project: Zmod-racer

[acerpower]

well this car won't exactly be a Zmod because it won't have a miniZ pcb anytime soon but will be racing against a few miniZ awd and a Zmod or 2 on this track.

...........and this track

as seen on the Zmod youtube vids.
first, this car started out as a RS store demo "Barricade" in minnesota when i found it.
i asked the clerk if i could buy it, even though it had no rx and was a bit beaten. after a call to his manager he said i could have it for $15. i was reluctant because that was the clearance price for a n.i.b.one but, since there were no more in my home area at the time( S.E.massachusetts) i threw down $15 and it was mine.
now the barricade body doesn't seem like the best race body so i switched with the bumble bee my son had(he didn't mind, really)

first thing i did was rip out the stock pcb and installed a micro-t board.
then i switched the micro-t pcb for a revell rpmZ one.
the rpmZ board worked good but, would not work with my transponder for some reason and after shortening the antenna it had some glitching so the micro-T board went back in. then i got some gpm knuckles front and back, and gpm steering link.

today my rims arrived from hong kong.

they were only $8.90 for the set but only came in blue, so i decided to grind off the ridge so i can use miniZ tires and strip the anodize and polish them up.
as you can see, i'm half done with the rims now.
last time i raced i used xmod tires and i came to the conclusion that they all sucked, plus my pcb was giving problems so i did lousy.
as you can see here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MsdTa...eature=channel
it didn't help that i'm not the best driver either.
the other yellow car in the vid was the winning car, also an xmod!
the rest are ma-010.
hopefully i'll do better next time.

[acerpower]

thanks.
it will get better, after i find a decent set-up, i'll be working on appearance next.

[Spoon_Tuner]

That first track looks like its alot of fun too race on. How long is the straightway on that one.

Are you looking for a Z board and a Z transmitter? I have got them both, the board though needs its wires resodered on and a diagram to go along. I would like to get rid of them. If you want it.

Nice pick up with the " demo " car. I did the same thing awhile back and got it for the same amount.

[acerpower]

not sure on the length of that strait but it's the cause of a few accidents because of the speed.
i have a futaba 2pl that i use for my Z and other cars and 5 spare tx's and i'm trying to keep costs low because i'm picking up a ma-010 in a few weeks so, i'm holding off on getting a z board but thanks for the offer i'll keep it in mind.

[XMDrifter]

very nice racer.
maybe you could buy and try Spoon's z-board and transmitter. it could be better than the micro-t board.
exactly what problems are you having with your micro-t board?

[acerpower]

no problems with the micro-t board, i'm not crazy about the reverse delay or lack of brakes but, it works fine.
i'll probably put a miniZ board in it as soon as i go 2.4ghz in my AM cars.
for now i'm just going to mess around with tires,suspension,ride height,ect.
i have a spare PN 70t motor that i'll throw in for the next race.
my club limits motors to a unmodified RS stage1-2 or the PN 70t. i've given the st1-2 a shot and it seems to die out by the end of a 8-10 minute heat because it gets too hot, plus i think the 70t is a much better motor anyway.
so i'll just gear it a little higher with the 70t.
here is the new rims shined up and installed:

i'm not sure if the camaro is the right body for those rims but i'll probably switch to a vette body as soon as xmods go on sale again plus i have a few more xmods and bodies lying around.
the camaro body is lowered 2.5 mm in the back and i might try and find a lower clip for the front. i'm not sure what will work yet.

[kendallcschm]

im not fond of the rims... you should go with the prostreet for a muscle car..

[noturday]

looks nice man, that body is pretty heavy though, you may want to switch to a different one that doesnt weigh as much, like the new vette or gt-r since they dont have as much.

what did you use to get the anodizing off the rims?

[acerpower]

i took some plastic from the inside of the body and removed just about all the screws and glued everything together instead. the body now weighs 39.2 grams
in comparison my miniZ nsx gt body on my mr-02 weighs 37.3 grams.
i'm pretty sure i can shave an extra 2 grams if i try.
i do like the new vette body, so as soon as they go on sale for around $20 it's mine.
to get the anodizing off the rims i used easy off oven cleaner. just spray it on, let it soak for 5-15 minutes and it should be clean. you might have to scrub with a tooth brush some stubborn areas but, it comes right off easy.
then you have to polish them because they look pretty dull after.

[himynamebebrian]

I really like the track layout you have very stylish. Although i do think that you should have left the blue wheels blue and you should paint the body like a green and the blue would have looked sick.

[XMDrifter]

...uhhh...
ok... that comment isn't useful anymore. he's already taken off the blue. no undoing it now.
i like the weight management
try shaving it a bit more to see if you can get it down to 35 or 34 grams

[acerpower]

i figure the silver will go with any color, if i want to switch bodies or put the rims on a different car it will match, more or less.
the track isn't mine, it belongs to one of the members in my miniZ club but, it's nice to have access to it.
i might try and take off a little more weight but i'm worried about making the body weaker. there are some serious collisions while racing on the long track.
just watch the vid in the youtube link i left in my first post, at 9:30 my car hit another car pretty hard on the long straight.that kind of stuff happens often.

[XMDrifter]

post up a pic of the inside of your bodyshell.
maybe you can cut out the vents in the bumpers and cut off the rear clip mounting point and use side-clips like mini-z's. that big bulkhead is really heavy.

[65mustangrock]

it wont be much but i've heard of people super glueing the car together insted of useing screws.and since it's the camaro dont got to worrie about A body kit. that is, unless use you want rocket boosters on the doors...

[acerpower]

everything has been glued and most of the unneeded plastic has been removed.
i'm leaving the front and rear alone since it will see the most impacts and i need it strong.

as you can see i got it a little lighter than stated previously.

[XMDrifter]

try this and get rid of the rear clip bulkhead:


and use some superglue to hold the front and rear bumpers on instead of the screws. that'll lighten it up a bit more
looks like it can get to 32-33g and still retain strength to me

[himynamebebrian]

hey man.. why you got a gram scale? hmm.. hehe

[acerpower]

Originally Posted by himynamebebrian

hey man.. why you got a gram scale? hmm.. hehe

to weigh xmod parts, why else would i have one?

[mr.hotrod]

i know why i have one oh wait never mind thats what rehab was for just kidding or was i any way you have got to be serious about speed to glue the body together

[dccracing]

you can take even more weight off if you cut out the windows and replace them with thinner lexan. then you could either keep it clear or paint it on the inside so it won't scratch the window paint/tint. And just a note, that body clip mod does not work on upgrade alloy chassis'. just thought i would point out something obveous to you guys even though you all probably know that and it does not apply to anything in this thread... oh well. that was a huge run on sentance.