Chassis Tuning for Dummies (101)
03-31-2004, 05:36 AM
#1
Chassis Tuning for Dummies (101)
I haven't raced a Touring Car in nearly 2 years. Well I want to start again, and I'm finding things have changed a bit since I've been gone. My old kit (MR4-TC) had only a few adjustments, so it was somewhat easy to figure out what changes to make to achieve the handling characteristics I wanted.
My new kit (insert your kit name here)has all the tuning capabilities of my old one, plus some.
I don't know about anyone else, but I don't know what effect all of these adjustments have on the handling characteristics of my car??? But, there are a lot of knowledgeable drivers here at R/C Tech that do.
Since most of our cars have 95% of the same adjustments, I thought it would be helpfull for all drivers (Associate - Yokomo) (Gas & Electric) if a thread existed that covered this topic.
Can anyone define and describe the effects these tuning adjustments have on a chassis? How and when are they used?
droop
toe (front/rear)
camber (front/rear)
caster
skid angle
bump steer
ackerman
other adjustments???
If this thread can stay on topic it could become a good informational resource.
My new kit (insert your kit name here)has all the tuning capabilities of my old one, plus some.
I don't know about anyone else, but I don't know what effect all of these adjustments have on the handling characteristics of my car??? But, there are a lot of knowledgeable drivers here at R/C Tech that do.
Since most of our cars have 95% of the same adjustments, I thought it would be helpfull for all drivers (Associate - Yokomo) (Gas & Electric) if a thread existed that covered this topic.
Can anyone define and describe the effects these tuning adjustments have on a chassis? How and when are they used?
droop
toe (front/rear)
camber (front/rear)
caster
skid angle
bump steer
ackerman
other adjustments???
If this thread can stay on topic it could become a good informational resource.
03-31-2004, 06:05 AM
#2
Tech Addict
Ok, I'll start with the first.
Droop has a lot of inluence on the car's handling. It defines the way the car behaves off power, on power and during the corner.
As a general statement, the more droop the more overall grip (to a certain extent of course) but the less responsive the car will be, as there will be a lot of suspension travel. The less droop... guess what.
Now, the influence on the mass transfer :
Off Power : More REAR droop will give more Off Power STEERING as there will be more weight transfer, i.e. more weight on the front wheels.
On Power : More FRONT droop will give more On Power STABILITY for the same reason, i.e. more weight on the rear wheels.
How to set it up ?
Go for a basic setup of about 2/3 mm of droop, defined as the difference between the max height of the car (max suspension downtravel) and the running height. Ex : if your car runs at 5mm of the ground, and when you raise the chassis the wheels leaves the ground when the chassis is at 8mm, then you have 8 - 5 = 3 mm of droop.
now if your car has a lack of grip and is very fast in direction changes, then you can increase the droop evenly on Front and Rear.
If you experience grip roll then decrease the droop.
If your car has off power understeering, then increase rear droop, if it's oversteering decrease it.
If your car has On Power oversteering, increase front droop, if it's understeering decrease it.
On bumpy tracks we tend to increase droop to allow the suspension to work. On high grip carpet, we usually decrease droop to a minimum (minimum being 0mm, which is a bit extreme) to prevent from grip rolling.
I think that's enough for now...
Droop has a lot of inluence on the car's handling. It defines the way the car behaves off power, on power and during the corner.
As a general statement, the more droop the more overall grip (to a certain extent of course) but the less responsive the car will be, as there will be a lot of suspension travel. The less droop... guess what.
Now, the influence on the mass transfer :
Off Power : More REAR droop will give more Off Power STEERING as there will be more weight transfer, i.e. more weight on the front wheels.
On Power : More FRONT droop will give more On Power STABILITY for the same reason, i.e. more weight on the rear wheels.
How to set it up ?
Go for a basic setup of about 2/3 mm of droop, defined as the difference between the max height of the car (max suspension downtravel) and the running height. Ex : if your car runs at 5mm of the ground, and when you raise the chassis the wheels leaves the ground when the chassis is at 8mm, then you have 8 - 5 = 3 mm of droop.
now if your car has a lack of grip and is very fast in direction changes, then you can increase the droop evenly on Front and Rear.
If you experience grip roll then decrease the droop.
If your car has off power understeering, then increase rear droop, if it's oversteering decrease it.
If your car has On Power oversteering, increase front droop, if it's understeering decrease it.
On bumpy tracks we tend to increase droop to allow the suspension to work. On high grip carpet, we usually decrease droop to a minimum (minimum being 0mm, which is a bit extreme) to prevent from grip rolling.
I think that's enough for now...
03-31-2004, 06:36 AM
#3
TOE IN/OUT: toe in will stabilize the car under acceleration because the two front wheels are pointing inward. This will also give the car more turn-out....handeling coming out of a corner. Toe out is the opposite, you wheels are pointing outward. The car will feel a bit wandery down the straight. However, turn-in is greatly increased. Personally, I like to run about a degree of toe out all the time. Generally, 0 degrees is a good starting point.
03-31-2004, 07:10 AM
#4
R/C Car Handling
Some may find this site useful. It's even available in Italian and Estonian languages.
http://home.tiscali.be/be067749/58/
http://home.tiscali.be/be067749/58/
03-31-2004, 07:25 AM
#5
XXX Main
Grab XXX Main's set-up guide, Martin did a great job laying out all of the details.
http://www.xxxmain.com
http://www.xxxmain.com
03-31-2004, 08:36 AM
#7
mafiaracers xxx-main link doesn't work
geppetto, I'v had that link for a while now...its the shintz!
geppetto, I'v had that link for a while now...its the shintz!
WARNING: Don't download the Zip version from that web site. I did, then unzipped it and I believe it contains some malicious code. After I left the web site, my CD drive drawers opened by themselves, and a "Spyware" advertisement kept launching in my browser. So far, there haven't been any other noticable side affects. BTW, I was able to fix the problem though!
04-01-2004, 06:32 AM
#9
Tech Rookie
Toughest Drivetrain Parts for TC-3 TI or what?
Hi Guys,
I have a BMI TC-3 Chassis and wanted to build-it as tough as a tank.
A local friend told me that there were TI parts available for the drivetrain and suspension. Have been searching on the web, but haven't found any driveshafts, collars, axles or othere parts.
Can some one tell me what is the best way to bullet proof the drivetrain and rear suspension mount for the TC-3?
Any help would be welcome, since there is an ocean between me and the tracks were I could see some of these items.
Ray in Puerto Rico
I have a BMI TC-3 Chassis and wanted to build-it as tough as a tank.
A local friend told me that there were TI parts available for the drivetrain and suspension. Have been searching on the web, but haven't found any driveshafts, collars, axles or othere parts.
Can some one tell me what is the best way to bullet proof the drivetrain and rear suspension mount for the TC-3?
Any help would be welcome, since there is an ocean between me and the tracks were I could see some of these items.
Ray in Puerto Rico
04-01-2004, 07:39 AM
#10
Check out Hardcore racing products. I believe that the website is www.racinghardcore.com They make an entire TC3 out of titanium.
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