FoxShot 280 Posted January 1, 2020 (edited) Hi all: I got a Bruiser for my Birthday from the wife just before Christmas Massive dream realized! I have a few questions: 1) I plan on doing the full body build before the chassis. is this a good idea? I did it on my Avante, & Top Force and enjoyed the build and paint much more than the Egress where i did the body last. 2) Is it a good idea to replace all the screws with Stainless Steel, or will the chassis/other parts become a sacrificial anode and rust badly? I haven't even checked the chassis yet to see if its steel. I plan on running and enjoying it. 3) Lighting. Is it advisable to fit at the build or is it an easy retro fit, and does it make that much difference to the look of the vehicle? 4) I have several Voltz 5000Mah Lipo batteries in a hard shell that wont fit in my buggies, but will go in the Hotshot. What is the best option ESC i can use that is Lipo and brushed compatible, and what brushless/Esc would you recommend for an upgrade? If there are low budget & high budget options, flood me with information. 5) I plan on getting the Futaba 4YWD. Are the supplied Servo(s) up to the job? Particularly steering. 6) have I missed anything? 7) HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! [Edit] I have started the build! Dash doen with tamiya XF paint as standard, seat given 3 "wash" coats of paint with a 50% water dilution. Will then add a couple more coats with a 75% Dilution ratio. Drivers figure on order too. And V Sorry, I asked questions in the build thread. I should have read the rules!!! Phil B Edited March 2, 2020 by FoxShot Insert Pictures, and make appology 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pourMoneyIntoSea 55 Posted January 3, 2020 I ordered the Tamiya #45053 electronics set. its radio system has 2 channels only so I ordered Tamiya #45045. i.e. I use the transmitter and receiver of #45045 and servos / esc / battery of #45053. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
blofeld 63 Posted January 3, 2020 4ywd is just Tx/Rx no servos. I woul order at least one metal gear high torque servo for the transmission Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted January 14, 2020 So, been cracking on with this awesome kit. i have cleaned off all the flashing from the moulding process, and started to flat back the body with 800 wet & dry. The joining at the base of the A pillar is really quite bad, and may actually need some filling. Anyone else had it this bad? I went right round the whole body, cleaning off all the moulding excess. Some of it was very minimal, but needed doing for a perfect job. This will be used, but not often (yet) so want it to look good. I did notice a couple of things when i was inspecting the body. An imperfection in the mould on the passenger side of the front wing, and what looks like some markings removed from the moulding press on the inside of the bonnet at factory. Anyone else seen either of these. The bonnet underside I am not bothered about, but the wing ding does bother me. Anyway, pictures below for your approval/constructive critisism. As last time, they may not come up in the order intended. Shocking A Pillar Shocking A Pillar, different angle Front end doesnt seem to line up, but I haven't test fited the front grill yet Not so bad here.... Shall i do this, i ponder, as it can't be seen.... Rough as a badger's nadger's Almost there ,but not the flashing has gone, there seems to be a dip and line error.. Wing done Front lip still to do Much better A pillar base The annoying wing blemish from Factory What used to be here I wonder? the original casting part numbers? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Blissard 359 Posted January 14, 2020 Nice work cleaning the mold lines, it makes huge difference. Are you going to fill the holes or add other details to the body ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted January 14, 2020 I am going to work out what trim it's going to have. Tempted full box art, just because. Pondering contacting Tamiya re the imperfect wing. Also, is the rear end of the Bruiser supposed to have a gap between the rear wing and tailgate bottom?! Its all one piece Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Blissard 359 Posted January 15, 2020 There's no gap in real Hilux but it's where body panels meet. I filled mine with styrene strip. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted January 16, 2020 This does look very odd @Blissard. And weak. I honestly thought it was a manufactureing flaw Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Blissard 359 Posted January 16, 2020 I agree, it definitely needs to be filled. Here is how I fixed it on my Bruiser; Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted January 22, 2020 On 1/16/2020 at 8:57 PM, Blissard said: I agree, it definitely needs to be filled. Here is how I fixed it on my Bruiser; Exactly what I thought, with the exection that you've cut out th erear light section. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted February 5, 2020 So, I have got a little surther with the build. I painted the body Box Art, but didnt like the colour. Resprayed it Metallic blue. Looks SO much better. I've got to give it a light flat back with 1500 or 200 wet & dry then give it lacquer. Pictures to follow. While the paint is curing between stages, I started on the chassis Ist, i organised my existing and Bruiser supplied lubes and thread locks. Screws used with Just enough Threadlock. Or should I use more? You have to remove and threadlock the supplied screws in stage 1, then fit more in stage 2. My suggestion is combine the two stages and get everything level, even and tight. THEN apply all the thread lock one screw at a time. Took a couple of hours! But, its all true and level. i found out the hard way. When I threadlocked the supplied screws, i went to have a cuppa, came back and the next set of holes didnt line up properly on a shock mount. Out came the soldering iron to losen up the threadlock. Hopefully going to get onto the next stages today or tomorrow. Life duties trump Tamiya duties. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shodog 1835 Posted February 5, 2020 That slit near the rear tailgate allows the technician at the plastic injection molding plant to remove the bed off the mold. The bed tapers in and they are not using a three piece mold to make it. It’s easy enough to glue and fill with putty. I would recommend primer before painting. The paint on your seat would have had more even coverage had you used it. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pourMoneyIntoSea 55 Posted February 5, 2020 hello i just finished my mountain rider (the same chassis as bruiser) several weeks ago https://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?/topic/91920-mountain-rider/ very appreciate your works at the body shell. i'm not good at this so i leave it unpainted with minimal stickers. during the whole building process i think the most annoying part is aligning the axles onto the leaf springs. the axles have marks but those marks are useless practically. the axles don't have any key or notch for alignment. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted February 7, 2020 On 2/5/2020 at 1:15 PM, Shodog said: That slit near the rear tailgate allows the technician at the plastic injection molding plant to remove the bed off the mold. The bed tapers in and they are not using a three piece mold to make it. It’s easy enough to glue and fill with putty. I would recommend primer before painting. The paint on your seat would have had more even coverage had you used it. Ahh, that explains the gaps then. Knew there would be a sensible reason. I deliberately didn't use primer on the seat, as I was after that 'patina' look. Same thing with the driver figure. Pix to follow soon 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted February 12, 2020 So, Update time: I have Started on the Drivetrain. Only got as far as the axles & shocks. A very enjoyable experience it was! The sheer quality of this kit is really impressive. Some of it requires a level of dexterity and attention to ensure the best is achieved out of the kit. Anyway, have some pictures, with notes Differential Components all laid out. Diff casing, pre greased. I build on the flanel, in a metal tray, not on the cuttin board. Can't contaminate that. It's used soley for cutting plastic and stickers. Internal gears fitted, and then rotated to check all covered in grease. Diff fitted, shafts fitted, and all greased up. It says to only fit one shim. I checked them endfloat, and it needed 2 shims each side. The front axle swivel heads had some flash from the casting. i checked that this would clear the hubs prior to fitting the axle together, and it didn't, so I filed them off and smoothed with 1000 grit. Before i fitted the internals so I didn't get any nasty filings in the axle. Nearly done. Didnt get a picture of the finshed article. I had pondered using sealant along the edges of both axles to make them more waterproof, but chose to only use grease as I felt a sealant could distort the axle halves when separated. Front Axle. Spring components all laid out. Yes, the leaves are in teh wrong order. Smallest at the bottom is correct. You need to make sure the axles are level in the clamps. There a guide marks on the axles. Only guides!!! I used a vernier depth gauge to ensure all were equal. having read post(s) on here, i set the front to neutral too. As stated before, Tamiya says use synthetic rubber cement to hold things in place while making fiddly bits. Some of these bits are really fiddly, and unless you pre hold them, you'll need 3 hands, all with tweezers in them to be able to build the axles, and shackles. I used a guide to ensure that these little metal axle rests were completely square. Rear axle all bolted up. You need to measure a 6mm distance between the shackle plate and the large diameter inner edge. Once I had these measured, i then checked the leaves were parallel and test fitted the assembly between the spring carriers BEFORE i added the anerobic gel to the shackle nuts.The fron was slightly out. Also, to ensure ease of measurement, fit the front swivel hub units AFTER assembly of the springs, or it is very awkward/impossible to get a vernier depth gauge in. (Lesson learned the hard way after a 2 day haiatus bbewteen axle build and spring build) On to the Shocks: These little brass free pistons need O Rings fitted. And they're tight and fiddly. I suggest slipping them down a small Tamiya Allen key (Other, lesser brands are available in best BBC Accent ) Lube them with shock oil prior to fitting. It makes it easier. Again. Both lessons leant the hard way after the first one was tried.... Fitted the Fiddly things!! Built! Make sure you get all the air out!! And brewathe and relax until the next stage Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pourMoneyIntoSea 55 Posted February 12, 2020 1 hour ago, FoxShot said: So, Update time: I have Started on the Drivetrain. Only got as far as the axles & shocks. A very enjoyable experience it was! The sheer quality of this kit is really impressive. Some of it requires a level of dexterity and attention to ensure the best is achieved out of the kit. Anyway, have some pictures, with notes (pics quote skipped) if you build this kit according strictly to the manual (i did) you would have a lot of excessive 5x0.3mm shims. you are right there are many places that need more shims than the manual suggested to elimate plays / slops. as you noticed the guide marks on the axles are useless in helping to align the axles. to make all the nuts on the axle holders equally tightened you used depth gauge and i used "counting method". i tightened all nuts with equal number of turns. i tightened ALL 16 nuts half turn at a time until the axles cannot rotate / displace anymore. setting the front axle neutral (instead of 5 degrees) is good. i did the same. i didn't apply any synthetic rubber cement as suggested by the manual in mounting the axles. i managed to hold the whole thing in 2 hands..^^ one important thing: i altered some steps in mounting the axles. i installed the leafs onto the chassis first (leafs only, without axles). then i mounted the axles onto the leafs. i found it more easily to do the measurements and the leafs must be parallel to each other. looking forward to your progress..^^ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted February 18, 2020 Update time! I have been busy with the rattle cans. Not a bad effot. I hate a crappy paint job. My 1:1 cars I try to keep in A1 condition. I love a bit of detailing on cars. Yup, Non box art. Looks SO much better IMO. I did spray the proper colour first, and it just looked naff and cheap. The wife thought so too. When I suggetsed the same blue as my Avante, she agreed. Not painted the front bumper yet, as i mighht chrome it. I painted the lights from the inside following a top tip on here. What i didnt know was that the round headlights only came out for one year in the Hilux range. 1979 ****, that looks good. I used Tamiya plastic masking tape for the window rubber. Only one very small bit of seepage. Shiney But, VERY annoyingly, there are still traces of the 3000 grit I used very lightly to remove some imperfections. Actually considering stripping the shell, and repainting with proper hard car paint! Its not 100% perfect. Even though it will get used and enjoyed. Yeah, so this happened too. After it had a good prep, 3000 grit, a polish with Mer, and then a special super fine polish, I gave the shell really good two coats of wax. Proper car wax. This stuff is the Mutts Nuts. 2 years ago I did one of my cars with this, and it still beads very well when it's clean. I use the proper method to wash my cars with snow foam, 2 buckets, and intermediate rinses, with a blow dry to finish off. Just HAD to have a test fit before the gearbox and radio gear is fitted. DAYUM it looks good!. On anothe note. I was looking at the box, to see how well my door handles compared to the Tamiya Box Art, and I noticed something..... Their stickers dont line up!!!! 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shodog 1835 Posted February 18, 2020 Looks great. Are you going to run it of keep it as a shelf queen? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted February 18, 2020 2 hours ago, Shodog said: Looks great. Are you going to run it of keep it as a shelf queen? Oh, use it. Mate has the Mountain Rider. We are building a track in his garden. Might even take it to Paddlesworth. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted March 2, 2020 Ok, another update time. This time not ALL good news I assembled the body parts, and got the lines and panel gaps 100% perfect, using a Tamiya Allen drive as a spacer: Very effective method. Took a little giggling to get both sides matching, but was well worth it. Then I started the decals. 1st I split the backing in the middle. Then I tape the whole thing down, getting the position perfect. Once happy, i take half the retaining tape off, and apply dry from the middle. Then i repeat the process in the other direction. You get a very small, almost impercetable line where the two halves meet sometimes. I then proceeded to cut out the side panel stickers. Due to the sheer complexity of the cut out, I decided to have a practice using the wet method on some of my other bodies, still having a few stickers to put on the Top Force. I had also been saving all my clear off cuts for just such a practice session as I envisiged having to tackle the side stickers wet. All my trial applications went well. Not a problem...... I started the sides by cutting out the holes needed for the raised details... I then did exactly as I had with the trial stickers, dipping them without their backing into water with a small drop of washing up liquid (Fairy) and it all went horribly Pete Tong. The sickers didn't stick at all. I tried squeezing out the water, and it twisted the sticker. I tried maing it follow the lines of the twim waistine, and it pointblank refused to follow, leaving it all kinda smoothed out I tried using a cotton bud to force the gap, and the sticker twisted again. I got EXCEEDINGLY *******ed off, and and wish I had tried my way. Two days later, its dry, and has 2 horrid air bubbles I can't get rid of. Even by pricking them. I guess an MCI order is on the books. Unless someone has unused front passenger side, which i very much doubt. What did I do wrong? Any ideas or tips. I was so hoping for the ultimate, perfect build. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted March 10, 2020 No further progress with the stickers. No time in my life to concentrate on that However, I hade a little progress with the head. Stock Tamiya head, sides of hair trimmed with a scalpel, and ears profiled. Top 'Mohawk' sanded smooth. Then Revell Plasto applied. Allowed to start to dry, then stippled to create spikey hair (Like mine). Still got to profile the nose. Rear View. Nice tapered style. Excuse my terrible nails!!! Couldn't get the ears level properly Had to work with what I had. At least he doenst look 1970's any more!! I've had Vinne Jones and Julius Caesar on facebook!! Now to prime and paint him. Eyes could be a problem. Also, never attempted anything like this before. Not even in my Yoooof when i did static models too Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FoxShot 280 Posted May 16, 2020 Update time Been spending the odd hour I have free on my Bruiser. After it having a few runs, i wanted to get it done before it got too dirty, so pictures looked good, and it was "perfect" at least once. Started off with just a base coat of Tamiya Flesh, after primer: Then I went on to do the body. This didn't get a base primer!! Made the flesh a different colour Managed to overcome that error. Then it was onto the Tail light lenses. Painted the glass from the back. The black detail. That needed a steady hand, an an illuminated magnifying lamp. Came up alright. Eyes. And Iris and pupils painted. After having the body together, I really wasn't happy with the edge of the sticker on the truck bed, and the panel gap lines on the doors and bonnet came out so well I just couldn't leave it like that, half done. So I didn't. Was a little nerve wracking cutting up the stickers as I wasn't too sure I had enough there to create the look I wanted. The end results, i think speak for themselves. Overall, a very good build. really good quality. Not quite box art, but close. I changed the colour to metallic blue, as i felt this better resembled the box pictures. And the correct blue looked pants IMO. Stickers: WHAT a right royal pain on this vehicle! Massive, awkward to fit, not the right shape or size. Applied in different layers. And if you actually follow the advised sticker order as I did, you risk getting some in the wrong place, forcing a change in layout. Although that I didn't mind, as i kind of prefer the Geartech sticker on the back. It makes the front look "too busy" IMO. The door mirrors are very likely to overlay the Calvin Brookman sticker if you're detail accurate and allow for panel gaps as i did. Again. Much annoyance after the event when i found out. It was only very minor, but could have been a very big mistake, ruining a "Box Art Shelfer" which this wont be. it's already seen dirt Just a couple of diddly things to do to it, like silver line the tailgate handles, and do the lines round the rear portal windows on one side that I missed. Forgot to save the pictures of it all put together. Will upload later. 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Superluminal 3729 Posted May 16, 2020 Good work - i found the stickers a complete pain on mine too and did what you did and cut them along the panel lines. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
flamejob 0 Posted May 28, 2020 I’m in the process of building mine and fear the decals! I read another build thread where he stretched the stickers to fit. That sounds super scary to me. I really like the metallic but there were very few custom cars with metallic paint in the 70s. I have considered doing it a different colour completely and getting mci to do some matched decals. Where’s the finished photo with dirt on it?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Superluminal 3729 Posted May 29, 2020 Its probably to cut them like noted above where the panel lines are. I peeled of a small piece of the backing. Fitted the front to line up with the wheel arch and door handle as best as possible and then sliced it at the joint of the two body parts. Then fitted the rear one in the same way lining up with the rear wheel arch and working back towards the cab. Think the hardest bit was painting the black windows with the silver frame around them for the rear box. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites