Driving RC racers and bashers are a whole lot of fun. Sometimes, though, you just want to have a relaxing time using an RC to move dirt and rocks around. That’s exactly what you can do with the Nano TRX N320.
Billed as “the smallest, fully-functional RC excavator,” the miniature earthmover vows to deliver an immersive experience right in line with operating its heavy machinery counterpart. Whether you want to simulate digging trenches on job site, open-pit mining in a quarry, or moving around large swaths of snow in the winter, this thing lets you play out big time actions at a much smaller scale.
The Nano TRX N320 is a 1/64-scale radio-controlled model of an excavator. No, they didn’t seem to base it on a single specific make or model of the heavy construction equipment, but it does get the familiar yellow color popular among many kinds of construction equipment. It has multiple fully-operational parts, allowing you to dig holes in the garden, move gravel around the sandbox, or move pebbles from one end of the backyard to the next. To enable that, it houses six fully-independent motors, giving you precise, detailed control over a variety of movements.
Two of the motors operate each of the tracks, allowing you to control them individually, enabling RC vehicle to be driven through complex terrains with challenging turns and uneven ground. Another motor runs the swivel mechanism, which allows the excavator to turn 360 degrees in either direction, making it easy to move materials from one side of the excavator to the other. The main boom, the dipper, and the bucket also get one motor each, giving you incredibly precise control over how it will load, unload, and destroy any objects in the way, ensuring you’re never stuck at awkward angles when moving trickier materials around.
The Nano TRX N320 uses custom-designed linear actuators for articulating the arm and bucket, with current-based protection that simply disengages the corresponding gear any time it detects the boom has been retracted or extended too far. According to the outfit, this ensures it’s able to avoid damage to the boom and dipper, especially when it’s moving heavy loads around, so you can put this to work like real heavy machinery without worrying about breaking parts each time out. It uses a built-in battery that you can recharge via USB-C, allowing you to operate the RC for up to 30 minutes between charges. Yes, that doesn’t sound like a lot of time, but operating six motors individually does take its toll on power. Maybe you can strap a battery pack to the back and keep it juiced for longer runtimes?
The RC excavator comes with a wireless controller, a protective carrying case, a box of spare parts (for replacing small items that break down), and a USB-C charger. According to the outfit, they will also sell other spare parts post-launch, in case you need additional items. Hopefully, they’ll also add customization options, since half the fun of RCs is playing around with the model and really making it your own.
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the Nano TRX N320. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $99.