Enhancing The Stock Brakes

I often hear many people complaining about the stock T-Maxx brakes, and how they are weak. Many times the first suggestion they receive is to replace the brake disk or pads with an aftermarket solution. While this will work, most brake upgrades are rather pricey considering what you get. Especially considering the fact that I've found that the stock brakes are more than adequate, with a few quick and easy improvements.

First of all, double up on the brake pads. This prevents them from bending slightly when you start giving the brakes a healthy workout when driving. I use Shoe-Goo (which is available at most department or shoe stores) to glue the pads together. Then I use a ballpoint pen spring between the sets of pads to keep them away from the disk when the brake isn't being applied. I only use about 3 coils of the spring, so cut off what you need and throw the rest away.

The tubing on the brake arm can be shortened considerably. This will help provide a firmer feel to the brakes. I snipped off about 1/4 inch of the tubing and then placed it back on the brake linkage. You will also need to slide the adjustment collar further up the brake rod as well, after you shorten the tubing. The proper location for the adjustment collar will vary depending upon how much braking power you desire. Be sure you check that, when the throttle servo is centered, the brake is not engaged against the brake disk.

Another area you may want to address is the throttle/brake servo. The Traxxas 2018 that comes stock, is a little on the weak side in the torque department. If you replace your steering servo, which is a commonly performed upgrade, use the stock Traxxas 2055 that was performing the steering duties as your new throttle/brake servo. It has a much higher torque rating, which will give you a lot more braking power.

One last area that you can address which will help the braking ability of your T-Maxx is to purchase some aluminum throttle servo mounts, such as these from Traxxas. While aluminum mounts can set you back around $20, they don't flex like the stock plastic mounts do when they encounter heavy braking conditions. This is the most expensive part of the upgrade I've laid out, and it's not necessary as the other improvements alone will make a dramatic difference. However using them will lead to an even stronger brake setup.

Once these improvements have been made, you should notice a great improvement to your brakes. After I made these small changes, I'm able to lock my brakes up when I apply the brakes fully.