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ImOldGregg

Madcap parts help

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Hi Everyone,

I'm new to this forum so go easy on me! Have finally got around to digging my old madcap out of the old man's garage and have completed stripped down and rebuilt. All is working perfectly - except the from steering column ( I think its called the C-HUB? Its the part that houses the steering knuckle on the front) is broken.

I have searched the internet pretty extensively looking for a replacement part and I cannot find it anywhere.

I am basically just looking for alternatives that people may have used or know that I could use as a replacement? I have searched the forum and seen this thread

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=63631

and the TRF201 is mentioned as possibly fitting?

I am just wondering if anyone else has experience with this or knows a part that definitely would fit before I start spending money. I'm guessing this is the issue with running vintage cars. :(

Any help would be very much appreciated! In the meantime I have ordered some Polymorph plastic putty to try and bodge the existing broken one!

Part I am after is also shown in the diagram in the first post - its the madcap chub C4 : http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=63631

Cheers and thanks in advance,

Al

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Excellent thanks very much James! :D

That will be one very happy 4 year old at the weekend now (and dad)...

Might start saving up for a modern Tamiya equivalent with a bit more strength now. Its a great car to run but i'm just gonna worry about breaking other parts!

Cheers

Alex

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No problem. I bought 2 sets when I done a full restoration on my Madcap. :) I still run my Madcap occasionally, its a very fun buggy to run. But as you say I am always worried about parts breaking with its age, plus those 1.9" front tyres are literally impossible to find these days :(

James

:)

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Yeah they do seem to break pretty easy. the diff is slipping a little too but I think it just needs tightening. Maybe get some locktite.

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Check if the diff is already using the optional 0.05mm shims inside. The shims give the diff some ability to handle extra power without slipping. If the shims were not used and you do not have any on hand, it can be difficult to find replacements. They are part of Tamiya 53043 which are quite expensive. I really should measure the ID and OD of the shims and see if replacements can be found elsewhere.

Also, if you did not personally rebuild the diff, or if you are not sure if ball diff grease was used during assembly, then it would be best to rebuild the diff with the shims and use ball diff grease (not just any old grease). Ball diff grease is specially designed to allow the balls to seat against the flat washers (races) and not slip like traditional grease. I use motor cleaner spray to completely clean all diff parts once dissassembled, including the balls (don't lose them!) before reassembly.

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Check if the diff is already using the optional 0.05mm shims inside. The shims give the diff some ability to handle extra power without slipping. If the shims were not used and you do not have any on hand, it can be difficult to find replacements. They are part of Tamiya 53043 which are quite expensive. I really should measure the ID and OD of the shims and see if replacements can be found elsewhere.

Also, if you did not personally rebuild the diff, or if you are not sure if ball diff grease was used during assembly, then it would be best to rebuild the diff with the shims and use ball diff grease (not just any old grease). Ball diff grease is specially designed to allow the balls to seat against the flat washers (races) and not slip like traditional grease. I use motor cleaner spray to completely clean all diff parts once dissassembled, including the balls (don't lose them!) before reassembly.

Great advice thanks, I have not used ball diff grease, but silicone lubricant which I was told was an alternative. Thought this might be the issue so have ordered some Tamiya Ball Diff grease. Will disassemble and rebuild. I notice that the 3 grub screws holding the diff housing have loosened so I assumed that was the issue. When I tighten the car runs fine for about 10 mins, then begins to slip again. Grr! Is it worth using some locktite on the screws? I assmume they have silicone lube all over them which might be causing the slipping

I'll take it apart and try again.

Cheers :) - Such a helpful forum!

Also im not sure what the shims would look like - very thin large washers? I found something like that in my toolkit but not sure what they were from.. will have a google.

Edited by ImOldGregg

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Interesting. I've never had the 3 diff screws loosen on my cars yet. I screw them tight and they just stay there. That said, I do not see why you couldn't use some blue locktite (Tamiya thread lock if you have any of that would work fine). As long as you can undo the screws when needed you'll be fine.

The shims are extremely thin (thinner than a piece of paper) shiny metal washers with something like a 5mm or 6mm inner diameter and 8mm to 10mm outer diameter (just ballpark guessing here as I don't have one here in front of me to reference) and I am fairly certain are just 0.05mm thick (that's 1/2 of a 10th of a millimeter!). They are quite easy to accidentally bend during handling. Tamiya sells shims in various sizes, but the thinnest I've seen is 0.1mm, which is twice as thick and could cause the diff to become too tight if they were used. Shims should be installed in pairs. Putting one shim on one side only isn't a good idea because it will make that side of the diff stiffer to break free resulting in an uneven power distribution to the rear wheels.

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Yup that sounds very similar to the ones I have - I will check when I get home and maybe take a photo. Have a feeling they both have a slight crease in them, maybe I can flatten it out...

Cheers

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I got a quote from Knapp Fasteners for 20 shims and they wanted $4.74 each. Forget that.

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I've stripped the diff, cleaned, rebuilt with proper Tamiya diff grease, and used loctite on the grub screws... car is much much better now, doesn't slip at all. hopefully it will stay that way!

Lesson learned - don't use anything but Ball diff grease on a ball diff!

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