Patent ID: 8317213

Claim:
A model vehicle slipper clutch, comprising: an input gear rotatably mounted on a first end of a shaft; a driver plate secured to a first face of the input gear for receiving a torque from the input gear; a spring member adjustably mounted to the first end of the shaft on a first side of the driver plate for applying an adjustable load to the driver plate in an axial direction of the shaft, wherein an adjustable stop is coupled on the first end of the shaft adjacent to the spring for applying a pre-loading force to the spring; an annulus mounted on the shaft on the first side of the driver plate, wherein the input gear is supported by the annulus for rotation about the shaft and for transferring the adjustable load from the spring to the driver plate in the axial direction of the shaft, wherein the adjustable stop moves along the shaft to actuate the spring and adjust the adjustable load applied to the driver plate, and wherein the input gear is removable from the annulus and from the driver plate without disturbing the pre-loading force applied by the adjustable stop to the spring; a driven plate coupled to the shaft on a second side of the driver plate opposite from the annulus, wherein the driven plate is coupled to the shaft to secure the driven plate against rotation on the shaft; and one or more cooling fins extending outwardly from a surface of the driven plate and along the surface of the driven plate, from a location closer to the rotational axis of the driven plate to a location farther from the rotational axis of the driven plate.