Part of being a "Budget Champion" is finding creative ways to beat people with inexpensive equipment. Race wins have to come from my knowledge and driving skills, and not my wallet. I personally, wouldn't have it any other way. After all, isn't it fun to hurt a few feelings on the way to the podium? This post is about one of my favorite chassis, one that's given me a fair bit of success over the years, particularly in spec racing. Below are some build tips and highlights from my latest go-'round with the "shaft-drive-plastic-fantastic" wonder that is: the Team Associated TC4.
While I've had a blast getting my feet wet in the world of RC Off-Road, outdoor On-Road is my first love. It's where I learned to drive, where all my success had come and where I just feel at home. There's just something almost magical about racing a touring car on Tarmac. The grip seems so natural and the car moves around with more of an organic feel. Carpet racing is intense, asphalt racing is straight badass.
So, with outdoor season just around the corner, I couldn't help but pick something up. 2017 would mark the first full season at SeaTac RC Raceway; A world-class permanent asphalt racing facility built by the Seattle RC Racers club in conjunction with SeaTac Parks and Recreation. This has been a dream of PNW racers for years, and it was finally a reality. It's also a mere mile from my home. There was no way I was missing this.
The issue was funds. Big surprise there.... (I'm not a budget champ for nothing)
After blowing a year's-worth of hobby funds on starting my off road program, I had hardly anything left for a top-end touring car, let alone the gear to start an on road program. After being away for so long, everything needed to be updated. No easy task on a tight budget. After contemplating reviving my old Schumacher Mi1, I decided to pick up another of one of my all-time favorite cars: The Team Associated TC4.
This is the third version of this chassis for me. I bought one of the very first "Team" kits available in the area back in 2004, and also bought one of the first "Club Racer" variants back in 2012. This latest car is another club racer: a pre-built "Race Roller", according to AE. I always prefer cars in kit form, but it's a pretty cool package for $150.00. The car come pre-assembled in a bag, complete with oil shocks, full bearings, a front spool and CVD's. For the price, there isn't much else that can touch it.
Being a pre-built car, first thing's first: tear the car down to the bare chassis. The goal here is to double check every part for binding in the suspension and freeing up the drivetrain, as well as adding some speed goodies to lighten the whole package up. You have to remember that this car's design is nearly 15 years old, so it's not as simple as throwing electronics in, setting the car down and taking podiums like a modern car. You gotta get to work and find that speed. It's there.
First thing's first: freeing up the suspension. You have to remember that these cars are mass-produced; there isn't a single guy building these kits making sure everything moves perfectly. It's your job a racer to massage what was thrown together at the factory. Use a simple reamer to make sure the holes in the arms and hubs/hub carriers are smooth and clear. I also file or scrape away any flashing or imperfections on any part that mates with another, such as the ends of each suspension arm. While this isn't an obvious spot to look, this is where a lot of binding comes from. I also filed a bevel on the inside portion of the arm, closest to the gearbox. This is so the arm clears the box when using the 2.0 degree toe block. File as much as needed, and test fit until the arms move freely.
Also, notice the upgraded Associated HD aluminum CVD bones. These are more for reliability than anything, as we are using a front spool. The club racer comes with plastic bones, and while they are lighter than the HD pieces, they will flex, and aren't nearly as strong. They also don't look as cool.
I did, however stick with the plastic bones for the rear of the car. This is purely for weight savings, and since I'm using this car for USGT racing, the strain shouldn't be a big issue for these out back. Same story with the aluminum shims and cleaned up arms. All in the name of a free-moving suspension.
Truth be told, I've never been one to spray out bearings. Being on a budget, I've always opted to leave the factory grease inside, for longevity. But since I'm in the process of extracting every bit of free speed I can, I thought now was as a good a time as any. Every bearing got the spray job, all seals were removed and re-oiled with Fantom "Go-Go Juice" bearing oil. Keep in mind, these are the kit chrome rubber-sealed bearings here, nothing special, but I was surprised by how well they spun. This will need to be a regular maintainance item for me now, as I won't have the heavy grease protecting the bearings any longer. Small price to pay though for efficiency.
The factory-built ball diff got a rebuild as well. No parts replacement, just a cleanup and re-install to my personal settings. While these require more maintainance than a gear diff, and are arguably less-efficient for on road use, for spec racing, they work just fine. If built and broken in properly, the feel on track will be minuscule in a VTA or USGT car. I personally prefer them for outdoor racing, but what do I know....
This Blue aluminum screw kit is a must-have in order to get the car down to minimum weight. I've also added a few sizes that weren't included in the AE kit, to further bring the weight down to a respectable level.
AE's Ti turnbuckle set also helps with weight as well as durability. Much like the blue screws, the added bling never hurts as well. Both of these kits are modest in price ($10.00 for the screws, $20.00 for the turnbuckles), so you won't be breaking the bank while shedding weight.
I like to use the 2.0 degree rear toe block for spec racing. This helps with straight line speed, as well as helping the car rotate more. Not a bad tuning option to have in your box. Also, I ordered a set of original TC4 arm mounts. The mounts included in the "club racer" kit have the arm shims built in as part of the thickness of the mount, while the original replacement parts do not. This way, you can adjust anti-squat as well as anti-dive with shims under the arm mount, just like a modern car.
Most modern cars use serrated wheel nuts, as they do away with the nyloc portions that wear out over time. JConcepts #2167 8/32" serrated wheel nuts work perfect on the TC4, and because they were designed for the Associated B44-series buggies, they have a nice wide flange which grips extremely well. A small "modernization" upgrade that makes life so much easier.
While the TC4 comes with oil shocks, they are cheap, plastic, and, well just cheap. What did you expect for $150.00?
I opted for the Mac Daddy. The Tamiya TRF "works edition" shock set. Ask any racer, and they'll tell you the Tamiya TRF shocks are the standard by which all other shock packages are judged. They are also god-awful expensive. Luckily I have this set on "long term loan" from my father, who never used them. These are built per the Tamiya instructions. 2 hole pistons, with the supplied x-rings for sealing.
Budget Champion FTW.
Next up was mapping out my electronics. As with any car, the closer you can have your weight towards the center of the car, the better off you'll be. I first filed the battery tray to move the battery as close to the drive shaft as possible. (This is an old trick from the TC3 days)
I didn't go so far as to grind the spine plate, just the ribbing in the battery tray itself. The result is about a 2mm difference. The main goal really, was just to get the battery to sit flush with the bottom of the car. Remember, this car was designed and built in the NiMh era.
As much of a pain in the ass it can be, shortening up electronic wires is single-handedly the cheapest way to shed weight from a car. Everything from battery and motor wires, to the servo wire is shortened. I also opted for 14ga wire, as again, it is lighter than standard 13 or 12ga. The trade off is resistance, but my results generally show it doesn't hurt that much. (That sounded cocky)
Like I stated before, this car was signed around NiMh batteries and brushed motors. Today's electronics and batteries are much lighter than back in the day, so where to put extra weight becomes tricky. After all of my weight-shaving, I was around 50 grams light. For an all plastic car, I was ecstatic. After weighing an old NiMh pack against my modern 5000mah LiPo, I found around an almost exact 50g difference between the two. The LiPo was significantly lighter, which basically told me where to add the ballast needed to make minimum. I fabbed this nifty steel plate to sit just under the battery. When using the lighter 5000mah pack, I simply use the plate to make the car 1450g on the nose. When I use my 6000mah race pack (which is 50g heavier), I leave the the plate out, and stay at the same 1450g weight. A super simple way to use different-weight packs with the same weight bias as was intended when the car was developed: Budget Engineering!
Here we see it in pre-season practice trim. Clean wiring, clean lines, ready to rip. (I've since moved to Maclan 21.5 power)
First tests were encouraging, as the car showed good speed from the get-go. I used a older HPI Porsche 911 body for testing, but have since switched to the Protoform Cadillac ATS-V, as seen in the first picture. The Caddy has a much more neutral feel, and is the body of choice right now in the USGT ranks.
The fun part about having a challenge like this is taking a car that most people have written off and making it not only competitive, but a race winner. The car and the driver go hand in hand with almost any form of racing, and this is no different with RC. All too often racers grab the latest & greatest, looking to find that magical combination to propel them to the top step of the podium. The car alone will get you close, but it's clean & consistent driving, along with setup knowledge from various experiences that make the difference.
Through two races so far this season, I've qualified no worse than 4th, and have finished no worse then 2nd, with my first win a long time come last weekend. At no point during these two meetings was I the fastest car outright. Even during my race win, I was 3rd fastest on an outright fast lap. What made the difference was clean & consistent driving. None of these little tricks and tips I used during the build would have helped at if I hadn't done my part as a driver.
Yes, this car is outdated. Yes this car is heavy. Yes this car has it's flaws, but what car doesn't? What this car DOES have going for it, is an extremely efficient shaft drive design, a now-conventional suspension design, and great parts/setup support from Team Associated. Nothing too fancy was done here, all of these tricks and tips involve readily available parts and resources. No witchcraft involved.
The setup window isn't quite what a modern car would have, but with the right prep, this car car can be, and still is a race winner. Besides, isn't it fun to beat up on cars three-times the cost of this "club racer"?
Peace and fast laps.
-JRoy386
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