konghead Konghead Build for some FUN!

[toyolien 4663]

Welcome to my Konghead build. 

I've had a love of all things Tamiya since my folks bought me and my Brother a Boomerang each in 1988/9. Ever since then I've built a dozen or so kits. Some I still have and others I've (regrettably) sold. Having been into comp crawlers and scale trucks for the last several years I've recently, once again turned my attention to Tamiya.

I'm part way through a TT-02 Type S Rally Car (build thread coming), have a DT-03 ready and waiting to start, but first, the Konghead caught my eye. So, here goes. A word of warning though... I like to take a lot of pics during a build!

Oh, and since I've found a lot of useful information on here, I thought I'd become a subscriber.

I'm not a fan of the chrome wheels (especially for the paint job I'm thinking about), so opted for these yellow ones from JK-RC instead.

Added some Schumacher truck foams that I've used in my Lunch Boxes.

Thought I'd get the shocks out of the way before starting the kit. I absolutely love building Tamiya shocks. They are definitely some of the best.

That's where I'm up to for now. Thanks for taking a look.

[Problemchild 2149]

Still trying to get my head around what I’m seeing 

perspective

tiny garage

giant hopups
 

 

just bought a clodbuster - same wheels?

JJ

[mtbkym01 4008]

Clod wheels/tyres are much bigger than those Lunchbox ones

[Problemchild 2149]

Love the shock building tool - home made?

JJ

[toyolien 4663]

On 11/2/2019 at 8:01 PM, Problemchild said:

Still trying to get my head around what I’m seeing 

perspective

tiny garage

giant hopups
 

 

just bought a clodbuster - same wheels?

JJ

Haha, thanks. I guess my scale garage does make rc stuff look massive!

13 hours ago, Problemchild said:

Love the shock building tool - home made?

JJ

Thanks. It's made by Ofna. Not sure where I got it, but I've had it about 10 years. Been used many, many times.

 

Got a little more done over the last couple of nights. I added the 54597 alloy gearbox support along with the 0005688 TL-01B C parts for the front bumper and mount, which bolts straight on. I'm not a fan of the kit spring front bumper.

 

 

Next up were the 53218 hard cup joints on all 6 wheels.

 

 

Along with most people (I guess), I'm don't really like the steel screw in suspension shafts. I usually use the 53301 TL-01 suspension shaft kit, and again found that it works great on the Konghead. A couple of the shafts were a little too long, so I used a couple of shock 'O' rings to take up the slack.

 

 

I going to try the Hobbywing Quicrun 10.5t motor, that I also have in my TT-02 Rally car. I was concerned it may be a little too fast, but we'll see.

 

 

On to the steering.

 

 

The geometry on the rear steering set up just didn't seem quite right to me. I lengthened the drag link from the servo so that the servo horn was dead in the centre of the servo when the wheels are straight. The manual calls for a 3mm gap between the 5mm adjusters, but I ended up having a 10mm gap before I was happy. I also lowered the servo down by 5mm to get the drag link lower and straighter`. Much happier now.

 

 

I've had a few Power HD servos, and these 20kg fellas should do the job nicely.

 

 

 

 

And here's where I'm at as of tonight. Next job will be installing the esc, receiver and programming the mixing for the 4WS.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

[ReRun 56]

Awesome!

Just ordered a Konghead and King Yellow for Xmass for my son and I. First RC in over 30 years. 

Report back on what hop ups offer the most value. 

 

[J@mes 2326]

Looking good. There’s a lotta bling on that thing  I too am following with interest.

@toyolien are the hex clamps increasing the width? They look like they might.

& is that a picture of you enjoying a stogie on the garage wall?!

[toyolien 4663]

On 12/2/2019 at 6:18 AM, ReRun said:

Awesome!

Just ordered a Konghead and King Yellow for Xmass for my son and I. First RC in over 30 years. 

Report back on what hop ups offer the most value. 

 

Excellent. It's a great kit to build. I still haven't painted the body yet, but will report back once I've driven it a bit. However, i think the only must haves are bearings, and oil filled shocks. Most of the other hop ups are just bling really. 

9 hours ago, J@mes said:

Looking good. There’s a lotta bling on that thing  I too am following with interest.

@toyolien are the hex clamps increasing the width? They look like they might.

& is that a picture of you enjoying a stogie on the garage wall?!

Thank you. Gotta love the bling! I don't think the hexes increase the width, although I've not put the stock ones on to compare. I can do if you need to know for sure?

Haha, nah the picture is certainly not me. It's "Dirty Richard" from Pit Bull Tires range of foam inserts. I just popped him in a nice frame for the garage wall.

[ReRun 56]

@toyolien what weight shock oil you thinking for offroad bashing?  

[ReRun 56]

First tundra bash session 🥶🤟🏼

[Problemchild 2149]

A 3 month build?

i get too excited to spend that much time on it

looks fab though 

was on my list but my clod resurrection project took over the time and funds 

 

JJ

[toyolien 4663]

7 hours ago, Problemchild said:

A 3 month build?

i get too excited to spend that much time on it

looks fab though 

was on my list but my clod resurrection project took over the time and funds 

 

JJ

It's just sat waiting for paint. I've been working on a tt02 drifter in the meantime. Plus, having 2 young daughters means time is limited 😬

[J@mes 2326]

Is your Konghead still patiently waiting?  

[toyolien 4663]

2 minutes ago, J@mes said:

Is your Konghead still patiently waiting?  

Yes. It is next on the list after the comical Grasshopper though 👌

[toyolien 4663]

It's been a while since I started this build. And to be honest, I actually stripped all the hop ups off it and sold it. Then a week or so later I started to regret letting it go. However, the following week Tamico had the kits as their weekly offer, so I bought one (again!). It's such a typically 'Tamiya' truck, and very unique with the 4ws and 6wd. Had it have been around when I was a kid, it would have certainly got my attention.

 

These are some 2.2 crawler foams I got from Martin at RCBitz. They are spot on for the Lunchbox sizes tires.

 

And, here it is back to where it was before I sold it.

 

Electrics all installed. I've set the 4ws on a spare switch on my remote. So I can have it 4ws or just front with the push of a button.

 

On to the next job.

 

I'm not too keen on the chrome look of exhaust stacks and fuel tanks. So, after reading online about stripping the chrome off parts trees using bleach, I thought I'd try it.

So, after just 5 minutes in the bleach, the thinner chrome from the back off the parts came off. However, it took a further 16 hours for the bleach to remove the thicker parts of chrome from the front. I thought I'd add this timing information in case others want to try it.

 

And, after being submerged for 16 hours here are the test pieces. I was wondering whether the bleach would damage the plastic, but they are perfectly in tact and as strong as before.

 

So, the rest of the pieces are in to soak over night.

 

That's all for now. I'm just working on cutting, masking and painting the body. More on that soon.

[Carmine A 2046]

On 2/4/2020 at 12:23 AM, toyolien said:

It's just sat waiting for paint. I've been working on a tt02 drifter in the meantime. Plus, having 2 young daughters means time is limited 😬

I had ONE Daughter, and had to all but give up RC until she was 15!!! 😳😲 

ALL the World loves a Konghead!! I've been dying to get one since it came out, but the money was never there...  So far, you've got NO shortage of hopups for technically a Basher. I know, because Tamiya!! 😜 

This will be impressive, I'll definitely be watching. I've also been into Crawlers for the past 10 years, just rediscovering Tamiya!

[toyolien 4663]

21 minutes ago, Carmine A said:

I had ONE Daughter, and had to all but give up RC until she was 15!!! 😳😲 

ALL the World loves a Konghead!! I've been dying to get one since it came out, but the money was never there...  So far, you've got NO shortage of hopups for technically a Basher. I know, because Tamiya!! 😜 

This will be impressive, I'll definitely be watching. I've also been into Crawlers for the past 10 years, just rediscovering Tamiya!

My daughters are 7 and 4 and take up most of my time. Trying to get them into Tamiya too. I also have been into building crawlers since 2009. Started with comp crawlers back in the day, and more recently built up a few scale trucks. Like these two:

But re discovered Tamiya about 3 years ago. Still have the green Hilux, but am more into Tamiya kits these days.

[Carmine A 2046]

NICE Rigs!! I really like that Green. I'm still heavy into Scaler/Crawlers... I just reunited with my long lost love, Tamiya!! 😁

[toyolien 4663]

The bleach worked a treat. So, after some white primer, I coated them in matt black.

 

On to the body. This is Tamiya's Bright Gun Metal. It didn't come out as dark as I was hoping for, but still looks ok.

 

I masked off the roll cage and grille to be painted silver.

 

And, after several coats of silver.

 

After all that was dry, I backed the whole body with black. I think it looks better when you can see the inside if the body is black.

 

Then I masked up some parts of the rear to be painted black on the outside, so it's a little more 'matt' than if it was painted inside. Plus, I always find masking on the outside easier.

 

I've always thought the rear of the Konghead body looks a little bare, so decided to add a NOS bottle from the Wild Willy figure parts tree.

 

Body all dry and ready from some decals. I don't really like the look of the box art decals, so decided to do something a little different.

 

 

 

And there it is, finished. Next up will hopefully be some running pics. Thanks for looking.

[J@mes 2326]

Nice clean & simple look. Wise move to lop off the ends of the smokestacks, they are 1st thing to break in a roll.

[Re-Bugged 10100]

Truck me that Kong looks great 👍🏻 are you sure you ‘need’ a 2WD winter Basher now?

When I first saw you going matt black with the chrome I wondered if you were doing an Anzac Tribute style Kenworth Truck to blend in with your Willy.

 

I saw a similar one at Kenworth in Brisbane, it funny how the Truck stood out so much against all the other Trucks that had all the shiny bling components on. 

[Carmine A 2046]

REALLY looks GREAT! 👍👍  Clean, simple yet GOOD!!

[Grumpy pants 4455]

It is really interesting to see how much the small detail changes alter the overall look.

It looks racier than mine and fit for the Dakar, the black stacks and tanks and NOS bottle are nice touches that personalise it as well.

I think my KH looks like a road going truck that can go off road and yours the other way round.

Looks great there is no doubt! 
 

 

 

[BigJag 36]

Really enjoyed that thread. Thanks for sharing. Your scale garage looks pretty awesome too. Great little scale touches with the pallets and axle stands. Great use of the Hop Up pack cards. How's the Konghead running? 

[CoolHands 816]

Toyolien what is the front bumper in the newer pics? I need one for mine as the springs snapped the plastic on my original setup. But I don’t know the parts to get, I would consider changing to like yours if it is straightforward