I feel I have some advice to offer new modelers that may save someone else much time and wasted money. So I decided to post it here and now. There are many expert modellers on this site and i don't claim to be one of them. There are things i will say here i could be wrong about and I'm just a green horn with this hobby. So I won't be offend at all if some of the experten here can prove me wrong! I'm here to learn and this post is not intended as gospel but as a starting guide to the new people who may pick up a tip or two from my expensive mistakes!
,This site was an important factor in my decision to get involved in the hobby. How ever when I asked questions, I was given lots of great advice by the kind folks here on this site. Unfortunately too often I was too obstinate to heed some of it and almost without exception their advice proved to be correct.
So with a novices mistakes still fresh in my mind (and my bank account still showing the literal costs of ignoring good advice), this post is aimed at new or novice tank modellers, with the idea that perhaps you can avoid some of my expensive and time-wasting mistakes!
A very brief description of my background is perhaps relevant now. I have years of experience modeling dozens of 1/35 and 1/24 armor and military aircraft, with a 30 year gap since then. I had a years schooling in airbrushing, years of practice modeling and even several years of drafting.... and while this experience was somewhat helpful when I reentered the hobby, it was not nearly as helpful as I thought. The skills used in moddelling, particularly airbrush work, are quite perishable and quickly forgotten and a novice might actually have an advantage as there is little to unlearn...for example I wished I'd spent an hour or two and practiced airbrushing again before I set to work on the actual models!
At the risk of losing readers by being too wordy I will now cut to the chase on what I learned, the hard way on my first heng long build a HL/Airsoft king tiger.
In general, it may be better to not be too eager to tear the model apart and start modifying it immediately you receive it. inspect the model carefully, then drive it around for a bit first. Make sure your new model functions as it should! If the model is modified by you and only THEN a problem is found- such as faulty electronics, bad transmitter, dead motors or shipping damage- the manufacturer may refuse to warranty your defective model (because it was modified and that might be what they will say to avoid a warranty claim). So I think it's wise to make sure the model is undamaged out of the box, and functions as new before changing anything.
Regarding buying your new tank please do not be in a hurry to buy! There are dozens of vendors of Heng long tanks (I have no advice on Tamiya tanks, they are far too pricey for me so this post is about the HL/airsoft tanks)and the money you can save on your new tank is significant.
You can save a lot of money just by being patient. I got a brand new, basic model of the Tiger 1(no smoke and sound) for $65 shipped. The company (hobbygasm) was having a 30% off promotion that month. I already owned the king tiger so i was in no hurry to buy-but knew I wanted a tiger and after months of pricing dozens of vendors I knew that price was rock bottom. I bought it to mod it so the lack of s&s was not a factor, for me. It was nothing but luck I found that tank at the bargain price and it was at least $25 less then anybody else had it for. And always search for a promo code before buying
Don't forget it's never to early to plan your tank build.
Pick your must-have items picked out before putting down your money. Buying the tank already fitted with, say steel gears and metal tracks
will save you a lot of money vs. Adding them on later! A brand new "steel model " king tiger costs around $200. If you decided to add them later, the tracks are $80 and steel gears another $50...
More in part 2
Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt 1
Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt 1
Last edited by Marc780 on Thu May 22, 2014 8:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
Quickly, I will add my opinion of steel tracks and gearbox and maybe it will help you make your own decision.
The steel gearbox is well worth paying extra in a new tank. I don't even believe that's worth discussing, they're better in every way that counts. Those plastic gears are a factory cost cutting measure, period, and if you buy your new tank with steel gears not only are you money ahead, it saves you the trouble of fitting. Of course anything can be added later but might as well start with the steel gears, full stop!
The decision of the steel tracks is not so cut and dried - I have had no trouble with the plastic tracks on either the KO or tiger. They can easily be painted (I prefer rust with silver contact points), they do not mar floors, they are quiet and replacement sets are $10. Most important they are light! It's my impression the heavy tracks impose additional strain on the gearbox and motors, and can cause the circuits in your board to heat excessively. They also reduce battery time. I have read several posts where people switched back to the plastic tracks after driving on the metal ones for a while due to these issues. That's my opinion if course and all I have to say about the steel tracks.
However when you need to remove the tracks either kind simply unbolt the drive sprocket and remove the tracks that way. The alternative is to remove a track pin, and this often leads to problems. The pins are fiddly, and a pin once removed and replaced often becomes a weak spot as the pin may then start to walk itself out.
A common trick to hold the pins in place is to remove the tracks and paint them. The paint acts as a sort of loctite.
My final thoughts are on the radio system. The old tk01 board (non s&s models) is junk. I spent far too much money trying to make it work. My opinion is the circuits on this board get too hot under load, and it's a designed in defect that can't be fixed. Do not spend any money fixing this because it can't be fixed, period.
The rx18 board may be slightly better but I've had little luck with this system either. Performance is still too buggy for me, this despite adding a 3 foot long antenna, changing crystals and new transmitters etc. The performance of the tank is still erratic and again, not worth spending money to fix.
I heartily recommend simply replacing them both with the heng long 2.4 ghz system. This system costs $80 -and is a sizable amount to spend admittedly. But compared to the money I wasted trying to make the other radio systems work - new transmitters and boards and hours of work -i wish I'd just bought the 2.4ghz to begin with.... in my view this is the cheapest way to go for dependable performance.
I upgraded the king tiger with this 2.4 get system and all the performance problems are gone. Very easy to install (if your tank has the rx18 it already has the wiring set, if not you will need a set). Just swap the board for the 2.4 board, plug in the new receiver wire into the board (you can get remove the rx18 receiver board as you won't need it now) and drive the tank. Range is 100 feet or more). The performance of the tank is crisp and reliable and NO issues with dead signals or radio interference. If your tank is giving you fits this might be the cure.
One last piece of advice on transmitters- never slap the TX to remove the batteries! I killed a transmitter doing that. Instead, just pry the batteries out.
The steel gearbox is well worth paying extra in a new tank. I don't even believe that's worth discussing, they're better in every way that counts. Those plastic gears are a factory cost cutting measure, period, and if you buy your new tank with steel gears not only are you money ahead, it saves you the trouble of fitting. Of course anything can be added later but might as well start with the steel gears, full stop!
The decision of the steel tracks is not so cut and dried - I have had no trouble with the plastic tracks on either the KO or tiger. They can easily be painted (I prefer rust with silver contact points), they do not mar floors, they are quiet and replacement sets are $10. Most important they are light! It's my impression the heavy tracks impose additional strain on the gearbox and motors, and can cause the circuits in your board to heat excessively. They also reduce battery time. I have read several posts where people switched back to the plastic tracks after driving on the metal ones for a while due to these issues. That's my opinion if course and all I have to say about the steel tracks.
However when you need to remove the tracks either kind simply unbolt the drive sprocket and remove the tracks that way. The alternative is to remove a track pin, and this often leads to problems. The pins are fiddly, and a pin once removed and replaced often becomes a weak spot as the pin may then start to walk itself out.
A common trick to hold the pins in place is to remove the tracks and paint them. The paint acts as a sort of loctite.
My final thoughts are on the radio system. The old tk01 board (non s&s models) is junk. I spent far too much money trying to make it work. My opinion is the circuits on this board get too hot under load, and it's a designed in defect that can't be fixed. Do not spend any money fixing this because it can't be fixed, period.
The rx18 board may be slightly better but I've had little luck with this system either. Performance is still too buggy for me, this despite adding a 3 foot long antenna, changing crystals and new transmitters etc. The performance of the tank is still erratic and again, not worth spending money to fix.
I heartily recommend simply replacing them both with the heng long 2.4 ghz system. This system costs $80 -and is a sizable amount to spend admittedly. But compared to the money I wasted trying to make the other radio systems work - new transmitters and boards and hours of work -i wish I'd just bought the 2.4ghz to begin with.... in my view this is the cheapest way to go for dependable performance.
I upgraded the king tiger with this 2.4 get system and all the performance problems are gone. Very easy to install (if your tank has the rx18 it already has the wiring set, if not you will need a set). Just swap the board for the 2.4 board, plug in the new receiver wire into the board (you can get remove the rx18 receiver board as you won't need it now) and drive the tank. Range is 100 feet or more). The performance of the tank is crisp and reliable and NO issues with dead signals or radio interference. If your tank is giving you fits this might be the cure.
One last piece of advice on transmitters- never slap the TX to remove the batteries! I killed a transmitter doing that. Instead, just pry the batteries out.
Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
This section is about things to fix on your new tank-and there is plenty to do if you so choose! The HL tanks are excellent for the price point they sell at but above all it is a compromise. The plastic hull, for instance, really has a fair amount of stress, flex and weight put in and on it. I have seen photos of a tiger 1 with a crack in the hull just from normal use. The crack was repairable, as most of them are but that's not the point: in an effort to cut costs HL uses the thinnest plastic they think will do the job. Adding any extra weight metal gearbox, steel fittings, metal hatches, steel road wheels -may be pushing the limits of the hull material. Everytime i pick up either of my tanks i am still impressed by how heavy they are! The strength of the plastic hull is marginal, and if we modellors were all flush with blackjack winnings or something, we'd probably all simply buy the metal hulls tanks and be done with it. But since most of us will be working with the plastic ditto exclusively, anything we can do to strengthen it is probably helpful.
People use many methods to brace the hull. Adding material is best done with careful planning beforehand because there are so many other considerations involved. Aesthetics, authenticity, weight, easy access to the components, are just a few considerations so adding strength can be a real engineering challenge.
The first thing to do is add at least one cross brace across the top of the hull. The tank itself is more or less a box structure, which is inherently rigid after adding the lid (the upper hull). Firmly affixing upper and lower hulls is a big step in a solid hull.
Adding a cross brace will help reduce flexing of the lower hull and best of all, it is easy to do and cheap too. You need a length of steel or aluminum bar about 1 inch wide and about 1/8" thick to make the brace. Aluminum is lighter and easier to cut and drill and is probably strong enough for our purpose.
Carefully size the length of the bar, and test fit the upper hull, before cutting the bar to final length...on my king tiger, for instance, the upper hull rests partly on the lower hull so the bar must be short enough to still allow the upper hull to fit.
If you are concerned about having a metal bracing bar near to your electrical wiring, simply obtain a piece of electrical shrink wrap tubing large enough to slide over your bracing bar, and melt it on tight. Your metal bar is now insulated.
I locate the bar on the hull slightly behind the motors. Wherever you place yours, use care to make sure the bar will not block any components. For instance, the turret motor and main gun up-down motor protrudes downward into the hull when assembled. Locate your hull bracing bar where it will not block these motors. Measure twice cut once as the old saying says...
Attaching your brace is another step to be done with care. Again, make sure nothing will be blocked. On most HL tanks there is enough clearance between the top of tread run, to the hull , so that that a 1/16 or 3/8" round head screw and washer, installed from beneath, will easily fit and not contact the tracks. On a tiger or panther make your hole no closer then 1-2 inches behind the sprocket to ensure enough track droop to easily clear the screw head. DO NOT glue your hull brace- use screws only....! THE brace will certainly need to come off some day to give access to the works, -and the hull brace must be removable.
People use many methods to brace the hull. Adding material is best done with careful planning beforehand because there are so many other considerations involved. Aesthetics, authenticity, weight, easy access to the components, are just a few considerations so adding strength can be a real engineering challenge.
The first thing to do is add at least one cross brace across the top of the hull. The tank itself is more or less a box structure, which is inherently rigid after adding the lid (the upper hull). Firmly affixing upper and lower hulls is a big step in a solid hull.
Adding a cross brace will help reduce flexing of the lower hull and best of all, it is easy to do and cheap too. You need a length of steel or aluminum bar about 1 inch wide and about 1/8" thick to make the brace. Aluminum is lighter and easier to cut and drill and is probably strong enough for our purpose.
Carefully size the length of the bar, and test fit the upper hull, before cutting the bar to final length...on my king tiger, for instance, the upper hull rests partly on the lower hull so the bar must be short enough to still allow the upper hull to fit.
If you are concerned about having a metal bracing bar near to your electrical wiring, simply obtain a piece of electrical shrink wrap tubing large enough to slide over your bracing bar, and melt it on tight. Your metal bar is now insulated.
I locate the bar on the hull slightly behind the motors. Wherever you place yours, use care to make sure the bar will not block any components. For instance, the turret motor and main gun up-down motor protrudes downward into the hull when assembled. Locate your hull bracing bar where it will not block these motors. Measure twice cut once as the old saying says...
Attaching your brace is another step to be done with care. Again, make sure nothing will be blocked. On most HL tanks there is enough clearance between the top of tread run, to the hull , so that that a 1/16 or 3/8" round head screw and washer, installed from beneath, will easily fit and not contact the tracks. On a tiger or panther make your hole no closer then 1-2 inches behind the sprocket to ensure enough track droop to easily clear the screw head. DO NOT glue your hull brace- use screws only....! THE brace will certainly need to come off some day to give access to the works, -and the hull brace must be removable.
more on hull bracing
There are a few other points on the tank that benefit from bracing. One area many people strengthen, is the inside upper hull around the turret hole. The turret is relatively heavy, and there is only some thin plastic around the hull supporting it. Perhaps the best material to add strength here, is carbon fiber strips. Carbon fiber is by no means cheap, but it is almost perfect material for adding strength. The CF Bar, about 1/2 inch wide, is cut to about 4" lengths. The pieces of bar are then epoxied to the bare plastic area around the turret hole.
Another idea for strengthening the hull is carbon fiber strips glued to the bottom of the hull along the outside edges. There is little room to add much bracing inside the hull-but the hull bottom is a different matter entirely.
Another idea for strengthening the hull is carbon fiber strips glued to the bottom of the hull along the outside edges. There is little room to add much bracing inside the hull-but the hull bottom is a different matter entirely.
Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
Excellent advice, many fine points obviously due to your experience. Thanks for taking the time to write this for other members.
Well done,Thanks for sharing.
Blake
Well done,Thanks for sharing.
Blake
Urban dictionary-SAXONDOG-derogatory term for anglosaxon people
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edpanzer
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Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
Some good advice there thanks
Taigen Tiger 1 full option rctank.de special edition airbrush paint IR equipped
Type 90 1/24
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Heng long leopard 2a6
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Heng long sherman
Grantham Light Armoured Division RCTC
Type 90 1/24
WSN T34
Heng long leopard 2a6
Heng long panzer 4 platinum
Heng long sherman
Grantham Light Armoured Division RCTC
Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
Well said as it seems a lot of people are starting to take the hobby up and rushing into modding there new model rather than taking time to play with it, so some good advice has just been given 
Torro King Tiger , Torro KV-2 , Torro M-16 half track , 2xTaigen Tigers
HL King Tiger , HL KV-1 , HL Tiger , HL Bulldog , HL Pershing , HL Sherman
HL King Tiger , HL KV-1 , HL Tiger , HL Bulldog , HL Pershing , HL Sherman
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jarndice
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Re: Hard won advice from novice to those new to the hobby pt
Top advise, the first 1/16 Tank I bought (HENG LONG Panzer 4) what did I do, What I did not do is read the instructions, DOHHH, I put the battery on charge for the requisite 4 hours then put it into the Tank, IT DID NOT WORK!!! Why? Because I had just cooked a FULLY charged battery 
. Read the instructions and familiarise yourself with it, and then think about what if anything it needs doing to it to make it more to your liking. shaun
. Read the instructions and familiarise yourself with it, and then think about what if anything it needs doing to it to make it more to your liking. shaunI think I am about to upset someone 
