- Kyosho RB6 - Common Questions -


by Brandon Collins


Common Questions about the RB6:
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Q: How does the RB6 compare to the RB5? What are the advantages and disadvantages between the two cars?
A: The RB6 is as different from the RB5 as any other two buggies on the market. There really isn't any driving similarity between the two. In my opinion, the RB6 is all the best things about the RB5, but also has everything the RB5 didn't, and with abundance.

The RB5 is a very easy car to drive, and generates a lot of rear traction. Because of the rear traction, the car tends to be very easy to drive. The issue with the buggy, is it becomes a bit difficult to get the buggy to steer aggressively, and therefor tends to be a slightly slower buggy in the right hands, compared to the B4 for example.

The RB6 is a FAR more aggressive car, due to changes in weight shift, chassis material, and geometry. The traction of the car has shifted to the front, making the car a bit more difficult to drive, but making it a much faster feeling car, giving it the ability to turn inside of even the mighty B4.

Here is my take on the differences, and there aren't many: (these are of course my opinions only)

RB6 Pros:
Fantastic Steering
Jumps and Lands better than any other buggy
Down the middle electronics (better balanced)
Better steering rack
More stable due to increased wheel base

RB6 Cons:
Expensive
Could be a bit hard to drive for newer drivers
early kits had a couple quality control issues (now all resolved)

RB5 Pros:
Very easy to drive
Forgiving
Vast amounts of tried and true setups available
Better on low traction tracks

RB5 Cons:
Doesn't steer as well
Doesn't jump or land nearly as well
Less stable


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Q: What parts are shared with the RB5?
A: A lot of the little things are shared, but not much of the big stuff. Here is a list of things that are shared. It may be incomplete. PM me if anything should be added


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Q: What are the rear suspension hangers, and do I purchase the wide, or narrow track width hangers?
A: The rear suspension hangers are what mount the rear suspension arms of the car, to the chassis. There is one hanger in front of the rear arms, and one behind. The one in front is marked as a RF (rear front), and the one behind the arm is marked RR (rear rear). There are two different pairs of hangers you can use, and you can either use the plastic versions that come with the car with the metal bushings, or aftermarket aluminum versions with the plastic bushings. On the RB5, they were a weak spot on the car. The plastic ones that come with the RB6 appear to be stronger. So while aluminum versions are not necessary, they are certainly an advisable upgrade if your wallet allows. Always run the plastic or derlin bushings when running the aluminum suspension hangers.

Wide Hangers: The wide hangers provide a wider rear track width. A wider rear track width does two things to the rear of the car: a) Provides a bit more stability over small bumps, and b) raises the roll center in the rear of the car - A higher roll center provides more roll resistance - More roll resistance means the rear of the car will roll less in the corners - Less roll means less traction gain throughout the corner. (i.e. use the wide hangers for more steering)

Narrow Hangers: The narrow hangers provide a more narrow rear track width. A narrow rear track width does two things to the rear of the car: a) Provides a bit less stability over small bumps, and b) lowers the roll center in the rear of the car - A lower roll center provides less roll resistance - Less roll resistance means the rear of the car will roll more in the corners - more roll means more traction gain throughout the corner. (i.e. use the narrow hangers for more rear traction in corners)

Now, you're going to ask, which to run? Well, it is all driver preference. When I ran the RB5, I found the car needed more stability and a LOT more rotation, so I ran the wide hangers. But the RB6 is an entirely different animal. The car is super stable, and is super aggressive right out of the box. I personally run the narrow hangers to help lock the rear end in, in the corners. My RB6 does NOT need more steering. But, your mileage may vary, and most setups are a constant work-in-progress. It might be a good idea to run the plastic hangers first to figure out which you prefer, before you shell out a lot of money for the aluminum version.

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Q: What spare parts should I keep on hand? What commonly breaks on this car?
A: This car is similar to all buggies in what can typically break if the car takes a hit it's not designed to take. Things that can typically break on any buggy are the front and rear arms (arms can be run on either side of the car, there isn't a L, and a R arm), caster blocks, and steering blocks. So far, the car appears to be superbly durable in all regards. I have been running the car since week 1 and have yet to break a single part, except for a ballcup. (the kit comes with extras)

With that being said, there were two parts on the car that seem to break before they probably should, and that is the center steering rack, and the rear upper bulkhead. This was an issue on the first couple rounds of production. Kyosho has since beefed up both the steering rack and the rear upper bulkhead in a running mold change. If you have an earlier car and are going to replace or buy a spare for the steering rack, you might as well grab a nice aluminum rack from Exotek. To help keep your rear upper bulkhead from breaking, (it breaks at the ballstud shelf), it helps to run the middle hole, and make sure to use the extra 3mm set screws supplied in the kit to fill the unused holes. This helps solidify the ballstud shelf. Exotek also makes an aluminum version of the rear upper bulkhead that certainly won't break, that weighs exactly the same as the factory plastic piece does.

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Q:Where is a good place to buy spare parts for this car?
A:The first place to get parts should always be your local hobby shop. But if that's not possible or practical for you, a lot of the main online retailers sell parts for this car. Below is my personal recommendation on where to go based on price and customer service:

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Q:What do you recommend for gearing on this car?
A:This car uses an internal gear ratio of 1:2.6, so this car would be geared basically the same as a RB5 or B4. Gearing also greatly depends on what motor you are running, how much end bell timing you are running, size and nature of the track you are racing on, and how heavy your car is. So your answer will vary greatly based on your unique situation. But in GENERAL, I would recommend the following for blinky mode / zero timing advance racing. Remember, this is just a guideline, it is always best to temp your motor at 2, 4,6, and 8 minutes to make sure you aren't overheating your motor before you toss your car into a race with your new gearing.

17.5 / 20-30 degrees of end bell timing
Spur - 69
Pinion -30-32

17.5 / 0 -20 degrees of end bell timing
Spur - 69
Pinion - 33-34

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Q:What are some of the common upgrades/bling for this car? I want it to look cool!
A:The RB6 seems to be getting more love than the RB5 ever did with aftermarket companies making goodies for the car. Here is a list of some of them!


For more, have a look to this post on RC Tech

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