we predrilled the backs out. Even stock the 1/32 cars fly. As for other conversions the 2.4 board and radio that Kyosho sells will work in the Epoch or better said the Epoch can be converted to 2.4Ghz. Try this on your Epochs it will blow you away! Why spend $250 or more when you can get the 2.4 radio and board for $115.00 and my chassis for $30.00?

Do you guys also know that just about any am radio will work with the Epoch. So lets say the radio has break it will work with the Epoch. Percentage of steering? It works with the Epoch board. Adjustable settings? Works with the Epoch.

Last thing I will say. I love the dNaNo and I get it. Yet the dNaNo is exactly what Phil Kronholm told Kyosho to build. He never told them to their faces like I had in the past. Yet Kyosho did take Phils idea and run with it. If you have a dNaNo then you can thank Phil Kronhilm for it. If ever our Spec -3 idea comes off it will blow the dNaNo away and it will cost half of what you folks pay for the dNaNo now. I love this hobby and it's been fun to sit back and watch folks and see their views or lack thereof. Yet I would love to know from this forum would folks buy the Spec -3? I wonder? Let me know what you think or if you want to convert or hop-up your Epochs or just want to talk R/C. Thanks folks!

Mike

[email protected]
[email protected]
(805) 922-0881

If you want a chassis or need Mini-Lit parts I use to convert just about any 1/32 slotcar to R/C let me know. There are other R/C parts that work great with the Epoch some of the F-1 parts work great. I also have these parts available.