Tamiya Hot Shot (re-re) Project

[DMC-81]

Hello,

As mentioned in my Intro thread, I bought a re-released Tamiya Hot Shot. Well, it arrived today! I was as excited as a kid to receive it. LOL. I was 16 in 1985 and I had an original. I can't wait to build this new version and I'll try to document as much as possible in this thread.

I'm going to give it the best even though it will mostly be a display queen. I have a few questions for upgraded parts, so I'll search for existing threads / information before posting questions here.

 

[DMC-81]

Merry Christmas everybody. I opened the Hot Shot box today to inspect the various parts.

I'm pleased to see that the parts are of a high quality. This car came with the Hobby Wing THW 1060 Brushed ESC (2-3S). I'll evaluate later whether to upgrade that and if so, what type.

I also read the Instruction manual.

Speaking of upgrades, several parts arrived over the past 2 weeks, as follows:
Super Hot Shot under guard (part number 19335639):

MCI Racing 1/10TH TAM 58047 - Hot Shot Original Reproduction Decals:

Fast Eddy Tamiya Hot Shot (58391) Sealed Bearing Kit:

Spare Tamiya Aluminum .08 mm metric pitch 13 tooth (Model: 13515001) and 15 tooth (Model: 13515003) Pinion gears:

A Tamiya 53929 Dirt-Tuned 27 Turn 540 Brushed Motor:

A Tamiya 53930 Super Stock BZ 23 Turn 540 Brushed Motor:

Both motors seem well built, and will give me options over the basic 540 Mabuchi RS540SH motor that came with the car:

Parts are still arriving, so I won't start assembly yet.

 

[Greywolf74]

niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice!

 

[DMC-81]

niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice!

Thanks! I'm a car guy and these upgrades are very affordable compared to restoring a 1:1 car!

 

[WickedFog]

Very cool. I really like the Hotshot. I'll probably grab one myself one of these days. Please share the build with us.

 

[DMC-81]

Another part arrived today - a beautiful set of 4 aluminum wheels made by RCAidong:

They are of an excellent quality and are exact sizes:

Here is one of the listing pictures:

I know that the gold plated color is a classic option, but I like the real aluminum version, and I think they will tie in with the aluminum roof, heat sinks, etc. better.
I have another set of Tamiya tires enroute so I can run the original white wheels and leave these beauties for display duty.

I'm looking forward to the build.

 

[WickedFog]

Is that the Korean seller on ebay that you bought the wheels from? How long was the shipping?

 

[Doom!]

Those wheels look great!

 

[DMC-81]

Is that the Korean seller on ebay that you bought the wheels from? How long was the shipping?

They are in China. Here's the eBay store:
https://www.ebay.com/str/rcaidongofficialstore
The shipping time was 2 weeks. Honestly though, I didn't notice a US based seller for the same item until I bought these. That would have arrived in one week. Oh well, I'm not in a hurry.

Those wheels look great!

Thanks! I'm really impressed by the quality and they were well packaged.

 

[DMC-81]

The set of Tamiya Hot Shot tires for my aluminum wheels arrived today.

Front tires, #9805110, Rear tires, #9805111:

It's cool that they smell like rubber, just like the full size tires do.

 

[DMC-81]

Another 2 items arrived today.
1) a genuine Hobbywing QuicRun 1060 Brushed ESC:

This ESC comes with a Tamiya plug and was recommended in my research as a good upgrade for my intended configuration (I'll elaborate more on that later).

2) A 10g tube of Tamiya Cera-Grease (#87099):
This will prevent me from needing to skimp on this grease due to the tiny 2g tube that came with the kit.

I still have some paint enroute, but I have what I need to start the build!!

 

[FJC_GUY]

Always loved the Hotshot, can't wait to see this progress.

 

[DMC-81]

Always loved the Hotshot, can't wait to see this progress.

Thank you!
________________________________________________________________________________________________

I was a busy 3 weeks for me, but I was able to research and order my radio. It came in today.

Based on reading a lot of reviews and watching several YouTube videos, and based on my intended use of the buggy, I chose a
Flysky FS-G7P 2.4Ghz remote controller. This includes a FS-R7P Receiver and works on the ANT RF standard. It also included a BVD voltage sensor wire harness which was a nice extra.

I also got 8 Energizer NiMH batteries. It takes 4, so I'll have a spare set. The radio can also work on a LiPo pack, but I already had the Energizer charger pictured, and I'm a bit old school:

Once the batteries are charged, I'll unbox the radio and fire it up.

The steering servo I got is a Zoskay 35kg High Torque Coreless Servo. It is digital and features stainless steel gears and dual ball bearings. It is waterproof, has a 270-degree control angle, and a CNC aluminum middle shell with hard anodizing. It is probably over-kill, but it seemed to be loaded with features and had great reviews.

One of the radios I considered had a built-in gyroscope in the receiver. I thought that would be a cool feature to have but I didn't choose the radio. So, after searching YouTube for a gyro that is compatible with my chosen radio, I bought an AGF-RC RC Miniature Gyroscope (GY01-CNC). It has an aluminum case and again, had great reviews:

I also started the build today, so I'll post my progress very soon.

 

[Doom!]

Looks like some decent choices.

 

[DMC-81]

Looks like some decent choices.

Thank you! We'll see if it all works together. I'm impressed by the advances in RC since 1985.

 

[DMC-81]

Before I get into the build, here's a cool story that you may like. As mentioned in my Intro Thread, I had an original 1985 Hot Shot, which I sold long ago. Well, my cousin who was into the hobby with me bought it. We were chatting on New Years day and actually he still has it!
He is going to restore it and post progress in This Thread:
So, here is my old Hot Shot and my build inspiration:

It's really nice to see my original buggy survived and is going to get a refresh!

 

[DMC-81]

Build Process: Step 1

Step 1 involves assembling the Drive Gear and Differential Spur Gear in the Rear gearbox.

Here are the Instructions:

Here are the parts laid out:

Step1 Commentary: The Fast Eddy sealed ball bearings are on the left side and the original Tamiya plastic and brass bushings are on the right side. I chose the sealed ball bearings:

I decided to grease the gears in a later step.

 

[DMC-81]

Build Process: Step 2

Step 2 involves assembling the Gear and Joints in the Rear gearbox.

Here are the Instructions:

Here are the parts laid out:

Step 2 Commentary: The Fast Eddy sealed ball bearings are on the left side and the original Tamiya plastic and brass bushings are on the right side. For the most part, I chose the Fast Eddy sealed ball bearings, however, I found I preferred the Tamiya thrust bearing as it was an assembled unit. Also, this step had 2 Tamiya ball bearings which seemed robust. I'll save these for spares.

Here are the parts placed and partially greased:

 

[DMC-81]

Build Process: Step 3

Step 3 involves mating and securing the two halves of the Rear gearbox.

Here are the Instructions:

Here are the parts laid out:

Step 3 Commentary: I liberally applied the Ceramic Grease to the plastic gears, and the molybdenum grease to the metal gears. After mating the two halves, I held them together with my hand and checked for proper gear movement before fastening the gearbox together.

Build Process: Step 4

Step 4 involves attaching the pinion gear to the motor.

Here are the Instructions:

Here are the parts laid out:

Step 4 Commentary: I decided to install the Stock Mabuchi motor first with the 13 tooth pinion gear. The Mabuchi motor only had one wire soldered joint heat shrink protected, so I added the other:

Heat Shrink added:

The specification for the distance between the motor (with gasket in place) is 17 mm:

 

[DMC-81]

Build Process: Step 5

Step 5 involves attaching the Motor.

Here are the Instructions which provide helpful information for motor shims and Final Drive Ratio (FDR) numbers for the 13-tooth and 15-tooth pinion gears:

Here are the parts laid out:

Step 5 Commentary: As mentioned. I decided to install the stock Mabuchi motor with the 13-tooth pinion gear. This will give me a baseline before experimenting with my 2 other optional motors and the 15-tooth pinion gear. In the manual, the Final Drive Ratio (FDR) numbers listed are:

13 tooth - 10.043, 15 tooth - 8.704

From research, I learned that a lower FDR number means the gearing is higher, which provides less acceleration, but more top speed. Conversely, a higher FDR number means the gearing is lower, which provides more acceleration but less top speed.

Here is the motor attached:

I also filled the recessed 4WD script on both the rear and front gearboxes with silver paint. Pictured is the initial layer of paint:

This build is bringing back memories.