Team cobra nemesis? Anybody with any experience with one?

[Daves956]

I came across one of these and it looks really interesting. I've found next to nothing on the web about it so I figured I'd ask here. It's a sprint car on a pan style chassis and I found a web site however since it's talking NIMH battery tools it might be an old site. here's the link with pictures.

http://www.teamcobra.com/cobra/nemesis.htm

The price is reasonable for a new unpainted or run model but just wondered if it's a find or not.

[Daves956]

Here is the Nemesis. It's an outlaw sprint car and after trying the phone number for Team Cobra they're most likely out of business. I was originally thinking about a primarilly red paint scheme but I'm leaning toward a two tone green and something. I've been gathering up bits for it and it looks like a brushless 4 pole and a 3 cell LIPO should give it a bit of power. The steering had me baffled but I'll just use one of the servo mounts I already cut. I'm also leaning towards Hooters sponser decals just for fun.

[Daves956]

I understand a lot more about this one now.

It's suspension parts are copys of Team Associates from the RC10 era so those are still easy to get and a good thing. They originally listed an option with the needed hardware available to use an AE gearbox. In truth it's not an option, without it there isn't a way to run it. I have all the documentation on this and 2 areas are glossed over. Mounting a steering servo to the provided linkage and putting in a 540 motor. There are no holes in the area to really mount a steering servo in the direction it needs to be and all picures I've found don't show the original setup but custom mounting.

To put a 540 into the mounting places they made you have to use a huge pinion and it puts the speed into an area that I won't even go. The mount is machined too low and puts the motor up against the lower arm unless your at the maximum from the spur.

For me this explains why so few of these exist and why it appears to be the only car they did. They did a few optional types but they all shared the issues I've found. and with them out of business finding the option kit is not very likely.

This is not a show stopper. I've already fit a custom servo mount for the steering and it utilizes the existing linkage. I pulled the diff and motor brackets to see if it could be modified to work and it could but it's really not worth the effort since it's a one of a kind sorta deal. I fit an old AE gearbox into it that has a ball diff and slipper. I need to make a pair of longer upper rear linkage rods and some wing stabilizers for it to be complete.

I washed the body panels and they all cleaned up just fine. I'll probably have fitment issues with the rear body piece and the back guard but that's nothing to keep it from running.

I did try the huge pinion just to see how it acted. It wasn't pretty and the tires aren't bonded but need to be.

[markbt73]

There were a few companies making RC10-based sprint cars in the late 80s and early 90s. Nearly all of them were pretty crude, made in small numbers, and not up to the fit and finish standards of Tamiya or Kyosho kits. You were expected to do some hand-finishing of parts and make some of it up as you went along.

Cobra made parts for a lot of cars back in the day. I'm sure I had some bits and pieces of theirs. Pretty well known for motor lathes and tire truers as well.

[Daves956]

It's pretty far from a build it and run kind of kit, but it has the potential to be something really unique. You just don't see anything meant for oval track done in RC.

I managed to keep the stock gearbox and tried it out with a very strong motor and ESC combo the other day and it's actually pretty impressive. I don't see it as a regular runner but it's a challenging car to get right and I'm always looking for a project that takes some effort.

I'll post some pictures once it gets to be something worth looking at.

[speedy_w_beans]

Have you looked at the oval cars by Custom Works? Yours reminds of one of their models: http://www.customwor...0683-1231361613

Per this page, Custom Works is now located in Denver -- right where you are. It might be fun to go check them out... They might also have some recollection of Team Cobra and give you some pointers. http://www.customwor...out/about01.php

Also check out RJ Speed's Outlaw, which might be an older BoLink design: http://www.rjspeed.com/kits/SprintCar/2030.html

[Daves956]

Have you looked at the oval cars by Custom Works? Yours reminds of one of their models: http://www.customwor...0683-1231361613

Per this page, Custom Works is now located in Denver -- right where you are. It might be fun to go check them out... They might also have some recollection of Team Cobra and give you some pointers. http://www.customwor...out/about01.php

Also check out RJ Speed's Outlaw, which might be an older BoLink design: http://www.rjspeed.c...ntCar/2030.html

nope it's where you are. Denver NC.

[markbt73]

Oval racing in RC went through a boom in about 1988-92. Lots of kits available for lowering RC10s and Optimas and turning them into either dirt oval wedges or sprint cars. Kyosho even got into the act themselves, with the Sideways (an Ultima-based sprint car) and the Slingshot (a 4WD chassis designed to compete with the Custom Works Dominator). There were also the Associated and Bolink and McAllister and TRC and Composite Craft pan cars that raced on carpet ovals indoors or big paved ovals outside (google Lake Whippoorwill Speedway if you want a glimpse of how it used to be). I still have my Associated RC10LSS that I used to race on a carpet oval.

There seems to be a little resurgence with the Losi sprint cars and late models, and from what I hear some tracks in the south are starting an RC10 "Bomber" class, where you take an old RC10, put a 50s-style stock-car body on it, and go bang fenders on a dirt oval. Kind of sounds like fun to me.

[speedy_w_beans]

I missed the NC part. Maybe someone can explain the appeal of oval racing to me -- I hate NASCAR and don't see the point of driving in circles. I'm much more interested in true road courses or off road racing with a variety of features.

[Daves956]

I missed the NC part. Maybe someone can explain the appeal of oval racing to me -- I hate NASCAR and don't see the point of driving in circles. I'm much more interested in true road courses or off road racing with a variety of features.

To watch a car go in circles doesn't do anything for me either and nascar is a four letter word around here. I had a good friend that had his own company building custom pieces for oval track and the cars themselves are interesting to me. I have to add that driving one like this is a lot of fun, it's like drifting on steroids. Imagine a 350 V8 direct driven to the rear end in a car with no weight. You have a steering wheel, throttle and kill switch for control. I'm not sure I could keep it in the walmart parking lot, on target on a 1/4 mile oval would be next to impossible at any speed.

I put the 2800 KV four pole into it knowing it had too much power, then geared it on the high side as well. It's fun using the sideways wing to keep it on the ground during a semi controlled power slide drifting corner. Cornering like that is actually pretty easy, it's coming out of it in the direction you want that gets hard. Driving it is way different than watching it. The ESC and motor chosen are waterproof so I'm sure it will see some slick condition use at some point too.