Tamiya mini cooper
#5116
#5117
#5118
Tech Fanatic
iTrader: (15)
I ran my mini at the Mini Mayhem this weekend and had a blast. They weighed in the minis and mine was called "a tank".
So, can someone please tell me how to make the mini's lighter? Maybe in order of biggest difference to smallest?
I have a small esc in there, reciever is a spectrum, so that is a little larger. I was running 4200 batteries. But for car pieces, what do I need to get to make it lighter?
Thanks
#5119
Tech Initiate
I've only run mini a couple of times, but my best rounds have been with GP3300s. The local fast guy loaned me a IB4200 and my times were a little slower. I'm no wheel when it comes to driving, my best rounds will have as much as 8 tenths of a second between my slowest and fastest laps, this is on an out door track where fast laps are mid 22 seconds.
I may change my mind later when we go inside to the carpet, but I think the 4200s are wasted on minis. The things don't draw enough amps to pull the voltage down on lower capacity batteries in five minutes.
That said, the easiest way to knock 50 grams off the car is change batteries. From there on out it's only a few grams here and there.
I may change my mind later when we go inside to the carpet, but I think the 4200s are wasted on minis. The things don't draw enough amps to pull the voltage down on lower capacity batteries in five minutes.
That said, the easiest way to knock 50 grams off the car is change batteries. From there on out it's only a few grams here and there.
#5120
Tech Elite
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Well, we've been through all this before...and our findings..
Tims had his Mini down to really stupid weights a good 100gms lower than anyone else has managed. And the verdict? It makes NO difference.. Well, it makes no discernible difference to the lap times at all. We tested it - nothing.
Indeed, we tend to think that Minis perform better when they do have a bit of weight in them. Reason being that the extra weight helps them get traction, which is the biggest bugbear on a Mini.
Plus...super lightweight packs (i.e. Orion Carbon lipos) are MUCH lighter, and when we run them, we now resort to adding weight to bring the car back up, because without that weight we've found the car tends to tip over a lot more.
Tims had his Mini down to really stupid weights a good 100gms lower than anyone else has managed. And the verdict? It makes NO difference.. Well, it makes no discernible difference to the lap times at all. We tested it - nothing.
Indeed, we tend to think that Minis perform better when they do have a bit of weight in them. Reason being that the extra weight helps them get traction, which is the biggest bugbear on a Mini.
Plus...super lightweight packs (i.e. Orion Carbon lipos) are MUCH lighter, and when we run them, we now resort to adding weight to bring the car back up, because without that weight we've found the car tends to tip over a lot more.
#5122
Tech Champion
iTrader: (261)
The key is testing...remove weight incrementally until the lap times start to go back up on average. That's the point where, had you been going up instead of working down, the additional traction/cg benefit of the added weight was offset by the decrease in acceleration and braking performance. As was mentioned before a place to start might be to try a 3300 pack instead of the 4200. If your lap times improve, maybe try a 3000 or even a 2000 if someone has one handy. The mini will make 5-min on a 1500 Shark pack.
#5123
Tech Elite
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Forgot to mention also..
We all run 4200's exclusively. The voltage difference is huge over a 3300 or anything else.
In our opinion they are probably THE major factor in having a fast Mini now.
We all run 4200's exclusively. The voltage difference is huge over a 3300 or anything else.
In our opinion they are probably THE major factor in having a fast Mini now.
#5125
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My car works better with a 4200 pack in it. My lap times are more consistant meaning when I run 3300 the car seams to be a little unstable.
#5127
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At the Mayhem race this past weekend I ran 4200's, 3800's, 3300's and 2400's. Pretty much the same lap times on all of them, but easier to go fast with the 4200's. Plus they seem to be the only fresh high voltage cell you can buy these days and fresh = low internal resistance...
#5129
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I'm talking IB4200's, they're still the only ones worth getting.
EP's dont cut it, they dont have the punch.
Doesnt matter who matches them, the basic IB cell remains the same no matter who you buy it from.
And you dont need matched packs in a Mini, just decent fresh IB4200's, simple as that.
EP's dont cut it, they dont have the punch.
Doesnt matter who matches them, the basic IB cell remains the same no matter who you buy it from.
And you dont need matched packs in a Mini, just decent fresh IB4200's, simple as that.
#5130
Tech Fanatic
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Location: SOCAL the fastest mini cooper guys in the nation
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At the Mayhem race this past weekend I ran 4200's, 3800's, 3300's and 2400's. Pretty much the same lap times on all of them, but easier to go fast with the 4200's. Plus they seem to be the only fresh high voltage cell you can buy these days and fresh = low internal resistance...
Glad to hear you had fun were did end up finishing. Also just curious but what kind of set up do you run on carpet as I've never run but on asphalt. How were the rules different, better or worse than TCS? Sounds like the motor handout worked well to keep things even how did that go?