That pretty much sums it up. If two drivers are of equal ability and one can afford a $50 battery, while the other can afford a $200 battery, chances are that the $200 battery is going to make all the difference.

We had the battery wars not so long ago here in the touring car classes. Essentially, if one could afford to keep spending, they could be reasonably assured of winning.

Jim

Next question: Which way do you install the ball diff in an M-03? Any have pictures?

Jim

You install the ball diff with the tension adjustment nut on the front left

Cool, I think I did it the right way. I'll have to take the car apart again to check.

While we're on the subject, has anyone noticed their transmission seems noisier with the ball diff rather than the gear diff? I installed mine earlier tonight, and it makes a bit of a racket compared to the gear diff.

Jim

Same amount of noise Jim, but there's now more empty space inside the tranny so it echoes around and therefore sounds 'worse'...

Hobby wing 300kv system, My mini weighs 1482grams the lead is wrapped around the battery so as low down and close to were the weight was taken as possible

Mini is 5mm in the front and3mm in the rear. Also taken the spacer from the rear M03R turn buckle to give more camber

Matt,

you need to go back to basics. Given that you can't even use the same tyres that others use (at TFTR) you obviously have something wrong.

Do something weird - like swap your shocks front to back.

Play with the ride height, often 1mm change at one end or the other can effect a huge change. You need to go through the car, one change at a time and note what difference it makes - if any.

You need to get something more 'normal' with your tyre setup too. Basic set-up, hard front, softer rear. Same goes for shocks springs too.

Lastly, you will almost certainly need to change your driving style. M03's are going a LOT faster than they used to. And the 'keep the corner speed up' style doesn't apply so much any more. Often now the 'point and squirt' works better.

servo dimensions
 

Hey,

Can anybody tell me what the largest size servo (dimension wise) is that I can put in a mini m03-L? I have a JRRacing z9000T or a Hitech HS-5985MG that I would like to use if possible. Have'nt gotten my mini yet, so I can't just test it out.

Any "standard" size servo which those are so they will work.

cool. Thank you! Should I upgrade ESC? currently I have the stock 540 motor and stock tamiya ESC. I want to keep it spec legal.

You can if you want but it will not make any noticeable difference and is not needed. :)

101

You said you're traction rolling. Does that mean you're rolling over, or just lifting wheels a bit?

I think your 3mm is a bit low and you probably have very limited if any droop. That means your car is more like a brick than a car with suspension. Remember that grip is a game of give and take. If your car rolls instead of the chassis rolling and the suspension taking some deflection that means the suspension is too stiff. As suggested above a review of your suspension all around might provide some information. I think your suspension is too stiff right now. I like my cars soft and given that you have plenty of power I think it would be a good idea (and you can afford it) to sacrifice some speed for driveability. Your times are going to pick up if you're smoother rather than having to fight the car in corners.

Just thought I'd share my setup with you guys (indoor carpet), kinda of out of the ordinary compared to the rest of you...

Front:
Red Springs
15wt Oil
1 Hole Piston
5mm limiter on shock shaft
Black Sway Bar
M-Grip Tires, Hard insert
Front one way

Rear:
Yellow Springs
15wt Oil
2 Hole Piston
5mm limiter on shock shaft
Black sway bar
Kit tires, hard insert

The car pushes a little more then I would like, but the way it is makes it very consistent to drive. :nod:

More diff questions! (I'm away from racing for a couple of weeks, so I've got lots of time to tweak and tune)

I built a gear diff last night with a couple of extra shims in it. As mentioned (much) earlier in this thread, I glued the shims to the diff case, and then built it up as usual.

The problem is that the moment I start to get any "limited slip" action as I tighten down the screws, the diff gets very notchy. I've tried loosening and tightening the screws one by one, little by little, but I either have a loose diff or a really notchy one.

Any tips on this I may have missed?

Jim

monkeyracing get rid of some of those shims they are tightening the diff action too much