Needle tuning, need somebody advice.

[cbaker65]

I can not read anything from that short vid ,for one ,it is only a full WOT from take off ,it is also on a rough dirt area!
Try getting a vid on a hard smooth surface so we can see the top end power when it does shift!

Do a couple of warm up passes first an dont let it sit at idle for a long time before you push the record button!

 

[StevenMax]

I will get a video later and then upload it, yesterday I did some runs in our parking lot and got it running a little bit better. The temperatures are around 260° or so which is far better than the 313 I was running. I kept it running for three full tanks and it didn’t get very hot compared to normal. It did hit 45 miles an hour according to the telemetry but it does do one weird thing. On full throttle sometimes it will wind out first gear and then just kind of sit there , Sometimes it will just sound like it’s just a few thousand RPM too low to shift but other times it flies through the gears first and second no problem and hits top speed it’s kind of intermittent with running right and seeming to be holding back. Sometimes it flies across the parking lot and looks great and other times it’s just like what the hell happened? It’s a little inconsistent but everything is sealed and it does idle all day and it does have blue smoke so it’s running at least mostly properly I think it’s just a very fine tuning type of thing That would be left. I find it a little bit harder to tune the low speed than the high speed since you set the idle with the low speed it gets a little bit hard to remember but at this time it does do wheelies pretty good and will ride them all the way through second gear off of the line so I assume that means the low speed is at least in a good range and it will idle basically the entire tank and won’t shut off so I don’t believe it’s loading up. As stated above this is the tracxas 3.3 with the Losi 3.4 carb on it. It was sad to be a very easy to tune drop in upgrade and it did seem pretty easy at first but now it’s kind of a little finicky and I’m starting to think maybe running lean and hot I took a little life out of the piston and cylinder so maybe I should replace the piston and sleeve, seeing as it’s a new motor with about 10 tanks on it, re-break it in and start over again on the current settings I am in. The issue is, with the LOSI carburetor it’s hard to know where a factory break in setting would be. Yes, I could always put the factory carburetor back on it but that defeats the purpose. I feel like it’s almost there if it wasn’t for that every now and then it won’t shift into second gear thing and it just stays there around 30,000 RPM all the way across the parking lot, but then directly after that it will run first and second gear no problem and seem to be OK. But it just doesn’t seem to be as fast or as powerful as I know it should be. Maybe it’s because I’m getting more used to driving brushless electric but this truck still hangs with the 8s X MAXX mostly.

 

[cbaker65]

I will get a video later and then upload it, yesterday I did some runs in our parking lot and got it running a little bit better. The temperatures are around 260° or so which is far better than the 313 I was running. I kept it running for three full tanks and it didn’t get very hot compared to normal. It did hit 45 miles an hour according to the telemetry but it does do one weird thing. On full throttle sometimes it will wind out first gear and then just kind of sit there , Sometimes it will just sound like it’s just a few thousand RPM too low to shift but other times it flies through the gears first and second no problem and hits top speed it’s kind of intermittent with running right and seeming to be holding back. Sometimes it flies across the parking lot and looks great and other times it’s just like what the hell happened? It’s a little inconsistent but everything is sealed and it does idle all day and it does have blue smoke so it’s running at least mostly properly I think it’s just a very fine tuning type of thing That would be left. I find it a little bit harder to tune the low speed than the high speed since you set the idle with the low speed it gets a little bit hard to remember but at this time it does do wheelies pretty good and will ride them all the way through second gear off of the line so I assume that means the low speed is at least in a good range and it will idle basically the entire tank and won’t shut off so I don’t believe it’s loading up. As stated above this is the tracxas 3.3 with the Losi 3.4 carb on it. It was sad to be a very easy to tune drop in upgrade and it did seem pretty easy at first but now it’s kind of a little finicky and I’m starting to think maybe running lean and hot I took a little life out of the piston and cylinder so maybe I should replace the piston and sleeve, seeing as it’s a new motor with about 10 tanks on it, re-break it in and start over again on the current settings I am in. The issue is, with the LOSI carburetor it’s hard to know where a factory break in setting would be. Yes, I could always put the factory carburetor back on it but that defeats the purpose. I feel like it’s almost there if it wasn’t for that every now and then it won’t shift into second gear thing and it just stays there around 30,000 RPM all the way across the parking lot, but then directly after that it will run first and second gear no problem and seem to be OK. But it just doesn’t seem to be as fast or as powerful as I know it should be. Maybe it’s because I’m getting more used to driving brushless electric but this truck still hangs with the 8s X MAXX mostly.

Ah ,I see ,have you tried to back the the 2 spd shift screw off just a tad?
Because ,once you hit that top speed in first gear ,your engine will strain a little an heat up some ,you can only tune an engine
so much!

 

[StevenMax]

Ah ,I see ,have you tried to back the the 2 spd shift screw off just a tad?
Because ,once you hit that top speed in first gear ,your engine will strain a little an heat up some ,you can only tune an engine
so much!

Actually, no lol. I’ve been driving multiple T-MAXX for years and have never once touched a shift point. It’s always fine out of the box. I always assumed the adjustment was to make it shift differently for a desired reason, not as part of tuning. I guess the best way to summarize it is most of the time it shifts normal but you have to lean it out a little bit to make it able to shift and once it is at the spot where it is shifting like you would expect, that seems to be when it gets a little hot, so it might be on a little bit of the lean side just to make it shift. When richened and the temps are good, it won’t rev up high enough to shift, but you can tell it’s not at its peak RPM because there’s too much fuel in it so it can’t get high enough to shift, it’s very tricky. I also figured that you don’t want to shift earlier than its maximum rpm because then it has to bring up extra through second gear, but what you say about the engine heating up a little extra makes a lot of sense. Mainly since sometimes I do hold it there for five or six seconds and then it revs up a couple thousand RPM and then it does shift, however other times, it’s a smooth as butter so it’s definitely inconsistent and I wouldn’t think it was the shift point but I guess it’s possible even though that doesn’t really explain away why it does a full pull, no problem one pass, and then seems to not shift and get stuck on the next. Sometimes it doesn’t hit second at all, I will just hold it there wide-open across the entire parking lot in first gear and the only way to guarantee it shifts is to lean it out as I said but I suspect the shift point could be slightly off based on what you said. Or, Sometimes I hold it there and it just stays at a slightly lower RPM for five seconds and then it will just suddenly seem to clear itself out, kick up a couple thousand RPM, hit second gear and then just takeoff like it should. I’ve been driving nitro for 22 years and I should not be having this much trouble turning the thing LOL

 

[cbaker65]

Actually, no lol. I’ve been driving multiple T-MAXX for years and have never once touched a shift point. It’s always fine out of the box. I always assumed the adjustment was to make it shift differently for a desired reason, not as part of tuning. I guess the best way to summarize it is most of the time it shifts normal but you have to lean it out a little bit to make it able to shift and once it is at the spot where it is shifting like you would expect, that seems to be when it gets a little hot, so it might be on a little bit of the lean side just to make it shift. When richened and the temps are good, it won’t rev up high enough to shift, but you can tell it’s not at its peak RPM because there’s too much fuel in it so it can’t get high enough to shift, it’s very tricky. I also figured that you don’t want to shift earlier than its maximum rpm because then it has to bring up extra through second gear, but what you say about the engine heating up a little extra makes a lot of sense. Mainly since sometimes I do hold it there for five or six seconds and then it revs up a couple thousand RPM and then it does shift, however other times, it’s a smooth as butter so it’s definitely inconsistent and I wouldn’t think it was the shift point but I guess it’s possible even though that doesn’t really explain away why it does a full pull, no problem one pass, and then seems to not shift and get stuck on the next. Sometimes it doesn’t hit second at all, I will just hold it there wide-open across the entire parking lot in first gear and the only way to guarantee it shifts is to lean it out as I said but I suspect the shift point could be slightly off based on what you said. Or, Sometimes I hold it there and it just stays at a slightly lower RPM for five seconds and then it will just suddenly seem to clear itself out, kick up a couple thousand RPM, hit second gear and then just takeoff like it should. I’ve been driving nitro for 22 years and I should not be having this much trouble turning the thing LOL

I dont trust any brand on their products when they are produced ,I have gotten a AE MMgt where the factory forgot to install the
2 spd hub screws!
Also ,Team Losi new edition the X8t body stickers are blotched ,so you can't trust manufactures products to be perfect!

 

[StevenMax]

I dont trust any brand on their products when they are produced ,I have gotten a AE MMgt where the factory forgot to install the
2 spd hub screws!
Also ,Team Losi new edition the X8t body stickers are blotched ,so you can't trust manufactures products to be perfect!

It’s supposed to be the best drop in upgrade according to what people say. It definitely stopped that stupid traxxas carb burp they all do when you first hit the gas, it’s mostly a low to mid speed upgrade. It feels smoother and more responsive than with the factory carb it’s just being hard to tune but the gap is closing lol

 

[cbaker65]

It’s supposed to be the best drop in upgrade according to what people say. It definitely stopped that stupid traxxas carb burp they all do when you first hit the gas, it’s mostly a low to mid speed upgrade. It feels smoother and more responsive than with the factory carb it’s just being hard to tune but the gap is closing lol

No ,I wasn't talking about the engine tune ,I was talking about the shift settings ,as the RC's in general are mass produced ,there is
no garantee that the transmission shift point is set right from factory ,especially on a RTR model!

As far as the tune on the engine ,I am quite sure that it is real close to a good tune ,have you tried leaning the Lsn in just a hair?...

 

[StevenMax]

No ,I wasn't talking about the engine tune ,I was talking about the shift settings ,as the RC's in general are mass produced ,there is
no garantee that the transmission shift point is set right from factory ,especially on a RTR model!

As far as the tune on the engine ,I am quite sure that it is real close to a good tune ,have you tried leaning the Lsn in just a hair?...

Ohhhh hahayes I thought you were talking about the carb, my fault lol. I guess a slightly lowersgift point could help tie things together. I’ll give it a try

 

[cbaker65]

Ohhhh hahayes I thought you were talking about the carb, my fault lol. I guess a slightly lowersgift point could help tie things together. I’ll give it a try

It doesn't take too much of a turn ,only about a 1/16 of a turn to release some tension to allow the paw to swing out sooner!

You would turn it counter clock wise!

 

[StevenMax]

It doesn't take too much of a turn ,only about a 1/16 of a turn to release some tension to allow the paw to swing out sooner!

You would turn it counter clock wise!

Ok to counter clockwise make sure it shift sooner? Yes? Can you mess anything up if you go to far lol?

 

[alfredwong2003]

Ok to counter clockwise make sure it shift sooner? Yes? Can you mess anything up if you go to far lol?

I thought you need to turn clockwise to keep the engine from getting loaded.

 

[cbaker65]

I thought you need to turn clockwise to keep the engine from getting loaded.

We had jumped over to the transmission Sir!...

 

[cbaker65]

Ok to counter clockwise make sure it shift sooner? Yes? Can you mess anything up if you go to far lol?

You really dont want to run it too far out or keep wrenching on it too much ,an you definitly dont want to run the set screw in all the way!
You only need to back it off a hair because it is that you say hits second gear off & on ,so just a hair!

The spring an little ball bearing inside pushed the on the back side of the paw that swing out ,that is why you turn it counter clockwise ,
to take some tension off to allow the paw to swing out quicker!...

 

[Rolex]

It's called a "Pawl". The trans works like a clock. If you say it's at 9 and you back it to 8, it's earlier. Go from 9 to 10 and it shifts later.
As far as heat on the engine if the LSN is too lean you can't bring the temp down with the HSN. Start it, let it putter around slowly, let it sit and idle for a while and check the temp. Let us know what it reads.

 

[StevenMax]

It's called a "Pawl". The trans works like a clock. If you say it's at 9 and you back it to 8, it's earlier. Go from 9 to 10 and it shifts later.
As far as heat on the engine if the LSN is too lean you can't bring the temp down with the HSN. Start it, let it putter around slowly, let it sit and idle for a while and check the temp. Let us know what it reads.

I richened the LSN 1/8 turn and drove a half tank and checked, this was after letting it idle and warm up. I was around 255 when I checked. I did notice s little bit of fuel in the fuel line going from the exhaust pipe to the tank, also, a little bit of foam, just a coating not thick on top of the remaining fuel. I’m running on a track and jumping so I believe those things are normal?