TA-Mark

Here's a list of the parts in my showroom. Most of the suspension is the same as TA01 (Except dogbones, arms, upper links, steering links). I would recommend not using alloy suspension arms. Hit anything and it will tear the mounts off the gearbox instead of just tear up a cheap plastic arm. Do replace the heavy steel screw that holds the two halves of the arms together with lighter aluminium screws. Asiatees.com will have just about everything you need in their TA01 or TA02 selections. (Just rememeber the front steering knuckles are TA01, and not TA02, the rest is the same). Easiest way to get a FRP chassis set is to buy a 'fix-er-upper' Top Force from ebay and raid it for parts (not to mention it's the cheapest way). There's also a really good build thread on the forum by djmcnz if you search for it.

NUTY PIGY (R minus the tail). RUN IT GIT Y I RUN

If it doesn't steer straight, you don't get to that 60km/h. Instead you get 'bounce once, bounce twice and then cartwheels'. :lol:

When your Grasshopper and Lunchbox does 35mph+ (60km/h) it needs to be able to go in a straight line

Do you have the motor mount up the right way? It makes a difference. 24:66 (6.7:1 FDR) is pretty tall gearing. 27 turn brushed, 17.5 turn brushless gearing.

Transmitter sub-trims are designed with the Tamiya OCD in mind. You get a perfect zero on the main trim everytime.

17.5T or 18.5T brushless and forget about ever needing to rebuild it. About the same speed as 27 turn brushed motor (or a touch slower) without the hassles.

Stock doesn't mean they got it right. On one of my boats I needed to drop the screw size by 3mm diameter before it was right. The battery was litterally smoking after it's first test run with the supplied screw. What is unexpected to the boating beginner is that it actually goes quicker through the water with the right size screw as the motor can rev out to it's comfort zone. Not to mention better runtimes, and less strain on the ESC and battery. It's much the same as getting the right FDR in a car when you fit a hotter motor. I don't think you'd get banned for talking about RC on a RC forum. Maybe the thread should have been in 'electrical' or 'other makes' and not in 'general' though. A mod will move it if it's a problem I'm sure. Twinset (and the other mods) are pretty good to us users.

If your packs are getting overly hot in a boat change to one size smaller diameter water screw (reduces load).

I personally have had little success with any of the Venom Racing products. Their motors are pure junk. Their battery packs are poor, with the exception of their Ni-Cd 1800mAh packs which have all been good and still going after many years. The Ni-MH packs of theirs I bought didn't even last out 100 cycles before one or more cells in the pack failed. About 12min runtime from their Ni-Cd 1800mAh packs with kit motors and kit supplied ESCs in 4WD buggys. I bought them for my kids and for the roto-starter for the HPI nitros. The Intellect Ni-MH packs I bought were good, but they couldn't handle the discharge rates required for the MambaMax systems I'm using in most cars. Can't comment on the other brands you mentioned.

All I see available is these Yeah Racing ones (RCMart). The 3Racing website lists nothing anymore for the TA01/02/03/DF01.

I was saying the Ballistic tyres are 2.2", not the Astute wheels. Given that the Astute front tyres are the same part number as the Bear Hawk's fronts, the Bear Hawk's front wheels are 2.0". Try these Shumacher's or these for a fit. These from CRP.

Can't say I've seen a 1.9" 2WD front wheel on a buggy before. 1.55" and 1.75" (SRBs and vintage Tamiya), 2.0", 2.16" (Tamiya) or 2.2". I read on other forums guys are using these for racing on the Associated buggys, but I can't find anywhere that gives a dimension. My guess would be 2.2".

"Candy" paint is where you spray on a base colour (usually much darker than the finish colour or even black), then overcoat that with a colour tinted clear until the desired brightness is reached. Then the flake is applied to the top of that in crystal clear coats. Then on top of that you need enough coats of clear to cover all those bumps the flake made. Trying to do this with cans will be nigh on impossible. Possibly to do it with Tamiya colour, flat black (TS-6) or Maroon (TS-11), then over that clear red (TS-74), then the flake on that, then many coats of clear (TS-13). (EDIT... Oops didn't see the candy green, most people go red. It's TS-6 black or TS-2 for dark green, then I don't see the X-25 in a spray. Tamiya's 'Candy Lime Green' TS-52 doesn't look very 'candy' to me at all when you compare it to traditional candy applications). I have done a similar paint finish on my 1:1 car. Started with the factory colour as the base colour (an icky grey/green), then over that I used gold pearl (made the green more goldish), then over that I put holographic metal flakes, then over that about 30 coats of clear to get it flat again. 30 coats is actually 10 sprays (3 dusting coats for each spray), and sanding between each spray. This was all using 2K (2-pack) which will dry quickly overnight with high build qualities (without a booth) and can be sanded the next day.

What the alloy part does is reduce the wear rate in the holes for the bent wire ackerman link. It's the holes becoming enlarged that causes the slop between the bell cranks. To fit a more sturdy ackerman link in there you need to remove the bracing on the plastic tub, which greatly reduces it's strength to the point that a bad jump will snap off the front gearbox (BTDT).

Been waiting for some new packets of small bits to arrive. I broke them all making the previous parts Sub 1.0mm bits are very fragile, especially when cutting metals. In the meantime I've had the CNC busy with other jobs and a few special requests. Nothing RC related though

You're limited for space for the ackerman link when using the plastic tub, so ball cups/screws and a threaded rod like a Top Force will not fit. Your best option is to go for the 3Racing bell cranks.

GPM used to make both types, but they discontinued the set for the plastic tub. TA2048 is for the FRP chassis and TA2047 is for the plastic tub. Your current options are 3Racing or Yeah Racing versions.

Part number is #53048 for the spike 2WD front tyres. Pretty hard to find on a good day. There are other non-tamiya options like Shumacher, or Ballistic (Check the products page for Ballistic Tyres).

Firstly you need to determine where the slop is in the steering system. Hold each part, then move the next to see how much each joint is contributing to the overall slop. The usually spots are the ball cups themselves. The plastics in the ballcups do go hard with age, and they stretch when they've been popped on and off many times. Replace with new ball cups. While you have them off check the ball screw for wear. When dirt and grit gets in the joint it does wear the ball slightly. The bent piece of wire akerman link is the next spot that wears badly. The holes in the steering bellcranks will enlarge. Choices here are replace the bellcranks with some 3Racing alloy ones, or new plastic ones, or put some CA glue in the holes and redrill the holes if on a tight budget. Next spot is the pivot stepped screw that holds the bellcranks to the tub. You can shim these to remove slop. The shim's inner diameter needs to fit over the stepped part of the screw and not just the thread. Last spot is the servo saver itself. Plastic servo springs are well known to have a little slop in them. Replace with a new one or upgrade to a better one. While you have the servo saver off, also check the output spline of the servo that the bushing is not worn. Cheaper basic servos have plastic bushings and they do wear.

When something was originally sold as an assembly kit, just by it being built means it's 'used', whether it has been run or not. A 'new' Hilux 4x4 would be still in it's box, and never have been opened.

What's odd is that you don't get 1239 sales and a 100% feedback rating by ripping people off.

This little device will do what you want. Turns the switch on/off as it passes the 50% point of the channel.

Watching the video of the race that night is a barrel of laughs for that very reason. Offer of a NIB kit as the prize for the end of the season is real motivation for a 40+ male to move quickly (and awkwardly).

I have these items (and shower) ready to fit into my man cave, just need some timber to build rooms (toilet/shower) and the time to do it. Fridge, sink and oven for the kitchenette. And I have a bed too! Beats sleepin' on the couch when it's better to keep your distance from the mrs. If I had much extra money I would buy more land for some room to build more RC tracks.