TT02B Neo Scorcher Pink Metallic Special

[XV Pilot 1936]

This thread details the build of the TT02B Neo Scorcher Bright Pink Metallic Special that I received for Christmas from my wonderful wife.

To me, the TT02B is far more of a successor to the DF02 than the DF03 ever was, being the buggy sibling of the TT02, just as the DF02 was the buggy sibling of the TT01. As such, I will be drawing parallels between the DF02 and TT02B, highlighting the differences and similarities, and trying to answer then question I posed myself at the time of its release: "Is it really a better buggy?"

I was lucky enough to receive a selection of hop-ups along with the kit, so these will be included in the build from the outset. I will also document any other hop-ups I add further down the line. As per usual, I will try to keep to hop-ups that improve reliability and/or performance, steering clear of those that are purely bling.

[SteveU30 1011]

Looking forward to this as I'm really interested whether I should chuck a load of hop-ups at my Rising Storm or go for a Neo Scorcher instead, subscribed!

[zakspeed 187]

Look forward to seeing the write up. This is a model that at the price they are offered at do not look a bad deal at all. Will see what you make of it.

[Nobbi1977 1793]

Looking forward to this. One of these might be my first 4WD :-)

[XV Pilot 1936]

Great! On with the build then!

The first page of build instructions deals with the installation of the propshaft and spur.

Like the DF02 before it, the TT02B comes with a plastic propshaft and composite plastic/metal drive cups. My DF02 is still on its original drive cups after several years of use, so I see no reason not to trust the ones that came with the TT02B.

However my experiences with the wobbly DF02 propshaft made me distrust the plastic item supplied with the TT02B, even though it does feel stiffer, so an alloy upgrade was fitted at the outset.

Oddly, the Tamiya alloy shaft is quite short compared to the plastic one. When fitted, it allows the drive cups and their connected shafts to move backwards and forwards by several mm. This isn't a problem for the rear one which is kept in place by the spur gear adaptor, but the front one moves a lot. Not enough to disengage from the drive pinion, but more than I'd like. My solution was to fit an O ring into each drive cup. This reduces the amount of movement while still leaving enough to allow for chassis flex.

The reports I have read of failed plastic rear drive pinions led me to decide to fit a metal DF02 item at the back to avoid such failures on my car. The DF02 drive pinion has a longer shank than the stock plastic item, so it needed a bit of filing to fit, but was easily done.

[XV Pilot 1936]

The next page deals with installing the propshaft, spur and front diff in the chassis tub.

The propshaft lacks the protection it has in the DF02, so I suspect the blue anodising won't stay pristine for long. It is however very easy to fit.

The front diff doesn't suffer as much stress as the rear one, so I am using the stock plastic components here as they are a fair bit lighter than the metal DF02 items.

I have chosen to replace all the stock bushings with rubber sealed bearings for longevity and ease of maintenance.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Things are moving along now, with the rear diff and motor going in on the next page.

Having read of the trouble that the Boondal guys were having with the plastic rear diff flexing in their TT02B race cars, this was another area that I wanted to upgrade from the outset. Luckily the sturdy metal DF02 diff fits perfectly in the rear of the car.

My plan is to run a 13.5T brushless, hence the alloy motor mount, but that will have to wait until next payday, so the stock Torque Tuned is in there for now. The motor mount is a lot less wobbly than the DF02 item, as it is secured with two screws through the bottom of the chassis as well as being held down by the spur cover.

It is also nice to note that, like its predecessor, the TT02B kit includes a sturdy steel pinion rather than the usual cheese one found in most kits.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Rear suspension arms are attached on the next page.

The U-shaped pins that attach the arms tie in with the chassis tub at the front, which appears to be a good, secure arrangement. Lower arm attachments were a weak point on the DF02, and it is nice to see that this area has received attention on the TT02B.

The only point at which I deviated from the instructions on this page was to include a washer between the rearmost screw and the rubbery plastic bumper, to stop the screw pulling through the plastic like it did on my DF01.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Front lower arms and bumper are attached next.

The front arms are attached to a subassembly, rather than to the tub directly. This makes things a bit more complex compared to the DF02, but it should mean that if the car suffers front-end damage, the subassembly should bear the brunt of it, preserving the tub and making for a simpler repair. All in all, I consider it a step forward, although I am sure the subassembly could have been simplified - I see no reason why the A9 parts couldn't have been integrated into A12 for example.

Once again, washers were added to spread the load from the screw heads and hopefully extend the life of the bumper.

[XV Pilot 1936]

The next few pages of the manual deal with installing the plastic upper arms, dog bones, etc.

However I broke away from the manual at this point and installed a full Tamiya turnbuckle kit and GPM alloy dog bones instead.

Same at the back:

The GPM TT02B alloy dog bones are very sturdy, almost comically so. To me they look a bit over the top though, so in the end I decided to ditch them in favour of a set of slimmer, more elegant GPM DF02 alloy dog bones.

In order to accommodate the extra length of the DF02 dog bones, I swapped out the stock diff drive cups for the shorter DF02 items, and fitted DF02 axles with their deeper recesses. The TT02B hubs, knuckles, etc come straight from the DF02, so the axles fit without a problem.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Although the manual then goes on to deal with shock assembly and fitment, I decided to skip ahead and install another GPM upgrade at this point. I run GPM ballraced steering assemblies in my DF01 and DF02 to good effect, so I thought the TT02B deserved the same.

The GPM ballraced alloy steering assembly is a very nicely made piece of kit, providing significant reductions in slop and friction compared to the stock plastic components, and costing considerably less than the Tamiya alloy equivalent.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Having assembled most of the key "clean" assemblies, it was time to clear the work area and build the shocks.

Previous TT02B build threads have pointed out that the amount of oil provided is not quite enough to fill all four shocks, so I set out to see if this was really the case. I was very cautious not to spill any, or overfill any of the cylinders, and I left the bottle inverted for about 20 mins to drain every last drop. It was close, but I managed to fill all 4 shocks. There was however no spare oil left at all, so there is no margin for error - worth noting if you don't have another bottle of oil easily available.

Once the shocks were built, I attached them using brass ball fittings rather than the stock stepped screws. This makes for a less sloppy fitment, and looks more professional I think.

Like the DF02 before it, the shocks don't give a lot of ride height. I might consider fitting longer ones at some point.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Steering servo is then installed.

It is nice to see that Tamiya have at last gone for a servo post design that allows the use of all 4 screw holes on the servo mounting tabs.

[GregM 1109]

Nice build so far, thanks! when you run your car, could you please report how the alloy dogbones hold up? My guess is they could be more prone to twisting than steel ones. But I could be wrong.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Nice build so far, thanks! when you run your car, could you please report how the alloy dogbones hold up? My guess is they could be more prone to twisting than steel ones. But I could be wrong.

I have been running the same alloy dogbones in my TZ-powered DF02 for about a year now, with no issues so far, so I am reasonably confident that they will survive. If they don't, I have a set of steel DF02 dogbones in my spares box to take their place. I will let you know what happens!

[GregM 1109]

Thanks a lot! this is good to hear.

[Sandster 285]

Enjoying the read so far. I think one of these will be in my possession soon.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Like most Tamiyas, the TT02B comes with plastic wheel hexes. Experience has shown that these are prone to cracking, especially in cold weather, so these days I fit alloy ones to all my runners.

In an attempt to improve the poor ground clearance, I am fitting the buggy with FTX Vantage wheels and tyres as they are a bit bigger than the stock items. These have shallower hex mouldings and thicker faces than Tamiya wheels, hence the use of 4mm hexes which ensure that there is enough axle thread protruding from the wheel faces for the wheel nuts to tighten fully.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Wheels and wing are on, and the ESC is in too. The car can now move under its own power.

I know the wiring is not the neatest - don't worry, it is only temporary. When I fit the 13.5T motor, I will shorten the motor leads and solder them straight to the motor, which should neaten things up considerably.

[XV Pilot 1936]

And the shell is done too!

The Bright Pink Metallic version of the Neo Scorcher comes with a shell that is pre-trimmed and pre-painted, so it was a simple matter of applying the decals to achieve a very neat-looking end result.

The instructions warn that the metallic finish has the potential to interfere with radio signals, and that the antenna has to be clear of the bodyshell to avoid this. However the little antenna on my Spectrum RX is only long enough to protrude about 10mm from the shell. I am not sure that this will be enough.

If it turns out that there are range issues, I will remove the metallic finish from the areas covered by the window stickers. This should allow the RX to "see" the incoming signal more easily.

[Nobbi1977 1793]

Like most Tamiyas, the TT02B comes with plastic wheel hexes. Experience has shown that these are prone to cracking, especially in cold weather, so these days I fit alloy ones to all my runners.

In an attempt to improve the poor ground clearance, I am fitting the buggy with FTX Vantage wheels and tyres as they are a bit bigger than the stock items. These have shallower hex mouldings and thicker faces than Tamiya wheels, hence the use of 4mm hexes.

Where do you get you hexes?

[SteveU30 1011]

Looks great matey, I love the Vantage wheels, I think they're my favourite buggy wheel!

[wood5tock 864]

I have been looking at one of these lately, (this and several other models as is the way of these things) and will be watching this with interest

[XV Pilot 1936]

Where do you get you hexes?

I seem to remember getting these from Racing Punk's EBay store, although it could also have been Modelsport. They have been in my bits box since last year sometime, so I can't be sure.

[XV Pilot 1936]

Looks great matey, I love the Vantage wheels, I think they're my favourite buggy wheel!

Thanks!

The FTX Vantage wheels are rather nice. I have the black ones on my TL01B, DF01 and DF02, and white ones on my M04T and of course the TT02B. People say they crack easily, but I haven't had any break on me so far!