The Nano Tracks N320 is a miniature remote-controlled excavator that, although only 1/64 the size of the real thing, is not a toy, but a fully-functional excavator.
The world’s smallest excavator might be tiny, but it’s certainly no joke! It features 6 fully independent, proportional motors, giving you precise control over every movement, as well as an electronic slip ring, independently controlled boom, dipper, bucket, swing, and individual tracks. You may not be able to fit in its cabin to manually operate it, but the Nano Tracks N320 features extremely precise RC controls with the available modes. One offers the industry standard ISO controls (Caterpillar controls), while the second allows you to control the tracks independently, just like a real excavator.
So how did the Nano Tracks N320 come to be? Why bother building a functional excavator of this size? Well, according to NANO TRACKS founder Jonathan Abbott, it all started a couple of years ago when he discovered a hobbyist group on YouTube that loved playing with tiny, fully functional RC excavators. He was intrigued, so he started searching for these miniature excavators online, but he came up empty-handed. That’s when he decided to build one for himself. Jonathan taught himself to use CAD, bought a 3D printer, and the rest, as they say, is history!
Jonathan’s first creations were made out of resin, but that proved to brittle and inconsistent at this scale, so he looked at other, more durable materials. The Nano Tracks N320 prototype took around 2,300 hours of hard work to complete, but Abbott and his team now have a repeatable procedure that they can use to bring the world’s smallest functional excavator to the masses.
The Nano Tracks N320 excavator was launched on Kickstarter with a crowdfunding goal of $20,000. The campaign was a resounding success and Jonathan Abbot was able to raise over $268,000 with 70 days to go until the end of the Kickstarter effort.
If you’ve always dreamed of playing with a palm-sized, fully functional excavator, you can pledge $120 on Kickstarter until the end of the campaign.
