PIIHB!

iTrader: (14)

I use a tc4 bumper. The foam is really thick and strong

nubs

iTrader: (2)

If you have a dremel you can shave down the axel that sticks out past the wheel nut to be flush with the wheel nut. I'm betting that after you hit those boards, there is a bunch of wood sticking on the end of the axel that you have to clean off. Cutting this piece will prevent it from sticking into the wooden boards and reduce the chances of breaking the c hubs and knuckles simply by catching on the straights. That being said, if your wheels hit the corners, this won't help. However, as others have stated, you can get a larger bumper that completely covers the front of the wheels and prevents your tires from hitting things. These two solutions will definitely address 90% of the issues you are experiencing. The other 10% can only come from better driving. What class are you racing in?

altitudelow

iTrader: (3)

I'm in USGT.

Broke another c-hub in practice tonight, but ordered the Parma universal foam brick so I can extend my coverage a bit. Also three more sets of c-hubs since it sucked that I had to quit running, as I'd used up my one spare set last weekend. Thankfully I found my bushing/flanged tube, not so easy on the black carpet! I should take those things out and spray paint them safety orange. I've also bent the crap out of my aluminum steering turnbuckles so I'll replace those with some stouter ones, hoping I don't end up breaking the next part in the chain.

As I whittle away at this car's black carpet setup I think I'm going to have to lower the front diff viscosity again. Started out ~1mil and the car had absolutely no off power steering; currently at 300k and it's better, but on our short track if I get into the turn rhythm even a little late I can't slow down to get back on the line because it pushes so bad. Since I have to be on power to get steering, I have to lead any series of rapid turns by a lot which is challenging to do quickly. My car appears to have the same ride height all around but I consistently build up a layer of gunk under the battery side of the chassis only, so I probably need to do something about that.

I think I'll end up reducing front diff viscosity and rear toe to see if that sharpens my steering input a bit and helps me get ahead of the car.

76jimmy

iTrader: (28)

How long after a chassis is released until Tamiya puts out a MS or R versions?

nubs

iTrader: (2)

Pro II then R. So like 2 years.

Tom1977

Theoretically all parts are already available to build a R-version. SSBB-shocks, center bridge, carbon reinforced plastic parts etc.

I don't see more changes in parts for a R-version because the normal Pro is already very good.

Only hop-ups missing are aluminium bulkheads and eventually a carbon upper deck to stiffen up the rear section. The screw holes are already there.

cpal

iTrader: (12)

sorry wrong thread

Markus

iTrader: (93)

Altitudelow,

sorry to hear of your breakage. I have driven Tamiya touring cars for a very long time. The only frustrating part about racing these cars (starting from the TA05 all the way to the 419x) is the easily broken c hubs and knuckles.
the correct 'hard' bumper helps greatly (use xray, parma, AX). They break because of hits at the front corners, the bumper is the weakest on the left and right ends. In a hit or tap, the body gets pushed back into the outside ends of the bumper. the bumper then flexes back to the wheel, the wheel is attached and has nowhere to go but backwards. this then breaks the c hub or knuckle, usually both. Until you get your setup sorted, the best way to stop breaking c hubs and knuckles is to use an abs bumper extension. buy a piece of scrap abs sheet 2mm-4mm. whatever you can find. trace the front foam bumper onto the abs. make the left and right corners 3mm larger than the foam bumper. cut out the bumper shape in the abs sheet. mark and drill the 2 body post holes. make the holes large enough that the abs bumper lays flat. place the foam bumper on top of the abs piece and reassemble the front top brace. the idea is to sandwich the abs piece between the lower bumper piece (the one that screws to the chassis) and the foam bumper. when you hit on the front corners the barriers will contact the abs corners and keep the impact from reaching your front wheels. this is what breaks the c hubs and knuckles.
good luck.
Setup: sounds like you are driving the spool setup wrong. with the spool you brake hard at the turn and rip the trigger to turn the car. (your brain says otherwise, a little unnatural) for now your driving style probably needs dual diffs. try 50k front and 5k rear. I'm just guessing as I drive with a spool but the theory is correct. regardless you'll be heading in the right direction.

nubs

iTrader: (2)

Yep agreed. I wonder if the 419x bulkheads would fit.

altitudelow

iTrader: (3)

Markus,

Thanks for the advice, I've purchased a bigger dense foam block and will cut it out as you describe. I'm actually not driving with a spool, I'm driving dual gear diffs. Started out 1mil in front and have gone down to 300k. I agree that the main issue is my brain thinking the power through style is unnatural, as I'm just not fast enough to do it consistently through repeated tight corners over and over without clipping stuff or getting off timing- thus the broken chubs. With time I may be able to do this consistently, for now I'm just trying to get the car to be able to rotate without needing to lead my inputs so much.

Markus

iTrader: (93)

the wide abs bumper plate will stop 90% of your breakage. both styles of driving can be fast. It's just what feels better and yields consistent laps. faster will come in time.

JoshuaRC10

iTrader: (4)

I really wish I would have known about this work around last year when I was still breaking chubs and bending turnbuckles. i probably spend $100 on replacement chubs and turnbuckles before i got my setup dialed in and (more importantly) my driving more consistent.

JoshuaRC10

iTrader: (4)

So I ran my TA07 this weekend in Stock Touring and had a better showing than I expected to!

I wasn't able to get my weight very far down (I managed to shed enough to get it down to 1483g) so the car was a bit of a pig compared to the cars I was competing against (R11's, Awesomeatix A800's, etc.), and I was competing against some world class drivers to my nearly novice 1.5 years racing, so i was pleased to be within 2 seconds of the lap times of the others running and within 2 laps.

The track is a beautiful permanent asphalt track that's only a year old, and had great grip the whole weekend (some people might disagree with me, but I'm used to running on a terrible parking lot surface). The car felt fantastic and I think that with a better driver and a little less weight could have done finished far better than I did.

But, even though I was losing I had an enormous amount of fun running 17.5 in this car.

nubs

iTrader: (2)

Good stuff.

altitudelow

iTrader: (3)

First practice session tonight with the Parma universal foam brick bumper installed. It's much denser and thicker than the stock foamie and thus required some longer screws for the body post brace, but is wide enough to cover both front wheels entirely while still fitting under my 350z body. After five or six packs worth of beating this thing against the barriers I didn't break a single part; I think this might be the first trip to the track this car has had without losing a chub or knuckle. Best $9 I've spent on the car so far!

In my quest to make the car a little better at black carpet USGT this week I reduced rear toe-in to 1deg from 2.5, moved rear shock upper mount out one hole, increased neg camber a small amount, and again lowered my front diff fluid from 300k to 100k. Once every other race weekend I find myself creeping back up to lifting the inside tires on hard turns and re-applying CA to the front sidewalls which deadens initial response but keeps the car dramatically flatter. These changes have given me a much easier (for me) to drive car that retains some off-power steering and changes directions less sluggishly than the vehicle did with a nearly spooled front diff. The track is about 10 sec laps and I'm running an FDR of 4.63, coming off the track at 150 degrees after six minutes.

Of course I can never not accessorize a tamiya, so I had to buy an aluminum servo mount which does nothing, some titanium turnbuckles for the aluminum steering rods that I've bent back to straight about five times, and the carbon reinforced parts since this chassis is a noodle. Hopefully all that stuff arrives before the weekend so I can see if stiffening things up helps this thing rock high traction racing better.