ADVERTISEMENT | ADVERTISE WITH US
0
Oct. 23, 2014, 12:07 p.m.
10/23/2014
By Aaron Waldron
LiveRC.com
Whether it's wheel nuts, wings, tools, tracks, trinkets and/or anything in between, the LiveRC staff gives their testimonial and mini-review of each every Thursday morning!
The 2WD class is as popular as ever, with more viable kit options than at any point in RC history. There’s never been a better time to race buggies than now, and it remains one of the most well-attended classes at many tracks across the country - especially SDRC. With a deep field of drivers in both Stock and Modified, everyone is looking for an advantage.
Tito Gonzalez, the owner of Bumper Medic auto colllision repair just down the street from SDRC in Miramar, CA, has picked and chosen the aftermarket options installed on this fleet of Team Associated B5 and B5M buggies carefully. Tito and his nine-year-old son Josh have been track regulars for two years and jumped into the 2WD class headfirst about two months ago, regularly running the Stock and Modified classes - sometimes on the same night!
A disastrous start to the main for the top three qualifiers last night left Tito fighting back through the field for a well-earned third place finish, and afterward I stopped by his pit table to check out what he had bolted to the four buggies on his pit table.
Exotek Racing B5 carbon front tower (flat arm)
#1440BLA, $45
Available to match the geometry of AE's shock towers to be used with either the flat and gullwing arms offered for the B5 and B5M, Exotek's 4mm thick carbon fiber tower can be purchased with a choice of black or blue camber link mounts. The assembly weighs only 13.6 grams and bolts in place with no additional hardware.
While Tito admits he hasn't tried Team Associated's optional "hard" plastic, and purchased these items simply because he thought they looked better, fitting the Exotek towers to his buggies made them feel more responsive. He and Josh have been running the Exotek towers for two months and haven't broken one, even during a crash hard enough to bend the shock mount!
Beacon rating: 5/5
Hot Racing B5 aluminum caster blocks, black
#BFR1901, $29
Hot Racing's caster blocks for Team Associated's best buggies use bearings, rather than simply crush tubes, for buttery smooth steering throw. They're CNC machined from aluminum that's anodized black, and come with all of the necessary hardware to mount them to the car. Because they utilize the stock inserts, caster is still as adjustable as with the stock parts.
Again purchased because of aesthetic attraction, Tito was surprised at how much the Hot Racing caster blocks tightened up the slop in his buggies' steering systems. With a bearing on each the top and bottom of the steering block there's no risk of binding when the screws are cranked down, but he does worry about the bearings getting gritty or potentially failing after a hard collision. He hasn't had a problem after about 15 packs of run time, but admits it's something he's watching out for.
Beacon rating: 4/5
ProTek R/C 160SS Low Profile Digital "Super Speed" Metal Gear Servo
#PTK-160SS, $110
ProTek R/C packs a lot of punch into the low-profile aluminum case of the 160SS. A digital processor controls the coreless motor capable of running off of uninhibited 2S LiPo power, and the metal gear train spins on full ball bearings. ProTek R/C even throws in an aluminum servo arm and four aluminum servo ear guides that can be used in place of the rubber grommets. The 6.0 volt ratings of 0.05 sec./60 deg. and 127 oz.-in. of torque jump to .04 seconds/60 deg. and 152 oz.-in. on 7.4 volts.
Tito prefers the low-profile servos in his mid-motor cars because they're lighter and make more room on the chassis for the electronics, though he still runs full-size servos in the rear-motor cars. Both Tito and Josh appreciate the servo's ultra-fast reaction times and haven't had a problem after a month of track time, but Team Gonzalez' lone financier did feel they were a bit on the upper edge of the price bracket.
ST Racing Concepts aluminum steering bellcrank set for B5, B5M
#STC91391BK, $27
Three pieces make up STRC's steering assembly for the B5 and B5M buggies - two bellcranks and a sliding rack. Made of aluminum for an increase in durability and CNC machined for optimal tolerances, the assembly removes the slop of the stock plastic pieces. In addition to the black set here, they're available in blue, gun metal, and silver.
Tito said slop removal was the best part of installing the STRC setup, and they've been trouble-free for the six months that he's owned them. In fact, his only ding against the assembly was the lack of hardware - the AE crush tubes, like those included in the Factory Team aluminum bellcranks, are required.
Beacon rating: 3/5
ST Racing Concepts B5 rear chassis brace/camber link mount
#STC91377BK, $19
CNC machined from aluminum and anodized in black (seen here), blue, gun metal, or silver, the STRC rear chassis brace significantly stiffens the rear of the rear-motor B5 chassis while retaining the stock camber link mounting positions.
"I like it," said Tito, who added, "it ties everything together." Tito feels more comfortable being able to crank down the screws that hold the brace to the chassis as the aluminum resists being stripped or overtightened, and it provides a more stable mount for the rear shock tower and camber link ball stud. In fact, Tito didn't even try the stock plastic piece. "I'm not very good at driving," said Tito, "so the extra weight helps keep the car more stable."
THURSDAY TESTIMONIALS - RANDOM ITEM OF THE WEEK:
Each week outside of the R/C world we test out and use a variety of items in our daily routines that have absolutely nothing to do with R/C, and THIS is what we think of them!
Announcing
#resume, +$
That's my view once a week, but that's not the back of my head. Notice the LiveRC streaming screen on the smaller monitor!
I've been running the Wednesday night club races at SDRC for quite a while now ( I can't remember how long - over a year, for sure), but it's not my first time talking into a microphone. I've never had a problem being a talker, and got my start announcing club races in San Diego as a young kid almost twenty years ago. It's been a fun side job, and I've done a few big events here and there - but I have the most fun spitting jokes and entertaining myself (as well as dozens of others) for a few hours once a week.
An attentive, entertaining announcer can make or break a club race. Besides keeping the program moving as quickly as possible so that everyone gets home at a decent hour, I find particular joy in torturing racers that I know I can make nervous by simply talking about them while leading a race, perpetuating running jokes that leave the pit area in stitches, and helping new racers have as much fun as possible. The extra gas money isn't bad, either.
Eng / Usd
Français
Deutsch
Italiano
Recent comments