My first Tamiya build - Mad Bull

[B.RAD]

Hi folks

New member here and my first post, bit of an intro and some questions.  Joined and subscribed as the info on this forum has been really helpful in deciding on my first Tamiya kit and then fuelling the slippery slope of upgraditis, that has already started before the kit has even arrived!

A friend of mine has bought me a Mad Bull kit as a thank you present for helping him out with a new van. Probably the best thank you gift I've ever received!

It's coming from Wonderland Models with the Carson starter package, including the stick type controller. I was fortunate to have a dad who raced RC cars back in the 70's/80's and so had several RC cars growing up. I grew up with stick type controllers, and having recently played with an FTX Surge MT with the trigger and wheel controller, found I couldn't get to grips with the fine control that I felt I had in my youth. That may well be the quality of the car and kit though!

I'm really, really excited to be building my first kit solo. I did have a Tamiya when I was younger, a Rover Mini Cooper kit, which my dad gave me for Christmas one year. But as he and grandad built it on Christmas day (with me hovering in the background, mostly "getting in the way"!) I still count this as my first Tamiya build. 

Once my friend told me that he had bought the Mad Bull for me (still can't get over how cool that is!) I immediately got to researching the kit and the available hop ups. I've already ordered the bearing kit, a sport tuned motor and the 50519 and 50520 CVA oil shocks. So, onto my first questions:

• what paint should I use on the body shell? I've read TS is the right type, is that correct?

• is it sacrilege to paint the shell a custom colour and scheme? I've got an idea in mind which would mean only using a couple of the supplied stickers. I do love the Tamiya box images but I kinda wanna go my own way - is that permitted in these circles??

• what other hop up options are considered worth going for?

• ref the Carson starter package - is the servo good enough for this car? Any recommendations here?

Many thanks for all the great content so far and I look forward to getting involved!

Cheers

B

[B.RAD]

Just had shipping notification, exciting times!

[Silver-Can]

Hello there!

Yeah, cool friend and cool kit. I currently have 2 complete madbulls and 1 waiting completion. They're great, rugged, go anywhere buggies.

Re colour scheme  - there are those who do box art and those who go wild with whatever they fancy. Each to their own and no-one will berate you for your choice. None of mine are box art and 1 I actually hand-painted flames on. And yes, TS is the one you want.

Re hop-ups - you've covered the essentials. In time you may want to looking into the steering mod as the thin wire from the servo to steering horn is not very robust. What tends to happen is the hole it fits into on the steering horn/end (as opposed to the servo end) wears and becomes enlarged, resulting in the linking arm jamming and thus, no steering. It is a cheap and relatively straightforward mod using short turnbuckles. Let me know if you want photos of this.

Aside from this, I think it should give you many hours of hassle free, rough riding fun! 

And pictures as you're going/complete.

We're a really friendly bunch so feel free to ask away. 👍

[B.RAD]

Everyone loves flames! Did a similar thing to a Losi buggy I had when I was younger, super cool!

Thanks for the advice, very much appreciated. Some photos of the steering mod you mention would be great please ☺️ I think I'm decided on a custom paint job, will keep you posted 👍

First exciting delivery today!

 

If I'm this buzzing at the hop ups arriving, I think I'll be unbearable when the kit arrives!

[Baddon]

Great fun go anywhere kit, Go custom, its your buggy there are no RULES!

As mention above the steering mod is the only one left you will want to do.

We had three of these for the kids, 2 have moved on and the little lady still has her Pink with a Barbie's head.

 

One oddity, the front wheels go a bit wobbly in reverse.

 

And welcome to the slippery slope...

[B.RAD]

Thanks Baddon! All too familiar with the slippery slope effect from cars and mountain bikes etc, at least the upgraditis cost is slightly more manageable here (at the moment!!!) 😁

Great to hear they're so reliable and robust, that is good news.  It will mainly get used for back garden tracks and runs out in the woods. I have my eye on the next kit already... 🤦

[Silver-Can]

1 hour ago, Baddon said:

One oddity, the front wheels go a bit wobbly in reverse.

Ha ha yeah - the madbull 'Mexican wave'

Below is the steering mod. I believe the turnbuckles are from a TT 01, but it's essentially a 30mm-ish - can't quite remember to be honest - 3mm threaded bar with adjusters on the end. Quick and dirty but makes it bullet proof! As you can see, mine has been 'round the block more than a few times!

Good luck and keep us posted. 

[B.RAD]

That's great, thanks Silvercan, really useful ☺️

I have my first build question! The CVA shocks, 50519 and 50520 don't list a length for the Mad Bull on the back of the packaging, what shock lengths do I need to build please?

Cheers!

[Silver-Can]

No worries. The recommended shock hop ups are hi caps  - but that's a little overkill (and they'd set you back a lot). What you have are perfectly fine and a massive step up from the kit friction shocks, or pogo sticks as they're affectionately known. According to the manual, fronts are 71mm and rears 92mm - so 70/90 will be fine. 👍

[B.RAD]

Perfect, thank you! 

[B.RAD]

What piston are people using in their CVA dampers? Single, double or triple hole?

Instructions say to use the stiff (single) for hot weather and soft (triple) for cold weather. Given I don't intend on taking these apart after they're built and fitted, would the standard (double) be the best way to go?

Also thinking I'll fit the soft springs, thoughts on this?

Thanks! 😊

[TwistedxSlayer]

Double. And soft springs. They drive how they feel like regardless. I have 3 madbulls. As mentioned the steering mod is the only essential mod. And bearings of course.

[B.RAD]

That's great, thank you! I must admit my enthusiasm meant I got slightly carried away, and got the rears built already! I went for the double piston and soft spring exactly as advised, so that's a relief ☺️

First part of the build - rear shocks done, very, very satisfying!

These little snippers that came in a small hobby plier set are amazing! I seem to remember spending hours with a sharp craft knife trying to get the little nubbins off that got left behind, but these leave a completely clean cut.

Rear shocks all done. Lovely and smooth. So happy I decided to do these now before the kit arrives, I can get them bolted straight on now 😁

[B.RAD]

All four shocks now built. Really enjoyed that job. Weirdly my favourite bit was choosing the spacer to take up the preload on the spring. That's proper car stuff!

And more importantly, a very awesome box arrived in the post today!!

I have to say that the packaging from Wonderland really was exceptional.

Didn't have much spare time today but got the first three screws in. I am really, really going to enjoy this!!

[B.RAD]

A little bit more progress today (time is sparse with an 11 month old!).

Is it ok that there is so much 'slack' in the mounting of the shocks? Top has a good few mm of wiggle room, bottom has a mm or so each side...?

[Baddon]

ideally want to take a lot of that out, can you use washers?

[B.RAD]

1 hour ago, Baddon said:

ideally want to take a lot of that out, can you use washers?

Yes I have some in the garage, just surprised me that none were supplied as it's a chunky gap. Using the brass spacers supplied in the shock kit are no different.

[Frog Jumper]

I use one of the red rubber rings pressed onto the brass tube on my shocks. The rubber takes up the slack but allows flexing.

https://i.imgur.com/uKokUE9.jpg?s=sms

[B.RAD]

1 hour ago, Frog Jumper said:

I use one of the red rubber rings pressed onto the brass tube on my shocks. The rubber takes up the slack but allows flexing.

https://i.imgur.com/uKokUE9.jpg?s=sms

This is a great tip, thank you! Think I have four spares left over from the shocks ☺️

[Silver-Can]

3 hours ago, Frog Jumper said:

I use one of the red rubber rings pressed onto the brass tube on my shocks. The rubber takes up the slack but allows flexing.

https://i.imgur.com/uKokUE9.jpg?s=sms

Good call. I'll have to check and see whether I have any spare o rings and swap the washes out. 😃

Looks like you're making good progress and coming together nicely 👌 

Just to add, the madbull isn't a particularly precise machine. Tamiyas in general are known for excessive slop/play in many of their moving parts (although the gearbox on this model is essentially bulletproof) and you'll find many areas that could be improved upon. If you're a tinkerer and like fiddling with/problem solving these things then you'll no doubt get enjoyment and a certain satisfaction out of doing it. I'm like this and, whilst I like my tamiyas, I'm under no illusions they're perfect and can't be improved upon in different ways. This is part of the appeal for me, tinkering, modding and I suppose personalising my cars in some way. In fact, I probably spend more time fiddling than driving at the moment. I recently bought a break/reverse light LED set for one of my bulls. Currently looking at some of my other models I can stick some on 🤪

[Grumpy pants]

What a cracking thread, lots of enthusiasm, photos and good questions 👍

[B.RAD]

Thanks so much @Grumpy pants! Great user name! 😊 The enthusiasm is pouring out of me here, so glad some of it is coming through in the writing. In fact, I'm having so much fun in both a current and nostalgic sense, I just bought a Hornet kit and starter pack for my dad. It arrived with him yesterday, and he was also absolutely over the moon! I haven't heard him that enthused for a while, fantastic to hear 😁

9 hours ago, Silver-Can said:

Good call. I'll have to check and see whether I have any spare o rings and swap the washes out. 😃

Looks like you're making good progress and coming together nicely 👌 

Just to add, the madbull isn't a particularly precise machine. Tamiyas in general are known for excessive slop/play in many of their moving parts (although the gearbox on this model is essentially bulletproof) and you'll find many areas that could be improved upon. If you're a tinkerer and like fiddling with/problem solving these things then you'll no doubt get enjoyment and a certain satisfaction out of doing it. I'm like this and, whilst I like my tamiyas, I'm under no illusions they're perfect and can't be improved upon in different ways. This is part of the appeal for me, tinkering, modding and I suppose personalising my cars in some way. In fact, I probably spend more time fiddling than driving at the moment. I recently bought a break/reverse light LED set for one of my bulls. Currently looking at some of my other models I can stick some on 🤪

This is great guidance - really appreciate it. You're right, I had expected a little bit more precision, but I am in no way disappointed. In fact, I think it just adds to the charm! I am so, so enjoying the build that I'm deliberately limiting myself to small time slots so that the build can last a bit longer!! I'm already planning the next kit! 🤦😆

One thing I noticed when putting the suspension arms in (that I hadn't commented on previously as I just shrugged and assumed that's how it's supposed to be) is the way the suspension arms fit - there's a lot of play there. May be part of why the wheels wiggle in reverse as previously mentioned in the thread? Has anyone come up with a cheeky mod to give these a better fit? I was thinking of wrapping some insulation tape around the ends, but that seems a bit crude and likely to just wear through the tape. Your thoughts?

Small update from last night - got both shocks on and made a start on the rear diff. This was a bit I thought a bit daunting before I started, but actually is just mega fun!

You can see the sneaky hop up bearings in place there - so glad I bought them before I started! 😊

[Baddon]

Tamiya instructions are generally great and the gearboxs of MOST buggies bulletproof.

[Silver-Can]

19 minutes ago, B.RAD said:

Thanks so much @Grumpy pants! Great user name! 😊 The enthusiasm is pouring out of me here, so glad some of it is coming through in the writing. In fact, I'm having so much fun in both a current and nostalgic sense, I just bought a Hornet kit and starter pack for my dad. It arrived with him yesterday, and he was also absolutely over the moon! I haven't heard him that enthused for a while, fantastic to hear 😁

This is great guidance - really appreciate it. You're right, I had expected a little bit more precision, but I am in no way disappointed. In fact, I think it just adds to the charm! I am so, so enjoying the build that I'm deliberately limiting myself to small time slots so that the build can last a bit longer!! I'm already planning the next kit! 🤦😆

One thing I noticed when putting the suspension arms in (that I hadn't commented on previously as I just shrugged and assumed that's how it's supposed to be) is the way the suspension arms fit - there's a lot of play there. May be part of why the wheels wiggle in reverse as previously mentioned in the thread? Has anyone come up with a cheeky mod to give these a better fit? I was thinking of wrapping some insulation tape around the ends, but that seems a bit crude and likely to just wear through the tape. Your thoughts?

Small update from last night - got both shocks on and made a start on the rear diff. This was a bit I thought a bit daunting before I started, but actually is just mega fun!

You can see the sneaky hop up bearings in place there - so glad I bought them before I started! 😊

Prolonging the build is always part of my plan 👍😁. Nothing quite like a brand-spanking new kit to put together. Can become a little addictive though...so people have 50 or more models! 

In respect to the front suspension arms - yeah that was one of the areas I had in mind. I've used electrical tape in the past and while it does the job it is, as you say, a bit crude. I've also used heat shrink to just 'fatten up' the end of the arms that slot into the chassis. A bit better than tape but will also eventually wear away.

Just occurred to me that I didn't see mention of a hardened/steel pinion. The kit supplied one is ok, but only made of soft aluminium and over time this will wear and the teeth will become really sharp and start cutting into the spur gear resulting in a dreadful clatter from the gearbox and new gears being required. I would recommend getting a steel replacement from somewhere like modelsport, something like this.

Really coming together and looking good. Can't wait to see what paint job you come up with. Oh, and the hornet is a great iconic tamiya too 👍

[B.RAD]

I can see how people can end up with so many, it really is addictive! And each time you build one I've no doubt you learn a little bit more for the next one ☺️

Heat shrink is a great idea! Kicking myself I didn't think of that 😆 I haven't got any so will need to buy some, do you have a recommendation for sources please?

Steel pinion - another brilliant tip! This is the best forum ever!! Purchasing one will be the next thing I do.

Ref the paint job - I'm really happy with the scheme I've come up with, but I'm slightly worried it will be one of those 'better in my mind than in reality' situations. Time will tell!