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| Issue 121 (December 2005) |
Words: Stephen Bess |
Today's ultra-fast, ultra-powerful 1/8-scale stadium trucks, more popularly known as truggies, have a tendency to unload lots of power to the wheels. When a truggy diffs out, we all know what happens--the truck loses traction and forward acceleration as its tires turn into pizza cutters instead of remaining flat and grippy. Thankfully, the factory drivers have a cure for this problem that's simpler than you could imagine. I called up Kris Moore at Mugen Seiki to find out how the Mugen team straps their monster truck tires.
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1.TAPE IT UP!
Remove the foam inserts, and turn the tires inside out. Wipe away any foam particles, and apply the strapping tape to the middle of the tire. Kris points out that you should only lay the tape onto the tire, and do not tighten it or it will cause the tire to bunch up and have a smaller inside diameter. Wrap the tape around once, and overlap the ends by 1 inch. Press down on the tape to adhere it completely.
2.ROUGH LIPS
Rough up the inner tire lips with the rotary tool so that the glue adheres more securely. You only need to grind lightly over the surface to roughen it.
3.NO FLATS
Because the foam inserts are folded in half for shipping purposes, they develop flat spots that will cause soft areas on the tire when installed. Kris advises heating the foam inserts with a hair dryer (or a heat gun on a low setting) to fully expand the inserts. It sounds crazy, but try it—it works perfectly.
4.JUST A TRIM
Trim the inside edge of the foam to form a beveled edge, and insert the foam into the tire.
5.ROCK ON!
Glue 'em up with high quality CA glue, and you're ready to rock!
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