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Mahjik

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Everything posted by Mahjik

  1. Just an example of a good used TA 2wd buggy for sale: https://www.rctech.net/forum/r-c-items-sale-trade/1041201-team-associated-b6-17-5-artr-%24250-00-a.html
  2. BTW, I am a little biased. While I don't own a Tamiya wheelie model (yet), every Wild Willy video I see online always makes me smile.
  3. Maybe, but it's hideous... I think the Tamiya wheelie cars also inspire 'fun' just from their looks.
  4. Used Schumachers don't come around often. When they do, they are typically costly. There is a carpet Schumacher up for sale right now on RCTech. However, for a 2wd modern competition buggy, Schumacher is what I would go with. From an inexpensive used 2wd perspective, TLR and Team Associated will have the best deals. Mainly because so many are bought the the used market gets flooded with them.
  5. http://www.pyramidmodels.com/shop/product.php/584/tamiya_egress_1_10th_scale_decal_set
  6. I've seen that mentioned with brushless (as well as the opposite). However, it does seem to be more involved as there are other variables to consider (wheel/tire size and weight which adds more load on the motor, spur gearing, and so on). Probably the best advice is to get a temp gun/checker to verify any change for the better or worse for each situation.
  7. Somehow, I don't think the "off-TRF" models (DN01/DB01/DB02) will be that sought after going forward. If there weren't corresponding TRF models, then I would probably say yes...
  8. I've read this in other areas of the inter-web to be the other way around: Under-geared (pinion too small), the motor is spending too much time at top RPM's so it's overheating. Over-geared (pinion too big), the amp draw to push the motor is too great so the ESC is overheating.
  9. Parts were the reason I didn't go with a Durga. Once I looked at the price of the kit, if I wanted to do big bore shocks, and availability of replacement parts it didn't make a lot of financial sense when there are more modern 4wd used vehicles available for much less. I'm a Tamiya fan, but not that big of a fan. Every now and then, a used Durga pops up on Ebay so that might be something to put a watch on... I will say the used 4wd's do sell much quicker than the used 2wd's competition buggies.
  10. It doesn't seem to me it's about how they center, but it seems Tamiya was concerned with the amount of travel the servos had (expecting the lower profile to have less travel). At least with modern race kits today, I've never seen alternate mounting for standard versus low profile servos. It's possible it's something that was an issue in past. I would mount the servo in whatever way works best for the wiring, and then just make sure you have full steering travel both directions.
  11. Another option for decals: https://www.tqrcracing.com/shop/product_list.asp?s_maker_id=70&s_sort=4
  12. It looks like it's just a little adjustment on the arm, at least from what I could tell. I don't know that I would be that concerned about it as I've needed to adjust the turnbuckles based on different servo types on other cars from what has been recommended in the installation manual. I just look at those settings as more of a initial guide rather than an absolute.
  13. My 2 cents, I enjoyed driving my DN01/TRF201 more than the XB4. That could just be down to setup so I am working on setting up the XB4, as well as the XB4 having a bigger motor. Depending on your surface type, 2wd can be more tricky to drive. There are a lot of things that 4wd can help save you (i.e. if you nose dive the car, you can save with the front wheels driving, if you go off track 4wd can climb the curbs, 4wd is closer to point and shoot). Another option is to go to the track and see if you can drive some of the other's cars. Most of the time on a practice day, drivers will let you run their car for a few laps. That would allow you to try a 2wd and 4wd to figure out which you would prefer.
  14. A little update. I took apart the servo for the XB4 and everything looked fine. I made sure the gears were meshing properly and inspected everything else. Plugged it back in to check the movement and it was working fine. I think the hit from the SC4X4 jarred the upper gear out of place. In short, it appears to be working fine now so I'll hit the track again next Monday.
  15. If you want to stay within the Tamiya family, the TRF201 would be the best option. The main reason is that it has upgraded dampers compared to the DN01. I have a DN01, but I also do have the big bore dampers and all the other TRF bits on it so it's not really a DN01 anymore. I don't know where you are located, but the TamiyaUSA site has the TRF201 listed for $175 which is a bargain (granted, no electronics). If you aren't too concerned with it being a Tamiya, there are always good deals to be had of the current competition buggies. Since most of the companies release new models each year, you can pick up a 2-3 year old model pretty cheap. I bought a used 2016 XRAY XB4 within your price range (without electronics). Just keep in mind with the competition buggies, you generally just get the chassis so you'll need to budget electronics and tires.
  16. I would do a charge before using it the first time. As far as upgrades, start out with a bearing kit like this if you haven't yet: https://www.fasteddybearings.com/tamiya-grasshopper-ii-58043-sealed-bearing-kit
  17. Love the tires! I still have the Blitzer/Thunder on my 'desired' list.
  18. You bet! For those that aren't aware, in the United States, we have two main semi-professional racing sanctions: NASA and SCCA. Yes, the same acronym as the space administration group. My 'other' job, I'm the Chief Instructor for NASA Central Region. Here's a few photos of the car: It's currently getting a new engine so I'm hopeful to be racing again by the end of May.
  19. No worries! I'll take any and all information. I'll have to look back since it's been quite a while since I setup the Zahhak, but I believe the motor called for a FDR between 6.0-6.7. I think I ended up around 6.5 for the FDR with the current gearing. I did have the enlarge the mounting slots on motor plate and then use the Team Associated B4 gearbox cover to fit the pinion (thanks to the Facebook group for that info). I haven't done anything suspension/alignment wise yet. I just made them drive straight (and the front weights since I knew the older 2wd have a tendency to understeer). That is next on my list is to start working on setup to get the cars to drive a little better for me. I will say the Zahhak handled much better than I expected. Love the big bore dampers on it and I did have the most fun with it. However, that was also because the 13.5T was scaring me a little in the XRAY.
  20. For those that may have missed in the intro story, it was posted here: Any bad memories with an rc car? So, about 30 years in the making, and I finally made the trek out to the local track. For those that don't know, I purchased a Zahhak and upgraded it with just about every TRF part still available. It's running a 17.5T motor and the ESC is in blinky mode. I added some weights to the front (but probably need a little more). I also wanted a 4wd buggy. I had looked into a Durga as those look so cool, however, financially it didn't make a ton of sense. After I would have upgraded the dampers and everything else, I would be more than a current chassis. I was also concerned about replacement parts. With that, I picked up a used 2016 XRAY XB4. It was (still is) a little rough but is functional. I changed the body to something more pleasing (a Jconcepts body) and added Jconcepts Bar Codes to both cars: Now with both cars functioning, I picked a Monday to hit the track for practice night. Unfortunately, I had to work late and the track is quite a drive so I missed the first attempt last week. This week on Monday, I jump out of work early and headed home. My gear was already packed in my track bag (I race in real life a Honda S2000 and I have a bag I use to carry extra clothes to the track) so all I had to do is change out of my work clothes and hit the road. As I approach the track facility, I begin to get nervous. I'm not entirely sure why. I think I didn't want to appear to be a total noob or that a 30-some-odd year dream would suck. I ended up sitting in my truck in front of the door, checking work email which was a way of stalling. I eventually snapped out of it and walked in. I headed over and paid my practice fee and then setup my pit table space. There were about 10 other drivers in the facility practicing. I strolled over to look at the track to try and understand the layout (again, stalling). At this point, I'm not exactly sure where drivers are starting their cars so I wait for the next driver to place his car to start so I can see where everyone is starting at (again, stalling). [/ After a bit, a few of the drivers come off the stand and I'm about out of excuses. There are about 4 drivers still going so I slowly make my way hoping the rest will take a break. And they don't. So, I put my car down and slowly walk up the stairs and begin to apologize for the chaos I'm about to cause. They all chuckle and say "No worries, just have fun!" The Zahhak is up first. I start out just slowly going around the track. My goal is to get my line of sight before trying to figure out jumping. I make it around once slowly, before flipping it. After a few minutes, I'm getting around ok but I can't control the car in the air so I figure not launching the car keeps me on the stand much longer (or other people from having to flip my car when they get theirs). As I'm driving the Zahhak, everyone keeps coming up and asking it it was a Tamiya. They all loved the car! After a while, I decided to rest the Zahhak and grab the XB4. The XB4 is running a blinky ESC (both are Tekin RS's) with a 13.5T motor. Unfortunately, the XB4 was previously run on carpet so it's not really setup for dirt/clay. This made it quite twitchy compared to the Zahhak. I got to the first double and was just going to slowly go over without jumping and it nose dived and flipped. That took all of 10 seconds. And older gentleman practicing for the leagues Stock Traxxas Bandit class said "I do that all the time". The XB4 did get some attention, but not as much as the Zahhak. I eventually started to understand some air control and started taking some of the jumps. After a while, most of the racers were back so I was out there running with most of the cars. There was another driver there with a Team Associated and another there with a TLR and I tried to keep up with them but I just couldn't do the big jumps yet (most of the rest were practicing for the stock Traxxas classes Bandit/Slash). Eventually, I flipped the XB4 and then got hit by a mod SC4WD at full speed. It damaged my servo so the XB4 was retired for the night. The Zahhak had cooled down, so I switched in a new battery and ran some more laps, gaining more confidence with the jumps. At the end of the night, the 30 some odd year wait was more than worth it. I'm sure I'll be back for more practice nights, but that night will be a solid memory for years to come. And the dirty cars waiting to be cleaned (yes, my wife asked me why the cars were inside the house in that dirty condition ): Granted, I have no other rc track experience, but couldn't be happier with the cars. I'll probably get a modern 2wd buggy at some point but that would be much further down the line. Gotta fix the XB4 before anything else. If you have a track near by and you haven't been yet, definitely go try it!
  21. I've only ordered a few small items from them (for my Losi Mini-T). Those were really too small (literally) to mess up so I didn't have any issues.
  22. Just FYI, there is a guy who is posting on most of the "salt water disposal videos" on YouTube. IMO, it seems like salt water is the safest "home way" to use as any other method has a higher potential for issues, but here's what the posts says:
  23. I've never attempted to move the wires. However, I will say, if you accidentally get any solder to bridge between the positive and negative connections on accident, there will be a loud pop and the battery will be destroyed (I destroyed a battery changing connectors). You have to make sure to not let the warmed up solder run where it shouldn't go since it looks like the positive wire is underneath (from that angle).
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