theclutch

iTrader: (2)

Thirty or so years ago when I was racing RC, no matter if I had the money or not, I still would not have the ability to purchase the "best" batteries and motors. Thus, even if my skill was good enough, I wouldn't have a fair chance against the pros who have access to these "unobtainium" parts.

Today, with the advent of Lipos and brushless motors, are there still "unobtainium" motors and batteries? Or can I truly buy the same motors and batteries off the shelf? I'm just curious more than anything.

Eivind E

Back in the day the battery matching and zapping process meant they got a handfull of really good batts, quite a few very good batts, a truckload of medium batts, and a load of not so good ones.
Basicly the "God-tier batts" would be grabbed by sponsored drivers, then the best of the really good batts would be grabbed by store employees and friends of theirs, and then the customer could buy anything below that.
That's how it worked.

A store employee could still in theory test all the LiPo's for IR/voltage drop and pick the best ones for himself, it would only take a minute.
It could still be happening.

oeoeo327

iTrader: (75)

I'm sure the very best motors and batteries are still going to top-tier team drivers, however, the difference between what they're getting and what Average Joe Racer buys over the counter is far less than it used to be. I personally consider that difference a non-issue nowadays.

RedBullFiXX

iTrader: (34)

Today with lipo packs and brushless motors, there is now more power than anyone can use in the modified class
And it can be purchased off the shelf for less $ than the best stock class setup

EAMotorsports

iTrader: (79)

Both of these statements couldnt be any truer. Being in the battery and motor business I can tell you that I test all the batteries when I get them in and its more for a QC purpose than it is to find the best ones. Because there are not many guys out there racing that could tell the difference in stock between a 3.5IR pack and 4.0IR pack other than it being in their head. And honestly in a batch of 100 that is what range 95% of them are in. The other 5% are slightly higher than a 4.0.

Oval guys that run wide open are really the only place that is going to notice the difference in a stator that is .3 lower in resistance. When I get a batch of D3.5 motors in the 13.5's usually vary from 12.8-12.5 in resistance in a batch of 20. So the tolerances are much much tighter than what they used to be back in the brushed days. So many guys get worked up over it when you will never notice the difference in any class except MAYBE oval. And most of the guys racing oval couldnt tell a difference anyway because lap times are so much more dependent on chassis than anything else.

Dont buy into the "Certified" hype. Its not needed and just cost you extra money in the end. Spend the extra money you spend on a "certified" pack and use it toward practice and something that will decrease your lap times on the track.

**The above is not pointed at anyone in this thread but just a general statement***

EA

hyujmn

iTrader: (27)

Trinity makes their "certified 5%" rotors/motors, which are basically ones that test in the top 5% of motors that you can buy for some more money.

This really only means something in stock, though.

Edit: or jk cuz of what EA just posted.

syndr0me

iTrader: (32)

Here's some inspiration for you. Brent Klingforth got 2nd at ROAR nats last week using an OLD Gens Ace 5000mah pack in 17.5. Kyle Klingforth won with my spare d35 I haven't touched in 1.5 years.

JamesL_71

iTrader: (13)

^ This.

xrayracer1

iTrader: (1)

Well, considering what I've seen over the past 10 years, I can say that the gap between the unobtainable motors and batteries has certainly gotten smaller.

I've always been a self funded racer and back in the day when I first started I used to get mu butt spanked around the track by the pros at big events, now with the lipo and brushless power I'm doing a little spanking of my own.

theclutch

iTrader: (2)

Yeah, see that's the thing... I want them to be able to beat me by their driving and setup. But on the straights, I would hope that we're at par with each other at least in supposed 17.5 stock class races.

frozenpod

iTrader: (1)

What about blinky ESCs?

xrayracer1

iTrader: (1)

One thing I've noticed is with blinky classes. People will have their esc's in blinky mode, but crank up the timing on the motor. I never touch theming on my motors, I mainly concentrate on my set up.

ByteStream

iTrader: (2)

I'd argue that gearing & timing is part of setup. There is an optimum setting (speed/acceleration/temp) for your car/driving style at a given track, layout, and traction condition and it isn't always max timing.

dan_vector

iTrader: (27)

But a lot of the handout motors used in the blinky class are fixed timing on the can! Despite that you still notice differences between the cars. I do wander what other tricks are being used in the stock classes to extract max performance within the rules!

cyclonetog

There are definitely things you can do outside of the motor and battery to make your car faster down the straight.
Making sure your bearings are good, gear mesh is set perfect, belt tension is correct (including not too loose). A good fan setup to keep the motor at optimum temperature but still drawing as little from the battery as possible.

Interestingly I've tried a couple of cars back to back with my BD7 and nothing I've tried is as quick in a straight line, and no I haven't tried an Awesomatix .