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E clips seemed ok

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"I dont understand why people dont like the e-clips" I thought to myself as I built my GF-01 chassis the other day. Literally one second later, as I put on another e clip there was a "CLICK"...."PING" as an e clip sailed through the air. After a few minutes on my hands and knees to find it I thought "oh....I see".

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I always put my fingers around the e-clip as I am snapping it into place. It can't ping if it's being held while the pliers are snapping onto the shaft.  Same when removing.  I use a small flat bladed screwdriver to pry the clip off and use my fingers to prevent it from pinging away.  They only ping now when I'm lazy or careless.

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I use the Tamiya tools to do it now. If I have a particularly stubborn one I do it inside a bag so if it does try to fly away it stays in the bag! 

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:lol:

I apply force to the e-clip while it is in its intended slot so there is always some tension while I use a flat nose plier to snap it into place.

99% of the time they don't fly off B), but clumsy me tends to drop the clip even before it reaches the shaft.. :blink: then bounces on the table and onto the floor and same ending with me on my hands and knees looking for that darn clip under the table. :wacko:

:lol:

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Get a e-ring tool, Tamiya or otherwise. Putting on is easy with it, it suppose to remove too but I can never seem to make it work. 

On a slightly different note, is there anywhere else to get those shaft instead of the expensive M-chassis or TL-01 packs? I don't think they are custom made for Tamiya but probably some industrial standard shafts? What should I search for? 

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Some tricks of the trade involves assembling the part inside a clear plastic bag (ziplock) so if the e-clip decides to “fly” it will contained inside. 

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3 hours ago, alvinlwh said:

Get a e-ring tool, Tamiya or otherwise. Putting on is easy with it, it suppose to remove too but I can never seem to make it work. 

 

Yes, having tried it I and failed I had assumed it’s not meant to be used to get them off 😂

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I picked up the E-ring tool in my latest PJ order. Got a bit sick of the scenario described here. Most of the time using pliers to apply them is totally fine, but when you get one that pings off like a ricocheting bullet around the room, it is a right pain in the A. This is particularly a problem when working on vintage models where you want to reuse the hardware wherever possible.

The E-ring tool took a bit of getting used to, especially for the removal of the rings, but once they're seated correctly in the tools jaws and a fair amount of force is used, they pop off very easily. You just need to make sure both sides are carefully seated centrally in the very slight slots in the jaws before applying any pressure.

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4 hours ago, GeeWings said:

Yes, having tried it I and failed I had assumed it’s not meant to be used to get them off 😂

According to this, and also the instructions, it is meant to get them off... When I tried, it just slipped and nearly took my eye out instead! 🤷

https://www.thercracer.com/2021/02/74032-tamiya-e-ring-tool-2mm-review.html?m=0

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11 hours ago, GeeWings said:

do it inside a bag so if it does try to fly away it stays in the bag

 

9 hours ago, burakol said:

assembling the part inside a clear plastic bag

Genius!

I'll add the tamiya tool to my next little shopping spree :)

Great tips thanks.

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21 hours ago, Willy iine said:

 :blink: then bounces on the table and onto the floor and same ending with me on my hands and knees looking for that darn clip under the table. :wacko:

:lol:

In hindsight, that desk/station carpet I got (4ft x 7ft I think) should have been neon green I think.  None of my parts are neon green.  Most of them are black, with occasional grey/shiny.  That blends perfectly with the black/grey static texture.... :angry::o

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17 minutes ago, SlideWRX said:

In hindsight, that desk/station carpet I got (4ft x 7ft I think) should have been neon green I think.  None of my parts are neon green.  Most of them are black, with occasional grey/shiny.  That blends perfectly with the black/grey static texture.... :angry::o

Carpet for model making is really bad, we static modellers know all about the dreaded carpet monster. The floor is my "workstation" and yet the carpet monster still can eat up parts.

Neon green is not a bad idea, I was actually talking to my wife about flooring for my future hobby room and we actually agree yellow vinyl will be a good idea as I rarely build anything yellow. 

EDIT: for a fun read. 

https://cs.finescale.com/fsm/general_discussion/f/9/t/172504.aspx

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I have a surgical clamp, I just clamp it to the middle of the e-clip and push it on.  If is "misses" and doesn't go on, the clamp is still holding it.  Useful for taking them off too!

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I have taken to wearing "MC Hammer trousers" when modelling at my desk, and they work very well, catching 95% of dropped items in my lap so they never reach the floor to begin with.

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTp3VygdEQtNVugiwtPV8i

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On 8/2/2022 at 4:46 AM, TurnipJF said:

I have taken to wearing "MC Hammer trousers" when modelling at my desk, and they work very well, catching 95% of dropped items in my lap so they never reach the floor to begin with.

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTp3VygdEQtNVugiwtPV8i

Hahahaha! That is brilliant Turnip! I wish this were genuinely true, and also that if you do drop any parts on the floor, they say to you... 'can't touch this' as they roll away from you into the jaws of the carpet monster!...

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4 hours ago, TurnipJF said:

I have taken to wearing "MC Hammer trousers" when modelling at my desk, and they work very well, catching 95% of dropped items in my lap so they never reach the floor to begin with.

images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTp3VygdEQtNVugiwtPV8i

I wear something similar at home and it actually caught a flying body clip yesterday! 

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5 hours ago, alvinlwh said:

I wear something similar at home and it actually caught a flying body clip yesterday! 

Pics or it didn't happen @alvinlwh;):lol:

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On 7/29/2022 at 12:06 AM, Gebbly said:

"I dont understand why people dont like the e-clips" I thought to myself as I built my GF-01 chassis the other day. Literally one second later, as I put on another e clip there was a "CLICK"...."PING" as an e clip sailed through the air. After a few minutes on my hands and knees to find it I thought "oh....I see".

I’m building a GB-01 the the clips are about 5mm - one went ping and there was no way I was finding that in my shed 

 

JJ

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30 minutes ago, Problemchild said:

I’m building a GB-01 the the clips are about 5mm - one went ping and there was no way I was finding that in my shed 

That is nothing, I once lost a 1/35 tank turret in the shed while unboxing. However, you will be surprised at what may turn up weeks and months later, so you may find that clip eventually! 

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I am building my LRP kit and I noticed and remembered one thing from building my 3R kits. Why can't Tamiya come up with a better way to secure shafts? OK I had not seen anyone not using e-clips in shocks but what about shafts commonly used to replace screw pins in suspension arms? E-clips makes it a pain to remove the parts, especially the hubs for maintenance or other works. In fact, why is Tamiya still using screw pins? Almost all other manufacturers uses shafts in their kits that are cheaper. 

PvH8HLH.jpeg

The pin is slotted into a blind hole and a stop screw securing it at the open end. LRP, 3R and (IIRC) MST use this method. 

Now back onto the subject of e-clips when building the same kit, this had to be the hardest e-clip I had ever installed in my life. 

kUX1N9o.jpeg

Luckily there is only one this difficult in the whole kit. 

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