Originally Posted by duckman996
That begs the question - were the front-ends built as per the advice on these boards? Many of the racers at our track have converted to the Gen-X and have noticed improvements with their lap-times.... without a problem with breakage if they have countersunk the arms properly - and it's not cause we don't hit stuff.
The bottom-line is that the new design by CRC makes great sense in keeping the front-end play at bay without having to purchase new replacement parts every couple months of racing. Some will like the change - others are die-hard AE front-end fans - so-be-it. I personally noticed a huge improvement in my performance in 1/12 as soon as I started driving the GEN-X, but that is because link cars seems to work better for me then T-Plate cars do.
One question to ask is since Associated is no longer making 1/12 cars - from what I have been told... how long will parts supply be available on replacement AE front-ends? If this is indeed true, CRC has a HUGE leap on everyone else in designing their own front suspension. Pretty smart!
I have no idea if they were built to "advice" on these boards--I WILL assume they were built to the "advice" CRC published in the instructions. The only "broken" cars I marshalled were Gen-X's, and that fact alone tells me all I need to know. The odd failure here or there happens. That many failures is a problem no matter what anybody says or how they try to rationalize it.
And I'm a BIG CRC fan. I LOVE my 3.2R's.
As far as parts availability--I'm curious where you've heard Associated is no longer making 1/12 cars. I hadn't heard that anywhere (not to say I didn't miss the announcement). I know Associated has undergone a lot of changes recently, but they've done a better job of supporting "legacy" cars than all the other manufacturers (big and small) put together. I'm pretty sure I can STILL get many parts for my gold tub RC10... The only piece I'm aware of for which there isn't an aftermarket replacement is the lower arm. Other than that CRC themselves provide my upper arms and steering blocks, Lunsford provides most of the hardware and axles, and so on. Even if the supply dried up and blew away (a BIG assumption) there will be parts for years to come.
Time will tell. I REALLY wanted the Gen-X to work for me, but for now I'm selecting bits and pieces. And none of the front end parts are among those bits. Anyone with ANY engineering sense/mechanical sympathy will point directly at the grub screw against the kingpin threads and say "that isn't done". You can make all the half-assed "fixes" (the brass screws only cure the symptom...not the problem) you want, but the fact is the design was flawed right there from the outset.
I'll be interested to see what Jason/BMI comes up with as re a 1/12 front end.
Scottrik