I recently traded for a nearly fully hopped up awd and i thought i would share my thoughts.
3Racing Alu Front Bulkhead For Mini-Z AWD
Pros:
The matt silver finish is well, beautiful against the flat blue finish.
The differential adjustment hole in the cover is a nice idea however actually being able to see the tiny hole whith which you have to hit with the allen wrench like tool is nearly impossibe due to poor sight and light. drilling a hole in the stock platic cover was much easier solution.
Fitment to the chassis was spot on. With the Atomic cover, I had to trim some plastic to get the front screw covers on the chassis as the tolerance was simply too tight.
Cons:
The anodized finish is very easy to scratch.
I'm not sold on the need for the ball diff cover plate even though it looks great.
Due to manufacturing process, the differential area has small radii corners in the aluminum. On the back side over the differential, I noticed nicks in the aluminum indicating the differential was actually hitting the aluminum rounded corner. I spent about 5 minutes with a metal file to ensure there is propoer clearance for the differential. Regardless of manufacturer, I should not have to do this.
3Racing Alu Rear Bulkhead For Mini-Z AWD
Pros:
Again, I love the matt silver finish and texture on the differential cover plate.
Fitment to chassis was spot on.
Cons:
I'm not sold on the need for the differential cover.
The differential adjustment hole is actually in the WRONG place! The differential adjustment hole in the cover is a nice idea however actually being able to see the tiny hole whith which you have to hit with the allen wrench like tool is nearly impossibe due to poor sight and light. drilling a hole in the stock platic cover was much easier solution.
The finish is easily scrapped off by just about anything.
Not sure it comes this way but the cover plate should have had button head machine screws and not recessed machine screws. I'm also missing 2 screws but again, I'm not sure it comes that way.
3Racing Alu Motor Heatsink for Mini-Z AWD
Pros:
Cons:
3Racing Alu Knuckle 0 Degree for Mini-Z AWD
Pros:
It does it's job.
Cons:
I feel alot of play in this, I am not certain i can blame the knuckle though as it still have bushings and it could be the drive shafts?
There are friction marks on the top shaft. Again, I could not tell if this is the fault of the knuckle or the top cover plate? There is definately some friction but not enough to cause it to stick which is what i've experienced with all the plastic chassis parts.
3Racing Alu Motor Mount With Heatsink (3 Sets) for Mini-Z AWD
[from ToyEast]
Pros:
These do the job they were intended for, absorbing heat from the motor.
Cons:
They slightly fail in function as the rectangular peices all have a loose fit on the end of any endbell. I do not knwo if this causes and retoational movement as the odd shaped peice for the back of the motor at the pinion fits snuggly. I could understand if the intent was to build in some tolerance for acceptance of more motor choices but who knows why it is the way it is.
Atomic AWD High Precision Motor Gear Set
[See image for motor heatsink above]
Pros:
The color changes make it easier to tell them apart unlike the GPM counterparts which come all in blue. I guess you could order them individually in other colors but Atomic does this by default.
Fitment to the motor is nice, the gear width is slightly larger than the adjacent gear which I guess is a good thing if that gear tends to move back and forth a fraction on the center drive shaft, it does on this car.
Pinions never slide off due to heat expansion anymore. I have to wonder if the 'balanced' PN Racing design is more efficient?
Cons:
The grub screw stuck out a tad father on the 19 pinion which required me to shave plastic off the chassis at this point. It was a very quick fix with an Xacto knife.
3Racing Front Toe In/Out Linkage 1 Deg For Mini-Z AWD(LB)
[See image for motor heatsink above]
Pros:
Looks nice and fits nice.
Cons:
I am not sold on the need for an aluminum tie rod. It seems like adding uneccessary weight.
3Racing Rear Toe In/Out Linkage 0 Degree For Mini-Z AWD (BU)
[See image for motor heatsink above]
Pros:
Looks nice and fits nice.
Cons:
I am not sold on the need for an aluminum tie rod. It seems like adding uneccessary weight.
Potential for fitment issues with 3Racing Rear Alum Bottom Plate.
3Racing Wheel Lock Nuts
Pros:
They work.
Cons:
The large back flange amkes them stand out much more than any other set I've had.
The finish is very easily scratched so they do nto remain nice looking for long.
3Racing Alu Differential Outer Joint
[No Image]
Pros:
They replace an often broken stock part.
Cons:
When cleaning one of the differentials, I removed these and the tiny pin actually fell out. That would have been very bad had I not noticed it.
Atomic/EnjoyRC AWD D1 Rim Light Set
[See Image for Lock Nuts Above]
Pros:
Cool looking.
Cons:
Add weight to wheels.
Require shaving material off to ensure they spin as required.
They are delicate, I've ruined 2 just trying to shave material off around the perimeter.
I ahd to Shoegoo them int to keep them attached to the wheel on my AWD.
TopCad Rear Alu/Carbon Fiber Rear Bottom Plate and Differential Pod for Mini-Z AWD
[See Image for Rear Top Plate Above]
Pros:
I assume these weight less than an aluminum piece.
The fitment to the chassis is spot on. Also fits perfectly to the differnetial pod.
Cons:
The differential openings do not align with the differential cover plate above.
The aluminum differntial pod had metal flanges at the bottom where the rear tie rod sits. This prevented any tie rod from mounting flush on the aluminum differential pod. I spent about 10 minutes with a metal file grinding off the flanges so that the aluminum tie rod would actually fit as designed.
