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Percheron

First race in 30+ years!

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Hi all,

I took the Frog to the local indoor track in Tacoma to day.  This buggy was a Christmas gift from my wife and my last buggy was The Falcon when I was 12.  Here is a link to my Frog https://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?/topic/84690-the-frog-brought-me-back/

Anyway, aside from racing in the novice division and getting stomped into the proverbial dirt, I had a great time, and so did my kids.

But....a couple of challenges arose

 

1)  The track is clay and the stock tires had no traction, it was like driving on ice.  What are my options?

2)  Something in the transmission let go in the third and final heat, haven’t opened it up yet to find out what broke. but I think a MIP ball diff will be on order.

3)  Brushless motor, the stock can couldn’t keep up.  I didn’t think it would, so this is not shocking.  If I had better traction it would have been a better race.  The other cars were launching all over the place and if I had been able to be smooth I’d have done better.

This is a Frog.  I don’t expect it to keep up with Team Associated or Traxxas, and I’m not so competetive to throw down $500 for a car.  But....in the novice division I think the Frog can do better and it’ll be a great practice platform.

 

Racing was fun!!!

 

-Derek

 

 

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Its great fun isnt it?

Tyres seem to me to be the single biggest tuning factor on clay. I run J Concepts goosebumps on clay and find them the best for my club. Ask around though to see what others are running. If you can convert to a 12mm or 14mm hex you will probably be able to borrow some to try them out. That us a great option as they cost around USD50 for a set, so itbgets real expensive to try some different ones.

Also don't rule out buying a secondhand racer from someone, a guy was sellin a Losi 22 2.0 which is an older model now but only asking NZD$150 at my last race meet. Trackstar esc, motor and servo is another USD$100 and you're away with a pretty modern car, just saying...

Really though the best thing is just go along and enjoy it.

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It's going to be tough running the older cars on a modern clay track.  The suspension and tires of the older cars were designed for loose dirt tracks where as clay is almost like running on tarmac, which the cars weren't really designed for...  I don't think I would go crazy with a brushless, but just hopping it up with a sport tuned motor will help.

 

It's never going to jump well so you should focus on what you can do to the suspension to give it the most traction it can get in the corners (i.e. see if you can do some different springs and oil weight to allow for the rear to squat in the corners).  Tires will be the other thing.  See if you can find something like this:

 

https://www.tamiyausa.com/items/radio-control-parts-70/r-c-tires(spare-hop-up)-71200/rc-dual-block-tires-k-54186

 

I have no idea if those will fit the Frog, but just pointing out an example that should help a bit on clay.  

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Thanks for the advise guys, I’m just going to do some mild stuff to the Frog, until I decide if I want to spend more money for a true racer.  I just want to get around the track at a decent hustle and not keep spinning out.  The Frog garnered a lot of attention, especially from kids, who thought it was cool looking.

 

I went through the tranny and found a small little clip had come undone.  I re attached it, more grease and put it back together.  Unfortunately, it’s noisy and binding a bit.  The buggy moves but it doesn’t coast, it’s like applying the brakes.  So I did order the MIP ball diff, as will adaptors so I can run racing wheels and tires.

 

Its only money!

-Derek

 

 

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Ive no experience on dirt, but have run vintage on my local race track. No matter what surface, or tyres, youre going to get stomped ,  unless you can get a few people with a similar car and gets frustating real quick.

Like Jonathon said, second modern cars will be for sale fairly cheap and alot easier to drive.

Enjoy! 👍 

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