RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Hi Guys.
I am attempting to put new side arms and springs on my tiger. (heng long). one side operates as it should, forcing the wheel down.
But the other side ,acts the opposite way forcing the wheel up.
I have tried all combinations possible ways but as each spring will only fit in its proper arm. 1.e. L arm L spring. I do not know how to correct what seams to be a fault.
Any help would be great. not having replaced any springs on the tiger before.
Cheers John W.

John, you do know that the swing arms goes in different directions between the two sides, right ? One side points forward and one side points backwards ?

Just checking.

If it's a Heng Long both sides go forward. The spring itself has left and right. The arms can be installed on either side.

Hi All
.I did not know regarding the right way to put these things on.
Serves me right , I should have made notes when removing them.
I have them on , but all the springs on one side are stretched out so I guess that is wrong. Oh the joys of tanking.
I will check in the morning, and order some new springs.
Thanks for the help !!
Cheers John W.
This post is now closed.

To illustrate, I tear down my ill-fated H/L Tiger1. Look at the green circle, you'll see the right and left springs. When you put the spring into its position, it should look like the one in red circle and when you secure the arm, it would look like the one yellow circle. I'd like to make a small explain here, if yours are plastic arms, they should look like the one in blue circle because the metal arms are smooth and can only be fold forward when secured with the roadwheel's screw.

That smooth finish on the metal arms just doesn't seem right , the plastic arms have a knob to hold them in place , seems a better design to me.

My metal arms also have a knob to allow correct radius of movement.
I am about to go back to my Tiger to remove the suspension & increase the radius by cutting material out of the curved slot that limits the arm travel on the bottom side. This will effectively raise the tank and be a lot closer to the scale ride height that Taigen models have and that looks & measures up to pictures & drawings.
About 3.5mm should do it.

Funny how the ride height on a T34/85 needs to be lowered by the same amount a Tiger 1 needs to be raised !
One thing I do on all my tanks is to assess the weight you feel it will be when completed, and fit the springs accordingly.
I always 'clock' the lead and rearmost springs.
This enables the tank to sit level when static, and also helps to keep the tracks in shape while allowing the subtle movement of the running gear over uneven ground.
Depending on the relative weight you have on yours with gearboxes and other stuff, you might need to clock the leading 2 roadwheels etc etc.

Just to add a small point to the very good advise already offered,
When the build is done and you put the Tiger on the desk or shelf do make sure the load is taken off the tracks and the Tank is supported or you will do harm to the suspension if it sits under load in the same place for too long.
Shaun.

This is my Tiger 1 metal arms (not sure what brand) when they first arrived. Note that one arm is the wrong side but if you use the H/L short spring, it has no problem.