T Rex Racing Protection on 2018 RC 390?

[tylercarbone]

Has anyone had luck installing T Rex frame protection on the 2018 bike? I emailed them, and they said they expect it'd fit, but haven't tested it on anything past 2017.

Thanks in advance,
Tyler

 

[KneeDrachen]

It will fit but as I understand it, there are some cable issues that need to be worked around. I skipped it due to reading instances of frames being bent for crashes where the t-rex slider took the impact. I chose to go with bar end, fork and rear spool sliders instead.

 

[Formula390]

Yeah... Frame Sliders/Savers... The curse of the RC390 to be sure.

This is my personal opinion here, but one which is pretty well proven what happens. I don't recommend any of the savers out there. Any frame sliders which mount to the frame are, as KneeDrachen pointed out, dangerous to the frame. I've been contacted by more than a few folks who were running frame sliders, had a get off, bent their frame, and totaled the bike. Frame sliders should in general ONLY be mounted to hard points like engine mounts. If you have a "saver" which attaches to the frame, and that point takes a hard hit, it's going to transmit 99% of all of that energy DIRECTLY into the frame. Sliders which mount to the frame may protect you in a slow low side, but anything fast or if something impacts which doesn't yield (like say curbing) is going to transmit that energy. Newton's Second Law of Motion (F=ma) has to balance the equation... you do NOT want the frame to be the part that takes that hit. Some have used 'em, and not had a problem. To them, I say "You got LUCKY!" There is a REASON why pretty much every single other frame slider out there will ALWAYS bolt DIRECTLY to one of the motor mounts. On the RC, there is no such good location... so, people end up having to use a clamp which attaches to the frame... and... ... ... DOH!

 

[John390]

how about those ones that go on the back of the swing arm where the spools go? or the same on the bottom of the fork?

 

[airazen]

i’m using this on my RC, Dimotiv Easy

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[airazen]

formerly i’m using chinese crash sliders, only $60, a copy from sato’s slider, has good quality, but the bobbins is susceptible to rust since it was not covered like Dimotiv.

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[tylercarbone]

Oh man, I thought I’d responded with a thanks in this thread months ago. Much belated, but thanks all for the replies.

 

[yowsaboss]

Although tylercarbone has made his decision, I know as a new owner someone is likely to be facing the same decision and do a search on the forum to get the same question answered. What Matt says is likely true- You take a hard enough hit on a slider, there's the potential to transfer that energy to whatever the slider is connected to. But I figure a low side, the friction coefficient of that delrin is going to allow the bike to slide. That's the whole point. It's a frame SLIDER, not a shock absorber. If you do a high side, an endo, a major flop, you're likely to have a nightmare anyway. An expensive one. So I made the decision to install sliders.

The TRex sliders seemed well engineered and sturdy, and with 3 mounting points, appeared to do the best job possible to distribute energy to the 3 contact points, hopefully minimizing the potential for damage. They are attached to two motor mounts, the delrin pad that overlaps the frame rail isn't capable of applying twisting force to the frame, which I think presents the biggest risk for frame damage. Plus, to me, they were the least obtrusive/ noticeable/ ugly. So I purchased and installed.

A couple problems with installation, which I emailed TRex about after I was finished:
The delrin pad that fits over the frame rail wouldn't fit flush because of weld at the frame joint in the location shown in photo #1. I had to take a dremel and relieve the pad in the location shown. I would have thought that since these frames are welded by robots, the amount of weld at those joints would be consistent, but perhaps not. Your results may vary.

The hardware provided is made from mozzarella, or perhaps provolone. DO NOT even attempt to use this hardware! These are flat head socks screws, and are not able to hold up to the specified torque. Using good tools, and being careful, it was impossible to prevent the allen socket from turning inside the screw. I had to drill the head off one of the screws to remove it. Fortunately I was able to find 12.9 replacement screws for under $10, shipped. I did notify TRex of this problem, perhaps they've taken steps to source better quality hardware.

 

[tylercarbone]

Although tylercarbone has made his decision, I know as a new owner someone is likely to be facing the same decision and do a search on the forum to get the same question answered. What Matt says is likely true- You take a hard enough hit on a slider, there's the potential to transfer that energy to whatever the slider is connected to. But I figure a low side, the friction coefficient of that delrin is going to allow the bike to slide. That's the whole point. It's a frame SLIDER, not a shock absorber. If you do a high side, an endo, a major flop, you're likely to have a nightmare anyway. An expensive one. So I made the decision to install sliders.

Hah, funny you posted this, I actually haven't decided yet. My gut feeling so far has been the same as yours, but I know others like Matt have a lot more experience at this.

My thinking has been that in a minor incident, the frame slider will make the difference between no damage and some damage. In a bigger incident, where'd you'd have at least some damage anyway, the frame slider might make the damage worse. Question then is which risk you want to take...

 

[Formula390]

Everyone has to make their own decision. Having a protection device cause potentially more damage than without it isn't acceptable to ME, and my experience also is likely somewhat skewered because I don't get the emails and calls of "today I crashed and the slider saved me from more damage." What I get are the "FUCK! I should have listened, and now I've got a totaled frame. Do you have any available?" messages.

Also, these frames are SOOOOOO not welded by robots! LOL I've come across so many welds that I'd fire the welder if they turned in a part like those it's astonishing! I had to account for this with my steering damper kit, because so many frames had horrific welds at the steering head. Or maybe the welder is a robot, and they just call it Ramesh.

 

[woodshed18]

how about those ones that go on the back of the swing arm where the spools go? or the same on the bottom of the fork?

Would not recommend spool/sliders that mount on the swingarm....
Snapped the mount after a low side whilst racing. Will not be using these again.

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