This is the building process of a Hong Nor Speed 9.5 with all pro's and con's found.
Click on the pictures to enlarge!
PERFORMANCE
How to read performance results
We found one of the Dutch top drivers willing to test the car during
competitions this year.
His name is Iwan Latev and he will inform us about set ups and the quality
related problems he
will find during test driving this car in competition!
First day out with the Hong Nor Speed 9.5
introducing myself:
My name is Iwan Latev and I live in Landsmeer which is close near Amsterdam. I am in model car racing since 1995. My highest position in the Dutch championship was 3rd place. My best car until now was a Thunder Tiger EB4 Limited Edition. This car drives very well and predictable with lots of steer.
But enough about old cars. Let's talk about the new one. A Hong Nor Speed 9.5 !
Testgear:
Radio: Ko-Propo EX1
Servo's: Hitec 945 for steering and Futaba 9303 for braking.
Battery pack: 4 cells 1000 mAh GP
Receiver: Futaba
Engine: CMB Rally LSi
Pipe: Picco Efra 9897
Fuel: 25 % Dynaglow
Before the race:
The first real test drive was the day before the first race of the
Brothercup in Holland. I had a lot of things to do. Breaking in a
new CMB Buggy engine (which died after the 5th tank of fuel).
Building a "leased" CMB engine in the car and trying to get
a reasonable setup for the race day of tomorrow. The out of the
box setting with the shock oil that came with the kit was not
doing well on the track which consists of 100% artificial grass so I decided to take a look at the back side of the car first.
I changed the oil in the shocks for 150 Cs and went back on the
track. I noticed that there was plenty of steering but I could
not hold the rear end on the track when cornering or on bumpy
parts of the circuit.
The next thing I tried was the position of the rear shocks on the shock stay. They were on the second hole from the inside and I changed them to the first hole. back on the track the (second !) insert of the servo arm was destroyed so I changed that one with the original Hi-tec one. Back on the track. Trying hard to get some speed I hit something so I had to change a steering ball end. Back on the track. The car was still very bumpy on the rear so I tried all the combinations of holes of the rear shocks but nothing satisfied me so I went into the pitlane to change the oil again to 100 Cs. I also had to change the rubber caps inside the shocks because they where broken. Back on the track it seems that the car was handling better then before so I decided to try the car with this setting first.
Race day.
1st qualifying session.
Disaster ! Everyone who is normally behind me was now in front !
There was work to do. I wanted to try some other tyres but they
did not fit on the front side so I had to go with the original
ones.
(The original new Hong Nor front rims have special
design to fit perfectly in combination with the front knuckles. When fitting
other brand rims they touch the steering rod, some more, some less. Fitting other
brand rims on the rear however is no problem.)
2nd qualifying session
Things were going a little bit better for me but still not fast
enough. I also noticed that steering was funny. After the run I
checked the car and found the problem for this. The right knuckle
arm 4MM thread was stripped out of the aluminum arm.
3rd qualifying session
missed this one because I had to repair the knuckle arm. I
changed it with a Kyosho one. (It's not perfect but I have no
spare parts so I had to improvise.)
After qualifying was done I had to start in the 1/4 final. Normally I start in the 1/2 final directly so now I had to fight myself trough this round. Things were going well for the first ten minutes. I was on first position. But again my luck left me. The engine died. My pitcrew started the engine and checked the idling speed but that seemed to be Ok. Back in the race the engine died another 4 times (reason unknown) so I did not become one of the four going to the next final..............
This was something that had not happened to me the last 1 1/2
years. So you can understand that I was a bit disappointed.
BUT what's bothering me most is that I still don't know if the car
is competitive
But I am not somebody who gives up so fast. Next race I will be
competitive. (I think).
Second Race First Win.............
Setup for this race:
Radio:
Ko-Propo EX1
Servo's: Hitec 945 for steering and Futaba
9303 for braking.
Battery pack: 4 cells 1000 mAh GP
Receiver: Futaba
Engine: CMB Rally LSi
Pipe: Picco Efra 9897
Filter: R&B
Fuel: 25 % Dynaglow from
Modeltechnics
Track conditions: Dry artificial grass (flat but some nasty bumps and jumps), temp. about 18 C and sunny.
Shocks at the front: Original springs, original pistons, 100 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 1.
Shocks at the rear: White TTR springs (softer), Pistons with 2x1,4mm holes, 300 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 2
Differentials:
Front: Just some grease ! (I did not know till I opened it)
Mid.:7000 CS
Rear: Just some grease
Camber: front -3 and rear -2
Toe: front neutral, rear number 3
So this is the setup that I raced with.
After the first race with the 9.5 I was very unhappy about the
car so I decided to make a lot of work out of it to make the car better. First I
drilled the holes from the rear shock pistons to 2x 1.4mm and filled them with
250 CS oil and changed the springs for the white ones from my TT ltd. (they are
softer) Then I tried the car on the track and noticed that the rear was much
more stable then before. after this run I tried all the holes on top and bottom
to see what's happening and found a setting with the most grip and less twisty
tail. (see below). After this I changed the oil for 300 CS and found out that
handling was even better.
Qualifying:
First run was not bad but I was still not satisfied. I changed the position of
the shocks to holes #2 at the rear and waited for my time to qualify. This setup
seemed to be the best for this track under this conditions. After 4 heats I was
TQ. Well that is something to start a race with.
A-Final: The main final (30 min.) was between Paco
and myself. Paco drives a Crono. It seemed very easy to stay in front of him but
you never know so I decided to push a little more trying to lap him 1 time. This
worked and I won the race.
Some problems:
After the 1/2 final my rear diff locked up. I tried to find a reason for this
and after I opened it I saw that the big gears where slightly damaged. Since I
have no spares I decided to rebuild and see how far it goes.
After the main I found out that my front diff. was locked. At home I rebuild the
front and rear diff and put one extra ring behind the big gears. Maybe they had
to much free play ?!.
Next race will be 5th of May in Den Helder. This is a "real" offroad track. We'll see....................
A more happy racer.
Iwan Latev
05-05-2002
Iwan wanted to start the race but differential problems from last race prevented
this. The rebuilding with extra shims did not worked. He had no spare parts to
repair so he could not race the car.
He blocked the rear differential but this made the car not driveable. We have to
wait for the replacement parts from Tecro Tec before we can go further with
testing.
Paco Raap.
2 HOURS Endurance Race Kessel
26-05-2002
Setup for this race:
Radio: Ko-Propo
EX1
Servo's: Hitec 945 for
steering and Futaba 9303 for gas/braking.
Battery pack: 4 GP cells
1000 mAh
Receiver: Futaba
Engine: CMB Rally LSi (thanks
Paco)
Clutch bell: 13 tooth
original Hong-Nor.
Pipe: Original Hong-Nor
Filter: R&B
Fuel: 16 % Dynaglow
from Modeltechnics
Tires: Turbo Rats
Track conditions: Dry and dusty, sand and 10% grass, temp. about 17 C and windy.
Shocks at the front: Original springs, original pistons, 100 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 1.
Shocks at the rear: White TTR springs (softer), Pistons with 2x1,4mm holes, 300 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 2
Upper arm at the rear: Outside position 5, Inside position 4.
note: positions are counted left to right and top to bottom.
Differentials:
Front: 3000 CS
Mid.:7000 CS
Rear: Just some grease
Camber: front -2 and rear -2
Toe: front neutral, rear part number
3.
I Started and ended the race with this setup.
Before the race the spareparts from Tecrotec arrived so
finally I could repair the diff's and steering knuckle.
When rebuilding the rear diff I found out that it was necessary
to have 3 of the little washers behind each one of the small
bevel gears. The diff is running smooth and survived one hour of
hardcore racing. Also I put some plastic threadlock on the 4
screws to prevent them from coming loose.
For a 2 hours endurance race we drove to Kessel in Limburg.
During this 2.5 hours drive things like, will the car last for 2
hours, went true my mind. The last race it didn't even hold for 5
minutes.
Arriving at the track conditions looked good. The layout was nice.
Almost all sand, only a bit small on some places. Just 2 jumps on
the 2nd strait. After a last check of the car I tried to make
some laps. I was surprised about the good handling of the car on
this kind of surface. I expected less steering and grip but there
was so much of both that driving was real fun !.
First run on a new track I always use to fine tune the engine but
the CMB ran so good that there was nothing to tune.
Plenty of power out of the corners and a good top speed. It was
the first time that I tried the original pipe during a race (we
have one club member who is always looking for EFRA numbers which is not on this pipe). The sound and performance where
Ok. The
turbo rats also worked fine so I decided to start the race with
this setup. When we drive a 2 hour race we do this with 2 cars
and 2 drivers so each driver will do 1 hour approximately. During changes
there is not much time to do anything on the car besides cleaning
it and checking it for defects and changing air filters. When
checking the car a few times I couldn't find anything wrong.
Something that needs to be said is that this car has excellent
brakes (if you find the right bias off course). After one hour of
racing my team was on first place but at the end we finished as
second. Not bad I think ?. During the race the handling of the
car was good. After more than one hour the track gets worse and off course you'll see this in lap times. Probably the other team
(Germany)
knows better how to deal with bumpy tracks but anyway we where
happy with second place. So what to do to get first place next
time ?. Do more dirt training ?. For sure!.
Any problems ?
-Not really. After I got home and took the car apart and the only
thing I found was that the 2 clutch bearings were running dry and
making noise. The diff's, shocks and drive train were all Ok with
no signs of wear.
-The tail is still a bit nervous. Working on that one.(some new
parts are coming soon)
Hot from the press:
At the address of Paco Raap a big box with presents from Hong-Nor
was delivered !
Lots of option and tuning parts has arrived from the factory (many
thanks for this)
(thorsen diffs, springs, carbon parts and much, much more)
Paco will put some photo's on the site soon and I will put
them on the car and tell you what the advantage is (if there is)
and also if there is a change in weight.
So keep watching this site when we will test and comment all
these goodies.
 |
Interim teamchief Henk 'Flavio' Sieben |
 |
All drivers and mechanics. |
Racing with (some) options
Setup for this race:
Radio: Ko-Propo
EX1
Servo's: Hitec 945 for
steering and Futaba 9303 for gas/braking.
Battery pack: 4 GP cells
1000 mAh
Receiver: Futaba
Engine: Picco G1-BV
Clutch bell: 14 tooth Mugen.
Pipe: R&B 069
Filter: R&B
Fuel: 16 % Dynaglow
from Modeltechnics
Tires: slickes and original
HN tires
Track conditions: Dry 100 % artificial grass, temp. about 19 C.
Shocks at the front: Original springs, original pistons, 100 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 1.
Shocks at the rear: Orange HN springs, Pistons with 1x1,6mm hole, 250 CS oil, position top 2, bottom 1
Upper arm at the rear: Outside position 5, Inside position 5.
note: see setup sheet
Differentials:
Front: Torsen
Center:Torsen
Rear: Standard diff with just some grease
Camber: front -2 and rear -2
Toe: front neutral, rear part number
3.
Hello again.
This time we were going to race at our local (my favorite) track for the 3rd race of the Brother Cup 2002. I have been very busy the last day's with the new option parts that have arrived. I picked them up at villa-Paco and started to work on the car the next day. The first things to put on where the graphite parts. I know there are some guy's who think this car is to heavy. (my opinion too). I replaced the front and rear shock stay, the front plate, the radio plate, the brake plate and some of the plastic mounting poles. The weight advantage of changing these parts is 30 grams (only). I also replaced the center and front diff. for torsen types. The weight of the new diff's is the same as the original ones. When I wanted to replace the center diff stay for the CNC type I encountered some problems. Every time I tightened the screws on top, the diff was not running smooth anymore. After some investigation I found out that the holes for the bearings in the CNC machined parts were not the right size. So every time I tightened the screws I squeezed the bearings of the diff. This is not right and I will ask the factory what to do about this.
When I installed the torsen diff's I applied some oil on the
gears that comes with the differential itself. (Unfortunenatly
Hong Nor does not supply any info about set up or maintenance these expensive
units) The diff's are running smooth and look very good on the
inside and outside.
During the qualifying sessions I found out that there was less
wheelspin when cornering out under power. This was a good thing.
Even better was the fact that I could run 10 minutes on one tank
of fuel ! Because the torsen diff's give the car better traction
there is less wheelspin, what means better acceleration and less
fuel consumption. (it's also in the throttle finger of course). Before the
main final I found out that the original HN tires where the best
for this track today so I saved them by using slicks during the
1/2 final. This seemed to work out the right way but after 10
minutes of racing my rear right tire came of and the foam filling
came out.
After driving 5 minutes on 3 1/2 wheels I came into the pits for
a quick wheel change. My 2 mechanics did the job in about 1 1/2
minute (thanks Petie and Flavio) and I went back on the track.
Again Mr. Murphy came along and somebody (the guy who won the race)
hit me from the side and I lost my tuned pipe. Bad luck again.
There was a good chance to win today because 4 other drivers
seemed to have mechanical problems ! anyway more luck next time.
Some tips:
* Tail is better with new
pistons. ( 1 hole 1.6mm) You just have to try it. Also try some
lighter oil but stick to position 1 at the bottom.
* This gives a slight longer stroke for the piston.
* Glue the plastic bearings for the
brake with a little thin type CA to the Aluminum or graphite
plate.
* This will give you less free play in the brakes.
* Give your front and rear lower and
upper arms some free play. They have to move as smooth as
possible. Grind of a 1/2 mm
* with some sandpaper. At the upper front arm be sure to do it at
the side marked with the red line otherwise it's turning
* against the front stay.
* If you use a torsen centerdiff you may
want to change your clutch bell to a 14 tooth one. The main gear
that comes with the torsen
* is 50 tooth and if you stick with the 13 you may over rev. your
engine on longer track's
Any problems ?
First was a loosen cap joint of the front diff (not enough threadlock ?) Second was the rear tire that came of the wheel. (worn
out rubber on the sides).
Good things are the diff's. The car runs smoother than ever
before. Also no problems with the standard rear diff.
The shocks start to leak a bit oil from the bottom. The plastic bushings starting to worn out. I have to order some parts to fix.
What to do next:
Next I will install the rear CVD's, The ball bearings for the
steering system and servo saver, Adjustable caster set and some
other small parts.
This picture shows the car as it is now.
Keep on racing !
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Radio:
Ko-Propo EX1
Servo's: Hitec 945 for steering and Futaba
9303 for gas/braking.
Battery pack: 4 GP cells 1000 mAh
Receiver: Futaba
Engine: Picco G1-BV
Clutch bell: 14 tooth Mugen.
Pipe: R&B 069
Filter: R&B
Fuel: 16 % Dynaglow from
Modeltechnics
Tires: Medial Pro sportline Diamond 2
Track conditions: Wet 100 % artificial grass, temp. about 8 C.
Differentials:
Front: Torsen
Center:Torsen
Rear: Standard diff with just some grease
Hello again,
Here is a new update for the 9.5. It's October now and we see
that the temperatures are going down and water is staying longer on the track
during a race day.
First of all something about the CNC center diff stay. After installing these
parts bearings were not running smooth. I wrote an e-mail to the Hong Nor
factory and after a few days I received an e-mail back. According to this e-mail
the problem could be solved by changing the order of screwing your diff stay.
They say that you should first tighten the top screws and at last the bottom
screws. Try it ! (it did not work with me). If there are some people with the
same problems please let me know. Before the race I installed the rear CVD's and
the ball bearings for steering. If the car is on it's stand and I turn the
wheels it feels smoother than before.
Also I cleaned the thorsen diffs with some engine cleaner and applied new oil.
My opinion is that you do this every 2 races or so.
About the last race there is not so much to say about the car because I broke
the upper front arm during qualifying and I had no spares left.
After this happened I did something that is not allowed during a race but anyway
I did. I picked up my old TTR EB4 ltd. and started to rebuild the electronics
and picco that came of the 9.5 Well you owners of a 9.5 you don't want to know
what happened next.........................
If, and only if that throttle servo didn't broke down, I think a place on the podium was possible........................
Keep on racing ! ( with whatever car fits you )
|
Iwan Latev |
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