Electronics for 2019 | Yokomo RPX II ESC, V4 gyro, BL-LHD servo and Futaba 7PX radio

Time to step up the game for 2019! New components for my machine are here, so let's look at what they are like to drive with.

The original RPX still is a beast to this day. Even though the new generation is more of an ancestor to the BL-4 series, I hope it inherits some of the good old Racing Performer flavor.

Another generation exchange. I purposely skipped the V3 generation, as I didn't feel a need for it, but now with the slide rack and necessary end point setting, I got this one. Also the variable modes, as advertised, seem promising.

My old Sanwa MT-S sold, I got tired of waiting to Sanwa M17 supply to Europe. After they postponed it by another month, I said screw it and got this thing.

A big wiring overhaul had to happen. Inspired by some of the other folks work, I decided to take my dremel, and hide some more wires into the plastic side piece.

For the sake of ergonomics, I made the grip a little bit thicker, loosened both throttle and steering wheel springs as much as I could and got a nice alloy wheel grip.

And this is what I ended up with. Ready to rock!

I am keeping pretty much the same electronics layout as before, just another little bit more tidy.

So how it drives? After a day, I am more than happy and I literally cannot wait to send it on some large track.

So far, the RPX II looks very solid. I have done some initial setup including a moderate amount of boost and this thing really goes! Definitely a step up in power here, also with a boost settings for whole power curve, it is very predictable.

The motor is, however, heating more than I would like, so it will definitely need an upgrade. As soon as I decide which one to get.
The advertised smooth setting does not do any super awesome magic. Further testing will be necessary to tell the difference.

After setting the end points, I tried changing the modes of the V4 gyro. To be honest, the assist mode seems a bit funky to me and the car was all over the place, so I ditched it very quickly.

So with the assist mode sorted (turned off), I experimented a little bit with a soft vs hard mode. I didn't spot much difference there, but oddly enough, the car seemed to react to my input more on the hard mode. Again, the difference was very subtle, so I may be wrong with this one. I will give it another go next time.

To support the servo power demand in case of high draw from the motor, I added one more capacitor to my car. This one is plugged directly into the receiver and it should keep the servo supplied with enough juice at all times.

Nothing significant to say about the servo, which is always positive if you ask me. The front is solid and responsive, I am satisfied.

Finally, I realized another thing. I have always aimed to be as fluid as possible in my driving, so I strived for the maximum gain possible. But in tandems, as a result, I struggled to keep up in tighter corners. As I tried to progress into a lower gain figures, I started to feel a lot more comfortable being able to transition way sharper and keep the proximity. Well, there are always tons of things to learn.

Overall I am very happy with where the car stands at the moment. There are still more parts to arrive and mods to make, but the progress of both car and me as a driver feels great. 2019 here I come!