First Look – NRC32 1/32 RC10 Replica

by Erich Reichert · October 18, 2016

One of the coolest things about vintage cars is that it’s often a combination of nostalgia and custom building. Many of us fell in love with RC many moons ago because not only were the cars cool, but they were totally customizable. bayverything from chassis to colored wheels, crazy looking shocks and colorful wheels were just the tip of the iceberg of what you could do to make your buggy your own. As vintage enthusiasts, many of us create elaborate builds in an effort to push the boundaries of we love so much about our segment; take Nigel Ratcliffe for example. The project he’s named the NRC32 started as a passion project and ended up a 1/32 production version homage to the most iconic car in RC history, the Team Associated RC10. With the help of a few aftermarket manufacturers and some creativity and ingenuity, Nigel’s NRC32 is arguably one of the coolest little projects ever seen. Let’s take a look under the lid of one of 2016’s coolest projects before they hit the market.

Quick Look
Manufacturer: NRC
Vehicle: NRC32
Class: 1/32 2WD Buggy
Price: TBD
Additional items needed: 2-channel radio system, servo, electronic speed control, motor, donor Losi Micro T

Quick Facts

• The NRC32 is powered by a transmission made for the Losi Micro T. For this buggy, Nigel uses an aluminum version but stock parts will fit too.

• For tires, treaded tires came from Hot Racing to give the car a more 1/10 but for running indoors, the NRC32 also has foam options from the HPI 1/32 cars. Up front Tamiya Mini 4WD tires are used to steer the buggy. Wheels come from the Kyosho Mini-Z.

• The buggy uses a single 3D printed bell crank that’s mounted in the center of the front end. A long carbon arm serves to provide steering toe.

• Up front, the chassis is made of two pieces of carbon fiber which are bolted to the bulkhead the hold them in place. Since the bulkhead is the structural support of the front end, the nose plate acts more as a skid plate than anything.

• The rear end is bolted to a 3D printed bulkhead with custom shock tower. The front and rear suspension are a combination of 3D printing and Mini-Z and Micro T parts to complete this fully adjustable suspension.

Behind the Scenes
Nigel’s NRC32 has been a labor of love and a project of extraordinary undertaking. As many projects do, this one started small and snowballed. Initially it was his ideal RC car, one that could allow him to revel in RC nostalgia yet small enough to drive around the house. The project started with the idea of using some off the shelf and 3D printed parts but the biggest challenge remained; producing a chassis. Fibre-Lyte in the UK took Nigel’s design and started cutting the chassis and shock towers for him.

With a keen eye for proportion, Nigel produced his own molds for the body, wing and gear cover. He bought a small vacuum molding machine to make the parts and produces them himself. After paint the bodies are topped off with decals he prints himself. He used scaled down versions of MCI reproductino decal sheets to produce iconic themes like Masami Hirosaka’s RC10.

Final Word
The NRC32 will be available soon through NRC’s Shapeways page as well as a limited number of rolling chassis will be available on eBay as well. To complete your own 1/32 buggy, you’ll need the kit parts and body, the carbon parts from FL as well las a donor Micro T truck and a few small parts for the Mini-Z. While this may seem like a lot of parts to come together, the result is without a doubt one of the coolest little vintage style vehicles you may ever see. Being able to drive your vintage cars outdoors is great but when it comes to the winter, rainy days or even just a quick run during commercial breaks, having a 1/32 car for your very own Micro World Championship sounds pretty sweet!