9568 is the standard shock tower and 9569 is the carbon version. It has nothing to do with big bores. The same part number is listed in the B4 and 4.2FT manuals. Can't explain why your screw is shorter now though.

So what is the verdict, Do you guys see a huge lap time decrease going from the B4.2 to the B5? Being a newbie the only difference I can see from looking at the B5s is that there is less slope in the A-arms and such. Other then that I don't "see" a whole lot of improvements. I have also notice some of the pro's in my area switching to the B5, BUT haven't see any of them turning faster lap times. I was wondering if that has been the case in your area.

Get the B5M and never look back. Mid motor cars will be faster 99% of the time.

B5R has plenty of improvements over the B4 from parts quality to the redesign of the chassis and layout......

Your right he's going to have to find a pre big bore front shock tower.

I'm also curious about the lap time improvement from b4.2 to b5m. Wish somebody had concrete stats.

Went and purchased the 9569 and its the correct thickness where the shocks mount. Only thing I could think of is somewhere Associated changed the thickness of the shock mount for the big bores and kept the same part number.

I know this buggy is old but WOW does it work well. It seems to keep up just fine with the newer models.

Because I have a B4.1 FT that I just retired from indoor racing (in favor of a MM 22) I think I could have fun with it outdoor. Rear motor hasn't died completely outdoor from what I've seen.

I'll just bide my time until I can find a B5 cheap.

Till then I'm basically gonna have a B4.2. Big bore shocks are coming. I like the VTS slipper too so might slap that on there.

Hey guys. I picked up a new b4.2 rtr the other day and have been sifting through all the threads and articles about it. i know that it doesn't have all the bells and whistles like a factory kit. But generally speaking does it have any glaring deficiencies out of the box? Other than tires and the servo.

Well as you already know the servo is junk. You will prob bend the steel turnbuckles a lot, so some titanium turnbuckles and rpm ball cups are good. Clamping aluminum hexes all around is a good improvement as well. An aluminum front hinge pin brace will keep you from breaking bulkheads frequently. I rocked a t4.2 rs for a long time with the stock gear diff but when it went out I put a ball diff in it. Oh yeah and the stock drive system (dogbones) kinda suck too. The factory team cva set or mip ones are a great improvement. Don't upgrade the steering rack until you learn to drive, and/or get a high quality servo because the rs has a spring loaded servo saver which will prevent destroying servo's so much. Good luck

Oh geese and how could I forget about those garbage shocks. First thing to do is get some big bores on that ride, or at least some threaded V2's.

I had a b4.2 with big bores but the turnbuckles always hung up on the springs because that car was not designed for shocks that fat. I used some ball stud washers to shim it out but this changes the angle of the shock slightly. What I'm saying is that you can put big bores on your car but it's not a perfect fit. It takes a little work. The threaded V2 shocks are a perfect fit and you can probably find them cheap.

Excellent info gentlemen, but the biggest difference is that the B4.2 RTR does not have the +8 chassis so overall geometry is quite different from the FT kit.

Wow thank you guys. May i ask what exactly you mean by a +8 chassis though?

Oh yeah, great point. What he means is that the factory team chassis is 8 millimeters longer so the wheelbase and the way the car feels and handles is different. 8mm may not sound like much, but little changes make big differences in tuning.