SCX HUMMER - Home Racing World & Slot Car Garage

03/13/2009

When you want something a little different in our hobby we have many choices, however nothing seems to really deliver a fun factor like the off road trucks. After seeing the photos of this Hummer H3 I knew it had to be a part of our collection. It has finally arrived and all I can say is WOW!

Let us get right to the fun part: What was it about this truck that I liked so much? The lights. The first images I saw of this truck with all the lights on blasting down the track made me want it. What can I say? I really enjoy lighted vehicles and to be honest, if this model did not have them I would have passed on it.

Why go through all the tooling and effort to make the model accurate with the lights the 1:1 truck has and then not even bother to power them up? Thankfully SCX feels the same way. There is a center "dome" light that is inside the truck that channels light through the clear plastic runners. Yes, there is some bleed through but that can be addressed with some paint or even a black magic marker underneath if it really bothers you.

Back in the sunshine this model represents a 2006 vehicle which I thought was sort of odd being that older of a truck, but in truth it does not matter, it looks great to me.

The paint is well done and the markings are very crisp and opaque. The white lettering over the blue has no signs of bleed through which just makes the model look even better. The clear coat covering the truck is even enough and for the most part flawless. I did notice a few very small specks of dirt or debris under the clear coat on the hood and roof, but nothing that would offend most of you.

Detail level is more than enough for me. Not only do all the light bars add to the effect so do our driver and navigator along with full spare tire. Even the back glass has 2 different color lights that reflect light although they are very dim compared to the tail lights.

Wheels and tires look well enough too and I like the knobby tires. They make a very distinctive sound blasting down our wood track straights. No, I do not plan to sand them. They are just fine the way they are. I don't want this truck trying to act like a car. If it bumps, roars and hops? GOOD.

As mentioned in prior reviews everything here seems very much the same so I will not waste time repeating it. This chassis appears the same and the motor is also the same. And I agree with my fellow reviewers on this motor. Any more RPM's would take away the fun of the truck.

The drop arm is another highlight. No other brand truck goes this deep out of the box. I made a makeshift bridge to show how high this beast can ride and still make good contact with the track rails.

Performance

This truck with the magnet in place will not impress the speed demons in our hobby. But in truth that is a good thing. It is designed to maneuver through various obstacles you can buy for your track. Too much speed will only send the truck flying out of the slot. Smart move on this lower RPM motor.

For me this truck is twice the fun without the magnet. Fantastic sliding action and more than enough power and speed. But the real entertainment? Watching this brute lean over in the corners! The suspension spring action is soft enough and the chassis has enough travel to really have some great action in the corners. If you go in hot, it almost looks like it will tip over but the suspension somehow keeps it going and the truck just leans over hard and digs through. Sure you can push it hard enough to tip it over, but you might be surprised just how far you can go.

Lap times? Sorry folks. I never bothered to even turn on the timer. I was having so much fun putting rocks and logs on the track and watching the truck bounce over them to even car how fast a lap I was making. And to be honest, from the guys I hear from playing with them, they don't car either.

I do not see many clubs racing these models and perhaps they are the fun distraction they were meant to be. Or were they? These beasts could easily make a great series at your home track or club. If I had a larger group of racers on a regular basis I would ask them and see if they would like to start one. With an average retail of $45.00, they are well within most budgets so starting a series would not be that hard on your members pocket books.

Final Thoughts

This Hummer is a great change from the normal racing you might be doing. I like the way it looks, all the lights that function as they should and driving it is just pure light hearted fun. Sometimes I think that is just what we need after a long week. Nothing serious, just kick back and have a few laughs with your friends and family with a cool new toy. This truck delivers it...bigtime!

- Harry

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As always feel free to contact me about this article or just the hobby in general at harry@homeracingworld.com, or better yet drop into our Message Forum and share your thoughts with other enthusiasts!

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