TOPIC:

Another car I found out I rather like when it is running on 6V (and the battery actualy fits much better this way)



I also run 6V in my Willy M38, Willy Wheeler and sometimes my SandScorcher(rere)



I find the end speed with a silvercan or sporttuned more realistic and for the M38 its still enough power to get the wheels up.

You know what, I agree the slower speed & reduced power makes for more realistic & skilful driving. I much preferred my F2 with 6v & 380 motor to the 1/12 car I built which was running a 540 on 7.2v. I still don't understand why Mardave decided to fit 540s to their stock cars, especially as they usually run 4.8v - surely at that voltage the 380 would be just as quick & run for far longer?
I guess there are only gonna be certain people that feel that way though, mainly crawler/scaler enthusiasts. The rest just want to go as fast as they can & don't care about making the next bend!

A smaller pack would certainly solve the issues I'm having with fitting it in the various models...
Both the FRP DF-01 and F1-C car are a really tight fit.
Forget about the batteries that I put caps and thick heatshrink on... they only go in the Grasshopper.

Like the idea of driving slowly yet with the necessary skills.
That's what I'll be (re)building my Hummer for...

Btw - I think some people may have the same approach as they would with a game on the Playstation.
Just hit the gas and see where it ends...

Edou, are the cars you mention able to take hump packs instead of sticks? - maybe the answer?

I get far more enjoyment out of sliding about gracefully on ice with an underpowered car than tearing about at lightspeed on tarmac. Enjoy the crawling/careful offroading bit too. There's less squinting if the car's close to you anyway!

Funny thing that, most people have an obsession with out & out speed & give less thought to skill or control. The guys at work can't understand that I appreciate the skill & precision of the banger drivers far more than anything F1 can offer!
It always tickles me on the bike too (Sorry, bikes again...) - Everyone wants an R1 or Blade, none of them ride the bike to its full potential, & to be honest, you can't, so why have it? Love blowing them into the weeds on my 600 in the twisties & even doing that my bike's well over the top for that job. Sure it's not as fast in a straight line as theirs, but where's the fun in going in a straight line? You might just as well get a Bullet train ticket!

Similar story with toy cars I found when racing back in the 80s - I was mistakenly sold a 5-pole boat motor, couldn't swap it in time for racing, so I ran it (In my Grasshopper). Came home with a trophy for 5th in the A-final. Ok, it was dog slow, but I was able to carefully drive around the carnage on every corner. Maintain speed, use the best line, keep control, don't crash, that's the answer, top speed doesn't really come into it.
Seem to remember getting a fairly good result using a 12th Mardave stock car in with the modified buggies, & that was running a 4.8v pack!

eddrick wrote:

Edou, are the cars you mention able to take hump packs instead of sticks? - maybe the answer?

I think the only car that wouldn't have the room, is the bathtub DF-01. Might be able to work around it with the others.
Even the LRP pack that I didn't temper with has issues, especially on the FRP DF-01. And barely fits on a F103...
No end covers and a thinner heatshrink would also solve it I guess, but I spent a lot of effort in making them neat :



Those are all NiCads btw, 2/3 of the total capacity available.

Intregued that Tamiya would make a model that can't fit standard batteries in, so I had a measure - genuine Tamiya stick packs are about 133mm long (Excluding the wire exit) whereas "other" stick packs are around 137mm long - would that 4mm make the go/no go difference? The length difference is usually down to the thickness of the inter-cell connector bars &/or how they're folded.

Another way around the space issue would be to make special packs using different cells, eg if there's enough height & width but you're short on length (Ooer), you could do a stick pack with 6x 2/3C cells. Have a wander around RS's website as they usually have a fairly good selection of odd sizes, to give you some idea of what's available.

Or go 6v....
Or go lipo?

Post a pic of the chassis demonstrating the lack of space (No idea what the cars look like in detail, so I'm only guessing)

I'll take some pictures...

Length is only an issue on the FRP DF-01 (not on a bathtub) chassis...
Most general problem is that the packs are slightly too wide/thick.
With the end covers and heatshrink on them, the black ones hardly fit anything.
The standard LRP pack (different caps and shrink) may fit on a few with some effort.


I think I'd need to find Lipos with the right shape too.

Ah... Same problem with TL01 & Mad Bull, but as I said, if you buy proper Tamiya packs, they seem to fit perfectly. Perhaps on purpose so you only buy their batteries?

Wouldn't know about the whole lipo thing, never had any, NiCds being so spectacular & reliable & all!

Ripped some stickpacks apart to do some measurements
(no worry, they are all EOL)

- Panasonic High Amp NiCd 1200
casing: 41.7 ttb: 42.6
- Conrad NiMh 2400
casing: 42.3 ttb: 42.9
- Team Orion 5100 NiMh
casing: 43.5 ttb: 44



not on the picture
- Tamiya gold racing pack 1700 NiCd
casing: 41.0 ttb: 42.5
- Conrad racing pack NiCd 2000 (with 1.6 spacer rings? only pack that has those)
casing: 41.5 ttb: 42.2



ttb top to bottom

these are just some indications did not take into account that the bottoms are slightly rounded, but I shows how the cells are growing on us.

(btw dont google cell measurements it will just give you headaches )

or not this is kind of ok and funny the rambo belt is cool

I think you meant "keep it in one piece" - slippery language, English - but I got your point ok

I've run suitable cars (Wild Willy & Pajero wheelie come to mind) with 6v packs & it does make them more sensible & controllable, and therefore more fun in smaller spaces