Thanks Mike. Good luck to you too.
Today was testing day; among other things............best day of the Summer on October 12th!
The testing was 3 ways; two chassis, two motors and two gearings. That's a good sized matrix to test, one parameter at a time. So, I compressed it into two chassis and two motors (with gearing specific for each motor). Here's the starting point; two naked chassis:
The top chassis is last year's Group 5 build, the bottom chassis is this year's build. Last year's chassis was about 4 times stiffer, torsionally, front-to-rear, than the stock Racer chassis. This year's is about 2 times stiffer and, roughly, 2 times less stiff than last year's chassis.
Here are the data and comments:
1. 2014 chassis / motor A / gearing X
Fastest lap - 5.965 sec
Average lap - 6.36 sec
[notes: squirts on acceleration (wheels spin) / needs a lot of brake / stays in the slot]
2. 2014 chassis / motor B / gearing Y
Fastest lap - 5.919
Average lap - 6.13
[notes: easier to control / less squirting / just as fast a motor A/gearing X]
3. 2015 chassis / motor A / gearing X
Fastest lap - 5.732
Average lap - 5.99
[notes: still squirts on acceleration / more drivable in this chassis / doesn't want to de-slot]
4. 2015 chassis / motor B / gearing Y
Fastest lap - 5.820
Average lap - 5.97
[notes: easier chassis for all corners / more subtle / smoother / plenty of power / consistent lap times]
So, I'm taking away that this year's chassis is at least as fast as last year's and seems easier to drive. That was far from a given going down this rabbit hole, again. But, for now, it makes the effort worth it. I wasn't looking forward to shelving the new chassis, but I was prepared to do it if last year's chassis was faster.
Although motor A / gearing X turned a faster lap in the 2015 chassis, it is more of a handful to drive. Motor B / gearing Y is only marginally slower in fastest lap and is the same for average laps and, more importantly, it's more predictable and easier to drive fast.
So, looks like it's going to be the 2015 chassis, motor B / gearing Y.
Time to head for the finish line and wrap up this build. How it will compare to the others in this proxy only races will tell.
Harry, I found my motor........it wasn't orange.............
Allan