bearings??

[hoogeman]

Is there any way to make the front wheels roll better???

[Nathan]

Graphite:)

[hoogeman]

can you remove the wheels to put on graphite .. what is the proceedure?

[Nathan]

You can pull off the RIMS, but i still haven't fiqured out a safe way to get the hubs off. just shake some graphite on the metal pins, it will work its way in.

[hoogeman]

where can you get graphite?? is it a powder?

thanks

[blind]

pinewood derby racers use it as a lubricant, same effect here

yep, its a powder, only lubricant that I know of that does NOT gum up or attract dirt, I use it to lubricate the door locks on my real cars ;)

[hoogeman]

so where can i get the graphite??

[blind]

a hobby store or an arts & crafts store would be a good start...

[hoogeman]

oh yeah.. thanks. what's your best shop down there?? i live 15 minuites from camarillo. (agoura)
I like to head to ventura or your way rather than the valley.

thanks

[blind]

hobby people

ask for nathan, kevin, or aubry, everyone else are idiots

www.hobbypeople.net

they stock some epoch items also, but the pine wood derby stuff is by the plastic models area

[chelboed]

why not just get some Mini-Z bearings. Cut/drill out the rims and glue them in. Then you can screw the bearing with a nut onto the knuckle. Remove the hub completely. No wobble, smooth ball bearing front wheels.

What'cha think?

[hoogeman]

would that work or would you have to also instal a slightly larger diameter axel... ill go check.

[chelboed]

actually, when I said to screw the bearing to the knuckle, that means the screw would be the new axle. Fixed axle with the bearing, instead of the current spinnin axle setup

[hoogeman]

got it, has anyone done this yet??

[chelboed]

Nope. Dunno why, it'd be super easy. I'll probably do it this week.

[crweedon]

for graphite...... you could just scrape some off the tip of a pencil, those bearing though, what are they made of, cause if they are metal won't they screw with the steering magnet? and where in the world do you get bearings that small?

[chelboed]

Okay, here ya go! Ball bearings in the front of an Epoch.

This mod made my front end about 2mm wider which was a pleasant surprise. It corners better now w/o flipping. You don't have to use the washers to widen it out, but I love it.

[chelboed]

When I say drill out the inner circle, I mean the circle that the hub fits in, not the tiny little hole that goes all the way throught the rim. In essence, the bearing becomes the new hub.

[ruddfan]

How well do the tires stay on. Do they still fly off on fast turns or are they super hard to remove after the mod. Just wandering because this looks like a good mod.

[chelboed]

They are on much more snug than the factory fit on the origional hub. If you want a tighter fit, don't reem out the rim quite as much. If it fits too tight, it may break when you press the bearing into the rim. I haven't had any difficulty with projectile tires and wheels yet though.

I noticed with the orig. set-up, the hub was slightly wobbly. With the precision bearings, the wheels don't wobble even a tiny bit. (as long as you get them pressed into the rim correctly.

[hoogeman]

did you use one or two bearings per wheel?

[chelboed]

ONE BEARING PER WHEEL AND THEN JUST PUSH THE WHEEL ON. KINDA LIKE THE STOCK SETUP, BUT BETTER.

[hoogeman]

sorry to kep asking, but what is the axel ? threaded?? from where? thanks

[hoogeman]

soory 1-72 hex screws.. but where did you find such small parts??

[chelboed]

I use the 1/72 screw for the axle. It runs through the bearing, washers, bushing, and knuckle. I bought the screws and washers at my local crappy hardware store. If I can find them there, they can be found at most any hardware store.

I really think that a moderator should move this thread to mods.

[hoogeman]

nicely explained.
is the 1/72 screw you used threaded all the way throgh or did you find one with just a couple of millimeters at the end threadred??

[chelboed]

Actually, it's threaded all the way. I like it because it actually firmly screws into the bushing for extra adjustment.

[Racer9]

Teflon powder might work better than graphite or mix them up or something.

[chelboed]

Yeah, ball bearings may be overkill for a car this size. The only REAL benefit of the ball bearings is that the wheels don't wobble anymore like they used to. It is slightly smoother, but not very noticeable.

[hoogeman]

im gonna do it anyway, the dogs hair gets tangled up in mine and if i could take the wheels off each time i needed with the screw on method it would help.

thanks for the update.

[Racer9]

BTW pencils have clay in them so it may or may not help it.

[bjv5]

Which bearing do you use from the Mini-Z? And how much does it cost?

[chelboed]

I use the thin ones with the samller center diameter holes. The mini-z bearings come as a set for various prices. Depends on where you buy. Type in MINI-Z BALL BEARINGS on a search engine, and look for the prices.

[bjv5]

HOw much does tiny sell the set with the bearings you used for this mod?

[chelboed]

I don't know, I bought mine locally.