So, What Have You Done Today?

[Jason1145 4683]

Not painting my RSR shell weather is pants!

[JimBear 798]

1 minute ago, Jason1145 said:

Not painting my RSR shell weather is pants!

@Grumpy pants?

[Grumpy pants 5178]

1 hour ago, Jason1145 said:

Not painting my RSR shell weather is pants!

Looking good 👍

[Ferruz 12548]

I've set up some Kyosho running wheels and tires for my Mid. I have once again used my own makeshift inner sponges made from packaging material, in order to save on some otherwise expensive OG parts.

Ghetto meets genuine! And with good results, after just a few minutes of trial and error. 

Once in, they already feel like the real deal even before locking the tire into the rim.

I did this to preserve the Bridgestone repro tires. They'll still see some action from time to time, but mostly on snow.

Had to do some quick lettering while at it

...and done. Looking good and sleek, these pepperpot wheels are really a beautiful design. Loving them in white while still on the lookout for some proper gold ones 😅

Next now, a good shakedown run. This car hasn't seen much action in the past year, time to rectify that! 

[Ray_ve 1160]

My daughter wanted to drive a car, so took the monster wheel grasshopper 2 out for a spin.

It's an odd car, the big wheels at the front make the nose relatively heavy, so the back can drift quite easily.

That gave my an idea for a project, double wishbone suspension at the front.

[Wystan Withers 321]

Dunno how well it would hold up to the larger wheels, but if you've got a printer...

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4392528

[nowinaminute 3319]

This is for a few days back, but I took my Nikko project out for a drive with a temporary switch to one of my older flysky radios, as I am suddenly having an issue with my previously rock solid DumboRC (Ironically, I had all but abandoned flysky for dumbo)

Anyway, it was nice to drive it without any random loss of control and shut offs etc. Motors still got warmer than I'd have liked but now that I'm 100% certain it's not any kind of driveline binding, I'm just going to not worry about it, as I'll be working on a solution soon enough.

One other thing that changed, is that I rebuilt the cheap Aliexpress dampers that had been terrible at first. I usually find those metal "HSP" style dampers to be fairly decent, so when I saw a set claiming to be specifically Tamiya DT, TT and DF buggies, with an extra set of springs, no less, I decided to try them.



Unfortunately, they turned out to be frustratingly, and needlessly bad, at least from the packet. Main two issues were cheap o rings that seize up literally 10 seconds after you free them, and ridiculously thick oil for the size of the piston discs making them virtually immobile. You could literally bounce the car up and down to free them up, and they would lock up again even as the car went along! Ironic because most of those kind of dampers I've had haven't had that o ring issue and the oil/piston disc combination has been too soft, if anything!

Turns out some Tamiya red o rings and 100CST oil massively improves matters! They still bind slightly after several hours, but no worse than some of my Tamiyas! The main thing is they will actually stay free while driving and actually work pretty well with no leaks! I might go one step further and polish the shafts, but it's diminishing returns at this point.

The stock o rings actually look like the same material as Tamiya ones superficially, but they are a bit bigger, and just don't really fit where they are supposed to without being squished, which is probably why everything seizes up:



The tamiya ones fit in more easily, and when you screw the cover down, there's no resistance whereas with the original o rings, you can feel them being squeezed with a lot of pressure.

I thought the nyloc nut on the end of the shaft was a positive point, especially for a cheapo, but they weren't even done up properly, which didn't help things! Tightening them improve the feel of things and took the play out of the damping:



The last issue with them is the springs. You get a choice of firm or really firm! Both are way too stiff for a DT02/03 or a TT-02B. Luckily, the Nikko is a porker, so the less firm springs actually work ok, although maybe still a hair too stiff for my liking.

It's frustrating when something temptingly cheap comes so close yet so far from being good. With softer springs, appropriate oil and half decent o rings they would have been killer, as the fundamental design and build quality is pretty decent.

So, overall, you can get them to work pretty well, but they are frustratingly flawed out of the packet and springs too firm for most of the Tamiya buggies they are advertised for. Probably better off with the DT-03 CVA set, especially if you can get them cheaper from abroad. The only advantage this set gave me is the firmer springs as I know the springs with the DT-03 set are too soft for the Nikko, so you'd need to buy an additional DT-02 or DF-03 spring set which bumps the cost up.

Anywho!

I've only installed them on the rear, so far, but they seem to work really well now they are rebuilt. Looking at footage of the car with the stock friction dampers, and these ones when they didn't work and then comparing to the last time I took it out after I rebuilt them, the difference is huge. The ******* end was bouncing all over the place before but looks much more settled, now, which is awesome!

This was the last time I took it out:

Check out the racket from those huge spiked tyres in the second clip, even in a straight line! That probably doesn't help with the motor temps, can hear them clawing at the tarmac!

Anyway, compare that video to this one (same shocks pre-rebuild) and look how much it twerks!
 

 

[Ferruz 12548]

Took the Mid out for a well deserved run. I've enjoyed admiring it on the shelf for the past year, but if feels even better to just drive it around in her real habitat. 

It's just a joy to drive, feeling simply impeccable. If only there were vintage oriented offroad competitions in my area, I'd join them in a heartbeat with the Mid! Unfortunately there's no such thing.

It jumps very well, with sprint and composure 

[skom25 1737]

It took me few days, because I did not have too much time, but I finished today

After few packs, I decided to install Aluminium Rear Uprights with 3' of Toe in my TT-02. 0' Toe makes this car totally unstable.

I also moved ESC between motor and servo, so it looks much better now. Receiver is on servo mount. Of course, I cut cables to correct length.

Previously I had plastic fan. It was quite good, but motor was bit too hot after around 10 minutes. I bought ( at least in theory) much faster fan with aluminium body. If it will help, I will look for better looking version, because this one does not look good at all to be honest.

Few screws were replaced with blue ones. Servo Saver was replaced by stiff Horn, because after electronics replacement, there is much more space. I also did some cleaning and serviced Steel Universals.   

I am still not very happy with look of electronics, but I am afraid that I cannot do much more. I am fan of black wires, but it cannot be done without a lot of very precise and bit risky job.

[Grumpy pants 5178]

A very small amount of painting and gluing today and downloaded some ‘T’ manuals.

Hornet for comparison with the Grasshopper front shocks build.

XV-01 for parts comparison for my XV-01T

Buggy Champ for my Rough Rider body shell.

Back to work tomorrow - starting with 2 late finishes and a 6 day week 😭

[alvinlwh 6882]

Finished fitted the additional RCZRider bling bits to the TD.

On the front, the bumper holder is replaced, and the A5 reinforcement is no longer required. Other bits like arms, shock tower were done a while ago.

At the back, the arms, hubs and rear bumper are replaced. Again, the tower, etc were done a while ago. 

This required a lot of e-clip removal and I am impressed that I only lost one.

TBH, all these red bits will look better under a FD.

[Grumpy pants 5178]

Established that I like to trim the part used spruces and also that kit boxes are useful for keeping parts together for that specific model 😂

I’ve put all my ‘T’ stuff away now apart from some very small elements, otherwise it will bother me that I’m either too busy or too tired to get anytime ‘T’ time over the next 2-3 weeks, kinda out of sight out of mind 🤫

[Ray_ve 1160]

15 hours ago, Wystan Withers said:

Dunno how well it would hold up to the larger wheels, but if you've got a printer...

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4392528

Yeah I have a printer and came across these too. Looks interesting, so maybe use as-is or make an own design based on this. 

[Badcrumble 4401]

El Kid opted to stick with the F1 theme today, we'll save the Dual Hunter for later in the summer.

[Mouc-RC 469]

Today I experimented the Stadium Fighting Bug-Truck from Tamiya "Misc".

Overdose of Oversteer, but very fun, and runs smoothly

Mind your throttle, and be aware that with big wheels, front end's screws tend to free themselves & have a try for the wild-life

 

[Grumpy pants 5178]

41 minutes ago, Mouc-RC said:

Today I experimented the Stadium Fighting Bug-Truck from Tamiya "Misc".

Overdose of Oversteer, but very fun, and runs smoothly

Mind your throttle, and be aware that with big wheels, front end's screws tend to free themselves & have a try for the wild-life

 

So this looks to me to be a Super Champ with Blackfoot rims, with Stadium tyres on the rear and Toyota balloon front tyres up front? 

[Grumpy pants 5178]

6 hours ago, Badcrumble said:

El Kid opted to stick with the F1 theme today, we'll save the Dual Hunter for later in the summer.

My step son is home after his 1st year @ Uni and has just started his Summer job.

He spent his 1st pay check going large on Lego 👍

 

[Mouc-RC 469]

5 minutes ago, Grumpy pants said:

So this looks to me to be a Super Champ with Blackfoot rims, with Stadium tyres on the rear and Toyota balloon front tyres up front? 

9 out of 10!

Fronts are "modified" regular Stadium fronts, but I removed the spikes with a lathe

[Pizza Frog 682]

14 hours ago, alvinlwh said:

Finished fitted the additional RCZRider bling bits to the TD.

On the front, the bumper holder is replaced, and the A5 reinforcement is no longer required. Other bits like arms, shock tower were done a while ago.

At the back, the arms, hubs and rear bumper are replaced. Again, the tower, etc were done a while ago. 

This required a lot of e-clip removal and I am impressed that I only lost one.

TBH, all these red bits will look better under a FD.

What a beauty!  Love what you've done to that Dragon

[nowinaminute 3319]

Sorted the fronts from the set of iffy aliexpress shocks I mentioned in my previous post.

Got the dremel out and polished the shafts this time. 1000 grit then 2500 grit then polish. Not perfect, but much better. 

Before:


After:


Stock o ring on the left, tamiya on the right. The stock ones seemed to be reacting to, and sticking to each other. Wonder if they used an unsuitable oil and it perished them?



Then some 100CST oil because the holes in the pistons are narrow enough to give Hank Hill a run for his money and the stuff in there was the consistency of treacle. 

Much better, now!

[lupogtiboy 490]

On 7/5/2024 at 10:04 PM, Grumpy pants said:

I’ve had a couple hours of ‘T’ time, wife’s out, kids all doing there own thing, Radio 1 on banging out the tunes, total bliss 😎

I’ve only ever built 1 kit before, nearly  10 years ago which I never finished, I sold it to my TC buddy @lupogtiboy - a Honda City Turbo. 

So anyway progress is slow, which is ok with me. 

However up and running it will have cost me £55.00 all in which is fantastic as well. 
 

Got lucky with the kit, sold the wheels/tyres set  and apart from buying a pinion everything else has come from my spares - which delights me 🥳
 

 

The sad thing is that it's still sitting in the same state you sold it to me, all those years later! I will get it finished one-day, just time and somewhere to do it is the struggle for me.........

I've got the Audi V8 to build too, my parents bought it for Christmas when it first come out. I even bought new a new charger, radio gear and batteries for it, but alas, they are all just sitting in a box, waiting for the day I can build it....

[alvinlwh 6882]

Got another pair of Boom Racing piggybacks to go on the FTX Bugsta. In my eagerness to get them on, I did not even take a picture of them for thr postman thread.

Here they are mounted with #700 oil and medium springs. Feels a little too stiff/bouncy so may drop the oil a little. The rear put on a few weeks ago felt perfect.

Now, these BR shocks had been discontinued and very few are left in stock. I had been buying up most of their stock for the past few months. 😁 There are not much selection left, which is why I ended up with mismatching color front and rear. 

Of course ideally, I will prefer blue to match the chassis instead of red front and purple rear, but these are what they have left in the lengths I needed.

[Ferruz 12548]

My situation with Pargu got a bit confusing during the last few days.

After messaging him about the wrong color of the items (wheels/side bars) a while ago and getting no answer, I went ahead and started a refund process, which he accepted. He provided no return label though, and by the time the deadline for that came I had to ask fleabay to step in, or else I would have lost my rights to the refund.
Now I'm waiting for either the return label to be sent to me, or for the refund directly, so no biggie at all. I just wanted to leave this whole thing behind and move on.

Next thing I know, today I came home from work to find another package from Pargu, with only a set of side bars in it. I got confused, but thought oh well, this must be a mistake and now I'm just gonna have to deal with another pair of orage-ish bars to return. But upon opening the box, I got totally puzzled as I realized these are actually the right color, that very Kyosho light gold I've been obsessing over for the past couple weeks 

I'm glad, but mostly I am so very confused.

Was this sent on purpose, then? Or just a fortunate mistake? And if a mistake, how come these are all of a sudden of the right color? Man, I know the guy is well known for excellent products and poor communication, but just a few words wouldn't hurt... like this, I've no idea what's going on..? I wish we could communicate, but I feel like dealing with Silent Bob here 😅

And I certainly wouldn't have asked or started the refund in the first place, had I known he was sending off new parts. I feel bad now but again, I had no way of knowing.
Anyway, all I know is that for the next few days I'll be hoping to magically see some light gold wheels in the mail box...😝

Anybody had similar experiences with that store?

[Pylon80 3319]

18 minutes ago, Ferruz said:

My situation with Pargu got a bit confusing during the last few days.

After messaging him about the wrong color of the items (wheels/side bars) a while ago and getting no answer, I went ahead and started a refund process, which he accepted. He provided no return label though, and by the time the deadline for that came I had to ask fleabay to step in, or else I would have lost my rights to the refund.
Now I'm waiting for either the return label to be sent to me, or for the refund directly, so no biggie at all. I just wanted to leave this whole thing behind and move on.

Next thing I know, today I came home from work to find another package from Pargu, with only a set of side bars in it. I got confused, but thought oh well, this must be a mistake and now I'm just gonna have to deal with another pair of orage-ish bars to return. But upon opening the box, I got totally puzzled as I realized these are actually the right color, that very Kyosho light gold I've been obsessing over for the past couple weeks 

I'm glad, but mostly I am so very confused.

Was this sent on purpose, then? Or just a fortunate mistake? And if a mistake, how come these are all of a sudden of the right color? Man, I know the guy is well known for excellent products and poor communication, but just a few words wouldn't hurt... like this, I've no idea what's going on..? I wish we could communicate, but I feel like dealing with Silent Bob here 😅

And I certainly wouldn't have asked or started the refund in the first place, had I known he was sending off new parts. I feel bad now but again, I had no way of knowing.
Anyway, all I know is that for the next few days I'll be hoping to magically see some light gold wheels in the mail box...😝

Anybody had similar experiences with that store

Glad you got the wheels you wanted in the end. There's nothing to feel bad about, communication is just as important as good work in my opinion. One needs both to do business.

[Rinskie 851]

The mailman brought me an Alpine body and a few other little bits for my M08 so I decided to reattached the body mounts. Tomorrow I plan on trying to see if Tamiya cement will stick to the chassis material. I don't like the way the forward section of the chassis doesn't sit completely flush with the back half of the chassis as viewed from the bottom. There are two little bits that kinda hang down a little. If all goes well tomorrow that little issue will haunt me no longer.