been in the hobby a long time but just now starting to get curious on motor timing. so I have a viper 17.5t. It's running the timing at 30 right now I believe. So if I turn it to 40 or so is that going to increase top speed or bottom end. and what gearing changes if any do I need to make. Just looking for a little knowledge on what effects timing has. thanks

More timing equals more RPM. More top end, less run time. Potentially more heat.

Lower timing equals less RPM. More bottom end torque, more efficiency, more run time.

I use timing as a bit of a tweak once I have my gearing basically figured out.

so if I want some more top end could I increase timing and gear down to gain some bottom end back or no

pretty much. If you increase your timing and don't change your gearing the motor will get hot. Only you will know if the extra speed you get from the increase in timing is worth the little loss in torque on YOUR track. If you don't have a long straight to use the little extra speed it might not be worth it. imo