Twism86

iTrader: (4)

Hey,

New to the forum, not TC racing.

Havent run in like a few years, but may have time this summer. I currently run the outdated Pro4 (which i still love BTW).

I was looking for a TC5 since i started on a TC3 and love AE. Whats the big difference between the first gen TC5 and the TC5R. I would be running rubber on asphalt. I may be able to get a good deal on a regular TC5 or would the R be more worth it? Since im just getting back in i think it would be fine.

Thanks,
Tom

revo61

iTrader: (18)

Not much, The R comes with the ITF chassis and alum diffs. The F is the same as the original. I have the Factory Team, but use the ITF top deck with orings and only 4 screws.

raven101

iTrader: (4)

if i am not mistaken the f model also has a thicker upper and lower deck to reduce chassis flex which is more needed on asphalt.

Redwood

First and foremost the TC5R is designed for Rubber (hence the r) tyres, and the TCF5 is designed for foam tyres.

Rubber produced less traction and so to maximise traction you want to let the car flex, hence the TC5R comes with thinner chassis and top deck. It also comes with a slipper spool up front since this is preferred to a diff for asphalt, not so sure about carpet.

Since foam tyres on carpet produce far more traction, it is preferable to have a stiff car. Hence the TC5F has the thicker chassis and upper deck and also comes with harder plastic parts (hubs, arms etc).

The origional TC5 Factory team kit has a mix of the two models, it has 'soft' plastic parts but thick chassis and upper deck, and comes with a diff up front.

I would say the difference between the different chassis thicknesses is minimal, but a spool up front is the way to go on asphalt. One cheap trick if you go for the factory team kit is to build a ball diff without the balls, and use rough sandpaper to rough up the diff plates. If you screw it together tight (not too tight! the associated diff nuts are weak) it makes a reasonable slipper spool, but only if you run stock motors (wouldnt use this for anything greater than 13.5, may get away in 10.5).

If you can get a good deal on an origional TC5 then I would go with that, you can trim your chassis and top deck for extra flex and as Revo said a good tip is to use less screws for the top deck and sit Orings under the screw heads for even more flex.

Regards

Neal

Twism86

iTrader: (4)

Thanks a lot guys!

JoshM20

iTrader: (7)

How are the Tweak issues with this car?

poochy

iTrader: (11)

none if your screws screw down freely and you screw them down x pattern ish.

if you dont-it tweaks easy especially the upperdeck.

that is my experience with tweak on the R version....

the biggest issue with this car for me is the 6x10x3 bearing,,,x3 might be too small.
if theres a kick left or right or the motor temp rises 20 to 30 degrees then you may have a hub/steering block bearing going bad<--BE AWARE!!!

if you run on super high grip indoor asphalt-i reccommend the F version 2.5mm upperdeck/chassis not the 2mm version that comes with the R.

JoshM20

iTrader: (7)

Why/ how do you use the o-rings, and why only 4 screws?

Redwood

The idea of these two modifications is to increase the flex in the chassis, so that the car can roll or lean into the corner more, which increases grip on medium to low traction surfaces (asphalt). I think you call it torsional flex, i.e. if you take your car and hold the front and back and twist your hands in opposite directions.

So to make the car flex more, you can use less screws to secure the top plate, or put rubber orings below the 4 screws that attach the top deck near the spur.

A lot of guys detach the motor mount from the rear bulkhead by removing the screw there, this increases flex, and more importantly makes the flex more symmetric. If you are being thorough you have to grind the bulkhead or motor plate so there is a gap, but I'm happy without the gap.

Regards

Neal

IIGQ4U

iTrader: (53)

Yes, torsional flex is correct

trdsupra88

iTrader: (25)

Could you post a pic of what youve done?

getpip

I use a Tamiya belt from the 416 ... perfect.... The standard belt hardly frees up at all with 10.5.

Yes the ali outdrives do seem to wear as much as the blades... strange huh.... But the blades will absorb a hit by breaking.

I have used the composite diff also... it is ok for stock racing but can get pretty hot so take care with a quicker motor.

M.Abramowicz

iTrader: (1)

Hi!

When I drive on carpet, my tc5 got a lot of dust and carpet junk into belt and
pulleys ... Any tip how to prevent that will be nice Chassis is about 1.5y,
maybe this is time for change belts and pulleys? But they are in good shape.

I must check before run if my transmission is clean and in good shape ...
Maybe I wrong drive or something, another chassis are clean, or little dirty.

Regards,

m.

Redwood

I don't have a pic handy, and can't get one till Monday but the mod is really simple. Just remove the 4 screws that hold the topdeck down, at the motor end. Place 4 rubber o-rings (I just use some old TC5 shock o-rings) in the places where you just removed the screws, then screw the topdeck down again, but now there will be an o-ring between the topdeck and the screwhead.

You dont have to screw very hard, and if you do the o-ring will just pop out, I was worried about this since it didn't seem very secure, but they didn't come out, or even loosen in a few months now.

As for the motor mount screw, thats easy too. There are 3 screws attaching the motor mount, 2 from beneath the chassis and one that screws into the aluminium bulkhead from the side, simply remove this screw so that it is only attached from beneath.

Hope that helps, if not I will try to get a picture for next week.

Regards

Neal

BlueEagle

This seems like a bad idea for the possible effects on your drivetrain.

If you account for the fact that the battery side of the chassis is braced by the battery "strap", I wonder if this negates the asymmetry. I imagine the battery strap provides a lot more stiffness than what is lost from having the battery holes.