Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

I'm trying to record the max speed (mph) of how fast my rc car is going. I have an iphone I tried every app I could find and none of them are giving me accurate readings, some not recording any speed at all. I bought a Garmin Forerunner 201 it looks like it's tracking the speed on the device while it's running because when it slows down and I catch up to it I can see the MPH decreasing. However when I check the history, it always gives me the same stats like 3 mph one time I got 10 mph and there's no way my jato is going 3 that slow. I guess it could be the device itself since I bought it used but, not sure if I should buy the same thing again or buy a different device.

What can I use? I probably need a GPS device that will record max speed. I don't want to install telemetry or anything that has to be actually installed into the vehicle and plugged into the receiver etc. I have some other things that I need to measure the speed on that are not hobby grade rc cars.

Any suggestions?

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RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

could always buy a cheap speed gun

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

thought about that too but, how will I be able to use the radar gun while I'm driving the car? i'm doing this at my shop and i'm the only person here.

i'm thinking about getting it just to try it but, would like to hear some other suggestions first.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

are you sure the garmin is in the right setting as i have the 301 and it took a while to get it right. on mine i can set 3 things like top speed average speed and distance. and i have to press start before the run. also if you plug it into your PC you can see what speeds you were doing. and you can overlay you run onto google maps.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

ive used a venom speed meter with great success, pluss they are cheap

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

i did just get It today so maybe I'm missing something but I tried to go into settings only thing I did was change from "pace" running mode to "speed" cycling mode so it will get mph. I also press start when I do a run then hit stop once I'm done. Anyway on this one it doesn't look like you can connect to pc so I'm going to get the 301 and see if that works.
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RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

the 301 is excellent.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

http://www.rchobbyexplosion.com/Veno...p/vnel-102.htm

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

Or if you have an iphone or any android device, there are a multitude of apps (some free) that will give you a lot more information than most RC telemetry systems, and more accurate too, since it's accelerometer AND GPS based.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

He said in his first post he already tried all the apps he could find with no success.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

I use a stalker Pro Radar gun (it's for sale) and when I am alone, I just put it on a tripod. The gun has a max speed hold feature so it will hold it's highest speed and display until you clear. Iused to use it back in the day to radar Jet Skis for race applications. Now we just set it up at the end of the runway and let the hot rodders make high speed passes at it. If anyone is interested in purchasing it, please PM me as Ihave no use for it anymore. This is the same one police used before lasers became all the rage.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

I sent you a PM, I'm interested.
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RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

wow crap on second thought I'm not so sure, after doing a little research pricing is insane! I'm not looking to spend around a $1k lol I'd like stay within $200.

However, could you please let me know which kind of tripod you use? Then maybe I can get one of the cheap bushnell radar guns and set that up on a tripod.

Thanks!
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RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

well the tip about the tripod was good i started doing some research and ended up coming across this:<div>http://www.ebay.com/itm/Bushnell-Spe...item4856880080</div><div>
</div><div>it's a little more than what i wanted to spend but, looks like it would work great for me and the reviews are good. i wanted to make some youtube videos and at first i was just going to take a picture of a gps unit on the car but, now I can just have that display setup and while i'm driving the car, i'll be able to record the speed/display in the video. </div>

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

I've used Dynolicious for iphone and OBD Torque for Android, they work well in my 1:1.

OP, you know you need to setup and callibrate the apps, right? Anyway, a speed gun is probably the better solution.<br type="_moz" />

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

this if u have a sensored motor...


http://www.ebay.com/itm/GT-Power-sen...item2a2e4dcf05

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

Hmmmm.... if some company built a radio that was a radar gun too...?????

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

just saying a radar gun is good but after a while you might want a speed tracker with GPS like the phone app or garmin.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

I use a garmin foretrex 301 for my large scale gas boats. It works great, is nice and compact, and will connect to your PC to download your information. The nice thing about downloading runs is you can see what speed you are traveling at any point, not just the maximum and average speeds recorded.

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

How do you calibrate them? I never saw any setting or anything that had an option to calibrate, they all just seem pretty straight forward, just press "start" and "stop". I mean the reviews were good on them so I guess it can't be that the apps don't work or else it wouldn't work for anybody not just me. Perhaps it's the area I'm in? Maybe it's just not picking up a good GPS signal? Maybe that's why I'm also having issues with the Garmin? I live in the city, I get cell phone coverage just fine but, who knows. It did take a long while for the Garmin to first pick up the satellites or whatever, it was saying "locating" for so long I had to just put it on the ground and come back to it.

Well I'm really looking forward to the radar gun, and I'll probably go ahead and get the Garmin 301 as well if I can find a good deal on a used, if I can get it for $50 so I'll do it.

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RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

Hey those apps are cool, Does the OBD one use GPS as well as wheel speed? I'm assuming u are using a dongle on the ODB II plug? What's the range on the Bluetooth dongle like?

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

Bluetooth range is standard at 8-11m.<div>
</div><div>I always found dynolicious (this was a while ago, a couple years) to be the preferred choice as it used almost exclusively accelerometer data, which I feel has the potential to be the most accurate assuming running on a perfectly flat surface.</div><div>
</div><div>To be honest, I haven't used ODB Torque for much but diagnostic checks, I borrowed a dongle from someone else, still haven't decided what I'm going to use the app for to be honest, but I was planning on finding an RC use for it.</div>

RE: Need Speedometer for RC car or something to record max speed
 

Ahhh cool. Cheers
My wife's car has the diagnostic plug in the engine bay so that's why I was curious about the range.

I'm gonna buy dynolicious. Thanks for the sharing :D

We have developed this product that is being extended to provide speedometer/odometer information for RC cars. Check it out on kickstarter: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...-is-your-train (or RC Car)

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