CaptainB

Hi Guys,

Thought I should post something up as have not done that for a while.

I know some of us on here have had a go at this modification - thanks BIGMIG and WACKYwheelz but this is an interesting upgrade project on a 1/12th scale kids toy tank that does'nt run very well OOB. But, with a bit of work and using ALL Heng Long gearboxes, an RX14 board and speaker etc, this can be made into a great running tank. I am still working on this, so the turret section and lights are not yet installed but the running chassis drives just great with plenty of torque and speed. The tank is a Heilang 1/12th scale model - basically a kids toy that is modified as said. I think these are still available on Fleabay for a few quid but do make a good project - I've been trying to work on this for years but parked it, until all the new HL Abrams started to appear and that got my interest back.

The tracks are plastic from the HL Tiger 1 - needs about 2.5 track lengths to make a set. I've used metal sprockets just for wear resistance and made shaft supports from brass rod for the gearboxes. The rest of the tank is standard, although I have shaved off mouldings etc when they are incorrect.

Anyway, enjoy the pickies and I'll post some video when she's finished - by the way , the BB gun shoots fantastic - easily 30m and hard.

Cheers

CaptB

Airbrushler

another tank to add to the collection is always good ...looks good

CaptainB

Thanks Airbrushler - the surprising thing is how well this thing drives on the standard 3 shaft gearboxes and motors - it's really good. So, for about $50 spent for the basic tank, using my existing stash of HL parts and boards, I now have a large scale tank to drive around. Plus, it uses up the plastic Tiger Tracks that I guess, most of us have after upgrading to metal on that particular tank and who has only one right?

Cheers

CaptB

Max-U52

Is that the tank they used to have at Wallyworld (walmart) for around 80 bucks? I've been watching for one of those for a while with no luck. I think it would make a very interesting project and I'll be watching yours to see how it turns out. I'm really glad someone is doing one of these. It's really cool to see a tank that didn't cost an arm and both legs but still looks and drives great. Makes me really glad I saved all those plastic tiger tracks, because I'll find one some day.

CaptainB

Hi Max-U52,

Yes it is and I think you can still get them off Fleabay. If you search on the forum and type in 1/12th Abrams, you will see some old posts by BIGMIG and Wackywheelz who started this off really. Their solutions were more radical than mine as I think simples. This tank is definitely worth it to use up the spare kit you have and it looks really good.

Cheers

CaptB

CaptainB

Hi Guys,

Thought I would bump this one up a bit as I have hit a road block on this build. Basically the HL turret rotation gearbox that I was going to use in this tank does not have enough torque to drive the turret round. The turret is huge on this and is heavy and I can feel the friction as it sits on the hull. I was thinking of installing a large ball bearing race to reduce the friction and still use the HL drive but if anyone has any other suggestions for this problem - I'm all ears!!

Cheers

CaptB

Roboticus_Prime

And I thought my 1/16 Abrams was big!

Maybe one of those cheap turntables?

Something like this:

http://www.containerstore.com/s/kitc...uctId=10027812

Max-U52

I wonder if you could mount two HL rotation units, 180 degrees apart. Just run them in parallel.

I've also heard the airsoft motors are stronger than the rotation motors, maybe one of those would help?

Imex-Erik

You sure could two rotation units, but I'm not sure of the current drain especially on a heavy turret like that. I've got a few here if you need them guys. You could also try replacing the motor, but I would that would be kinda hard to increase speed and torque at the same time. Have you looked into getting a continuous rotation servo? Maybe a large scale one and using it? With all that space I'm sure it would be easy to mount. If you mod a regular servo you can make it both continuous and can control it like a brushed motor, but it might draw too much power that way.

CaptainB

Thanks for the response guys - I have tried a continuous servo and quite a large one at that and it still did'nt rotate. Two HL drives sounds interesting - that might work. Another thought I had was to mount a main drive motor and gearbox vertically - plenty of torque their. I'll ponder this some more and try a few things. I'll post the results when I can.

Cheers guys

CaptB


Hi guys, thought I would give this thread a bump as I have now overcome my technical problems with this project and consider this tank finished - just a bit of weathering to add.
I also have a bit of video to add.

Cheers

CaptB