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Tamiya Subaru Impreza WRC 2004 - #58333 (Radio Controlled Model)1/10 Scale Electric Rally Car - TT-01 Chassis:Released by Tamiya on October 13, 2004, this TT-01 Chassis electric RC model, is of the Subaru Impreza WRC that Petter Solberg drove to second place in the 2004 drivers World Rally Championship.The lightweight Lexan polycarbonate body shell replicates 2004 Impreza with Rally Mexico Markings, down to the mirrors and sectioned rear wing. Gold wheels, radial tires and TEU-101BK Electronic Speed controller (ESC) are included in the kit. 
The budget priced TT-01 Chassis was introduced by Tamiya in 2003 to replace the highly successful TL-01 that had been used for over thirty RC models since its introduction in 1997. A silver can 540 motor, coil spring over friction shock absorbers and plastic bush type bearings come as standard in this low budget model. The Differentials are orbital gear type and should be greased at regular intervals to avoid excessive wear. My recommendation is to use molybdenum grease. The bathtub chassis has battery cut-outs for ladder type packs, but will accommodate stick (shotgun) packs also. A low centre of gravity and good balance provide much improved handling over the TL-01. A number of hop-ups are available for the TT-01 to improve performance, but there is one I would recommend before you first assemble the kit. As mentioned before, the kit comes with plastic/nylon and sintered brass bush type bearings, that after a short while, when dust and grit get into them, will abrade the metal drive shafts that spin in them - if you are building this kit to race seriously, these should be replaced by steel shielded ball bearings. Rating:  Reviewed by: RCScrapyard Manual.
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Tamiya Subaru Impreza WRC 2004 #58333 TT-01 - Chassis |
Tamiya Subaru Impreza WRC 2004 #58333 TT-01
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Buying a Used Tamiya Subaru Impreza WRC |
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Hints and TipsBearingsIf you are serious about your racing, looking after your bearings is essential if you are to remain competitive. My own experience is in both Off and On Road, National and International Car racing, but most of these tips could be useful to all forms of RC. Shields: The main problem with Ball Bearing Shields is they create friction and obviously the more you can reduce friction, the more efficient your bearings will be, so here's a tip that does just that. Wheel Bearings always come in pairs, positioned side by side. If you think about it, the two inside shields on each bearing are not required, so ... you can remove them using a small jewelers screwdriver ... simple. And in one fell swoop you have halved your wheel bearing friction. Cleaning: All Bearings need to be cleaned from time to time. Depending on how focused and competitive you are, this can be as often as after each race meeting, or just once or twice a year ... For Club Meetings once or twice a year might be all you need if you are easily beating your competition, but for the BIG meets you need that extra 5% or 10% just to be up with the rest. What you need is a small glass jar, a jewelers screwdriver, an old tooth brush and some Isopropanol. Remove the shields, then drop the bearings in the jar, add some Isopropanol, pop on the lid and shake well. Empty them out, give them a good brushing and make sure they spin free then repeat the process. Clean the shields separately. Once you are satisfied, lay them on a piece of kitchen roll and allow to dry. Lubrication: The arguments I have had about what lubrication to use you wouldn't believe. Some of the top racers of my day swore they didn't use any at all, but cleaned out the original lubrication and ran them dry ... they also admitted to fitting a new set after each meeting ... well, they were getting them for free. My tip is, yes even with a new set of bearings, clean out the original lubrication (as described above) and with one shield in place use the thinnest oil you can find ... I recommend ZX1 (Zed Ex One) or sewing machine oil. |
Hints and TipsWeightIf you ever step up and enter a regional, national or international event in RC, you will find one specific rule concerning the weight of your car. At the time this article was written, the Minimum weight restrictions for 1:10 electric Touring Cars at different events, was between 1350g and 1500g. This includes your Motor, ESC, Receiver, Battery, Body Shell and the transponder. Out of the box you will find the majority of 1:10 Touring Cars, with everything onboard, are way over this Minimum weight and unless you are good enough to attract sponsors, getting your car down to anything approaching that minimum weight will be very expensive. There are things you can buy like micro ESC and Receivers. But Batteries and Motors are what they are and you have to work around them. To reduce the weight of your chassis, there are a number of things you can do. If the car you have is generally considered competitive enough, there are often carbon fibre main chassis, shock mounts and other alternative parts available, but they are expensive. And when the new version of your model comes out all the money you have spent is lost. The most cost effective weight reduction is the metal parts of your chassis. UJs, Drive and Pivot shafts and the like tend to vary from model to model, but turnbuckles can often be transferred and lengthened or shortened by using plastic ball connectors, so titanium is a consideration. Screw sets can also be transferred from car to car. Titanium screws and wheel nuts are always available, but there is a cheaper alternative … Aluminium screws and nuts can reduce your cars weight cheaply, but be careful not to over-tighten them, aluminium is not as strong as titanium and can easily shear off if you are over zealous. Another weight reduction option is to drill holes along the base of the chassis. However, I do not recommend this. For one thing you are reducing the strength and making the chassis less rigid, but you are also raising the centre of gravity of your car, which can affect stability. If you do manage to get your car weight below the minimum allowed, this will give you an opportunity to add weight where you want it and lower the cars centre of gravity. One last tip: Knitting needles. When I first started in RC, money was tight and my dad came up with all kinds of ideas to reduce weight. He obtained a 3mm dye and found some of my mums old aluminium knitting needles that were just the right diameter. Having determined the length of the turnbuckles needed for my setup, he cut them to those lengths and threaded each end, so he could put plastic ball sockets on them. Adjusting them was a bit of a pain and they could be a bit fragile in crash situations, but they saved us lots of money over those early years. |
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