Newbie

[Sarge261]

Hello Folks,

I'm a newbie to the forum but not to the R/C world. I've had Tamiya RC cars and truck since I was a kid. I've always wanted a tractor trailer so I finally got around to spending the money and got a great deal on a grand hauler.


I haven't done much other than open the box and thumb through the instructions. I had a local hobby shop order me the multifunction control kit (P/N 56511), so when that arrives I need to have them set me up with a 6 channel control unit. I really cant wait to start the build and get my daughter involved in the hobby as well.


I look forward to reading up on what some of you all have done on the forums here, so any suggestion's are welcome as its been a while since Ive built an RC, and the first tractor for me.


Id like to get some more aggressive drive tires on it and add bearings before I start to build it. Anything else I should have that would be easier to do now I welcome the advice.


Thanks for the add,


Sarge

[Bo Wallen]

Welcome Sarge, to this side of the fun hobby. There is a wealth of knowledge on this forum. So dig in and have fun.

[skeeter]

For more agressive drive tires, IMO nothing beats the Lesu tires! They can be found on www.rcmart.com as well as some AWESOME rear wheels to put them on.

[Sarge261]

Thank you for the link. I ordered some drive tires, and a few other things while I was on the site and its coming from across the globe.

How was the shipping, I paid for the quicker trip. Lots of things Id like to have for it on that site, I can tell this will be a long project with lots of upgrades.

I saw a member here had aluminum frame trusses but I cant find the thread now. Can anyone point me in a direction?

Sarge

[blitzk]

There’s these.

https://www.asiatees.com/display?-1/14-Truck-(1838LS)-Parts-Hop-Ups-Upgrades&brand=Miscellaneous&model=All&id=108826&pid=1

[Sarge261]

Thank you...those are the ones.

It sure would be nice to have a hobby store with competitive prices here in the states, the wait kills me and I always try to by quite a few items to make it worth while for the extra shipping costs.

Sarge

[skeeter]

I as well DON'T have a LHS that stocks these truck parts. There are other RC things available at the nearest one to me. The shipping costs make it necessary to order as much as one can afford to in one order.

Those frame cross members from Hercules Hobby look amazing! I may have to try & acquire a few of those for my projects.

I think you'll get much enjoyment out of those tires! I have them on my rigs, as do most of the guys that are PNWSTE club members.

[skeeter]

Sarge, I'm not sure what geographical region you're from. If you happen to be from the westernmost states in the USA you might enjoy PNW Scale Truck and Equipment, PNWSTE we call it for short. If you're farther east in the states there are other clubs/groups around that are into the RC trucking & equipment fun.

[Sarge261]

Im on the east coast in Upstate NY. I found a guy about 1/2 hour from me that has a small hobby shop but doesn't stock much for the Tamiya stuff. I was able to order some stuff from him and picked up my radio and HD servos from his as well. Ill use him when I can, but the online prices are pretty hard to beat.

Sarge

[Sarge261]

I just received my first batch of parts from RC Mart, just waiting on the second batch and I think Ill start building.

Sarge

[skeeter]

I'm anxious to see the pictures

[Sarge261]

So I did get started building the truck and of course I hit a road block on step 1. I was trying to set up the radio and electronics, come to find out the Spectrum DX6 I was sold isn't really as compatible with this set up as it was pushed to be so Im on the hunt for a new radio and receiver.


I started some chassis work, got my HD servos installed and figured Id show off some of my extras I bought too. Its going to be a long process to build this truck since I don't really get too much time to myself. I mostly enjoy building them I don't really use them as much as I should, maybe when my 3yo daughter gets a little older and she stops destroying the cars I buy her.


Anyway heres a couple of pictures of where Ive gotten to so far:

[Trucker47]

Hey Sarge,

Welcome to the forum!

Glad you've picked up a truck so quick. I've been here for 7 years and only drawn lots of CAD and ordered a few parts :lol:

About your order from RCMart, how long did it take to get to your place? I am also looking at buying a truck from them and shipping it to Vancouver, Canada.

Thanks!

[Sarge261]

It took about 2 weeks even with express shipping.

I've been eye balling the Grand Hauler kit for years just never set any "me money" aside to buy it. This year I decided to do it. I don't ever buy or do anything for myself so I bit the bullet.


The only regret is wishing I did more research of my own regarding a radio, but I took the hobby shops word for it. Back to the drawing board on that I suppose.

Sarge

[skeeter]

Do yourself a favor, & get at LEAST a 10ch radio. I started with a Spektrum 4ch. Soon I outgrew that & needed more channels. I then graduated to a 6CH radio, & fastly outgrew it. I recently ordered me a 10ch radio. HOPEFULLY this one will last more than a year BEFORE I need more channels!

[Sarge261]

Do yourself a favor, & get at LEAST a 10ch radio. I started with a Spektrum 4ch. Soon I outgrew that & needed more channels. I then graduated to a 6CH radio, & fastly outgrew it. I recently ordered me a 10ch radio. HOPEFULLY this one will last more than a year BEFORE I need more channels!

Thanks Skeeter for the advice. I'm curious what is the make of the 10 Channel radio you're buying and are they basically geared toward the aviation side of the hobby. I have Futaba style servos and the Tamiya control module has the same style connectors. Does someone sell an adapter to go from a Futaba type connector to a Spectrum receiver?

So for all the questions and I'm sure the answers are right under my nose but I guess I've just been away from the hobby too long or I just never built anything this complicated.

I only want to spend the money on a radio and receiver 1 more time so Id like to not make another mistake.

Sarge

[Lil Giants]

What radio did you get? I use several different Spektrum radios myself... as far as plugging into the rx (receiver), just trim the tab off the servo plug & it should fit right into the Spektrum rx.

Forum doesn't host pictures, you need a 3rd party site to link from. I use https://postimages.org no sign up, no cost, just upload pics from my pc, choose 1024x768 size, then grab 'Hotlink for forums' to paste into your reply.

[Sarge261]

I believe its aDX6 or DX6E, Ill have to look when I get home. I know when I fired it up its basically preset for aviation models. I didn't read the bible it came with because I was a little discouraged. Spending some time on the net last night it appears as though anything over a 4 channel radio is basically for aviation, so I guess at this point there is no sense in spending anymore money.


Thank you for the tip on the servo connectors as well, Ill take another look at that too.


Sarge

[Sarge261]

Im pretty sure its a DX6, Id have to look when I get back home. I did a lot of reading last night and it looks like all the radios that are 4 channel and up are geared towards the aviation side of the hobby so I guess Ill try and make what I have work for now.

Thanks for the tip on the trimming of the servo connector.

Sarge

[ChILd_ReBoRn]

4ch is enough for basic functions.. forward, reverse, steering, tipper operation and maybe lights. TBH, enough for a tractor trailer. The problem could arise if you decided to get another model, or you want to transport something like a multi function chipper, or a log crane, or use diff locks, lights, horn... a lot of things...

I ordered a flysky 6 ch model, (a very helpful member recommended it), and noticed it can be updated to 10 ch.. so, basically.. that should cover a lot of things...

[skeeter]

As Joe said, trim the tabs with a razor knife, they'll fit.

I am currently using the FlySky 10 channel radio.

I've heard people say you can upgrade the FS6 to be a 10ch radio. I've also heard horror stories of people that have tried that upgrade & boogered their radio. Boogered it so bad that it locked up & never functioned again.

[Sarge261]

Thanks,

Ill look into the Flysky and see where I can pick 1 up from. I was looking at the Futaba 10 channel as well. I do have the Tamiya Multifunction controller kit already so I was hoping a 6 channel would be ok but sounds like maybe its not enough.

Sarge

[Lil Giants]

You look in the electronics tech forum, there's threads in there of ppl who programmed DX6 radios to work with the MFU.

Frysky... cheap chinese radios... I had a 9ch once, half the programming didn't work & a glitchy pos it was... to the burning barrel it went.

[skeeter]

You look in the electronics tech forum, there's threads in there of ppl who programmed DX6 radios to work with the MFU.

Frysky... cheap chinese radios... I had a 9ch once, half the programming didn't work & a glitchy pos it was... to the burning barrel it went.

The new improved Flysky radios are much gooder! I have an older version a friend gave me to use. It, like you said was very glitchy. When the truck was sitting for more than a minute or two to get loaded, it'd sometimes drive itself away from the jobsite! :confused: With the FSiA6 model I no longer have issues like that.

[frizzen]

FRysky and FLysky are both different companies that make cheap chinese radios. They both seem to deserved bashed on stuff, but make sure it's right company

[Wombii]

I'm very happy with my cheap 16 channel FrSky Taranis X Q7 so far. It comes with the option of self centering on both sticks just by turning a screw. It's definitely not as user friendly as many other radios, but almost everything on it can be programmed.

As you have discovered, the Tamiya MFU's were designed for older radios with analog stick trims, but can be used by utilizing the dual rates feature of computer radios with digital trims. DX6 should be no exception.
Here's the thread for setting up dx6i with mfu
http://rctruckandconstruction.com/showthread.php?t=3535

And here's a couple of video tutorials
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jAaf0FtS6Ms
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpez59uvSzc

Disclaimer: I do not own an MFU

[Sarge261]

Thank You Wombii,

That's the help I was looking for. Somehow after hours of searching the forum I missed that thread. Looks like I have some work to do this weekend. The trucks a roller now so It'd be nice to see it move.

Sarge

[Sarge261]

Finally making a little progress on the truck. I did get the DX6 programmed and sync'd with the Tamiya module. I have most functions working but I need to figure out how to make the shift servo stay with out having to hold the throttle stick left or right. I was also having a rough time trying to get the truck to reverse, but figured that out by accident.

At this point I guess its time to choose colors and begin priming, base coat and clear coating. As soon as I can figure out how to set up an image host and post pictures I will.

Sarge