Blinky (Zero Timing)

Blinky is an RC speed control mode running zero electronic timing advance, with boost and turbo both off, named for the LED that blinks to prove it. ROAR requires blinky mode in several stock classes.

Also called:

Blinky mode, zero timing, stock mode

In practice

Most racers meet the word in a rulebook that never defines it. ROAR §1.8.1 lists “Speed Control Type Only Blinky Mode” for 1/12 GT12 and §1.12.1 the same for 1/10 LMH; §1.13.1 spells out the intent as “No Variable or Dynamic ESC Timing to Motor.” Hobbywing’s XR8 Plus G2S manual calls its profile stock racing where “the boost timing and turbo timing are 0, the RED LED will blink.” The trap is that a blinking LED is not proof of legality. ROAR’s approval notice wants the correct blink code — rapid flashes then a pause, red for Hobbywing, green for R1 — plus an approved firmware version, with smoothing off because smoothing counts as variable timing. Clubs outside ROAR sanction write their own lists, so read yours.

Why it matters

Blinky is the legality line in a stock class, and running timing you weren't supposed to doesn't make you fast, it makes you disqualified.

Go deeper

Read the full post:

RC Motor Timing and LiPo Care: Where the Speed Actually Comes From

Sources

ROAR Rule Book (PDF) — sanctioning body requiring “Only Blinky Mode” in §1.8.1, §1.12.1 and §1.13.1, and “No Variable or Dynamic ESC Timing to Motor,” without ever defining the term
ROAR Zero Timing Electronic Speed Control Approval Corrections — LiveRC — the required blink code, the approved firmware list, the smoothing-counts-as-timing rule, and the racer’s responsibility to verify software level
XERUN XR8 Plus G2S User Manual — Hobbywing (PDF) — manufacturer’s Zero Timing (Blinky Mode) profile for stock racing, with boost and turbo at 0 and the red LED blinking
Blinky Mode — So Dialed — plain-language definition: an ESC that “does not use any artificial motor timing advancement including boost or turbo”