Complete novice looking for Stadium Blitzer Advice

[Jim_M1988]

Evening everyone!

Back in 1992, my dad bought me a stadium blitzer for Christmas. I still remember the morning well, and hours of fun were had with that car.

Around 1998 we moved house, and through some turbulent family disasters the car went into storage for the next 25 years. In 2023 my dad was having a clear out and getting some bits together to give to my own kids, old railway, Scalextric, and the Blitzer was found.

I gave it a good clean and got it running again, but decided to put it on display in my shed. Anyway, this last couple of months both of my kids got RC cars for their birthdays, and I've been really enjoying racing my old car along side theirs.

It's needed the shock dust seals replacing and odd bits fixing up, but I am absolutely loving running it around.

I'm trying to keep it as original as possible, although there are a few bits that I probably need to replace as soon as I can find the spares. 

I remember the car as being quite quick, but it's much slower than my kids cars and much slower than I remember. I reckon it tops out around 10mph at best.

My question is, looking at the setup, is anyone able to point me in the direction of extra speed without completely changing the internals of the car? 

Any general advice also much appreciated. I have no clue when it comes to RC cars but am hoping to run and preserve this one for as long as possible. I do have some tape and glue in the post to help me reinforce the body, but speed is the thing I need more of. I was able to shred the tyres as a kid but that would take a long time to do with the current power I'm getting. 

Hopefully these photos show what you need to see. Let me know if I need to dig out anything else.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/osBHvnMye5pxhgjj7

Sorry for the total ramble. I'm trying to write this on my phone, while away on holiday with the family! 

 

All the best

Jim

[Twinfan]

Greetings!  A couple of things spring to mind re. speed if you're wanting to stay fairly original and keep the mechanical speed controller:

1. Ball bearings.  If you don't have them fitted, and you're still on the original bushings, these will give you more speed and also allow you to fit...
2. A faster motor.  A Tamiya Sport Tuned will be plenty and to go with it a...
3. Steel pinion.  An RW Racing RW3200 13T will be great and keep the Sport Tuned spinning nicely.  Make sure you use the correct holes in the gearbox casing.

Nice looking truck you have there!

[Jim_M1988]

Thanks for the advice Twinfan.

I'll have a good look at all of that when I get time and may well hit you up if I have any further questions.

The truck is still on the original bushings. I planned to run those until they were worn out but I did add some bearings to my watch list earlier tonight. Nice to know that's really a requirement before adding a better motor and a nice simple one to upgrade :). 

[Juggular]

Old grease might have solidified and become sticky on bushings and gears.  

1) Bearings can preserve your truck.  Those nylon bushings can eat the axles.  As they wear, the gaps allow dust. Quartz crystals (sand) grinds the axles away.  Later, when you try to put bearings, you could find the axle rattling inside the bearing.  You'd think bearings are too big. But then, you realize that it doesn't fit because axles got thinned (may or may not have been my own experience).  Axles rattling can make gears wobble and wear them out funny.  Which means you may have to replace everything.  So if you want to preserve your truck, it might be a good idea to save axles.  You need 12 bearings, I think.  But ten of them cost only $3.    

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806989681023.html?spm=a2g0o.productlist.main.45.6791205aYsXBAK&algo_pvid=e4356391-d041-4fdd-b6d8-0d25ada04299&algo_exp_id=e4356391-d041-4fdd-b6d8-0d25ada04299-44&pdp_ext_f={"order"%3A"41"%2C"eval"%3A"1"}&pdp_npi=4%40dis!USD!4.73!3.03!!!33.76!21.62!%402103241117483815723923948ea8cc!12000039706894193!sea!US!2630314545!X&curPageLogUid=pZ1hRt1tWb3o&utparam-url=scene%3Asearch|query_from%3A

They improve everything.  To simplify; the acceleration is 15% faster, top speed goes up 15%, and battery lasts 10% longer. 

(In reality it's like 12% acceleration boost, 24% top speed, but I'm averaging conservatively to 15%.)

 

2) You could check to see if your throttle servo is pushing the MSC (mechanical speed control) all the way to the 3rd speed.  I see that the linkage on the throttle servo is on the short side of the horn.  If you get all 3 speeds, that's fine.  But if you don't get 3 speeds, you might want to move the linkage close to the tip of the servo horn.  A longer arm can push farther.  

 

3) You can clean and lube gears (with plastic safe grease) when you rebuild the gearbox. (but usually gears are not the culprit) 

4) While you are at it, lubricate the axle of the motor with light machine oil like "3 in 1 oil."  But cleaning would come first.  I put motor in a paper cup, pour regular tap water on it, run it at 3.7 volt (using 18650 battery from a flashlight). That gets all the dust and gunk out.  Some dirt won't do harm, but maybe your motor could benefit from a good cleaning?  

After washing, I dry the motor and lubricate the axle with light machine oil.  

Do it at your own risk, though.  I don't know if a big chunk of rust comes loose on the inside, gets caught in the wires and shorts it.  But people have been bathing 540 motors since the 1980s.  (I would not use 7.2v, it's a bit violent for my taste.)

If you do need a new motor, a Sport Tuned costs only $15.  It's about 15% faster than the stock 540 motor.  It's a well-regarded motor (it used to be called "black motor" back in the days).  

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00061HB0K?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

 

 

[Twinfan]

8 hours ago, Jim_M1988 said:

Thanks for the advice Twinfan.

I'll have a good look at all of that when I get time and may well hit you up if I have any further questions.

The truck is still on the original bushings. I planned to run those until they were worn out but I did add some bearings to my watch list earlier tonight. Nice to know that's really a requirement before adding a better motor and a nice simple one to upgrade :). 

No worries!

For bearings you need 12x the "1150" bearing in Tamiya speak, which is also known by its size as "5x11x4".  I bought some recently and these are the cheapest I found - plus you'll have a few spares for your next car  

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sealed-Bearings-MR115-2RS-Rubber-5X11X4mm/dp/B0D9GYD9CZ

If you're placing an Amazon order, you could also pick up the Sport Tuned motor there as well as it's available for a great price.  Be aware that there are fakes out there, so make sure you buy from a reputable seller.  This one is sold by Amazon themselves:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tamiya-300053068-Electric-Motor-540-Sport-Tuned/dp/B00061HB0K/

For the pinion, Modelsport seem to be the cheapest at the moment:

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/rw-32-dp-pinion-13-teeth-13773

[Hypoxic]

She’s a gem. Keep her kickin’.

[Grumpy pants]

Ideally flip sides with the white front axles to reduce the bump steer.

And put some additional body support on the underside of the body where the rear body posts go through lexan shell as it is prone to getting damaged there. 

[Jim_M1988]

7 hours ago, Grumpy pants said:

Ideally flip sides with the white front axles to reduce the bump steer.

And put some additional body support on the underside of the body where the rear body posts go through lexan shell as it is prone to getting damaged there. 

Thanks grumpy. I'd already wrecked the body as a kid, so have added supports there since going through it all. Although one has come unstuck this week - although I have some plasterboard tape to try and do a better repair of things.

Have also flipped the front axles, although I'm finding adjusting the toe angle a nightmare. 

[Jim_M1988]

9 hours ago, Hypoxic said:

She’s a gem. Keep her kickin’.

I will do, thanks :). I'm a sentimental sort of person so the car means a lot to me. I was amazed to find how popular they still are.

[Jim_M1988]

On 5/28/2025 at 2:43 AM, Juggular said:

 

Amazing amazing advice mate! I will have a good dig through this when I'm back home. Definitely the MSC and motor clean are a great shout. Mixed between yours and Twinfans advice I should have a decent car going again. Really appreciate all the help. I'll keep you all updated once I make a few adjustments

[Jim_M1988]

On 5/28/2025 at 7:52 AM, Twinfan said:

 

Thanks a bunch :). I did have a Google yesterday and found there was a lot going for very reasonable prices. I've got some great stuff to be getting on with here, but I'm herring that bearings are key, then a few other cleaning tweaks and for not much more I can get a decent motor upgrade too! :). 

 

Excited to get home and get stuck in to this :). 

[Jim_M1988]

Evening @Twinfan and @Juggular!

Just got home from the family holiday this afternoon, and after doing all of my required house jobs, I got on with the car!

Luckily my lad needed to do repairs to his from a break while we were away, so we got to sit down together and go over a lot of the advice you gave. 

I'd ordered some bearings in the week so they were here when I got home. I also got some drywall tape and glue to patch up the bodywork a bit, which is currently out drying in my shed. 

I replaced the bearings and cleaned up the motor. What a difference!!! It has taken me hours 😂, but for such little cost the difference has been huge. I have also realised my car needs a thorough deep clean in the neat future too. 

I tried altering the speed controller but found the motor stuck ON. Likely something I've done but I think I'm getting the full range anyway. Videos and photos here: 

https://photos.app.goo.gl/XhVU4yYFzSC4znXeA

It is gone 9pm here but I could not wait!!

Next upgrade will be the sport motor, and then I may need further advice for a new controller and receiver. Mine requires 8 batteries and the car runs on full power if the controller voltage is low or the controller is off when I connect the battery. Quite annoying so something I'd like to change. 

Thank you both so much for your solid and sound advice. If you send me your PayPal addresses I'd like to virtually buy you both a pint please!

One very happy bloke at this end 😄. 

Jim

[Juggular]

It is refreshing to see somebody happy enough to offer. And it is kind of you to offer.  But I'll raise a gin highball to your Blitzer and call it even.  You can invest that money into your digital radio (it's 2.4Ghz radio. But I'm just going to call it digital, as in analog camera vs digital camera).  

My go-to basher radio is Flysky GT-3C. It has a 10 car memory.  Back in the days, I bought a used radio set for every chassis.  But a digital radio can add 9 more receivers for about $7 a piece. 1 transmitter can control 10 cars, separately.  It is a basic set. But I've got a lot bound to it, even though I have a bit fancier radio too.  For about $45-50 USD, you can get one with a lithium rechargeable battery and a receiver.  Some vendors charge up to $70, but they are the same thing (for that money, you can buy GT5 or G7P).  You can find it at Banggood, Aliexpress, Temu, Amazon, or any other hobby site.   

If you are racing, you might want to go with a more expensive radios like Futaba or Sanwa.  For bashing, I found that Flysky GT3C is good enough.  

(Below is GT3B. It requires 8 batteries, so don't get "B."  It's an older model that eats up batteries.  GT3"C" is the improved model.  But the menu is the same)  

You can name your model, so you'd know which receiver the radio is bound to.  REV is servo reverse. E. Point is End Point Adjustment that limits the servo horn angles. Trim is to center, of course. D/R is dual rate. EXP is expo,  ABS is auto braking if you have an ESC (electronic speed controller).  ABS is iffy, but it's there.  And there is Fail Safe.  If you set it, when the car loses the signal, it will cut the power.  So you wouldn't have a runaway truck.  All that would be fancy on an analog radio. But that's basic for digital radios.  

GT3C is cheap enough if you need something better later, you wouldn't lose a lot of money. One radio to control all these.  (A few years ago, I got them for about $4.75 each. With the silly tariff taxing on imports, these cost about $7 now.)  

The latency is not as small as more expensive radios.  Futaba 3PV ($160) or 4PLS ($200) would be faster. But each Futaba receiver costs about $50.  There is a 3rd party receiver that costs $24. But that's still 3 times more expensive that Flysky GT3 receivers.  

Racers prefer a Futaba, Sanwa or high-end Flysky, because they want fast responses.  I run stuff like Wild Willy 2 or CC-01 in my backyard. They are not fast.  For the money I could've spent on fancy radios, I chose to buy things like DT-04 NxGen.  I couldn't tell any difference between digital radio and old analog Futabas. And I've had a few analog radios over the years.    

There are other brands like Radiolink, Dumbo RC. But I think their $45 range radios are single model radios. 

If you want a bit fancier ones, there are Flysky G7P ($80), G11P ($220), NB4 ($320). I've left out GT5 ($70) because I paid $10 more and got G7P. The latency becomes smaller as they get more expensive.  My rough guestimate is, each step up would get about 30% faster than the last.  Of course, you'd need a faster servo and ESC (electronic speed controller) to take advantage of a faster radio.  

Receivers for G7P is still relatively inexpensive ($30 for 2). It's slightly faster than GT3C. It has 20 car memories (shrank down to 15 cars with the latest firmware -- if that was done to sell more receivers, that's a terrible move). You can control tracked vehicles if you have an RC tank. It has a channel mixing function, which took me a while to figure out.  You can incrementally limit the steering angle as throttle goes up.  It's useful for top-heavy Wild Willy, so it wouldn't roll easily at higher speed. You can see how steering shrinks as the throttle goes up.   

The receivers support 2 way functions, so you can read the battery voltage on the transmitter. LiPo batteries have the balance lead. But it's tricky for NiMH batteries.  

You can set an alarm. If the voltage falls below what you set, the transmitter would beep. I don't think I'll plug it every time, unless I solder a socket to make it easier to connect.  

For the $80 range, I had considered Radiolink RC6GS several years ago. I got Flysky G7P last year. There is Dumbo RC DDF-350 which might be a fraction slower than G7P, but has a good looking color screen and all the similar functions of G7P.    

If you don't need any of that, GT3C would be a nice entry point into 2.4Ghz radios. (Flysky could pay me for all the advertising I do. Or did I botch that by questioning their motive of reducing car memories? For all I know, they ran out of memories. Still, if I paid for 20 car memories, a corporation shouldn't take away what they already sold me.  It's about brand trust.  At least, I've got an option of not updating.)  

Anyway, I'd say you are in a fun spot to try new things one by one.  I was excited when I first installed an ESC. I never liked how the speed jumps with the mechanical speed controller.  You can go very slow with an ESC. Instead of 3 speeds, you get like 100 speeds.  (If you want, you could look into Hobbywing Quicrun 1060 or any of its clones. Even Tamiya includes it in their new kits sold in US. Just make sure the battery connector is the right type for you.) 

 

[Twinfan]

No need for the pint, glad I could give something back to the forum 

If you'd rather have a stick radio than a wheel, I use the Carson model which is cheap. Not the best quality but they work:

https://www.timetunnelmodels.com/live/catalog/carson-c707131-reflex-twin-stick-24ghz-channel-radio-with-receiver-bservo-removed-from-packb-same-c500084-p-62393.html

Alternatively, Absima do a cheap stick model: 

https://www.timetunnelmodels.com/live/catalog/absima-2000022-sr4s-24ghz-channel-control-accessory-twin-stick-radio-with-receiver-p-72848.html

[Jim_M1988]

I may have ordered the Sport Tuned motor and RW3200 13T last night 😬.
After pay day, I'll look at that Transmitter and Receiver. Your Flysky GT-3C made the most sense I reckon for my needs! 

[CMshooter]

Sport tuned motor and ball bearings should make a good running blitzer.  I ran a 19turn modified in mine for years.  

[wolfdogstinkus]

You said you wanted to spend, how fast?.

 These are tough old trucks, I never shredded a gearbox running a castle creations motor on 3s lipo.

Same chassis, different body.

I don't remember speed checking this one but it was over 40mph. And total overkill but lots of fun.

[Jim_M1988]

@wolfdogstinkus, that's crazy 🤣, you'd definitely need a fancy controller to not just constantly flip that! What is a 3s lipo?

Finances are tight at my end as I've got a young family and for the most part, they come first.

Took the car out in the week to the local BMX track with the kids and had a great time...unfortunately reverse has stopped working and I think it might be what @Twinfanwas saying about crud getting stuck in the motor after cleaning. Anyway, I had no worries as the sport tuned motor is in the post so I'd find out then if that was the problem, and then I could clean out the old motor and get that running properly again too.

Motor still hasn't yet turned up, and I've been out tonight with the kids again. After 1 small jump the front shock strut has broken, so I am back in search of parts and more advice. The Flysky transmitter is going to have to wait!

Both the front and back shock struts (if that's what they're called) are now broken. The rear one I supported with a zip tie, but now I'm thinking I'm going to need something more substantial to replace these. I can't find originals anywhere on eBay, so what are my options for replacements?

The front shocks are also leaking oil again, and I only replaced the fork seals a few weeks back. Is that to be expected or is it time to replace them with some ally ones?

Also, I am missing some screws. As much as I find odd bags of tamiya spares, what does everyone do to replace these bits without buying NOS?

Whatever I do, I'd love to keep the original parts so I can swap it back in the future for display purposes, so the possiblity of buying original spares and tougher r new replacements is what I'm really after.

Another link showing the broken parts:https://photos.app.goo.gl/Eg6LxyfeozaJPDgY6

I think as the car spent so long getting hot and cold in the attic, most of the plastics have become really brittle. 

Thanks again folks, you've all been heartwarmingly great

Jim

[CMshooter]

I raced mine years, and never broke shock towers.  Maybe they were brittle from age.  I only retired mine because the chassis broke in the center after 6 years of abuse.  I had replaced the shocks, but just used stuff from the junk bin at the track.

[Jim_M1988]

Definitely brittle. That constant temperature difference in an attic will be terrible for stuff like that. I'm not about to give up on her though, just can't find the original parts anywhere!!

[Juggular]

2 hours ago, Jim_M1988 said:

just can't find the original parts anywhere

When you can't find anywhere, people usually have made 3D models. 

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4463502

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4494951

There are places where they'd print these files for you too.  I had used Shapeways, but they went out of business.  But there are lots of them all around the world.  

 

[wolfdogstinkus]

You could just drill through it and fit a bolt with a sleeve or some plastic wheel bushings, are perfect for this sort of thing. 

Drill through shock tower. 

Fit nut and bolt.

Use plastic wheel bushings to create a "step" to hold shock absorber top in place.

Just an idea, I'm sure I broke a few of them.

A 3s lipo is a 3 cell lithium polymer battery putting out 11.1volts

The motor would have been a brushless motor around 4500kv = 4500 revolutions per volt, per minute.

=49,950 RPM 

The standard Tamiya "silver can" runs around 14,000RPM @ 7.2 volts I believe, so quite an improvement and not a great amount of spending at the time.

 

[Kol__]

Great to see another one coming back from the past, and nice to see it was your childhood RC too @Jim_M1988👍🙂

6 hours ago, Jim_M1988 said:

Both the front and back shock struts (if that's what they're called) are now broken. The rear one I supported with a zip tie, but now I'm thinking I'm going to need something more substantial to replace these. I can't find originals anywhere on eBay, so what are my options for replacements?

The Stadium Blitzer (and the Stadium Thunder) are basically the same chassis as the Blitzer Beetle, just the bodies and body mounting parts that differ, and things like wheel colour. The Blitzer Beetle was re-released (rere'd) in 2011 and is still produced today, so new replacement parts are available. The front and rear shock towers are both on the B parts tree. Whilst most places currently have it out of stock, with new stock due in July. I have found it here for you -

https://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/acatalog/Tamiya-B-Parts-for-Buggy-Champ-TAM9005333.html#SID=3064

6 hours ago, Jim_M1988 said:

The front shocks are also leaking oil again, and I only replaced the fork seals a few weeks back. Is that to be expected or is it time to replace them with some ally ones?

The standard Tamiya oil shocks (known as CVA shocks) fitted to your Blitzer are plenty good enough. I would recommend simply rebuilding them using some new o-rings (the red ones linked below will be a slight upgrade from the stock black ones you'll find in your shocks).

https://ttpmodels.com/products/tamiya-50597-damper-o-ring-red-10-pcs-cva-dampers-tt01d-xv-01-cc01-nip?_pos=3&_sid=f94352839&_ss=r

Best to put some new silicone shock oil in when you rebuild them. Tamiya's standard oil is 400cst, normally either bought in a set or in a small quantity for about a tenner. This equivalent will work and is better value for money, at more than double the quantity of the Tamiya bottles -

https://ttpmodels.com/products/carson-500905197-silicone-damper-shock-oil-400cst-50ml-for-tamiya-nip?_pos=6&_sid=c7e95299c&_ss=r

If you don't have the original hard copy, download the Stadium Blitzer manual pdf here buddy (weird looking web address I know, but is legit and a direct link to the manual)

https://d7z22c0gz59ng.cloudfront.net/cms/japan/download/rcmanual/58482.pdf

Assuming you're unable to run the old, original battery, are you running the truck on the same batteries used in the kids cars? NiMh batteries?

[Jim_M1988]

8 hours ago, Juggular said:

When you can't find anywhere, people usually have made 3D models. 

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4463502

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4494951

There are places where they'd print these files for you too.  I had used Shapeways, but they went out of business.  But there are lots of them all around the world.  

 

Thanks again @Juggular, solid advice as always and cost effective :).
I've downloaded those designs, but looking online most places have quite steep minimum order values. I can get some printed but it'll cost quite a bit!
Still, I think they'd be good for backups. We have a "repair cafe" in the village where I live, and I'm pretty sure they do 3d printing, so I'll hold on to those files until I find someone locally who will print them out for me :). Good lead on that website too, might come in handy for other parts as well.

[Jim_M1988]

6 hours ago, Kol__ said:

I have found it here for you -

https://www.cornwallmodelboats.co.uk/acatalog/Tamiya-B-Parts-for-Buggy-Champ-TAM9005333.html#SID=3064

Hey @Kol__

Yeah, I love the car! It's been a real treasure find in the attic and brings back a lot of memories for me :).

Thanks for the tip on that part - I have ordered it and it looks to have been the only one they had it stock! I'm going to get some of the 3d printed versions sorted too and maybe keep the official parts for later in the cars life when it goes on display, rather than during the hard months it has coming imminently 😁.
 

Quote

The standard Tamiya oil shocks (known as CVA shocks) fitted to your Blitzer are plenty good enough. I would recommend simply rebuilding them using some new o-rings (the red ones linked below will be a slight upgrade from the stock black ones you'll find in your shocks).

https://ttpmodels.com/products/tamiya-50597-damper-o-ring-red-10-pcs-cva-dampers-tt01d-xv-01-cc01-nip?_pos=3&_sid=f94352839&_ss=r

So - I have already done this. The O rings that were originally in there were red also. The first time I used the car I noticed the oil leaking from all 4 shocks and the fact there was no damping, so that was actually the first thing I did a few weeks back! The oil I'm using is the original oil I had from the 90's, so could well be that it's thinned out over the years. Maybe I'll try some better oil before looking to replace them.

Quote

Best to put some new silicone shock oil in when you rebuild them. Tamiya's standard oil is 400cst, normally either bought in a set or in a small quantity for about a tenner. This equivalent will work and is better value for money, at more than double the quantity of the Tamiya bottles -

https://ttpmodels.com/products/carson-500905197-silicone-damper-shock-oil-400cst-50ml-for-tamiya-nip?_pos=6&_sid=c7e95299c&_ss=r

I can't find that Carson oil in stock anywhere, but guessing any silicon based 400cst oil will be ok - or is this stuff *******?
https://wheelspinmodels.co.uk/i/core-rc-silicone-oil-400cst-35wt-60ml-118241/

Quote

If you don't have the original hard copy, download the Stadium Blitzer manual pdf here buddy (weird looking web address I know, but is legit and a direct link to the manual)

https://d7z22c0gz59ng.cloudfront.net/cms/japan/download/rcmanual/58482.pdf

Assuming you're unable to run the old, original battery, are you running the truck on the same batteries used in the kids cars? NiMh batteries?

Yeah, the manual is long gone. I have looked at the online version on that website, but just downloaded it so I have a copy. Probably a good place to search the specifications of the screws I need to replace the ones I've lost 😬.

Battery wise, the original still "works" but only for about 1 minute. I actually have the original battery and charger listed on here for free. I've been using a 7.2v Ni-MH SC Battery.