JayL

Cool, I'd be interested to see what feedback you get.

I usually run the front higher than the rear.

skyball

...that's interessting. The setups, that I know are mostly .5 to 1mm higher in the rear. So what are your front and rear ride heights usually?

Christian

JayL

depending on how smooth the track is:
rear from 3.5-4.5mm
front from 4-5mm

I usually keep the rear .5 lower as the pod does not move up and down and I like the front to be able to roll alot for steering and keep the weight back on exit for punchy grip

skyball

LOWRIDER!

JayL

My tracks are pretty smooth Mr. 4x4

skyball

HELP, today I broke a kingpin. Unfortunately VBC is not (yet) very big here in germany and the 2 local distributors don't seem to have kingpins in stock.

On wednesday I'll be on my way to Trencin for the ETS finals and I need my car running by then.

Does anybody know if there's a fitting part by an other manufacturer?

Christian

skyball

Just got a very interesting reply from Olivier. Obviously the kingpins are in short supply, so he also uses "selfmade kingpins". He cuts Wildfire D006 suspension arm pins down to 35mm length, puts the spring on top of the steering block and attaches the steering block to the pin with a grub screw. There's even a prepared, threaded metal hole in the steering block already (on purpose maybe?).

I do not have Wildfire parts, but I searched my parts box and found some titanium coated Tamiya suspension arms pins (Tamiya #53851 from my TRF 417), that glide perfectly through the pivot balls. Now I just have to cut them to 35mm length.

There even are titanium coated pins in the right length available from Tamiya: Tamiya #54241. I don't have them though, so I can't testify that they fit through the pivot balls.

BTW, I think that ride height and droop may be better adjustable with the spring above the steering block, by adding shims
- between lower arm a steerinmg block for droop
- above steering block for ride height

I will try that out and post my results and probably some pictures later.

Christian

skyball

It works and and does so very good. My front suspension feels smoother than before. Here's the recipe:

Needed (per side):
M3 (3mm) pin, length 35mm, preferrably coated for less friction,
M2 grub screw to secure the steering block.

Insert pin through the lower pivot ball, just like the original kingpin.
Then run it through 3mm of shims, through the steering block, through the spring and finally through the upper pivot ball.
Turn the steering block around to make the wheel axle look to the car center.
Now put the grub screw into the hole opposite of the wheel axle, but don't tighten up.
Hold down the steering block, adjust pin to let it peek out of the upper pivot ball just a little bit (see image).
Tighten screw.
Done



With 3mm of shims under the steering block I have near zero play, but no pressure on the spring, which is what I think is best. If you add more shims, the spring will be preloaded, leading to a lower ride height, but at the cost of a less reactive suspension.

My front ride height is now at 5.8mm, which is still a bit more than I desired, but the suspension feels very smooth and for the first time, the front feels like it really rests on the springs.

I still think about further lowering the ride height which is now easier to achieve, by just putting some shims under the upper arm. At least that should be true as long as the adjustment will not exceed 1-2mm.

Now I'm looking forward to my next race,

Christian

skyball

i just did a few laps with the LightningF on a nearby track. All in all the car went fine, I just have to get used to a different driving style.

A few questions occurred, though.

I have a little sideways play at the rear axle. Is that normal? Should I try to minimize it using shims?

The front suspension is very smooth now, but since there's no damper, do you do something to calm it down, like putting some sort of grease on the kingpins?

If I build the car according to Oliviers or the standard setup, I feel that the rear has lots (maybe too much) of side damping, but very little longitudinal damping. What would the expected effect of less side damping be?

How do you adjust the side springs?

Christian

JayL

The rear axle should have a tiny bit of play, you don't want it tight. But you don't want a lot of play just like .1-.2mm, make sure you press the left wheel hub fully onto the axle

I use Tamiya anti-wear grease on the axles where they go through the arms for damping

My car had too much side as well. I ended opening up the hole in the side damper alittle to let the air out better under compression and going down to 7k fluid

I replaced the side spring mount with an exotek knurled adjuster so I can just the spring with my fingers. But stock you screw the set screw in or out, I have them at the stock setting.

Alan.Chow

The RIDE tire used in this year TITC 2014 is a pre-production type which is smaller than the current RIDE F1 tires(RIDE # 26022) in the market.

slicendice

iTrader: (23)

So are people running sock insert with rear ps-572 ? it seems a little flat Also I'm guessing the insert needs to be glued ? Any advice for mounting to exotek f104 wheels? Thanks

JayL

Yes, the stock insert, it gives a nice air gap.

I have been putting thin strapping tape, the same width as the insert, around the insert, on the outside, with the insert joint and the strapping tape joint offset from each other. Make the tape only as long as it needs, no overlap

The tires work great, especially with FXII sauce and tire warmers

Really no tips for the exotek wheels, they are the easiest of all the wheels to mount the pits. I use the new proline tire glue, it has the perfect flow and drying time.

whityboy

iTrader: (1)

This is the only way to go not to get frustrated with this f1.
Don't spend your money on new ones, even not the titanium coated.
At the ETS eveybody that was using kingpins broke them and at the end nobody was using them anymore.
once you used this mod you will love this car and end you heats

robert s

iTrader: (10)

I used a 3mm shock shaft and cut it down to 35mms. By using the shock shaft, I am able to still run the spring on the bottom like the original kingpin and adjust the ride height of the car with the shims under the steering knuckle. I used the set screw to hold the steering knuckle to the shaft and I have not had any issues with it since and it looks like the original pieces when you look at the car because the spring is still on the bottom

Robert