jfoerch

Hey all. New to this forum and to RC cars in general. My son has a redcar Volcano EPX. It has a brass pinion gear and plastic spur gear. About a week or so ago, the spur gear stripped out. So, I went online and bought a steal replacement and put that in the other day. But I figured that now the pinion gear would be the weak link and before too long would also strip out. Well, it only took a couple days and he just came in and sure enough, the pinion gear is stripped down to nothing. I guess I have a couple questions.

1. Was going to a steel spur gear the wrong thing to do?
2. Is there such thing as a steel pinion gear to go with the steel spur gear so that neither of the gears wear so quickly?
3. Is it best to have one of them be softer than the other to protect the rest of the car? If so, did I just mesh them improperly?

Let me know if there is some general guidance here. He's only 8 and I'm not sure how much he will be into RC cars, so I'm not looking to mod it up too much. But, I want to make sure this one lasts for a little while just in case.Thanks in advance!

RustyUs

I would use a steel pinion gear and the stock plastic spur gear or an upgraded metal spur. Make sure the mesh is correct between the two. You want the spur gear to rock back, and forth "just a hair". I usually do it by feel, but to get used to the correct mesh, check out the paper method...https://video.search.yahoo.com/video...&hsimp=yhs-001

RustyUs

I'm not to familiar with the Redcat stuff as I see your Volcano EXP is a 4wd monster truck. You shouldn't be wearing out a pinion or spur gear in a couple of days unless something is very wrong and/or running extremely powerful motor. If you are using the stock 27T brushed motor...my first guess would be the mesh between the pinion/spur is incorrect and or the motor mounting screws are coming loose; thus pushing the pinion gear too far away from the spur gear.

RustyUs

Maybe try a Robinson Pinion Gear 17T .6 Module. This pinion gear is precision cut from hardened steel alloy and lightened for reduced weight. Use in place of your model's stock pinion gear for improved performance. Not all metal alloys are the same, but Robinson Racing are some of the best. I've counted on them since the very early '90s to get me through tough times at the track.

jfoerch

Thanks RustyUS. I just found a Robinson pinion that seems right. It's a 17T .6 mod metric. Just placed an order for it. Thanks for the help!

cumquat

the steel spur was a bad idea. they have their place, but it is not on an entry level model being driven by a beginner. you want a plastic spur as they are the cheapest to replace (that's why you rarely ever see metal spurs on anything other than 8th scale buggies) and easy to get to. like rusty said, go robinson. they makes some of the best gears out there and they dont cast too much when compared to the competition. i've messed up a lot of gears, but none of them were Robinson pinions.

EDIT: completely missed your last post. you should be quite happy with your purchase.

DieHarder

Yeah, Redcats usually have metric pinions, which would explain the excessive wear. I think you're on the right track now.

stephenm20944

Hi like jfoerch I'm new to forum and nitro rc. I bought a car 2nd hand and the spur gear has to teeth completely stripped and a few wearing down. The part no. Is AG5, this part is discontinued. Can somebody please help me in where I can pick up the part or even if anyone has tried another spur gear that is the same. Its from a kyosho pureten alpha 2. Thanks

RustyUs

Do you have pictures of the old spur gear? How many teeth? ......http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from...-XRT+&_sacat=0