graemevw 823 Posted December 13, 2019 I know nothing about these things but briefly tried my lp500s on tiles and it has no grip (unsurprisingly!). This isnt going to get used much, but id like to drive it once or twice. Will get driven on a painted concrete floor probably, so no grip there either 😂. Made me start thinking about additive. It has foam tyres, new old stock ones. They feel great. Any thoughts on what i could use to help their grip? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WillyChang 1814 Posted December 14, 2019 Any additive to make foam/rubber grippier usually also makes it rot away faster.. so don't. Your best bet is to cover your foam tyre with a thin grippy rubber sheet. Drawer liner rubber, perhaps? Tamiya used to sell rubber sleeves "rubber cap" but I haven't seen fresh stocks for a while, or you could try chopping up some bike tyre innertube. Fat rubber or silicone wristbands bands might work too, might need kiddy sized.  In the old days for racing on smooth wooden floors, racers would "stipple" their foam tyre for grip. Apply rubberglue or silicone sealant to tyre then roll 1 tyre against the other to squish their glue evenly across the contact surface, then let dry. The dried glue with scaly/hairy finish would grip for a race or 3. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tamiya ny 18 Posted December 15, 2019 could you wrap them with widerubber bands to give it a layer of rubber to grip? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TurnipJF 9192 Posted December 16, 2019 If you are planning on driving it, even very seldom, I would be extremely hesitant about using foam tyres on a model such as this, as a single collision can tear away part of the sidewall, spoiling the looks for shelf display. I would consider either getting an old knackered set and stippling or modifying them, or possibly looking at rubber Formula One tyres and seeing if any of them can be made to fit, possibly by cutting off the bead and stretching the carcass over the foams to enhance grip and protect the sidewall. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
graemevw 823 Posted December 16, 2019 30 minutes ago, TurnipJF said: If you are planning on driving it, even very seldom, I would be extremely hesitant about using foam tyres on a model such as this, as a single collision can tear away part of the sidewall, spoiling the looks for shelf display. I would consider either getting an old knackered set and stippling or modifying them, or possibly looking at rubber Formula One tyres and seeing if any of them can be made to fit, possibly by cutting off the bead and stretching the carcass over the foams to enhance grip and protect the sidewall. I have a set of runner foams im not worried about. Having said that, any collision at all would be awful! I just plan on driving it around a bit in open space. But if it just spins out every time i accelerate, it will be no fun at all. I was under the impression foam gave more grip than rubber, at least more than the early rubber tyres. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TurnipJF 9192 Posted December 16, 2019 15 minutes ago, graemevw said: I was under the impression foam gave more grip than rubber, at least more than the early rubber tyres. It is very much dependent on the surface that you run on. A while ago some colleagues and I were running a fundraiser at work involving model cars, and we were trying to find some grip on our warehouse floor. We tried various foam and rubber tire options, old and new, with and without additive, and we found the best option to be relatively soft rubber tires with no additive. The pores on the surface of the foam tires quickly clogged with dust, and this was made even worse with additive. However the additive-free rubber tyres didn't clog or adhere as strongly to the dust, and thus held some semblance of grip for longer. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
graemevw 823 Posted December 16, 2019 1 minute ago, TurnipJF said: It is very much dependent on the surface that you run on. A while ago some colleagues and I were running a fundraiser at work involving model cars, and we were trying to find some grip on our warehouse floor. We tried various foam and rubber tire options, old and new, with and without additive, and we found the best option to be relatively soft rubber tires with no additive. The pores on the surface of the foam tires quickly clogged with dust, and this was made even worse with additive. However the additive-free rubber tyres didn't clog or adhere as strongly to the dust, and thus held some semblance of grip for longer. Sounds a similar surface, but this has no dust. Its painted wet vacuumed regularly. I think your probably right with rubber for this too, ill see if i can find anything to cap them. If not, might try some silicone. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
WillyChang 1814 Posted December 16, 2019 Foam only really works on craggy surfaces like Tarmac. If $$ is of no concern & given the size of 1/12 tyres... I'd be tempted to go buy rubber tyres in M-chassis size or 1/16 Mini Inferno Kyosho or MiniT size... cut off the sizewalls and use the rest as sleeves. Glovesoft mini pins grip great on polished wood or smooth concrete. Have seen ppl glue on rubber matting from ping pong bats too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
El Dougo 326 Posted December 16, 2019 Sounds like rubber tyres would be better but if you want to try additive, I would go with Spider Grip Blue or SXT for foams and Spider Grip Green for rubber. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
graemevw 823 Posted December 16, 2019 Ill try a few things and see what happens. I drove my tt02 on race tyres on the same floor and it was like drifting on tarmac! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
