CR0SS

iTrader: (5)

For tires get the Shimizu 571 and 572 tires for carpet.

edhchoe

iTrader: (41)

Oops after posting I realized I misread 17.5 as 21.5. Sorry.

*The info below is for 21.5t if anybody new is interested.
On carpet with f104 chassis: pit shimizu 571 f / 572 r.
I think that's what most people like.
The forum sponsor TQ racing carries them.
Those tires are also the same compound as tamiya branded 1031/1032 which will be available in about a week. And they are TCS legal but not pit shimizu ones.







And use tire traction compound such as SXT 3.0.
1/3 on front inside and all of rear.

The Captain

iTrader: (6)

From what I have gathered reading, 17.5 is much harder to drive than the 21.5, and most prefer the 21.5 for this reason. I guess you can dial down the EPA, but if you are going to be buying a new motor I would go with a 21.5. Again, this is based off what I have read, not first hand experience.

BadSign

iTrader: (15)

Awesome, another new car this Friday!

Let me know if you need anything, I'd be glad to help.

Jerz616

iTrader: (49)

Here is my 104 with some new paint ready for some practice tomorrow.

F1Junky

Hey guys, I have alittle problem... My f103 has a 21.5 crawler motor in it, I've got rubber tamiya tires on it. But the problem is that I have soooo much torque even timing it all the way to 45 and dropping the FD to 2.20... Still isn't helping me get the car to turn, also the drag brake is set to 80%.... I don't have the f104 front end on yet but with traction compound applied 100% front and back the car wants to sling shot every where. Also the temp only reads 115 degrees no matter how hard I push it. Any ideas??

golgi

iTrader: (15)

Looks great!

terry.sc

Tamiya is a bit confusing about their tyres. The only tyres Tamiya make for the F104 are:

51384 F104 Sponge Tires A Front
51385 F104 Sponge Tires A Rear
54167 F104 Sponge Tires B Front
54168 F104 Sponge Tires B Rear

Everything else including their HBR tyres are all made for the wider F103 and F104W.

The F104Pro kit tyres are the Type A, which are pretty good on carpet and give a decent balance. The Type Bs are harder, so if you want to lose grip at one end switch over to the Type B for that end.

Used to race F1 with 13.5T on carpet with foams, grip was never a problem

terry.sc

The same with foams, once you have the correct tyres you are set for the season. Except with foams if you don't have the right tyres the car is usually still pretty drivable. With the right foam tyres you will have more grip and can drive much harder, the last UK national meeting I ran at on carpet every foam class F1 car qualified faster than the fastest rubber car.

I run both and while the foam car just worked from the start and with new foams you just stick them on and go, I've found on our low grip carpet rubber took ages to get a setup I liked and the rubbers needed bedding in for ages before the grip came up on them.

The only downside is that as foams wear the tyre diameter changes so you have to compensate by changing ride height and adjusting gear ratios, but this isn't complicated.

In the US rubber is popular because that's what UF1 chose to run for racing on asphalt, where softer foams can wear rapidly. Rubber also looks more realistic, in the same way most US racers stick with 180mm cars because they look more like modern F1s.

terry.sc

Some videos from the Autosport International show in the UK. The F1 races were demonstration runs in breaks from the WGT racing, which is why there is the unusual commentary and the safety car is regularly deployed.

+ YouTube Video

+ YouTube Video

+ YouTube Video

The Captain

iTrader: (6)

WOW 80%! I'm running 0 drag brake. Where do you have your battery mounted? Might want to try running it all the way forward.

F1Junky

The battery Is mounted in the original side to side position that the f103 was designed with, and the I have a cirtex generation 1 for ESC and found out they are know for not having a lot of brakes, I guess lol. I am purchasing the f1R at the end of February but trying to get this to work for me with out rushing purchase

CR0SS

iTrader: (5)

I am running the Cirtix in my f104 0 drag brake and almost never use the other brakes. The F1 cars are so skitish using the brakes they are not worth it. The are much better if you drive them with a smooth driving style vs heavy throttle then braking into the corners. You cannot drive a F1 like you can a touring car.

InspGadgt

My F1R right now is in the same boat...finally got tires on it that give me enough rear grip for my liking but it won't turn. So I have to run a lot of drag brake as well just to get the car to turn. I tried the suggested Shimizu tires that everyone likes for asphalt and found with my car that at the start of the race the rear was too loose until the tires got up to temp. But once the tires got up to temp then the car developed a huge push.

terry.sc

I assume by Tamiya tyres you mean the new TCS tyres which are the Pit Shimizu 571/572 tyres, if you are using any other Tamiya rubber tyres you are never going to get it to work.

Running F104 rears with the wide F104 front will always give you handling problems, the wider from end will cause it to push whatever you do.

I converted my F103 to a rubber tyre car complete with an F104 front end and didn't get it to handle until I replaced the Pit 571 fronts with 574s to give me more steering. I can now can run the usual 571/572 tyres like F104s do but it took a few weeks to get the tyres bedded in and a lot of changes from my normal F103 setup and I do still prefer 574/572 tyres.

Hard to tell what the problem is without knowing the rest of the setup.
On the T-piece replace the front o-ring with a 1-1.5mm thick washer and run the rear o-ring fairly tight. Using a harder centre spring will help transfer weight on to the front end under braking, thicker grease in the damper plates will stiffen up the rear end to load up the front end more.

The diff is another area to look at, a loose but not slipping diff will let the front end steer the most, tightening the diff will cause the rear axle to try and push the front end, reducing steering, but tighten it too far and it will be easier for the rear end to break away as it limits rear traction.