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Hi everyone,

I recently posted that I had bought a Re Re Frog in order to get back in to a hobby I loved back in the mid to late 80's. I had posted some questions about radios and batteries and have appreciated all of the feedback I have gotten. I am slowly acquiring parts for my upcoming build. As previously mentioned, this is just going to be a basher for me, but I wanted to do some upgrades. This is what I have ordered so far:

  • Spare set of rear wheels with paddle tires for asphalt/concrete
    RS540S sport tuned motor
    Ball Bearings for the driveline and front wheels

I have heard mention of upgrading the stock alloy pinion for a better one, but so far have been unable to locate one. Here is one I saw on Ebay. Does anyone know if this one will work with my engine?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewIt...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I see he has other ones that are 48 pitch 19T, but they make mention of specific platforms they are for. If the above link is not suitable for my car, can someone point me in the right direction? I see auctions for stock replacements, but not "upgraded" pinions. Thanks so much.

Mark

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Hi everyone,

I recently posted that I had bought a Re Re Frog in order to get back in to a hobby I loved back in the mid to late 80's. I had posted some questions about radios and batteries and have appreciated all of the feedback I have gotten. I am slowly acquiring parts for my upcoming build. As previously mentioned, this is just going to be a basher for me, but I wanted to do some upgrades. This is what I have ordered so far:

  • Spare set of rear wheels with paddle tires for asphalt/concrete
    RS540S sport tuned motor
    Ball Bearings for the driveline and front wheels

I have heard mention of upgrading the stock alloy pinion for a better one, but so far have been unable to locate one. Here is one I saw on Ebay. Does anyone know if this one will work with my engine?

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewIt...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT

I see he has other ones that are 48 pitch 19T, but they make mention of specific platforms they are for. If the above link is not suitable for my car, can someone point me in the right direction? I see auctions for stock replacements, but not "upgraded" pinions. Thanks so much.

Mark

No that pinion won't work.

The type of piunion you need is 32 pitch not 48. A 32 pitch pinion that will work with your frog is easy as heck to find just go to ebay and type in 32 pitch pinion and you can find all kinds of choices. Alibi I don't think you can use certain pinions without an adjustable motor mount

PS its a motor not an engine :)

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No that pinion won't work.

The type of piunion you need is 32 pitch not 48. A 32 pitch pinion that will work with your frog is easy as heck to find just go to ebay and type in 32 pitch pinion and you can find all kinds of choices. Alibi I don't think you can use certain pinions without an adjustable motor mount

PS its a motor not an engine :)

Thanks for the info. I thought I had read somewhere that the pitch I required was 48, but glad you straightened me out. I did a search and a heck of a lot of hits came up on Ebay. Unfortunately, many look different and the descriptions didn't state what applications they fit.

If anyone has recently bought an upgraded steel pinion for their Frog or equivalent, I would appreciate if you could post a link or part number. I would hate to get the wrong pinion for my "engine". :D

Mark

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I believe these are what you need - links to 16t, 18t, 19t pinions:

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX01&P=7

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX03&P=7

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX04&P=7

These are 32 pitch which is what older models used. It is confusing, so don't feel bad.

In the US most modern pinions for Tamiya are 48 pitch "Metric" [in Europe I think they are called .06 module?]. Older models like the Frog are 32 pitch.

I bought a few incorrect pinions in the beginning until I learned some caution in how to replace with non-Tamiya parts. The differences in pitch/module and this whole "metric" 48 pitch thing make it a bit hard to follow, but I now understand the Robinson Racing numbering system and these will will work.

This is just for comparison, but look how much smaller this 18t pinion gear is compared to the 18t pinion listed above for the Frog: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX41&P=7

The last one immediately above is for a modern[ish] Tamiya car and is listed as such in the description of the part, but even then Tower notes that it won't fit all Tamiya models. If you cruise around the Tower website you can see how many varieties of pinion gears there really are and see how easy it would be to get yourself confused. General rule for me: older models with visibly "bigger" pinions = 32 pitch. Newer models with visibly "smaller" pinions = 48 pitch "metric". If you get regular 48 pitch they will be wrong - it must say "metric". [somebody else can explain the module ratings since they aren't marketed here in the US that way very often and I don't entirely follow that discussion since obviously all the parts I buy must be purchased in the pitch scale anyway.]

Hope that helps a bit. :blink:

One other tip: Brat wheels and tires work a treat for tarmac running on the Frog/Hornet/Hopper models. They wear longer than spikes or paddles and the fronts especially last longer.

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One other tip: Brat wheels and tires work a treat for tarmac running on the Frog/Hornet/Hopper models. They wear longer than spikes or paddles and the fronts especially last longer.

They stick a heck of a lot better (on tarmac / pavement) too! I have yet to actually wear the set I have out and I do more street running than I should. You could go aftermarket, but if you are looking for a simple vintage bolt-on for pavement, this is the route to go and they are very available.

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Where did you buy your kit? All the one's I've seen for sale include the motor, ESC, and 3 pinion gears.

What you need are mod-0.8 (aka 32P) pinions. I would suggest you find a LHS and buy the things there. One thing to remember, mod-0.8 is more common in the 1/8th scale world. Because of this the pinion will be setup for a 5mm motor shaft, not the 3mm used in a typical 1/10th motor. If you order a pinion make sure it is for a 3mm motor shaft.

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I believe these are what you need - links to 16t, 18t, 19t pinions:

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX01&P=7

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX03&P=7

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX04&P=7

These are 32 pitch which is what older models used. It is confusing, so don't feel bad.

In the US most modern pinions for Tamiya are 48 pitch "Metric" [in Europe I think they are called .06 module?]. Older models like the Frog are 32 pitch.

I bought a few incorrect pinions in the beginning until I learned some caution in how to replace with non-Tamiya parts. The differences in pitch/module and this whole "metric" 48 pitch thing make it a bit hard to follow, but I now understand the Robinson Racing numbering system and these will will work.

This is just for comparison, but look how much smaller this 18t pinion gear is compared to the 18t pinion listed above for the Frog: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti00...=LXEX41&P=7

The last one immediately above is for a modern[ish] Tamiya car and is listed as such in the description of the part, but even then Tower notes that it won't fit all Tamiya models. If you cruise around the Tower website you can see how many varieties of pinion gears there really are and see how easy it would be to get yourself confused. General rule for me: older models with visibly "bigger" pinions = 32 pitch. Newer models with visibly "smaller" pinions = 48 pitch "metric". If you get regular 48 pitch they will be wrong - it must say "metric". [somebody else can explain the module ratings since they aren't marketed here in the US that way very often and I don't entirely follow that discussion since obviously all the parts I buy must be purchased in the pitch scale anyway.]

Hope that helps a bit. :blink:

One other tip: Brat wheels and tires work a treat for tarmac running on the Frog/Hornet/Hopper models. They wear longer than spikes or paddles and the fronts especially last longer.

Thanks a bunch! I appreciate all of the info!!

They stick a heck of a lot better (on tarmac / pavement) too! I have yet to actually wear the set I have out and I do more street running than I should. You could go aftermarket, but if you are looking for a simple vintage bolt-on for pavement, this is the route to go and they are very available.

Thanks! I went with a set of brat wheels and rubber!

Where did you buy your kit? All the one's I've seen for sale include the motor, ESC, and 3 pinion gears.

What you need are mod-0.8 (aka 32P) pinions. I would suggest you find a LHS and buy the things there. One thing to remember, mod-0.8 is more common in the 1/8th scale world. Because of this the pinion will be setup for a 5mm motor shaft, not the 3mm used in a typical 1/10th motor. If you order a pinion make sure it is for a 3mm motor shaft.

Got my kit from Dinball (ebay). I know the kit comes with three pinions, but everyone has told me to upgrade the "cheap" alloy pinion(s) that come with the kit for a steel pinion. Anyway, I found one and it is for a 3mm shaft.

Thanks everyone!

Mark

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Thanks a bunch! I appreciate all of the info!!

Thanks! I went with a set of brat wheels and rubber!

Got my kit from Dinball (ebay). I know the kit comes with three pinions, but everyone has told me to upgrade the "cheap" alloy pinion(s) that come with the kit for a steel pinion. Anyway, I found one and it is for a 3mm shaft.

Thanks everyone!

Mark

With a sport tuned you don't have to worry about the alloy gear stripping. In my Blackfoot (same tranny as your frog) I ran a way hotter motor for about a year before wear was observed on the pinion.

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With a sport tuned you don't have to worry about the alloy gear stripping. In my Blackfoot (same tranny as your frog) I ran a way hotter motor for about a year before wear was observed on the pinion.

I actually disagree, but maybe I got a particularly lame pinion gear. It stripped in a few months and ruined the entire gear set with only a silver can motor, and I know there was a proper amount of grease applied. It seemed really weird that a metal gear would be destroyed by the nylon gear but it happens. And pretty quickly too. I even wondered if jumping without a slipper clutch hastened its demise. Regardless, I won't ever use a stock Tamiya pinion again.

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