HyperDrivin' an Ultima box

[GoMachV]

Threw this on an Ultima box to check it out. I'm lovin it. I'll build a AgiJammer setup for the 40t pulley and leave this trans for a dirt oval build one day.

[Mr. ED]

I ran this a couple years ago at a vintage race. Lost some teeth on the belt: no more than 2 minutes in my first practise rounds

[Grunger73]

Certainly looks very cool. What was this upgrade advertised as improving over the stock setup?

[tamiyadan]

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[DennisM]

The Kyosho drivers at that time, were so mean they did´nt care about no reverse rotation motors, they just drove the entire track backwards blindfolded

[GoMachV]

Dan, this is the one conversion that didn't require a reverse rotation motor cause you take out the cluster gear
I'm in full agreement about the durability tho. With new technology we could make a stronger one...but why bother

[Grunger73]

So it's for bling factor then, at least for 1/10 scale. When this mod was released , what did the manufacturer say it was supposed to improve over a stock setup? There must have been some hype behind the product.

[GoMachV]

Stock Ultima box wasn't the most efficient. By removing the cluster gear and going belt it would have been very quiet and efficient. Just wouldn't last long. The gearing choices suggest onroad and dirt oval primarily.

[tamiyadan]

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[Grunger73]

Nice. A Stealth Ultima, the Ultima 10. That reminds me, I need to find a stealth transmission for my RC10 re release. You're absolutely right about the snake oil. I remember blowing wads of cash on useless upgrades back in the 80's. I guess I had never seen this mod because none of my friends raced Ultimas. The only car I didn't spend a fortune on upgrading was my Jrx2.

[losiXXXman]

The only car I didn't spend a fortune on upgrading was my Jrx2.

Exactly. Thats why when I went to a second car from my raider, I went straight to a JrxT - graphite, bearings, 48P all in the box. At the time an RC10 with graphite and bearings was a lot more. But I digress…

I have been wanting to do one of those Hyperdrive kits ever since i read the article RCCA wrote when they reviewed it for the RC10. Maybe not so much now Mach5 It sure does look cool, probably sounds cool too. AND, you wouldn't have to source those cluster gears which are becoming difficult to find...

[Grunger73]

I really like the look of that Hyperdrive mod though. Has a sort of high end industrial look to it, if that makes any sense . I could definitely live with that on one of my shelf queens. Almost reminds me of a belt drive vinyl turntable . Really cool. Thanks for the pics.

[tamiyadan]

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[fredswain]

Nice. A Stealth Ultima, the Ultima 10. That reminds me, I need to find a stealth transmission for my RC10 re release. You're absolutely right about the snake oil. I remember blowing wads of cash on useless upgrades back in the 80's. I guess I had never seen this mod because none of my friends raced Ultimas. The only car I didn't spend a fortune on upgrading was my Jrx2.

It may draw gasps from some people but once the JRX came out, I was a Losi person and have been over Associated ever since. I spent lots of money on aftermarket parts for the RC10 trying to make it do what I wanted and along comes the JRX and it just worked. Then they kept improving it. Back then I thought the aftermarket was a necessity to good performance, and in some ways it was, but most of the products were crap. It was hard finding what was good and what wasn't without wasting lots of money in the process.

I designed industrial belt and chain drives for oil drilling applications for almost 5 years. The problem with the hyperdrive and most belts on rc cars in general is their size. They are undersized for the power levels. Size them properly with a wider belt and they are quite strong and reliable. The parasitic drag is always going to be higher with a belt than a gear. Even a gear system that changes to a right angle such as modern shaft drive 4wd cars. A proper chain drive, in spite of it's other shortcomings, has less power loss than a belt drive. There is a wonderful shock isolation characteristic of a belt drive that makes them very smooth but unfortunately since they require some form of tension they add a side load to the shafts that they are attached to. It's all about tradeoffs and compromise.

[bdrmbully]

Ah the good ole hyper drive. I had a track master belt drive in one of my older ultima.