Gears and motors in heavy tanks

[tao]

What they call 4:1 or lower ratio gearboxes are a must for these heavy tanks but strong motors I have found also make a big difference especially in spot turning the longer heavy tanks such as Kingtiger and Panther. Personally I found the Promax 480's work best when you need the torque. Plus they also can run off RX 18 if you have a stock set up. They also offer the shorter 400's but haven't tried those yet.

http://www.maxxprod.com/mpi/mpi-10.html

[mike1268]

Nice! I use JP480's in all my tanks that I've upgraded to IBU's. Not tried them on an RX18. Defo a must, regardless of tank. My stug used to struggle to turn on grass, but with 480's, you would think it was on flat ground. No struggle at all. Still running on a 3:1 with the stug. The scale speed seems about right. Going for 4:1 or 5:1 with my Tiger,Panther and KV's

[tao]

I found 4:1 gears do the trick in the the heavy tanks and the 480's are great/needed there. On my Stug the 3:1 brass gearbox
was all that was necessary as it is so light- but I may drop in the motors that come with the 4:1 steel gearboxes in the StuG after I swap those out for 480's in the Panther. Tiger I is the same weight as the Panther.. but the Tiger is shorter and needs less torque to turn it seems.

[mike1268]

Ah, my stug had had a lot of metal upgrades and is my second heaviest tank

[tao]

If they fit- you can't go wrong with the 480's! My StuG is all plastic except the front/rear sprockets and tracks..the brass 3:1 gearbox was really needed but since it is getting a bit heavier now..will drop in something stronger motor wise. The KT and Panther all almost all metal and are very heavy..but the length and wide tracks add to the need for torque.

[Afrikakorps]

Hi,
I can say for certain that the Taigen 5:1 gearboxes with the 360 motor are useless for a heavy tank such as a metal upgraded Taigen Sturmtiger or KV-2.
I have them in my KV-2 because they are low height motors, but they lack power.
On hard ground they are just ok, but on carpet the tank will not turn
The best gearboxes i have found for these types of tanks are the Taigen/HL 4:1 's. ( with some height fitting issues in certain tanks )
Cheers
Afrikakorps

[tao]

I like the 4:1 steel with promax 480 motors for all the heavy tanks.

[jackalope]

4.1 steel gearboxes with full bearings and cnc machined gears powered by JP 480 motors and my Jagdtiger can do 360 spins in foot deep grass.

[HERMAN BIX]

My StuG Pig has Winterketten tracks and its also very heavy for its size.
Them tracks grip so well the thing could pull Jesus off the cross
It does take grunt to turn it on carpet and the like, but on stones, dirt , sand etc the 4.1 steel gears cope well .
My only issue is I dont have a big battery for it, so running time is short with all the load.

[mitchell]

I have winter tracks on my new Panther F build. I'm using a pair of JP400's on brass Mato 5:1's. Recently rebuilt the gearboxes after checking for manufacturing leftover burrs and was pleasantly surprised to find plenty of brass bushes in a thick pressed steel frame.

Easy superspin on grass at just 80% power