Brushless Radio Controlled Cars
News, reviews, tuning and hop-ups
RC Glossary - The A to Z of Radio Control
O
Off-Road-- Any type of running surface that is not on a paved surface. Off-Road can
mean gravel, loose or hard-packed dirt, grass, etc. Racing classes that run on off-road
surfaces include buggies, trucks, truggies and usually rally cars.
Offset - see Wheel
Offset
One-Way -- A term that refers to either one-way diffs or one-way pulleys..
One-Way
Bearing --A special and expensive type of bearing that will only allow a shaft to
turn in one direction.
One-Way Diff-- At some points on a race track, the inside wheels
can lift up because of high cornering forces. This causes a normal ball diff or gear
diff to ;unload. A ball diff prevents diff unloading because it does not allow the
tire to spin less than the speed of the belt that turns the pulley. One-way diffs
do take getting used to, because you must use very light braking power or none at
all. When brakes are applied to a car using one-way diffs only the rear wheels will
stop, making the car spin out very easily. Most drivers will need practice to get
used to one-ways, but for racers on high-grip surfaces they can be a valuable tuning
aid.
One-Way Pulley--One-way pulleys operate in the same manner as one-way diffs,
except the one-way action takes place on a gear shaft instead of the front axle of
the car. One-way diffs and pulleys do take getting used to, because you must use
very light braking power or none at all. When brakes are applied to a car using one-way
pulleys only the rear wheels will stop, making the car spin out very easily. Most
drivers will need practice to get used to one-ways, but for racers on high-grip surfaces
they can be a valuable tuning aid.
O-Ring -- A donut-shaped circle of rubber or silicone that seals rotating or sliding
shafts, used in areas like shock absorbers and differentials.
Outdrive -- The part
of the differential that outputs power to dogbones or universal dogbones.
Oval --
The American-style stock car type of racing, where cars compete on oval tracks of
different shapes (true oval, square oval, tri-oval, etc.) and are tuned to only go
straight or left. Other types of vehicles not covered in this glossary also compete
on ovals, including sprint cars, midgets, motorcycles, snowmobiles, etc. In Rc terms,
most oval race cars are pan cars, with all the weight (batteries, electronics, etc.)
on the left side so the car is the most stable when turning left.
Oversteer-- (also
loose) Your car's rear end keeps swinging around? Condition: oversteer. The rear
tires in an oversteering ('loose') condition lose traction before the front wheels,
wasting power as the tires slip, looking for something to grip to. You may need stickier
(or newer) tires, more rear downforce or there may be other problems. Shock and weight
settings may need adjusting too.
