I'm giddy with anticipation. Seriously.

Any info, pics, or links? I've been thinking about trying the outboard lower damper mounting points on my car. I Guess it would effectively stiffen the suspension? Totally unrelated, I know, but I'm pretty bored.

It kinda has to be a plastic chassis. Any attempt to further alter the current gearbox (which also doubles as the actual chassis) would essentially force a new platform designation.

Sakadachi, if you want a carbon M chassis, go buy one. I mean, you already have, but there are plenty more available. There's only one real mini.

Is ABC still making the Gambado/Grid? That was probably the longest lasting competitor. Too bad they chose not to set it up with the same fixed FDR. It could have expanded the class.

But there is some hope. ABC makes their universals (optional) for their mini size cars in .5mm increments so you can get longer driveshafts (I think it's only the dogbone that is different). They are all in aluminium so if you want steel I can't help (the standard ABC universals are steel but come in one length only, and I think that is 39mm).

The ABC dogbone fits the Tamiya wheel axle.

Beyond the sizes available from ABC, there is a 42mm dogbone, but I forgot who makes it. Might be an old Tamiya chassis (TA04 maybe?)

SAME! How come there is no drool smilies!?!

I suppose that is true. Even with the plastic chassis the crazy list of rules you folks have to follow for TCS is insane.. Image just making a new CF double deck series (including TRF) with TCS legal motor and ESC included in the kit.

I'd be interested.. where can I find one that is supposedly better than the SabreFD Mini if FWD? I've been looking for the Atomic 4WD one but to no avail.. I'm not really interested in shaft drive either.

Only one real mini? I hope it's not the FWD Miata..!!

I've been dreaming of a Carbon Reinforced chassis for years, like they do with all their Tub-chassis Sedans... That would be cool.

lighter and stronger

Exactly what I've been hoping for !!

A tub chassis would make it easier to have fwd and rwd on the same platform and would allow for carbon plate chassis to hit the aftermarket pretty quick. I'd call that a win/win.

I've always wanted to see the dirt simple construction of the 03 steering system combined with the low cg rear mounts servo of the 05. Being able to tear a car down quickly between heats can be crucial sometimes. All those little shims mess that up. Here's one guys brilliant solution.

http://findsusarm.blogspot.ca/2012/0...m05-std-3.html

What you're looking for isn't a "mini chassis" then. It's called a miniature touring car, and has survived in mediocrity since the beginning of touring cars in the early 90's.

There are recent models into this realm that look pretty cool (ABC, hobbyking, xpress, Atomic, and even the TA05-M). I was mindblown when i found out I could turn my TA02 into short wheelbase by simply flipping my wishbone over. When I first saw the HPI rs4 mini back in the 90's, I thought it was the coolest thing ever. From the perspective of being a legitimate racing machine with parts support, I thought Xray did it right 12 years ago with the T1M. It had 90% parts compatibility with the T1 touring car, achieved through copying the revolutionary setup, minus the 6-cell saddle pack. These things had a hi coolness factor to them. I thought that these miniature touring cars were so cool and were going to be the next "big thing".....until I tried driving them.

Putting 540 motor power on something with 210mm is like attaching a jet engine to rollerskates. Even the T1M was difficult to control, because the 1/10 scale components made the vehicle too heavy and cumbersome.

If you look at 1/18 vehicles, these are micro machines built "the right way". RC18, Micro RS4, and M18. Rather than squishing 1/10 components into a short wheelbase, re-tooled micro parts were made and attached to more appropriate sized powerplants.

With established sclaes like mini-Z and 1/18, many companies don't really want to jump on building a whole 'nother scale. So the end result is this half-assed mish mash of 1/10 scale parts on a 210mm or 225 mm wheelbase. So long as there is strong support for Tamiya Mini, 1/18 scale, and mini-Z, I dont see a miniature touring car being anything more than a cool looking novelty.

(0000000000) - Interesting read.

Actually I ran the HPI RS4 Mini's back in the 90's along with the Roadrunner and M03 for mini class. The HPI crew (Ito-san, Akira-san, etc) helped me setup my RS4 mini as it had issues with on-throttle tracking. It could never perform at the level of my Roadrunner though.

For the 'recent' models I was out of the RC scene so completely missed the Atomic and ABC. I was able to get my hands on a CupRacer though. It was silly for me to toss my old beat up Roadrunner thinking I would never run it again...

TOP Racing mini's use their TC parts and at lot of them are interchangeable. I will mention that my SabreMini (210mm) with a 17.5T is plenty stable and can comfortably handle a 540 sized motor.

I wish Tamiya would take their TRF TC and make a 210mm version... 4WD and all. I would buy one considering how well my M-Four runs. I'm not a big fan of plasticy chassis I guess.

I don't see Tamiya Racing Factory making a car that has nowhere to be raced.

Yeah, they would need to make an entirely new class so probably will never happen at this rate as you say. The market and demographics is shrinking anyway.. I know I'm just dreaming.

I'm just happy I didn't miss the CF m-chassis availability completely! I'll enjoy what I have.

Tamiya mini's are what they are. They aren't meant to compete against high caliber touring cars, and that's fine. Major companies like Xray have made excellent miniature touring cars that are "Mini Killers", yet the 17 year old M03 is still being sold and the T1M is now displayed on my shelf next to my TA03FS (which is probably the closest thing to a TRF mini).

Interestingly enough, TCS has not been in Canada for a while and mini racing is still running strong. I don't know what it is, but there's just something attractive about these Tamiya mini's that doesnt get old.

Mini works because they are cheap to repair, easy to set up decent and fun to drive. We also have spec tires and motors going for which makes it even better.