markkat

As I waited for my Lipo battery to arrive, I started to look at the positioning of what remained. It occurred to me that with removing the MSC mount plate, I could put my receiver in-line with the steering servo. I did this, and replaced the MSC plate with a square aluminum rod: My thinking behind this was that any weight on the left was a good thing, to offset the large imbalance caused by the side motor position. (You can also see a front-suspension mount, but more on that later...) Looking at this setup, gave me an idea... One thing I noticed as I drove my Frog, was that the front wheels are really pushed about. I believe that part of that has to do with the front suspension, but it is also a result of the car's center of gravity being so far back. Here's a video of an early drive that demonstrates that:

Thanks! It's great to know where that body came from. I always preferred the proportions of it. As for the plastic, I thought that might have been the case, but have been pleasantly surprised. The only break I've had thus far was a cup on the steering rod. That reminds me, however. Upon adding the new shocks, I did add some fiberglass reinforcements to the rear arms where they attach. The twist on those arms was disconcerting. Also, you can see in the second photo above that the front attachment for the left rear shock is a melted mess. That was the result of me trying to force a Kyosho Optima gold shock on it around 1987. It cracked, and I melted a repair. I've since got a re-re frame, and replaced that half of the frame. It's already an anachronism, I guess. As for putting her on the shelf, I am not a collector, and it just doesn't feel right for me. There's something very cool about seeing my old Frog tear it up again. Anyway, I put in the new ESC, and started to enjoy the new F/Br/R configuration. I did have to open my Futaba Attack transmitter and manually reverse the throttle control by re-soldering the wires, however: Unfortunately, I found that after running with my 360 Gold or 240S motors for about 5 minutes, the car would start to drive at half speed. The NiMH was new, and it happened to both batteries I had. After some research, I concluded that it must be due to low voltage. In the process, I also disassembled, cleaned and reassembled my Le Mans 240S motor to no effect. As the Dynamite ESC can be configured for Lipo, and as Lipo has a more squared voltage curve, I ordered a 5000mAh Lipo. (My 8yo daughter just got a Grasshopper, so the NiMH's have a new home.) I also picked up a 20T Dynamite brushed motor from the local hobby store. To be continued...

This is the first post on an ongoing process. During the lockdown, my 8yo daughter and I came upon my old Tamiya Frog in a box of our garage attic. I got it for Xmas in 1985 if I recall correctly. This was the state of things: Organized, but dismantled. I couldn't recall why I had pulled the servos and the speed controller. The mods I had last made over 20 years ago were a rear sway bar, bearings (of course), and a new gearbox and dog bone axles after my Kyosho 360 Gold shredded the originals. The two motors I had were the Gold and a Kyosho Le Mans 240S. That lexan body was also a replacement for the original. I ordered a 3600mAh NiMH battery, and stuck the MSC and servos back in there. It looked sharp, and each run lasted for about 10 minutes before the solder on the MSC melted. The smell was nostalgic. After a fiddling with the MSC, and trying a resistor from an old dismantled Turbo Optima (the only other RC I've ever owned, but never loved), I ordered a Dynamite 60A Brushed ESC. You might notice the 4 AAs are still in there. It took me a bit to happily realize that I could lose them with the new ESC. While waiting for the ESC to arrive, I discovered MCI decals. I decided to refresh the look, so I ordered a set of Frog decals, and a spoiler from RCMart. Also, as the Frog's rear shocks leave much to be desired, I got some Boom Racing BRX01 Rear Aluminum Double Spring Shocks. I think the new shocks and decals improved the look (the spoiler has yet to arrive): More of the journey to come...

Hey all, I've recently returned to the hobby after about 30 years. In addition to restoring/revamping my beloved Frog (which I'll detail in a separate post), I have enough random Frog/Optima/Misc parts that I decided to have a go at a 1/10 custom buggy build. I think I have a plan for the chassis and arms, but I am looking for a gearbox that is reliable and fairly generic. It'll probably have to deal with my old Kyosho 360 Gold motor, so durability is a must. Thanks in advance!

Update 3: I’m running with my old Kyosho Le Mans 360 gold brushed motor (18T). It runs at full speed for about 1-2 minutes, but quite a bit slower after that. Any ideas why? Is it dropping to half-speed due to low voltage? I’m using a 3600mA NiMH battery, and have the ESC configured for NiMH. Same with two batteries which are new. It’s a Dynamite 60A ESC brushed ESC. Thanks!

Update 2: Swapping the red and black wires did the trick. It reversed channel 2. The ESC now properly gives me fwd/br/rev. Now on to this front suspension...

Update: here’s the Attack, and the back of the throttle stick. My assumption is that swapping red and black will do it. Going to do some more digging.

Hey all, first post. 🙂 I am restoring/reviving my Frog that I got around ‘85. After fussing with the MSC for a few runs, I got a Dynamite 60A ESC. It set up quick, but it seems the throttle channel on my old Futaba Attack FP-TZNL is reversed. There’s no way to switch it that I can see. Before I crack open the transmitter, I was wondering if anyone else experienced the same, and was able to reverse it. I haven’t found anything suggesting that I could reverse it on this ESC itself. Any advice is appreciated! Here she is: