RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

Can anyone clarify the following question, already asked via website of RCTA but no reply.
Will fitting the Mako board and Tiger Ring IR unit to a BB Tiger make it a usable battle system without further wiring etc?
Regards, Paul

Are you still intending to use the BB function?
And you would need an emitter too.

I too would be very interested to know if this can be done to a BB tank.

Ideally I would like to use both simultaneously, but accept this is unlikely

I have multiple BB tanks, but now I’m becoming more interested in IR possibilities.

If I had to choose between BB or IR I would choose IR, but only if the transition was painless.

Mako2018 Plus Tiger Ring reads/sounds painless but I’m wary of buying stuff that doesn’t do what I anticipate, already done that.

I have 13 tanks, the cost is too high without proven results.

Regards, Paul

I didn't think Taigen/Heng Long MFUs could support two systems simultaneously: IR and Airsoft (BB). Unless things have changed, it was an either/or situation.
Heng Long don't do IR based systems anymore, only Airsoft. Taigen/Torro , a smaller more bespoke spin-off from Heng Long, do offer both systems; but not together.
I think I've seen various attempts to combine them
in the past on RCTW (check the 'Search' feature), with no real evidence of success. Though, I could be wrong. I've even seen attempts to produce smoke and flame from the barrel, with some interesting improvisational setups.
Isn't the Mako unit intended to make Taigen's IR system compatible with Tamiya's, and to give Heng Long tanks a measure of IR capability- which they're lacking these days? I must check the mako out.
Unless you're a member of a battling club, or have friends to battle with, there's actually not much point in having the IR system. With BBs, at least you can take pot shots at targets
Models fitted with IR, generally have barrel flash and barrel recoil too. Lots of members prefer this spec. Airsoft.....
There's a discussion on Taigen/Tamiya IR here on RCU. It might help clear (or possibly muddy) the waters.

I forgot to ask which brand of Tiger 1, and version (late,mid, early, etc..) you have. We have wiring diags., and MFU layouts for Heng Long, and Taigen, in the Archives if you need to refer to them, or I could post them here for you. Good luck.

I just noticed a recent thread relating to the latest iteration of Heng Long's MFU and electronics package on a Leopard. It's listed as version 6.0 (5) on Heng-Long-Panzer.de
There was a suggestion that it can combine an Airsoft (BB) configuration with an IR receiver. But, having looked at the web page, I think it's suggesting that you can choose between IR or Airsoft; but I need to check other sources. If so, this would be a retreat, by Heng Long, from their no IR policy.
I suspect it's still either, or.
There's an old Youtube vid from rctanksau you might find useful, if only for the background to the Mako project.



Edit: as an addendum to observations on the V6 (Gen 5) electronics fitted to the new Leopard, I also found the following on Heng-long-Panzer.de, and this a is a cut and paste:

".....Version 6.0 (Generation 5) - fully proportional
New with version 6.0:

BB-Shot and infrared Kamp functions selectable
The steering knuckles are now all made of metal
4 different tank sound simulations
Improved and more accurate steering
Headlight and brake light can now be switched on and off
Recoil function can now be set in 3 levels
Fast and Slow mode can be selected
The light of machine gun can be switched on and off
Driving straight ahead has now become more stable
There are several connections available on the electronics, for example. Camera, WiFi, laser, etc....."

There seems to be an option to switch between BB and IR, and the board also appears to have connections for Camera, WiFi, and Laser. The problem is, this new MFU is described as tk v6.0, and yet there are V7 HL MFUs on Ebay in the US. HL products don't often lend themselves to straight or clear answers...If only the version appeared on the MFU cover, instead of on the PCB, it would help.

If it emerges that they've produced an electronics package with switchable battle functions (IR/Airsoft), then you might consider buying one. I think (but could be wrong), the HL stopped making IR/Flash/Gun recoil
packages in around 2014, and the Mako package was one means of getting emitter/receiver options into their BB tanks, and delivering Tamiya battle capabilities. This would involve removing the airsoft gun, if barrel recoil and flash are to be added to the package.

Having 13 tanks is a nightmare in terms of battery management for the 13 individual transmitters. I have two Flysky transmitters that can each control 20 switchable tanks, with six batteries per transmitter. So 12 batteries can replace nearly 100 IF the transmitters can pair with the tanks. The Mako2018 seems to offer that possibility. The tanks are a mixture of HL, Taigen, Torro, WSN and Tamiya.

My ambition is to have half the tanks on each Flysky transmitter, and developing a form of tank chess/strategy, requiring a method of electronically registering kills.
Regards, Paul

paul27848 wrote:Having 13 tanks is a nightmare in terms of battery management for the 13 individual transmitters. I have two Flysky transmitters that can each control 20 switchable tanks, with six batteries per transmitter. So 12 batteries can replace nearly 100 IF the transmitters can pair with the tanks. The Mako2018 seems to offer that possibility. The tanks are a mixture of HL, Taigen, Torro, WSN and Tamiya.

My ambition is to have half the tanks on each Flysky transmitter, and developing a form of tank chess/strategy, requiring a method of electronically registering kills.
Regards, Paul

I have a similar problem re: batteries. Not wanting to add to the ever-increasing problem of the World's garbage, I use rechargeable batteries in my TXs. They don't have quite the oopmh of conventional alkaline AA
batteries. Overall, they have a much longer lifetime, even if frequent recharging is needed.

I would like to fit my mako2018 to my torro sherman.
Does anyone have an idiots guide (including photos) that they could post?
Thanks
Arty

Artyfist, go to rctankaustralia.com and on their sale/description page for the Mako there are links to installation, connections etc. Search YouTube for “Mako install” and there is a series of videos also.
Regards, Paul
PS - I believe any reference to Taigen MFU etc will be valid for the Torro version.