| Title: | Welcome To The Radio Control Conference |
| Notice: | dir's in 11, who's who in 4, sales in 6, auctions 19 |
| Moderator: | VMSSG::FRIEDRICHS |
| Created: | Tue Jan 13 1987 |
| Last Modified: | Thu Jun 05 1997 |
| Last Successful Update: | Fri Jun 06 1997 |
| Number of topics: | 1706 |
| Total number of notes: | 27193 |
I recently purchased a pair of TRAXXUS CATS for my son and I. Having
no RC car experience before I thought it was a good investment given
the [shock] cost of RC gear.
Anyway. We've had nothing but problems ever since. Specifically
here are a few questions I hope I can get help on.
1. Where can I by a maintenence/repair manaul. These cars came
completly assembled and without repair or maint. in the instructions?
2. We tried racing them at the track at 'Everybodies' Bycycle shop
in Northboro and had our doors blown off. Not because we were
inexperienced but because niether of us were able to keep the cars
running straight on the straight aways. No matter how we adjusted
the feather control for tracking.
One of the guys there said the front ends were too light and that
I had to weight them down with lead. That would give more stability
to the front end and help them track straighter. Is this true?
Is this the right conference for this. I did a DIR and saw mostly
plane [in the air] versus RC on the ground topics?
Bill
| T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 624.1 | USMRM1::DCOLECCHI | Mon Jul 25 1988 14:55 | 24 | ||
That Northboro track is not one of the easiest tracks to run on.
Its got 32 degree turns and the straights aren't flat either. The
surface is rough asphault and not very smooth. (kinda wavey)
I use to race there with my Falcon (Tymia) and I believe that the
major problem with your cars is the suspension not adding weight.
Most off road cars come with a stiff suspension, try to get it as
soft as possible. (front and rear) This usually can be done by changing
to weaker springs or in other cases adjustments. Try to get the
car as low as possible without bottoming out. Your probably running
the stock tires and I found them to be impossible on this track.
Change them to foam tires.
My recommendation to you would be to go to Roller Kingdom in Hudson
Ma. Rte 62 and try the track they have there. It's held on tue.
nights and starts around 6:00 PM. It's a roller skating rink, flat
and smooth and they get quite a few racers there. All most anyone
there would be glad to help you with hints and set-ups. This might
help for the instructions you don't have. They also have races for
beginners. It's a great place to get experience, then go to
Northboro.
Den
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| 624.2 | Thanks for the tip | CIMNET::LUISI | Tue Jul 26 1988 09:47 | 14 | |
Sounds like a great tip. I was feeling like my investment had gone
down the tubes. And my son was really upset when it found it almost
impossible to make it around the track without crashing a wall.
I'm going to go over the cars with a fine tooth comb and the next
time my son visits I'll try the Hudson place.
Thanks
Bill
PS: Do you know if Maint/repair manuals are available and where?
"Everybodies" said they did not have such a thing.
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| 624.3 | LEDS::ACCIARDI | I Blit, therefore I am... | Tue Jul 26 1988 09:48 | 16 | |
Almost everyone who's raced on the Northboro track has told of one
horrow story or another. I personally removed most of the front
end of my Optima Mid on a strategically placed two-by-four that
was laid on end at the end of the straightaway. Veer six inches
to the left, and you're history.
Did you notice the thriving replacement part business that the store
is doing? I wouldn't race on that oval again if my life depended
on it.
You can have just as much *free* fun by setting up some small cones
in an unused parking lot and going wild.
Ed
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| 624.4 | Some tips . . . | IOENG::JWILLIAMS | Zeitgeist Zoology | Tue Jul 26 1988 13:21 | 27 |
There are no repair manuals for R/C cars. There are, however, some
generic books about R/C cars. You've seen one, you've more or less
seen them all. It helps to know a little about mechanics in general.
1) Torque screws and nuts. DON'T OVERTIGHTEN. I can't tell you how
many plastic parts I've seen with the threads stripped out.
2) Keep it clean. Dirt will grind your car to nothing.
3) Suspension is a trade off between absorbtion and center of gravity.
The curvier the track, the lower the center of gravity and the stiffer
the suspension. In any event, enough ground clearance.
4) Lubricate everything. Practically nothing is sealed, so stay
away from grease. Use graphite or teflon, which won't attract dirt.
5) Align the suspension. I won't get into the full details of how
this is accomplished, suffice it to say you want about equal traction
on all tires on the course you have in mind. Two wheel drives need
more traction in the rear tires for acceleration and braking.
6) Drive smoothly, with nice curvy lines. Think of it this way,
you want to have your tires perform at their maximum traction. Not
over, not under, AT.
7) Have fun.
John.
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| 624.5 | I need an RC pit crew ... | MPGS::BURHANS | Tue Jul 26 1988 13:38 | 23 | |
Bill,
I was there when you ran your cars and the problem I think
you were having was having TOO MUCH steering control. I
don't know where the adjustment is on your cars, but you
need to adjust it so that your wheels turn the smallest
angle. Then go out in a parking lot and practice. Try
some long sweeping curves andtry staying straight on the
lines. Everyone gives too much control when they are
starting out because you keep giving more until you see
something happen, by then a lot more is going to happen
than you originally wanted.
If you are in or near Shrewsbury, I'd be happy to take a
look at your cars and give you a chance to try mine (RC10)
which I think I finally have working close to right. Then
you can tell if it's the "user" or the "hardware" !!
Good luck in any case,
Roger
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