When purchasing a high end radio controlled race machine I usually don’t want to run on out and purchase a handful of option parts to make it competitive. I just want to assemble it and run it. Then again, on rare occasion, some parts pop up on my radar and I just have to get them. For example, I recently was lucky enough to review the Yokomo YZ-2CA. This race machine has just about it all right out of the box. One thing I was not a huge fan of, though, was the foam blocks used to space the battery.
Enter Factory RC. This relatively new brand offers several carbon fiber option parts for a variety of vehicles and one such item that caught my eye was their Shorty Battery Brace. Upon seeing it I placed an order for it and a few other items they manufacturer for the YZ-2CA.
As I stated, I love the YZ-2CA but the foam battery spacing blocks just seem out of place on such a high end vehicle. The Factory RC Shorty Battery Brace is made from high quality 3.0mm thick carbon fiber and includes front and rear battery stop blocks. Not just a nut and screw, the blocks are even precision made from molded Delrin with FRC (for Factory RC) machined into the flat stop areas. Using the front and rear stop allows for the battery to be positioned toward the center of the battery compartment. By removing the rear stop the battery can be moved all the way back against the waterfall that protects the motor and likewise, removing the front stop the battery can be moved all the way forward. The center section of the Factory RC Battery Brace is also quite narrow allowing for more chassis flex.
Another item that I picked up was their Steering Block Set. Also made from high quality 3mm thick carbon fiber, these steering block plates also include an additional ball stud mounting hole to help fine tune ackerman.
I also grabbed the Factory RC Front and Rear Shock Towers. The rear tower is made from tough 4mm thick carbon fiber and is machined to include a “leading” edge chamfer which helps prevent delamination. Factory RC also added a set of inside holes, something factory drivers often add to their own towers. They also lowered center section of the rear tower to increased air flow over the rear wing resulting in additional down force. The Factory RC front tower that I picked up is designed to be used with flat YZ-2CA front suspension arms (although they do offer a gull wing arm tower) and is made from 3.0mm thick carbon fiber. The flat arm tower has a flat top so to speak and the gull wing arm dips in the middle so they are easy to differentiate from one another.
Ok, you now know all about these sweet parts but how do they work? I took my YZ-2CA, with these new goodies installed, to R/C Madness to give them a test and I was not disappointed. While I crashed a few times (driver error!) the parts, specifically the shock towers, held up quite well. There was no sign of delamination on the towers and the battery remained securely in place. I did make a few tuning adjustments to dial the car in and was happy with how easy it was to move the battery forward and back. Likewise, I tried the optional ackerman hold in the steering block plate and really liked how it smoothed out the feel of the steering.
All of the items from Factory RC are without a doubt top notch and even better, they are well priced! If you are like me and want to do away with the foam battery spacing blocks pick up their Shorty Battery Brace and while you’re at it, grab a few of their other items too! In addition, you can pick-up Factory RC items from fine retailers like AMain and X Factory UK.
