| Ladies and gentlemen,
it's here!!! (Well, almost at least) The long
awaited re-design of the trusty Mini-Z MR-02.
The MR-03 brings many highlights and improvements
to the table over its predecessors and we wanted
to inform you just what those changes are.
|
|
Let's start by higlighting the
differences in the chassis. At first glance
they don't look much different, but let's look
further...
|
|
By flipping the chassis we can
see one of the most obvious changes. Different
Suspension Plates: The new design (on right)
is narrower and shaped like a true "T"
bar. This allowed the chassis designers to bring
the batteries closer together, making the chassis
narrower which in turn should lead to more nimble
handling.
|
|
In this shot you can appreciate
the bottom view of the chassis. Notice how there
is a "W" on the front lower chassis
piece? This is great new feauture of the MR-03.
It allows you to change back and forth in between
MR-02 and MR-015 front end widths.
|
 |
The biggest innovation on the
MR-03 has got to be the front suspension. This
new design incorporates dynamic camber (camber
change) in the front end. Increasing camber
angle through a corner as the car is going through
it allows for better tire contact patch . This
leads to more steering through the corner and
better tire wear.
|
| SUSPENSION ACTION!!!
In this animated gif you can
truly appreciate the suspension action
of the MR-03. Notice how the tires camber
in at the top. :) |
|
|
|
In the electronics department,
there are several changes as well. The board
is close to the same dimensions, but several
things have been incorporated or moved around.
For starters, notice how there are 2 plugs on
the board now. The one on the right side is
the ASF connection plug, the one on the left
is the all-new Gyro plug. The gyro works just
like on the Dnano and basically is a traction
and steering control aid that leads to better
control and stability. Another good thing to
add is that the reverse delay has been essentially
eliminated. So no longer will you have an excuse
to not go 2.4!!!
|
On the right,
we have the Gyro plugged in. Check out these
2 videos, please take note that in the second
video, it is an MR-03 that is drifting!!!
Gyro
1/Gyro
2 |
 |
|
|
On the left we have some really
cool stats. It shows how much better the coreless
servo used on the MR-03 is than the MR-02's.
Coreless motors are more efficient, lighter
and smaller while at the same time performing
better. The "increments" the table
refer to, is how many turning points (or "clicks")
the servo has. The more it has, the more precise
and smooth it operates.
Look at the difference in size
of the motors. This also allows for the chassis
to have been made narrower.
|
| Mini-
Z MR-03 Platforms: Appreciate the different chassis
configurations. This is the most versatile Mini-Z
to date!!!
|
|
