When is "fast" really "too fast"?

[RC10th]

although going quick in a straight line does take skill to some degree.

err....

I doubt most people could safely get an XO-1 to 100mph, ever try to get a pan car to speed on the street, or a low turn 2wd buggy on loose dirt.

[Incredible_Serious]

ever try to get a pan car to speed on the street

Yup.... it ended up in a storm drain..... but then, I'm crap......

[kink]

Re: too fast in the street. I also learned that hard lesson many years ago. Since then I only ran my cars in large open grass or dirt areas. Besides those natural environments are vastly more enjoyable to me anyway.

[Lonestar]

A lot of us are racers, we race RC cars at 40mph+ on all kinds of tracks that max out at 10ft width... while accelerating, turning, jumping, throttling/braking in the air or on the ground, avoiding ruts, competitors, passing (and crashing, sometimes)... against the clock AND against other competitors...

Some of us are onroad racers too... that means 60mph+ at the end of the straight. no more jumps, but a lot of turns and apexes to hit and a lot more buttock-tightening and skidmarks...

I doubt most people could safely get an XO-1 to 100mph,

i believe anyone on this forum who races more or less competitively can wheel that pointless behemoth at 100mph no problem, as long as the trim is about straight, the car is symmetric, and the aero isn't completely f'ed up (ie not more lift than downforce)...

Then maybe I'm missing something...

Paul

[Lonestar]

Also have a funny story to share... when I was a teen I had an optima mid custom. I was slowly buying all the go-fast goodies, 7-cell pack, mod motor (15x2 speedworks, I remember ), ESC, bigger pinion... note the car was still running on bushings (hey, they don't help you go any faster, do they??? )

My dad took me to the local track once, tht was my first time. I asked the locals if they'd let me do a few laps, so I could get a feel for how driving in a "forced" trajectory was, they said "sure, go for it young man". I couldn't do a lap at all, I just did a straight line, the car shattered into a myriad of pieces in the wall at the end of the straight as I simply didn't turn in time/speed... A lot of people made fun of me then (rightly so)

Again... "fast" is relative to the amount of space you have to make a mistake if you can't drive

Paul

[Percymon]

Simple formula..

Too fast is when time + cost of repairs > you can afford

[Charlie don't surf]

And as Paul eluded to, some guys go faster with a much slower motor than guys with too much. I beat the entire 2WD Mod field Sat with a 25 year old car and a 13.5-

[kink]

Clearly racers like Lonestar will have a higher threashold of speed before talent runs out. But for me who is merely a rusty park player at best, my speed is kept in check as I know my limits. I also hate damaging my cars!

If I was a real speed freak I'd be running a battered nitro 1/8th buggy just to smash up for a laugh. But that is not really me these days.

[RC10th]

Sadly nitro is slow in comparison to electric these days, I wish they would run boost and turbo in 1/8 systems. Sure you can change ESC perameters to benefit higher power systems.

Even a mild boosted 3.5T pan car would be undrivable on the street.

[kaiser]

And as Paul eluded to, some guys go faster with a much slower motor than guys with too much. I beat the entire 2WD Mod field Sat with a 25 year old car and a 13.5-

yup, i got third in a charity race a couple of weeks ago in mod buggy, i was running a blinky 17.5 and had no problem keeping up with the pack.

slow IS fast.

i love the guys that claim they were beat by a motor, no you were beat by the pipe, the wall, and yourself.

almost every time i "motor up" i regret it and motor down. they only time i really motor up is for big outdoor tracks where it can actually stretch it's legs.
at that same trophy race my 10t had too much motor (7.5), i dropped down to a 10.5 and was in control and enjoying myself. i did end up pulling it out of the main because i didn't feel in control and didn't want to get in the pro's way. it was odd,on a completely blown out 1/8 track my 17.5 buggy was easy to drive and my stadium truck was a mess.

[Lonestar]

But I'm missing the point... pan cars are DESIGNED to run on tracks, not on the street! Everything is purposedly designed for corner speed... It's like trying to motoX an R1 or drive your 917 to the mall or fly your GeeBee across the Atlantic or wheel your Hummer in downtown NY... er... wait a sec...

[CAT3K]

Since I've never raced on a dirt track, just how much power can you put down before a mod motor becomes a liability?

I race on grass and astro, and the grip is extreme. In 2wd I run a 6.5 boosted and there's no issues putting that much power down. I run boosted because our straight is massive (140ft) and even a 6.5 is running out of revs half way down the straight.

Paul.

[kink]

Sadly nitro is slow in comparison to electric these days

Slower on acceleration maybe. But nitro 1/8th are around 20mph faster top end, from what I recall. (ie 40 v 60mph)

[kaiser]

nope, electric can still pull faster mph, if they want to. but 20mph extra isn't gonna help you on the track.

1/10 mod 4wd can be even faster believe it or not.

the fastest is 1/10 touring car.

[fredswain]

I feel that "too much" is situation dependent. Personal preference is also different. If you are running a motor that can't get anywhere near top speed on the track I think that's functionally too much. Lots of people do it though solely to get the acceleration necessary to clear one jump. Being old school I don't really see the need to race with a battery that has 5 times the runtime capacity that I need. Most people like though since they run one battery all race day. Most of this is all personal preference.