Looking for a new body for my CRC XTi WC that I run 17.5 1cell. I have the Protform Strakka now. Its getting a little beat up. Is there another body I should try? or should I still with the Strakka? I was considering the AMR-12.

Separate question, what is the handling like with the PFM-12 GT body? I sure like the looks.

The AMR-12 will give you a more planted feel. If you like the Strakka, you could also try the CRC Audi R8C.

That's kind of harsh. 1/12 scale classes at the IIC never did hit 50 entries per class anyway.

Well, that is your right, but if you've been racing for 30 years I would be very disappointed that something so minor as not being able to run your chosen tire in one motor class would cause you to quit. It's not like ROAR has made this a rule, it's just an experiment that as far as I can tell has been a massive success at the handful of races who have tried it. Having run these tires at a normal hobby shop surface and found them to be perfectly fine, I would say don't knock it until you try it.

A rookie or sportsman class has been discussed and sometimes done in 1/12 scale for at least as long as you have been racing. Handout motors, 27 turn stock, unsponsored drivers only classes have all been done over and over. What makes sportsman classes fail is needing the car to be in some way significantly different than 'Expert Stock' or whatever you call normal stock racing, but then if we are basically racing the same car why bother breaking it into two classes? There is always the risk of watering down an already watered down RC racing event. At the IIC they ran amateur touring as well as Spec GT and 17.5 stock, all of these classes are basically the same class running the same spec tire except for one has a handout motor and the other has a handout motor with a spec timing and spec gearing. The reason they can get away with this is that the signups for touring at the IIC are massive, pan car is a distant second.

I would argue that at the lower levels (which is what stock racing should be, but that's another story) there may be a lot to be gained from spec tires. The purple stripe tires I had run wear like iron, 2-3 times the life expectancy of my normal fronts and probably 5 times the life in the rears. They were pretty consistent from run to run, and were a much more forgiving set to run on than the slightly faster Ulti's or blues I had run before. I would say that they give the car a much wider setup window.

Overall, I think it's worth a shot. Touring car has been running nothing but spec tires for a long time and for a class that didn't exist until about 1997 its rise to become the dominant class in jump-free rc racing has to be taken as evidence that there was something less user friendly or less fun about pan car racing. Maybe we can capture some of that magic for the best but hardest classes in RC. It's worth considering.

Personally, I like the Black Art Lola. It's not the prettiest or the most durable, but my goodness my car has been feeling so good ever since I put a Lola on it.

Touring has ran spec for a while, but they run rubber, not foam. And TC about died when it first switched because no one thought to limit the amount of sets to use at an event. And TC is still no where near what it was in turn outs back in its day, when just about everyone was running foam. The first national in TC after they went to the spec tire, to be fast, you ran a new set every time you put the car on the track. If 1/12th is to follow TC, learn from their mistake and limit sets. I personally know, the spec stripes are faster when you "1 run" them.
As for me "quitting" after 30 years, no I won't quit, I will just run a different class and shelf the 12th scale.
And as for the IIC never hitting 50 in 1/12th, well, it never will if it goes spec. But that is my opinion, and I have been wrong before. My observations have been since the new carpet, 1/12th has seen a little resurgence and we do not need to start changing it just because some feel they are being beat by "special" tires and not flat out talent.

I love that body as well, but don't run it very much due to how thin they pull that thing, lol.

just don't hit anything and the body will last a good long time.

Ive been running inline battery. I want to know if there are any benefits running transverse ?

http://www.reflexracing.net/Transver...line_b_10.html

Just looking for a few bits of info -

1) what sort of rear widths are most people running?

2) Is there any advantages/disadvantages with cars that run the shock plate so far forward on the chassis? eg the RR12.

With all due respect .. Cmon Chris!

Your using the same argument over and over again. Me and you talked about spec tire while in line at Nats .. and there was no real reason to dislike spec tire. Let's be honest here, the only thing that you didn't like was that Ulti didn't make a set of specs - that's it.

There was NO ONE that said one negative word about spec tires at MHIC. Everyone truly enjoyed the fact that they didn't have to bring multiple compounds to the race or chase compounds during the race. It made things easier for everyone and the tires handled really well. Not everyone has a tire deal and it levels the playing field for those racers that don't - and that's who you want to concentrate on.

As for "1 runs" - I laugh at that argument. At "big" races, you cut your tires to the traction level. There are people that will ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS run "1-runs" no matter the compound or traction. This is fact, pure and simple. You obviously don't have to do this with spec tires. At MHIC there were people using 1-runs down to people using 1 set of tires for the event. I chose to use 40/40.5 (glued) in Q1 and was 3rd after the round (couldn't hold that position unfortunately).

Turnout was down at MHIC for 17.5 - I believe mainly due to spec tire skeptics and people who have opinions without ever running in an event with spec tire, basically not wanting to try anything new and being stubborn for no good reason. At the end of the event, lots of opinions had changed and I believe it was a huge success.

Are people not listening to the feedback? Again, NO negatives from the people that have actually run specs at a large event!

Sorry to hear you'll shelf your 1/12 before you try spec tires at a large event, it was fun racing with you .. hope you change your mind.

Joey K.

Very well said Joey, I wish people would give it a try! I know all of the MN crew felt the same way about specs.

And your comment about 1 run tires is spot on, there are going to be people doing it no matter what. I 1 run tires because I like the way they feel and I think they are easier to drive, even if they are not actually faster in my head they feel better.

Thanks Kevin - for giving your honest feedback. I think it's important for the wider audience to know what your experience was. I'm really glad it was a positive one! Your car was dialed and looked great all weekend - both setup and driving .. well done!

Guys. I ran spec tires for years in TC, run spec tires in F1 to. The common thing with these? Rubber and in TC they limit on sets. In F1, we don't need to limit due to the tire is actually better broken in.

I would actually run a spec race that limited to it to 3-4 sets, period. Why are we not limiting them?


And my biggest reason why I don't like the idea? NO ONE HAS SAID A VALID REASON WHY?

Cost?
Nope, they cost more.
Durability?
Nope, other tires last just as long if not more.
Equality?
What is the difference now? We all run blue, green, yellow of some form. Totally lost on what tire? Just ask someone! We are all generally really nice people, lol.

Maybe I am just dumb, lol. I still don't get it.

I hate to say this, but I saw this coming when CRC released rubber tires for WGT and saw the push in BRL for rubber to replace the spec compound foams. Both of those are the biggest users of the spec compound and if they go away from foam, the manufacturers need somewhere to sell it.

No argument from me on limiting sets .. as with anything new, you start with something and then refine. MHIC was a start, and we choose not to limit sets since it was the 1st large event in the US to try spec tires. As things catch on, and people warm to the idea, limiting sets might be an option. I got a chance to race in the WCICS series up in Canada this year, and they don't limit sets and there is zero drama, complaints or negative feedback.

Cost - They don't cost more for the average racer. The price offered at MHIC was less than the average racer could buy them for. If you have a deal with a manufacturer that does not offer spec tires then yes, you might be paying more than 0 dollars. But that is YOUR issue not the average person. The fact that you only need to buy 1 Compound makes it cheaper.

Durability - If you run 1-runs, they are good for 1-run, end of story no matter the compound. For larger cuts, the feedback on tire wear has been positive (good to great tire wear on black carpet). There are numerous comments on this thread and the other related thread that you can competitively run 2-3 sets including practice for an event. Did you not see the comment from RedBullFiXX .. 2 sets of specs for the Birds all week? I don't know what else you can ask for?

Equality - The fact that you mentioned - Blue/Green/Yellow (3 Compounds) is the difference. And what about Pink and Green Fronts - you know those are popular now too right? I actually like Magenta fronts as well on the new rug. That's not EQUAL. One Compound for all makes it Equal.

No need to ask for compound advice for the new/average/pro racer ... its called Spec.