Destiny RX-10SR build review setting & race report

The modern touring car scene is a constant world of development. New ideas are tried & tested on a regular basis. Racers are always searching for that last fraction of a second that will put them onto the top step of the podium

I started racing the Destiny RX-10S back in 2016. Although the car had shown great promise, I had to try many things & fit various parts that would help me get the best out of the car. When an updated car was announced, I was keen to get my hands on it to see if they had unlocked the potential of the chassis. So let's take a closer look

Unboxing & manual

The packaging is the same as the previous model with just a different sticker to denote the new car. This did not need any improvement made, it’s only a box to hold all the parts!

The manual follows the same style as the previous car. This contains all the information you require to build the car correctly. All the part numbers match up & the shims listed are all correct. I found in the previous manual a few shims not listed correctly, this is perfect everywhere. You also get an exploded diagram with part numbers listed, this is great as you don’t need to dig through the whole manual to find a specific area to the car to find a part number

Towards the back, you get an explanation of some of the new updates. The option of final drive ratio is fully explained & what each adjustment will do to the car. You also get a chart of all the pivot block settings, we will get into that later in the review

The bags are clearly marked in order from A-F, there is not going between bags during the build.

I went for the stock RX-10SR. This comes with a bag marked 37t which contains the necessary pulleys/ belts to build it

For this review I will not do a detailed step by step build as the chassis is a revision of the RX-10S, I will concentrate to the updated parts & hopefully explain their functions. I will also try to include build tips that I found useful during the build

Pivot blocks

Most manufactures now offer pivot blocks with plastic inserts to change the toe angles. Destiny has now followed suit. On the previous chassis, I had to use a set from a different manufacture that did fit, but sat 0.5mm lower.

The positions are clearly marked & the instructions are very clear to which insert fits into which position. They are a very snug fitment which eliminates any form of free play

Chassis & bulkheads

The chassis has been updated with symmetrical cut outs for the battery tape slots & motor. This eliminates any difference in flex side to side, giving a more balanced chassis. The bulkheads are now sitting slightly lower to aid with the centre of gravity. I still choose not to seal the edges of the chassis with CA glue. This is purely my personal preference from racing over the years as I feel that is allows the natural flex in the chassis. Although many would still recommend you follow the instructions & seal the edges to prevent delamination of the carbon.

When building the bulkheads to the chassis, you want all the lower bulkheads to fit perfectly aligned with each other. I use the Techra setup wand to achieve this. Although the wand was not designed for the Destiny, 4 holes now match up with the guides for 22mm bulkhead setting marked Y (We all know which manufacturer this represents!) The closest holes that would match up on the previous car were 0.5mm offset so they couldn't be used. These now line up perfectly.

The four silver screws show how you can mount the wand onto the chassis

The motor mount is a very low piece that has lots of screw holes. This gives you the option of adding/removing screws to add/ remove flex depending on track conditions. Although you don’t fit them as a kit setup, the M2 screws/ washers are provided.

When screwing the motor mount in, I thought the screws looked like they would protrude a bit too far, potentially catching on the spur gear. The kit comes with an 88t 64dp spur gear in the 37t pulley bag. To achieve my ideal gearing for the championship I was competing in, I fitted a 106t 64dp. Even with a large spur the screws underneath the motor mount do not interfere in any way with the spur gear.

Differentials

These now use a separate pulley design. This gives you the option to fit different sized pulleys to suit the class, driving style etc.

TIP: Glue the pulley to the differential & spool. 

When I originally built up the differential I found there was a lot of movement between the pulley & the differential, even when it’s fully tightened down.

The manual does not tell you this, but if it’s not glued, it will wear very quickly, causing premature failure. I filled the differential with 2000cst as where I will be racing it has very low traction.

The Spool uses stronger outdrives than the previous design, so the need for steel outdrives is not critical for stock racing. The differential built with no issues & feels very free.

Upon checking the included kit bearings before fitment, I found the differential bearings felt a little notchy. I removed a seal, added a drop of oil & they now feel very smooth.

There was a little too much diff end float when fitted into the bulkheads. 2x 0.2mm shims sorted this, now there is a tiny bit of play. It its tight, it can put excessive load on the bearings

Steering

When the previous model came out, I had issues with the steering rack popping off. I was not a fan of the solution which was to fit washers underneath as I found damage to the rack edges. An upgraded steel rack was released last year. This is thicker, heavier & has a deeper ridge. Since fitting this, I have had ZERO issues. I love the linear feel of the steering rack. There is also the benefit of extra weight, so can help to bring the car up to the required weight limit. I have decided to carry this straight over to the new car

The previous model had a separate steering mounting to the servo mount. This now a 1 piece affair, combining the steering mounting & servo all together which only requires 3 screws to affix to the chassis. This helps keep the mounting off the car, enabling more flex & helping with steering feel. The old mount used to have a quick Ackerman adjustment, this has now gone, but can still be adjusted by adding washers onto the ball ends. There is also a ridge machined into the mounting plate to allow the turnbuckle to move & not hit it when the steering is applied on full lock

I mounted my faithful SRT 8015 servo & the Tamiya 51000 servo saver to the mounting points & bolted it to the vehicle. Zero issues with fitment & clearance

Suspension

The suspension arms are the same design as the previous car. However Destiny have improved the plastic material that they are manufactured with. Also previously I had used other manufactures turnbuckles but the new ones are fine and work well.

The only issue I had was the C hub upper ball end was sticky on the turn buckle, not allowing smooth operation. However, there is a very easy fix. Stick the ball end in a drill on a slow speed, polish the ball end with a decent metal polish using a microfiber until shiny & this ensured a silky smooth suspension action with no detriment to fitment

As shown, I like to use the optional front DCJ’s & 4mm front hexes with a 0.5mm shim. This improves the initial steering feel for me, so I fitted them straight away from new

Top tip: To prevent any issues with damaging the position of the rear hub upper ball link, insert a grub screw into the other hole that isn’t being used. I don’t fit the layshaft grub screws, so these were surplus to requirements

When I opened the parts bag for the suspension, I noticed that there were a couple of small shims that were in the packet, but no mention of them in the manual. When I built the rear suspension up, I found that I had some play once the pivot blocks were fitted. These shims are 0.2mm & take out all the play that was there, make sure you fit them!

The shock absorbers are greatly improved in terms of fitment. The shock bodies & pistons look the same as the previous model, but everything fits together much better. There is no unnecessary movement & they feel much more precise and smooth. The threaded collars have a silver mark on 1 notch, so you can keep track of position & a difference in heights. I drilled the caps as I prefer zero rebound. Bleeding was no problem & consistent rebound was achieved

Electrics & shakedown

I carried my electrics over from my previous car. I use a Hobbywing Justock stock spec ESC. This is a very small unit, so keeps the weight down & has plenty of power. I also use a Sanwa RX482 receiver, so the antenna mount has not been fitted

Once everything was in place, I stuck the car on the setup gauges, put the kit setup on (albeit a few small changes for the championship to get the tyres to work)

I gave the car a test run at my local club. Although we use a different carpet to the championship I will be competing in, I put some practice tyres & a different additive. The car felt great from the start, a lot steering was achieved from the start & it carried more corner speed than the previous car

CWIC XRS UK Round 4

The car was built to compete in this championship. The CWIC (Chippenham Model Car Club) host the Xray Racing Series (XRS) for the UK. They use black ETS style carpet, Hudy control tyres & Hudy handout additive. I bolted in the handout Hobbywing 13.5t handout motor & headed out for controlled practice to scrub a new set of tyres in (the old wheels had cracked) & see how the car performs on the track

Practice

Due to previous results & average driver seeding, I was in heat 7, car 6. This was the top heat, so had the top drivers in the championship competing. The first few laps were ok, just taking the edge off the new tyres, then the car became stable & I was able to really push it. With ETS style carpet, you generally run an aluminum chassis. However, the traction is low due to a few factors, so the carbon chassis seems like a better choice.

The car felt really good from the start, the steering felt really sharp, yet very stable at the same time. Although the standard rear toe setting was 2.4 degrees, it felt like it had more rear end grip compared to the previous car

After 1 minute, I was called as having the fastest lap, this was a bit of a surprise as I was just trying to learn the lines of the layout. Once I passed a few slower cars, I felt the car was really getting into its stride. Car 1 resumed the fastest lap after the 2 minute count so I just concentrated on learning the lines, seeing how far I could push the car. With 30 seconds to go, I was re called as having the fastest lap. I was the only racer to go under a 13 second lap, I topped the practice round.

Qualifying

The car felt really good so, I installed a freshly charged battery, applied some additive & headed out into qualifying with good expectations. The car didn’t feel as good as practice, it took too long for the tyres to get into the groove. Although I made up a few places, I didn’t feel like I had the same pace as practice. On the last lap, I hit a dot & flipped the car onto its roof. Unfortunately, I had just lapped a car & that car collided with me while I was on my roof. Not his fault, there was nothing that could be done to avoid it. The battery ejected from the car & the marshal had to recover the car. I forgot to file the edges of the battery cut outs, hence why the tape snapped. I also found a DCJ pin had come out, caused by the circlip coming off as a result of the accident.

Filed the battery slots, found a spare DCJ pin & put the car on the gauges. The car was a little bit out, but that was to be expected as it was a big crash! Nothing was bent or broken, a testament to a strong, yet reliable car. I also cleaned the tyres before applying additive, which I did in practice.

Although I was on a decent pace, I started round 2 9^th off the line. The tyre prep was a big help. The car started strong right from the start. Unfortunately, I spent the whole round trying to pass cars. When I had a clear track, I was actually leading the heat, looking to take TQ for the round. I was held up a little bit, I eventually finished 3^rd, 0.7 seconds behind the 1^st place so the pace was defiantly there. The car felt a little too stiff for my liking, so I removed 4 screws from the top deck & headed into round 3

I came into the 3^rd round a little too aggressive, I clipped a few bot dots, sending the car past a few apexes. The car awesome though, I was able to push really hard & the car showed no signs to letting go. I was nearly 2 seconds off scoring a 25 lap run with car 1 achieved, but I was only 0.08 seconds behind 2^nd place

The qualifying was on a round by round format with best 2/3 to count. I was tied on points with 3^rd, but lost out due to round 3 being considered. Due to my DNF in round 1, I lost out & had to settle for 4^th on the grid. I knew I was faster than the car in front, so had a good feeling for the finals

Finals

The grid is set in single file format, so reduces first corner crashes when someone tries to sneak up the inside. We set off with no crashes. I gave it a few corners, then looked to push for places. I was trying to find a way around car 3, but could find a good line. After 1 minute, car 3 ran wide into a barrier, so I saw my opportunity to make up the place. Car 3 decided to rejoin the race with no regard for the cars on the racing line & wiped me, car 5 & 6 off in 1 clean sweep. I came off worse & dropped back to 6^th. I was battling with 5^{th place,} he made a mistake & I was able to pass. 4^th place crashed coming onto the straight 7 I was back to my original starting place. With 1 minute to go, I managed to close the gap onto 3^rd & looked to battle. Unfortunately, a back marker held me up I wasn’t able to catch back up so I finished 4^th

I felt the car required a little more mid corner speed, it was pushing a little too much. I lower the inner camber links to 1.5mm & headed into final 2

We started off very clean. I ran wide into a corner half way around lap 1 & car 5 managed to sneak up the inside. He battled with 3^rd, they touched and span on the straight. I was able to avoid the accident & moved up to 3^rd place. This is how the final finished. I lost too much time at the start to catch 2^nd. 4^th place was closing but ran out of time to mount an attack

The points for the championship are a total of both final finishes. As I finished 4^th & 3^rd, I finished 3^rd overall. An excellent debut for the new car!

Set-up

Here is the setup sheet I ended up on. This was ideal for the track conditions

Summary

The original Destiny RX-10S was their first attempt at making a competitive car. While some parts had to be changed to get the most out of the car, I felt the potential in the brand was there

With this new car, all the issues had been addressed & we now have a serious contender in the TC market. The quality is really good & was one of the easiest cars I have put together. I spent very little time fettling parts to make them fit. The suspension arm fitment was so good, the pins fell straight through with 1 pass of an arm reamer!

In terms of driving, the car generates a lot more traction. The steering has a very linear feel that enables you to carry more corner speed. The rear felt a lot more stable, even with only 2.4 degrees of rear toe (I previously ran 3 degrees). I could throw it into a corner & there were no nasty surprises. I was struggling to make the A final with the previous car, I am now very close to the top of the time sheets. TQ & the win will hopefully come very soon!

What’s next?

I had to fit nearly 70g to bring the car up to the 1350g limit. I now have the 50g center balance weight & the 10g weights to sit just in front of the steering.

Although I am looking to add weight, I will be fitting a half set of Moodyfools titanium screw set. This will lower the center of gravity, aiding traction. I am also fitting a set of Abec7 ceramic bearings. These will reduce friction in the drivetrain, increasing efficiency 

All of these parts will be fitted in preparation for round 6 of the CWIC/XRS where I will give an update on the Destiny RX-10SR

Thanks to Zen Racing for supplying the car
SRT/ RPRC distribution for the servo
Moodyfools for the titanium & droop screws
Forest raceway for trackside pictures
Jason Butterfield for the bearings