Horatio
Well-known member
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As some of you here know, I'm a long time Baja 5B enthusiast.
For me, the Baja 5B has been the gift that just kept on giving. 16 years on, the rig I imported into the UK from Stormer Hobbies for the princely sum of $894 was worth every penny. The favourable exchange rate at that time meant that I received my enormous kit at a much better price than the UK.
My new gasser got used every weekend that I could, on a track - mainly against FG's Marders and Leopards, and a couple of other Bajas.
We even had some Max Bashers crew turn up from time to time. Racing at our regular 1/8th track couldn't happen, because these rigs shredded the track and the noise was too much for a nearby holiday park.
So for a time, a club started to form on a former RAF airfield. It was fun - but access was difficult and we weren't allowed to have a rostrum or anything permanently on the land. Shame - because we had a really good track there for a time.
Then, because the Baja sounded like a Moto X bike, options for blasting around became very limited.
For a time, my noisy fuel guzzlers were confined to the garage.
Then, circumstances changed and I could at least get to use my noisy machines.
Whilst my Baja had some upgrades, I was beginning to realise that it had not received as much love as it deserved.
So, the mission began.
Engine was given some TLC, mesh modded and given an outerwear.
Upgraded the brakes.
I persevered with Baja bodies and their grass collectors for a time...
Until it was time to try something different. Running the Baja 'naked' was just something I never did. I always wore clothes.
So over winter lockdowns in 2020, I decided to build 5" FPV drones, something I've been thoroughly absorbed by since. This for a few months put any/all upgrades for RC cars on stop.
2021 for the most part was a year I'm sure most of us would sooner forget. The earlier part of the year was full of setback and sadness. By the summer, when most of us should have been enjoying the weather, we were still trying to avoid the lab leak virus.
I was also in the midst of a major career change.
RC highlights included:
And my revisiting my childhood RC:
So the Baja went through a new phase of upgrades in 2023. The worst of the virus drama was over and people started to return to normality.
Bonehead Carbon upgrades were applied throughout, chassis plates, pin braces, mounts - all through.
The time had come to lose the body shells.
And kit the car with some stronger gear.
A splash of alloy upgrades and now the Baja was heading in a specific Carbon with alloy loom - with a hint of SS orange.
Fuel lines and induction were improved and yielded a 2 mph improvement in top speed - but more importantly - made for instant starting.
2024 brought a year filled with family medical drama, a home move, musical commitments, recording and work - but with a new home came a bigger workshop....
For me, the Baja 5B has been the gift that just kept on giving. 16 years on, the rig I imported into the UK from Stormer Hobbies for the princely sum of $894 was worth every penny. The favourable exchange rate at that time meant that I received my enormous kit at a much better price than the UK.
My new gasser got used every weekend that I could, on a track - mainly against FG's Marders and Leopards, and a couple of other Bajas.
We even had some Max Bashers crew turn up from time to time. Racing at our regular 1/8th track couldn't happen, because these rigs shredded the track and the noise was too much for a nearby holiday park.
So for a time, a club started to form on a former RAF airfield. It was fun - but access was difficult and we weren't allowed to have a rostrum or anything permanently on the land. Shame - because we had a really good track there for a time.
Then, because the Baja sounded like a Moto X bike, options for blasting around became very limited.
For a time, my noisy fuel guzzlers were confined to the garage.
Then, circumstances changed and I could at least get to use my noisy machines.
Whilst my Baja had some upgrades, I was beginning to realise that it had not received as much love as it deserved.
So, the mission began.
Engine was given some TLC, mesh modded and given an outerwear.
Upgraded the brakes.
I persevered with Baja bodies and their grass collectors for a time...
Until it was time to try something different. Running the Baja 'naked' was just something I never did. I always wore clothes.
So over winter lockdowns in 2020, I decided to build 5" FPV drones, something I've been thoroughly absorbed by since. This for a few months put any/all upgrades for RC cars on stop.
2021 for the most part was a year I'm sure most of us would sooner forget. The earlier part of the year was full of setback and sadness. By the summer, when most of us should have been enjoying the weather, we were still trying to avoid the lab leak virus.
I was also in the midst of a major career change. RC highlights included:
And my revisiting my childhood RC:
So the Baja went through a new phase of upgrades in 2023. The worst of the virus drama was over and people started to return to normality.
Bonehead Carbon upgrades were applied throughout, chassis plates, pin braces, mounts - all through.
The time had come to lose the body shells.
And kit the car with some stronger gear.
A splash of alloy upgrades and now the Baja was heading in a specific Carbon with alloy loom - with a hint of SS orange.
Fuel lines and induction were improved and yielded a 2 mph improvement in top speed - but more importantly - made for instant starting.
2024 brought a year filled with family medical drama, a home move, musical commitments, recording and work - but with a new home came a bigger workshop....
Sacrilege. 
I'm in. 
with 2.5ml 2 stroke fuel at a time, to prime the engine. It's hard to get fuel to the carb if there is air in the lines, even when using the primer bulb. 
