new jato!

[dvsxutact]

so i got my JATO Today!! i'm SO excited about it, i got it home and got it all ready to go out and do the break-in, welp, got outside and went to start it and had alot of problems, but got it started, then had alot of problems keeping it started, but made it throu the break-in process as best as i could to what traxxas says todo..anyways, after breakin i went to start really running it, and noticed that when i would go from stopped to WOT it would drag butt for a few seconds, then start to pickup and rev... (been doing this since the first starting) so i thought maybe its to lean.. so i richened to fuel, and it got worse.. so i got it back to factory (4 turns from closed) and was still having alot of problems (no idle, lag in throttle response , etc) so i thought maybe i need to lean it out a bit, so i started with what i think as 1/4th ofa turn, which helped a bit, then did another and prolly around 1/2 to almost 3/4 of a turn leaning it, it got to where it would idle, and REALLY get up and go... so i ran it for a bit, and actually ended up tearin up a tire (came ungluded) anyways, my question is just that, its smoking good, but still takes a lil bit to shift to 2nd gear, so i was wondering how many turns leaner i could maybe go?, i'm thinking im at about 3 1/4 turns from closed. and was thinking of going to 3 turns to see what that does... anyone else have any ideas??

also, have any of you noticed that the TX batts die quiet quickly?? i use Energizer e2 rechargables....

[sudc321]

your initial assupmtion was wrong, if you were bogging down its on the rich side, when i just broke in my 3.3 last weekend i ran into the same problem. it was boggin and lots of smoke, i turned it clockwise a 1/4 of a turn and i was in the sweet spot, another 1/8th i was at 220 deg C. so the next time i might give it another 1/8 on my next run. the lag is from all the excess fuel it was trying to burn. when i was new to nitro i rushed my tuning as well and i ruined my first engine. but from the stock setting a little tuning of the high speed was all i needed. you want to see smoke under full throttle but not gobs of smoke, as for shifting read the instructions on how to do it. if you want to learn to tune get your self a temp gun, best nitro purchase i have made. makes tuning a cinch, just richen to take the temp down and lean to increase the temp reach around 230-250 for the 2.5. as for energizers, i ran those last year and i tried them out this spring and they seem like they have died over the winter, they still work in remotes but in my car it doesn't last long for me either. i picked up a 5 cell ib1400 pack from cheapbatterypacks.com and its been working just fine for me.

[dvsxutact]

well i hope this engine will survive atleast 2 gallons of fuel (thats when i can get the 3.3 or afford a replacment for it) it runs REALLY well, and i did make sure i bought a tempgun, and checked it offten durning breakin and after breakin running, and the temp at first on breakin was only around 140, after i got the truck to stay running it would hold around 215 and now its hanging around 218 constant.. so im thinking im going to lean it out just a bit more...

do you think the engine will be okay??

[jrfink]

Too low of temps is bad for the engine. It won't expand enough and lose it's pinch on the piston. Compression will go bye bye.

It sounds like you're starting to get the hang of it though. Lean it a little more and try to get the temps up. Do so in small increments (1/8th turn or so) and run it back and forth to heat it up as you increase the air. Check the temps and you'll find the optimum setting. Keep an eye on that smoketrail. Good luck with it.

[dvsxutact]

awsome, me and my wifey gonna take the kid and truck to the park tommorow, i will get the temps up and lean it out some more... is it normal for the tire glue to get loose and release the tire with all this power or do u think that might have just been somethin they missed at the factory? , also, do u know if the stock rims are plastic or metal? i'd like to put new tires on but not sure if i can boil / bake these rims or not... thanks Guys!!!

[sudc321]

yeah tires do come loose from time to time so have some thin ca glue on hand to reattach em. as for rims they are chromed plastic and your can boil or bake to get the tires off. right now traxxas is the only one with 2.8 tires and they only have the victory avaiable at the moment. many people have modded the standard 2.2 to fit but if you don't feel up to ruining a set of tires i'd just get some 2.2 rims and tires. there are many different choices depending on what you like to drive on, i'm loving on road so i'm gonna pick up some road tires. but dirthawgs have held up to 3 gallons so far and i'm down to about 1/3 tread left, great tire life and grip on dirt and on road is ok but great life. i also have gladiators for off road only, tire life is decent but grip is excellent. lots of racers like bowties but i don't race on soft dirt so i'd shred them up in an outing.

[dvsxutact]

i've got gladiators on my duratrax evader ST and i've noticed they grip the road (on road) pretty well, and the dirt even better, so i think i might get a pair of dirt hawgs or gladiators for the jato.... if i put 2.2's on it , will i have to change the gear ratios or somethin?

[TheRosco]

Changing the gear ratio is a pretty good idea with 2.2's on there.

Our local track is a tight, rough and loose dirt track so running 2.2's on a Jato with stock gearing is pretty tough. So ya, different gearing is a must when going down tire sizes. Its gonna light up the rears a little faster than stock 2.8 tires.

[gumbyracing]

Changing the gear ratio is a pretty good idea with 2.2's on there.

Our local track is a tight, rough and loose dirt track so running 2.2's on a Jato with stock gearing is pretty tough. So ya, different gearing is a must when going down tire sizes. Its gonna light up the rears a little faster than stock 2.8 tires.
.
Why would you have to change the gearing with the 2.2 wheels? I didnt and my jato is stupid fast.

[dvsxutact]

well, i did some more tuneing and running today, got the engine to 250 did a few more highspeed passes and checked temp and it was at 270, do i richened it up some, and did a few more high speed passes and it was around 240 - 255 but after that it wouldnt idle anymore, and i couldnt keep it running, so i went ahead and put it away did the after run maintence and all that good stuff, well went to take it back out and instead of trying to guess where the HSN was, i just reset it totally, closed it and , went to 3 turns out from closed... got outside and it started , idled, and ran AWSOME, checked temp and was around 220, so i leaned it a bit more, and got it to 255 - 260, do you guys think tese temps are okay? or do a i need to keep it around 220 - 250?

also, i put a pair of older V-Pattern tires on my jato, and noticed they dont work for stufifng onroad (expected this) but was wondering if you guys had any imput on how they might be expected to handle Off-Raod, (on try / damp dirt).. Thakns Everyone!!! Keep the jatos Running!!!!