Nikko RC Toys

A long time frontrunner in the manufacture of radio controlled toys, NIKKO has dozens of RC cars and trucks and a few boats and aircraft as well. They produce everything from tough and colorful RCs with basic controls for preschool and elementary age children to highly detailed, officially licensed cars with more options for the older kids. Most NIKKO RCs are in the 1:10 to 1:32 range and are high quality RC toys.

You'll find various models of Ferrari, Peugeot, Renault, Toyota, Audi, Mercedes, Subaru, Mitsubishi and others in the Evolution Tuners line. A few of the models come in two or more scales.

Available in two frequencies, the Street Mayhem Tuners come with a variety of changing features. Each scale has its own special "bling bling" ranging from spinning rims to drifting tires to lights, sound, or wheelies.

The Fast and the Furious official movie merchandise models -- all drifters -- are available in 1:10, 1:16, and 1:22 scales and include several Nissan models, a '67 Ford Mustang, a Honda NSX, and a Mazda RX-7.

Available in two frequencies, full function RC boats are typically around 1:30 scale and include sailing and motor boats. The 1:25 Dolphin Classic has a bilge pump. The 1:19 Banana Boat comes with a float and figures to tow. In addition to a few simple airplanes with forward, left, and right controls they have a 3-channel helicopter. The Big Racer series has 1:5 scale cycles with turbo-function controllers. Some specialty and stunt RC vehicles include the Rock N Runner and Twist 'n Turn RCs that do multi-directional flips. Look for Nikko RC toys at major retailers including Fry's Electronics, RadioShack, Wal-Mart, and Target. Selection will vary by location.

Visit the Nikko webshop for spare parts, batteries & chargers, and accessories for the Evolution Series including new motors, tires, and body kits.

RC Engine Size or Displacement

A reader asks, "how do you determine the cc of an engine if it is measured in so many different ways?" The confusion comes in the way the engine size is expressed by different RC manufacturers. Some might use something like 2.5cc or 4.4cc while others use a number like .15 or .27. How do these numbers compare to each other?Answer: RC engine size or displacement is measured in cubic centimeters (cc) or cubic inches (ci). In terms of RC engines, displacement is the volume of space a piston travels through during a single stroke. A larger number, whether expressed in cubic centimenters or cubic inches, denotes a larger engine. Displacement is only one factor that determines performance of the vehicle.

The best way to determine the displacement for a specific engine and vehicle is to view the detailed specs for that engine which should list the displacement in either cubic centimeters or cubic inches (or both). However, if you don't have the specs handy for a specific engine, you can often figure out the approximate displacement based on the name, as explained below.

Common RC engine displacements range from about .12 to .46 and larger. These numbers that begin with a decimal point are the displacement in cubic inches. Sometimes the abbreviation ci is appended to the measurement. But just remember that a .18 engine is actually .18ci or .18 cubic inches of displacement.

That same .12 to .46 range, expressed in cubic centimeters would be approximately 1.97cc to 7.5cc of displacement. You can use an online conversion tool to quickly convert from cc to ci or ci to cc. Here's a small reference list (cc is rounded) to give you an idea of how cubic inches compare to cubic centimeters: .12ci - 2.0cc .15ci - 2.5cc .18ci - 3.0cc .21ci - 3.5cc .25ci - 4.1cc .27ci - 4.4cc .32ci - 5.2cc .36ci - 5.9cc .46ci - 7.5cc Studying the manufacturers specifications is the best way to determine engine size, but manufacturers will often include a number in the name of the vehicle or the name of the engine that represents the displacement. For example, the HPI Firestorm 10T is described as having a G3.0 engine. The 3.0 refers to the displacement of 3.0cc. That 3.0cc is the equivalent of a .18 engine.

The Supertigre G-27CS engine, found in the DuraTrax Warhead EVO is a .27 big block engine. It has a 4.4cc displacement. Traxxas often puts the engine size right in the name of the vehicle, to differentiate an earlier model with a different engine size. The Jato 3.3, the T-Maxx 3.3, and the 4-TEC 3.3 all feature the TRX3.3 engine. That's 3.3cc, which translates to something like a .19 engine when expressed in cubic inches.

In discussing the power or performance of a specific RC engine, displacement is only one indicator. RPM (revolutions per minute) and horsepower (HP) are also indicative of how the engine performs.

Horsepower is a standard unit for measuring the power of an engine. An engine with a .21ci displacement can typically produce between 2 and 2.5 HP at around 30,000 to 34,000 RPM. Some manufacturers might emphasize the horsepower of their engine. You'll have to refer to the individual specs to determine the actual displacement of a specific horsepower engine.

Repair Toy RCs

Toy-grade RCs are generally not as durable or long-lasting as hobby-grade models. Toy stores don't usually offer repair services and parts are hard to come by as well. So what can you do when a sentimental favorite toy RC goes on the fritz?Always check the obvious first: Fresh batteries? Batteries installed correctly? Both RC and transmitter turned on? Antenna fully extended? If the toy has a channel selection option, is both the vehicle and the transmitter set to the same channel? Correct transmitter? If you have more than one toy with the same transmitter, make sure you're using the right one. A 27MHz transmitter will not worth on a 49MHz vehicle.

Still not working properly, then you may need to do some deeper searches for the problem.

If replacing the RC is out of the question you can first try contacting the manufacturer for replacement or repair. For new vehicles they may offer replacement parts for items that are known to break or wear out easily. For most toy RCs it's unlikely that you'll find an extensive catalog of replacement parts and they probably won't be available more than a year or so after the RC was manufacturered.

If you are buying a new RC and there are special batteries, replacement parts, or upgrades available it's a good idea to pick some up right then. This is especially important with toys because unlike hobby-grade RCs, there usually aren't a lot of extras available and when they are, it's for a limited time.

You can replace some parts with a similar piece from another RC. Search your toy box for old RCs. Look online on eBay or Craigslist for the same or similiar RCs that you could salvage parts from.

The RC guys at hobby stores don't usually tackle repairs on toy RCs, but you can always ask. Or find a friend or family member who knows their way around small electronics.

Generally toy RCs are not designed to be worked on by the consumer. Getting to the internal parts such as motor, drivetrain, steering, and circuit boards can be difficult. But if you know what you're doing and have patience, it is possible to get inside and change out a dead motor or servo or replace stripped gears or re-solder broken connections on the circuit board.

Check the frequency of your RC (usually 27MHz or 49MHz in the U.S. -- typically printed on the bottom) and buy another similiar toy RC car or truck at your local discount toy store. Its controller will usually work with other toys that use the same frequency -- but no guarantees. Or check your own RC collection for another transmitter of the same frequency.

While there are up to 6 channels within both the 27MHz and 49MHz frequency ranges, most toys use just one of those channels. For 27MHz toys it is usually the 27.145MHz, Channel 4. For 49MHz, 49.36MHz Channel 3 is a common one. However, the manufacturer rarely specifies specific channels (about the only way to be sure is to find the crystal on the circuit board inside the transmitter).

If the RC wobbles or won't turn properly you may have broken a steering arm. Look under and inside for a long strip of plastic (like the tie rods on a real car) near the front wheels. It might be a metal wire.

If the steering rod is broken or has become detached from the servo, you may be able to see and fix that without completely opening up the RC. It just depends on how it's put together and how much access you have without taking things apart. You may be able to fix a broken steering rod with glue, wire, or another piece of plastic.

Super glue and a little paint will do wonders. In fact, broken plastic internal parts can sometimes be fixed with a drop of glue. And if the damage is purely cosmetic, covering up with paint or decals can give an old RC new life.

For a complete overhaul, remove the body. Scrub it down. Remove any decals. Give it a whole new paint job.

When the internal componenents are beyond salvaging but the body is still looking good you could replace the inner workings. This option would probably cost a lot more than the toy RC is worth but if you want to do it, get yourself a new hobby-grade transmitter -- it comes with servos, receiver, and other needed parts. Also purchase an electronic speed control.

If you have no idea what to do with all these parts, you're probably better off buying an entirely new RC.