Red or blue motors

[sclui56]

So, I went to e-bay again and found a pair of the Tamiya Grasshopper 380 motor. Between these 2 pairs, I am more hopeful now. They could be all the same and good for the HL tank. Thanks again.

Which tank do you intend to use these Tami 380's on? Are you concerned about insufficient torque on larger modern tanks?

[keilau]

Which tank do you intend to use these Tami 380's on? Are you concerned about insufficient torque on larger modern tanks?

No. It is for the mid size M26 Pershing. I replaced the stock grey 380 motor on the OEM steel gearbox from the Leopard with the red motors and mounted it on the Pershing. It went in easily. But the HL steel gearbox runs with too much vibration with the 390 (too fast for it). I am also upgrading the Pershing to 6.0 electronics for better driving quality. I have purchased a second Heng Xin gearbox which, I think, can be used on the Pershing with the blue motor. When I am all done, I will post to the Pershing thread. Currently, I use 2x Mabuchi RS-380PH-3270 which have plenty of torque and runs cool. But the rpm is about 20% slower than the HL grey 380.

[keilau]

Which tank do you intend to use these Tami 380's on? Are you concerned about insufficient torque on larger modern tanks?

I have only one large, heavy tank, German Leopard 2A6, Pro version. I am settled with the Heng Xin gearbox with the MxFans 390 motor. At 26000 rpm (8V Li-Io), the scale speed and drive character are both ideal. But the 390 is a little too fast for the WW2 era medium tank which is 100% a personal taste.

For the M26 Pershing, I am looking for a high quality 380 with inside cooling fan that runs at 16000 to 18000 rpm.

[sclui56]

I have only one large, heavy tank, German Leopard 2A6, Pro version. I am settled with the Heng Xin gearbox with the MxFans 390 motor. At 26000 rpm (8V Li-Io), the scale speed and drive character are both ideal. But the 390 is a little too fast for the WW2 era medium tank which is 100% a personal taste.

For the M26 Pershing, I am looking for a high quality 380 with inside cooling fan that runs at 16000 to 18000 rpm.

My heaviest tank is the Taigen Leo 2, with the metal tub and torsion bar suspension, it weighs quite a bit more than my HL Abrams even with the HL metal tracks, wheels, etc. But it is running slower than my Taigen PZ4 in stock form, which also uses Taigen black 390's. However, the gearbox in the PZ4 is their 3 into 1, a faster/less torque gearbox than the 4 into 1 that came with the Leo, IMHO, a bit too fast for the PZ4, or any WW2 era tanks. The upside is that I drive my Taigen's with hobby grade Tx where I can limit the throttle, as well as mix the speed-up, slow-down, & momentum, etc. But if I were to drive the PZ4 with the stock Tx, I will most likely look for a slower motor. Did you order the Tamiya 7435122? That is the one Rubicon mentioned, and that should be suitable for the smaller WW2 tanks, do you know if the suppression capacitors are fitted from Tami?

[HardRock]

Question from a new tanker...

Just installed new Red motors ("Fakes" ??) and gearboxes... purchased from Toucan Hobby







Is it recommended that I run them without any load to break them in first or are they good to go as installed?

[Rubicon99]

Question from a new tanker...

Just installed new Red motors ("Fakes" ??) and gearboxes... purchased from Toucan Hobby







Is it recommended that I run them without any load to break them in first or are they good to go as installed?

Good to go. No run in time needed.

[keilau]

Question from a new tanker...

Just installed new Red motors ("Fakes" ??) and gearboxes... purchased from Toucan Hobby



Is it recommended that I run them without any load to break them in first or are they good to go as installed?

I have 4 red motors that came with the Heng Xin gearbox. They are excellent motors. If you were concerned about fake motors, run the tank with the upper frame open, If the motor case feels room temperature (<80°F) after a 10 minutes run, your motors are good.

The Heng Xin gearbox will not benefit from a break-in run. However, in both of the Heng Xin gearbox I received, the lithium gease was NOT spread evenly on the gears. It was just a big scope on the case wall and the gears were mostly dry. I used a craft stick to scope up the gease and reapply them evenly on the gears. If you were not mechanically inclined, I will highly recommend that you get a technician friend to do it for you.

Since the gears and their ball bearings are all loose, be extremely careful when you open the case. The 2 case half are held together by 3 machine screws. It may be a little tricky to put them back together. Hold one of the case half horizontal with inside up. Put all gears and bearings in place. Carefully lower the other half of case onto it until all bearings are in place. The case slaps close and then tighten the screws.

I still like the gearbox a lot, but would have expect better workmanship for a $80 gearbox for RC.

[keilau]

While waiting for Toucan to ship me a replacement red motor from China (they ran out US stock at the time), I went ahead and ordered a pair of reds from MotionRC. Order was placed on Monday, these were shipped out from IL and I got them in the Abrams on Saturday, they seem to run just fine by eyeballing. Under $25 shipped, comparable to fleabay.

If you run the tank full speed for 10 minutes, does the motor case feel

1. room temperature
2. warm to your figure tip
3. hot to your figure tip?

[sclui56]

If you run the tank full speed for 10 minutes, does the motor case feel

1. room temperature
2. warm to your figure tip
3. hot to your figure tip?

My recollection with the MRC ones is somewhere between 1 & 2, but I am also running it topless just making sure all suspension & track tension is good since I stripped the lower for painting. I don't recall being alarmed by the temperature, they seem comparable to how the Taigen 390's operate. BTW, not sure you saw my question in an earlier post:

Did you order the Tamiya 7435122? That is the one Rubicon mentioned, and that should be suitable for the smaller WW2 tanks, do you know if the suppression capacitors are fitted from Tami?

[keilau]

Did you order the Tamiya 7435122? That is the one Rubicon mentioned, and that should be suitable for the smaller WW2 tanks, do you know if the suppression capacitors are fitted from Tami?

The 7435122 is out of stock at Tamiya. I got this instead. It does say RC, but also GP. Since Tamiya does not spec their motor, I am concerned that it could be too slow or too fast for the HL tank. I will find out when I receive the motors.

I also got a pair of this:
Rc Motor 27T Brushed 380 Type 380-S / Tamiya USA

I will see. But, alas, no 7435122!!

[keilau]

The 7435122 is out of stock at Tamiya. I got this instead. It does say RC, but also GP. Since Tamiya does not spec their motor, I am concerned that it could be too slow or too fast for the HL tank. I will find out when I receive the motors.

Tamiya customer support sent a picture of the motor that I will receive. It may work for me. It is for Tamiya #7434004. I just need to change the connectors and press-on gear which will be easy.

I found some old post at tamiyaclub.com saying that Tamiya uses only one 380 motor from Mabuchi. The only difference is the gear. Hope that it is still true.

[keilau]

The 7435122 is out of stock at Tamiya. I got this instead. It does say RC, but also GP. Since Tamiya does not spec their motor, I am concerned that it could be too slow or too fast for the HL tank. I will find out when I receive the motors.

I also got a pair of this:
Rc Motor 27T Brushed 380 Type 380-S / Tamiya USA

I will see. But, alas, no 7435122!!

I took a chance. I cancelled the RC GP 380 order and gambling that the grasshopper 380 is the same motor. I won. Thanks to Rubicon99's tip.

The grasshopper motor arrived yesterday. It has the same "Standard Motor_RP-380/ST-4440" as in the picture of the Sheridan gearbox in Post #80.

The gear is bigger than the Heng Long one. No big deal? Well, there is a minor problem that I cannot use a gear puller to push the drive shaft out of the gear. The gear is closed ended. I have to build a little gadget to push the motor case out of the gear. The test is the most rewarding part. The motor rpm is 16,000 when cold and 18,000 after warm up, or exactly the range I am looking for. The case temperature stabilized at 26°F above ambient after 10 minutes. It is only 3°F warmer than the Mabuchi RS-380PH-3270, but 30% faster. A perfect upgrade for the Heng Long OEM grey 380 (14 degrees cooler). It is not the Tamiya 7435122, but I am convinced that it is the same custom built Mabuchi motor and the quality is high.

[sclui56]

You are correct about the Sheridan motor. I met up with a friend who happened to have a pair of unused 380 from his Sheridan, I took a look and they are stamped Standard Motor, RP380-ST/4440.

He said I could have them, I may do that and put them in my Taigen PZ4 (which came w/ 390's from IMEX).

[keilau]

You are correct about the Sheridan motor. I met up with a friend who happened to have a pair of unused 380 from his Sheridan, I took a look and they are stamped Standard Motor, RP380-ST/4440.

He said I could have them, I may do that and put them in my Taigen PZ4 (which came w/ 390's from IMEX).

Taigen 390 runs at 25000 rpm which is an excellent motor for the bigger and faster modern tanks. For the smaller 25 tons Panzer IV, the Tamiya 380 is a much better match. The PZ4 has a sustained speed of 10 mph and max at 25 mph. The 380 will have more realistic scale speed, even still way too fast.

[sclui56]

Taigen 390 runs at 25000 rpm which is an excellent motor for the bigger and faster modern tanks. For the smaller 25 tons Panzer IV, the Tamiya 380 is a much better match. The PZ4 has a sustained speed of 10 mph and max at 25 mph. The 380 will have more realistic scale speed, even still way too fast.

I think I will take him up on his offer but I most likely won't change the 390's out until I need to service something on the PZ4, she is running well with the mixes through the transmitter ATM.

[keilau]

The Heng Xin gearbox will not benefit from a break-in run. However, in both of the Heng Xin gearbox I received, the lithium grease was NOT spread evenly on the gears. It was just a big scope on the case wall and the gears were mostly dry. I used a craft stick to scope up the grease and reapply them evenly on the gears. If you were not mechanically inclined, I will highly recommend that you get a technician friend to do it for you.

Since the grears and their ball bearings are all loose, be extremely careful when you open the case. The 2 case half are held together by 3 machine screws. It may be a little tricky to put them back together. Hold one of the case half horizontal with inside up. Put all gears and bearings in place. Carefully lower the other half of case onto it until all bearings are in place. The case slaps close and then tighten the screws.

I still like the gearbox a lot, but would have expect better workmanship for a $80 gearbox for RC.

The pictures were taken when I changed the motors from the Mabuchi RS-380PH/3270 to the Tamiya 380 (which is really a Mabuchi RS-380PH/4045). The left side gearbox is simple. On the right side, one of the motor screw is hiden under the gear. I have to remove all the gears to access the motor mounting screw. In this process, nothing is difficult, but it does take some care not to lose any of the tiny ball bearing.

[keilau]

I think I will take him up on his offer but I most likely won't change the 390's out until I need to service something on the PZ4, she is running well with the mixes through the transmitter ATM.

The Taigen 390 should have much better quality control than the HL red. The 390, if working, is a much better motor. With the throttle control on your transmitter, you get the better of both world.

[sclui56]

The Taigen 390 should have much better quality control than the HL red. The 390, if working, is a much better motor. With the throttle control on your transmitter, you get the better of both world.

Could be, I only have 1 pair of the HL red which I have yet to use (one was DOA), so I ended up getting a pair of the Admiral red's for the HL Abrams but have yet to run it enough to tell a difference. I was kind of bored today, went over to friend's place and picked up the Tami 380's, just finished swapping those into my PZ4, reset some of the settings in the Tx and the PZ4 was running fine, speed is more appropriate now and still can negotiate rough grass similar to the original 390's.

Thanks for sharing all the info with your trials.

[Hellcat 7]

Heng Long Ultimate Gearbox Edition II

Is it worth buying or should I just buy motors? I have the stock HL steel gear box.

[Rubicon99]

Heng Long Ultimate Gearbox Edition II

Is it worth buying or should I just buy motors? I have the stock HL steel gear box.

Just buy the motors. The new stock steel gearboxes are actually pretty good.