Tamiya or Heng Long Leopard 2A6 for Regular Use?

[zooma]

Something that I hadn't noticed before, but the 2A6 that I have just weathered and got running again has had the four motor wires soldered together in the turret - the heat shrink covering these four joints has been neatly done, but it attracted my attention as it is not "kit standard".

I am not sure why this has been done, but maybe these wires have been shortened and soldered back together when replacing the kit supplied spade joints?

This could explain why the wires from the motors were so difficult to connect back onto the spade connectors that were attached to these very short wires that were hanging down from the underside of the top deck. Each wire had a kit type spade connector on them but they were very close to the underside of the top deck.

The wires from the two motors on this 2A6 tank have been extended by 6" by myself and gained an XT60 plug on each of them so that I could first re-connect them - and to make it easier to unplug them the next time that I need to separate the deck and the hull from each other.

My other Tamiya 2A6 has four standard kit spade connecters INSIDE the turret, so it would be much easier to disconnect and reconnect them when the deck needs to be removed from the hull for any repair or maintenance work.

Tamiya knows best.................?

[zooma]

After weathering my oldest (and most troublesome) Tamiya 2A6 I ran it again at the club last night and although it looked really good, it did not seem to run quite as smoothly as it did last week before I weathered the tracks (along with everything else).

I noticed that the tracks were "knotting-up" in front of the drive gear sprocket during tight turning moves and making a disturbing "clacking" noise that suggested all was not well! It also seemed to be "bobbing" up and down even when free running in a straight line - not something I had noticed before.

The tracks will be taken off again and every link will be checked to make sure that it is free moving and that none of them are tight. If the track links all feel as supple as they did before I re-fitted it, then I will increase the track tension by turning the adjuster on the front return wheel by one notch to see if that helps.

Do we have any fellow Tamiya Leopard 2A6 owners on here that can contribute to this "running thread" with their own observations regarding track tension and how tight or loose they adjust their tracks to prevent the track pushing up into a bunch against the rear wheel in front of the drive sprocket when making tight turns?

[zooma]

I bought a new Heng Long T90 (Ukrainian version) and it was delivered today. This is the 7.0 version, I have no idea what this means but I understand that this is the latest type of radio system and that it is claimed to be an improvement over the previous radio types (?).

As soon as I fitted some AA cells into the tx and fitted the Li-Ion into the hull I switched it on and gave it a quick drive around the kitchen and I was more than a little impressed!

The tank drove so smoothly and the driving controls were light and precise to use.

This is the very basic "all plastic" model (although it did come with metal suspension arms) included in the £210 price so I was almost gutted to admit that it was so much easier and nicer to drive than my Tamiya Leopard 2A6......and at a fraction of the price!

The ONLY reason for mentioning it here is that it is the first time that I have had the chance to make a direct comparison between the Tamiya and Heng Long modern tanks (this is my first Heng Long r/c tank), and although it is not the Heng Long Leopard 2A6, I am guessing that it would drive and perform in a very similar way and (that being the case), my first impressions are more than favourable and make a fair comparison between the two types.

I will upgrade the T90 over the course of time (metal drive sprockets will be the first upgrade) and I will fit a bearing to the output shaft to protect the cheap plastic gearbox, but for now I am looking forward to fitting all the little parts that come in the plastic bags and driving it some more once the battery is fully charged.

[HERMAN BIX]

Just a guiding light, don’t fit all the bits until you paint them and the turret in whatever base colour you are going with.
They are hard to get into otherwise and bare patches may be visible.
Or you have to muck around and remove all the bits later which seems risky

[zooma]

Just a guiding light, don’t fit all the bits until you paint them and the turret in whatever base colour you are going with.
They are hard to get into otherwise and bare patches may be visible.
Or you have to muck around and remove all the bits later which seems risky

Thank you Herman Bix,

Good advice!

Is the "press-fit" of these accessory parts good enough - or is superglue a wise addition?

Bob.

[HERMAN BIX]

Depends on how you run them but definitely do not glue the very rear turret bin in place. It joins the upper and lower half of the turret shell & will make maintenance entry into the turret impossible if glued.
I glued all my add in bits on my T90 other than the rear bin.

[HERMAN BIX]

viewtopic.php?t=33588&sid=535bcf18c84ba ... 9c730cf7b5

[zooma]

viewtopic.php?t=33588&sid=535bcf18c84ba ... 9c730cf7b5

Just used your link. Excellent work mate - really good !

[HERMAN BIX]

viewtopic.php?t=33588&sid=535bcf18c84ba ... 9c730cf7b5

Just used your link. Excellent work mate - really good !

Cheers Mr Zooma, I hope its helpful

[Meter rat]

Depends on how you run them but definitely do not glue the very rear turret bin in place. It joins the upper and lower half of the turret shell & will make maintenance entry into the turret impossible if glued.
I glued all my add in bits on my T90 other than the rear bin.

Also, do not glue the rear fuel barrels on. Better for them to pop off than get damaged.