Wooders28

Even the reputable sellers get stuff wrong. Modelsport have the pinions for the DF03 listed as 48dp, the DF03 is 05mod, and although close, not close enough so eats spurs...😳

Kyosho mixed it up, by putting the male Tamiya plug on the battery and female on the MSC 🤦‍♂️., pretty sure my Marui Ninja had the Tamiya plug , (but with red and white wires?) , and the Mardave Meteor had one too, can't think of a manufacturer that had a different connector on their supplied MSC? They're only rated to around 15Amps, and with a sliver can (540sh - 7520) pulls 13A and upto 70A stalled...😬

ESC's are only a relatively new thing for Tamiya, for ages the MSC (eg - 9415001) was most definitely included in kits, and why the awful 'Tamiya plug' (Molex) became popular ,all because of Tamiyas popularity back then! Modern escs (outside in tamiya kits) usually come with Deans or XT60's (or bare wires to solder on your own).

(I posted this in another thread, but..) Not really tbh, just memories of the Tamiya heydays, standing in my LHS ,mesmerised by the cars I was watching on their TV, big jumps (for the time), superfast cars ,sand /dirt flying everywhere, fantastic!! Couldn't write my list to Santa quick enough...(Although, I was 12 by this time right enough, with 3 jobs to fund my, a̶d̶d̶i̶c̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ hobby). To Tamiyas lastest offering.....urm A 20yr old back end (which works, but just needs a slipper to keep with the cheap modern RTR offerings from Amazon etc) , with new steering and 12mm hex right enough , but trundling along just doesn't create the 'want' spark , especially in a sea of 'TO THE MOON' offerings from other manufacturers that kids are exposed to. Just frustrating to see a brand you valued so highly as a youngster, not keeping up , and seemingly falling by the wayside.

Haven't posted on here in a good while, as all my time off has been up and down the road to get time with my ill dad. Today I've been and got a brand new suit, and now the daunting task of writing his eulogy. Got my 50th to look forward to on Monday!! But its my long weekend on, will need to settle for meeting the rest of my family after work for a nice meal . Should have more time though, and there's an Avante 2011 peaking around the corner at me..😏

Can't think of any aftermarket gearbox cases ..🤔

I wouldn't over worry about kg ratings, as you can run into esc trouble if you go too much (the esc BEC rating will decide how powerful a servo you can have, same as the esc amp rating for the motor turn, its called 'brown out' and cuts esc out for a second, you can get 'Glitch Busters' that help stop it though ), so probably concentrate on reliability, as there's nothing worse than an evenings racing ruined, as you bought a cheap servo to save a few quid, so this rules out Amazon or eBay etc deals imo. I quite like the Corerc 9016MG as a budget servo, or a savox 1257tg for full race (although Savox have a reputation for being power hungry, and Brown out), had no issues with either, it's a bit of a mine field though, but if you stick to a recognised modelshop outlet, it narrows it down a bit.

The only thing I CAN'T think of for the Lunchbox, is a hop up diff ? There's a 3D printed spool, but that breaks #4 rule...🙄 Kamtec have the lexan lunchbox body, if that's classed as an upgrade? Although not required in the rules (and wheels/tyres , alloy body mounts are available too ..) (Aliexpress have the aluminium chassis quite cheap atm, around £30).

The only thing I hated on these, was the gearbox and drive shaft woes. There's a get around fix for the diff - https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_model.asp?cid=24674&id=3142 But not sure about the hex driveshafts. I know they've swapped to dogbones on the rere.

(I know you've probably got this link saved on your phone like me, but for general reference...) Most of the Tamiya manuals can be downloaded at :- https://www.tamiya.com/english/rc/manuals.htm These worth a shout (with a 1060), a bit quicker, and a built in cooling fan, for a tenner (also upgraded to a steel pinion) https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/core-rc-15t-silver-can-brushed-540-motor-442358 (Gen silver can looking to be £14!?!?!)

For my Bullhead, I went with an 860 esc (think they're 880's now, so better still), and a pair of 15t Firebolts (Corerc 15t). It's about the same on 2s, and it was with silver cans on 3s, which is probably as fast as the chassis can go, without it bouncing itself onto its roof every couple of minutes. Looking into a dual servo mod next tbh, as I doesn't really matter about the servo strength, its the , spung loaded V in a wedge servo savers on each axle that just make the steering......interesting.

I've been selling the motors and escs nip, (although the last 2 I got where the TBLE-04S, i think its the hobbywing in the recent Avante purchase so I'll keep that , but sell the GT tuned 2011 motor) for more than the price they knock off the kit. Modelsport have the Hornet at £116, and the Hornet without the esc £105, I'd pay the £11 for a 1060 (the tble04s I was selling for £25, as they're £50).

Let's see what their next brushless line up looks like, now Speed Passion aren't producing motors (or are they the new Corerc 'star' brushless motors? 🤔)

Is it not 'Mabuchi ' that make the silver cans? Pretty much the largest motor manufacturer in the world. For RC , for printers, for older battery drills (newer stuff is brushless), for women's 'adult toys'....🙄🤣

I'm not sure why someone would buy a genuine movie car, with the extra pedigree premium, just to make it not a movie car anymore, seems a bit counterintuitive, when you could can get a cheaper example, and have the same result? , but then again, it's now mentioned in an RC forum, so does that suggest its more famous than it was before? Whistlindiesel has made a career out of doing similar, just a bit more extreme...

This mirrors my feeling , they're still riding on past glory days, similar to a chippy local to me..... (The sign is a even more threadbare these days, clinging on by its finger tips) Saying that, Tamiya are a plastic model company, so aligning my brain that they make models that happen to be Radio Controlled, rather than making Radio Controlled models, seems to fit better. Again at one point in time, this was the only chassis to have, so guessing they sold well. I'm thinking these didn't sell as well as tamiya hoped, other manufacturers got the jump on tamiya, as while they where making fun cars like the Monster Beetle, Schumacher and Kyosho cars had slippers, ball diffs ,carbon chassis etc and already championships under their belts. Actually disliked these, enough to like them, bit of an oxymoron but.....🤷‍♂️ They are/where quirky, very.....tamiya. Unfortunately, way overpriced, as by the time you'd added the upgrades that should be standard at that price (slipper...🙄), you could buy a 'proper' race branded car, that would just be a better car in every aspect, bar being quirky. No provision for modern batteries, can't imagine adding a bit of a clamp for a shorty would have given tamiya too many headaches in the design or costing department, then having a bit of a faff removing the battery in the 4 as you shouldn't charge ANY battery chemistry in a car, just kind of stopped me hitting the 'buy' button (even at the discounted rate, posted a thread somewhere..) I'm an overhyped fan, so......🙄😬 Love the DT02 /03 (not got an 04) . I've picked up 03 kits on Amazon for £65, with oil shocks, esc, torque tuned motor, don't think you can complain much about that. My only bugbear is the lack of a slipper for modern motor power. This did give the older generation I chance to get spares for their old cars, (so you can fit modern elecs without worrying ), or a bit of a nostalgia mid life purchase. Still think Kyosho did it better, with essentially a new car that looked old. The Tamiya Molex plug was bad even in the 80's! 🫣 They where the plug most batteries came with, because of the shear Tamiya dominace on the RC scene. If you put anything more powerful than a stock wind (eg Parma K stock ) ,they went all smokey and bubbly. Modern chemistry stick batteries don't come with the molex (some do come with an adapter though...💣) , most are Deans (UK at least, think its XT60 over the pond, plenty threads on that 'discussion ' on here..)

Had an issue with the CR3P recievers not calibrating a 10bl120 esc ,with channel 2. Calibrated it with channel 1 and it Calibrated first attempt , so maybe worth a try recalibrating the esc with channel 1, incase it hasn't Calibrated properly?

Most think Stainless to be a stronger 'upgrade' , but baring anti corrosion to the bolt heads, actually worse. 🤷‍♂️

It's only into aluminium you'll have issues, as the chemistry doesn't like each other. Stainless are also a weaker bolt than cap screws (which are usually 12.9) , so unless it's looks and the heads not rusting, you're probably better with standard high tensile cap screws. Might be something I'll suggest, when one of our club members insist on a stainless 'upgrade' (even though they're not an upgrade imo) I've normally had to drill them out on 2nd hand cars that's came with them.

Works on larger cap screws (M8+ etc), but on M2 & M3 it doesn't take much, to make those an issue to get out. Most people don't use anything when they 'upgrade' to a stainless bolt kit on their RC, see it all the time at the club.

Did that with some on my Dark Impact Just don't use Stainless in aluminium, you get Galvanic corrosion and struggle to get them out.

I'll add the, in my opinion....😏 FWD - Acceleration not as good as 2wd or 4wd, which is just physics.The weight goes back, and takes the weight off the driven wheels, but less twitchy when things get slippy. Good on the brakes though ,and turn in really well. RWD - on high grip they're rapid, lightweight with less drivetrain. With a slipper set right, no wheelies and just putting the power down. Not great on the brakes, as you're basically handbrake turing into corners. 4WD - all 4 wheels putting power down, so you can get on the power alot earlier coming out of corners, and brake later with a 4 wheels braking. ****** 4WD centre diff ,just like a diff on the rear or front, if front or rear loose traction, all the power goes to that. Some higher power larger scale 4wd trucks use oil weight in the centre diff to determine how much the front end lifts off (but turns the front tyres into 'pizza cutters' as the power gets transfered, but allows the front and rear to travel at different arcs without fighting each other (same as what a diff is for on an axle) One way - makes a 4wd a 2wd under brakes, (basically a rachet) , so loose some of the benefits of a 4wd...Schumacher have a FAB unit (Front Adjustable Brake), which is a one way but like a slipper, so you can adjust how much one way you have. No centre diff (no slipper) will wheelie with high power motors, the rear tries to push the front in corners, with a slipper there's no wheelies , but still pushes. ***** Shaft driven aren't the most efficient but ge the job done (and I've seen a sly pic of seemingly Michal Orlowski shaft drive Schumacher 4wd prototype...) Belt drive, is the most efficient (so a big deal when nicads where 1200mah and you wanted to actually finish a race, with modern batteries it's not even a consideration), and really quiet. Schumacher used them in 2wd and still run belts on their current 4wd for now. Quite liked the 2wd ,as if you wanted more weight forward you could unbolt the gearbox out of the chassis, move it forward a few holes (3 options), fit a longer belt, and away you went. Gear drive are the most inefficient, noisy and take up lots of room. ***** Bevel gears work well on high grip surfaces, but as soon as one wheel looses traction, all the power goes to that wheel. This can make the car twitchy if you're on the power, and a driven wheel hits a bump ,leaves the ground, all the power goes to that wheel so it spins up to max rpm, then hits the ground and tries to drive the car left or right (depending on the wheel) Oil filled is just a bevel gear , but in a sealed unit. This means you can fill it with different viscosity oils to give it less give (?). Some oils are thicker than treacle, so you can almost spool them if you want, so makes them less twitchy. Ball diffs work a bit like an LSD in full size cars, so send the power to the wheels when the grip is low, but still allow some for cornering (when set right). On high grip, they don't give enough, so can cause a car to understeer. Not set right (or try and slacken them off a bit for high grip), or worn (require more maintenance than others) ,they can slip without driving the wheels, causing excess heat, melting the plastic gear.

Ohh, Where did you get the 90° bullet connectors from? Are they 4mm, 5mm or stepped?

I've just been using a small white towel for nearly 40yrs (not the same one.🙄)... Screws don't roll off, any shock oil spills are taken care of, and I don't need to wipe my hands on my jeans (just because I don't need, doesn't mean that doesn't happen though....) , but even I'm tempted with a pit mat now!!! 🤦‍♂️🤣

There's a few of his vids that give the cringe, but the point was that ,kids don't want slow, kids have never wanted slow even back into the tamiya heyday, it was the 'mabuchi 540 providing the power and speed' not , providing the nice slow and safe speed, as who'd pester their parents for a slow and safe car off Santa!?!?!