whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

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paulc
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whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by paulc »

Looking for a good rc controller and receiver that's 4CH for my Tamiya pershing. what do you folks recommend as I have been looking but I am getting mixed reviews and to be honest rc equipment is not my strong point. any help appreciated.
Tamiya tanks X2 Shermans, JS2, KV1,KV2, Pershing, x2 Tiger, King tiger, Panther, Jagdpanther, Panzer IV, Jagdpanzer.
Heng long Panzer III
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43rdRecceReg
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by 43rdRecceReg »

Try the Futuba 4YWD 4-Ch transmitter. Tamiya tank transmitters were just rebranded Futuba models. This one will work with your tank right out the box. :thumbup:
They're not cheap (they can be had through Ebay though, as a cheaper Chinese import); but as you say, you're not all that experienced with RC gear, and this should make familiarisation much easier for you. :)
There are far better transmitters out there, and better cheaper ones too; but none that will work with your tank without some tweaking, as the Futuba will. Hope this helps.
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by Rad_Schuhart »

This is funny because I was going to say, whatever you buy, never, ever get those Futaba radios.

Ancient technology with super proud price tag. I also disagree with it helping familiarisation. The absolute lack of functions, screen and switches makes it to be at the same level as a heng long radio, but 10 times the price. Nothing you can learn and boring ultra short term. Sorry.

And I also believe any 4ch or more tansmitter will work with the tamiya electronics straight out of the box without doing anything at all. I might be wrong here, but absolutelly all the radios I have seen, come with the first 4 channels already programmed in the sticks, so it is plug and play.

If the Futaba radio + receiver was worth 15 euros, then could be ok for a beginner. But for 20 bucks you have flysky radios with 6 channels.
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by 43rdRecceReg »

Rad_Schuhart wrote:This is funny because I was going to say, whatever you buy, never, ever get those Futaba radios.

Ancient technology with super proud price tag. I also disagree with it helping familiarisation. The absolute lack of functions, screen and switches makes it to be at the same level as a heng long radio, but 10 times the price. Nothing you can learn and boring ultra short term. Sorry.

And I also believe any 4ch or more tansmitter will work with the tamiya electronics straight out of the box without doing anything at all. I might be wrong here, but absolutelly all the radios I have seen, come with the first 4 channels already programmed in the sticks, so it is plug and play.

If the Futaba radio + receiver was worth 15 euros, then could be ok for a beginner. But for 20 bucks you have flysky radios with 6 channels.

Sorry, Rad, and I know how much you hate Futuba- and love tweaking your own controls, but he did say RC kit isn't one of his 'strong points'. :think: The Futuba unitdoes work reliably out of the box, and I know of no other 4ch-10ch setup that is plug and play with a Tamiya, and that will work with it without some tweaking... certainly my Spektrum 6ch doesn't, and nor does my FlyDky FS-T6 :|
Yes, it might be comparable with a basic Taigen or HL TX, but it is robust and dependable. I have two and they work very well. They just work.
Surely the point is to get the tank running without hours of head-scratching, and online queries. Old school or not, if it was good enough for Tamiya, it should be good enough for the newcomers to RC (and specifically) Tamiya tanking. Not everyone is a Boffin, who wants to play a full complement of iTunes, and special sound and vocal effects on their tank, Rad ... :D :lolno:
I agree, though, it is overpriced- but a used one should be gettable via Ebay.
"Get your facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you please"- Mark Twain.
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silversurfer1947
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by silversurfer1947 »

Not sure whether you would class it plug and play, but my FlySky i6 worked with my Tamiya Tiger immediately. The only thing I did was to swap the channels around as I am left handed and wanted the control different from standard.
Richard
Tamiya Tiger 1, Taigen FlakPanzer IV,Torro M16 half-track, Tamiya Panther,WSN/Torro T34,Taigen M41 Bulldog,H/l/Taigen Sherman M4A3,H/L T90, Haya M3 Grant, Metal Origins 234/2 Puma, Nashorn by Alwyn. I was only going to have one tank - honest! :D
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by 43rdRecceReg »

silversurfer1947 wrote:Not sure whether you would class it plug and play, but my FlySky i6 worked with my Tamiya Tiger immediately. The only thing I did was to swap the channels around as I am left handed and wanted the control different from standard.
In which case, Richard, I sit corrected. :D
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by silversurfer1947 »

43rdRecceReg wrote:
silversurfer1947 wrote:Not sure whether you would class it plug and play, but my FlySky i6 worked with my Tamiya Tiger immediately. The only thing I did was to swap the channels around as I am left handed and wanted the control different from standard.
In which case, Richard, I sit corrected. :D
Just wondering what needed tweaking. Could be that in moving channels around, I inadvertently tweaked the settings!
Richard
Tamiya Tiger 1, Taigen FlakPanzer IV,Torro M16 half-track, Tamiya Panther,WSN/Torro T34,Taigen M41 Bulldog,H/l/Taigen Sherman M4A3,H/L T90, Haya M3 Grant, Metal Origins 234/2 Puma, Nashorn by Alwyn. I was only going to have one tank - honest! :D
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by silversurfer1947 »

I have just had a thought. My Tiger was first fitted with a Planet T5, before I swapped it over. To the best of my recollection, all I did was to play around with moving channels around till the sticks did what I wanted them to. I had no knowledge of rc sytems then. Not that that has changed much now!
Richard
Tamiya Tiger 1, Taigen FlakPanzer IV,Torro M16 half-track, Tamiya Panther,WSN/Torro T34,Taigen M41 Bulldog,H/l/Taigen Sherman M4A3,H/L T90, Haya M3 Grant, Metal Origins 234/2 Puma, Nashorn by Alwyn. I was only going to have one tank - honest! :D
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by 43rdRecceReg »

It's been a while since I've looked at Tamiya channels and setup. However, I did find this website very useful when setting stick mode up on a Tamiya tank:
https://customrcmodels.com/Tanks/id92.htm

also, here's Jimbob's take on using a Turnigy TX with a Tamiya. His site is a priceless, and articulate (rare these days), online resource for Rc tank related issues- as well as an immersive and entertaining read.
https://jbwid.com/art74m.htm
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Re: whats a good rc controller for tamiya tanks

Post by Rad_Schuhart »

Lol Roy, well, my case is extreme, and my radio is crazy complicated, but as I said, most of the radios are plug and play with tamiya units. The issue with your spectrum, might be one of the very rare exceptions, and this is because the standard models are tweaked somehow to fit aircrafts or copters... But the very big bunch of radios I have touched are straight plug and play with tamiya, straight out of the box.

I know not everybody needs all the bells and whistles in their tanks as I do, but why to pay §§§ for a second hand radio when you can have a brand new one for peanuts that does exactly the same or in most of the cases even much more?

And if money is not an issue, why to pay the same money for a 4ch tamiya, when a 12ch taranis makes everything most mortals could ever dream of?

And yep, that Jimbo thread is very interesting. I have read it years ago and I've learnt things back in the day.

All can I say is I started with the same radio as jimbo, the 9x, and er9x software. I knew absolutelly nothing about RC. But what I know is if I started with those futaba radio, I'd have abandoned the hobby years ago.

Maybe that's just me... But hey.

EDIT: Beware the article at Jimbo's blog is for an ancient version of er9x, or even worse, tanker9x. It has changed a lot, tons of new features (it updates every week or so, so go and figure!) and things are easier now.
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