How to: Five Fixes for Engine Tuning Troubles:
Sometimes, a nitro engine will play mind games with you, and that can make your nitro experience a bad one. And the more frustrated you get when your engine isn’t running properly, the worse the situation will get. You may get to the point at which you think you’ll never get that engine running, and that’s why we’re here. Engines are relatively simple, and only a limited number of things can go wrong. With these 5 problems solved, you shouldn’t have any trouble getting your engine to run.

1. ENGINE DOESN'T START

2. ENGINE IDLES ERRATICALLY

3. ENGINE RUNS ON THE STARTER BOX BUT DIES WHEN THE VEHICLE HITS THE GROUND OR WHEN YOU HIT THE BRAKES

4. ENGINE BOGS DURING THE TRANSITION FROM IDLE TO FULL THROTTLE

5. ENGINE SUDDENLY LOSES POWER

Brushless Motor Maintenance:

Start With a Cleaning - When you sit down between race days to work on your car, there are a few simple tasks you should always perform on your brushless motor. First and foremost, you want to make sure the motor is clean, since dirt and grime can hurt a brushless motor just as much as it can hurt a brushed motor. Use a brush or a cleaning rag to wipe down the surface of the motor, taking care to inspect it for any obvious signs of damage.

Check the Feel - Since brushless motors don't provide a ton of resistance when you spin them, it is usually very easy to see if something is causing your motor to seize up. With the motor cleaned and out of the car, spin the armature to feel for any grittiness or "notchy" behavior. If you sense that it is not spinning as freely as it should, you should probably disassemble the motor and clean it out.

Inspect the Wiring - Your brushless motor has quite a few wires coming out of it, and each and every one of them is very important. Hopefully your wiring is adequately protected from moving parts and outside influences, but even if so, accidents can happen and wires can become torn or frayed. Make sure that none of the wires are exposed, and that none are in danger of contacting one another. If the insulation on any wire has been torn or the inside exposed, use electrical tape to re-insulate it.

Lubricate - The main point of contact between your motor and the outside world is its partially exposed bearing, and you want it to spin as freely as possible. After cleaning the motor, be sure to add a drop or two of thin bearing lubricant to the bearing. The lube will keep it spinning freely and help to ward off debris.

Disassembly - From time to time, or if you ever notice a problem, you should disassemble your brushless motor to inspect and clean it. Don't be afraid; the process is really quite simple, and much more so than a brushed motor.

Remove your motor from the vehicle, and unsolder the wires and disconnect the wiring harness if possible. While you're at it, clean the area around the motor mount and anywhere else that dirt and debris may collect.

Disassemble - Most brushless motors are quick and easy to disassemble, with a few hex-head screws on either the front or rear of the case, or possibly both. Take your motor apart and lay the parts out in front of you.

Clean - Just like a brushed motor, dirt and grime can build up inside the can of a brushless motor, so clean both the rotating parts and the can itself. Spray the can with motor spray and allow it to dry before reassembly. Wipe down the armature as well.

Re-Lube - Since you just sprayed down the can and the bearings along with it, you'll need to re-lubricate them. Put a few drops of thin bearing lubricant in each bearing. If after spraying and re-lubing a bearing it still feels gritty or seizes up, it needs to be replaced before running again.

Bearing replacement - Should you need to replace a bearing, first consult with your motor's manufacturer to make sure that you have the right size in mind. Try to find a replacement bearing with a metal shield, as this will resist damage and debris more effectively than a rubber or Teflon shield. If you have one, use a bearing pusher to pop the bearing out of the can, and then push the replacement back into place. Add a drop or two of bearing lube to the new bearing as well. Reassembly and Install - You're all done! Put your motor back together and then reinstall it in your vehicle, as good as new.

Piston and Sleeve:

How do you know when a piston & sleeve set needs resizing or replaced?

1. The engine flames out continuously after reaching operating temperature.

2. Constant overheating / cannot maintain normal engine temperature while all else has not changed.

3. With the engine at operating temperature you are able to easily roll the flywheel over with light finger pressure. (Glow plug installed)

4. Looking at exhaust port and rolling the flywheel over, piston travels well past porting windows before any compression is felt.

5. With piston & sleeve removed, piston pushes well past TDC wear marks on sleeve.

These three websites that would be good places to have resizing done.

Nitro Maintenance Checklist:

Nitro Vehicle Maintenance Checklist

Ready to run nitro vehicles are more popular now than ever, but many RTR owners don't know much about the internal workings of their vehicles because they didn't build them. Even though the vehicles come RTR doesn't mean that they will never require maintenance.

Quick visual check. Look closely at all moving parts and for obvious problems.

Check all major fasteners. Make sure all the screws that hold the bulkheads, drive train and engine on the chassis are not loose. Do a full vehicle. Check at least once a month and a visual check before each run.

Wiggle all the suspension and steering parts. Be sure that all the components are firmly attached and be sure that the parts only move in the direction they were intended to move.

Spin the drive train. Any degree of drive train binding or poor brake adjustment can lead to excessive engine temperature and poor all around performance. Hold the vehicle off the ground and spin the wheels. There shouldn't be any resistance or tight spots. If there is a problem and it is not fixed it could lead to engine overheating or clutch damage. Some points to check are spur gear mesh, faulty clutch, bad bearing, or a brake assembly that binds.

Check your transmitter and transmitter batteries. This is the most common cause of really expensive crashes. Most radios have some type of battery meter but most RTR's don't have this system for the receiver batteries. Don't rely on average alkaline AA batteries for more than two hours of run time. Monster trucks use even more battery power because the servos have to strain more to turn the oversize tires.

Inspect the fuel and exhaust systems. Make sure that fuel lines are connected in the right places, and check them for cracks and slits. These small problems will lead to endless tuning problems. Make sure that the fuel tank filler cap is seated properly to ensure proper pressure is kept in the fuel system.

Radio System FAQ:

When I am using my radio for programming, setup within my house, experimenting, etc, is there anything special I should do?

With ANY transmitter (modulared or non-modular), you should ALWAYS extend your antenna to at least the bottom or first segment when turning the radio on. If you leave the radio on with the antenna collapsed for more than 5 or 10 minutes, the internal components will be unnecessarily exposed to incorrect matching of the output circuit to the antenna. This may shorten the life or even immediately damage the output circuitry of the transmitter.

INTERNAL FUEL TANK LEAK:

Air leaks within your fuel tank are difficult to detect unless you know what you are looking for. Internal air leaks are even harder to find, since the conventional tests for a leaky tank only check the outer seal of the tank and will not find internal air leaks that can suck air in through your pickup tube. A simple test is to fire up your engine when your fuel tank is full and have a look at the fuel line going to your carburetor. Blip your throttle and ensure there aren't any air bubbles in your fuel line (don't use opaque fuel tubing or you won't be able to see the fuel). Now, remove about 3/4 of the fuel from the tank and fire up your engine again. Be sure to run the engine for long enough to clean out any air bubbles that may have occurred in the line during the initial fuel-draw stage. If there are now air bubbles in your fuel line when you blip your throttle you probably have an internal air leak in your pickup tube and you need to replace the fuel tank. An internal air leak will cause your engine to excessively lean-out once your fuel level drops below the leaky portion of your pickup tube and can cause a whack load of problems. So if your engine is acting wonky near the end of a fuel tank, perform this test so you can scratch one more thing off of your engine troubleshooting list.

TIRE VENTING:

RC car tires don't utilize pressured air like real cars do. Air should be able to pass freely in and out of your tires, and even though most rim manufacturers drill holes in the rims to allow this passage of air there is a better method. Use a leather punch, side cutters, or even a high-speed dremel tool to bore two holes (on opposite sides of your tire) directly into the face of the tread pattern. Try to do it in between spikes or tread so you don't remove any valuable traction-providing bits of rubber. By having holes in the actual rubber of the tire instead of (or as well as) just in the rim you allow centrifugal force to help remove dirt and moisture that may get trapped within your traction providers once they start spinning. Holes in the rubber also make it much easier to drain out any water that may get trapped when you are cleaning your tires between runs.

MONSTER TRUCK SHOCK LIMITERS:

Because of the nature of their design, monster trucks have a super high center of gravity which causes them to flip over very easily when cornering quickly. A simple fix to this is to limit the amount of down-travel in your suspension. This can be done quickly with droop adjustment screws on some chassis, but most monster trucks don't have droop adjustment; you'll have to limit the downward suspension travel manually. Cut short, equal length pieces of silicone fuel line to make limiters and install them onto your shock shafts below the piston, but before you slide your shock shaft into the shock body. The size of the limiter will depend on how much you want to limit your down-travel, but even 5 to 10mm will make a large difference to monster trucks handling. Don't worry that you will lose some ground clearance with this modification; you will lose some, but this isn't a big issue because most trucks have so much clearance to begin with. The added benefit of a chassis that remains flatter through high-speed turns should put a smile on any trucker's face.

WD-40 CHASSIS TRICK:

This one is an oldie but a goodie. Spray a bristle brush with some WD-40 and brush down your off road chassis and components. Stay away from electronics, engines, and polycarbonate, concentrating mostly on chassis, driveline, and suspension. By brushing down your vehicle with WD-40, you'll leave an ultra thin layer of silicone that won't attract dirt, but it will prevent it from adhering to your car. This will offer two benefits; first, most dirt will simply fall from your chassis during your race, keeping your suspension smooth and your chassis lighter, and second, any mud that does manage to hang on can be knocked off much more easily, making after race cleaning a snap. More is not better here; go light with the lube and this tip will work much better.

ALUMINUM CLUTCH MAINTENANCE:

Aluminum clutch shoes are amazing! They last long, wear well, and offer non-slip positive grab every time you hammer on the throttle. They do, however, require maintenance to keep them working properly. Aluminum clutch shoes won't melt like their carbon counterparts, but the aluminum still wears and can cause burrs on the face of the shoe. These burrs can interfere with your clutch springs, cause your clutch to hang up on the flywheel, or even drag against the clutch bell, causing your car to run-on into a turn. Every few race days it is a wise idea to pull your clutch apart and use a small file or fine sandpaper to remove any visible aluminum burrs from the face of your clutch shoes. While you have everything torn apart, check your clutch bearings to ensure they are smooth and free as well, since clutch bearings are the hardest working bearings in your car and need replacing often.

GLOW PLUG LEAK:

Small leak in the seal between your glow plug and your head button can greatly reduce engine performance and knock your tune out of whack. Look down your cylinder head while turning your engine over and if there is a leak, you should see fuel bubbles exiting around your glow plug seal. This is more of an issue with regular glow plugs (not turbo-style glow plugs) where a copper washer is used to make the seal. The problem is easily fixed by simply tightening your glow plug with a little more authority. Don't over-tighten, as you may stripe out your head button, but if you still have a small leak even after wrenching that sucker down, you may have to swap out the copper washer for a fresh one to keep all of your engines running correct.

UNPLUG YOUR LIPO:

LiPo batteries should never be allowed to fully discharge or they will be destroyed (and could be dangerous). It isn't uncommon for a racer to forget to turn his car off after a day of electric driving. This wouldn't normally be too big a deal, except when Lithium Polymer batteries are involved. If you leave your car turned on and your battery plugged in, the battery will fully discharge. To be sure that this never happens by accident, get into the habit of always unplugging your battery in your electric machine immediately after use (you should do this even if you aren't using LiPo packs). This way it won't be a huge deal if you forget to flick your switch. To take this tip one step further, try to never store your LiPo battery in your chassis. Taking it out forces you to address the plug issue every time so you'll never have a failure.

Saving your shocks from damage:
NESCAR QUICK TIP: To protect your shocks from damage when landing off big jumps, slide 2 to 3mm lengths of silicone fuel line over the shock shafts. The fuel line will prevent the shock pistons from ramming into the bladders inside the shocks.

Holes in off-road tires:
NESCAR QUICK TIP: When running big breather holes in off-road tires or even small holes on touring-car tires, small rocks sometimes work their way into the rim and get trapped. To prevent this, glue a small piece of window-screen mesh over the opening. This will allow air to pass freely but will prevent debris from getting in and adding weight, or setting the wheel out of balance.

Making tires last longer:
NESCAR QUICK TIP: Rotating your 4WD off-road buggy or truck’s tires after every two or three runs will make them last longer. Use a permanent marker to indicate the left front (L/F), right front (R/F), left rear (L/R) and right rear (R/R) tires. This will make keeping track of the tires much easier. Also, pay attention to how the tires are wearing, and adjust the camber to promote even tire wear across the tires’ contact patch. If the tires wear more on the inside, reduce the negative camber (make the turnbuckles longer). If they wear more on the outside, do the opposite by reducing the length of the turnbuckles, which increases negative camber.

2010 NESCAR Officers :
Your 2010 Officers are: President - Al Halte, VP - Shawn Stanger, Treasurer - David Cushing, Race Directors - Tim Marco & Scott Stanger, Maintenance Directors - Bren Conn, Jason Hatch & Ron Bigger. Club Promoters - Ron Bigger, Scott Stanger & Bren Conn.