Cain

iTrader: (294)

I am really enjoying my TC3, it really performs considering mine is just a used kit.

I am looking into getting alittle better performance from it, namely to get a smoother drivetrain and less drag. I have heard of some techniques to do this and would like to get some more info on what you have done to get the drivetrain as free as possible.

Thanks!

True R/C Racing

take all the bearings out and put them in (paint thinner, acetone etc) and shake or let them sit for a while. take them out Wait until dry and put 1 drop of thin bearing oil. and the Drivetrain should be smooth. Also If you want it to be even better Purchase the Warpspeed Diff cases that will make a big difference.

Cain

iTrader: (294)

I have heard to get quieter gears, you should put tooth paste that has the abrasive crystals in it ( like whitening ) or something else similar on the gears and run the car for alittle while. Most likely will need new bearings in that area but I heard it should run smooth.

As for the diff cases, are the ones that come with the TC3 rubbing on the drivetrain components? How much are the Warpspeed cases and will they work on a stock chassis?

Cain

iTrader: (294)

Also, what are there cases made out of ?

True R/C Racing

its made out of graphtie if im not mistaking. The diff cases are $35 to replace the whole car. And yes it will fit on stock tc3 chassis. the Stock diff cases pinch the bearings of the diff and Make the car not spin freely.

Cain

iTrader: (294)

Is it possible to sand down the cases to loosen it up or is not worth it?

True R/C Racing

you can but its not the same

micro speed

you can also use stealth diff lube to quiet the gears

s2

The battery centering mod is a very good 1, its basically removing, milling, half the centre brace bit on the battery side, so the cells sit closer to the cetre-line of the chassis, it can be alot of work, but if done right can have a benificial effect on handling. however doing this will slightly reduce the stiffness of the chassis, so if you want a stiff chassis too, you may wanna have a graphite topdeck made Stiff, Handels and Blue

Speedie

Cain,

Freeing up the drivetrain is good but theres not much speed there at all. Cleaning your bearings and putting light oil in them is very important less drag, plus your bearings will last longer. Also shimming the front and rear input shafts correctly is very important. The new diff cases that they are making do not pinch the bearings near as much as the old ones did. The warpspeed diff cases are nice if you have a problem stripping screws. The battery modification is a nice thing to do to get weight off of the car and improve handling. With the batteries closer to the center it takes less weight to balance the chassis left to right. Also the weight mass of the car is more centered as well. This will give you less body roll and more traction. The TC3 likes to be cleaned alot. The cleaner it is the better it runs.

GFXmania

TC3 has to put a lot of work like using the blade to scrap the diff case to stop the pinching. In regards to reduce the gear noise, you can dip the gears into WD40 for one night and let it air dried. It should lubricate the gear and also reduce the noise of the gear.

Ceramic Bearing is also a plus.

Cain

iTrader: (294)

interesting about wd40. Is there anything else you can soak the gears in?

True R/C Racing

very true

Speedo

Actually I have purchased the Warpspeed cases and found that I could do a much better job of it myself. Most rotary tools (Dremels) come with standard sized bits, and two of them should fit the diff cases perfectly. Using these it is fairly easy to do the modifications yourself. It does take a bit of practice, and you could go through a few cases getting it right, but it works out nice in the end.

I put my chassis in a drill press last Sunday. I took .25" out of the radio compartment, and off the battery tray. Also moved the batteries just under .1" toward the shaft. Basically you take off the outside rib. Couldn't finish off the slots with the press, so I'll have to use a Dremel for that.

Another modification that helps a lot is sanding the sides of the chassis. Wrap a piece of sandpaper around a block of wood and sand the edge of the chassis so that it angles upward away from the ground. Make it nice and smooth, and finish off by wet-sanding with very fine grit paper. This stops the car from losing as much speed when the chassis rubs in the corners, which is common in mod with 4mm ride height.

Another thing that helps on carpet is to machine the arm mounts. I took .080" off of mine, and use .030" shims to shim them up. Look back a few pages in the TC3 thread, you should find an explanation. You need to use the F-block in the front of the rear, coupled with the R+3+2 block, this gives you 2.5 degrees of rear toe. Then shim them to adjust the roll center. In the front, the F and F-0 blocks need to be cut down .080" and shimmed to your liking. You also need to take some material off the chassis ribs to allow the lowered blocks to fit.

I will try to post a picture of my chassis when I finish.

Josh

Speedo

BTW, lowering the blocks raises the roll center. The more you shim them up lowers the roll center.