Getting the Perfect Rear End.

Have you ever gotten home from the store with “that” pair of jeans? The pair when you turn around and look in the mirror you just know you’ve found your favorite pair? The pair that will find you love; maybe heartache; or even faster lap times?

When I brought home my B5M I knew when I looked in the mirror I had some work to do. Have the holidays been too kind to it? Maybe the elliptical broke? Too many Boooshkins? With the help of Speedy’s Racing Parts, MIP, and Avid I am going to slim down and fit into that perfect pair of 32/34 super skinny jeans; that is until they reach my calves.

Stock racing is booming right now. The largest class where I race is Stock Buggy. People are clamoring for the latest and greatest of the must have products to shave off that tenth of a second. Companies are starting to make specific components that are designed for two things, rotating weight reduction and smoothness.

Lets take a look at each company’s products for what they are, what they are designed to do, and how much weight you lose.

Speedy’s Racing Parts,

Slipper Eliminator- This piece eliminates the slipper clutch. It becomes a direct drive system much like a sprint car. These have been used in oval racing for a while and are now catching on in off-road. At three grams a total of fourteen is lost over the stock VTS system. It’s simplicity is only matched by the raw performance it delivers. You are never left waiting for Ferris Bueller to answer if he is there, or my R1 Wurks motor.

Cut Gears- Ray shaves off the outer edge of the idler gears and then narrows the main diff gear to not only reduce weight but friction. At four grams these gears shed two additional grams. Efficiency at it’s finest. My Venom battery will hold onto the charge longer.

MIP,

Aluminum Top Shaft- A little self explanatory but the top shaft in the kit is steel, and weighs 13 grams with the additional spacer. By my scale MIP has brought that down to four and added some beauty that unfortunately gets covered up by the gearbox. Heavy rotation mass is about as fun as getting up at 4am for work; I know.

Bi-Metal Pucks System- Explaining this is a little more difficult because of the amount of pieces involved. The kit CVD’s are basic in design and work very good; the Pucks system simply works gooder, way more gooder. By using aluminum for the diff outdrives as well as the dog bones a total of eighteen grams is wiped right off the back end. More than one wear area can be rebuilt and individual pieces bought, so while maintenance could be higher, to me it is worth it. Instead of needing entire dog bones you can just buy some little orange pucks. The outdrives are sold individually as well as every single piece of the entire assembly. They just might be as seductive as Mrs. Robinson.

Avid,

Aura Gearbox Bearing Kit- These very specific bearings are made to do one thing. Be as smooth as Marvin Gaye on the microphone. With ceramic balls, oil and not grease, and seals only where absolutely needed it is easy to feel just how wondrous they are once everything is put together. My gears spin very smooth and free with just a flick of my fingers. Another bonus? One gram of weight is lost due to the seals not being used.

So, what are the numbers? Forty-four grams of rotating weight is gone. When adding up the total weight of the pieces replaced the answer is 97, I did not weigh the entire ball diff, so 44 is just slightly less than half.

Some may question why do this? Will I feel the difference? Will it make a difference? You will feel and see a difference. Each piece of this puzzle is good enough on it’s own but when combined the mirror begins to show you a better reflection. Faster lap times are the goal and that will happen for a couple of different reasons. Yes, the rotating weight is gone. But with that efficiency is up so my R1 keeps blasting the Venom battery which in turn allows my Pro-Lines to feast on dirt.

What is the final weight you ask? With a shorty servo, Justock speedo, my Venom shorty, and just about brand new Electrons all around it sits at 1514.