RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Thanks. I took her out twice today outside and it's like she's on rails. No thrown tracks. I also like the stock/sloppy look of the tracks without removed links. She corners and turns almost as good as it did with one link taken out. I think I can finally glue the hubcaps back on, confident I won't have to do any more mods for awhile and just enjoy break-free running.

(Update, reposted from other forum)

Rebuilt/repainted her:



Had another problem with the new Mato gears. The threads were stripped so I couldn't secure the sprockets. Went down to Ace Hardware, got longer screws, which were able to find some good thread and secured it with Loctite. Other than that, I'm finally happy with the new gears. The thing jumps out of the hole. I thought I was going to have to install wheelie bars or something. Overall it's slower, but not much slower, which surprised me. The black can motors seem to have some extra power........it's definately faster than 1/3 of what it was..........probably 75% as fast, but nothing scientific.

I also upgraded the suspension arms and re-did the rear axles with ball bearings and larger axle bolts.

I also drilled out the two rear suspension arm holes and mounted larger bolts..........which I think was the main reason why I was throwing axles. The stock bolts, even with the upgraded metal arms has so much slop that the track gets out of line, jumping the idler. Now the two rear wheels stay in a straight line, preventing the track from jumping. As you can see from the picture below, my tracks have alot of slop and still don't jump:



I also cut down the mantle and did the antenna coil mod. I have to find out where I put the spare rubber ring and get another sticker set.

I may update this post with the bolts I used to replace the stock ones for the rear idler and suspension arms.

I'm using the stock suspension arms as illustration here, but I have the metal suspension arms. The new bolt vs the stock one. The new bolt is item R262P from Ace hardware:



I needed to grind the top off the bolt so it doesn't interfere with the wheel (picture shows interference if bolt is not ground down). You only have to do this with the wide wheels, not the alternating skinny ones:



Proof in the pudding. Look at the top two arms with the beefier bolts, which are in perfect alignment vs the bottom two that use stock botls, which are out of plane. The top wheels stay in line, making sure the tracks stay in line with the idler wheel. Keep in mind that slop translates to 1cm worth of slop at the wheel vs only maybe 2mm worth of slop on the modded arm setup. Because the bolts are hardened stainless/chromium steel, there should be less wear vs the brass bushings (suplied with the metal suspension arms) vs the soft stock metal bolts:

Very good -and what a neat solution !

Andy

Thanks Major.

Really tempted by a Jagadpanther - how do you find she rolls along now ??

Andy

Hi MassiveOverkill,
Really excellent work on this 'Hunting Panther' .....I had been intending to get a STuG III next....but having seen your model I am rapidlly beginning to change my mind!
Keep up the good work and the progress reports (I apologise now for probably stealing your ideas later )

Major, she runs smooooth. Dietrich, I just bought the Stug III today, so it should be here in a week

Stug III is here (I probably should create a new thread), and if you're deciding between the StugIII and Jagdpanther, it's a really tough choice. For low-maintenance minor excursions, the Stug is going to fit the bill. For heavy-duty off-roading and consequently more tinkering, the Jagpanther is your choice.

I don't see me having to put a whole lot of time into this TD. She's a great runner out of the box. I got the IR version (sans battle unit). She turns on a dime and gets up and scoots. I'm glad I didn't order any upgrades as she won't need them for awhile. The only thing I see wearing out any time soon are the rear idlers. It came with the older revision RX-18 without the additional MOSFET board but I'm really not concerned as the tank is much ligher than my Jagdpanther.

I already did my ball bearing mod (inline skate bearings), which she took like a charm. Gearbox looked good so I didn't even bother tearing it apart.

Pics of bearing mod:

Spring cut in half, one have per side, slightly stretched out:



Spring on shaft and bearing slide over:



Another angle:



Shaft housing reinstalled:



I'd post more pics, but I haven't done anything special cosmetically.

I gotta say, I'm really impressed. I love my JagD, but I don't see me having to put a whole lot of time into this TD. She's a great runner out of the box. I got the IR version (sans battle unit). She turns on a dime and gets up and scoots. I'm glad I didn't order any upgrades as she won't need them for awhile. The only thing I see wearing out any time soon are the rear idlers. It came with the older revision RX-18 without the additional MOSFET board but I'm really not concerned as the tank is much ligher than my Jagdpanther.

I already did my ball bearing mod (inline skate bearings), which she took like a charm. Gearbox looked good so I didn't even bother tearing it apart.

Pics of bearing mod:

Spring cut in half, one have per side, slightly stretched out:



Spring on shaft and bearing slide over:



Another angle:



Shaft housing reinstalled:



I'd post more pics, but I haven't done anything special cosmetically.