NOIC

I could use some advise from some of you more experienced guys. I have always run electric buggies so I'm a newbie to gas cars. Yup, I've never run one! I just bought a Mugen MBX5R and I'm just getting started putting it together. I read a little about Fail Safes, but I'm lost as to which one is best. I've also read that it is good to have both a Fail Safe and springs for optimum protection.
Questions:
1. Which is the best Fail Safe?
2. Is it true that I should use both Fail Safe and springs?
3. Are the springs just for the throttle servo or for steering as well?
4. Any other suggestions you can offer?

Finally please forgive my ignorance. Hopefully I'll get smarter quickly.

dbuggyracer

I like the ofna fail safes and yes i would run the spring and fail safe, the spring is for the throttle only and just take your time set up your servos correclty set your EPA"S ( electronic point adjustment) that limits how far your servos travel from left to right if set correctly will help keep you from burnning up servos.and most of all have fun.

Dennis Powers
Cen Racing

Allan Aguilar

I got 2 nitro's, on-road and off-road. One uses and Dynamite Failsafe and the other one is an Ofna Failsafe. Both of them have not failed me so far. My Dynamite is 2.5 years older than my Ofna and still works as expected.

Just my $ 0.50.

vti-chris

I have the ofna fail safe and it causes glitching on the throttle servo.

clifton421

Also, some remotes come with a built in fail safe (like the Spektrum or Nomadio systems) which work very well so if you are getting a new radio for your kit those are options as well.

www.focusprinting.com

NOIC

That brings up a good point that I should have thought of before. As I said, I'm new to gas cars. You mentioned the Spektrum or Nomadio systems. I was also looking at radios today like the Futuba 3PK 3 and did see that some come with fail safes. So now the questions arise;
1) Which radio is best?
2) Are the fail safes that come with them as good as a 3rd party one?

dicko

as to which radio is best, that is all up to you personal preferences, the ones most common at my local track are the JR R1, Airtronics M11 (my personal favourite ) the KO helios & the Futaba 3PK.

built in failsafes reduce weight and space taken up in your reciever box, also the use of less plugs means less potential for things to go wrong. an electrical failsafe will work if you get a glitch, low battery power or interference from another radio. they WON"T work if you lose battery power altogether like a battery lead unsoldering or becoming unplugged. this is where the spring comes in, it will work if you get a sudden loss of power or a servo horn coming loose.

on my MBX5R i use the Spektrum pro Rx which has a built in failsafe and a throttle return spring off of a Revo which, i connect to the servo horn next to the throttle mount and back to the screw on the center diff case closest to the carb.

i have had a servo horn screw work loose & had the servo horn pop up so that it wasn't in contact with the spline which caused a runaway.

also some people wrap a rubber band around the air intake & throttle linkage to pull the carb closed, but the rubber band needs to be replace often as it degrades when it comes into contact with the fuel.

just my thoughts & personal past experiences.

NOIC

Thanks for the advice. Very helpful. That's why I like this forum. I get the benefit of experienced people without being slapped around because I'm new at it.

dicko

also if you choose to get an inline failsafe i used the SJ one, they are very small, easy to use & weigh almost nothing, i prefered it over the venom failsafe i tried. they are made by the same people that make the Swallow chargers. not sure how easy they are to get in the U.S., they can be hard to get here.

WalawalaStore

Hi,

1. Which is the best Fail Safe?
Futaba HRS system, works with Spectrum 1015. For extension unit, all of them works fine, but could cause a delay in reaction.
2. Is it true that I should use both Fail Safe and springs?
Spring on carb is a MUST because failsafe will not operate without battery power. Fail safe is strongly suggested.
3. Are the springs just for the throttle servo or for steering as well?
Throttle only. Never seen people used on steering because there is no closed point.
4. Any other suggestions you can offer?
If you do not have fail safe, hope people will ask you before they turn their radio on.

Regards

Joaquim

Nathan9492

Just get spektrum, much easier............................................ .and also a throttle return spring is a MUST!!!!!!!!

QuickCRT

if you have the cash go with the spektrum module it has the built in fail safe. there is no lag in the spektrum as with some after market failsafes.
I have a M11 with the pro module and love it no problems

tony