nitrosportsandrunner

My thunder tiger buggy from tower hobbies arrived today.

It is brushless, RTR and was $200 shipped.

This buggy is basically a team associated B3, which is a big part of why I bought it.

It hasnt really met my expectations tho. There are a few issues out of the box.

One of the front camber links has rust on it. No idea how such a thing could happen. Nothing else has rust, and the box was dry.
contacted tower hobbies and I think they will send me a replacement if it is something they stock.

Front shocks were jsut a tad low on oil.

Front shocks require preload spacer added, as the spring is a tad short. Preload spacers are included.

brushless ESC is 2s only. will not handle 3s.

2.4ghz radio is OK. Feels a bit funny in my hand. Has all the needed adjustments tho.

2.4ghz receiver antena is nearly as long as AM units!

One of the most annoying things, the wires from the ESC are to short. The wires run outside the shock tower...instead of threw it. Left as it come out of the box, the shock or camber link can hit them.
I used a zip tie to hold them tight to the shock tower. Only option since the wires are not longer and you cannot move the ESC further back in the chassis.

Servo wire had a zip tie on it...but it was still long enough to hang outside the chassis.

Some of the screws are hex, while others are philips.

On/off switch was not stuck down to the chassis.

stupid tamiya plugs on the ESC. Really, can companies wake up and stop putting these on brushless models! At least put banana 4.0mm plugs on it.

All of these things (except the short esc wires) are minor really. The buggy overall seems like it will work well....at least it is based on a good design. I just wish the final assembly and fitment was better.

Still, can't complain much for a $200 RTR. Except that it didnt come with a battery. If it did, it would have been a crappy one...but Im used to brushless RTR models coming with a battery.
but still, it was a fair bit less than a brushless b4.

BKoz559

My Feedback: (3)

Short springs are a strange Associated thing. Even the B4 standard springs are that way. In recent years, Ibelieve with the B4.1 Worlds, they finally released updated springs that fit the shock bodies correctly. You can find them online, I'm looking online for the part #.

Other than the shocks, not much else is compatible with a B4.

nitrosportsandrunner

weird...especially on something considered a 'race" buggy.

Ill take the buggy out to run on a parking lot later today....and hopefully race it this friday night. I think I have all the little things sorted out.
Even with the issues, its still a pretty good deal for the money.

Foxy

The phoenix is not positioned as a 'race buggy' for 200 bucks. lol.

My responses to your comments in blue...



Front shocks were jsut a tad low on oil.

That's par for the course for most RTRs and is usually due to leaky shocks sitting on the shelf.

Front shocks require preload spacer added, as the spring is a tad short. Preload spacers are included.

As mentioned by someone else, that's normal for Team Associated.

brushless ESC is 2s only. will not handle 3s.

Have you tired 3S? Sometimes, the manufacturers say '2S only' simply to avoid warranty issues by people running them on 3S.

2.4ghz radio is OK. Feels a bit funny in my hand. Has all the needed adjustments tho.

That's good that it has adjustments, most RTRs are still supplied with non adjustable radios.

2.4ghz receiver antena is nearly as long as AM units!

I've often wondered why some do this, but as long as you have a little of the outer shielding peeled back and an inch or so of the antenna upright, you can coil it up.

One of the most annoying things, the wires from the ESC are to short. The wires run outside the shock tower...instead of threw it. Left as it come out of the box, the shock or camber link can hit them.
I used a zip tie to hold them tight to the shock tower. Only option since the wires are not longer and you cannot move the ESC further back in the chassis.

Same on every ESC I've used, from Castle to Tekin, and anything else in between. I almost always fabricate my own set of cables for ESCs.

Servo wire had a zip tie on it...but it was still long enough to hang outside the chassis.

lol.

Some of the screws are hex, while others are philips.

No excuse for that.

On/off switch was not stuck down to the chassis.

I've never had an ESC I haven't cut the switch off completely.

stupid tamiya plugs on the ESC. Really, can companies wake up and stop putting these on brushless models! At least put banana 4.0mm plugs on it.

Indeed.

All of these things (except the short esc wires) are minor really. The buggy overall seems like it will work well....at least it is based on a good design. I just wish the final assembly and fitment was better.

Still, can't complain much for a $200 RTR. Except that it didnt come with a battery. If it did, it would have been a crappy one...but Im used to brushless RTR models coming with a battery.

Exactly, if these are your problems with a $200 RTR, it must be one of the biggest bargains in RC. Thunder Tiger does it again, I guess.

nitrosportsandrunner

Foxy, I do realize my complaints are small....
but that almost makes it worse....LOL. The issues are so minor, its not like it would cost the company more to deal with these things.
The other thing is that for me...a long time RC'er...its a peice of cake to fix them.
But if a newb bought this, some of the things (esc wires the big one) could become a big issue. If left as it was out of the box, the shock and camber link would eventually rub away the wire coating.
I have actually had RTR redcat's where the wiring was more tidy than on the thunder tiger.
The 2 types of screws is confusing as well. Its not like it would cost more/less to just use one type. It seems just lazy on their part not to go with one type.

when I said race buggy...the B3 was the race buggy of its day, was it not? Sure, it may not compare to buggies of today, but its not like its a bandit or boost either.

Im sure I will get a chance this week to shoot some running video of it.

Oh, anyone know of some NON-ribbed front tires/wheels that would fit this buggy? Ribbed dont work well on the indoor/paved track. Especially on the smooth wood jumps.
If not, is there a way to soften the rubber?

Foxy

Yes, a design is a design, but not all plastic is made equal. Not sure on tires for indoor.

nitrosportsandrunner

tower hobbies is sending me a replacement for the rusty turnbuckle. Nice to see they stand behind what they sell. Its still the weirdest thing I have ever seen on a new, unopened rc (thunder tiger stickers were in tact on the box)

Cant wait to see how it does against the b4's and durango's others race at the track.

nitrosportsandrunner

just ran the buggy.
put 1/2 of a 5000mah 2s lipo threw it. speed runs and general bashing.
Its not as fast on the top end as I hoped. Its a couple miles an hour faster than a good 15t brushed motor on 2s lipo. Its faster accelerating tho.
It could be geared up tho. It is only 35 degrees out, but even so, I couldnt feel any heat in the motor or esc.

In the 1st few seconds I found the slipper clutch was too loose...
and worse, the servo horn was not on right. even with the steering trim fully to one side, the steering still was not straight. I had to pull the servo out, center the radio trim and re-install the servo horn on center.
Again, and easy fix for me but a possible big issue for someone new to the hobby.

It handles as I expected...like a b3. Rear is a tad stiff. I did lower the ride hight from box stock by moving the lower shock mounts out.
The stock tires do better than I expected on pavement!

The ESC brakes are to strong and touchy. Its easy to spin out the buggy when breaking...even if steering straight.
and doing some looking, it seems to adjust programing you need the card...which I have only found on ebay for a whopping $29!
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ace-AQ1712-B...item2a2b49f150

I found some of the optional upgrades to be a bit pricey as well. the alloy front bulkhead is $35, as is the CF front shock tower. $25, sure...but $35?

I do have a T bone racing front bumper coming for it. That should offer the needed protection for racing. I did take a few spills while driving jsut now without issue. And considering its cold out, that should mean the plastic is at least decent and not brittle crap.

Overall, looking forward to racing it even more.

Ttowntoolman

I still have an Associated B-3, in fact I pulled it out and ran a few packs threw it this past weekend. Still a good handling buggy IMO, was getting hard to find parts for it. Now that TT is selling these utilizing the B-3 production molds, parts are available again.

NS&R look at your new thunder tiger and let me know what chassis they are using. The original B-3 was a short chassis, a 2s lipo fits almost perfect length wise. The worlds chassis was longer by 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. I have a worlds chassis on mine now, but I also have a short chassis and do not have a battery strap for it. If the new ones are short, I can get the correct battery strap finally. Thanks for your time, Dan.

nitrosportsandrunner

my battery tray is just over 6 inches long. my turnigy 2s 5000mah pack fits...with .5 inch to spare (there is a foam spacer there)
so, I assume its the worlds edition lenght chassis.

nitrosportsandrunner

after some more driving,
I found the throttle adjustments on the radio let me turn down the breaking force some.

And I checked the ball diff and found it to be fairly loose. I tightened it up some and hope this will tidy up the handling, so it doesnt spin out as easy.

I may put a pinion gear that is 1-2 teeth larger. There is no reason this buggy had to be geared soo low.

I did also see on TTR's site that the ESC is 3s rated. The tag that was attached to the buggies battery bar said 2s or 8cell nimh. I figure they did this for the drivetrain more than the ESC/motor. Both seem to run cool enough on 2s to handle 3s without issue.

Ttowntoolman

Must be the worlds/factory team edition. Thanks a bunch.

nitrosportsandrunner

using my friends phone, we clocked the phoenix at 27mph. Thats on a 2s lipo. Not exactly fast for a 4300kv motor.
It may be a finned out 380 motor, but the redcat caldera (larger 4wd truck) uses a finned out 380 and will do 35mph on a 2s lipo.
I have no idea why TTR would under gear the buggy so bad.
The motor is as far forward (toward the spur gear) as it can be.
I will buy some larger gears at the hobby shop and try to get some speed runs in this weekend. 35mph shouldnt be hard to achieve. With the currenty gearing, I can run a full 2s lipo and hardly feel any heat at all!

also, after just a few lipo packs on pavement the rear tires show a lot of wear.
The only youtube review mentioned that the tires were not that great.
Not only is there a lot of wear, but its not even.
Both of these pics are of the same tire! Its like when the wheel looses traction it doesnt touch threw half its rotation.

edit, getting a server error. will have to post pics later.

nitrosportsandrunner

I raced the buggy tonight.
27mph is plenty fast for the indoor track...LOL.
Buggy racing is WAY harder than SCT. The buggy is less forgiving of a heavy throttle finger.
They are harder to land cleanly, and you cant have the wheel turned when landing either.
And they just seem easier to spin out.

I will need better front tires...as it understeers on the tight corners.

I did do better the second round...a much softer touch on the throttle helped. I also adjusted the ball diff a little.

My SC10 I did way better with. I now have an ezrun 35amp in it, so I had to get used to the power increase. Its now a little loose in the rear, and jumping feels different. But its more me getting used to the new power than any fault with the truck.

Racing is addictive. If I had alot of money, I could spend a couple hundred every month just gettting new tires/motor and upgrades. And I only have 2 race vehicles!

BKoz559

My Feedback: (3)

Welcome to the 2WD Buggy class. Keep it up and this car will hone your driving skills as you learn to react to how it moves. Drive this for a while then try a 4wd SC truck; it's a night and day difference.

What Ifind is that motors in the 2000KV range work well. That's kind of why 17.5T stock class is so popular with these cars. It's plenty of power and you must resort to tuning and driving skill to win the race. Anything faster than 3000KV and geared for speed is a handful. It looks cool on pavement when you need to show off to your buddies, but it's not practical.

nitrosportsandrunner

pack # 6 and my rear tires are completely done. No tread left, one is almost blown.
Fronts started to come unglued as well.
2 of the packs were 3s, but I was gentle on the throttle...just doing speed runs.

The motor also came loose for the second time on a jump. Motor mount screws just dont seem to do the job. On top of that, the stock pinion is the absolute smallest one that can be used (so even with the motor moved as close as can be, the gear mesh is still not as tight as I would have it)
I have a 21t pinion coming.
I did put on a tboneracing front bumper, which works well and doesnt look bad.

So, if you buy one of these, but new tires. The stocks wear out tooo fast.

I planned on this being a racing buggy. But racing 2 classes at a time was stressfull. I think I will just race SCT for now.

So my phoenix will get some 2.2's front and rear and become a basher buggy