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CAT XL to XLS, what changed??
I remember when the original SWB came out, then the conversion kit came out quickly afterward, then you could buy the XLS, but I don't remember the XL being available as a kit, but looking on the front cover of my manual the XL has a kit number, so it must of been available.
SO, what are the differences??
I have some cars I would like to list for sale, but I'm not sure XL or XLS !
even have what I think is a PROCAT, but then again it might just be a chassis change......

thanks !
Stu

Cat XL had the stick pack chassis which was released first and the XLS had the saddle pack chassis, otherwise both cars were the same. The saddle pack conversion was available for the XL soon after its release, but the XLS as a kit didn't come out till much later. Pro Cat was similar to the XLS but with a few aesthetic changes and updates, the chassis footprint of the Pro Cat was larger than the XLS. Do you have any pics as it would be easy to tell looking at chassis's.

I can do pics, but thought the XLS also used the stick pack setup as the body was too narrow for the saddle pack chassis?

But, if that is the case, then I have about 4 CAT XLs (3 fully built, and parts for one more), and maybe only 1 XLS.
I do also have a brand new T648R which is the SPXL chassis conversion, which I assume is slightly different again.

This was the XL, many people soon changed to the saddle pack conversion.

well, here's my CATs.
not sure if the car on the right is an XLS or Procat
I think PRO...
the car second from left has some new part on already, and I have a brand new chassis and some plastic parts to go on with one of the new bodies to do a Masami replica one day...

The two outer ones look to be Procat as the XL body wouldn't fit, the rest are XL I think, but I could be wrong and may be some XLS. Here some links to manuals which may be of help.

Original SWB manual. http://www.retromodelisme.com/manuels_pages/3/cat-schumacher.html
XL manual. http://www.retromodelisme.com/manuels_pages/53/cat-xl-schumacher.html
XLS manual. http://www.oople.com/rc/manuals/xls/
Pro Cat manual. http://www.competitionx.com/pdf/vehicle-manuals/schumacher-pro-cat-manual.pdf

The XL and XLS have a few differences, but they both share the same stick pack chassis. The saddle pack chassis was an option part that fit both cars.

XL has solid front pulley (no diff) and one way roller driveshafts
XLS has front ball diff as well as one way driveshafts

XL rear suspension arm mounts bolt directly to the gearbox, the XLS has extra spacers to increase overall width.
XL front suspension lower arm pivot pin goes through the suspension mount, XLS front suspension again has spacers to move it out.
Because the suspension arms have been moved out the XLS has a longer steering centre link and rear upper suspension mount brace to match.

The Procat is easy to spot, it has the rear suspension from the Topcat/Cougar, with a normal adjustable turnbuckle link instead of the moulded upper arm.

Looking at the picture the cars at the top are most likely XL, the shape of the front of the upper decks is an early style, the lower cars with the narrower front piece is the XLS version, but apart from the front section it is identical to the XL one.

The fibreglass saddle pack chassis is a Procat chassis mounted on an XLS, and the 4 cell slots should be on the spur gear side of the car. The chassis is too wide to fit the XL/XLS shell. The XL/XLS saddle pack conversion was narrower and the cells sit in the chassis at an angle to lift them up at the outside edge.

The Procat was completely different to it's predecessors, it has a solid layshaft and one piece rear pulley containing the ball diff, previous cars had the ball diff inside the spur gear. The Procat has a different front gearbox with screws to adjust belt tension and a moulded rear shock mount instead of the fibreglass plate. Procat has the wider saddle pack chassis so it needs the Procat body to cover it.

Terry, I swear, you should write a book with all the crap you know.
I mean, quality information

thanks guys, will try to build myself 1 of each, then prep the rest for selling on.

Thanks Terry, forgot the XL had no front diff

Remember fitting all the MMS parts as they came out, diffs, top shaft and motor housing, all greatly improved the running of the car. Probably worth checking if any of them are fitted amongst those you have there.

I'm almost certain there was a real difference with the front shock towers/uprights. The SWB and XL used the same part number but the XLS had a different part. I'll need to confirm the part numbers.

The first front suspension mounts had no kick up, on the XLS the wishbone mounts had 15 degrees of kick up in them and a lot more material where the rubber bands went round them. Like most of the XLS specific parts, they were available before the XLS came out.

Also the SWB and XL came with five pieces of straight wire to bend your own front pivot pins, wing wire and front and rear anti roll bars. The XLS came with the wire pre-bent and lost the rear anti roll bar.

One thing I've been wondering about lately is were there 2 different chassis lengths of XL?

I've read the magazine reviews of the XL and while some quote the wheel base at +25mm, another has the chassis at +12mm longer than the SWB - 262mm.

I have a chassis set here that would give a chassis wheel base of 262mm, so is it an early XL? and was that chassis length quickly superseded by the regular +25mm that we more often see on XL?

Paul.

here's a pic of the back of my PROCAT and BOSSCAT.


are the shock and top mounts on the PRO CAT correct??
or should they be GRP ??

Procat should be plastic as standard
Bosscat should be either carbon or grp depends on the model...ie sport, comp or works

thanks Mick.

My ProCAT is minty fresh, so I'm glad to know it has the right stuff on it.