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Official Tongde UK Centurion Mk 5 1/16 Scale Battle Tank Discussion Thread

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  • Rubicon99
    replied
    Originally posted by DavidN View Post
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    Looks so much better then stock. Amazing what a new paint job and some added detailed parts like the L7 barrel can do to change a model for the better. Can't wait to see it in action.

    Leave a comment:


  • RichJohnson
    replied
    Originally posted by DavidN View Post
    I finally got a chance to work on mine. I converted it into LegoDEI IR battle by switching the TD board to the HL board. I also switch the barrel and the air soft unit for Rich Johnson's recoil unit and his "special made" barrel. It looks really nice with his barrel on. It is now ready for battle.

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    That came out looking really good and my L7 barrel really adds some attitude to the tank over the original barrel.

    Leave a comment:


  • DavidN
    replied
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  • DavidN
    replied
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  • DavidN
    replied
    I finally got a chance to work on mine. I converted it into LegoDEI IR battle by switching the TD board to the HL board. I also switched the barrel and the air soft unit for Rich Johnson's recoil unit and his "special made" barrel. It looks really nice with his barrel on. It is now ready for battle.

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  • keilau
    replied
    Originally posted by RichJohnson View Post
    My customer sent me some pictures of the wheels tonight. You can see the brass bushings and the screw axle seized into it.
    He said the bushings are 4x6x3 mm
    The 4x6x3mm bushing will not have enough wall thickness for a ball bearing. Standard bearing sizes are 4x7x2.5mm and 3x6x2.5mm. The 4x7x2.5mm bearing fits perfectly onto the TD M60 road wheels. Let me know if your customer find a solution to this problem?

    I wish MotionRC would sell the basic version of Tongde Centurion Mk5 at lower than the Upgrade Version price. We know that the basic version uses nylon bushing on the road wheels that works fine.

    Leave a comment:


  • RichJohnson
    replied
    My customer sent me some pictures of the wheels tonight. You can see the brass bushings and the screw axle seized into it.
    He said the bushings are 4x6x3 mm


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  • keilau
    replied
    Originally posted by RichJohnson View Post
    My customer told me he did lube all the wheels axles after the first ones locked up. Still many of them on the opposite side locked up. He told me they were so locked up he was able to unscrew the axles just by turning the wheels. Then he had to use a hammer and punch to drive the axles out of the wheels sets they were seized so tight.
    Clearly the first issue is it sounds like the bushing material is not compatible for use with the axles. Second he thought he was getting a ball bearing tank as advertised.
    It sounds to me like a serious design issue.
    He is stuck with his tank because he painted it before he drove it so he cannot return it is what he told me.
    he is now going to remove all the wheels and punch out the brass bushings and see if he can find bearings of the same size.
    Your customer is stuck with the TD Centurion, but not the brass bushings. If TD makes the Centurion similar to the M60, a 4x7x2.5mm ball bearing fits the road wheel perfectly with a slight pressure fit. I am eagerly waiting to hear how your customer's upgrade goes.

    MotionRC have the best TD Centurion price for US customers. I may order one if the MotionRC version is upgradeable to ball bearing.

    Leave a comment:


  • RichJohnson
    replied
    My customer told me he did lube all the wheels axles after the first ones locked up. Still many of them on the opposite side locked up. He told me they were so locked up he was able to unscrew the axles just by turning the wheels. Then he had to use a hammer and punch to drive the axles out of the wheels sets they were seized so tight.
    Clearly the first issue is it sounds like the bushing material is not compatible for use with the axles. Second he thought he was getting a ball bearing tank as advertised.
    It sounds to me like a serious design issue.
    He is stuck with his tank because he painted it before he drove it so he cannot return it is what he told me.
    he is now going to remove all the wheels and punch out the brass bushings and see if he can find bearings of the same size.

    Leave a comment:


  • Rubicon99
    replied
    Originally posted by tank_me View Post
    I've been building a Haya Centurion kit so I don't have a TD Cent. I know Louis over at RC Tank Warfare built a really nice Cent from a TongDE version, but he did extensive mods to that tank as he does with all of his excellent builds.
    Yep the Haya Centurion is a really nice tank. Probably the most durable of the three Centurion on the market.

    Leave a comment:


  • tank_me
    replied
    I've been building a Haya Centurion kit so I don't have a TD Cent. I know Louis over at RC Tank Warfare built a really nice Cent from a TongDE version, but he did extensive mods to that tank as he does with all of his excellent builds.

    Leave a comment:


  • keilau
    replied
    Originally posted by Rubicon99 View Post

    HL use brass bushings in the idler wheels on their non "metal" version tanks and these don't have any issues if they are kept even a little "wet" (oiled). Tamiya also uses brass bushings in their wheels that are oiled/greases during build up and they work well too, although not as good as bearing (all my Tamiyas now have bearings, only took me a few years to get around to replacing them all).

    I suspect there is something else going on with Rich's customers bushings. Maybe they were not oiled or maybe how and were he used it debris to get inside the wheels / axle shafts causing the wheels to lock up. Hope Rich can provide us with more information as he receives it🤞🤞
    It is very basic engineering that you do not mate hard material to soft material, such as brass to aluminum. Brass on plastic is much worse. Oiling is not acceptable because it traps dust. Dry lubricant may work better, but still not a good solution. The hard metal causes soft plastic to abrase quickly and become off round. It is a sure way to binding. Nylon on plastic may last longer than any of the above and may be fine for light weight all plastic tanks.

    For all metal or metal/plastic hybrid RC tanks, an all bearing solution is the best way to go.

    Leave a comment:


  • Rubicon99
    replied
    Originally posted by keilau View Post
    I will like to see some closeup pictures of the brass bushings on the MotionRC upgrade version tanks. Half of the bushing thickness should be on the arm axle side and half on the road wheel hole side. It should have a polished interface with small clearance. I expect brass on brass to be a much better design than nylon on plastic. I am really puzzled by the trouble that RichJohnson friend had.

    The TD basic version M60 road wheel is molded to accommodate the standard size ball bearings. I will wait to see if the MotionRC Upgrade version can be upgraded the same way.
    HL use brass bushings in the idler wheels on their non "metal" version tanks and these don't have any issues if they are kept even a little "wet" (oiled). Tamiya also uses brass bushings in their wheels that are oiled/greases during build up and they work well too, although not as good as bearing (all my Tamiyas now have bearings, only took me a few years to get around to replacing them all).

    I suspect there is something else going on with Rich's customers bushings. Maybe they were not oiled or maybe how and were he used it debris to get inside the wheels / axle shafts causing the wheels to lock up. Hope Rich can provide us with more information as he receives it🤞🤞

    Leave a comment:


  • keilau
    replied
    Originally posted by Rubicon99 View Post

    The TD Centurion is not high on my list of near future tank purchases only for the fact that I already have the excellent Tamiya Centurion. If I was in the market right now for a TD Centurion I would push the buy button on one from Motion and would not worry about the brass bushings if it came with them, they can be easily replaced with bearings. What I would not be happy with is paying the price for a tank supposedly equipped with them from the factory and listed as such by the retailer. If the brass bushings turns out to be in all Motions stocks I would hope they adjust the price down accordingly.
    I will like to see some closeup pictures of the brass bushings on the MotionRC upgrade version tanks. Half of the bushing thickness should be on the arm axle side and half on the road wheel hole side. It should have a polished interface with small clearance. I expect brass on brass to be a much better design than nylon on plastic. I am really puzzled by the trouble that RichJohnson friend had.

    The TD basic version M60 road wheel is molded to accommodate the standard size ball bearings. I will wait to see if the MotionRC Upgrade version can be upgraded the same way.

    Leave a comment:


  • Rubicon99
    replied
    Originally posted by keilau View Post
    Israel's Legendary Tank Defence Against Syria at Golan Heights etched the UK Centurion tank into history. Often described as 700 vs. 12000 tanks battle. It may be a little exaggerated in number, but is an accurate David vs. Goliath story.
    In 1973, Syria launches a surprise attack against Israel in the Golan Heights. This is a story of survival, where a few out-numbered tankers manage to hold o...


    I have been waiting for the shipping for the TD Centurion to come down. The "upgraded version" with brass bushings for road wheels seems to be a poor choice from the story mentioned by RichJohnson unless the user can upgrade the bushings to ball bearings.

    I have a TD M60A1 purchased from Nova Hobby in Canada in basic version. It came with nylon bushings on the road wheel and suspension arms. The nylon bushings worked fine with TD metal suspension arms, metal gearbox, metal sprockets and the nylon suspension arm brackets from RichJohnson. Later, I took Rubicon99 advice to upgrade the nylon bushing to 24 ball bearings. Quality ball bearings in retail are quite expensive. But the result is excellent.
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    The TD Centurion is not high on my list of near future tank purchases only for the fact that I already have the excellent Tamiya Centurion. If I was in the market right now for a TD Centurion I would push the buy button on one from Motion and would not worry about the brass bushings if it came with them, they can be easily replaced with bearings. What I would not be happy with is paying the price for a tank supposedly equipped with them from the factory and listed as such by the retailer. If the brass bushings turns out to be in all Motions stocks I would hope they adjust the price down accordingly.

    Leave a comment:


  • keilau
    replied
    Israel's Legendary Tank Defence Against Syria at Golan Heights etched the UK Centurion tank into history. Often described as 700 vs. 12000 tanks battle. It may be a little exaggerated in number, but is an accurate David vs. Goliath story.
    In 1973, Syria launches a surprise attack against Israel in the Golan Heights. This is a story of survival, where a few out-numbered tankers manage to hold o...


    I have been waiting for the shipping for the TD Centurion to come down. The "upgraded version" with brass bushings for road wheels seems to be a poor choice from the story mentioned by RichJohnson unless the user can upgrade the bushings to ball bearings.

    I have a TD M60A1 purchased from Nova Hobby in Canada in basic version. It came with nylon bushings on the road wheel and suspension arms. The nylon bushings worked fine with TD metal suspension arms, metal gearbox, metal sprockets and the nylon suspension arm brackets from RichJohnson. Later, I took Rubicon99 advice to upgrade the nylon bushing to 24 ball bearings. Quality ball bearings in retail are quite expensive. But the result is excellent.
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  • hooked on hobbies
    replied
    thank you for the follow up!

    Leave a comment:


  • RichJohnson
    replied
    He called me again today and told me Motion went to the warehouse and pulled a metal edition centurion that is labeled to have ball bearings (as his was). A tank specialist is going to take it apart and inspect it.

    Leave a comment:


  • hooked on hobbies
    replied
    Professional editions are equipped with BB, Upgrade editions have bushings. Rich, I would very much like to obtain pics from your customer to show TD.

    Leave a comment:


  • SoCalBobS
    replied
    I got one of the first through DKLM. It’s been working fine since. I believe mine may have ball bearings. Maybe TD cut a corner for MRC’s batch?

    Leave a comment:

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