Originally Posted by
Conrad
Pretty much the same at my club, we have never banned foams but very few still run them. Personally I have three foam TC's which are much more fun, consistent and predictable to drive compared to rubbers. Yes I loose out of speed due to the friction difference between foam/rubber but hey my wear and tear outside of tires is tiny as it's diff's front and rear
42/37 is my regular shore rating as well tc3team.
We did used to have a winter carpet series in Scotland about 10 years ago now and the first few years it was ace, spec tires that were marked so the racing was close but loosing the local shop support lost the spec tire, dwindling numbers lost the foams and it was switched to rubbers with very few racers left in the 'premier' class so to speak.
Nice to hear
Yes, 99% of our club use double diff too, many have tried a spool but it's too aggressive to use consistently.
I use 42/40 but sometimes 40/37 if i'm searching for a little more grip. Sometimes a 30mm rear tyre also helps but a lot of the modern cars (such as the t4) need bigger offset hexes to accommodate a wider tyre.
To concur, I do think it's good for clubs to occasionally have a small foam tyre championship if they are a predominantly a rubber tyre club and they can get a reliable source of tyres for it.
It teaches you a different aspect of racing, changing the car setup as the foams wear and the setup in other elements isn't so critical - harder springs (especially the front) and droop settings being the main difference, let the tyres and your chosen additive do the work.
Foam tyres were killed off by the guys who could afford the tyre bill and went overkill with the truing, super soft compounds, crashing too much and chunking the tyre etc etc.
Speeds and torque levels were a bit lower years ago as we didn't have superfast brushless motors, which made foam tyres for the average racer a bit more affordable and the wear rate more manageable.
Fast forward to 2014 and I (and the rest of the club members I race with) are still managing to buy 2 pairs of foam tyres for £10 BNIP, very good value IMO. We use 13.5 blinky or 17.5 turbo and the tyre wear, despite being indoors on a tight track is still quite reasonable.
Foam is almost non existent in the UK now, but for the guys that still race it, they still do because they understand its a fun way to race, with a cheap tyre
