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schuultzie51

Newbie with a Blitzer Beetle Project!

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Hey All!

I am brand NEW the the club and to the hobby! I always wanted a hobby level RC car when I was growing up, but we never had the $$ to play. Now as an adult, the urge came back! So I began researching brands and styles, I feel in love with Tamiya and particularly the life like 4x4 Hiluxes... then I saw the price :o. So I decided to search locally on craigslist for a cheap car that I could completely disassemble and rebuild as a first project in the hobby. 

I found a great deal on an old beat up Blitzer Beetle, complete with remote, charger and two batteries; so here I am! I do not plan to shelf this once complete, rather run/race it! Thanks to everyone on this forum for the wealth of information already here!

Here is a run down on the current condition and future plans for my NEW Blitzer!  

Condition

  • I think this is an original, not the re release... any way I can find out? Does it matter?
  • Broken nose piece, cracked body (nose piece mount/RF fender)
  • NOISY gears
  • Refuses to switch to reverse from forward sometimes when rolling (maybe this is normal?)
  • Limp, sagging suspension, bottoms out in front
  • Worn tires, overall well used (loved) bug

Planned Upgrades

  • Upgrade to GPM alloy DF-03 shock/spring dampers
  • Upgrade turnbuckle suspension arm and tie rods all around with DT-02 kit
  • Upgrade suspension arm shafts with TL-01 kit
  • Upgrade to alloy front knuckle arms, flip to reduce bump-steer
  • Stabilize f/r damper stays with steel rods
  • Upgrade to ceramic bearings all around
  • Replace all gears, add Cera-Grease
  • Upgrade to DF-03 CVD drive shafts (Can I upgrade the rear knuckles to anything?)
  • Upgrade to 2000-3000kv Brushless/ESC waterproof combo (any recommendations? cheap/quality/not overpowering)
  • Replace tires with Pro-Line Dirt Hawgs
  • Repair body
  • Paint wheels/body (Pearl White/Flouro Yellow/Metalic Blue scheme)

What am I missing? What have you all learned? 

I plan on updating this thread as I go, I'll post pictures and ask lots of questions... feel free to follow along!

Thanks all!

BlitzerBeetleBefore.jpg

BlitzerBeetleInsidesBefore.jpg

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Ball bearings, steel pinion. proline dirt works all round. hobbywing esc and 3s lipo.

This was 4600kv on 3s. :D

GoolRc are doing cheap brushless combo's now.

Blitzers are great.

 

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13 minutes ago, wolfdogstinkus said:

This was 4600kv on 3s. :D

That is some chaotic fun!!! Maybe a bit too powerful for a complete rookie like me :-)

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Man, I'm confused...that's way too powerful...how do you even...what...why would you? It's nothing more than a joke with that setup, really. But a good one, Seems like a hilarious Thing to drive!

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You can get it to run in a straight line, that was loose stones, no traction.

Yes crazy, but good fun. wheelies on tarmac at 40mph, when you go past half throttle.

2s lipo was much less damaging to all components but also less fun.

It was a 2nd hand £30 ebay buy so just juice it up and watch it fly, I wouldn't do that to a new kit. :D

In the video, it was do-nutting so fast, it almost hovered. :D,

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Looking at the shell it has a single mount hole in the bonnet & no holes for wing mirrors, pretty good indication it's an original release Blitzer.

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On 12/9/2017 at 12:47 PM, max69vk said:

Looking at the shell it has a single mount hole in the bonnet & no holes for wing mirrors, pretty good indication it's an original release Blitzer.

Awesome!

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Progress and question!

I've cleaned up the front end and am waiting on a few more parts to come in the mail to finish. I have installed the new front dampers and also re-purposed the old front camber link into a reinforcement for the front damper tower (It fit perfectly!)

Question, I am using the TL01 TAM53301 steel hinge pin set, is it ok if they are a bit too long (2nd photo)?

Thanks all!

Towersupportfront.jpg

Pintoolong.jpg

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Front alloy steering arms came in today! I haven’t seen anyone use these on the forum for a Blitzer... I have two options for placing the ball nut for the steering arm... any suggestions which I use? Closer provides more responsive steering?

3D746B3B-91F9-45B0-8B18-745210AB4A2B.jpeg

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Thanks Gooney! Very interesting! So, this will work best on on-road cars maybe?

Next question, what are these for on the Falcon chassis? There is one on each side on the bottom rear of the tub...

IMG_4331.JPG

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The Falcon has trailing arm rear suspension which is fitted to those points.

Regarding your hinge pins - why not just stick one (or two)  standard Tamiya 3mm rubber O rings on each each end - should keep them where you want them. That's actually a good idea BTW - my standard screw down pins tend to drift out a bit too often these days - I might follow your example... B)

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10 hours ago, Gruntfuggly said:

The Falcon has trailing arm rear suspension which is fitted to those points.

Regarding your hinge pins - why not just stick one (or two)  standard Tamiya 3mm rubber O rings on each each end - should keep them where you want them. That's actually a good idea BTW - my standard screw down pins tend to drift out a bit too often these days - I might follow your example... B)

My OCD won't let those "too long" hinge pins stay. I Just ordered some pairs from Hong Kong that should do the trick. Here are the lengths needed:

Front suspension arms:
3x50mm
3x33mm

Rear Suspension arms:
3x50mm
3x38mm

The 3x50mm are included in the TL-01 hinge pin set. Additionally, I ordered a pair of 3x23mm hinge pins for attaching the front steering arms to the uprights.

Excited to go all steel pins on these vintage parts, hopefully it will avoid future damage. 

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Just found an imperfection/possible hairline crack in the gearbox due the the builder not removing the frayed nub from the plastic mold. 

Is this worth replacing the gearbox over?

4467F8BF-1B0D-4019-AD27-A21318FECBAE.jpeg

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Can't beat a Blitzer, it was rebuilding my vintage one as a brushless beast that got me back in to the hobby, they really are a lot of fun :D

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Just raided my parts box and found two hinge pins that were exactly the right size for the rear arm mounts - which are the most difficult to screw back in when they drift out. Had to dismantle an old damper to find a fourth 3mm e clip though! Need to do the fronts now...

 

DSC_0096.thumb.JPG.47e905364b6c3aea4e66d34278844606.JPG

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Front suspension is complete with hinge pin/e-clips all around and DT-02 tie rods. Waiting on a new servo saver to come in before installing DT-02 steering rods and mounting back onto chassis. 

FrontComplete.thumb.jpg.31f898e23468ed75c2b197b78389d3bf.jpg

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Rebuilt the gearbox with new gears and metal shielded ball bearings. Please let me know if you think I added too much/little cera-grease... I have no idea...

Waiting on a few random screws to come in before I install suspension and driveshafts.

Gears1.thumb.jpg.948834ea93023e0e5cd3da0563f78b31.jpgGears3.thumb.jpg.79e822113cee0b6364656b23a0591c9d.jpg

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Finished my hinge pins tonight too - the Academy ones were tight, but the TL01 pins on the front were a right pain. I ended up having to shave a bit off the arms. Were yours easier?

 

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18 minutes ago, Gruntfuggly said:

Finished my hinge pins tonight too - the Academy ones were tight, but the TL01 pins on the front were a right pain. I ended up having to shave a bit off the arms. Were yours easier?

 

Exact same experience, I had to shave a tad to get the second clip onto the outer front pins. 

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Today I am working on installing the rear arms and the new CVDs. I have run into a question:

I have installed new rubber sealed bearings and the alloy hex nuts on the rear axles. BUT there is 0.5-1mm of play between the outer bearing and the hex nut. Is this ok? or should I place a washer somewhere so that there is zero play. 

Thanks!

RearAxelGap.thumb.jpg.09d41f2bbab41ab6fcc95babb2b46fb3.jpg

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