|
A couple of months ago I was presented with the opportunity to build the ultimate TL-01 XB. I jumped at the chance since I had an idea of tapping the unexplored potential of this car. What is a TL-01 XB? If yo're looking for a ready-to-run, entry-level R/C car that is capable of expanding as your interest and skill level grows, then look no further. The Tamiya TL-01 XB will present some pleasant surprises for you. This car features a rigid plastic tub chassis, 4-wheel independent coil over suspension, full time shaft-driven 4WD with enclosed gearboxes, durable bevel gear differentials, direct steering and a large selection of Tamiya racing bodies. Couple this with a great list of Hop-Up Options and you've not only purchased a solid car but a possible winner as well.
|
|
A Brief History
Tamiya first introduced the TL-01 in 1997 with the release of the Calsonic Skyline GT-R. With the success Tamiya has had with the TL-01 chassis, the car has been used as a solid platform for on-road cars, an off-road buggy, and as a rally race car. In 2002, Tamiya announced the addition of a TL-01 spec class car to its TCS format. This class is intended to allow entry-level drivers that purchased a pre-built or a box stock TL-01 to compete for the first time. It also had specific rules allowing only certain hop-ups on the car. This helped to keep the costs down for each racer. For the 2003 season the TL-01 Spec class has had some changes to the rules. With the release of the Integra "Type R", the rules had to be carefully reconsidered since it comes stock with long suspension arms. The long arm set had been produced as a hop-up for the TL-01 but was never allowed in 2002. That's not an issue now for 2003. So what has changed for 2003? Great news! Now any TL-01 Tamiya hop-up can be used.
|
|
Building a Race Worthy TL-01
Working within the rules of the TCS series meant I needed to be aware of some specifics. The 2003 rules for TCS state that I must use only hop-up parts made by Tamiya and to go a step further, the hop-ups are chassis specific. The car must also be run with Johnson or Mabuchi 540 motors. One of these types of motor is included with the kit. With these things in mind, I pressed forward on my quest to build the ultimate TL-01 racing chassis.
|
|
Diving In
After staring my car down for about 15 minutes, I poured out my bag of hop-ups and went to work. I began by replacing the existing chassis with a lightweight chassis kit. Why you ask? Well, the reasons should be obvious. The key word here is lightweight. Running in a class limited to a certain size motor means everyone will be on the same playing field. Since I'm looking for an advantage over the next guy, I decided to put this car on a diet. The chassis is made using a lighter plastic. There's a further reduction in weight by replacing the kit supplied rear bumper with the FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) gearbox plate.
|
|
|
Any car I bring home and add to my stable receives a ball bearing kit. This is one of the first options I always add. The Tamiya bearings are one of the best on the market. They come with rubber seals to keep the dirt out, and are super easy to maintain. Bearings allow your car to run more efficiently by eliminating drag and improving run time and speed. The chassis uses only one size bearing, the 1150 bearings. There are 24 in all too smooth things out.
|
|
|
While I had the car apart I gave some attention to the front gearbox. I replaced the stock bevel gear differential with a front one-way differential unit. This improves the cars cornering, allowing it to carry more speed through the turns. To trim more weight off the car, I substituted the stock steel gear shafts with the hollow carbon gear shafts. The diet continues as the next part to go on was the carbon propeller shaft. This is a tremendous weight saving for the car. (Attach the parts as shown in the supplied directions) The next step is to bolt the two halves of the car together but before I did, I removed the servo and servo saver. The reason for this is that I needed to cut the ball connector rest on the servo saver, as shown in the directions for the long-span suspension arm set. (Note the instructions and cut as shown) I tossed the brass ball ends and used the 5mm aluminum ball ends instead. To those I attached adjustable turnbuckles. Once this was completed, I returned the servo to the chassis and put the two halves back together.
|
|
Parts:
53331 - TL-01 Lightweight Chassis/Frame
53292 - TL-01 Ball Bearing Set
53322 - TL-01 Hollow Carbon Gear Shafts
53323 - TL-01 Carbon Propeller Shaft
53284 - 5mm Aluminum Ball Connectors
53109 - Turnbuckle Shaft Set
|
|
Now that the front gearbox was complete, it was time to focus on the rear. I replaced the stock differential with a TA03 ball differential, while making sure to take care when assembling the diff. Follow the directions and do not over tighten it. You should turn the shoulder screw until it stops and then check to see how it feels. It should be smooth. Although diff grease isn't measured with viscosities like shock oils, various types of diff grease have different thickness qualities. When I assembled my diff I used the 3mm lightweight diff balls with medium grease. The lightweight diff. balls help to smooth the diff and the grease allowed more suitable turn in without losing traction out of the corners. The next thing I added was the remaining hollow carbon gear shafts and replaced the stock counter gear with a 29-tooth counter gear. This would give me some better gearing options than the stock ratios. The TL-01 only has three sizes of pinion gears to choose from because of its fixed motor mounting holes.
|
|
| Pinion Gear |
Stock Counter Gear |
Speed Tuned Counter Gear (29T) |
| 19T |
7.96 |
5.95 |
| 21T |
7.20 |
5.39 |
| 23T |
6.57 |
4.92 |
|
|
|
|
By using the speed-tuned gear set, I was able to obtain the gear ratio I was hunting for. I wanted to find a ratio that would give me plenty of straight-line speed without sacrificing torque coming out of the corners. I selected the 23T pinion with the speed tuned counter gear.
Now it was time to button it up and move on to the suspension.
|
|
Parts:
53267 - TA03 Ball Differential
53379 - Lightweight Diff. Balls
53342 - TL-01 Speed-Tuned Gear Set
|
|
The long-span suspension arm set is a wonderful hop up from Tamiya for your TL-01. By replacing the stock arms with long arms it changes the geometry of your suspension. It also provides you additional mounting holes for your shocks and replaces the bulky screw pins that hold your suspension to the chassis with sleek stainless shafts. The kit also supplies two front and two rear sway bars, which can be used to fine tune the chassis balance front to rear. Because the long span A-arms are molded in one piece, they are significantly lighter, compared to the stock A-arms that are two pieces that are screwed together. The kit is dual purpose as it can be used on the TL-01 and the FF02. Follow the instructions when assembling the suspension paying close attention to the directions for the TL-01. When assembling the suspension on my car, I continued the diet and substituted the supplied stock ball connector nuts with the new lightweight aluminum nuts. I also used more 5mm aluminum ball connectors where applicable to reduce even more weight. Take a minute while assembling these parts to make sure everything moves smoothly. You should never have binding in any of your suspension arms. If it's a little tight, use a small file and remove modest portions of material and test fit it until it's free from binding. Now on to our next step, replacing the stock dog bones.
|
|
Getting the power to the ground with TA04 universals
Can this be TCS legal? Yes, I presented the following situation to the TCS race director and explained that the TL-01 optional universals had unfortunately been discontinued. To have a competitive car on the track, universals are a must. They allow the car to put the power to the ground without losing or scrubbing any speed while your suspension is hard at work. I had an idea. Since the replacement dog-bones for the TL-01 are the same as the stock TA04's, I dug through a box of parts and found a new set of TA04 lightweight universals. I put them in the car and they fit great, no binding and very smooth, a lot more efficient than the stock dog bones. I presented the car to the TCS race director outfitted with lightweight universals. Since the original universals had been discontinued, great news, he agreed to allow the TA04 hop-up universals in the class for TCS.
|
|
|
As mentioned previously, the long arm kit includes stabilizer bars (anti-roll bars). This is a great tuning tool for sedans. The TL-01 has two options to choose from, a white bar (medium) and a gray bar (firm). I installed the gray bars on the car's front and rear and outfitted them with the lightweight aluminum stabilizer ends. The car was too soft using the white bar in the front and rolled too much in the corners. The swap made an improved difference.
|
|
Parts:
49201 - TA04 Lightweight Universal Set
53438 - TA04 Universal Shaft Set
53467 - Long-Span Suspension Arm Set
49244 - Aluminum Ball Connector Nuts
49243 - Lightweight Aluminum Stabilizer Ends
|
|
The next step is assembling the all-important dampers. I chose to use the TRF super low friction damper set. The kit includes four blue threaded body shocks to allow minute adjustments to your ride height without using the old style plastic clips. I used the two-hole Teflon piston with 600-weight oil, (approximately 60 wt), in all four dampers. To further reduce chassis roll, I adjusted the suspension or down travel by using two 3mm black O-rings in each shock. To ensure you're getting the most out of your dampers, take the time to bleed or remove as much air as possible (preferably all of it) from your shocks before you screw the cap down. One very important part of building your shocks is making sure they're all the same length to avoid tweaking the suspension. Each shock should measure the same when fully extended from the outside eyelet to outside eyelet. The full lengths of my dampers are 58.0 mm. Once the dampers are assembled, it's time to choose the springs. My choice was a pair of blue springs (hard) on the rear and a pair of white springs (extra hard) on the front.
|
|
Parts:
49198 - TRF Damper Set
53444 - Silicone Damper Oil Medium Set (500, 600, 700)
53440 - On-Road Tuned Hard Spring Set
|
|
Electronics
If you're grooming your TL-01 XB for the track you'll want to replace the kit supplied three-step speed control with an electronic speed control (ESC). Keep in mind that speed costs. There is a considerable range of prices for ESCs. Generally speaking, more dollars equal a better ESC and that equals better efficiency and can allow for an unrestricted range of motors. For my purposes, I wanted to build a car that simulated a person on a budget. I chose to use the Novak Explorer II ESC and the Novak Mercury Receiver. I left the Tamiya 3003 servo in the front. By mounting the ESC as deep in the chassis as possible I lowered the center of gravity on the car. I located it on the inside bottom rear of the chassis because i's heavier than the receiver. By mounting it there, it's closer to the motor creating shorter motor wires, less resistance and less weight overall.
|
|
Race Trim
Since my intent was to build a car that would be competitive while staying within the rules of TCS, I decided there's only one choice for tires and that's the Tamiya B-2s. This tire was used as the spec tire for the 2002 TCS North American Finals. I used the Tamiya Black insert with a 5-spoke wheel. A few years ago, the rules opened up to allow any manufactures tire insert. (For more information on tire inserts refer to Dave Jun's article).
|
|
Parts:
53482 - B-2 Tires
53435 - Black Insert
|
|
|
With the car completely built it was now time for me to select a body that would be worthy of my chassis. I've always had a place in my heart for the Chevrolet Corvette, so it only seemed natural to use the highly detailed and effective Tamiya CR-5. I feel the body provides plenty of steering and plants the rear of the car nicely.
|
|
|
|
|
Now you've read over and over again about the benefits of replacing stock parts with lightweight hop-ups. Well, I put the car on a scale before I started this project and then again after it was complete. The results are listed below. I weighed the car without a battery, since it's a variable that can change depending on the type of batteries you choose. Both weights do not include the body.
|
|
| Stock TL-01 XB |
TL-01 Extreme Built |
| Without Battery 2lbs 5.6 oz |
Without Battery 2lbs 2.2oz |
|
|
|
|
As you can see, I was able to save a total of 3.4 ounces. That's not bad considering my TA04 with all of its hop ups ways 2lbs. 2.7oz.
|
|
Set it... Forget it
One of the nicest features of this car is how solid the construction is. The car is extremely tough and resistant to tweak. What's tweak? If you've ever had someone accidentally drive into the side of you and your car didn't feel quite right afterwards but nothing was broken or bent, the odds are the chassis was tweaked or is out of line a bit. This is typical of some double deck chassis. Once both sides of the TL-01 are assembled you have a pretty solid platform for your suspension to work on and should be a little more difficult to tweak.
|
|
|
With all of the electronics tucked nicely in your car, it's time to set your toe-in, camber and ride height. Always make sure you check these settings with a battery loaded in your car. You want to simulate how the car will sit on the track in race configuration.
|
|
|
Place your car on something that is truly flat. I use a tweak board for this purpose. Start with setting your camber. Each corner of the car has adjustable upper links to adjust camber, which affects how well your car will corner. There are several different camber gages on the market to choose from. I've set mine up with 1 degree on all four corners. Now adjust the amount of toe-in you have at the front of the car and use the adjustable links to set your cars toe-in or out. My car is set up with 0 degrees of toe.
|
|
|
Now it's time to adjust your ride height. This is where the threaded bodies on the TRF dampers come in handy. By turning the collar above the spring left or right you can raise or lower your chassis. My car is set with a ride height of 4.5mm front and rear. Measure from the lowest points on the chassis.
|
|
Parts:
49225 - Tamiya camber gage
49226 - Tamiya ride height gage
|
|
Track Time
I went down to the Tamiya track on a Saturday to test out my new ride. After having several people look at my car and snicker on their way to setting their cars down for a run. I slid the stick type battery into its cradle, buttoned down the body and set the car down. After a few adjustments to the radio I was ready to try it out in a crowd. Some of the guys decided to grid up so I joined them placing my car at the back of the grid. This was their race, I was just going to circulate. Bam, the tone went off and we were racing. It couldn't have been more than few seconds and I was passing the seventh place car. I was amazed at how well my car was running. I went into the first turn and was shocked at how the car gripped the track and carried its corner speed. Out of that corner and on to the monster straight a way, I pulled the trigger. I would like to tell you that the car hunkered down and ripped up the straight, but truthfully it topped out about one third of the way down. I still hung on to the car in front of me and was able to pass him on the infield within a couple of laps. There were only a few more cars in front of me. Each lap we went around my TL-01 got closer and closer toward the front. The third place car clipped a curb and went wide. I couldn't believe I was in third place. First place and second where having a battle and were dropping back into my hands. I caught second place turning on to the infield and took the inside. I was now in second place and all I had to do was hold it together to catch first. The TL-01 kept coming on strong and I was moving up toward first. Then it happened, there it was. The leader clipped a curb trying to run a tight line and my TL-01 went scooting by. I kept running my car relishing the fact that I had just run them down. It made my day knowing that the TAO4's were running 24-degree motors to boot. This car has plenty of what it needs for a class that only allows Johnson or Mabuchi motors. I can honestly say that I was not the only person that day that was surprised at how well this car ran.
|
|
Final thoughts
Although this car allows minor adjustments its simplicity is matched with function. It's a great car for entry-level drivers to start with while learning the basics of setting a car up for competition. I know the list of hop-ups is long and could seem somewhat expensive, but I once heard another guy ask a racer "How fast can my car go"? The racer replied, "How much money have you got, speed costs." Keep in mind, you're building a racecar to compete on a track with other racers that have the same thoughts you have... I WANT TO WIN!
|
|
