COVID-19 Impact *UPDATED*

So, it looks like a lot of large RC events have been canceled to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus.  Many tracks have also canceled or restricted normal weekly club racing.  Gatherings of more than 10 people are not recommended.

My local track, SDRC, did post that events would be limited to less than 50, but a few hours later this post was deleted?  So now I'm not sure what's going on there.

I probably won't race again until April?

UPDATE 4/9:
Looks like racing will be shut down until May, maybe June :(

Digital Diff Torque Tester

In setting up my Euro Truck diffs, the hot setup for the front diff was to mash these silicone ear plugs into the teeth of the gears.  You can't use normal diff oils, as the diffs are not sealed.  In order to compare my diff to my friends diff, I picked up a diff torque checker!

I've been wanting one of these things to check the diff tightness on all my cars, but it wasn't available in the States until recently.  It gives you a number which you can reference when comparing diff oils, tightness, determining degradation, or trying to reproduce a setting.  It runs off a USB port for power and comes with adapters for 1/10 diffs.  I plan to design my own 3D printed adapter, which can engage with a 12 mm wheel hex so I can check a diff while it's still installed in a car. 

Saturday Club Race, 3/7/20, SDRC Raceway

It was finally time for club racing at SDRC!  My goal for the day was to not crash!  Rather than driving hard trying to turn fast laps, my goal was to drive with precision, putting my car in the same place on each turn and jump of each lap, while not crashing.

In heat 1 I finished 3rd with a 15:03, fast lap of 19.256, average lap of 20.239, and consistency of 94.71%.  I crashed 6 times, but at least I didn’t need a marshal.  Not a good start!

In heat 2 I finished 2nd with a 16:18, fast lap of 18.855, average lap of 19.855, and consistency of 96.81%.  I hit another car due to it being thrown out right in front of me, but didn’t need a marshal.  Other than that incident, I didn’t crash once!!!  This was the run I've been waiting for!

In the main I qualified 6th and finished 4th with a 16:17, fast lap of 18.693, average lap of 19.729, and consistency of 94.83%.  I jumped off track once on the first triple and crashed once on the second triple, but again didn’t need a marshal either time.

Still no podium finish though, so I will be racing 4wd again at the next race.

Euro Truck Electronics Installed!

I woke up early Saturday morning to charge my transmitter battery for racing, and while that was charging I decided to test my ESC and bind my receiver.  Since I wanted to make sure the ESC worked before cutting off the stock battery connector, I connected the battery to the ESC using some 2mm bullets and test leads.

Electronics testing setup

Electronics installed!

I also have an idea for a 30mm fan mount!  I can use one of the mounting bosses for the unused motor cover to attach a simple bar style fan mount to.

Euro Truck Build Continues

I finally got around to working on my Euro truck build.  I stopped last week while waiting for my order of the silicone ear plugs to arrive.  These ear plugs were basically blobs of thick silicone.  I squashed it into the teeth of each gear which make up the differential.

Silicone ear plugs squashed into the diff gear teeth

Diff gears installed into the housing

After I had assembled the diff, I found out from my buddy that I was supposed to to completely fill the housing with the silicone!  I guess to keep the silicone mashed in the gear teeth?  the diff would end up weighing more though.  I guess I'll try it how it is a see if I need more lock up to make the truck easier to drive?

Front gearbox and suspension installed

Chassis just about completed.

This car uses friction shocks, with no dampening at all.  In an attempt to add some kind of dampening by greasing the the outside of the bottom part of the shock.  I used AE black grease on the fronts and the stock Tamiya grease on the rears.  I have no idea if this will work, since I can't really feel any difference between the 2 sets of "shocks".  LOL. Oh well.

Next up is installing the electronics and completing the remainder of the chassis!

2020 Supercross Series, Round 3, 2/29/20, SDRC

This would be the first round of the 2020 Supercross Series which I would be able to attend!  I missed the first 2 rounds due to a bum knee and with only 1 throw out race, there's no way I'll be able to finish in the top 3 of the series this year.  I can only hope to steal points from those who need them!

For practice I ran slicks right away and while I was able to get around the track, I couldn't drive at racing speed.  I guess with the change in ownership track maintenance before racing isn't what it used to be?  The track has a bunch of surface dust during practice, so I need to use tires with tread to make my practice runs meaningful.  I guess I'll be burning up more tires now.

In heat 1 I finished 2nd with a 15:10, fast lap of 19.354, average lap of 20.708, and consistency of 93.98%.  I crashed 3 times and made 3 mistakes.  I really need to stop going for fast lap times and concentrate on consistency!

In heat 2 I finished 2nd again, but was 1 lap slower finishing with a 14:07.  My fast lap was 19.529, average lap of 21.933, and consistency of 85.13%.  I 1 long crash and made 10 mistakes!  In that long crash I landed on the wrong side of the pipe and tried to hop back over, when I should have just gone around.  Also, I checked up because the marshal went into the lane instead of waiting for me to pass, which caused me to crash.  I need to practice doubling that 2nd triple just in case, or I'll just send it in and hope I miss the marshal?

I qualified 4th for the Main and finished in 5th with a 14:05.  My fast lap was 19.628, average lap of 21.642, and consistency of 87.66%.  I crashed 4 times with 1 long one due to a marshal not watching his section and I also made 5 mistakes!  There's no way I'll make the podium driving like this!

At least I got a prize from the raffle?  My buddy won this chassis protector, but it's for a TLR 4.0 buggy and he has an AE B6.1 car.  I have a 5.0 buggy, but the fit should be close enough, so he gave it to me :)

I've raced 6 times so far this year and only managed to win 1 race, which was a parking lot race, not off-road.  I need to get my consistency back up and maybe I'll have a chance to finish in the top 3 again!  After I place in the top 3 in 4wd I plan to switch to 2wd until I podium that class, then switch back to 2wd, and so forth.  This way I can race both of my favorite race cars :)