"I am a passionate person who loves to entertain and help people gain new skills. I am hands-on and love to build all sorts of things using any tools I can get my hands on."
In this article, we'd like to tell you more about our Australian partner - Blair Collins, whom we admire and appreciate for everything he does for the RC community. It was a pleasure to be a part of one of his biggest projects so far - Push The Limits, a beautiful Ultimate Mystic 5000 Catamaran.
We are grateful that one hobby can bring people together even over long distances and that our electronics are an essential part of his beautiful boat. Read more about Blair and his company Ultimate RC Eventsin the interview down below:
Who stands behind Ultimate RC Events?
Ultimate RC Events is owned and operated by myself, Blair Collins. I created the business about 13yrs ago and it is currently the only radio-controlled events company in Australia and one of only 2 that I know of in the world.
Who is Blair Collins outside the RC World?
I am a passionate person who loves to entertain and help people gain new skills. I have 30+ years in retail management, 6+ years in the event industry. I am hands-on and love to build all sorts of things using any tools I can get my hands on. CNC machines, 3d printers, mig welders, and everything in between. Creating and building anything has been part of my life since I was a child and I still love it today.
What kind of RC events do you make?
We do kids parties, corporate functions, festivals, team building, school holiday programs, and a lot more. We create fun around radio-controlled vehicles which sounds easy but a lot of thought and design goes into every aspect of what we do. All of these RC events allow the public to experience the fun of radio-controlled in various ways.
What got you into RC and how long?
My father owned a very old RC road car that I was never allowed to drive. It was broken so finally I was allowed to fix it and drive it. This got my father thinking and he purchased my first RC car when I was 8 years old. It was a Tamiya Wild One, off-road buggy. I had to build it and then I was able to drive it. I fell in love with RC and progressed to boats then aircraft. I have been doing RC for 40 years.
Can you tell us more about your Ultimate Mystic 5000 Offshore Catamaran project?
I have owned all sorts of RC boats as well as real boats. I have experience with setting up real race boats as well as models. I like extreme RC vehicles and had been watching videos on these large catamarans boats for a while. I have had smaller ones and even a large hydroplane that was 7 foot long and 4ft wide running a 100cc go-kart engine called frenzy, so this is not my first big RC boat.
After researching these big cats I found that there didn’t seem to be many in Australia and I like RC’s that are different. The most reliable setup seemed to be MGM esc’s with LMT motors after looking into them. As well as liking these boats it had to be able to be shown within my business (Ultimate RC Events) and attract attention to make it worth the price. MGM Controllers came on to help, hence the name Push The Limits.
It has 2 x TMM 40063-3 X2-SERIES PRO, 2 x LMT 3080 motors, it runs on 12s Lipo per side. Currently doing 154kmh, just under 100mph. I want the boat to do 200kmh.
Is this your overall favourite project?
This is one of my favourite projects and will remain for a while. I am however always looking at doing things different and extreme so it’s likely to be met with some completion down the track. We are currently working on a radio controlled Monster Truck that you can sit in.
How much time have you spent on building it?
I spent about 2 weeks putting it together and about 6 months doing the research to get everything that was needed. Being that I do this for a business I’m very lucky that I can actually spend lots of time building.
How do you like using MGM CONTROLLERS ESCs?
MGM CONTROLLERS have been smooth to operate and program. The data logging features are great and the capability of the ESC’s is second to none in my opinion. I would try to create a better English explanation of the functions but once you understand what they are it in detail it all makes sense. Having said the team at MGM are more than happy to help. (MGM: Better programming and detailed manuals and Q&As coming with X3-SERIES)
Do you plan on using MGM CONTROLLERS ESCs for any other projects besides the boat?
I would love to use MGM Controllers in more projects but my projects are always extreme and unfortunately come with a pretty big price tag. Maybe I will make my Monster truck electric and run some extreme MGM controllers in it in the near future.
Where do you want to Push the Limits and what are your goals?
When it comes to RC I always push the limits creating some of the most unique vehicles in the world today. I will continue to create, design and build vehicles the push me to learn and understand this awesome sport. I want to make Ultimate RC Events bigger and better which is my current passion and my ultimate goal and challenge.
What was your latest event you were part off or you hosted?
We have just been entertaining the crowd for 4 days at the Melbourne Formula 1 Grand Prix. The MGM CONTROLLERS Push The Limits boats was there on show with lots of questions about it.
How do people usually react to RC stuff? Do they like it?
People love RC and are fascinated by the capability of today’s RC’s. They want to know all about it and most have no idea where to get it. I love that Ultimate RC Events takes this sport to so many who have not had the opportunity to experience the technology or have not been able to talk to a team open to having a chat about anything in the RC world. We reach people who usually could not be reached by normal advertising and the resulting conversation end in, where do I get one?
What are your plans for the future projects?
Gave this away a bit. We are currently working on a mini monster truck that you would usually sit in a drive. This is currently being converted to radio controlled and at the time of this it is 85% done. It has been an interesting test because I have had to learn how to make giant servo motors using Arduino’s and programming. All Fun!
Thank you Blair! We are also happy to get to know you even better! We love what you are doing and can't wait to Push the Limits together in the future!
