Which is the best T34/85 RC Tank Metal Tracks?

[keilau]

I am looking for a metal track with good detail and still strong enough not to break on rough ground. Are there other choice besides Heng Long, Mato and Imex/Torro? If not, which is the strongest among the three?

[Rubicon99]

They are all about the same in detail. The HL are actually the strongest and most reliable of the three. Largely do in part to having the thickest and hardest track pins.

If you want to see T34 track being used hard feel free to take a look at my Instagram @ fsttanks

[keilau]

I just ordered the Taigen metal track, sprocket and idler wheels. I have never used their product. They look very well at the website and the "closed pin" description of the track attracted me. I believe they source the same metal parts as Imex/Torro. If it does not work out, I have the Mato sprocket, idler wheel and HL plastic track as backup.

On my M26 Pershing, I have the Mato sprocket and idler wheel which are excellent. The Mato tracks, should I say, are not so good. I am seriously thinking about the HL metal tracks.

I have not tested the Tamiya tracks on the German Leopard 2A6 outdoor yet. It is supposed to be a tough track. Will report here after I try.

[Rubicon99]

I just ordered the Taigen metal track, sprocket and idler wheels. I have never used their product. They look very well at the website and the "closed pin" description of the track attracted me. I believe they source the same metal parts as Imex/Torro. If it does not work out, I have the Mato sprocket, idler wheel and HL plastic track as backup.

On my M26 Pershing, I have the Mato sprocket and idler wheel which are excellent. The Mato tracks, should I say, are not so good. I am seriously thinking about the HL metal tracks.

I have not tested the Tamiya tracks on the German Leopard 2A6 outdoor yet. It is supposed to be a tough track. Will report here after I try.

Tamiya Leopard 2 tracks are the best all around Leopard 2 tracks money can buy. They run perfectly on HL and Taigen/IMEX Leopards, Abrams and with a minor sprockets mod the Challenger 2.

The best M26 tracks are also Tamiya and run on all Pershing sprockets.

The T34 is very forgiving with its tracks and sprockets so whatever combination you run it should work well. It’s not like other WW2 tanks from HL or Taigen/IMEX/ Torro (all the same) that can be a bit finicky.

[keilau]

The best M26 tracks are also Tamiya and run on all Pershing sprockets.

The Tamiya M26 track is out of production and highly unlikely to come back. Any suggestion for a tough substitute?

[Rubicon99]

The Tamiya M26 track is out of production and highly unlikely to come back. Any suggestion for a tough substitute?

Tamiya M26 track is still out there if you look around. You can also use Tamiya M4 track which is nearly identical and has more availability.

The next best is IMPACT T84 in hard rubber pads or all metal pads.

[sclui56]

I have not tested the Tamiya tracks on the German Leopard 2A6 outdoor yet. It is supposed to be a tough track. Will report here after I try.

Where did you find a set? I recall we both had trouble trying to get those from AAF few months back.

[Rubicon99]

Where did you find a set? I recall we both had trouble trying to get those from AAF few months back.

They are now back in stock at AAF. Just got two sets in myself.

[sclui56]

They are now back in stock at AAF. Just got two sets in myself.

Excellent, thanks!

BTW, still have trouble ordering via their site, unable to submit an order. Will call them.

[BcuriousR]

On my M26 Pershing, I have the Mato sprocket and idler wheel which are excellent. The Mato tracks, should I say, are not so good. I am seriously thinking about the HL metal tracks.

I bought the HL M26 metal tracks. They're heavy but are simply molded like the plastic tracks; each link is hollow. While driving through dirt, they would pick up small rocks and jam the sprocket or the idler. I reached out to Erik at Taigen Tanks. He sourced a set of Taigen M26 tracks for me. They are molded with solid links. So they no longer have the "shovel-conveyor effect". They are pretty great. The first pic is the plastic HL M26 track (same mold as the metal, I just didn't want to dig them out of storage); the second pic is the Metal Taigen M26 track.

[keilau]

I bought the HL M26 metal tracks. They're heavy but are simply molded like the plastic tracks; each link is hollow. While driving through dirt, they would pick up small rocks and jam the sprocket or the idler. I reached out to Erik at Taigen Tanks. He sourced a set of Taigen M26 tracks for me. They are molded with solid links. So they no longer have the "shovel-conveyor effect". They are pretty great. The first pic is the plastic HL M26 track (same mold as the metal, I just didn't want to dig them out of storage); the second pic is the Metal Taigen M26 track.

Thank you for the very helpful and valuable information. The Taigen track looks like the quality one that I am looking for. I will contact Erik in a few weeks to see if he can get me the M26 track.

My new order T34-85 tank and upgrade parts will start arriving tomorrow. It will keep me busy for a few weeks until I am done testing.

[keilau]

Tamiya M26 track is still out there if you look around. You can also use Tamiya M4 track which is nearly identical and has more availability.

The next best is IMPACT T84 in hard rubber pads or all metal pads.

Yes, I found one Hong Kong Hobby Shop selling the Tamiya Pershing tracks on e-bay. Their price is double of that at AAF. My best chance may be a Torro or Taigen track for the Pershing. They look very nice in BcuriousR's picture.

The Tamiya Super Sherman tracks are sold out at Tamiya Shop too, but it may have a better chance to come back in stock soon. Impact T84 tracks are available from Hong Kong only too for now and more expensive than the Tamiya ones.

Thank you for the suggestions.

If you do not mind waiting for shipment from Hong Kong, Kenny's T84 tracks is priced very competitively with other HK sellers.

[Rubicon99]

Yes, I found one Hong Kong Hobby Shop selling the Tamiya Pershing tracks on e-bay. Their price is double of that at AAF. My best chance may be a Torro or Taigen track for the Pershing. They look very nice in BcuriousR's picture.

The Tamiya Super Sherman tracks are sold out at Tamiya Shop too, but it may have a better chance to come back in stock soon. Impact T84 tracks are available from Hong Kong only too for now and more expensive than the Tamiya ones.

Thank you for the suggestions.

If you do not mind waiting for shipment from Hong Kong, Kenny's T84 tracks is priced very competitively with other HK sellers.

The only problem with otherwise good tracks the Torro/Taigen M26 metal tracks still just us a single link pin like HL and not dual link pins like Tamiya, IMPACT or Kenny’s. Dual pin simply run a lot smoother.

A cheap way to proceed that many have done is to simply use HL metal tracks with the hollows filled in with black RVT or epoxy (both time consuming). The RVT work best and makes the track run much more quietly while eliminating the dirt shoveling effect of the hollow HL pads. This option is more for those looking for an outdoor runner / battler then a detailed display model.

Waiting for parts from Asia is unfortunately a big part of the hobby. I think it is universally hated.

[keilau]

A cheap way to proceed that many have done is to simply use HL metal tracks with the hollows filled in with black RVT or epoxy (both time consuming). The RVT work best and makes the track run much more quietly while eliminating the dirt shoveling effect of the hollow HL pads. This option is more for those looking for an outdoor runner / battler then a detailed display model.

Do you mean RTV silicon rubber? I am not familiar with how RVT works.

[Rubicon99]

Do you mean RTV silicon rubber? I am not familiar with how RVT works.

Yep. Easy to fill the hollows and smooth out flat. It ends up looking like modern inner rubber pads like those on the Abrams.

[keilau]

Yep. Easy to fill the hollows and smooth out flat. It ends up looking like modern inner rubber pads like those on the Abrams.

I have a HL metal track for the Pershing that I never used. I am thinking of cutting 1/8" thick hard rubber pads and glue them in. With more than 300 hollows on the tracks, it may be faster than casting RTV in them.

[Rubicon99]

I have a HL metal track for the Pershing that I never used. I am thinking of cutting 1/8" thick hard rubber pads and glue them in. With more than 300 hollows on the tracks, it may be faster than casting RTV in them.

It might be. I haven’t used RVT in the hollows of tracks just passing along what others have done, but I have used it in other tank application. It’s rather easy and forgiving to work with once you get the hang of it.

But if you can make 300 small rubber blocks that fit, by all means give it a try and see how it works out. It will surly be better then nothing.

[keilau]

But if you can make 300 small rubber blocks that fit, by all means give it a try and see how it works out. It will surely be better thaen nothing.

I built a plywood jig to cut the small blocks from a 1"x1/8" rubber strip. It is cheap and easy, but still took a few hours. I will detail what I did at the Pershing post.

The rubberized HL track works very well. It is strong and quiet, but I can do nothing to the HL track's ugly look. The Heng Xin all steel/bearing gearbox is driven by a pair of Tamiya 380 standard motors.

[keilau]

Now, back to the T-34/85 metal upgrade. It is a much longer story and span a full year. I will post the built journal and result in the next few days.

I had a 6 months pause from my RC activity due to health issue from Oct 2021 to March this year.

[keilau]

My T-34/85 metal upgrade: background.

I got my first Heng Long RTR tank, a Tiger tank, in 2005. I started all sort of mod to it and it is still in the shop as of today. I got most of the parts from UK or Germany, where the early HL vendor sourced the upgrade parts from China. The parts were expensive and not very high quality. I sent the HL Tiger to Willy's CustomRCmodel.com for the gearbox and metal tracks. I got some ESC's and a Hitec 4 channel RC. The chassis of the Tiger can run, but the RC control upgrade was never finished.

I upgraded the HL Pershing with metal gearbox and tracks from Germany. They turned out to be Mato parts. They were good looking parts and worked, but the zinc alloy track is too brittle for this application.

I had a 10 years absence from the hobby of RTR tank until I retired. I renewed the hobby starting with a 2.4 GHz RC upgrade for the Pershing. It improved the driving quality so much at very low cost. I purchased 3 more HL tanks over the next 3 years.