In this edition of the JConcepts Friday5 we talk to California team driver, Edgar Avila!
1. Ok let’s start with how you got first involved in RC. Did you pick it up from someone, stumbled across a local track, etc.?
I got into RC like most during Covid. My son was 10 at the time and he asked for a RC truck for Christmas. So me not knowing a single thing about RC I did what any other person would do and went straight to Amazon and purchased two 1/16 scale trucks and immediately regretted the purchase after taking them out to a local park where I saw a guy bashing around in an Traxxas X-Maxx! I fell in love with the massive truck that day and made it a personal goal to own one even if it was used. A few weeks passed and I found an amazing deal on a RC car and that’s where it all began for me and my son. We slowly got into other styles of RC until we stumbled upon crawling. At first I wasn’t to into it due to the slow nature, but eventually we got fully immersed and that was it, we fell in love and started building different style rigs. Everything from trail to class rigs; 1/24 – 1/6 we built them all.
2. Currently the scale realism for RC vehicles is at an all time high, especially for trail vehicles and rock crawlers. Why do you think we have gotten to this point, and do you see it continuing down the road?
I believe the amount of products being produced from various brands is a huge contributor, not to mention you can 3D print pretty much anything nowadays giving people different avenues to design and produce items to give a crawler that super scale look. As far as scale / crawling continuing to grow I think it’s here for the long run. The technology and endorsements from real 1:1 brands are a huge factor! Who doesn’t want a mini replica of a 1:1 build? So as long as brands keep producing products that are identical or resemble a real product I’m sure the crawling will continue to grow.
3. If you have been racing for awhile, what would you say is the number one technology advancement in RC to date AND why?
Well as far as racing I haven’t crossed over to that world just yet, but I could say that in the last three or so years I’ve seen a huge bump in products accommodating new technology everything from radios / receivers, smart LiPos / chargers, different chassis, shocks, ESCS and the list goes on and on! I think it’s getting a bit easier for people to get into the hobby and new RC technology due to the huge amount of forums on social platforms and it seems you can pretty much just YouTube anything nowadays.
4. When it comes to new products released from JConcepts, what are you most excited to see released and why?
It’s always exciting to see new releases! With the growth of the hobby seeing something new and shiny is a breath of fresh air IMO. For example the different size of tires that are available now in order to accommodate different classes is awesome! You can now run a JConcepts Tusks in multiple sizes. They even offer two different sizes for 1/24 – 1/18 and let’s not forget the 2.9″ for the Axial SCX6! And that goes for a few other tires JConcepts makes! Let’s not forget how awesome it is to see a new body hit the market, especially competition bodies!
5. What other hobbies are you into besides RC cars?
You mean other money pits? LOL! Well aside from RC I like to attend car shows and work on my 1990 Ford Fox Body Mustang. Cars were a huge part of my childhood and it’s something that will always be a part of my life.