Juhunio

Not sure, it's a fairly 'old' part for them so not sure 3D printing would have been up to the job? I've done a bit of reading on powder metallurgy and it sounds like powder plus heat plus pressure in a pre-formed mold...benefits listed as cheaper and quicker than liquid casting. My gut says liquid casting will always be harder and stronger, but that is based purely on hunch and not on any kind of metallurgy experience whatsoever! Find it hard to believe liquid cast hardened steel would have cracked like this...

Still applying CPR to this old cold thread, just in case anyone else comes across it and thinks (like me) that this could be an option to strengthen the DF03 main gear in lieu of the unicorn-poo Five Stars FS7039. I contacted FS Racing who make the magnetic clone part, who told me it is made using powder metallurgy (rather than liquid casting). They wouldn't / couldn't tell me the alloy, only to say that it is 'majority steel'. I don't know if this would be as durable as hardened, liquid cast steel, probably not.... Anyway, I pushed the pinion off its shaft and onto a DF03 slipper shaft using @Wooders28 vice method, and the pinion cracked longitudinally. Visible on the slipper shaft, but not when put back on the FS Racing shaft, even though the shafts are identical diameter. So I did it again with a second FS Racing gear, with the same result. £25 down the drain. Something in their make up isn't up to the task, so probably best avoided.

Just out of interest, as the image isn't clear, what did you use to heat up the new pinion?

Just came across this thread while researching upgrades to factor into a new DF-03 build, and failing to track down the Five Stars FS7039! So I bought one of these FS Racing main gears, and the pinion is magnetic! So not aluminium, but no guarantees about how much steel is in the alloy, and how hard it is.

I've sent an email to see if I can get hold of one, and I've ordered a vice! (any excuse!) I've read through the FB DF03 group and still not entirely sure how to push the old pinion off and the new one on, so will be back soon asking for your help and guidance. And if I totally badword it up then I may well take you up on your offer!!!

Yes, I've read around this quite a bit and have seen your thread. Nice work! Unfortunately I don't have, or have access to, a lathe, or an angle grinder, or a suitable heat source! So the slow, patient hunt for FS-7039 continues... I've got a slipper clutch and have gradually managed to track down a set of hardened rear diff outdrives, universal joints and hardened turnbuckles, so I'm getting there slowly, piece by piece

Don't suppose you have one of those three FS-7039 as a spare do you? I've got a DF03 project I'm slowly building all the necessary parts for and this one is obviously key https://www.tamiyaclub.com/trades_model.asp?cid=122170&id=52876

Don't suppose you still have one of those three as a spare do you??

As the profile suggests, I'm a newbie to this hobby and this site, getting into a hobby I could never afford as a kid! I've built two kits so far, both retro re:re's, but haven't yet found anywhere good to play or anyone to play with. So just wondering if there are any fellow TC members based around Cardiff / Newport / Bridgend who get together at all to give their cars a run? As I said, these are only re:re buggies (Bigwig and Boomerang so far, with a DF03 in the works) so nothing too serious! But it would be good every now and then to not be the only middle aged man in a car park with a kid's toy cheers!

FWIW, I bought a pair of Jazrider Aluminium front upright ams for TA01/TA02W/DF01/Hotshot from eBay for my Boomerang and they fit perfectly. Having just pranged my Bigwig, I've ordered another set for it

As a final note, the 4mm Tamiya clamp wheel hubs (53570) create a perfect fit with the Kyosho Pepperpot wheels As per @ThunderDragonCy's advice I added the longer eyelet to the front shocks to create the same length shock as the Bigwig. I also swapped back to the kit-supplied soft yellow damper oil for now, so its first few runs will be with the shocks set up as per kit instructions. I'll experiment with the heavier (medium) oil options from there Now just need the rain to stop and to find somewhere to race it, and folks to race with....

I've got the re:re Bigwig, Boomerang and Hotshot kits, and have now built the Bigwig and Boomerang, so my take on this is: As Jonathon says, the additional 1 at the beginning of the part code makes no difference. You can search for the part with or without it Gearbox casings are the same across the Bigwig and Boomerang The difference in the uprights is probably just colour? Bigwig and Boomerang are both blue, so carry the same code (0440378) and the Hotshot is red hence different code? Drive shafts / dogbones - the Bigwig's are definitely meatier than the Boomerang's, and can't explain why. Maybe because of the dual front upright shocks? The only way I found out about the drive shafts being different was my Bigwig suffered a pretty major fail yesterday, the front right upright came away from the ball connectors; the ball connecter had stripped the plastic threading out of the interior of the knuckle! (see pic). I picked it up and brought it home to fix it, but of course didn't notice that when it failed and collapsed, the front drive shaft had fallen out, so I had inadvertently left it behind in the woods. I didn't use the kit drive shafts in the Boomerang build, having substituted them for universal shaft / CVDs, so thought I could just use one of the Boomerang kit parts in the Bigwig. When I compared it to the remaining Bigwig front drive shaft, it was obvious that the Boomerang part is much thinner and more lightweight. I think I'll end up swapping them both for Boomerang drive shafts and see how it goes, once a set of replacement (aluminium this time!) uprights have arrived

I also set up the ESC today, but have decided against a test drive. One of the wheels came off under testing (thankfully on a pit stand)!! This underlined my concern that the 6mm hex hubs are too thick - the wheel lock nut doesn't fully bind to the axle, and I think I need a shallower hub eg 4mm to allow the nut to create a stronger connection to the axle. I've ordered some off ebay (Tamiya 53570) but they'll be a few weeks coming from Hong Kong so it's time for patience....

A full day painting and decorating today, and it's finished! I'm chuffed to bits with how it all came together The livery is inspired by a trip to the Williams F1 factory earlier this year with my dad. Williams were always 'our' team when we used to go and watch the Grand Prix back in the mid-late 80s, and though they've been behind the pack for a few years now they still hold a special place. In the foyer they had the Martini liveried car from a few years back, with its pearl white and black paint scheme. I thought it was completely gorgeous, so decided to pay tribute to it with this Boomerang build using replica Tamiya decals from MCI racing I've put a few more pics up in my showroom if you're interested!

Just painting the body and adding livery and finishing touches now Managed to pick one of these CRP suspension supports up off eBay...