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StuartUK

Help me Build a TT-01 Please! (Noob)

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Hi all, I am new to the RC scene, in terms of wanting to build one from scratch...

I bought a TA-05 car 2 years ago, someone had already built it as a shelf queen, looked like standard parts + Tamiya Sport Tuned Motor.
From that, I didn't get chance to learn about the RC setup, just went straight in with razzing it in the street, which was great fun, and easy to drive....
Then I got introduced to an RC club, went along, and did the carpet racing indoors. For me, not having a clue, this is where it went wrong, tires didn't like carpet, everyone else was twice as fast, but more importantly, I was like Tom Cruise in 'Days of Thunder', ie: I hit everything!!

After a few sessions, I got the hang of the track, but still kept on bashing into the walls, which eventually killed my car, the drive shaft/dogbone thingys wouldn't stay in, so wheels wouldn't spin, etc... Eventually sold as Spares and gave up the idea...

However, am back on the case again, and want to build my own, and learn from the ground up, so would appreciate some help here please :) :)
I set myself a budget of upto £300, to build a car which I will use outdoor (dry), and hopefully race indoors on carpet with other RC peeps :) (against other slow drivers!)

I like the look of other cars I see which have the blue hop-up parts, that also makes me think the hop-up parts are a bit stronger, so in terms of novices like me, can take a bashing when on a track (well, a bit better than normal parts!)...
So ideally, I was looking to buy a few hop-up parts which strengthen the wheel area for when hitting walls.... However, I wouldn't know where to start with which bag of bits to buy ?

My shopping list currently:

TT-01E - Nissan GTR Shell - comes with std Silver can and a TEU-104BK ESC = £126
Turnigy GTX3 2.4gz controller/Receiver = £40 (I assume it will work with any Tamiya ESC ??) or cheapo alternative is a 'FLY SKY FS-GT2' control/rece for £19

Ansmann Racing EX-High Speed Servo AR-700BB = £17.24 / or High Torque AR-710BB , same price.... wouldn't know which to choose...
Charger I like the look of is a x2 battery charger - Fusion NX82 = £28 (and a few batteries which are 3000 or higher)

That list is basic, but enough to get me started in building something that would run... Guess I would need Paint, Tamiya toolkit and possibly a cutter if shell not already cut?

But............. These are the other things I looked at which I like..

TEU-105BK ESC = £23
Sport Tuned motor = £19 / Tamiya GT-Tuned motor = £25 / Tamiya SuperStock RZ motor = £36

And this: this is what I think would be a good idea............... Tamiya TT-01R KIT, comes with a Tamiya Lightly Tuned Motor (28T), motor alone is worth £26.
Description for the TT01R says it comes with Hop-up parts already, but as a kit, will cost £125 + servo + TEU-105BK controller + 1/10 Shell + controller/recei....

Am I way out ? or on the right track, the TT01R makes me think its a fast car already and has super duper bits to it, but that could just be me reading it wrong?
cheers guys...

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I would personally steer you away from a lot of alum hop up parts.

From my expereicne I have found that the plastic parts have a certain amount of flex in them which helps absorb the shock of sudden impacts.

What I found with the metal\alum parts is they either snap (especially steering arms)

Another thing to note is that if you add a alum hopup to a part on a car it can move the weak spot to the next weakest spot (sometime putting more strain of other stock parts which can result in more breakages).

For example, I was forever destroying my wheel arms on my slash so I replaced them with the alum upgrade arms, they never broke but I then encountered even more issues with the plastics parts they link to breaking as the weakest point had now moved, turned out these parts were more expensive to replace so I removed the metal parts and put in RPM arms which are a flex plastic material and since I have had no breakages in that area and my slash gets some serious bashing!

Some Alum hopups are excellent such as for the TT01r I would recomend a alum drive shaft. I have put an example below but I would shop around..

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tamiya-53783-TB-Evolution-IV-Lightweight-Aluminum-Propeller-Shaft-TT01R-NIP-/380504470142?pt=UK_ToysGames_RadioControlled_JN&hash=item5897d5727e

This is an instant improvement on the stock parts.

If I was you I would also look into the world of brushless motors and combos and lipo batteries, these can be got at great prices from places like modelsport or rcmart. You could get a whole brushless combo kit for around £60

+ a 2s lipo battery.

Hope this is useful information and welcome to teh money pit :)

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If your looking at indoor racing, check the classes and rules of your local club. Not point buying all this great stuff if they don't run TT01s or allow brushless etc etc

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Very useful, cheers! :) :)

Looked into the Lipo battery stuff, but gets completed, so will stick with the normal batteries/brushed motor for this project, and possibly late next year go for a bigger build with lipo+Power...

Understand what your saying about the weakspots, guess it makes sense! For some reason, I thought the blue Alumi' prop shaft came with the TT01R, could be wrong though....
As said, for me, its more about knowing which parts I can and cant add to the TT01...
Same goes for the Motor..... I have read on here that the TEU-150BK ESC is rated for 25T motors, but some are running the SuperStock RZ motors on that ESC without issues... hmmmmmmmmmmmmm !! :D :D

And yeah, wanting to keep a normal car for normal 'fun racing', I wont be competing.....
Just want a car which has a bit more strength, and a faster motor! :D

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I would think that a TT-01 is a major step down from the TA-05?

The newest entry level model is the TT-02, might be better looking at that kit instead?

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It sounds as though you're on par with me - I tried my hand at RC drifting years ago and was pretty good at hitting the clipping points. Unfortunately in a manner which didn't score me any points, though!

The TT01 is a rugged car, but it's dated now and even with all of the expensive hop-ups the manufacturing tolerances aren't that great (there is a lot of 'slop' in a TT01) so setting camber precisely, toe etc. becomes a bit pointless (to a degree...) I learnt the hard way, spending all my hard-earned money at Time Tunnel tuning up a TT01 with all the hop-ups I could afford. Ultimately it became obvious what I needed was a new chassis and I went with a TA05.

In my opinion, if you are looking to really get into the hobby, the small difference in cost between a TT01 + hop-ups and a TA05 makes the latter a much more attractive proposition, I'm sure others will agree.

If your budget is very limited and you have set your heart on a specific TT01 then there's nothing wrong with that, just don't spend money on hop-up parts outside of general maintenance and a set of ball-bearings. A TT02 might be worth looking into; I don't own one myself but they are a natural evolution of the TT01 and have gotten good reviews from people on here and other sites. Longevity of course will favour any Tamiya kit so far as parts availability, but the TT02 will have new parts developed for it over the next year which could be interesting to watch, whereas the TT01 is basically retired - all parts have been tried and tested.

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Or you wanted to get back into drifting you could spend £250 and get a mst ms-01D drift car which is built to drift instead of modified to drift and comes with motor, fast servo and esc.

Its what I use to drift at the local track and as a drift chassis it rocks.

I know its not Tamiya but I am just throwing options out there. :)

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Welcome to the forum. I have a TT-01 myself with every possible upgrade and although it's great fun I Still prefer my stock TA05 much more fun to build and much nicer to drive. It also has a lot more race potential in terms of gearing and setup (not that I know anything about racing). I have run brushless in both and when you start upping the power the TA-05 really out performs the tt-01 and seems to handle it better. Nothing wrong with the tt-01 in fact it is a very good starting point for an easier first build to get you going and help you learn the ropes but like others have said don't waste lots of money on upgrades like I did. For the best value for money your better of buying a TA04 or 05 or perhaps the tt-02 to start with. If you do decide to go with the easier to build tt-01 I have tonnes of spares if you break anything give me a shout. I think I have a spare ally prop shaft somewhere if you need one. Where are you based? I'm sure someone near you will be happy to help with the build if not the guys on here can walk you through it and are very knowledgeable. You be hard pushed to find a problem someone on here can't work out for you.

I also would urge you to look at getting a lipo and charger it makes a huge difference to how much enjoyment you get especially when bashing as charging is quick and run times so much better. Due to the better delivery of power you will get more speed out of any motor compared to a nimh and they are much simpler to look after. A good lipo charger is only £30 and batteries are reasonable too but ask on here for opinions before you jump in as there are a few things to take in to consideration first such as which batteries fit which chassis etc. and you will need an esc with a low voltage alarm. Hobbyking.com is worth a browse. My advice would be to decide on a chassis then decide on the bit to go with it. And don't go selling it if something breaks as you'll find most things are easy enough to fix especially if you have built it yourself in the first place. 😉

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Nowt wrong with the TT01 as an entry-level car - I have three, a drifter, a racer and a rally car, and I have had excellent service from all of them. As far as race performance goes, the TA05 will handle more power more easily, but at lower power levels there isn't much in it. At the club I used to race with, we had TT01s and TA05s racing together in the stock silver can classes, and they were very evenly-matched. My TT took me to the podium on numerous occasions ahead of the TAs.

That said, the TT02 is out now, and it appears to be a worthy successor to the TT01. Also as already stated, there are good things to come in terms of hop-up developments. If you think there is a TT in your future, might as well make it a TT02.

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Thank you for the advice guys, helps a lot...
Didn't really know about the TT-02, just figured that the TT-01 was what everyone was using ?
Although I had a TA-05, I didn't know what I was buying at the time, didn't know it was a good chassis!

Looking at these TT-02 (choosing this over TA-05, as A: cheaper, and B: I need entry level to learn I guess, so TT is the right choice for now :) )
If I am understanding this correctly, a lot of the hop-up parts for the TT-01 are the same for the TT-02 ?? So I can buy a few upgrade parts (used & new)
As the TT-02 is newer (although the shells aren't as nice!), i'll probably go for one of these kits......

The lipo battery stuff I cant get my head round, as I remember guys at the race club I went to years ago saying you need different connectors, different ESC, etc.....
Is that right ?

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I haven't personally gone LiPo yet, but I want to. It's just the overall cost.

LiPo tend to favour the 'Deans' style connector over the standard Tamiya white plugs, as these can deal with a much greater current without getting stupid hot. You also need a different charger, Time Tunnel have a good deal on an Ansmann at the moment I believe.

The overall cost of upgrading to LiPo is what is stopping me at the moment. Postage on batteries has to be by courier (see Twinset thread also) and they're also quite scary things if you spend a while on YouTube. Safety first and all that, so you'll want at the very least a safety bag for charging / storing the batteries.

I wasn't aware of the similarities between the TT01/02 so I can't recommend anything...

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The TT01 and TT02 share similar design philosophies, but the TT02 is pretty much all new. Thus, the number of interchangable parts is low. There are some drivetrain parts that have the same dimensions and are therefore presumably interchangeable, but if looking for hop-ups, I would recommend going for those designed for the TT02, rather than buying TT01 parts that may not fit.

As for shells, the TT01 and TT02 share the same wheelbase, track width and body post positions, so any Tamiya or aftermarket shells designed for one will fit the other and vice-versa.

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What about a second hand tt-01 you can pick them up really cheap. I understand that some people are reluctant to go lipo but that is mostly due to having already invested in other equipment. If your starting from scratch it would be pointless buying in to old battery technology and probably not much different in cost.

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understood with the battery stuff, just had a good read about the lipo from the above link...
I guess the battery stuff will be last on my list, so can go down the lipo route after I got the other bits....
I'll choose Lipo over NimH not for the speed and power etc, but because as I just read, its more the future of where battery related equipment is going......

Defo want to buy new, so have looked at the TT02 stuff and the few hop up parts there are.....
I guess my main thing I want, is the full ball bearing stuff, the joints, prop shaft, and some other blue fancy parts :D :D , looks like I can get both for the TT01 and TT02....

As said guys, cheers for the input, helps a lot!

The other thing I need advice on is the ESC and motors..... I'm going for the TEU-105BK ESC, and was hoping to use a GT-Tuned motor or SuperStock RZ.....

those should work together ????

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understood with the battery stuff, just had a good read about the lipo from the above link...

I guess the battery stuff will be last on my list, so can go down the lipo route after I got the other bits....

I'll choose Lipo over NimH not for the speed and power etc, but because as I just read, its more the future of where battery related equipment is going......

Defo want to buy new, so have looked at the TT02 stuff and the few hop up parts there are.....

I guess my main thing I want, is the full ball bearing stuff, the joints, prop shaft, and some other blue fancy parts :D :D , looks like I can get both for the TT01 and TT02....

As said guys, cheers for the input, helps a lot!

The other thing I need advice on is the ESC and motors..... I'm going for the TEU-105BK ESC, and was hoping to use a GT-Tuned motor or SuperStock RZ.....

those should work together ??

if your thinking of going over to lipo in the future why not buy a lipo ready Brushed motor ESC now ? they can be used with either Nimh or lipo and are as cheap if not cheaper than the TEU-105BK . For example Modelsport sell the UK made RV12 Assault for around £30 . Its a excellent bit of kit . 100% waterproof and in your case future proof too .

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First thing you want to do is visit a few local clubs - which ones race touring cars, what classes, and what are others using. Whilst there is an element of 'just in it for the fun', there's little enjoyment trying to run a slow car against top end spec rivals.

Have a look at what cars others are using - its normally an indication of what brand has reasonable local parts supply (although easier with internet these days)

If there is a stock 27T silver can class then start there - a basic kit will at least get you running with similar cars and you can start to learn about set-ups and different driving techniques Getting the car around the track incident free isn't that easy at first ! You'll have money in reserve for upgrades or a change of car later on - if they run different classes then you can slowly progress thru mod motor / brushless / lipo classes dependent on the club rules.

As tempting as it is to grab a kit and some upgrades (fine for outdoor runnign with mates in a car park) you'd do well to hang fire two weeks and establish what will work for you at a club scene.

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As far as batteries go, go LiPo!

They are far less hassle than others, no discharging/charging etc and far more reliable.

I would suggest a good quality stick pack 2s LiPo of about 4000mah, 20-40c and a decent LiPo charger, keep the silver can, keep the plastic parts and go race!

After a few visits to the track you will have a good idea on what parts to upgrade to aluminium.

LiPo's are very easy to live with if you follow the rules, you'll never want to go back to NiMhs, Nicads or whatever they were called!

Cheers,

Steve

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As far as batteries go, go LiPo!

They are far less hassle than others, no discharging/charging etc and far more reliable.

I would suggest a good quality stick pack 2s LiPo of about 4000mah, 20-40c and a decent LiPo charger, keep the silver can, keep the plastic parts and go race!

After a few visits to the track you will have a good idea on what parts to upgrade to aluminium.

LiPo's are very easy to live with if you follow the rules, you'll never want to go back to NiMhs, Nicads or whatever they were called!

Cheers,

Steve

I agree 100% . You don't have to drive like a loon to enjoy the benefits of lipo . The extra run times and added lightness are benefit enough . Even with a silver can you will be convinced to never go back to NiMhs / Nicads . IMO these really are old tech these days . If you feel the torque is too much just program the punch to suit you .

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how do u connect the Lipo batteries, as the connectors on most ESC's I look at, have the Tamiya style plug ?

am looking at batteries and chargers, just cant figure out the connecting points!

and I am going for the TT-02 after the advice......

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how do u connect the Lipo batteries, as the connectors on most ESC's I look at, have the Tamiya style plug ?

am looking at batteries and chargers, just cant figure out the connecting points!

and I am going for the TT-02 after the advice......

you need to use Deans connectors Stuart . The Tamiya style plugs just can't handle the currents from lipos and melt eventually . Generally lipos come ready fitted with the Deans . ESC might come with Deans but if not you need to cut off the connector and solder on a Deans . Not a huge job . you can buy the Deans connectors easily from ebay . Some good sellers will do the soldering conversion work for you at a minimum charge if you can't DIY it .

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As bromvw said, LiPo's usually come with Deans plugs so you'll just need to swap the plugs on your ESC and possibly the charger. If you have a local RC shop nearby you can buy the charger & LiPo's from, ask them to solder Deans plugs on for you, takes a few minutes.

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If the link works, i'm looking at this....
As it contains a Battery, an ESC which is Lipo setup, and has a motor (I was going to buy the Tamiya SuperStock RZ anyway)...
States its a 10.5T brushless motor...
Brand I guess is one of the Chinese ones, not sure if that's a good or bad thing ? (X-Fly XC)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/X-fly-XC-35A-ESC-10-5turn-motor-3300mAh-programme-box-Lipo-UK-stock-/321245726331?pt=UK_ToysGames_RadioControlled_JN&hash=item4acbbcc67b

The cost will be £60 for the ESC + 3300mh lipo bat + 10.5t motor + program box thing (I see it as £20 for esc, £20 for motor, £20 for battery :D:D )

As said, unsure if this is a bad thing, guess i'm looking for ESC's that come with LIPO connectors already, not Tamiya plugs (which most seem to do ?)
Soldering not a problem too, but how do the Tamiya to Deans connectors hold up anyway ? (Etronix brand)

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ESC looks like yet another Hobbywing / EZRun clone

I suppose for the money it's got everything you need, but if you are serious about club racing then you need to check their rules about electrics and battery packs - they may have a list of allowed motors/escs (they may ask for blinky mode), and they may require battery packs to be ROAR approved

As I said earlier - decide if you want to do club participation, visit a few local ones if you are fortunate to have a choice and check their classes and rules BEFORe you shell out hard earned cash - you want to buy once, not twice :(

For general car park / bmx track bashing then the combo will work fine albeit its a sensorless system so you may experience some cogging at light throttle/low speeds.

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