Toad16v

So, have put down a baseline figure for the TA03R-S, and the TT01. Same number of laps. Think with a dry spell and warmer tarmac and some improvements to my driving I'll be able to increase it a bit. Going to try with the TA03F and XV01 over the next week too.

Just practiced with the td2. Thought the long straights were going to be nice to get speed up, but you have to scrub it off for the bends really quickly. Think it will take me a while to get consistent, clean laps together, might have managed 1 in 10 minutes. Just charging up the TA03R-S to see what that is like.

Fitted the TD4 stabilisers/anti roll bars to mine, nice bit of kit. Not sure it is helping much, but it is shiny. Also fitted the gear diff to it after getting a tiny bit of slipping from the ball diff. Not tested it out yet.

Revisiting this. Since I last posted I've acquired the TA03R-S, a TA03F, and a TD2, and enjoy them all. I've also continued to add upgrades to existing kits, but probably not at the rate I had been. I'm now debating either the XV02, or the TA08. The XV02 looks interesting, but doesn't quite interest me like the XV01 did, also I like the belt drive. The TA08 looks really interesting to build, and is an interesting evolution from the TA03s I have, but might be wasted running around on the street outside my house.

Looking forward to giving this a crack after a bit of a break over the winter. Few new cars to run over it too.

Swapped to three hole pistons and the 400 weight oil. Definite improvement and closer damping to the kit shocks, probably still a bit heavier than stock, but I don't have other oil yet and will try them out to see what it's like.

I wish I had read these comments earlier. 2 hole pistons and 900wt oil = way too much damping. Tried 500, the 400, and they're still a bit much with 2 hole pistons. Did test drive it with the 400wt oil, back end was very loose, no body roll but couldn't tell if this was too much damping or the anti roll bars. I guess it was the former! Will change the dampers to 3 hole pistons ASAP.

Haven't actually driven the XV-01 since September time, but did install the stabiliser bar kit to it. Went with the medium bars front and rear as I felt that it would be easy to replace the rear bar with the thicker or thinner bars to tune the handling a bit rather than try to change the front one. Slightly fiddly to fit, the drop links were tricky to get to the same lengths due to having the little quarter twist in opposite directions but hopefully got them fairly even across each axle. Today I received a Tamiya 42102 - TRF Special Damper Set after seeing them back in stock at RCJAZ. I'm not bothered about the long damper setup for this car as its mostly running on the road, so felt this was likely to be a decent upgrade. The instructions give examples for setting up for a few cars including the tt01, with spacer, piston and oil reccomendations. Comparing these to the cva super mini dampers which I have fitted to the tt01 the 42102s suggest 2 hole pistons and 500 weight oil vs 400 weight oil for the CVAs. The XV-01 uses super mini dampers too with 2 hole pistons and 900 weight oil, so I'm thinking that the 42102s need a slightly thicker oil, but otherwise are roughly the same. I don't need them to be as stiff as before due to the stabilisers (I could be wrong) so building them with no spacer, 2 hole pistons and 900 weight oil plus the existing XV-01 springs ought to get me in the right ballpark for damping. Fingers crossed!

Bought some wire for DIY ARBs a while back. After posting the comments above I sat and bent some while watching a film last night. Fettled and fitted today. Damp road, not the dry tarmac of yesterday, but I think they may have made it a tiny bit nicer to drive. Think it turns in a touch quicker and the back is slightly looser if required.

Forgot to post any pics, but built one car from the two, and then let it sit for months. Finally took it out tonight with spare torque tuned motor and acheap servo I have lying around in it, and wanged it around the street until the unglued tyre pinged off the rim. It's lovely. Really nice car to drive, predictable, turns nicely. Slightly concerned about stones and general rubbish being flicked into the belt/pullies, but I think I'm going to really enjoy it. Need to make some anti roll bars for it to see if they work/make it betterer.

An SMD 21t brushed motor, generic black can sold as many other brands. I've got them in most of my cars. Fitted the 20t pinion. It's a lot better. Think it turns well either as the speed drops to a certain point or the weight transfers. Will experiment more. The suspension is very soft, it rolls on cornering, looks pliable as it goes over bumps and I think this improves the grip rather than hinders or debilitates handling. Anti roll bars might be interesting, may even improve turn-in. Painted the shell today with bright gunmetal, not the best one I've done but the silvery finish suits the shape I think.

Finished mine, but needs paint. Nice build, good plastics like the xv01. Enjoyed the build, but would do a few things different a second time around. Haven't fitted the mud guards and put on another set of rear wheels with df03 rear tyres, but built stock right now apart from this. Had a bit of a drive around in the street. It seems really quite slow. Going to fit a 20t pinion if I can find one in box of bits and see what that is like. 21t brushed motor with NIMH battery, same as all my other cars. Turn in doesn't seem amazing, but probably need to learn to balance the throttle when cornering. Wonder if there is a better front tyre option out there. Have got on order a metal adjustable rear suspension mount and a TA06 gear diff.

Arrived at lunchtime.

Bashing around the street. I've got a spare ta06 diff casing from my xv01. Might get the rest of the internals.

Been a while since I last posted. What hop ups are going to be reccomended? The diff nut from the td4?