Ellis Stafford is one of the most experienced off road racers in Europe and the UK today, His racing career covers in excess of 15 years, during which time he has Competed at all levels from Club to World Championships.
During this career he has won the European offroad championship as well as the British National offroad championships, British Junior Championships along with 23 individual British National Championship rounds and countless regional meetings and club meetings.

Building Tips.

When building the gearbox don't fully tighten the fixing screws; instead
just back them off a little and this will help make the gearbox spin more freely.
Also put a little of the White thrust race grease on the gears this will also reduce wear and increase efficiency.

With the rear kick up shims cut one side out of the screw hole so you don't have to take the screw fully out to change them instead you can just slide them in and out, this will make adjustments to the rear a lot easier.

Put some oil on the shock cartridge o-rings before inserting the shock shaft, and also only insert the shaft from the piston end. This will help to stop any damage being done to the seals.
After fitting the shock cap and seals to the shock shaft, measure the length of each shock shaft with the ball joint on and then adjust them so that both the front shafts and the rear shafts are the same length as each other before you finally assemble the shocks.
To help free up the bearings try soaking them in motor cleaner and spinning them on a shaft to remove excess grease, that is used in the manufacturing. Then re-oil them with some light bearing oil.

Another tip to make the bearings run even freer you can remove the inside (the non-visible when fitted in the car) shield. Make sure you leave the shield on the side that is exposed, it helps keep dirt out and increases
the life of the bearings.

Although the build quality is very good it is always worth checking that no
shims are needed in any of the wishbones etc. to remove any sloop.
Another simple tip is to pre-tap the threads into the plastic carefully, this will help to make sure you do not snap a screw or strip the head.
Racing Tips.

Tuning Tips

The first thing to work out with any problem is whether it is the front or the rear of the car that is causing the problem, and then make changes to counter it. The important thing is to remember that any change will always have two reactions; one good and one bad, what you then have to do is to make a decision as to if the good reaction outweighs the bad reaction.
These are only hints as to things that you can try. And should try because If you don't try you won't know. Most of the top drivers learn things simply by trying them, don’t be afraid if it doesn’t work as you can always put it back to as it was.

Understeer.

1) Run a softer front spring.
2) Shorten front camber link on the front bulkhead.
3) Shorten front camber link on the caster block (not as big a difference as on the rear bulkhead).
4) Shorten rear camber link on the shock tower.
5) Put some weight in the front bulkhead, especially if the front appears to want to wheelie from the turn.
6) Lower the camber link on the bulkhead.
7) Run with more front tire.

Over steer.

1) Run a harder front spring.
2) lengthen front camber link on the front bulkhead.
3) lengthen front camber link on the caster block (not as big a difference as on the rear bulkhead).
4) lengthen rear camber link on the shock tower.
5) Raise the camber link on the bulkhead.
7) Run with less front tire.
8) Run more rear tyre.
9) Thicker front oil if it is only just oversteering.

Bad on the rough.

If unstable try:
1) Lengthen the wheelbase.

If the car is grounding out badly over the bumps try:
1) Harder springs.
2) Thicker oils.
3) Increase the pack i.e. go from an orange piston to a red piston (smaller piston holes = more pack). If this makes the car feel too stiff in roll, you can at the same time lower the weight of the oil, by 5 to 10 weight, this will still make the car stiffer initially but still have a soft feel once moving.
4) Raise the car slightly.

If the car is bouncing of the bumps or not riding them try:
1) Softer springs.
2) Lighter oils.
3) Decrease the pack i.e. go from an orange piston to a blue piston (bigger piston holes = less pack). If this makes the car feel too soft in roll, you can at the same time increase the weight of the oil, by 5 to 10 weight, this will still make the car feel softer initially but will still have a stiffer feel once moving.

Poor rear traction.

1) Shorten wheelbase.
2) Move the batteries back.
3) Lengthen the rear camber link on the shock tower.
4) Run less pack in the rear shocks.
5) Softer rear spring.
6) Loosen the slipper clutch if it is just wheel spinning.