42309 Tamiya TRF 37t Aluminium one way pulley review

After speaking to the team drivers earlier in the year I was really keen to get my hands on the new 37t Aluminium pulley released by Tamiya's TRF group. It is labelled as a one way pulley although for the majority of us Tamiya racers it will be used on our front spools (Or Direct Couplings.. which no-one calls them).

The pulley itself is coated in a high lubrication fluorine coating for a very smooth transfer of power. The edge of the pulley is a dark hardened alloy for added strength.

The pulley is 37T so it is able to be used on a wide range of Tamiya chassis that have a spool or one way attached. So you could fit them on your TRF419X. TRF419, TRF418, TRF417 and the excellent TA07.

The part is not cheap, but when you get it out of the packet you can see that it finished to a very high quality. I was eager to mount it into my TRF419X and see how it felt.

The new alloy pulley weighs 4g heavier than the standard plastic pulley. This is not an issue when running a pokey 17.5 or above but if running a slower stock class then you might have to consider the extra rotational mass, no matter how minor.

As you can imagine the part is a straight swap. The actual rims of the pulley are slightly lower than the kit plastic parts, but they are still high enough to ensure that the belt will stay seated and the part should never really flex much. It is also slightly more narrow, again thanks to the extra precision of the machined part.

When re-assembled the front belt seats really well in the pulley and the drivetrain felt really smooth as I span the wheels whilst checking everything was aligned.

It undeniably looks the business, however the big question is, does it make a difference in the handling? I was a little dubious but I am quite fussy about response out of a corner and the car did feel a little more lively as it sprinted out of the slower corners. Also it may be the extra weight adding more of a gyroscopic effect at the front of the car, but I felt like it had more grip and hence more corner speed on the infield corners where I would keep on the throttle. I was able to nudge the stick a little further forward than I would have before. It wasn't a huge amount but it was quicker, and my lap time did improve marginally.

Is it an essential upgrade? The answer is probably no. Although I think if you are running on mid-size and larger tracks you may well notice a difference thanks to the range of corners that you will encounter, and when this is combined with slightly increased responsiveness of the car out of corners you might find you are more able to trim a little of your lap time. On smaller tighter tracks with less mid speed corners you will not really notice as much of a difference.

Me, well I think I will also treat my TA07 to a pulley as well come payday, as any gains in speed are always well received, no matter how marginal. Next up the diff cover.