1/16 Scale Heng Long T-72 Tank
A proven, versatile, and afforable tank, the Soviet designed T-72 continues service with countries around the world despite being nearly 50 years old. This Upgrade version features steel gears and plastic tracks for an economical balance between durability and weight. Heng Long has produced RC tanks for over 20 years, and their products offer an ideal starting point for new customers wanting to explore the world of RC tanks. All of Motion RC’s Heng Long 1/16 scale tanks utilize the latest TK6 MFCB for outstanding control, performance, playability, and upgrade potential!
Below is my brief overview of the T-72, one of my top three favorite tanks to drive from Heng Long. To start, here is what's in the box:
INCLUDED IN THE BOX:
- Heng Long Russian T-72 1/16 Scale Battle Tank - RTR (Note, there are two versions, the Upgrade edition and the Professional edition)
- 2S 7.4v 1800mAh LiPo battery with Tamiya connector
- 2S LiPo battery charger
- 12-Channel 2.4GHz radio transmitter and pre-installed receiver
- Magnetic Infrared (IR) battle system receiver
- Painted cosmetic accessory parts
- Adhesive decal sheet
- 6mm plastic BBs (50 Pack)
- 2x spare track links
- Complete printed instruction manual with parts installation diagrams
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Durable and Wide Pattern Tracks Confidently conquer terrain with durable tracks that are easy to service. The more affordable "Upgrade" edition of the T-72 uses plastic tracks and painted plastic wheels. The more expensive "Professional" edition uses metal tracks and unpainted metal wheels. The metal parts in the Professional edition increases the T-72's weight from ~6lbs to more than 10lbs, which is a significant bump! I'd recommend buying extra batteries if you plan to run this tank outdoors for extended periods of time. Independent suspension for each of the T-72's road wheels help soak up uneven terrain. I run on short grass, dry riverbed, and gravel with ease. The plastic tracks will wear down over time at a faster rate than the metal tracks, but I don't worry about that too much since it is usually a year or more's worth of driving the plastic tracks before they need replacement, and when they do, a spare track set is inexpensive and takes less than one minute to swap in. |
Independent Suspension and Steel Geared Gearbox Both the Upgrade edition and the Professional edition of the T-72 feature the same reliable steel geared gearboxes. Steel gears on all of Motion RC's 1/16 scale Heng Long tanks effectively does away with the old plastic gears and brittle zinc alloy gears that Heng Long used to deploy in most of its tanks. The steel gears are much stronger and less prone to premature wear. Note, the TK6-equipped tank motors now use more reliable bullet connectors, instead of the old XH connectors! |
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Omnidirectional Proportional Control The latest generation TK6 Multi-Function Control Board (MFCB ) provides smooth driving response and personalized configuration options. As with all of Motion RC's 1/16 scale tanks from Heng Long in 2020, the T-72 arrives equipped with the TK6 series MFCB and its pre-paired 2.4GHz radio transmitter. Everything is bound and pre-programmed to standard settings for the amount of track recoil, the top speed setting, the turning sensitivity setting, and the lights/sound settings. I recommend reading the manual to take full advantage of how to quickly adjust any of these many settings with simple button and control stick inputs. You can turn off the lights, turn up the volume, reduce the track recoil, change the sound set, adjust the acceleration and turning sensitivity, and many other settings. It's very impressive to me how smoothly proportional the control inputs are. This is a very easy tank to drive and the TK6 does all the heavy lifting. |
| IR Battle Ready Engage in friendly infrared ("IR") combat with other TK6-equipped tanks, both inflicting hits upon and receiving hits from opponents! Sounds and action signal each hit, until the 5th hit disables the tank. After 10 seconds, the disabled tank restarts and can rejoin the fight! Notice how naturally the IR apple blends into the other items on the turret. This is a sleek, low-profile tank and its overall configuration and proportions are unmistakable Soviet in design heritage. |
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Airsoft BB Launch Safely fire 6mm plastic airsoft BBs at the included paper target at short ranges. *Take safety precautions and wear eye protection. |
| Scale Detail The perfect balance of scale detail and practical RC Tanking, each Heng Long tank arrives factory painted and includes Cosmetic Accessory Parts to further enhance the tank's realism. The T-72 is like the MiG-21 of tanks. Classic Cold War design heritage, no-nonsense, and with a dependably long service life despite not having all the fancy comforts of a modern Main Battle Tank such as the Leopard 2, Challenger II, or T-90S. Heng Long replicated many of the details to a degree suitable for a 1/16 scale RC tank that needs to strike a balance between looking good and actually running well over terrain. This isn't a super-scale static shelf queen! I could nitpick things like the track cleat shape and the sprocket's scale fidelity, and probably the mold release pins being situated at the top of the smoke grenade canisters covers, but overall the T-72 is one of the best looking and best running Heng Long tanks in their entire 1/16 scale lineup. One note when assembling the co-ax machine gun's elbow though: Follow the instructions closely to ensure the arms are connected properly. Aside from that, the rest of the model's scale details virtually snap-on in minutes without any real hassle. |
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Realistic Operation 320 degree turret traverse, 30 degree cannon elevation, programmable track recoil, and four different sound sets put you in complete control. The T-72's very long barrel is a prominent feature of the real tank, and in model form, it can be a bit of a liability. Take extra care when transporting the tank to avoid stabbing yourself or your car door. Ask me how I know! A future mod I plan for my T-72 is to replace the plastic molded mantle cover with actual canvas or some other flexible fabric. |
| LED Lights LED lights indicate the tank's standby and active modes, and also flash when "hit" during IR Battles. The T-72's low profile makes it difficult to hit compared to taller tanks like the King Tiger. The magnetic IR apple blends well into the other "greeblies" that are arranged around the characteristically busy turret of a Soviet-era tank. |
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Exhaust Effect Glycerin-based "exhaust effect" simulates engine exhaust for added realism. Heng Long's T-72 expels exhaust from the same ports as the real T-72, extending outward from the sides of the tank. My tank's smoke generator worked very well, blanketing the area with a hazy wisp of smoke. Due to the design of the T-72, it is advised to invert the tank and add one drop of glycerin down into the tube concealed inside the exhaust port. This is what refills the reservoir inside the smoke generator. I use about one drop for every hour or so of us. It is important to avoid overfilling the reservoir --less is more! Don't attempt to refill the reservoir with one additional drop of glycerin until you are sure the smoke generator is empty. Like popcorn, you don't want to run the reservoir too long past the empty point, so be careful to observe when the exhaust effect is diminished as you approach an hour or so of use. When I'm running my tanks outside, I generally turn off the exhaust effect by pressing the Exhaust button on the radio transmitter. The smoke isn't very visible in broad daylight, anyway, so I prefer to save it for indoor use. |
| RTR The convenience of "Ready to Run" (RTR) allows new players to join the world of RC Tanks with ease! *Shown alongside a smaller 1/35 scale static model for size comparison My T-72 arrived in excellent condition, and for now it is still wearing its stock green paint scheme. The convenience of an RTR tank being ready to run outside within minutes of unboxing is very appealing. No tinkering, no electronics installs, no radio programming. Just charge the battery, snap on the cosmetic detail parts, then go for a drive! |
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- Latest Generation TK6 Multi-Function Control Board (MFCB)
- Proportional acceleration, steering, turret traverse, and gun elevation/depression
- Programmable radio settings for the amount of recoil, the sensitivity in turns, the overall sensitivity in acceleration, high speed and low speed modes, etc
- Smoke effect (On/Off)
- Headlights and Brake lights (On/Off) (headlights on the T-72)
- Volume (five settings including Off)
- Four different sound sets. Each contains a unique engine start, idle, accelerating, traverse, elevate, machine gun, cannon firing, and shutdown sound
- Track Recoil (Three settings from low, medium, and high) -This shudders the tank briefly rearward to simulate recoil when firing the main cannon
- Fires a 6mm plastic BB (10 meters with minimal accuracy and limited velocity, but should still be treated with caution and with adequate eye protection)
- Fires an invisible IR signal to be used as part of Heng Long's Infrared Battle System, which disables other tanks when hit five times during simulated combat. Up to 20 tanks at the same time can battle each other!
- Independent suspension on all road wheels
REQUIRES:
- 6x AA batteries for 2.4GHz radio transmitter
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