PERFORMANCE
TEST GEAR
; NOVAK HAVOC PRO SPEED CONTROL ; NOVAK BALLISTIC 8.5-TURN BRUSHLESS MOTOR ; PROTEK R/C 5600MAH
50C LIPO ; SPEKTRUM 3520 2.4GHZ RECEIVER ; SPEKTRUM DX3R RADIO ; JCONCEPTS DOUBLE DEES TIRES FRONT
AND REAR (GOLD COMPOUND) ; PRO-LINE SPLIT SIX WHEELS
THE KIT
INCLUDES
EVERY
POSSIBLE
HOP-UP A
RACER COULD
WANT
“ESE” STANDS FOR
ERIK SHAUVER EDITION.
SHAUVER IS THE
DESIGNER OF THE
BLITZ. HE WANTED TO
HAVE HIS OWN CUS TOM
TRUCK WITH WHITE
COMPONENTS BECAUSE
HE’S BIG INTO MOUNTAIN
BIKES AND MOTOCROSS
( WHI TE IS THE “IN” COLOR
IN MOUNTAIN BIKES AND
MX). HIS WHITE CREATION
WAS SO DOPE THAT
THE ESE WAS PUT INTO
PRODUCTION.
FYI
JUMPING
Getting airborne with
the Blitz ESE is similar
to what you get with all
short course trucks. It
takes off well and lands
smoothly over smaller
jumps; on larger jumps,
the ESE and all other
short course trucks have
a mind of their own. It’s
not uncommon to find
yourself hanging onto a
“dead sailor” when the
air gets caught under
the body. When the large
body catches air, it keeps
the truck nearly vertical
despite your stomping
on the brakes. See the
“Pro Advice” section for
helping the truck jump
better over larger jumps.
Landings were smooth
when touching down on
all fours. The front end
seemed a little light and
occasionally bottomed
out when the front end
touched down first.
CORNERING
Only run the trailing
spindles up front on a
very loose track. If your
track offers some bite,
definitely install the inline
spindles when building
your kit. With the trail-
ing spindles installed,
the truck pushes but is
very easy to drive. Even
with the inline spindles
installed, the truck has a
slight push. Some racers
dabbling in short course
from other forms of RC
racing might want to free
up the truck, but most
will like the traction it
generates. Only in tight,
slow corners did I wish
the truck had a bit more
steering. In high-speed
sections and corners that
carried some speed, the
ESE felt great.
BUMP HANDLING
In some washboard sec-
tions of our test track,
the ESE felt a bit soft, es-
pecially in the front. This
allowed the truck to get
into the dugout sections
instead of skimming over
them. Although I could
have stiffened the front
end, I was looking for
more steering. It wasn’t
bad through rougher
sections, just not perfect.
OVERALL FEEL
In general, the Blitz ESE
sticks to the track and
is very easy to drive.
AUGUST 2010 89
