LEVEL 2
Once our Kyosho Mini-Z MR03 has the option parts that allow us to take it to the level of perfection that we wish (
parts recomended in Level 1), it´s time to consider starting to compete with our little racing car. By competing we mean, either against other drivers or against the chronometer.
It´s evident that, as easy as all of this Mini-z stuff might seem, without some good training sessions to let us get used to our machine plus a minimum of option parts that help us to improve the on track performance of the car, the possibilities of competing with our Mini Z won´t be feasible.
To continue with the option part process of our Mini-Z, with a focus on competing, would should bank on the following:
1- The durability of key parts of the car. We must be sure that nothing´s going to break during the race.
2- The possibility of making constant improvements to the set up of the car and the use of option parts that enable us to increase the number of adjustments and settings.
So therefore, in this second level of preparation of the Mini-Z MR03, we will mount parts that have a dual purpose; on the one hand they make certain sections of the car more robust, and on the other hand they help to improve the performance of the race car on track.
Just as we did in Level 1 we´ll go section by section. In this case, the first two parts that we suggest make up part of a group of option parts whose function is to reinforce the MR03 chassis.
Installing this option part on our car will give us many possibilities. To start with, the steering will be made more robust and will avoid breakages following knocks and collisions. These steering arms that we propose also give us the possibility of lowering the chassis height on the front assembly and thus the lowering of the car´s center of gravity (greater velocity when taking curves and lower risk of flipping over). Moreover we´ll be able to access the
King Pin (the axle that the arm passes through) and lubricate it from the inside of the arm (you can see the cross section of the center of the steering arm).
Furthermore, the nylon housing that incorporates the steering arm that the sterring arms slide through, reduces the friction between the arm and the axle and smoothens the movement of the front assembly suspension.
As you can observe, on the MR03 chassis, when we press down on the front suspension, we alter the angle of incidence on the wheels against the floor (we call this effect a camber or fall).
Once we have replaced the steering arms on our chassis, we must also change the steering rod. Apart from the advantages that the aluminium rod offers us, substituting the original plastic rod for an aluminium one is a good option because it´s not adviseable for the small pins of the arms to exert force against the plastic orofices of the rod (on impact, the plastic orofices of the steering rod are always what take the brunt of it).
In addition to its sturdiness, with an optional steering rod we can also modify the car´s geometry. If you take a good look, the steering rods of the MR03 are divided into to narrow and wide ones and have different degrees of convergence (toe in) and divergence (toe out) with respect to the direction of movement.
The car body used will «oblige» us to assemble a long or narrow type rod. In any regard, selecting a divergent or convergent rod will modify the performance and stability of our Mini-Z.
If what we want is stable and accurate steering, especially on straight lines, we use divergent steering rods; the greater the divergence, the greater the stability. However, at the same time, we´ll lose speed on curve entry. If on the contrary, our car is already stable enough on straights, we can mount steering bars with different degrees of convergence. Converging bars will make our cars become more agitated, unstable on straights (the car trajectory will have to be continuously corrected), but much faster on curve entry.
Once we´ve decided to start competing and make full use of our chassis, we´ll have to have some option parts at our disposal that give us more control over certain sections of the car. At Level 1 we exchanged the original plastic suspension plates for fiber ones. You´ll notice that when these swing laterally, they quickly and freely return to their original position and with greater or lesser force, depending on the hardness of the plate. Such a quick return can cause the bouncing of the rear assembly and as a result, a loss of grip.
The friction of the suspension discs helps us to dampen the momentum in the torsion of these fiber T plates, thus diminishing the swing motion of the rear axle.
By using this suspension kit we´re able to adjust the friction force of the discs (assembling springs of varying hardness) and subsequently the speed of the lateral torsion of the rear assembly.
To achieve optimum tact on the rear assembly we can play a little with the hardness of the suspension (T) plates as well as the hardness of the suspension springs for whatever surface we may be competing on.
The motor mount is one of the vital elements of our list of option parts for our Kyosho Mini-Z. One of the advantages of the MR03, from our point of view, if the rear section of our chassis is identical to its predecessor, the MR02. Therefore all the parts that we used on our MR02 can also be used on the MR03, including the disc suspension.
The motor mount basically has two functions; make the rear assembly more robust, and facilitate the fixture of the motor to the chassis. Using these motor mounts, the micro adjustment between the motor pinion and the crown of the differential is totally accurate and easily carried out. Other characteristics that these motor mounts (available in aluminium) offer us are:
- The option of adjusting the height of the arm that supports the friction discs.
- The option of raising or lowering the rear axle through the accesories that come with the motor mount, with which we can further adjust the height of the car.
- The motor acts directly on the mount, meaning that, in addition to reducing the weight of the entire assembly, the metal on metal contact helps to dissipate the temperature of the motor. Furthermore, the fact that the motor runs «free» only on one side and without any type of encasement, it´ll be a good idea to refrigerate it.
- Strictly speaking, the motor mount, allows us to use both 94mm car bodies as well as those with a 98mm wheelbase, provided that they are in MM (Medium Motor) position.
In order to start competing with our Mini-Z we clearly need to mount a motor with greater performance. The stock motor that comes with the original Mini-Zs are ok to start off with, but they lack some vital characteristics for competitions.
A motor like the one that we propose in this section can be set up on optional motor mounts (it includes holes in the front especially for this purpose), we can also replace the carbon brushes when they become worn without having to change the entire motor.
The fact that it carries bearings also helps to reduce the energy consumption of the battery and extend the life of the motor. A motor with these characteristics, for use on the original stock electronics, provide us with a performace efficiency that is much greater than the original motor. We have great top speed and take off speed.
Another advantage is that with the use of this type of motor , once we decide to modify the electronics (assembling multi FET systems) we can still use the same motor with the resulting increase in performance.
We recommend the use of this type of motor, multifaceted, that can be used with original as well as modified electronics.
