Cheeseburger

True? OK, maybe not worth it then. If its going to be a barely perceivable gain I might save my coins.

I've got a DT-03 Neo Frog which i'm tweaking into my perfect blaster. Current mods include a full bearing kit, LiFe battery, a steel pinion gear and a 17.5T sensored Tekin motor. Had I had a better idea of what to expect out of a 17.5T I probably would have gone for a 13.5T, but it's been a long time between RC builds (25 years!) so gotta expect a bit of trial and error learning as I go. One thing i'm thinking of doing is flipping out my 17T pinion for a 19T - the brushless motor eats the stock 540 for breakfast off the line, but I think the 540 has the edge in terms of top speed... I figure a 19T pinion might make better use of the brushless power-band... reduce the low speed wheel spin and also give me a tad more top end... is that correct thinking? What else do I need to expect from a gear change to 19T in a DT-03? Is it a no worries mod, or does it present other issues that I may be blind to? Like I said, i'm a bit of a greenwood and i'd rather ask too many questions than waste money by not asking enough.

Thought i'd follow up on this with my observations - I've had a 4200 mAh pack installed for a couple of runs now. I have noticed a little less top end speed (maybe 5 - 10%), but I have a Tekin brushless motor on the way so hopefully that'll blind me to any speed loss. On the plus side the speed seems very constant over time, it also seems to be more torquey, and the pack generates no heat at all during charging. And it's a very rigid casing for a soft-pack. And 4200 mAh is giving me a really long run time. My only gripe - not sure if it's a voltage thing or a setting error in the tx - it seems a little more hesitant to hit reverse from a full-brake-stop. Initially, i'm pretty happy. I guess only time will tell if it was a good purchase decision.

Got one of these on the way... hopefully doesn't turn out to be a dud. If so - nothing ventured, nothing gained. http://hobbyking.com.au/hobbyking/store/__14068__ZIPPY_Flightmax_4200mAh_2S1P_30C_LiFePo4_Pack.html

I have a 17.5T 2600kv Tekin brushless on the way. We'll see where I stand after I install that. From the performance graphs i've seen they seem to indicate a NiMH will initially be superior to LiFe (for the first five minutes of driving I guess), then LiFe wins out with its flat-line voltage output. LiPo is in another league, but that is to be expected. BTW - I only just discovered the Hobby King website... reasonably decent mAh LiFe batteries can be found for $20 - that's half the price local hobby shops are selling equivalent NiMHs for. Looks like i've found my new favourite online shop

I've investigated LiPo, but for my circumstances LiFe batteries seem to offer the greater benefit: - I don't want to have to buy another ESC (with an appropriate voltage cut off) - virtually last forever - sympathetic to abuse, and greater safety margins - handle storage conditions better - fast charging times, and no need for supervision My buggy is just a fun basher, and I only need enough performance to keep the carpark races between my brother and nephews interesting. I'm happy enough running NiMH batteries, but while i'm in the market for a new battery (due to my last NiMH failing after a few charges), I might as well try for a LiFePo4 battery which will be a plug-and-play upgrade. As long as I can get a battery in the 4000+ mAh range (which is about 20-30 min runtime in my hands). At worst, if the go-fast bug bites I can overhaul my Neo Frog to LiPo and stick the TBLE-02 and LiFePo4 pack in my older Frog.

Seems LiFePo4 batteries are widely suggested for buggy kits like the Tamiya DT-03. I'm keen to try one, but I can't seem to find any with a decent mAh rating... all are in the 1600 - 2000 mAh range. Maybe i'm misunderstanding how LiFePo4 works, but compared to NiMH with a rating of 2000 mAh - it's just not enough. If you can link me up any (reputable) vendors you know that sell high mAh LifePo4 packs i'd be most appreciative. Also - 2S vs 3S LiFePo4... can a TBLE-02 handle 9.9V? Will a 3S pack fit in a DT-03 cavity? Or just stick with 2S?

So i've been looking online for LiFePo4 battery packs... i'm not finding any with a decent mAh rating. Do they come in a 4000+ rating or are they all below 2000? Perhaps I could make my own... if so, what cell size am I chasing?

Can't say i'm much of a fan of the stock Tamiya battery connectors - they never come together without a fuss. If you were to change to a more user friendly connector, what would be your choice?

So I think I get it now. The keyword search term is '1/10 buggy', or just '1/10'. And maybe '12mm hex hub'. I take it you don't buy tyres by themselves - you buy tyre and rim combos? And I take it drift tyres are likely more plastic-y than rubber-y?

What are the tyre options for a DT-03 chassis? I wouldn't mind getting a set of slick-style rears for road surfaces so I can save the stock issue tyres for scrapping about the local BMX tracks. And seeing I live near the beach I wouldn't mind experimenting with some sand-style tyres either... if I can find them. But i've been out of the hobby for too long to and don't know where to look or which stores to try. And i'm not having much luck on Ebay, but maybe my keywording is wrong. Nor do I know if alternative tyre options even exist for the DT-03. Can anyone throw me a bone? If anyone has any links they can forward i'd love to see what options are out there for this chassis.

I don't really know the detailed specs of that other charger. It was an Imax B3 - just a cheapo basic charger. I managed to get two full charges out of that battery pack and both times took around five hours to charge from flat (noted by LED indication). The third time I went to charge I let it run to five hours but the LED indicator didn't register, so I gave it another half hour. Still no indication, so I gave it another half hour. And again and again. After an extra couple of hours charging time I realised something was up so I unplugged the pack. The battery was quite warm, but not hot. The next morning I took it for a spin and only managed to run it out the driveway before it fell dead. Poked around with it for a while and tried to find a troubleshoot on google but nothing. A few hours later I tried again for a fix and it came back to life and I got a good 15 minute run in. Then once again it fell dead. It's not worked again since. After all this I took it to the local hobby shop and the second they plugged in a fresh battery pack the car sprung back into life, so I know the problem is the battery... or the old charger I returned. Yes, i'm using the Tamiya TBLE-02S. I'll check into the LiFePO4 batteries - hopefully I can track them down locally as postage from the US is a killer to Australia.

If it helps to know, I just brought a brushless on Ebay now. A 17.5t Tekin Redline. 2700 kV, 131 watts. That'll be the motor in this buggy until the end. Not exactly a menacing wind, but hopefully a little faster and cooler running than the stock 540. BTW in regards to my faulty battery - is there a way I can isolate if this was caused by the charger, or a quality control issue of the battery itself?

Hi guys. I've just got back into RC and it's been about 20 years since I last really knew the ins and outs of the hobby. I bought a Neo Frog a couple of weeks back and i'm having an absolutely blast tearing it around the neighbourhood. I've encountered a problem with my two-week old NiMH battery pack - it's dead. I'm not sure if it was a fault of the battery itself or if it was killed by a faulty charger ($30 Imax B3). Either way - I plugged into another battery pack at my local hobby store and the car instantly fired back into life, so I have a fault in the system that needs to be dealt with. I took the el-cheapo charger back for a refund and now have a SkyRC B6AC+ V2 on the way. I'm just wondering, should I need to replace the battery what is the best type to go for with a Tamiya buggy? LiPo seems to be all the rage these days, but are they suited to Tamiya electronics? Do I have to run a particular type of battery with Tamiya gear. And are there any basics I should know when using a modern charger? ie, how to get the most/best out of the battery? I should mention I have plans to upgrade to a 17.5t brushless motor in a month or two (a christmas present to myself) - does this affect my battery decision?