Heng Long MERKAVA review, build out and field testing.

[Rubicon99]

PART 1: First impression.

Well my Heng Long Merkava finally arrived. First "unboxing" impressions are very good. HL has definitely stepped up the modeling and engineering of this tank compared to their prior releases. The version I purchased is the one with metal tracks, sprockets, idlers, road wheels and steel gearboxes aka the "PRO" (?).

The first thing you will notice is the Merkava is a big tank. How big, well below it is shown next to my Tamiya Abrams for comparison.

To be continued:

[Rubicon99]

PART 1: Continued

Close ups of turret, tracks and internals of the Merkava.






New turret rotation gearbox. This unit is crazy fast and I will need to slow it down a bit.



Nylon axle supports bushings? Normally I would use bearings but I am going to leave these in for a while and see how they preform over time.

[Rubicon99]

PART 2: First modification

Before I dive into the cosmetics, I always make sure the mechanical aspect of a tank are operating to my standards. So in that I conducted the Merkava's first driving test. It did well, but nothing exciting. I could tell though given tougher terrain then the basics I was driving on it would quickly prove under powered.

So I replaced the stock 380 motors with Taigen black 390 motors. These have much higher torque and RPMs. The Merkava now has substantial better low speed turning performance and in "high power" mode is also substantially faster. It now should have plenty of extra power for all terrain types.

Taigen 390 motors. A note here about the installation. Unlike other HL gearboxes the Merkava's have two different length of screws holding them in. One short and two longer screws. Make sure to reinstall the short one in the front position (forward most mounting hole). This is because of the space in the forward hull that the front of gearboxes sit in is shallower then the rear.

Next up will be the turret modification that will be extensive. Basically everything except the elevation unit is being replaced.

[RichJohnson]

For comparison here is the Hooben Merkava 4M next to a henglong Abrams and DKlM m60a3.

[keilau]

PART 2: First modification

Before I dive into the cosmetics, I always make sure the mechanical aspect of a tank are operating to my standards. So in that I conducted the Merkava's first driving test. It did well, but nothing exciting. I could tell though given tougher terrain then the basics I was driving on it would quickly prove under powered.

So I replaced the stock 380 motors with Taigen black 390 motors. These have much higher torque and RPMs. The Merkava now has substantial better low speed turning performance and in "high power" mode is also substantially faster. It now should have plenty of extra power for all terrain types.

Taigen 390 motors. A note here about the installation. Unlike other HL gearboxes the Merkava's have two different length of screws holding them in. One short and two longer screws. Make sure to reinstall the short one in the front position (forward most mounting hole). This is because of the space in the forward hull that the front of gearboxes sit in is shallower then the rear.

Next up will be the turret modification that will be extensive. Basically everything except the elevation unit is being replaced.

Can you comment on which gearbox does the Merkava come with? The plastic, or the TK-BX001B (steel gear with sleeve bearing) or TK-BX001C (steel gear with ball bearing)?

[Rubicon99]

Can you comment on which gearbox does the Merkava come with? The plastic, or the TK-BX001B (steel gear with sleeve bearing) or TK-BX001C (steel gear with ball bearing)?

Mine was ordered with the standard "steel gear" gearboxes. The gearboxes are the Mid / High 58mm type. These are reasonable durable and last a fairly long.

[Rubicon99]

PART 3: Turret mechanical rework has begun.

Since I am upgrading the Merkava to a 7.1 system I decided to ad in a servo recoil system. I am using a JVM3Dconcepts servo recoil system (available through RichJohnson who can be reached via a PM on this site) but will be maintaining the HL stock elevation system for now.

I will be adding a high power IR bulb in the barrel and a LegoDEI IR receiver as well. The turret is huge and there is a lot of free space. I made even more space by removing a section of the BB loading tube. This area will be used for a future upgrade that is in the works.

Here are some of the in progress photos of the turret rework. I also posted a short video of the servo barrel recoil in operation on my Instagram @ fsttanks. Feel free to have a look.


The servo gear has not been attached yet. I will attach and set it when the 7.1 is wired in and powered up.

Yes all the stock wires are gone. Some will be back, IR bulb, MG and IR receiver wires but in a cleaner setup. The 360 wiring "ring" will not be added back in as I do not like their reliability.

[SoCalBobS]

Regarding the turret wiring, Tang - RC.Senshado on this board is having some of his cables made for our 7.1 boards, probably will be available in a couple of months. His 7.0 cables are useful, with a 5 socket terminal a LegoDEI receiver fits into. The 7.1's will have that too, but with a 3 prong plug that fits the 7.1 IR receiver circuit socket.

[Rubicon99]

Regarding the turret wiring, Tang - RC.Senshado on this board is having some of his cables made for our 7.1 boards, probably will be available in a couple of months. His 7.0 cables are useful, with a 5 socket terminal a LegoDEI receiver fits into. The 7.1's will have that too, but with a 3 prong plug that fits the 7.1 IR receiver circuit socket.

I am using one of his ready made harnesses in this build because I am being lazy and not wanting to make my own LOL. I have already changed the lead line plugs on his harness to fit the 7.1 MFU. As a mater of interest that part is up next to be posted.

[SoCalBobS]

Great minds think alike. I too altered a 7.0 to a 7.1. But being truly lazy, I prevailed upon Tang to make the 7.1 version also!

[Rubicon99]

Great minds think alike. I too altered a 7.0 to a 7.1. But being truly lazy, I prevailed upon Tang to make the 7.1 version also!

LOL. I talk about that too when I spoke with him this last weekend at the LA battle. I asked him to make the lines a slight bit longer too.

[Rubicon99]

PART 3: Continued.

After the servo recoil unit from JVM3Dconepts was installed (short video of it being tested can be see on my Instagram @ fsttanks) I moved on the the IR receiver upgrade. For this I am using a LegoDEI receiver that is being *mounted low just behind the commander hatch. I am using a wiring kit for the receiver made by RC Senshado. These are relatively new so I thought I would give one a try vs making my own from scratch.

*The choice of mounting positions to maintain the sleek low profile look of the Merkava's turret was limited. The commander hatch was a option but would require modifications to the hatch or receiver base that far exceeded the modifications needed for placement behind the hatch. Also when removing the receiver the mount once painted will blend in nicely with the turret accessory that will be surrounding it.

Below the photos show the basic test mount (red receiver) and then the final mounting as it will look with a full sun shade.









Next up in PART 3 will be adding the IR bulb to the barrel.

[SoCalBobS]

Clever idea mounting the 5 pin socket on top. Once painted, it will look so much better than a mushroom. This one goes into my bag of ideas! Maybe JVMC could make a printed sleeve to slide over the mount when a receiver isn't being used.

[keilau]

Now that the Heng Long Merkava is available from US stock, I see its price dropped from $450 to $250. It is very tempting to get one.

Upgrade from the Heng Long standard steel gearbox to a ball bearing gearbox is another $70. Is there a good upgrade for the HL metal track available yet? From my German Leopard 2A6 experience, doing both significantly improve the tank's driving quality.

[Rubicon99]

Now that the Heng Long Merkava is available from US stock, I see its price dropped from $450 to $250. It is very tempting to get one.

Upgrade from the Heng Long standard steel gearbox to a ball bearing gearbox is another $70. Is there a good upgrade for the HL metal track available yet? From my German Leopard 2A6 experience, doing both significantly improve the tank's driving quality.

The stock HL Merkava metal tracks are actually pretty good. They are single pin same as the real tracks and have so far not had any issues. I really can't see an aftermarket market track making a huge improvement on the Merkava. On other HL tank tracks that should be dual pin and are single pin yes aftermarket are better.

[keilau]

The stock HL Merkava metal tracks are actually pretty good. They are single pin same as the real tracks and have so far not had any issues. I really can't see an aftermarket market track making a huge improvement on the Merkava. On other HL tank tracks that should be dual pin and are single pin yes aftermarket are better.

The Mark IV has the Israeli-designed TSAWS (tracks, springs, and wheels system) caterpillar track system, called "Mazkom" (Hebrew: מערכת זחלים קפיצים ומרכובים, מזקו"ם) by troops. This system is designed to reduce track-shedding under the harsh basalt rock conditions of Lebanon and the Golan Heights.

I looked up some pictures of the Merkava IV track on the internet. It is really not like anything we use to see.

[RichJohnson]

Henglong actually put Merkava 4M track on their mark 4 Merkava.
the IDF has a long history of using all steel cleat track without rubber pads due to wear they experience.
Their m60s were changed to a track similar to the Centurion. Up to the markava 4 they were using an all steel cleat track that has single pin and angled ends. http://data3.primeportal.net/tanks/j...v_02_of_57.jpg


Then the Merkava 4M which looks very similar came out. It was released around 2015 based on the mark 4 but has a loaders hatch in the turret and built in Trophy APS system. It also has a new track, which is still single pin but more rectangular in shape. Henglong used the later 4M track on their early mark4 model. Not sure why, the early track looks cooler and probably grips better but they did none the less.
My Hooben Merkava 4M has the same track, as it should, but plastic. I’m interested to see if the henglong track fits my hooben tank.

[Rubicon99]

I looked up some pictures of the Merkava IV track on the internet. It is really not like anything we use to see.

The Merkavas have had at least six different designs of tracks over its history.

I have seen several Mk IV with the HL designs and several with other designs. When it comes to IDF tanks they are all over the map with parts.

[Milspec1]

Those look like the mid/low gearboxes. Are they long or short axles

[keilau]

Those look like the mid/low gearboxes. Are they long or short axles

From the picture, it looks like the ML-58. The Taigen/Torro series 2 gearbox has a perfect spec. I believe that the HL ML-59 Ultimate II gearbox should work just fine too. It's just my guess from looking at the pictures. It would be nice to have some verification from some Merkava owner.