i was building a “Race Spec” dNaNo today for a customer and it occurred to me that i should give him an explanation for everything i’ve done before shipping this special gift he planned to give for the holiday season. though some may look at it as ‘just a toy’, the dNaNo is a precision racing model with various optional parts that have a distinct affect on its performance:
1) Gyro Unit – the dNaNo is a real car. its tiny but everything about it makes it like a full size car. when it runs across an uneven surface or surface with seams, those slight changes can knock the car off a straight course causing it to be difficult to handle. the gyro is an orientation instrument that helps correct these occurrences making the car drive smoother and straighter. additionally, it assists with throttle and breaking to limit the car only to what it can handle making operation more manageable. basically, it makes driving easier and more enjoyable.
2) Ball Bearings & Ball Differential – as i’ve discussed in my Diffs & Bearings video, ball bearings are parts that help make operation between moving masses smoother by reducing friction. this means with bearings, your car is free to move at higher speeds as its more free to reach its limits. just changing the bearings will make a huge increase in overall speed in the dNaNo. the Ball Diff increases the efficiency of cornering by allowing the rear wheels to rotate at different speeds while distributing power transfer evenly to the rear wheels. this means that your car can travel at high speed thru corners without losing speed, traction or control.
3) 32T-34T Spur Gear + 7T or 8T Pinion Gears- this optional part increases the acceleration by modifying the gear ratio from the stock 5.16 to 5.66 (higher ratio means greater acceleration but less top speed and lower means less acceleration with greater top speed). most of your time in racing is made up in the corners and acceleration is critical to winning since, normally, your car will never have the opportunity to reach top speed in a race. the 34T-Spur/6T-Pinion is the best racing combination for a layout with lots of tight corners. if you’re running on a circuit with long, sweeping curves or extended straights, try 34T/7T (4.86) or 32T/7T (4.57).
4) Suspension (Gold/Hard Front Shock Springs + Rear Suspension Plates) – rear suspension is important for stability and on most surfaces for mini radio control models, you’ll need to keep it pretty stiff for the most settled operation. you want to decrease “bounce” in the rear and “roll” in the front and this is accomplished with a “hard” setup. when surfaces change, you may need to adjust this but on foam or more slippery surfaces, this will give you the best traction and handling. you’ll find your car more settled and less ‘fidgety’ especially in cornering.
5) Aluminum Options (Front Suspension Plates/Rear Wheel Hubs) – the dNaNo is very light when its all plastic which is ok for speed but because of its size, its also very easy to put it on its roof when taking corners at high speed. an element of resolving this issue is adding weight and aluminum parts – while seemingly very light – will add a few micrograms of weight that will help to increase stability. the car will ‘feel’ heavier and may be a little louder but you can fix that with a bit of grease in the right places after installation. greasing the joints will quiet and smooth out operation but attract dust so stay on top of it with a small brush after every run.
6) Tires (25-45F/6R) – nothing affects car handling like tire compound. the dNaNo is very sensitive to tire compound change and you can immediately tell the difference in traction when comparing the stock #50 to anything softer. the traction increase when changing to a softer compound (25-45 degree PN Racing) is necessary to allow the car to maintain speed while cornering. traction increase can also cause the car to roll so adjustments to the steering angle (turning radius modification) will help to bring the car into a desirable range for manageable high speed cornering. the rear tires need to be a bit softer than the stock #10 to 6-8 degree to keep it from oversteering. which compound you choose will depend upon the surface you’re racing on.
7) SSG-DPS Kit - have you noticed your dNaNo ‘bouncing’ a bit in the rear during high speed cornering? this is a serious problem and can upset handling and your ability to maintain a consistent racing line. to reduce this, a ‘Damper Plate System’ should be installed which will significantly decrease this effect.
8) Racing Wheels (Aluminum or Plastic) – if you want to maintain a lightweight, quick car then you’ll want to stick with plastic. pick up some racing wheels that will give your car some style or add weight. aluminum is great for when you’re using a high torque motor and you need a bit more stability in cornering.
remember, a fast car is only part of winning races. you have to know every detail of your car for proper tuning and to occasionally resolve problems that may arise during operation. speed is a big part of winning, but speed without control is worthless. be consistent and methodical about your hobby and you can be successful. dNaNo is just one model in a hobby that’s lots of fun no matter what but can be even more fun when you win ;-). any questions or comments, post them here or send an e-mail to qon@nanotrax.net -interested in picking up a Race Spec dNaNo built by yours truly? check it out @ our online shop. until next time, see ya on the track!
November 13th, 2009 at 11:09
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