Imex-Erik

Yes swapping to a 4:1 gearbox will help with turning. Since you already have a 3:1 you can look into getting some motors as this is the cheaper alternative. I'm pretty sure you get either 10 or 20A from that board per motor right? A nice low KV motor should take care of that turning issue I have had good luck with Banebots for motors, they are cheap and have lots of stats available.

Oh and check your inbox, I'll make sure you have some compensation for the broken pieces

pedzola

Thanks Erik, sent you a PM back. Very generous, and much appreciate the support from IMEX.

Update: Getting a little frustrated.

1) Can't get tail light to work. Connector is a different size on on the ibu vs stock, so not a direct fit. I thought maybe I had the wires backwards (+/-) but swapped them and still didn't work. Not clear if the LED is out or if the IBU isn't working correctly. Anyone have an idea how I can test this? I put the LED wires up to a AA battery directly and nothing.

2) I got the driving dynamics to a place where it mostly works. Had to turn the super spin back on at 80% and still barely turns on carpet. No torque. Ordered banebots motors, and plan to upgrade to dual-ratio boxes when they are available. Hoping this will solve my driving problems. Ordered a pair of 395 and 370 motors also for experimentation. Do the 370's fit the dual ratio boxes?

3) The sound died. SUPER frustrating. Everything was working, then all of a sudden next time I booted up no sound. With my wiring a mess still I thought maybe I bumped the volume control. But volume 100% one way or other makes no difference. Not sure where to start to diagnose this problem. Will check all my wiring I guess. Hope it's not the IBU2.

4) IBU has control for duration of the "pulse' to fire the airsoft gun, but has no corresponding delay time for the canon sound (when it was working). Having a lot of difficulty getting the right pulse length (in milliseconds) to wind up and fire the canon consistently. Looks like it is not possible to line up the cannon firing sound though even if I get the exact milisecond pulse length correct. I'm afraid to damage the IBU taking the card in and out so many times to adjust the ini file for this.

5) More busted plastic. A piece on the front broke off. The plastic on the upper hull is very brittle!

6) It looks like, despite the many menus and options in my FlySky i6, that it is not possible to set up the transmitter to fire the gun or MG on a switch. Maybe I am missing something. If anyone knows how to do this, please let me know.


So, in summary... I'm having a crap time over here. If anyone has ideas or suggestions please feel free to let me know.

Airbrushler

[QUOTE=pedzola;11965812]Alright, quick update...

Got my replacement tank today. Erik, this one was much better packed, thanks! However the 2 exposed "open triangle" supports on the upper hull were both broken again. Fortunately all the pieces were there, and I was able to superglue them - so no problem.

sometimes that stuff don't bother me i consider it Battle Damage might be getting this one back i miss my Prototype..lol

sdfhh

like to see new guys join the hobby once you get your tank set up you will be all set and buying more than just one ...lol
painting will easy after a while i painted my Pershing 5 times before i liked it...lol

Airbrushler

why would you copy and post what i posted ?

ausf

Can't help with the IBU-centric stuff, but with the Tx, to get switches to activate, you need to be able to mix, not sure about that radio though. Generally you take a switch like flaps or gear and mix if to 100% of the stick function that fires the gun. I use the Tamiya setup, which has elevation and gun controls on the right up and down stick. That's generally considered the elevator, so I'll mix in 100% down elevator (which is up gun) to flaps. The idea is while flying when you add flaps or drop your landing gear, you want to make adjustments to counter the new input. In tanks you use that to trigger the function you want. So when you hit the flap, which would trip that servo to full, the mixed channel will also trip to how it was set.

That said, the most reliable way to add button function is to just solder in a momentary switch and install it in a convenient location. The flap and gear switches are on/off.

In terms of LEDs, connecting to a AA isn't a good method. If you're going to stick with RC, pick up a cheap multi-meter (usually under $10). That way you can test the board pins for power, LEDs for function, wires for continuity, etc. There's a lot of things it would help with in terms of diagnosis.

Imex-Erik

I have should have an IBU2 board on the way shortly. I will see what I can do to help It is totally new to me as well, but at least there is some good documentation on it so far. I was also interested in the nice RC truck board they released a few months ago but I'll have to wait for that one a bit...

What plug is there for the LED lights? Is it the same size as the motor plugs and power connector? I know ours are the mini 2p ones, you might need to steal a 2p connector off something. Could you take a pic for me please?

Oh and to test the LED for our lights you can tape two AA batteries together and use that for a 3V power supply. Make sure not to do it too long, just to test if it works.

AELock

You can edit the main gun sound file with Audacity and add silence in front of the sound effect. The duration of silence depends on how fast your gun winds up before firing. Adding 1.5 seconds of silence worked for me. You need a good battery to get super consistent results.

You can get JST 2.5 XH 2-pin connectors on ebay if you can't find a spare.

I have taken in and out that micro sd card hundreds of times now and it still works, don't worry about playing with it too much. It's a toy after all ��

Tanker 10

Have you contacted your vendor for help with your tank set up? I'm thinking of purchasing the ibu2 also, watching this thread closely. I hope you can work it all out.

pedzola

Ausf - Thank you, yes I need to get a multimeter for testing. Will do this soon.

Erik - The AA method of testing the LED turned up no light. It's likely that I fried it by plugging it in backwards. Does IMEX have replacements? Or is it just a standard 3mm 3v LED that I can probably find online for cheap? Also - good luck w/the IBU2!

AELock - good idea on sound delay. I haven't gotten the canon to fire consistently yet so I guess I'm still looking for the correct timing. So editing the sound file isn't going to help me yet. Have you used the IBU w/an airsoft tank? What is your delay time?

Also, I ended up cutting the connector off the smoke unit switch since I'm not using that anymore. Wired it up both ways and tried it w/the tail light LED intensity set to 100% and nothing (just like the AA test...) so assuming my LED is not working.

RaceEng - Ian at RCTankElectronics in the UK has been super fast about getting back to me w/my questions. Any issues w/the IBU I've had are either user error or design flaws, but the service from Ian has been excellent.

Here is the current status....

1) Sound is fixed. Ian said the likely cause of the sound loss in my case was that the card was seated incorrectly or corrupted somehow. I removed the micro sd and replaced it, and the sound was back. Easy. He also provided a tool and instructions on reformatting the card if I needed to do that.

2) Determined the rear LED light is dead, will need a replacement. Probably nothing wrong w/the IBU2.

3) One potential flaw w/the IBU2 that I've encountered - trim. W/the stock electronics the left/right trim clearly adjusts the power to each track. Great for overcoming one track w/slightly more resistance than the other, etc. The way I'm currently set up w/the IBU2 and flysky, adjusting the trim seems to change the overall speed of the turning, but not the tracks individually. (does that make sense?) I've emailed Ian about this to see if there is something I'm missing.

4) I'm not really happy with the way the top half of the KV2 latches to the bottom half. There is a metal bracket that includes a latch to the bottom plate. The problem is that this bracket doesn't fit with my current setup. I have some motor wires that are too short to run around it. So I've removed the bracked for now.

Although I will be getting new motors and eventually new gearboxes, (so I will do some re-wiring) I still need a fix for right now.

I could bend the bracket to make it work - if the bracket bends... I'm afraid to try! Erik - do you know if the bracket will bend or snap? BAsically, I want the flat part where the tab is attached to be shorter. Currently like this: --___-- Would prefer like this ---_--- if that makes sense.




I think that's it for now... anxiously awaiting my banebots motors, but I think I won't have the tank working the way I want it until I am able to score new gearboxes. Erik, tell them to hurry up that boat!

Will take some pictures when I can... the tank looks great, even if its not moving the way I want yet.

Tanker 10

Yes, I've been in contact with Ian, he is very good with responding to emails.

pedzola

Quick update...

1) I removed the stock bracket that attaches upper to lower half. Fabricated simple aluminum bar to replace it, which, amazingly, holds the the upper hull pretty snugly without any actual clasps, etc. (Got the size just right I guess). I will look at ways of shoring it up further, but right now my upper is a simple friction fit onto the lower half, and it works great. No more conflict w/the motor wires.

2) Figured out how to put main gun firing onto a switch on my FlySky i6. For anyone doing this - stick mode 2, set switch D to throttle hold (this is the default), assign throttle hold value to 0% or 100% depending on if you want the main gun or machine gun, and then set the endpoint of channel 3 to 75% on that side. So for me, push left stick all the way up and it only hits 75%, thus elevating the barrel. Flip the switch and my airsoft fires... Perfect.

3) I cleaned up the wiring a bit. There was an extra 2-wire plug coming out of the airsoft gun that previously connected to the main taigen board. In all of my scouring the internet and wiring diagrams I couldnt' figure out for the life of me what this is for. It is not necessary for my tank w/the IBU2 to function properly. (But it's sitll hanging there, in the way). I finally determined that this is a switch that let the taigen mobo know when the tank fired. Maybe to synchronize the sound? Don't know... in any case I zip tied it up in the turret so it's out of the way.

4) I got my banebots motors in the mail. But... where the heck do I get a pinion for this? Looks like 2.3mm shaft... circular, not flat on one side. Anyone know where I can get the proper pinions for these motors so they'll work w/my tank gearboxes? Also - what is the resistor for on the stock motors? Do I need these on the banebots?

5) In cleaning up the interior I also laid down some dubro foam to protect the electronics. Was a little skeptical of an open circuit board just bumping around in the tank. Hopefully this will maybe absorb some vibration and prolong the life of the IBU2, etc.

6) I still need a source for LEDs. Need to replace the rear which appears to be toast, and would like to get a warm white bulb up front. Would be nice to find a different housing for the front bulb as well, if anyone has ideas.

7) NEEEED the new gearboxes. Erik please let us know when there is an ETA! Also got some 370 size banebots in case those fit in the dual ratio boxes which I plan to purchase.

8) I noticed that the gun elevation in my torro doesn't depress at all, "flat" is the bottom. In taking apart the turret it was obvious that the stock elevation motor only provides a limited amount of movement, even though the gun itself will move further. So I'm thinking maybe I will replace this with a servo. The IBU2 has standard servo outputs for gun elevation and traverse. Anyone replaced these servos before? Any tips or ideas? Would need some kind of mounting solution I guess, etc.

I think that's it for now....

I am planning to start a new project soon.... an arduino driving board. Will start a new thread on this when I get into it. But short story is that I want tank electronics that 1) can drive 2 brushless ESCs, 2) realistic driving control - not sure if I'll do it for the KV or a new tank yet but will model on the real thing. I think that's it. After the driving works, I'll work on sound, which is the other major letdown of my RC tank, even w/the IBU2.

Imex-Erik

Ok lets see if I can help....
-Yes we do have some replacement 3mm LEDs if you need and yes they are similar to all others out there SMD flat lights might give you a more brilliant color than our flat ones but I have them if you need.
-Don't worry about breaking that bracket, I can get you a new one if you need. It should be strong enough to bend a few times. I know it is a pain to drill through
-Pinions. I scored a few off Amazon for around .99 each but you will have to endure China ship times. You will most likely need an 11T, though please count before you order if you dont want to change motor mount positions. Make sure to grind a flat on the motor shaft before you attach the pinion if it has a set screw (they should, 2.3 press fit sucks IMO).
-2 wire plug from turret... Yes you are correct, that is the contact switch that the firing units hit after firing to tell the motherboard to initiate a track recoil and sound effect. Here is the diagram:

-Banebots motors. Just reuse the old cap off the stock motors if you can. I have ran them a few times without any EMI but I do run lipo so that helps a lot. I unfortunately do not know the values of the resistor, maybe someone else does and can chime in?
- LEDs. I use digikey, sparkfun, or even DX if you dont mind the wait. Of course we have some too that are ready to go
-Please be careful of buying 370 motors as they are a few mm longer and might cause a problem ok? Make sure and measure before ordering. The dual ratios will be a few months behind the 3:1 and 4:1 gearboxes. They are going to release in a month or so. The dual ratio gearboxes I was not happy with again and had all new molds made for them New motors are going in them, and of course new bearings. Be careful if you get the ones from Asiatam, they are the ones I rejected for motor weakness and no bearings.
- Yea gun elevation is not as fluid as servo elevation. It is a lot quieter as well, I definitely recommend it if you are thinking about it. Immortal Hobbies used to have a tutorial on it somewhere...
-Please let me know when you start on the Arduino board project ok? My tank is slowly coming along with my weak flight control boards but I am waiting on my APM to get here. Right now a $18 control board gives me a tank mix (done via board, not TX), turret control, and elevation outputs. When the APM comes I will work on a OSD for the FPV goggles and get GPS working. My problem atm is sound as well, I need to figure out how to connect the two systems.

pedzola

Excellent, I will send you an email.

Thanks I might play with it, but for now my friction-fit-bar is working out. You can see it in the picture below. I will likely add some guides for the bar on the sides and then call it done.

Does anyone have a couple pinions? Why is sourcing this stuff such a PITA? lol

I would hope that the dual-ratio boxes wouldn't require a motor upgrade, but seeing as how they're so far out I guess it's all hypothetical. Really unfortunate, I will have to consider the 4:1, or other options.

I found some waltersons gearboxes that look promising, but no US distributor (Maybe something IMEX could consider?). VERY difficult to find info online. Have emailed a couple foreign shops w/no response.

No lack of projects!

Will do. I'm thinking a Tiger might be a good platform w/a bunch of interior space. Erik - is it possible to buy a gutted metal Taigen Tiger? I'm not sure the best/most economical way to get the parts. Maybe just buying the whole tank and taking out what I don't need will be the best way still. The new Jagdtiger seems like it would be excellent. Any idea when that will hit store shelves?


And because half the visitors to this thread will just skim for pictures... here they are, finally... the KV2 is a nice looking tank.


Note my IBU2 is sitting on some dubro foam. I have another piece on top that I removed for the photo.

For anyone looking, this is a completely stock KV2 on the exterior. Did not touch anything aesthetic, just the electronics.

Imex-Erik

Ok no problem on the bars or the bracket, I have extra just in case ok?
I did have some pinions, I'll look around and see if I still have one. I bought like 6 but I think I installed them all with the brushless projects. I think I only have 10T anyways....
Yea the dual ratio gearbox delay is a PITA, but there is no sense in releasing a product I am not happy with. Sourcing a high torque slow speed 360 motor is kinda difficult...
The 4:1 are great, just get way bigger motors than you need and limit the top speed with your TX endpoints. Easy solution there
Waltersons gearboxes are ok, but I doubt we shall carry them. I believe Immortal has those?
Gutted Tiger? PM me and lets talk. It might be a good idea to watch our S&D sales and pick up a damaged one for super cheap. Then you can have all the electronics and wiring for just a hair more than just the pieces. Either way you still don't know what I have stashed back here, give me a PM or something and I'll see what I can do.
My Ardutank will start in about a week. I am gathering info on electronics and servos now to make the conversions. The OSD, GPS, BEC, and telemetry is here already and I installed the CC3d board in it last night to test motor mixing (built in setting, no special TX mixing) and got it to work the tracks just fine. When the APM board gets here I will hook up the good electronics and see if I can get this to do some missions. The GPS is a uBlox M8N so it has decent resolution, I just hope I can get it all working

pedzola

Alright, if anyone is still reading this thread, I have an update...

First of all, AELock's KV2 is awesome. If mine worked like this, I would be done and happy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIqVhCR3RxM
I did get to take my tank out in the snow last night. I think the KV suspension is designed for snow driving. Tons of fun! This is why I bought the tank.


1) Unfortunately the lack of torque was readily apparent on the larger snow obstacles and when turning. REALLY need a new gearbox to make the KV shine. Clearly AELock's 4:1 is working well, but I'm still exploring the options.

I found these waltersons gearboxes: http://www.tankzone.co.uk/cart/acc_gb.htm

Some steel, some brass. They are "3-speed" with interchangeable pinion gears. My impression is the lowest gear is "5:1."

Unfortunately Walterson's won't respond to my emails. Tankzone told me they don't make any that fits a KV1. But I'm thinking if they have a model for Tiger 1 / Sturmtiger, based on my research, it should be the same thing, right? Maybe a clearance issue....

I just emailed Curtis at Immortal Hobbies. Looks like he has had Waltersons gearboxes in the past, so I wonder if he can still get them.



2) So, what else? I bought a couple of replacement parts from Tamiya (for their KV1/KV2) in hopes of replacing my stock headlight with something a little more realistic. The Tamiya headlight is a little smaller, different shape, and clearly won't fit the stock LED inside, so I still have some fitting to figure out there. It was about $25 for the parts shipped. Low priority project.


3) Also, I ordered a couple of servos. I want to give a try at servo elevation for the gun at least. The stock elevation is disappointing. Since the IBU allows for easy servo control, hopefully I can also figure out how to easily mount the servo and make it work. Lots of room in the KV turret so hopefully with a little epoxy and a simple bracket I'll be good to go. Will post pics if/when I get that working.


4) Lastly, I ordered the IBU2 audio upgrade package (TPA + 2 speakers) from Ian at RCTankElectronics (http://rctankelectronics.weebly.com/). I am a little concerned about fitting 2 speakers into my KV2, but hopefully it will work. Maybe one speaker can fit in the turret. If it doesn't fit then I guess I just need to use the KV as my arduino platform and get a new tank to put the IBU2 gear into.



And finally, (lastly again?), just want to thank Erik again for his enthusiastic support. I needed some spare parts and he is on top of it.

Erik, I have a wish list - I want tank destroyers. The JagdTiger is awesome, but how bout something Soviet in origin? Taigen has an excellent KV hull, as I can attest to, and also the new T34 hull. Can't we get an SU upper half for one of these? My favorite, the SU152.

Since I'm probably looking for tank #2 sooner than later, I've been looking at the Jagdpanther and Sturmtiger. Anyone have either of these? Feedback? Anyone still reading this thread? O_O

AELock

Well, first of all, thank you for that awesome intro.

I was having the same exact problems months ago. I tried most of solutions I found on the web. I started with the cheap solutions like greasing things up, better battery, messing around with transmitter settings and many others, I even tried on plastic tracks. But only after the motor and gear upgrade did the frustrations go away. Well maybe 90% of them, the remaining 10% keeps things fun and interesting.

I too am very interested with the sexy Sturmtiger.

Here's a neat driving trick I discovered with the ibu2 pro. This is with the throttle trim all the way up. This may give you slower movement and the single track turns you wanted. I'm not sure if stock gears will give you a close enough result but it may be worth a try. I think I left my power scale at 90%, making it a little jumpy.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHy4j4vORDc&feature=youtu.be

pedzola

That is exactly the type of movement I am trying to replicate in my tank. So you just set the trim high for consistent speed then maybe set the endpoints lower on the channels?

Couple questions for you. 1) Where did you find pinions for your banebots motors? 2) Where did you get your turnigy radio? Thinking about getting one. The FlySky i6 I think is not as customizable. 3) Do you have a shot of your tank interior? Just curious how you have things laid out. Have you replaced the stock bracket with some other mechanism?

Thanks AELock. You are clearly the more creative and artistic tanker but I'm glad I can learn. The KV is a bit "cartoony" so I think the aesthetic you have going with it is perfect. Love the anime theme and the exageration of the accessories you have on the outside. I will be happy with mine just once the movement is correct. I am starting to think maybe i should have gone IR instead of BB, but will worry about that later.

AELock

Just the full throttle trim. I didn't do anything to the endpoints, I don't even know what are those to be honest. I'm also very new to this hobby.


I took the pinions from the stock motor.


My tx rx combo came from rctanksaustralia
http://rctanksaustralia.com/shop/ind...cPath=19_20_65
It comes all in and ready to use.


No I did not remove that bracket. I'll take a photo as soon as I can when I get home.


Yeah I'm not really not into super accurate details. I just like having lots of fun with my tank
Converting your KV-2 from bb to ir is very doable with the ibu2 PRO. I found lots of guides here in RC Universe.

Imex-Erik

Ok lets see if I can help here...
- If you need torque you only really have 3 options. Different gearbox, upgraded motors, or brushless. The motors are the cheapest option, but finding them in a low KV can be a issue. The 4:1 will give you plenty of torque at the cost of a bit of speed. IMO it is well worth it. Brushless is really only an option if you are running an ElMod.
-LED lights.... there are plenty of places that can get you some really nice LED lights. Check around for some SMD style lights, they are very bright, come in a variety of colors (warm white would be awesome) and come in a bunch of sizes.
-You can always 3d print yourself a mount Then you could use some modeler's putty or some epoxy to mount it. Might be a bit ugly but should be very solid.
- Please let me know how the package sounds. I have my tracking number but it is crossing the pond now and you know how that goes. Each day to wait is torture!
- And of course you are always welcome! That is what I am here for

Now for tank destroyers... these are my favorite and with Russian tanks being my favorite as well this is something I am of course trying to push. If we were to reuse a hull, I would think the T34 would be a prime candidate. I highly doubt we would invest that much effort and planning into the lower hull to not use it again
Also yes, I do own a Sturmtiger myself, I have 4 actually The Jagdpanther I have only 1 atm. What questions you got on them? I like the Jagdpanther myself, with a nice metal lower hull I think it would be a very impressive tank.

kizwan

My tanks just roll down on its own when moving down. Why your tank didn't? Can you share your secret?

pedzola

Well I got my servos in today. Ordered a couple of HiTec HS81's and an HSR-1425 continuous rotation servo.

Came up with what I thought was a very elegant mounting solution for my elevation servo by cutting up a curtain rod bracket and zip tying the servo to it. The only catch is that I need to eboxy it into the turret, because there is no other way to hold it in there.

So.... turns out the HS81 is struggling w/moving my barrel. Tried messing w/the linkages a bunch... have a ball link and tried various methods of attaching it to the airsoft unit to move the gun up and down)...

But the HS81 growls at both ends. It just can't hold in place the full up or down positions without struggling.

Been messing w/it for hours so I'm done for tonight. But I might need to try a different servo or maybe figure some other attachment method out. Have an idea for bending a paper clip that I will try tomorrow....


Won't epoxy my mount into place until I know that it's going to work! Will be semi-permanent, in the sense that if I have to remove or replace the servo after the mount is in place it will pretty much be a a huge PITA and a delicate operation.

So, hoping to get this right the first time....


The good news, the IBU works great for servos....


Will post pics if/when I figure this out. Right now I'm thinking I wasted some $$ and need to bite the bullet on something w/higher torque. Room isn't a big issue in the KV turret so might have to move up to a larger servo. Will see...

Imex-Erik

I'm surprised 3kg wont work. Is it the linkage that is binding?

blimp uk

" the HS81 growls at both ends ". . . sure sounds like too much servo arm movement causing the servo to jam , you can try moving the servo further away from the gun axis / move the linkage to a hole closer to the servo , or , if your Tx is capable , alter the end point adjustment . Any of these will give less arm travel . Blimp .

Strato50

I love my KV-2, it's a beast and is still pretty nimble and maneuverable for it's weight.

I'm running a Clark board with steel 4:1 gearboxes w/ bearings, and it's still quick. You'll find that the large sprocket on the KV keep's the speed high even with lower ratio gears. Also the relatively narrow distance between the right & left tracks means you'll often see the 'inside' track turning in a tight turn like you mentioned... something you can't really help. That big sprocket puts a lot of leverage on the gearbox so it'll turn easily. On grass I usually completely stop the tank then execute a hard turn to keep the radius down.

Here's a thread detailing my build, parts, methods etc. You picked a solid tank as a first, enjoy!!

http://can-amrctankclub.forumotion.c...o-s-kv-2-build