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Racing by post - Round 44 track is up. We're going back to Vålerbanen!

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@jupitertwo this is from a later attempt with the Thundershot using better setup and with narrow front tyres designed for wet grass

  • Lap 16: 1:41.52 0:05.70
  • Lap 17: 1:47.66 0:06.14
  • Lap 18: 1:53.54 0:05.88
  • Lap 19: 1:59.84 0:06.30
  • Lap 20: 2:06.62 0:06.78
  • Lap 21: 2:12.92 0:06.30
  • Lap 22: 2:19.70 0:06.78
  • Lap 23: 2:26.18 0:06.48
  • Lap 24: 2:32.90 0:06.72
  • Lap 25: 2:39.71 0:06.81
  • Lap 26: 2:46.03 0:06.32

As you can see, my consistency improved, just 1 second between best and worst? However that was after 2000 laps of practise........... And no I'm not joking!

That is the advantage with racing on the back lawn, I can practise far more. When using the rec ground we do far less attempts, sometimes just 3 or 4 because of hassle of carting everything down there.

That was my best 10 laps from that attempt (of all attempts so far actually) but sadly the attempt was scrapped as I crashed off the track and had to go and recover the car so what would have been my best lap count was ruined... I was gutted. Where are the Marshall's when you need them?  :D

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19 minutes ago, mud4fun said:

@jupitertwo this is from a later attempt with the Thundershot using better setup and with narrow front tyres designed for wet grass

  • Lap 16: 1:41.52 0:05.70
  • Lap 17: 1:47.66 0:06.14
  • Lap 18: 1:53.54 0:05.88
  • Lap 19: 1:59.84 0:06.30
  • Lap 20: 2:06.62 0:06.78
  • Lap 21: 2:12.92 0:06.30
  • Lap 22: 2:19.70 0:06.78
  • Lap 23: 2:26.18 0:06.48
  • Lap 24: 2:32.90 0:06.72
  • Lap 25: 2:39.71 0:06.81
  • Lap 26: 2:46.03 0:06.32

As you can see, my consistency improved, just 1 second between best and worst? However that was after 2000 laps of practise........... And no I'm not joking!

That was my best 10 laps from that attempt but sadly the attempt was scrapped as I crashed off the track and had to go and recover the car so what would have been my best lap count was ruined... Where are the Marshall's when you need them?  :D

Those are some tasty lap times - sub 6s on a couple!

I think all your testing and tweaking is helping your ability to be consistent, though after 2000 laps, have you worn a groove in to your garden? :D 

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14 minutes ago, jupitertwo said:

Those are some tasty lap times - sub 6s on a couple!

I think all your testing and tweaking is helping your ability to be consistent, though after 2000 laps, have you worn a groove in to your garden? :D 

Thx and yes, we have what looks like a very large muddy clover leaf shape in our lawn now!

PS. Seems I can't count as there were 11 laps pasted there... Doh

PPS. The Cougar has also just got into the 5 seconds but only a 5.87 so the Thundershot still fastest buggy I have. Need that new Transponder though because it is a right PITA switching them because I have to tiewrap the transponder to the shock tower until I get a mount made.

We won't mention the Egress as that is struggling to get into the 6's let alone the 5's :D

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This is how I'm having to mount the transponder at the moment, not pretty tie wrapped to front shock tower. Means I have to cut it off after each run before hosing down the car. Such a pain to keep swapping this from my thundershot that most times I just practise with the Cougar without it and use my phone or get the Mudlets to time me.

It is a good job I bought some of the transponders with the LED on fly leads as it makes them useful for temporary fitting anywhere on the cars. The proper transponder when it arrives will go on a fixed mount and point out through the side window of the shell.

Cougar_transponder.thumb.jpg.997515cbc94ed339c381533d15222a0d.jpg

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You might be wondering what a picture of two Class 37 locomotives has to do with postal racing but.......

I have found that my nice purple iridescent paint colour is way too dark for my race colours, really struggling to see the buggies on the track in dark, dreary winter weather and especially when practising in the evening (in the dark) so have decided to, for the first time ever, try a multi coloured paint job on a shell. 

Middle Mudlet stole my bright fluorescent yellow for her race team colours so I can't use that so youngest Mudlet and myself were chatting about it and we liked the COLAS colours on my locomotives. So I have ordered a new shell for the Cougar and some PS6 and PS7 (yellow and orange) and will have a go at doing the colas scheme on it. It may be a disaster as my masking is not the best but will be fun trying.....

colas_colours.thumb.jpg.62961e92400bb8e99b3da87b9e41d9c3.jpg

If it turns out OK then I have a Thundershot and Avante2001 shell to do too!

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1 hour ago, mud4fun said:

You might be wondering what a picture of two Class 37 locomotives has to do with postal racing but.......

I have found that my nice purple iridescent paint colour is way too dark for my race colours, really struggling to see the buggies on the track in dark, dreary winter weather and especially when practising in the evening (in the dark) so have decided to, for the first time ever, try a multi coloured paint job on a shell. 

Middle Mudlet stole my bright fluorescent yellow for her race team colours so I can't use that so youngest Mudlet and myself were chatting about it and we liked the COLAS colours on my locomotives. So I have ordered a new shell for the Cougar and some PS6 and PS7 (yellow and orange) and will have a go at doing the colas scheme on it. It may be a disaster as my masking is not the best but will be fun trying.....

colas_colours.thumb.jpg.62961e92400bb8e99b3da87b9e41d9c3.jpg

If it turns out OK then I have a Thundershot and Avante2001 shell to do too!

Model Railroading was my first and favorite Hobby. The mention of Trains made me smile 😃

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I have also had to hammer tent pegs through my markers to keep them in place on the grass. I was getting fed up of the things (specifically the yellow one closest to the bottom right corner of the lawn) gradually creeping closer and closer to the railway sleeper resulting in me having less and less space to turn throughout the course of a 5min race and ultimately ending up with me putting a tyre on the greasy wet sleeper and immediately sliding down into the gravel trap!

You can't really see it in the picture but the lawn actually slopes down to the sleeper from where that yellow marker is. This makes for hilarious fun when accelerating out of the hairpin back down the length of the track as the DT02 wheelies under power going up that slope :lol: (we start at the yellow marker as it is best place for the lapmonitor, so we can quickly pick it up if we knock it)

You can also see how worn away the lawn is, especially up at the far top left corner which is near the fence and in the shade of a large hedge. It is now basically bare earth/mud. We have even managed to eat away so much grass and earth that we have exposed tree roots on two turns now, adding to the fun, trying to turn hard while running over slippy tree roots is erratic to say the least! The red line indicates the way we are driving it and you can see how the grass is now wearing into that shape. Will need to leave the lawn to recover for a week or so now.

markers_pegs.thumb.jpg.882f151cbc9f728514f1ad63a01a8cf7.jpg

 

This was a lush green lawn only a month ago! :o

 

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IMPORTANT NOTICE!

Due to the difficulties we have been having over the last couple of rounds with the PM system losing or delaying entries, I have set up an email address for the postal race entries instead.

This is tcpostalracing@gmail.com

Please use this email address to submit results for this and future rounds - hopefully this way we can have everyone's entries recorded and posted in a timely manner.

Please also include your Tamiyaclub username in the email, as I don't know everyone by their real names or email addresses.

Thanks!

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Thanks @TurnipJF I will submit ours next weekend. We still have some changes to try on the DT02 this weekend and I want to get some more laps in on my buggies if we get a dry sunny day.

The last run I did in the dry was trashed because of a crash and since then it has rained constantly so all my subsequent attempts have been lower lap counts.

The kids also want to run their other cars too. :)

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I'm truly jealous of all the practice you guys have been able to get. Between work, family things, and now some seasonally appropriate winter weather, I haven't even gotten to try my own course yet! :lol:

Also @mud4fun and @Carmine A -- another model railroader over here :D I don't have much but I have fun!

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Cant wait to throw my "now completed" cars in the mix. Have scouted my dirt spots and will have buggies running as buggies should....in actual dirt.

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4 hours ago, El Gecko said:

.....Also @mud4fun and @Carmine A -- another model railroader over here :D I don't have much but I have fun!

Fun is the ONLY way!!! I'll be brushing the cobwebs off of my HO Scale Layout... Which has had to lie dormant for almost a Decade! 😭  When you're really into it, it can be the World's most EXPENSIVE Hobby!!! 😖  Was one of the cheapest when I started in 1975... 

Not to get this Thread off the Track (COULDN'T help myself!!😜😂), I'll briefly share a couple of Pictures.

spacer.png My own Railroad! Invented it in 1975. spacer.png My favorite scene, the rusty High Bridge. 😊  spacer.png Being too optimistic, this poor Bloke is Fishing before the WATER is in!! 😜

spacer.png Last Structure I built. Waiting for me to make a spot for it... spacer.png My Award Winning Scratchbuilt Engine Repair Shop. I'm pretty proud of it. spacer.png Better look inside. 😉 This represented a LOT of hours of Work. Loved every minute of it! 

There's more, but this isn't the appropriate place.

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44 minutes ago, mud4fun said:

@Carmine A fab engine shed, love it!

Thank you so much!! I'm still threatening to do Weathering on one of my RC Trucks! 😜  Maybe when I get my first Hardbody....

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Guys, I'm not sure if it is just my Absima LiPos are all LiPos but I'm finding that I lose the 'punch' in acceleration after about 2-3 mins from a full charge. This means my lap times get slower and more erratic towards the end of a 5 min race. This seems to be worse in cold weather. I've noticed it far more over the last few weeks when running in air temps of 0c - 5c. They will continue to provide 20 mins of run time but at a reduced performance to what I'm used to.

I tried one of my old 8.4v NiCD's and it didn't lose the punch, gave quicker lap times for longer but sadly barely lasted 5 mins so not very convenient.

Is this normal with LiPos in cold weather?

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I can't say I've noticed any issues with my Core RC LiPo batteries even in snow running. 

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7 hours ago, TurnipJF said:

I can't say I've noticed any issues with my Core RC LiPo batteries even in snow running. 

Thanks, I will keep an eye on them.

They have been fine up till last few weeks but the drop is now quite noticeable even on lapmonitor. You can see a clear 0.5 second per lap slowdown from about 2-3 minutes from a full charge. After that it then remains stable over 15-20mins but without the punch. 

This 'issue' translates to approx 2 extra laps of round 7 on a fully charged LiPo compared to one that has been used for 3 minutes.

I thought that maybe I'd overheated them but my ESC's haven't cut out and motor and battery are relatively cool after a race because I'm running small pinions (or high FDR's).

I may buy a different manufacturer next time so I can compare.

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10 hours ago, mud4fun said:

Guys, I'm not sure if it is just my Absima LiPos are all LiPos but I'm finding that I lose the 'punch' in acceleration after about 2-3 mins from a full charge. This means my lap times get slower and more erratic towards the end of a 5 min race. This seems to be worse in cold weather. I've noticed it far more over the last few weeks when running in air temps of 0c - 5c. They will continue to provide 20 mins of run time but at a reduced performance to what I'm used to.

I tried one of my old 8.4v NiCD's and it didn't lose the punch, gave quicker lap times for longer but sadly barely lasted 5 mins so not very convenient.

Is this normal with LiPos in cold weather?

I notice it on my 4wd buggy, its faster the first half of the race and thats with a pretty new Gens Ace Redline 6000mah 130C shorty, so there isn't really anything better available. I got the same with Orion batteries too, but only in the 4wd buggy which has aggressive gearing and timing. The 2wd doesn't suffer from it. Thats why touring car racers will buy 8000mah batteries so they don't lose punch towards the end of the race. Its not such an issue with mod racing as the cars are overpowered anyway, but is for stock classes.

The only thing that I know you can do is buy bigger capacity batteries and charge between runs.

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26 minutes ago, Jonathon Gillham said:

I notice it on my 4wd buggy, its faster the first half of the race and thats with a pretty new Gens Ace Redline 6000mah 130C shorty, so there isn't really anything better available. I got the same with Orion batteries too, but only in the 4wd buggy which has aggressive gearing and timing. The 2wd doesn't suffer from it. Thats why touring car racers will buy 8000mah batteries so they don't lose punch towards the end of the race. Its not such an issue with mod racing as the cars are overpowered anyway, but is for stock classes.

The only thing that I know you can do is buy bigger capacity batteries and charge between runs.

Thanks Jonathon. Yes my LiPos are only 4000-5000mah. The Cougar has an Absima HV 4400mah 120C shorty pack and the Thundershot/Egress use a 4000mah 45C pack. I don't use the 5000mah pack in the Thundershot because it is significantly heavier, enough to affect handling on the Thundershot due to the transverse battery mount.

Now you mention it, the problem is definitely more apparent on the 4WD's. I just assumed the Cougar wasn't suffering because the shorty pack was brand new at xmas (<10 charges) whereas the other LiPos have now had 100+ charge cycles.

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@Carmine A we wrapped some lead roofing sheet (90g) around the bumper on the DT02 and middle Mudlet gained 2 laps (using Schumacher green compound mini spike front tyres with no foams). She is now just 8 laps behind my Cougar. With me driving the DT02 it is just 6 laps behind. We both fluffed a few turns and she slid off the lawn on her attempt so potentially another lap to gain yet. :)

Note: while it improved turning on the parts of the track that are still grass it introduced understeer on the bare earth sections. Overall it was a net gain but it will depend on surface and tyres.

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@mud4fun that is so good to hear!! Generally, adding weight to a Buggy is not a good idea when Racing, and seconds count.... 

But the DT-02 has always been the exception. Great Buggies, very rugged. But you don't want to take them Pro Racing. I LOVE mine! I believe that the much heavier Holiday Buggy Body is the reason for the great handling I get.

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Managed to get three runs in today. 

1st up my XV01T, which was a lot more competitive that I thought it was going to be. The damp cold conditions seemed to suit the chunky tyres, so enough grip but able to slide on the hairpins

2E33C55D-E7E2-45A7-BE15-013BE69F4534.jpg

 

Then this afternoon a couple of spins with the TB05. With it snowing I figured I’d put some rally blocks on, which then made me nervous for the AMG body, so out came a basher body. This was a hoot, the tyres seemed a good match, allowing some wide slides but still working nicely.

2FBD6542-4D98-4B1D-A199-E067AAABB4A2.jpg

Not beaten my Optima’s count yet, but with the state of the weather, that might be a done deal. Still hoping for some snow to stick, so I can have a few snow laps on the chart.

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@mud4fun Inspired by your Schumacher and Youngest Mudlet's Aqroshot, I've resurrected my old Hawk to see if it would work on the racetrack... and all I can say is WOW! I actually got almost 2 runs with it on the grass before I got tangled up with a cone and broke a spring eyelet :lol: but holy cow. Obviously still dialing it in, but already it's night and day better than the Blackfoot/ORV and Grasshopper/Hornets... it's just so nice to NOT have to fight the car around every corner, or be driving on eggshells trying not to spin it out!!

03_rbp_r7.jpg

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4 hours ago, El Gecko said:

@mud4fun Inspired by your Schumacher and Youngest Mudlet's Aqroshot, I've resurrected my old Hawk to see if it would work on the racetrack... and all I can say is WOW! I actually got almost 2 runs with it on the grass before I got tangled up with a cone and broke a spring eyelet :lol: but holy cow. Obviously still dialing it in, but already it's night and day better than the Blackfoot/ORV and Grasshopper/Hornets... it's just so nice to NOT have to fight the car around every corner, or be driving on eggshells trying not to spin it out!!

 

Congrats, that is a cool looking buggy! :wub:

PS. What are your markers made from? They look like metal gazebo frame bases? We just use flat rubber markers now, a lot less troublesome when misjudging a turn :lol:

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@jupitertwo I think I'm going to need to make a little box to put the LapMonitor in.

I found an issue this morning when doing some more attempts. The LapMonitor was counting a lap as finishing when the car was still 1m away (the red line) from the finish line (black line), this was due to the fact I'm coming in tight around the marker and from about 80-90 degrees out from the official start line, the LapMonitor was beeping to signify the lap before I'd got over the finish line. It only happened a few times but enough to be a pain. 

It doesn't really affect the overall lap count because the 0.25 - 0.5 second gain on the 'early' count is then followed by a say 0.25 - 0.5 second longer lap time on the following lap but it makes it a pain when working out what my actual fastest lap was. I have had to bin a few runs today.

I have not noticed this issue before so not sure if it was the frost on the grass that was causing the beam to reflect somehow? or the fact that on this particular round the lapmonitor is much closer to the vehicle as it turns.

Anyway I temporarily placed some bricks around it and that sorted the issue on my last run but then caused me to slow right down entering that bend for fear of catching a brick with the front suspension. 

I'm thinking of getting a 6" diameter plastic drainpipe, cut down to 8" tall and with a window cut in it on just one section to face the finish line and glue that onto a piece of flat heavy board? That way it is easy to just drop the lapmonitor in from above facing out through the window. I'll give it a try and report back.

 1077049961_cougar_round7(12).thumb.jpg.5ff5f7e4dbe6952173177bfdc4e2e9e4.jpg

Wouldn't have this issue if the lapmonitor was on a straight because the transponders would then not be pointing at the base until until they crossed the line. Sadly on this track there is not really anywhere suitable on a straight that isn't in the path of an errant buggy. 

 

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