JD546
RCTalk Basher
Not much info on these cars so let me share what I've learned since buying a lightly used one and doing a track day with it.
Let me set the scene. Tight indoor track with black carpet. Average lap times for the expert drivers are around 10sec. Track is laid out using 2"x2" square PVC.
My X20 came with an older Futaba that was top of the line about 10yrs ago but has all the bells and whistles todays top Tx's come with. With the throttle turned down, this was my first time with a brushless touring car on carpet, so I was focused on clean laps rather than fast laps. My only other experience on the on road side of my local track was the Losi NASCAR. Otherwise, I've been racing 2wd buggies on the other side. (local layout had both on road and off road under the same roof)
Now the lesson. These RTR's have a lot of carbon resin parts that the competition (X20 '24) doesn't have and those parts are not race ready. The front outdrives were the weakest link I found so far. Since the front end has a spool instead of a diff, when you turn too soon and hit the border of the track with the front wheel, that plastic outdrive that the dog bone slides into will break as mine did. I was able to find the missing piece and use some tire glue to put it back together. It did work for a while, but I did it again and the outdrive once again broke. But after a close look, the glue held, and the repair worked great. It had broken in a different spot. And I noticed the other side was looking pretty bad but not broke. A couple other things that will probably fail are the upper suspension brackets. the plastic piece that the upper control arm connects to. There is an aluminum version but be prepared to pay a hefty price. These list for about $55. And in order to upgrade the outdrives in the front, you have to replace the whole front axle because the RTR version is a completely different style. After a long search, I found (SER401723) that fits the kit version of this car which is made of metal and should solve my outdrive issue. There are a few other aluminum pieces you might consider but again, they are not cheap.
The tires are run of the mill RTR tires and felt like I was on ice at times. But to fix that, I sauced them up with STX and that made a HUGE difference. I was able to get a 12.9 lap before I hit that corner and ended my practice session.
If I had the budget, I would have bought the X20 '24. But instead, I'll just end up replacing all the weak parts over time and end up paying much more than the '24 would have cost me...lol
This is a great car that has the potential to do great things. But this RTR is best suited for running around the parking lots with your buddies, not trying to race competitively at the local track.
Let me set the scene. Tight indoor track with black carpet. Average lap times for the expert drivers are around 10sec. Track is laid out using 2"x2" square PVC.
My X20 came with an older Futaba that was top of the line about 10yrs ago but has all the bells and whistles todays top Tx's come with. With the throttle turned down, this was my first time with a brushless touring car on carpet, so I was focused on clean laps rather than fast laps. My only other experience on the on road side of my local track was the Losi NASCAR. Otherwise, I've been racing 2wd buggies on the other side. (local layout had both on road and off road under the same roof)
Now the lesson. These RTR's have a lot of carbon resin parts that the competition (X20 '24) doesn't have and those parts are not race ready. The front outdrives were the weakest link I found so far. Since the front end has a spool instead of a diff, when you turn too soon and hit the border of the track with the front wheel, that plastic outdrive that the dog bone slides into will break as mine did. I was able to find the missing piece and use some tire glue to put it back together. It did work for a while, but I did it again and the outdrive once again broke. But after a close look, the glue held, and the repair worked great. It had broken in a different spot. And I noticed the other side was looking pretty bad but not broke. A couple other things that will probably fail are the upper suspension brackets. the plastic piece that the upper control arm connects to. There is an aluminum version but be prepared to pay a hefty price. These list for about $55. And in order to upgrade the outdrives in the front, you have to replace the whole front axle because the RTR version is a completely different style. After a long search, I found (SER401723) that fits the kit version of this car which is made of metal and should solve my outdrive issue. There are a few other aluminum pieces you might consider but again, they are not cheap.
The tires are run of the mill RTR tires and felt like I was on ice at times. But to fix that, I sauced them up with STX and that made a HUGE difference. I was able to get a 12.9 lap before I hit that corner and ended my practice session.
If I had the budget, I would have bought the X20 '24. But instead, I'll just end up replacing all the weak parts over time and end up paying much more than the '24 would have cost me...lol
This is a great car that has the potential to do great things. But this RTR is best suited for running around the parking lots with your buddies, not trying to race competitively at the local track.
