TRF501X available on pre-order ?

[Colinevan]

I must admit the only real additions that i would make to my trf would be the ball connectors and poss the belt upgrade as and when my current belts fail. Touch wood lol.

Iv heard that the aluminium castor blocks somehow make the car not as responsive and its better with std plastic jobbies. Mr. wood or Jimmy may be able to advise on this.

I think iv also read that the upgraded damper pistons dont have any impoovements over stock, Again only things iv read but would be interested too know the differences.

The reinforced upper mounts again, i have actually purchased and intend to replace when i break my original one, however iv not managed to break mine as yet.

The belt mod, hmmm what are the theoretical advantages of this, iv never had a belt fail, even with a sintered 4.5 in there and im often stripping the front diffs out and replacing with one ways etc too see if improoves on certain tracks etc. Iv not seen any physical wear on either the pulleys or the belts as yet. The only thing to report is i sometimes can hear a clicking noise as if one of the belts is jumping when i slam on the anchors from full pelt etc.

Would have been good for Tamiya to change the diff ball material and inc better stronger re designed screws etc. The only thing that i tend to break is really the rear wing mount whereby the screws rip out from the plastic threads as they seem to soft.

Id be interested to know other peoples opinions as well.

Col.

[jimmy]

I agree on everything Colin - the only thing really that stands out is the big belt stuff. I actually broke my first belt on my original drivetrain car - I think it was from running the belts too tight.

The team drivers in Japan were actually using cars close to this but with updated prototype CVD's which aren't included.

The upper arm mount is nice to have - both me and woody bent the kit ones on the rear.

The upgrade ball studs are nicer than kit - the team drivers seem to use Yokomo or Hotbodies studs and Losi rod ends anyway.

The pistons are something and nothing - worse than kit (they rub on the bodies a lot more) and change the damping - good for different setups but not in any way an upgrade.

The alloy hubs are nice looking but I wouldn't run them and the plastic stuff is incredibly strong (never broke any).

The real upgrades would be screws and diff balls. My car uses titanium and alloy screws (not from a kit, just bought individually) and ceramic balls from Kanzen.

[jasonrcb]

and the other plus point is that the new shell gives you more room for brushless speedos

[stefke]

I ordered the Worlds Edition because I like to start the season with a fresh car .

Hopups :

Alu hubs : always ran the plastic ones and never broke one. Performance wise : lower unsprung weight is ALWAYS better, so I'll be replacing them with some new plastic ones.

The larger pulleys will definately improve things since everyone here running a TRF501 (including myself) has had problems with belt wear and belts snapping (we run on astro a lot)

upgraded ball studs : They will directly be replaced by Hotbodies ballstuds and Losi ballcups. The plastic on the original TRF501 ball cups is way to soft, causing them to pop off frequently.

reinforced upper arm mount : sounds nice but never had a problem with the kit ones.

I actually like the delrin damper pistons. They seem to make the shocks leak-proof and the feel is a lot more consistent compared to the kit ones.

If you run a BL, the revised body will be a welcome feature. On my current body, the sensor wire rubs the body.

[AaronR]

Ah, it's great to read some feedback from you guys! I've raced alot of 5-minute heats since I have tightened my rear belt by one notch over factory setting (new system by the way... 18T center pulley, new belts and 37T F&R pulleys) and there is just normal wear on the teeth. Now that the tension is correct, I think that will last probably two months of racing (25-30 5-minute qualifiers/mains). I have a big race coming up this weekend and will replace both before our 4 quals and one main though.

So stefke likes the new pistons and Jimmy does not. I still have the originals in my shocks (middle-sized hole) but really should be using the smallest-holed pistons. Some day, some day, just lazy.

I have destroyed a rear upper arm mount but that was a crash last year and have not crashed hard enough yet (knock on wood, ha funny how you guys say touch wood! ) to test the reinforced rear mount. I am still running the OEM front upper arm mount.

Recently had a Team Azarashi body painted and it should be sent back to me soon. I really hope there is enough room (height-wise) for my LRP TC Spec ESC (same as Nosram Evolution I believe).. it has the fan on top of the aluminum heat sink. Anywho, body looks like so...


Also need to get off my lazy ass this weekend before my big race and try the Kyosho ball cups with the OEM Tamiya rods. I posted before, my cups have not popped off too often but they do come off way too easily. Sounds like the other alternative is Losi cups and Hot Bodies ball studs.

Again, good readin' guys and keep posting! I always am excited to read new posts about 501Xs here and on 501X rctech thread (Electric Off-Road forum).