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5/2/2013By Mike Garrison
LiveRC.com
Whether it's wheel nuts, wings, tools, tracks, trinkets and/or anything in between, the LiveRC staff gives their testimonial and mini-review of each every Thursday morning!
Competition Heat Deuce 2 Nitro Engine Heater
$106.99
In nitro racing the heart of a successful race machine is a healthy nitro engine. Taking care of your engine requires a lot of different things, but one of the most overlooked is properly warming up your engine before hitting the track. By starting an engine cold and immediately hitting the track stresses the internal parts of the engine tremendously and in turn will take away from performance, fuel mileage, and lifespan of your engine.
In an effort to pre-heat engines racers have carried around big, bulky, heat guns for years. The problem with a heat gun is inconsistent heating, too much heat, and melting nearby plastic parts. Competition Heat has revolutionized the ways of pre-heating nitro engines with their Deuce 2 engine heater. The heater simply slides over the head of your engine, plugs into either an electrical outlet (AC version) or 11.1V LiPo (DC version) and heats your engine uniformly from the outside in. The heater pre-heats your engine up to 200 degrees.
While running temperatures of most racing engines range from 220-250 degrees, the engine is still not at race temp after using the Deuce 2, BUT it does greatly reduce the amount of time you would normally be cold engine bogging around the track in warm-up trying to get it up to temp.
Pros:
- Easy to transport and carry in your pit bag
- Can be used even when there isn't an electrical outlet unlike a traditional heat gun. (DC version)
- Evenly pre-heats your engine up to 200 degrees all the way around.
- Cut out in the top allows you to temp and even start your engine while pre-heating it.
- Reduces stress on internal engine parts, and in turn extends the lifespan of your expensive nitro engine.
- Replacement parts and heat strips available.
Cons:
- While we feel it works better than a heat gun, it does cost 4-5 times more than one.
Conclusion:
If money wasn't an issue, the Competition Heat Deuce 2 Engine Heater scores an easy Beacon Rating of 5 out of 5 for ingenuity and performance. Unfortunately money for most racers IS an issue, and therefore at $106.99, the Deuce 2 is a rather expensive alternative to pre-heating your engine.
Beacon Rating: 4/5
Exotek Racing Steering Rack Conversion (TLR22/22SCT/22T)
$69.95
When it comes to any car on the market today, each platform has its own set of design points that some racers feel would work better if designed differently. One of those points of "controversy" on the TLR22 series vehicles is the sliding steering rack design. Many racers like the stock design and performance, while others would prefer to see a more traditional style steering system claiming the stock slider design wears out quickly causing it to "catch" and provide inconsistent steering.
Exotek Racing has addressed those racers wishes by releasing the CNC machined ball bearing steering system for the TLR 22/22SCT/22T, which replaces the stock slider steering system.
The new Exotek Racing steering system requires a few modifications to the surrounding stock parts to install, however, the conversion kit includes a very easy to read and understand set of instructions that make these modifications simple. Once installed the Exotek conversion offers very smooth performance, and does in fact eliminate the occasion "catch" sometimes found using the stock slider steering rack. Seeing that the entire conversion kit is CNC machined from 7075 alloy, durability is not an issue and the gun metal grey appearance adds serious style points to your 22. The ball bearing design is consistent, smooth, and quite impressive.
Pros:
- Eliminates the "catch" some experience using the stock TLR slider steering rack.
- Offers very smooth and consistent steering performance.
- Precision machined from 7075 alloy eliminates the worry of durability issues.
- The inboard ball ends lay-down position help eliminate ball cups popping off.
- Uses all stock hardware, and includes all additional parts and pieces necessary.
Cons:
- Some modification to surrounding stock parts required.
Conclusion:
For any TLR 22/22SCT/22T owners that have experienced issues with the stock slider steering rack, and/or those just looking to add something super trick to your vehicle...this is the conversion kit for you. In true Exotek fashion, the TLR22 series steering conversion kit not only enhances performance, but also looks great too.
Beacon Rating: 5/5
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