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Arms14

What Could Be The Problem? (tl-01)

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I have a TL-01 which is not working. It was, then it stopped, then it worked now I get nothing at all.

Motor: Endo 19t double wind

ESC: Msonik Digital Sport RV

Receiver: standard acoms AM 2ch

Controller: Acoms techniplus 27mhz with band 6 blue crystals.

Battery: Mtroniks 3000mAh 7.2v nimh which I am charging with a trickle charger.

It was working, although not great, stuttering a bit. I found that when I jiggled the yellow wire attached to the motor it worked while off the ground. So I thought it must be the connector, which I have replaced. This worked ok for a while, then it started spluttering power again. My ESC is going haywire now flashing red and green all the time, but it does not respond to the controller. Not even the steering works, which used to work fine.

Questions:

1) I have a feeling the connectors to motor are not the greatest - any recommendations of where to get them?

2) Why would my steering servo just stop receiving completely? I could understand if that was intermittant but it has always been fine.

3) My aerial is snapped, would that cause an issue (even tho I am only inches away)

....... any suggestions would be great here.

I am tempted to buy a new ESC, new battery, new motor and new controller. (may as well start again) The chassis is perfect...I am just getting fed up not being able to run it now. I don't know enough to be able to trouble shoot to find the problem. Is there anyway I can rule it certain things, ie test them to see if they work alone?

I hope someone can help.

ARMS

Just thought: Would bluetooth/broadband have any effect on the ESC/receiver? I am fiddling with the car right next to my laptop?

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i had a similar problem with my tl-01 a few years ago . after replacing nearly everything i borrowed a reciver of a mate and that sorted it. i am not saying its the same fault but some where to start.

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if you want to test indervidal items a multimeter is needed . you can test the motor by connecting the battery straight to it

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Don't charge your NiMh cells with a trickle charger, they cannot detect when the pack is full & will continue to overcharge it, eventually wrecking it.

For NiMh you should only use a proper peak detection charger.

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OK I am in the process of buying an ANSMANN ACX1 DELTA-PEAK CHARGER will that do the trick?

Also, I am going to buy new battery/batteries. What size are best? I was thinking 2700 or even 3300 is that too much? What is the difference between 2 x smallers ones against one big one?

I have a feeling my controller may be on its last legs too. Added to that I can't find any details about the ESC I have Msonik Sport RV I think I am going to buy a normal 540 motor and a standard Tamiya ESC to get my head into it all first.

I keep trawling ebay for a good Tl-01 for spares as I reckon thats what I could do with too..... but I guess it takes time to build up.

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The Ansmann looks OK, decent spec, it's a proper peak detect charger & it will run from 12v too so you can use it in the field.

This will correctly charge your NiMh pack.

I doubt your trickle charger can even charge that 3000 pack which may well be the cause of your problems, newer Mtroniks ESC's have a failsafe - when the battery runs too low they will cut out & prevent the car racing off on what little charge is left.

If your ESC seems like it's going on the fritz it's very possible your battery is flat - always test with fully charged batteries in the car & the transmitter.

If you calculate out mAh per the smaller ones work out slightly cheaper, the downsides are:

  1. Less runtime which means more battery changes / charges.
  2. Lower capacity packs usually can't deliver quite so much current.

No, a 3000 pack isn't too much, with your 19t motor consider going larger, 3700 or more for exactly the reasons above.

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Good news on the charger then! Phew!

Right, I have just bought:

Tamiya TEU-101BK Electronic Speed Controller

Tamiya RS-540 Sport Tuned Motor

Vapextech 7.2v NiMH 3300mAh Rechargeable Battery (any good?) to go with the charger.

That should sort it all out - although it sounds like it might all come down to the charger/battery now so I didn't need all that stuff ;) oh well. It just means I will have some kit to stick in something else that I will no doubt buy now......probably an off roader/buggy. Or a Stadium Raider or similar is what I really want.

:D

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Well, Sounds different then the problem I had some time ago... There was just a small cloud of electric smoke coming out of my ESC, and that was it... ;)

Anyway, you say your servo is not moving either. Maybe try another servo on it and see if it works. If it isn't, the receiver could be faulty since nothing works at the moment... You can also try another motor on the ESC? I hope you fix the problem soon :D

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If the lights on the ESC are flashing then this could be indicating it isn't receiving anything from the receiver.

You say your aerial is snapped. Do you mean the extendable aerial on the transmitter, or the flexible antenna on the receiver? If the receiver antenna has snapped off at the base then it will have trouble picking up anything at all. This would also explain why your steering servo doesn't work.

The problem seems to indicate that the ESC is getting power (because the lights are flashing) but the receiver is either getting no power or is not picking up a signal from the transmitter.

Sometimes with these problems the only way to diagnose is to keep on swapping out parts until eventually you find the faulty one. If you have a good local hobby shop (or some local friends into RC) then you might be able to swap bits around until you make it work. My LHS usually has a spare "test" ESC, receiver and battery to hand for just this instance.

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You say your aerial is snapped. Do you mean the extendable aerial on the transmitter, or the flexible antenna on the receiver? If the receiver antenna has snapped off at the base then it will have trouble picking up anything at all. This would also explain why your steering servo doesn't work.

More when I extend to full length, about 2 sections up it appears to have separated from itself (so doesnt stay up on its on in that section) I am going to buy a new controller as well now! hahaha I should have just bought a brand spanking new Stadium Raider like I wanted to originally but decided to try and be a smart alec and save money........ its probably ended up costing more this way! :D oh well....at least I am learning as I go this way.

Well as I say I am in the process of buying more stuff, incl ESC, Battery, Charger, Motor (alloy front/rear arms & oil filled shocks today :P ) so I will have things to swap out and I guess I will get to the bottom of it eventually.

I have spotted a load of TL-01B chassis on ebay and I have my eye on a few, I fancy making a buggy/truck myself and getting it all together from scratch. I will wait and see what is wrong with the current one first though to see what I can salvage.

I have read more than a few reviews now on the Vapex batteries and everyone seems to be saying good things! Bonus!

Anyone know anything about the HBX Cross Tiger/Bonzer? They are going dirt cheap on ebay at the mo and seem to have some good pace/basher qualities which may feed my hunger for off roading while i get my buggy/truck together?

Any advice/warning/recommendations etc?

Cheers folks!

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More when I extend to full length, about 2 sections up it appears to have separated from itself (so doesnt stay up on its on in that section) I am going to buy a new controller as well now!

That's your problem. The signal is totally messed up coming out of your transmitter. All you would need is a new antenna.

Also, with your modified motor, you need to ensure that the capacitors are properly installed.

Either of these alone could cause this type of problem. But with both, it's a guarantee.

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I am going to buy a new controller as well now!

You can probably just buy a new extendable aerial. Try at your local hobby store - I'd be very surprised if they don't have one in stock. What make handset are you using? Maybe someone here has a spare they can sell you.

Anyone know anything about the HBX Cross Tiger/Bonzer? They are going dirt cheap on ebay at the mo and seem to have some good pace/basher qualities which may feed my hunger for off roading while i get my buggy/truck together?

IIRC these are a cheap chinese copy of the Wild Dagger, except they appear to have only one motor instead of the two in the WD. I have no idea what the quality is like but there was a thread here about a year ago on them.

Personally I'd save your money to get your car running again, and then splash out on a new Tamiya later.

Have a good look around at the available Tamiya models when you're ready for something new - I'm become a big fan of the TL01 chassis in recent months, but they are very basic and not really that great off-road. The Stadium Raider is a Baja King buggy with a truck shell on - you'd get better handling and performance from a proper 4wd buggy chassis like a DF03.

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Thanks for the replies again.

Well my Tamiya Standard TEU-101BK arrived today and I followed the intructions to the letter.

This is the order I did it in:

>I connected the red battery lead to the battery hole (BATT) in the acoms receiver

>then the receiver connector (black/red/white) to the CH2 hole as it says to do

>then I connected the battery up

>Turned the transmittor on (1st)

>Turned the receiver on (2nd) using the on switch

The controls on my Acoms Techniplus Transmitter 27MHz are set to neutral (N) and the trim is in the middle too.

No joy (I guess it is pointing to that aerial even more now then) As soon as I turn the reciever on the LED flashes red once (as it is supposed to) then it starts to flash constantly and wont let me set it up.

Looks like it is off to the LHS to get a new aerial then ;) I am still waiting for the new motor and battery although I picked up my Ansmann ACX1 charger today and that is working sweet. Pumped up my Mtroniks 3000mAh in no time at all.

I did some research on those HBX trucks and they do look like a cheap model, I am going to wait. One thing at a time. Get this beast sorted first and then think about buggying myself up! :)

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As soon as I turn the reciever on the LED flashes red once (as it is supposed to) then it starts to flash constantly and wont let me set it up.

Check the manual for the TEU-101, in the middle of the second page it says:

If receiver is turned on while transmitter is off, LED will flash....

In other words, no signal from your TX is reaching the RX :)

Acoms TX aerials are 3.99 from Goldstarstockists, stock no AA3 ;)

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Check the manual for the TEU-101, in the middle of the second page it says:

In other words, no signal from your TX is reaching the RX :)

Acoms TX aerials are 3.99 from Goldstarstockists, stock no AA3 :P

Ordered!! Thanks for that.

My Vapex battery arrived today too, so it's slowly coming together, just waiting on the Sport tuned motor, but it's coming from Hong Kong so might take a while :P Oh and while I was looking for aerials, I stumbled across a quick release battery holder, so I ordered that as well ;)

......I also have my eye on Porsche GT3 shell.

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And so begins the slippery slope :)

hahaha you are not wrong.

I just this minute bought what was listed as a "Radio Shack Ford F150 Bigfoot" now I don't know it that is a Tamiya or not, or even if it is any good. But it was 7.50 and it looked kinda cool from the pictures. ;)

If you want I can post a pic, maybe you can tell me what I have bought.

(Note to self.....STOP buying stuff!!!!)

Edited to add the pic: FordF150Bigfoot.jpg

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Update:

I bought a new aerial today, fitted it in the transmitter and ............. still doesn't work.

The red led light is still flashing all the time on the ESC. So, not the aerial then...... I guess now it is either the acoms receiver or the transmitter itself then?

:)

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Do you not have a hobby shop that deals in RC kits anywhere near you? In my experience, most hobby shops have spare stuff lying around and don't mind helping you to diagnose problems by swapping parts around until you find the bit that's broken - on the trust that you will buy whichever new part you need from them when you uncover the faulty part. It's certainly cheaper to pay hobby shop prices for one electronic component than replacing every last electronic component at internet prices. I know some people slate hobby shops because they are more expensive than web shops, but the experience and on-hand assistance that you get when something isn't working is invaluable.

The blinking light on the ESC usually means that it's not getting a signal from the receiver. It's surprising that none of your fixes so far have isolated the cause; it could be signals not leaving the transmitter, it could be signals not entering the receiver, it could be battery power not reaching the receiver, or it could be signals not leaving the receiver to the ESC or servo.

Have you checked the crystals? Have you unplugged all the wires in the receiver to make sure they're plugged in correctly and not corroded or dirty?

Hope you get it fixed soon :)

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I had a similar problem with my 101 Esc, turned out to be the reciever :D As soon as I fitted a new one, the 101 Esc was a breeze to setup, a couple of pushes of the button and I was away. Good luck with it.

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Update:

I called my local hobby shop and explained the whole saga, the guy on the phone was very helpful and said "it sounds like either your receiver or your transmitter then" he also said to bring it all in and he would have a look and see if he can figure it out so I don't have to buy both and then find out they don't work either.....Very helpful so far........

I am just about to go and see him.

I will post the outcome later - fingers crossed its a good one. :)

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Best of luck :)

Awhoooooohoooo! :);)

Fixed!!!!!! it was the reciever - you were right, the guy at the LHS couldn't have been more helpful. He tried the crystals first and then the receiver. Alright I spent a little more than I could have got a new receiver on ebay for, but at least now I KNOW what was wrong.

I have now fitted the new motor, the new ESC, the new battery and now the new receiver and it goes like a dream. ;) Wow is it fast! Just gotta learn to drive it now hahahaa

I also now have an old spare Endo motor, old spare ESC, spare battery. So when I pick up the truck I bought the other day I am going to have a bash at modding it myself. It will be my first real project, who knows how I will get on, but who cares. If it all goes wrong I still have the Porsche to fly about till I start the next one.

Thanks so much for all the help fellas! ;)

I may even try and get to the Somerset meet now I have wheels to run!

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