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The popular trend in touring car design is to make it a shaft-driven vehicle. It's not a new concept: Tamiya has been doing it for years. It's just that more and more companies are realizing the advantages of a shaft-type drive system. Real cars use them, so why not RC cars? Alex Racing's Barracuda R2 has been out for over a year but is fairly new to the States since it's just recently begun being imported. Recently, the Barracuda raced against some of the top manufacturers, finishing second at the 2003 Reedy Race of Champions in the 19-turn class and taking home a first-place finish at the KO PROPO Grand Prix. Is this car an undiscovered gem or just a one-hit wonder?
Features
Chassis - The Barracuda's upper and lower chassis decks are made from 2mm thick basket-woven standard grade carbon fiber. The upper deck spans the length of the chassis from the rear bulkhead to the front bulkhead. The lower deck holds the battery on the right and the motor on the left rear. The electronics and servo are at the front left-hand side of the car. With all the electrics packed into the chassis, there is just enough room for the drive shaft to run down the center. To hold down the cells, you have a choice between using strapping tape or the molded battery box. I opted for the battery box. Initially, the molded battery box was made for holding stick packs and smaller side-by-side packs, but by removing the inner tabs, the longer 3300 cells fit just fine. Everything on the chassis sits nice and low for a low center of gravity.
Suspension - To help handle the turns, four-wheel independent C-hub suspension with coil-over, oil-filled shocks is used on all four corners. The lower molded plastic arms wrap around the bulkheads, placing the pivot point at the center of the chassis. What is interesting is that Alex Racing doesn't use hinge pins on the inner pivot points; instead, pivot balls are used. This method allows for a wide range of movement and virtually no binding. Both front and rear arms are molded with a pivot ball on the inner portion of the arms just in case you decide to use the optional sway bar (not included in the kit). Also molded into the arms are droop screw holes (droop screws are not included) and multiple shock mounting positions.
The shock bodies are threaded and come with aluminum collars and O-ring inserts for easy tuning. The shocks are also equipped with aluminum seal cartridges that you assemble and thread to the bottom of the shock bodies. Plastic shock caps with a bleed screw allow for easy and nearly flawless filling of the shocks. Since the shocks have the seal cartridge on the bottom and plastic cap on the top, they can be built either bottom-load- or top-load-style. Keeping things smooth and reliable is a set of titanium nitride shock shafts. To mount the shocks and further tunability, multiple upper shock mounting positions are available. Both the front and rear shock towers are made from the same 2mm thick carbon fiber as the chassis.
Drive Train - The heart of the Barracuda is the fact that it is a shaft-driven car. This shaft runs down the middle of the chassis and is made of lightweight graphite. On both ends of the drive shaft are flat spots. These flat spots give the setscrews that hold the keyed aluminum ends a place to grab. On the front, the keyed aluminum end locks into the input beveled gear in the front gearbox. The power is then transferred through the front one-way and universals, down to the tires. On the rear end of the graphite shaft is the aluminum spur gear/input hub. This locks into the rear input beveled gear in the rear gearbox. In the rear, there is a lightweight ball differential with machined Delrin outdrives. From there, the power is transferred through the universals and then to the rear tires. On both the front one-way and rear differential outdrives, the slots in which the universals lock aren't cut all the way to the edge. Instead, there is a little bit of material left to help hold in the bone if something were to break loose. Some other manufactures accomplish the same thing by supplying locking rings with the kit. Alex Racing just designed the ring to be machined into the outdrive. There are no rings here that can pop off. Protecting the front and rear gearboxes from dust and debris are clear plastic gear covers.
Steering - The steering is a ball-bearing-supported, dual-bellcrank system. Incorporated into the steering is a spring-loaded adjustable servo saver. The two bellcranks are connected via an adjustable Ackerman link. Both left and right bellcranks have optional mounting positions for the turnbuckles for different steering characteristics. The steering servo mounts perpendicular to the chassis with the control link stretching over the drive shaft.
Body, Tires, and Wheels - Since this is a full-blown racer's kit, there are no added frills. In other words, the tire, wheel and body choices are up to you and your local track conditions. However, here is what I used at our local track: I installed Team Orion 24 mm HB racing tires 27B type (part #75001) with blue (medium--part #71002) inserts. These tires were mounted to Orion's extra-hard 24mm, white dished rims. Aerodynamics were handled by Yokomo's new Dodge Stratus, with paint laid down by me, David Palacios.
Instructions - The instructions that came with this kit weren't the easiest to follow. If you are new to the hobby, you will most likely have a problem building the kit. First off, the instructions are completely in Japanese with very few phrases poorly translated to English. I would highly suggest studying the instructions, looking at every picture, and examining them before building any part of this kit. Once you have studied them, study them again. Then only use them as a guide when going from step to step. There are a few inconsistencies throughout the instruction booklet. However, to make things even easier, the kit includes a supplemental sheet written in English.
Testing
What better place to test the Barracuda than Revelation Raceway. This fairly large on-road track with a variety of hairpin and sweeping turns would definitely put this TC through the paces. Since it is a large track, a stock motor wouldn't be enough, so I installed EPIC's new four-magnet 19-turn motor and Trinity 3300 NiMH Vis Extra battery pack. After setting up the car with the settings provided by Steve at Speedtech RC, I was ready to hit the asphalt.
Acceleration - With a freshly charged battery pack, I set the Barracuda on the short straight in front of the driver's stand for some quick acceleration tests. Yanking the throttle sent the car into blazing speed. This car is quick! There isn't one bit of lag between a dead stop to full speed. It was easy to bring the rear of the car around, pin the throttle, and drift the car around turns--all under perfect control.
Rating: 10
Top Speed - With the combination of the drive system and front one-way, there is less resistance, allowing higher top speeds. During testing, Jason brought out the Xray T1R Raycer so we could put down a few laps. During these laps, both cars were equipped with Peak Performance 2400 NiCad battery packs and 19-turn motors. Out of the turns and down the straightaway, the Barracuda R2 was a bit faster. With a top speed of 26.9 MPH, going down the straightaway at that speed could mean the difference of a second every lap.
Rating: 9
Braking - Like with any car equipped with a one-way, balance is very important. If the chassis is tweaked or shocks are not equal, the car will want to bring the rear end around under braking. Luckily, the Barracuda is a pretty well balanced car to begin with. Going from full speed to full brake, the Barracuda kept its sights straight. If needed, I was able to swing the rear around with a simple flick of the wheel. To keep the car under control, I just needed to either let off the brakes or nail the throttle, and the car would straighten out. However, the car tended to swing around more to the left. I'm sure if I messed with the weights in the car a little more, I could get it going evenly.
Rating: 8
Low-Speed Handling - I was totally amazed at how well this car handled. On the few turns that required low-speed turning, the Barracuda tightly hugged the corners. I was able to get within inches of the boards without worrying about clipping them. It was smooth, consistent, and tight. There is no doubt in my mind that this car would do well on a tighter track.
Rating: 9
High-Speed Handling - Going into a turn and coming out, the Barracuda wanted to push a bit. It wasn't too bad, but it could have been a little better. To remedy the problem I moved the front shocks out one hole. This did help and made it easier to drive the Barracuda faster through the turns. I like to drive my cars aggressively, and Alex Racing's Barracuda R2 allowed me to do just that. That's not to say only aggressive drivers can drive this car. It is a very versatile car and can be driven or set up to suit anyone's driving style.
Rating: 8.5
Tuning - As mentioned before, the Barracuda is a very versatile car. There are plenty of setup options available to fit your particular driving style. As far as hop-ups, there isn't much else that is needed. This kit comes packed with high-quality parts and is race ready. For technical support, the guys at Speedtech RC are willing to help out, or you can visit Alex Racing's Web site for building and setup tips at www.alexracingusa.com. I highly suggest visiting the web site before building the kit. This will ensure fewer problems down the line.
Rating: 9
Damage - There wasn't any major damage, just a chipped spur gear. Apparently, this is a problem with this car. The plastic on the spur gear is brittle and doesn't wear well. Instead, the teeth simply chip off, causing the rest of the gear to become stripped. While talking to the guys at Speedtech RC, they suggested replacing the chipped gear with a Robinson Racing machined spur gear. To change the spur gear, you'll have to remove the top deck, rear shock tower, rear differential housing, and case to get the center shaft out. It's not a whole lot of work but more than some other cars on the market. Other than that, the Barracuda held up very well.
Rating: 8
Conclusion
Alex Racing's Barracuda R2 is a fairly new car to the U.S. touring car scene. However, I don't think this will be the last time we will hear about the car. It definitely shows potential for being a winner. It's an awesome handling car with plenty of setup options to suit anyone's driving style. The instructions could use a little work, but with the tech support from Speedtech RC, building the kit shouldn't be a problem.
Overall, the Barracuda is a racer's car. Awesome handling, quick acceleration, quality parts, low profile, long suspension, and a light weight are all part of the package. Keep your eye on the Barracuda R2, because you just may see it in the winner's circle. |
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