Thoughts on TT-02

[Sogogi]

It was first for me to hear about TT-02 platform as soon as I got back to hobby 4months ago. Only thing I knew close tt-02 was tt-01.

Initially TT-02 looked pretty cheap compared to other budget tamiya kits and felt like catch all type of chassis (which i think it is designed to be flexible (02B, 02T, 02D etc) so I didn’t really look at tt-02 as my next purchase.

After going through typical(?) models (lunchbox, hornet, etc) and seeing lots if posts and vids about tt-02, I decided to try out TT-02B. Without a hesitation, I had to order bunch of hopups for it (never spent this much money on hopups before lol).

Once I have everything ready, I built it. Build process was very straight forward, and liked the fact that differentials are very easy to access.

Took it out for a quick test run. Wow it actually handles nicely for what it is. That made me want to try other variant which ended up getting subaru impreza for rally. 

ordered more hopups (but much less than What i did for tt-02b). Went through very similar building process.

wow, this one handled very nice too.

That got me thinking… I want to try out type s.. and other variants…

 

TLDR: I am hooked on TT-02…… haha

 

[Nick-W]

Due to a Christmas mix up I’m building two TT02s at the moment. Both near stock to start with.

I’m really impressed with it. It’s a lovely build, obviously cheap but quite ingenious how the kit has been engineered and packaged.

[toyolien]

I personally think the TT02 is a superb platform. Great for a beginners first build and a whole host of hop ups that could take it to a decent club race spec. Plenty of spares, and bodies etc... I really don't see what's not to like.

[Kowalski86]

Despite some of my previous comments I do want to try one out sometime, I'd just do the big three uogrades, bearings in the bellcrank, shim up the front, see how a simple "budget" build turns out. If I had the funds I'd build a TT-02T with one of the older desert truck/SCT style bodies on it.

To Tamiyas credit, it looks much easier to work on than the TL-01, and unlike the TT-01 you can raise it a few inches off the ground with minor adjustments (without cutting anything).

Maybe I'll try one out after my M05.

[Sogogi]

53 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

Despite some of my previous comments I do want to try one out sometime, I'd just do the big three uogrades, bearings in the bellcrank, shim up the front, see how a simple "budget" build turns out. If I had the funds I'd build a TT-02T with one of the older desert truck/SCT style bodies on it.

To Tamiyas credit, it looks much easier to work on than the TL-01, and unlike the TT-01 you can raise it a few inches off the ground with minor adjustments (without cutting anything).

Maybe I'll try one out after my M05.

To access diffs, just need to unscrew 4 screws for each diff even when shocks are all mounted.(enough space to take out diffs). Only car i can think of that has easy access to diff( at least front part if it) is cc-01..

[Rally!]

Waiting for the mail to deliver some essentials to finish mine (Radio, receiver, battery). It was a really fun build. I haven't had an RC car since my 959 in the late 80's, so the build process brought back some warm and fuzzy feelings. Really looking forward to doing the body. I got the Audi Quattro Rally. 

[BuggyDad]

2 hours ago, toyolien said:

I personally think the TT02 is a superb platform. Great for a beginners first build and a whole host of hop ups that could take it to a decent club race spec. Plenty of spares, and bodies etc... I really don't see what's not to like.

I've only just started building my TT-02SR. I'm very conscious it has its lovers and it's haters on here. It seems simply designed, its couple of issues should be easy enough to solve, and it is widely regarded as handling well. So so far I'm in the ❤️ camp. But it's very early days. If things stay that way I'm going to try a budget rally one very soon. 

[Sogogi]

50 minutes ago, BuggyDad said:

I've only just started building my TT-02SR. I'm very conscious it has its lovers and it's haters on here. It seems simply designed, its couple of issues should be easy enough to solve, and it is widely regarded as handling well. So so far I'm in the ❤️ camp. But it's very early days. If things stay that way I'm going to try a budget rally one very soon. 

Please share your build! I am interested to see type s based rally! (I am eyeing on type s or sr… looks like it is dry in states, but tamico has some!)

[Kowalski86]

2 hours ago, Sogogi said:

To access diffs, just need to unscrew 4 screws for each diff even when shocks are all mounted.(enough space to take out diffs). Only car i can think of that has easy access to diff( at least front part if it) is cc-01..

That sounds easier than a Hornet/Hopper, which is more or less my benchmark for simplicity.

[BuggyDad]

7 hours ago, Sogogi said:

Please share your build! I am interested to see type s based rally! (I am eyeing on type s or sr… looks like it is dry in states, but tamico has some!)

Sorry I wasn't very clear. I'm building my Type SR pretty much stock (well, one or two obvious hop ups) in touring car configuration. Then once I've learned a bit about TT-02 from it I'm thinking I'll mod a base TT-02 for rally. 

From what I read, rallyfying the S or SR is a bit more involved, although I suspect in some ways it's better suited (long arms). 

[XJman]

The tt02 is probably one of the most capable Tamiya platforms. From high speed cars to buggies, tarmac racing to rally it really is a good platform with a lot of support.

I've got a fleet of them and I'll build a few for my local shop if they want a few to sell complete.

[Juls1]

The TT02S is a solid beast, the SR or SRX even better. 
 

but if you want a rally car. Buy a Xv. It’s a different league, easily worth the $$$

[alvinlwh]

I never pulled the trigger on a TT-02 many times as I needed a touring car chassis but the amount of essential hopups required put me off. I never bought a First Try one when they were below £70 back in 2021 intendimg to use the difference in price to offset some hopups and missed the chance. Now they are up to over £90 and no longer worth it.

[Kowalski86]

5 minutes ago, alvinlwh said:

I never pulled the trigger on a TT-02 many times as I needed a touring car chassis but the amount of essential hopups required put me off. I never bought a First Try one when they were below £70 back in 2021 intendimg to use the difference in price to offset some hopups and missed the chance. Now they are up to over £90 and no longer worth it.

From my understanding it'd be better to start with a TT-02R or one of the other chassis kits, then go with whichever body you want.

What hop-ups does it really need other than the usual three?

[Sogogi]

4 hours ago, Kowalski86 said:

From my understanding it'd be better to start with a TT-02R or one of the other chassis kits, then go with whichever body you want.

What hop-ups does it really need other than the usual three?

Agreed. Unless the body you want only comes as a kit, I would recommend getting tt-02r. (It is hard to get it in us (heard tamiya is starting to manufacture those again) but tamico has stocks)

[BuggyDad]

On 2/6/2023 at 1:53 PM, Kowalski86 said:

From my understanding it'd be better to start with a TT-02R or one of the other chassis kits, then go with whichever body you want.

What hop-ups does it really need other than the usual three?

My research (but not my driving - I haven't done any) led me to roughly the following.... 

Obviously need oil shocks, bearings and a steel/coated pinion. SR comes with bearings and shocks and I've got some suitable pinions already. 

Steering - some sort of slop improvement is probably next on the necessary list but I suspect a cheap or homemade (work through shimming and taping the problem points) option might do it well enough. This is what I intend to do on my rally build. YR option is also fairly inexpensive. Interestingly the SR comes with only the base steering cranks and bridge, even though this is widely regarded as one of the most important areas to sort out. 

3° rear uprights - I'm going to go out on a limb here and say these are high on my list because I think a bit of rear toe is huge in handling terms, but they don't classically appear on lists of necessary hop-ups. SR already has similar rear toe-in so that doesn't need it. My rally build will get them even though they're expensive. 

Adjustable upper arms - SR doesn't need (turnbuckle system) but rally build will get this for camber adjustment. I'd rather a model that would just take turnbuckles. But the adjustable arms set is fairly cheap. 

CVDs - most models anywhere near this price range don't have them and they're a good addition. But on a budget I'd start with stock and upgrade when I break/lose something. I've upgraded my XV-01 fronts. TT-02 SR comes with them F&R. Rally build will start with cheap YR CVDs front and kit dogbones rear. 

High speed gearing set allows a further decrease in ratio (beyond bigger pinion alone) so increase in speed. Necessary if you want that gearing. Not if not. SR doesn't come with so I bought it. Budget rally probably won't get it. 

Ally motor mount - from what I read it's not needed for gentler use. SR doesn't come with. I bought the Yr one for that. Budget rally probably won't have. 

Prop shaft = optional. Query whether there's any performance or resilience benefit until you go racing, but I've got one. It's not expensive and is very blue. Budget rally probably won't have. 

See also here for someone vastly more experienced than me:

 

 

[TurnipJF]

6 hours ago, Kowalski86 said:

From my understanding it'd be better to start with a TT-02R or one of the other chassis kits, then go with whichever body you want.

What hop-ups does it really need other than the usual three?

The Type S suspension as fitted to the S, SR and SRX really boosts the potential of the chassis, so personally I would go for one of those rather than the R which is more akin to a base spec model in the suspension department. It is the same as the suspension that is fitted to the TB-03 and FF-03, and with a few tweaks, you can have yourself a TT that performs like a TB.

As for additional hop-ups, ballraced steering is a great idea to eliminate slop, and the slotted Yeah Racing motor mount opens up your gearing options especially when used with the alloy spur gear mount. The carbon fibre chassis braces designed by TheRCRacer and manufactured by Fibre Lyte allow you to fine tune chassis flex. And if you are rallying, a set of DF-02 metal diff gears will allow you to tackle jumps without damaging the diff ring gears and input pinions.

[Sogogi]

1 hour ago, TurnipJF said:

The Type S suspension as fitted to the S, SR and SRX really boosts the potential of the chassis, so personally I would go for one of those rather than the R which is more akin to a base spec model in the suspension department. It is the same as the suspension that is fitted to the TB-03 and FF-03, and with a few tweaks, you can have yourself a TT that performs like a TB.

As for additional hop-ups, ballraced steering is a great idea to eliminate slop, and the slotted Yeah Racing motor mount opens up your gearing options especially when used with the alloy spur gear mount. The carbon fibre chassis braces designed by TheRCRacer and manufactured by Fibre Lyte allow you to fine tune chassis flex. And if you are rallying, a set of DF-02 metal diff gears will allow you to tackle jumps without damaging the diff ring gears and input pinions.

Ooh I did not know about df-02 metal diff gears

[Kowalski86]

4 hours ago, Sogogi said:

Agreed. Unless the body you want only comes as a kit, I would recommend getting tt-02r. (It is hard to get it in us (heard tamiya is starting to manufacture those again) but tamico has stocks)

The closest that we have to that is the TT-02D chassis kit, which costs a few dollars more but has less upgrades apparently? And comes with drift tires.

[Sogogi]

24 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

The closest that we have to that is the TT-02D chassis kit, which costs a few dollars more but has less upgrades apparently? And comes with drift tires.

Yup!

[Kowalski86]

18 minutes ago, Sogogi said:

Yup!

I...don't quite understand the thinking there on Tamiyas part! Unless if drift tires are expensive to make or something. Heck, the TT-02R even comes with a Lightly Tuned motor which is a little more expensive than the Sport Tuned.

[Sogogi]

11 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

I...don't quite understand the thinking there on Tamiyas part! Unless if drift tires are expensive to make or something. Heck, the TT-02R even comes with a Lightly Tuned motor which is a little more expensive than the Sport Tuned.

I totally agree. Marketing? Lol (box design looks cooler than other ones.. )

Tamico sells tt-02r for like bit over 100 euros? Which is like $110 usd… looks so cheap 

[Kowalski86]

12 minutes ago, Sogogi said:

Tamico sells tt-02r for like bit over 100 euros? Which is like $110 usd… looks so cheap 

Its $112 in US dollars, and it'd be $152 (with free shipping) if Amain had them in stock. I'm not even all that interested in the upgrades (other than the driveshaft), it'd just be nice to have a basic chassis kit that comes with bearings and CVAs.

[BuggyDad]

Type S front arms:

Just to show how droop is limited by the C hub contacting the arm. You would need to remove material on one (or both) of them to increase downward travel/ground clearance for rally. And because the point of contact is further from the pivot, more material needs to come off than it would if right up close. Would be easy enough to do but would affect strength.

Rear arms might not need any work at all. 

[Juls1]

1 hour ago, BuggyDad said:

Type S front arms:

Just to show how droop is limited by the C hub contacting the arm. You would need to remove material on one (or both) of them to increase downward travel/ground clearance for rally. And because the point of contact is further from the pivot, more material needs to come off than it would if right up close. Would be easy enough to do but would affect strength.

Rear arms might not need any work at all. 

These particular C hubs tend to be flexy as, which is fine from a strength point of view but in high traction situations is one time when an alloy part is actually the best option. The carbon reinforced part is still flimsy and flexy.