Finalist

My b5m is going to be a 17.5 racer and I'm wondering about all the AL stuff too. Based on the FT setup sheets I've found for 17.5 B5m I see them running loads of aluminum parts. Spencer Rivkin has a 17.5 set up sheet out and he has the al rear hubs, and several al arm mounts and yet his weight is still jn the low 1500s. How the he11 does he do it?

I see lots of 17.5 set ups online running the Al front bulk head. The weight might be great. I was told by a sponsored local to get a full size servo because the b5m needs the weight up front.

Also, the front hinge pin mod... The pins don't slide out the front!?! They must not as every ft driver seems to run that mod.

Jerm13

iTrader: (36)

we started running the extra 14 grams the second weekend we ran the car. Track was just rebuilt and still a little loose. As the traction came back up, it helped on the higher speed corners but had no negative effect anywhere else.

When we put the 0* caster blocks, standard set-up is 5* blocks, in ( Part Number 91400) it smoothed out the steering ( numbed it down a little) on entry and added exit/ on power steering. These 2 things were her main complaint. Nice thing was, the caster change corrects both of these

lee111m

titanium screws and the light chassis takes a lot of weight away. The AL front kickup plate has set screws to hold the pin in.

Chris Gierse

iTrader: (165)

Sorry if this has been asked before. Does anybody know what is up with the team guys rear springs lately? I have noticed these same springs on a few of the team guys cars in the last few months. Different brand or new springs coming?

Matt Trimmings

iTrader: (170)

They are Yatabe Arena (yokomo) springs.

Wildcat1971

iTrader: (84)

yeah, I am unsure why they are using the yatabe springs. stiffer rates? According to petit, that is a 2.71lbs springs. AE yellow rear is a 2.4. So a lot stiffer I guess

racer1812

iTrader: (31)

Aren't the Yatabe green springs also a stand alone Part number also? I was told Yok has like 3 different green springs...

Socket

iTrader: (61)

They're the actual number labeled, instead of being all over the place like oem AE springs.

Chris Gierse

iTrader: (165)

Wow! Wonder why they want them so stiff?

Wildcat1971

iTrader: (84)

I highly doubt that is true. I just dont think RC has that good of tolerances. I was told by a few spring makers, that the numbers are averages. The rates often change, because each rod that it is wound from, is never exactly the same. That is why AVID always tested each "batch" and labeled accordingly. AE, TLR, Yok and Kyosho have their numbers all over the place also. if you want matched springs, get a high quality spring tester and buy a crap ton of springs, lol. Otherwise, run what is in the package and work on keeping the wheels down. That is what 99% of us need to do . Btw, I just made up that statistic as I have no real data points

Jerm13

iTrader: (36)

Im good at keeping it on the wheels. I need more practice driving on the wing. Some reason, I cant keep up with anyone

Gearhead82

iTrader: (2)

Any help for a new guy?

Wildcat1971

iTrader: (84)

your electronics are fine. 2.2 vs 61mm is track dependent. Ask the locals.

belewis01

iTrader: (5)

I'm a new guy too, just came back to RC cars after a long break.

My suggestions - spend some time at the track asking questions before you build. Hopefully they have a store as well and can recommend some of the parts you need.

Car is 99% metric, I think the pinion gear is the only part that is standard. Get a good set of metric drivers, a MIP set would be the best.

Ask at the track which tires and wheels to get - it's a huge part of the set up and typically there is a dominant favorite at the local track.

Spend a lot of time making sure everything is set up right before your 1st time - camber, ride height, droop, etc. Get a camber gauge and a ride height tool. It's easier to understand what to change if you start from a standard, correct set up. Chances are you will need to make changes, but it will take awhile to figure out which problem is the car and which is the driver.

Practice, practice, practice. And don't be surprised when the 10 year old kid whips your butt - it's going to happen for awhile.

Bruce

Yanks213x

iTrader: (6)

I actually just got the same kit... Bought it 2 weeks ago and just finished last night. Some parts are fun to build and others frustrated me a little... most likely because I haven't put a kit together in a long time since I've been away from the Hobby myself. The screws are all metric and you can do 1 of 2 things -

http://www.amazon.com/Bondhus-10686-.../dp/B0006O4AD8

for ~17 dollars

or if you have some SAE wrenches, a few of the sizes are the same. I don't recall off hand but some of them will work. I have a set of MIP SAE Wrenches and was able to build about 90% of the car with them.

I stuck to the stock build provided in the instructions and will make changes as I run it and develop my own style. I was told to run the 3 gear transmission for stock class (which I'm in). My electronics are similar, I got the same ESC but I bought it as a combo with a motor. The motor will probably be replaced once I know how to drive since it's nothing special.

I bought the Hitec x2 AC Plus - it's pretty much the 2 battery charger version of yours. It was $100. I have limited time from when I get out of work to when I can practice on my local track before they close so I felt like that was a good choice.

I'm still in the learning phase too .. there are a lot of good resources here and I like ShortCourseWorld on youtube.. they guy Jason puts out a lot of good videos.

You can also PM me if you have questions, I'm so far from being an expert but I'm sure there are a lot of things out there that I haven't even realized you could ask about.