at Blackpool to mix things up of course!
A good night all told, left it till the last round of qualifying to put in a good clean run but it was my fastest ever at Blackpool when I did. Put me in the A final, which then only lasted a few laps before my motor shifted after a heavy knock and the gear mesh came undone... or so I thought - turned out three of the bulkhead screws had come lose/left the building and once they were back in everything was back to being sweet and rosy. Cost me any chance of a better result than the 4th place I qualified in though. Ho hum.
Tuesday, 6 December 2011
Sunday, 4 December 2011
Blackpool on a Friday
Racing on Friday was an example of how I remember racing used to be back in my XRAY glory days. Turn up, race a car that just works, have a laugh with mates and go home with a car that doesn't need 3 hours of TLC to make it usable again.
I filed down the rear driveshaft blades at the start of the evening so all the little tweaks needed to get the XRAY in tip-top shape. That said, just as I thought I had finished faffing, I realised that the ball joint screws that go into the top of the bulkheads for the roll-centre settings have a shoulder on. This means that they're fine when used with a washer, but without a washer (as I want to set the car up) you cannot screw them in all the way because of the shoulder. Sloppy XRAY, very sloppy...
Anyway I think I finished 4th on Friday night which was a reasonable result although I felt I could do better. The car felt great, the only issues were little mistakes I made, so once I've got a bit more practice over the coming weeks I'm hoping I can do a little better than that!
I filed down the rear driveshaft blades at the start of the evening so all the little tweaks needed to get the XRAY in tip-top shape. That said, just as I thought I had finished faffing, I realised that the ball joint screws that go into the top of the bulkheads for the roll-centre settings have a shoulder on. This means that they're fine when used with a washer, but without a washer (as I want to set the car up) you cannot screw them in all the way because of the shoulder. Sloppy XRAY, very sloppy...
Anyway I think I finished 4th on Friday night which was a reasonable result although I felt I could do better. The car felt great, the only issues were little mistakes I made, so once I've got a bit more practice over the coming weeks I'm hoping I can do a little better than that!
Thursday, 1 December 2011
A return to form?
Racing at Morecambe on Monday signalled something of a return to form for me. I feel like I've been struggling with the Tamiya for a few months now and I've been eager to get back to the sort of level I feel I used to race at.
After some solid qualifying runs I found myself in 3rd place on the A final grid behind Andy and Mark with Colin sat just behind me. A minute or two into the race Mark made a mistake in front of me and I squeezed past. Despite a far from perfect run I managed to keep him behind me for the rest of the run and finished in 2nd place. A result I was very pleased with... the hunt for Andy begins next week!
Teething issues
My subsequent few meetings with the car were troubled by front driveshafts falling apart. Once I put a flat spot on all the pins though this sorted itself out.
Someone also pointed out that I'd been a bit hasty with my assembly of the steering, meaning I had the black plastic arms upside down. Once I flipped them over I was able to get my steering turnbuckle the right length. That said, I know someone else who built it right but still had to fit a smaller turnbuckle in the car to get it all fitting together as it should.
I've also made some changes to the standard carpet setup which I initially put on the car - this has made it much easier to drive consistently fast and I'm feeling very happy with how the car feels now. I must confess I have also succumbed to the 28 JBs again, the car just feels so much better on them.
I still need to take a bit of material off the end of the rear driveshaft protector things - to stop them binding up the diff at full suspension travel. But I plan to get that done before the next meeting on Friday.
Someone also pointed out that I'd been a bit hasty with my assembly of the steering, meaning I had the black plastic arms upside down. Once I flipped them over I was able to get my steering turnbuckle the right length. That said, I know someone else who built it right but still had to fit a smaller turnbuckle in the car to get it all fitting together as it should.
I've also made some changes to the standard carpet setup which I initially put on the car - this has made it much easier to drive consistently fast and I'm feeling very happy with how the car feels now. I must confess I have also succumbed to the 28 JBs again, the car just feels so much better on them.
I still need to take a bit of material off the end of the rear driveshaft protector things - to stop them binding up the diff at full suspension travel. But I plan to get that done before the next meeting on Friday.
Tuesday, 15 November 2011
The maiden voyage...
... at Morecambe of course!
It was a very positive maiden voyage if I say so myself. Car felt a little slippy but that's normal during the first couple of rounds at Morecambe until the grip comes up, especially with new tyres like I had. Really, trying a new car on tyres you've never tried before isn't the brightest idea, but all my other tyres were knackered or recently sold on as used parts.
I qualified pole in the B final and Colin kindly offered to let me try his 28 JBs (which he had also put on new at the start of the evening) to see how they compared to the LRP tyres which I was trying. I should clarify, the reason for trying the LRPs is because they are a lot cheaper than the Sorex 28 JBs and they should last longer than them also, because frankly the build quality of the JBs is shocking.
Anyway, shock-horror, the JBs are quicker 2+ laps quicker even round our little Morecambe track. Interestingly Colin went 2 laps slower with my LRPs on, so there appears to be a consistent and mirrored change in times between the tyres. The LRPs are certainly drive-able though, Colin confirmed that, so might be worth considering if everyone at the club was on them. I'll let you know how they feel at Blackpool, but in summary, on 28 JBs the new car/new radio combo felt truly awesome.
It was a very positive maiden voyage if I say so myself. Car felt a little slippy but that's normal during the first couple of rounds at Morecambe until the grip comes up, especially with new tyres like I had. Really, trying a new car on tyres you've never tried before isn't the brightest idea, but all my other tyres were knackered or recently sold on as used parts.
I qualified pole in the B final and Colin kindly offered to let me try his 28 JBs (which he had also put on new at the start of the evening) to see how they compared to the LRP tyres which I was trying. I should clarify, the reason for trying the LRPs is because they are a lot cheaper than the Sorex 28 JBs and they should last longer than them also, because frankly the build quality of the JBs is shocking.
Anyway, shock-horror, the JBs are quicker 2+ laps quicker even round our little Morecambe track. Interestingly Colin went 2 laps slower with my LRPs on, so there appears to be a consistent and mirrored change in times between the tyres. The LRPs are certainly drive-able though, Colin confirmed that, so might be worth considering if everyone at the club was on them. I'll let you know how they feel at Blackpool, but in summary, on 28 JBs the new car/new radio combo felt truly awesome.
T3 2012 Build Review
As promised here's a pictorial build review of my new T3 2012. I think I'll just let the pictures do the talking but I will comment on a few bits and bobs as they crop up because everything wasn't quite as 'perfect' as I remember last time I was in the XRAY camp...
The gear diff went together beautifully apart from a point in the manual where it tells you to orient the diff a certain way to get the pin and it's 90 degrees off. Small point but not very 'XRAY' if you ask me...
Don't forget the loctite on the spur gear layshaft!
Here lies the source of most my complaints with the build, the instructions on how to assemble the servo saver are wrong. I built it how I thought it should be built (given it's a bit of a Tamiya rip off) then read the instructions saw they said different so I took it apart to build that way instead, but it doesn't work the way described in the manual so I had to take it apart again and built it back the way I thought initially.
Also, the turnbuckle that links the servo to the new rack can't be made short enough, it suggests 58mm in the manual which is just about to do-able but for the servo to be installed as described in the manual it needs to be about 3-4mm shorter still. To do that you need to cut 2mm off each of the plastic ends AND 2mm off each end of the turnbuckle threaded bar itself! Again, not very 'XRAY' at all...
The gear diff went together beautifully apart from a point in the manual where it tells you to orient the diff a certain way to get the pin and it's 90 degrees off. Small point but not very 'XRAY' if you ask me...
Don't forget the loctite on the spur gear layshaft!
Here lies the source of most my complaints with the build, the instructions on how to assemble the servo saver are wrong. I built it how I thought it should be built (given it's a bit of a Tamiya rip off) then read the instructions saw they said different so I took it apart to build that way instead, but it doesn't work the way described in the manual so I had to take it apart again and built it back the way I thought initially.
Also, the turnbuckle that links the servo to the new rack can't be made short enough, it suggests 58mm in the manual which is just about to do-able but for the servo to be installed as described in the manual it needs to be about 3-4mm shorter still. To do that you need to cut 2mm off each of the plastic ends AND 2mm off each end of the turnbuckle threaded bar itself! Again, not very 'XRAY' at all...
Sunday, 30 October 2011
Time for a shift in direction
Apologies for the lack of posting recently, I was away on holiday over the summer then didn't get back into racing for a few weeks. Then when I did go back I just wasn't feeling it anymore with the Tamiya. So, when the new XRAY T3 2012 was announced for the release at the end of the month my mind was made up.
I gave racing a continued break for another few weeks and then on the Friday just gone I picked up my new XRAY. I owned XRAYs for many years before the Tamiya and although I'm sad to see the Tamiya go, as I still think it is one of the best cars in terms of design out there and it looks stunning sat on your pit table, I feel like I have returned home to the XRAY camp!
So, I will be building the XRAY during the coming week to make a return to Morecambe on the following Monday. I plan to post a build guide in due course so keep your eyes peeled.
In the meantime, check out my eBay account...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/theresamaydawood/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=25&_trksid=p3686
I gave racing a continued break for another few weeks and then on the Friday just gone I picked up my new XRAY. I owned XRAYs for many years before the Tamiya and although I'm sad to see the Tamiya go, as I still think it is one of the best cars in terms of design out there and it looks stunning sat on your pit table, I feel like I have returned home to the XRAY camp!
So, I will be building the XRAY during the coming week to make a return to Morecambe on the following Monday. I plan to post a build guide in due course so keep your eyes peeled.
In the meantime, check out my eBay account...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/theresamaydawood/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=25&_trksid=p3686
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