Ok well shakedown complete... 1 quart later

First lap, front diff cup came loose..(yes, it had locktite on it :P), fixed no damage to gears..

Was running another body on it I cut up real quick to get it out today, found out the front of the body was pinching the fuel line... quick fix no front body clip

Only eye balled the ride height and did what I could with the camber... going to buy a tap and try that to help loosen them up a bit. Also noted that the front stock setup has the links as short as they can go, so not as big an issue as I thought it would be.

Handling: running new VP Pro Turbo Trax V1 in Ultraflexx (soft/med) on a really loose track. Squared up nice on power, even when the rear would step out, easily reeled it in. We have a large table on the back side of the track, probably 50+ft in length, almost clear the whole thing.. about a foot short haha... 15 tooth clutch bell might be a bit much for a tighter track, but definitely helps calm the power output down a lot. Overall running about 40/60 brake bias, needs to be closer to 50/50 but with the little traction I had, couldn't dial in the brakes really well. Also the brake adjustment is really sensitive. Made a 1/2 turn of adjustment (pulled the screw out and turned the eyelet) seemed to make about a 10% - 15 % adjustment.. going to have to play with that...

Also, while I know the traction was an issue, corner speed and corner grip was lacking (as in wouldn't hold line, would push out, overall grip was great considering), had some serious push.

So will head out on Sunday and toy with the setup some more. Can say the shocks/ oil/ pistons/ springs are spot on, was absorbing jumps, bumps and whoops like they weren't there.

Durability, well when I got comfortable was really trying to push some sections, new lines and all... had some hits, kept on ticking

Far more cat like then other buggies I've run, managed to keep it on it's wheels on boobles

Overall... actually makes it look like I can drive a buggy

Yeah JSK... maybe it will we'll see in a couple weeks at it's debut race front bearing on this clutch bell is like a 5 x 11 I have plenty of 5 x 10 and run that on my truck. Rear toe already running 2 dots out... swapped from stock setup. Thinking its a bit to much, going to try .5 less

So again Tekno... Impressed I am

It was kit threadlock or something else? I've noticed that kit TL doesn't hold well and long enough. I highly recommend to change all TL in your buggy to something else (AE FT blue TL works well) if you're running with kit one.

Glad you like it, I use red Loctite brand and crank it down. Will never come loose. I use a flame from a lighter for alittle heat to get them out.

Yeah the tank rides a little high, the factory body has some room molded into it for the fuel lines. I have a FTW Reactor coming so I am curious about how it's gonna fit around the tank/lines.

I would like to see some low bite brake discs for the buggy. I think these work well for the truggy but as you found out there a little touchy in a buggy with low traction.

It helps with the driveline cups if you very slightly groove the pinion shafts to give a small lip for the set screw to hold onto. Mine did not so much loosen up as they got pulled off the pinion shaft

I think you will be real happy with the buggy once you get it dialed in.

I used loctite brand... It's just a matter of the shaft not having any bite on the scew so it slipped off. Usually something pops loose on the shakedown run, hence the name

I received my FTW body today, took a brief look at it, but haven't cut and sized it yet. Will probably get that done the next couple days with my standard scheme... which I might add goes well with the lines of the FTW body.

So things I'm going to test Sunday:

Reduced rear toe
Shorten Rear Camber links on the hub side
Run shorter rear arm, inner on hub
Set proper camber/ ride height/ droop
Play with brakes some more
Obviously not all these at once

I think some off brand fiber discs with metal pads would give less bite... might have to look and see what I have laying around that'll fit. Also lightens the drivetrain up a bit...

I think that ABS function on radio can help you a bit, with proper hold/release/strike parameters you can achieve desired brake power. I haven't tried ABS on my MT4 with NB48 yet, but on my ebuggy i'm more than happy with effect on med-bite track

I've tried it in the past on a nitro vehicle, didn't really have the feel I was looking for. Also with it always kicking on could never get a light feel to it, was either max+abs, or not enough...

Maybe it should work with such on/off hard brakes like NB48 have? I've tried some hold/release balleye numbers with my buggy, was close to desired feel but haven't finished this task.

Use some throttle expo.

I'm still learning something new about nitro all the time so I'm a little lost. Why can't you turn your brake EPA down until you get the feel you are looking for then fine tune the bias to what you're looking for?

Coming from electrics I found out that I was using too much brake and slowing too much for the turns when I run my NB. Reducing the EPA so that the car would roll to a stop in a couple feet instead of locking up the tires instantly has been a big help in picking up corner speed. Just for reference I think my NB brakes are around 20% EPA and my EB are around 38%

I agree with Benard_Jr 100%. If you turn the EPA the brakes those lap time will diminish quickly.

So since Tekno is great at listening to what their customers want, What would you like to see for the NB48?

While I agree that this would be the simple solution, here are some things I have noticed while racing nitro, and why this isn't as simple as it sounds.
1. Brake fade - yes in longer mains, I have experienced brake fade, and after the run checked the brakes and they were scorching.. effect on feel, would have to increase throw to gain same amount of stopping power..
2. Fuel/Dirt/Grime - bad pit guy, lots of fuel/oil, no brakes.. again would have to adjust throw on the fly or until it wore off, if it wore off...
3. Weight change - as the tank empties the weight decreases, causing the brakes to feel stronger as the buggy is lighter. YES, I can tell when running if Im on a full tank or not, in fact I've come in early near the end of the race for the traction boost on a low traction track.
4. Long Main - Battery Drain, don't think I need to say much here, but most people don't realize how much those HV servos pull when braking, and add to that most are heated by being right next to the motor, and the heat soak from the chassis.

I always set my brakes on the table to gain the bias I want, then I put it on the track and dial up or down the epa until the wheels don't lock on the given traction. I will then add 10%-15% to this for the wet-track start of the race and mentally use less finger near the end of the race. While I think ABS would be a cool feature, I think in offroad nitro there are just to many variables that can influence the feel. Also on the KO Eurus, its a pain to turn off in a hurry if needed.

Stronger 1.5 (clutch pins) and 2.0 hex screws.
Alu throttle horn
Ping Bittydesign to make painted body for NB48 =)

Just curious, why the need for aluminum throttle? I've had no issue with the plastic.