RC Tank Warfare community hobby forum

I have fitted a Taigen lower hull to my HL Tiger 1 upper hull, using the HL metal wheels . Although they have the thick/thin rather than the two thin/one thin arrangement (which you can't see when fitted) they do have two ball races each, and work extremely well with the approriate axles. I also have the Taigen sprockets/idlers, as I knew the idler fitting would be different, and assumed they would be in some way 'better' than the HL idlers. Interestingly, this not the case, as the HL idlers came with a ball race, and the Taigens just have plain bearings.
A minor point, but I'm scratching my head as to how I can fit the HL idler without too much hassle (I don't have a lathe to machine a new shaft which fits, or a sleeve for the axle). Has anyone come across this?

Tks....

Hi. I must admit I didn't get all you wrote. However using an HL idler doesn't seem a super idea to me. First of all they have a hole in the middle. Taigen ones are more historical. Are these the metal idlers?


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Yes - they are metal. The HL hole was so that a hex driver could be used to tighten what was a simple coarse screw, but I can fill that as the Taigen fitting doesn't need it - it has an axle inside which is secured by a small set screw on the hull. Trouble is, the Taigen axle is the wrong size for the HL idler. None of it is a real problem (I'm getting too fussy, trying to make use of the ball race!), but someone might have come across it. If I have time I'll take and post some pics.
I wish I had a lathe....!

Use a pillar drill?

I do have one, but the Taigen pin is too narrow, and I need to turn a new one of the right length. Shimming with some ultra-thin brass tube might work, but none in my stash fits.

I'll keep looking....

Rather than turning the shaft down, could you drill out the hole? Ballrace bearings come in ALL sizes, as do ready made shims and ebay has them all (as should any good RC race car shop).

A ballrace with a smaller ID (the Taigen axle is too narrow for the currently fitted ballrace) but the same OD might be the answer. The Taigen idler works perfectly well, and I'm being very picky, so I can afford the time to look at the options.

Thanks for the advice....

By ballrace do you mean something like a ball bearing? Never heard the word before.

P.s.English is not my native or the only language.


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Bearings can come in many forms. Most cheap RC model ones are phosphor bronze metal but better are steel collared ball bearing type, or ballrace bearings. The come in all inside and outside diameters and widths and are cheap enough - just search for suppliers, try eBay first.

General Jumbo01 wrote:Use a pillar drill?

Sooo, a pillar drill is what us Merican’s call a Drill press?