New for the Top Racing Rebel 12 from Diggity Designs is this 2mm carbon fibre o-ring battery holder. This holder allows the racer to use an o-ring to hold the battery in place, replacing the need for tape. The holder floats on its own plain and does not tweak the chassis or side spring plate and two possible positions can be used. The set includes holder, hardware and o-ring.
View an image of the mounted holder here
Having recently announced the spec tire for the ISTC portion of the 2014 IFMAR Electric onroad Worlds in Florida, the organisers have today announced that Matrix Tyres have been chosen as the control tire for the 1/12th section. The suggested compounds have been sent to the 4 blocs to be voted on and will be announced at a later date. Full Throttle Rc Raceway informed us that they conducted the 1/12th scale tire testing in the same time period and alongside the 1/10th tire testing.
Shepherd have re-signed reigning European 1/8 Champion Jilles Groskamp. The Thailand based Dutch driver and current ISTC World Champion will be attending both 1/8th and 1/10th Euros as well as the 1/10th Worlds which are rumored to be held near his current residence in Bangkok. ‘With his professional behaviour and uncompromising attention to detail Jilles is one of our most important drivers. His feedback and ideas help us improving our products even more and also at the track he is a great help for the team’ says team boss Patrick Schäfer. Jilles has the following to say.
I would like to thank Patrick and the rest of the Shepherd crew to give this opportunity for already my fourth year with Shepherd. Last year we had some great results by winning the 1/8 Euros, TQ at the 1/10 Euros and of course some great show at the 1/8 Worlds! In the meantime some further developments are in progress and I can’t wait to test and drive both 1/10 and 1/8 for upcoming season. See you soon on the track!
Source: Shepherd [team-shepherd.com]
Xray have released new side springs for X12’14. The new springs and spring caps feature a new straight design comparing to the previously used conical shape, to improve side traction and improve the handling of the car. The straight side springs have more consistent and smoother compression which results in a smoother out-of-corner exit as well as helping to prevent traction rolling. Available in silver (soft), gold (medium) and black (hard) and sold in a set of 2.
Source: Xray [teamxray.com]
New from Xray are these optional graphite lower arm plates which can easily change the hardness of the whole suspension. With the plates mounted, the arms are stiffer to make the car more stable and easier to drive under high-grip conditions. The plates can be easily mounted/dismounted using only 4 screws. Whether you drive in low or high-traction conditions, with the smart graphite stiffeners you can very quickly adjust your car to suit different conditions. At the beginning of a race event when traction is low, the arms are used without the SFATM graphite stiffeners. When traction increases, the suspension can easily be made stiffer by mounting the SFATM graphite stiffeners for more stability and easier driving characteristics. The graphite stiffeners give the car maximum stability in chicanes and allow for easier and smoother steering.
View images of the plates mounted
Spec-R have released their own carbon tweak rod for electric touring car. The rod is used to push down on the car’s shock towers, while the certain screws are loose, to allow it to be tightened without tweak. Made from carbon fibre so it is lightweight, it features a slot to allow it to be used on cars with a centre body post mounting on the front shock tower. Finished off with blue anodised aluminium end caps.
View more images of the tweak rod here
Xray have announced that multiple US champion Paul Lemieux has re-signed to stay in the team for 2014. In 2014 Paul will race regional, national and international races with the Xray T4, NT1, X12, RX8 and XB4. The busy calendar will include all the US electric and nitro on-road nationals, Snowbirds and some major off-road races as well. Paul says:
I am excited about the continued partnership between myself and the Team Xray. I am especially excited to continue on with all of individuals that make up the Xray family as I know it. To me the “work hard but have fun” atmosphere which we have achieved at events around the globe has been the driving force in what keeps me racing. 2013 was a little bit slow in terms of races attended, but I am hoping to attend more events in 2014 and continue to assist the already very successful team develop even further.
Source: Xray [teamxray.com]
Expanding their current tyre line-up Italian brand Hot Race Tyres now produce 1/12 tyres. Developed through extensive testing by their team drivers, the wheels feature a 2mm offset with shores from 25 to 45 and they are available in two versions, for carpet and asphalt. The tires will make their race debut this weekend at the Xray challenge in Scandiano.
Source Hot Race Tyres [hotracetyres.com]
