A few modifications on the Fox

Well, there's little to do on this one, especially because I want to keep it almost original (like my Boomerang).

• Motor / speed controller: mine is mounted with a Mabuchi 540 motor and an 18 teeth pinion (15 teeth on the original model). I initially thought I would mount a Sport Tuned motor with a 15 teeth pinion; in fact, I decided not to do that because electronics are completely sealed into the chassis and heat can't evacuate. One solution could have been to stay with the mechanical speed controller (which resistors are placed outside the chassis tub), but I doubt it would long resist to the Sport Tuned. The standard 540 drains around 6 Amps when the Sport Tuned drains the double (12 A).
  For the "vintage" look, I will leave the resistors placed on the chassis (what I already did with the Boomerang).
• Bearings: the Fox is fully ball raced right out of the box... except on the front wheels. This is pretty easy to understand as ball bearings used to cost a fortune by the time. Hopefully, this time is over: anyway, mine already have the front wheels bearings, but I will have to change them because they are pretty used.
• Front stabilizer bar kit: this is an original option that helps the front drivetrain, especially in corners. Technically, it is almost an exact replica of the Boomerang's, but mounted reversed.

• Repair: as I said before, there's not much to do. I only had to carefully grease the protection rubber for the steering link, and to tight a few screws. I will also have to add spacers on the rear dampers as they are too soft once the battery pack is inserted. I will also change the rear tires as one is slightly cracked. Hopefully, these are the same as the 2007 re-released Hotshot.

Generally speaking, I do understand why this buggy created problems in competition: it took me 3 hours to disassemble the chassis protection, install and setup electronics (including the steering servo link that requires to disassemble part of the front drivetrain), and reassemble. With practice, I guess all this can be done in less than one hour, but this is too much in competition. Especially if you just need to change the radio quartz...

Another Fox!

A low cost opportunity in excellent condition: I could not resist! The shape is perfect, no scratches, almost brand new golden rims, the kit is complete. The body is there too, but painted red which I don't like, and without the original stickers. After all, this will be the runner body, no fear to damage the other one.

This Fox will mainly be driven indoor, used for photos and if needed, provide parts for the other Fox. Fox parts are so rare and expensive that it is better to have spare.

The photos below show the excellent shape this Fox reached me:

I am just very happy with this new Fox. Now I will drive the other one the way it deserves, but still quite carefully not to damage it.

I have very few work to perform on this one (mainly radio equipment), but I won't work on the body: it will remain as is.

First runs

I was so impatient that I ran it even before I received the new ball bearings for the front wheels, the front anti-roll bar and the new rear tires. The playground was covered with pebbles and there was a lot of dust due to the summer weather we were having for over a week.

First: no problems at all, everything worked fine.

The very first impression on this model is speed. Even with the stock Mabuchi 540, its top speed easily competes with a Hotshot mounted with a 23 turn motor!

As for the suspension, I first added the biggest yellow spacers on the three dampers. After a few laps, I modified the setup because the rear was a little bouncy and the front was bouncing all around. I placed one medium spacer for each rear damper and no spacer at all on the front. The result was immediate: the front being very soft, you only have to reduce throttle to get a very good directivity in corners. And the rear just handles great.

Generally speaking, the Fox offers its driver an excellent overall handling. Quite easy to control in corners for a two wheel drive, it is very fast in straight lines and very well balanced when taking corners at speed and skidding. General feeling about it: pure fun!

The Fox is an easy to control buggy and it could easily handle a more powerful motor (under 20 turns I guess) without overtaking the chassis limits. I won't do that since I don't want to turn it into a ground-ground missile and wreck it.

The second run took place at the same playground in the same conditions, except the front stabilizer bar. The difference was obvious: the Fox got even easier to control in corners and you only have to worry about the rear drivetrain, which is normal with a 2WD buggy. The front drivetrain directivity is also greatly improved and this allows to take very nice corners ... as long as the driver is gifted enough for that 

Of course, my Fox still runs as often as possible, with even less fear to break that so rare part because Tamiya re-released the model in 2013 under the name Novafox. As my driving skills improve, I keep appreciated this model a lot because it is both great to drive it and great to see how it handles at the track.

Related article

• 58055 The Boomerang