Tamiya TA03F - Advice Please ?

[__G__]

Hi all ,

I am a newbie to this site/forum and think its great - full of information . I am looking for some advice on how to hop up my newly aquired Tamiya TA03F (Not PRO).

The car already has bearings , and I plan to buy an M-Troniks Pro Vision Modifed 17x3 motor , and a M-Troniks Sport RV ESC . Do you think these are ok to buy (good choice) ? [8)]

What else would you recommend for this car ? ? I really need help as I am unsure what hop-ups are best.

Also , any setup information etc would be very helpful! []

I would be very grateful of any info []

Thanks in advance,

Gregorid="Arial">id="blue">

[sosidge]

Not wanting to sound too negative... but...

I would avoid the Mtroniks equipment - quality is poor - and for the price of the Sport RV you can buy something by a quality brand like LRP, Nosram, Futaba, Novak or GM. Their motors are also pretty unimpressive (personally I wouldn't spend less than about £30 on any motor except for the basic Tamiya 540's).

Hop-ups are a pretty personal thing, I don't know of any particular weaknesses on a TA03F, but it is a pretty old car, so I would hold back on blowing too much on options. Just make sure it's well maintained, that's worth just as much as any option parts.

[WillyChang]

TA03s don't need much hopups. Its main gripe is weight, as it

is built like a tank and is very heavy compared to its peers.

To free up the drivetrain, a low-friction aramid belt is handy

and to lighten moving parts, find a pair of lightweight layshafts

(a surprisingly Tamiya option). Universals for the front also good.

TA03s are sweet neutral handlers right out of the box.

There is not much suspension "setup" available as the arms are fixed

(as standard) and its got enough toein at the rear. Adjustable susp

arms (option) aren't too necessary, as you'll just find them set back

to where the original fixed arms were for optimum grip anyway.

Save your $$$ for good tyres & good electronic equipment instead.

[jhellman(2)]

Hi,

there is a list of some set-up tips and available hop-ups for TA-03F at:

http://www.direct.ca/xenz/jeff/car.html

I had some handling probs with my ta03F in the beginnings. Since the engine is in front (much weight on front wheels), it handled pretty oversteeringly, especially when breaking in the corners.

I changed stiffer springs to front, also lowered back end a bit + added a sway bar in the back. Now I'm pretty happy how it handles.

In the process I found general set-up guides very useful. For example;

http://www.rcingreece.com/RC%20Car%20Handl...20101/index.htm

or

http://ebiz.netopia.com/competitionx/tuningguide1/

or

http://www.nascart.com/sedan.htm

I have same feelings about M'tronics as previous speakers. If you need water resistant ESC, then probably better buy Carson ESC. They look exactly the same (must be manufactured by M'tronics for Carson label). I have a couple and they are decent ESC's. Not as good as the two LRP's I have anyhow! You get what you pay for..

Also the LPR engines, for example GT2 turbo- series offer pretty good performance for the price. Of cource they have not adjustable timings like modified engines, but they are good 1st hop-ups. Then you also have real modified engines also.. For LRP engine specs, check out;

http://www.lrp-electronic.de/e/main_frameset_e.htm

I bet all the engines are pretty OK, once you just base you choice on power, torque, max RPM and efficiency offered + whether you like adjustable timing or not. I only buy an engine that has these specs available. If the manufacturer or the reseller is not presenting some info, there must be some reason to hide it?

Just an example from one German web-site of what I consider good information;

"87-58152 LRP-Motor GT2 TURBO 15x2 25,00 Euro

31.400 U/min / 157 Watt / 73 % / 202 Nmm - 2-fach Wicklung und 6.1 Colltec Racinggehäuse und Leichtlaufsinterlager, austauschbare Motorkohlen und Motorfedern "

Also note that you have an ESC that can handle the current. P=U*I -> I (current) = power (in Watts) / 7,2 Volts (in case you use 6 cells). Example: 157 Watts/7,2 V = 21,8 Amps. The "turn limit" of ESC are good general rules of thump, but in case you want to calculate it, you'll see that there are both variations and generally the ESCs have some head room between concurrent current they can take and what is their recommended number of turns in the engine.

br,

Juha

[__G__]

Hi again ,

Thanks very much for all your advice , which has proved very helpful.The links posted are very good [] Do any of you own a TA03 , and race it?

I have ordered the two M-Troniks items which I had mentioned previously , (because of the price and because they were recommended to me) and also a urethane bumper , from Modelsport UK . (All items are out of stock [!] - surprise surprise!)

I have attatched a photo of my car . At the moment I use a Carson Porsche Bodyshell but dont really like it [V] I plan to purchase an Escort WRC bodyshell and paint metallic blue , and spray the existing chrome wheels white to go semi rally style []

I will let you know how I get on.

[jhellman(2)]

Hi,

sure I have one runner, check my showroom;

http://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom.asp?id=321

You can find there my Audi A4 SWT, tamiya# 58182. Actually I use a BMW shell on it most often, somehow it looks better.

I just run it for my own fun, I do not think it would be very competitive in todays races, about 5 years ago it might have been still OK.

I bet the body shell you use on your ta03F is exactly the same that is on my Carson nitro (cr-4), also visible in the showroom. It's pretty thick lexan - good for nitro speed accidents.

I hope you can tune the chassis to run like on rails - I find it pretty good to drive but it needed some tuning as written above. Of course we all have different driving styles, and it might be jsut fine for you right out of the box.

-Juha

[WillyChang]

quote:

Originally posted by __G__

...Do any of you own a TA03 , and race it?

---

id="quote">id="quote">

Sort of... bought the TA03s (silver Audi A4 STWs also) when they

first came out and ran them OK at the local club.

The original handling suits outdoor/tarmac very well, especially the

bumpier tracks. (You might need to do some experimenting for carpet.)

Best hopup for any TA03 is to get some decent tyres!!!

You will not realise how well it handles until you have enough

grip to make it traction roll... either good racing slicks

(from TakeOff, Sorex, Ride etc) or go foam if your club allows it.

quote:...spray the existing chrome wheels white

id="quote">id="quote">

Generally I'd avoid painting wheels, especially over chrome.

Best to just buy another set of wheels. []

[__G__]

Hello again,

Finally I recieved a package from Modelsport UK this morning , trouble is - the motor is STILL on back order [!]

I have now fitted the M-Troniks ESC , and Urethane bumper (Ill post pics l8r) [] and have actually noticed an improved performance in the car (possibly because I haven't used it in a while .

I looked on the TA03 resource page (Thanks jhellman) and there was advice on how to mesh gears correctly , by putting a couple of pieces of paper between the gears and then tightening them together -then removing the paper . I drove the car then checked the gears afterwards to find that my main gear had been slightly shred , with bits of plastic all over the gearbox []

I am worried because if this is what the 27 turn motor can do to the gears - whats a 15 turn motor going to do !? [?][8)][:0]

Thanks

Gregor

[__G__]

Anyone got any idea ? [?]

[wriggleandgiggle]

I generally use one piece of paper and run it through the gears, if it tears the paper its too tight, if it doesn't crimple the paper its too loose.

[WillyChang]

Are you using the small-teeth or big-teeth gears?

Use 2-ply tissue paper and push the pinion in real tight.

Double it up to 4-ply for the big teeth (0.6=AV) gears.

I'd also replace the motor screws with 3mm hex heads, makes it

so much easier to snug them down in that limited space.

[nickc]

I suggest you get rid of those standard plugs and get Deans or Corally plugs, the standard plugs can melt with stock or modified motors !!!

[__G__]

Cheers lads I'll give that a try , but I think that a bit of damage has already been done to the main gear

quote:I suggest you get rid of those standard plugs and get Deans or Corally plugs, the standard plugs can melt with stock or modified motors !!!

id="quote">id="quote">

Surely if both the motor and ESC , are the same brand and the turn limit for the motor is abovethe turn limit of the ESC , then there shouldnt be a problem ?? [?]

Thanks

Gregor

[WillyChang]

quote:

Originally posted by __G__

Surely if both the motor and ESC , are the same brand and the turn limit for the motor is

above

the turn limit of the ESC , then there shouldnt be a problem ?? [?]

---

id="quote">id="quote">

yup, that's true... in 99% of cases.

But if your car's jammed up against a wall or something is stuck

in the transmission jamming everything up *then* when you next go

full throttle, any stalled motor will draw a lot of current etc etc.

If you're using the standard Tamiya & bullet connectors... these

need regular cleaning & maintenance. High currents through

dirty contacts cause heat.

Also I feel that Tamiya's factory plugs are made of aluminium

contacts, which don't conduct as well as other metals.

Lower conductivity causes more heating.

I'm sticking with bullets for the convenience, even on the

race cars... but I use solid copper ones. They do the job fine.

[__G__]

It will be M-Troniks that I use , will they be ok ?

Thanks

Gregor