Handling probelms 1/12th ?

[lapster]

hi there,

Any idea's wot could be wrong with my 1/12th rc12 l4 , two weeks ago it ran great, now on throttle on a corner it will spin and do a 180, i have messed with the diff and changed to 68dp with a 32 pinon, but the diff feels ok, i also cleaned the brushless motor. also my brakes have gone, im using a speed passion speedo but i changed from a speed passion 10.5 to a 2nd hand novak 10.5 motor could this be the reason ?, any help would be greatfull,

many thanks

andy.

[Wacker2]

Hi andy,

I used to run an L4 a good few years ago and know that they are a very good car and relatively simple to get set up to perform well. Without spending some time with the car its difficult to diagnose the problem so make sure you come and see me at the club before racing next saturday.

Until then the things I would check:

1, diff, make sure there is no tight spots, no grittyness feel and make sure then when tight there is a slight amount of slip when you hold one wheel and the spur gear whilst turning the other wheel. Do you have an after market thrust race in your diff?? I use a Slap Master thurst race, this can often make a massive improvement. Changing to a differnt dp shouldn't make much different as long as the actual ratio is still OK. You either have 48dp or 64dp so think you've mistyped what you've changed to - is it quite fine teeth? if so then its 64dp which is what most 1/12th run at as its the smoothest and allows more accurate gearing.
2, check all the suspension parts, make sure the front pivot pins and king pins are not bent and that nothing is restricting the movement and that all moves freely. Also make sure the centre shaft is not bent as this can effectively lock up the rear end. I hate these as they are the same on the Calandra Gen X, and after a relatively small knock they can bend very easily
3, make sure the T bar has no fractures or breaks and make sure it is set up correctly. Also make sure the tweak is adjusted accurately.
4, check your tyres, if one of the tyres are coming away from the rim then this will have a dramatic effect on the handling.

Is yours the Yellow bodyshelled car? if so I dont think your bodyshell is helping. I cant remember which one it is (Peugeot maybe?) but these are not great for rear downforfce. I know you havent ran that shell for long so have you been having handling problems since then??? the problem we found with these bodyshells is that the rear of it is way too low and does not allow the rear pod to move freely. Any restrictions to the rear pod movement will destroy the handling of the car. Try using a different bodyshell!, the ones your best to keep with is either the Parma Speed 8 bodyshell, the Parma Zytec shell or any of the Hot Bodies shells (I think eric keeps a good stock of the HB Shells).

Let me know bow you get on, Jon!

[lapster]

hi,

thanks for the advice, it happen once with the old body shell on but not as bad, were can i get a Slap Master thurst race
from? i will check the car over in the week,do you run 12 balls in your diff ? i should be racing this sat, if you could have check over with me that would be great. thanks again see you sat .

andy

[Wacker1]

Hi there,

You can get the Slapmaster 12th Scale Thrust Race/Bearing(Part Number SLP-101) from Action Model Centre, unfortunately there not cheap though.....£17.99
I've also run the CEFX Peugeot Bodyshell before & had major issues with the Handling on my 12th Pan Car......they look great but the Design prevents the Rear pod from having full Travel
Yes, its always best to run 12Balls in the Diff, as it stays smoother for longer, therefore less rebuilds You can also run it looser, without it Slipping!
Checking the 'Tweak' on a weekly basis is always a good thing

[Wacker2]

No worries, come and bring your car over on Saturday and I'll have a look at it for you!

Jon