ASK Cub Reporter, A Weekly Q & A Session- Version 10.28.2010
After missing last weeks edition (I was slack’n as usual), I present you with this weeks best questions (with rather iffy answers).
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“Greetings,
I was amazed at the live feed setup that you had at the expo and was thrilled to view it. This was a terrific idea and hats off to your team for pulling off such an endeavor. Thanks for giving us an opportunity to live vicariously and get a glimpse of all the excitement and frenzy that goes on at events like these. Just out of curiosity, for how long have you guys been planning this?
Udit”
Cubby- Thanks for the props Udit. BigSquids game is the internet, so it’s really about time we did a live feed from iHobby. In past years getting a sufficient internet connection has eluded us (read- it cost a LOT), but this year it just had to be done, regardless of the cost.
Basically we’ve been planning a live feed since the first time we stepped foot into the Rosemont Convention Center. This year Brian started cut’n the big checks, and it finally happened.
We look at iHobby as being the Superbowl of our hobby, thus it should demand the biggest/best coverage of any event we attend. This year we absolutely gave it 100%, and it’s nice to see that people appreciated it. All the exhibitors spend a lot of time and effort (and Money!) to support the show, our extensive coverage is just one way to help them get their moneys worth.
ps- Look for our smiling faces at more trade shows than just iHobby in the coming months!
pss- And look for a special “Cubbys iHobby Special” in the next couple of days.
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“my name is jay, wats good buddy. I have a question i drag race a tc4 it has the 9000 kv motor in it with a 3 cell lipo could u give me some tips on how to get maximum traction out the hole. bcuz rite now i have to roll in the throttle instead of givin it full throttle out the hole. will sway bars work any or gearing it up 4 or 5 teeth on the pinion and gearing it down 2 teeth on the spur. rite now my pinion is a 28 tooth and spur is a 72 tooth 48 pitch. thanx i need sum help buddy big time.”
Cubby– What’s up Jay? Sounds like you’ve got a fire breathing beast on your hands. But, as the Pirelli guys from Milan say, “Power is nothing without control”. So now how to get your beast under control…
Rc drag racing, like pretty much any other motor-sport, is all about the tires. And not just the tires, but the way you set them up. So here’s the uber set-up if you want ridiculous traction out of the hole with your TC4.
First you’ll want to run foam tires. Why? Because they will ultimately yield the most mechanical grip, they allow you to run the type of tire dressing I’ll mention in a minute, and they’ll withstand higher speeds before they explode. You need to run as soft of a foam tire as you can get away with before you start chunking or blowing them up. The softer the foam, the more traction you’ll have, the harder they are the more resistant to exploding at high rpm.
On all four tires, apply CA glue to both the inner and outer sidewalls. You do this to help keep them from chunking out and/or exploding. On the front tires, you’ll also want to apply a 10 mm wide strip of CA glue on the outer top surface. Doing this will make your car much easier to drive straight without over-steering.
Next is the most important part of the equation- traction compound. For drag racing you’ll want to run traction compound made by Koford Engineering. Koford is much thicker (and stickier!) than most traction compounds that you’d be used to using, but it’s required for putting serious power down to the pavement. Koford comes in different thicknesses, I’d recommend starting with “medium” and “heavy” for your TC4. Once you have Koford in hand (which you can buy from GrandMotorSports.com), you’ll want to only apply it to your rear wheels, just put on a thin coating to the entire top surface. Do Not put any on of the front tires as this will lead to massive over-steer (making your car undriveable). Once this is done, the Koford will give you ridiculous grip off the starting line, and as you get up to speed it is thrown off the tires, allowing for good top speeds. Btw, you’ll need to re-apply before every pass.
As far as your gearing, use gearchart.com, it is your friend. Start by gearing it low, then work your way up.
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That’s it for this week- email us your questions, comments, rants, raves, and of course hate mail to Cubby at BigSquidRC dot com!
YOUR Cub Reporter
