RSEA

Myfirst Tamiya RC tank project..has started, just started that is.

I know you've seen me championing the KV tanks lately.. And I do like them, but, with it being D-Day weekend and all, and after checking out some Porsche King Tiger photos.. I have started an affair with this particular version of the big cat (don't tell the KV, she might get mad at me lol). Me and King Tiger models (non-RC) go back a long time though. In the past, I never built the Porsche version, it was always the Henschel turret.

So far I have purchased the Tamiya 1/16 Static Porsche King Tiger kit. This kit has the same lower hull, suspension and wheels as the F/O Henschel kit. I plan to make it a Normandie Summer 1944 tank with Zimmerit. The KV is not forgotten though! It most likely will end up as my second IR battle tank....maybe for Christmas.. It really can be torturous just deciding which tank to get and build! I was really TORN over this one, but the sexy curve of that Porsche turret and the fact that the KV is still a few weeks from being released cemented my decision (at least I think..I tend to be unpredictable at times).

Prospective Parts List for this project:

Tamiya Tiger DMD units (getting a hold of these will be interesting to say the least)
Impact metal tracks
Impact gearboxes
Two Speed 380 motors (since I probably will not have any Tamiya gearboxes to extract motors from..)
Daryl Turner Idler adjusters
Wheel bearings instead of bushings...(maybe)

Heng Long - turret rotation, elevation and recoil units (instead of the Tamiya ones, as they appear to be more reliable, less expensive...should be able to get them working somehow)

Tamiya or Impact TBU system

Speaker box unit custom built (by me)

That is the basic plan for an IR battle tank that will see action at future DAK battles. This will be a switch hitter tank! Will sometimes wear removable American Stars so it can fight for the Allies, instead of just the Axis team all the time (which is already HEAVY on the heavies, Axis needs to loose weight and Allied needs to gain it haha). I cannot leave EdoubleAZ to fight the Squid Heavy Tank Battalion on his own all the time..than is not going to happen!

Any comments by those who have converted the Porsche Tiger II to RC are welcomed. I'm curious to hear what others have done with this kit.

Perry S.

Sounds cool. Let me offer some advice if I may. Buying all that stuff you probably gotten a FO KT and boutght the Porsche turret seperately. I would go wih HL 3:1 gearboxes. Like the new ones at RC command. Put in HL electronics and the turret servos as you mentioned. Get the new battle system at RC command as well. Impact tracks are good. If you don't mind having a bit of a ******* setup (and knowbody should) You willend up with something nice for a decent budget.
Ihavea Tam KT. Cam with the gearboxes, DMD, etc and I did pretty much the same.
Perry

bowlman

You can get the DMD's from AAF Tank Museum or from manheader at the evil place you may want to look at the Porsche barrel and gun mount from RC Command that is the one ill put in mine ya im doing a Porsche Kt also.

http://www.aaftankmuseum.com/kingtigermain.htm
http://www.rccommand.com/Tank%20Upgrade%20Parts.php
http://www.mitosal.com/kingtiger.html
http://etoarmour.com/products.php?ViewCategory=9
http://www.auctiva.com/stores/viewst...home&pageNum=9

Jimmy

RSEA

Maybe so, but it seemed like it would have been difficult to obtain only the Porsche turret and mantlet separately, since the Porsche kit has been discontinued by Tamiya. Tonight I discovered that it appears the Porsche kit has single bushing wheels versus twin bushing wheels on the F/O kit. I didn't know that when Ibought the Porsche kit, but it is a done deal so I'll have to make due with it. Buying the Porsche kit, the F/O Henschel kit, and Impact parts would total over a grand. Those damn DMD units are the most expensive components (when paired together, the cost of both units) of any of these Tamiya tanks. I do basically like the sound and functionality that they provide though. And my local club here is Tamiya TBU battle system based.. As far as I know, the HL battle system is NOTcompatible with Tamiya's.

One option would be to purchase aF/O Tiger I kit, build it stock out of the box asone running tank. Then swap the DMD units back n forth between the Porsche King Tiger and Tiger 1, as I can't be driving them both at the same time anyway. The poor man's method of having two different DMD tanks. I'm willing to swap them the day before a battle to save $300 to $400. This would give me two different tanks to run and I would not needto use metal tracksor gearboxeson the TigerI since it has been PROVEN that the Tiger I can reliably IR battleusing stock tracks and gearboxes.

Getting a F/O King Tiger kit instead,would have me end up with twoKing Tiger's.If I did that, I'd probably then want to put metal tracksand gearboxes on both of them, making that route more expensive andI don't know if I'd want TWO King Tigers even if their turrets were different..

It is already becominga problem and I don't even have the Porsche kit in hand yet lol. It would be so much easier tobe rich, buyall the kits I need to make myPorsche and then just take the remaining hull anddonate it as abattlefield prop to my club..Tax deduction for donating a King Tiger rolling chassis to charity?? Sell it on the evil bay? Then what about my beloved KV tank... How is that gonna happen after two Tigers? Would it be a cardinal sin to put KVDMD units in a Tiger?

You have to be crazyto getinto thishobby and I must have already lost my mind when I purchased that Porsche TigerDown the road I see a tank junky, looking to somehow scrounge money for his next tank fix... Scaryvisionto me andI am just getting startedlol.

EugeniRUS

Just buy a FO KT. You will have Porsche turret FO KT and static Henschel turet KT. That would be the best thing to do.

sevoblast

Single bushing wheels work well with one bearing, just requires a small shim with the bearing. Also, there is an easy and cheap way to make the Tam rotation unit more robust, just takes a dab of ACC and about 4 bucks worth of bolts and jam nuts. Elevation the same, and they both fit. Recoil, just takes some fabrication of a bracket for the system.
You will want to also make two hull braces, one front and one rear. This stops hull flex and helps track retention. Daryls Trans Brace works grand. Aligns the trans units and keeps them in place. Don't want any toe in or toe out on our tanks. The hull braces are simple brass strap bolted to the hull sponsons with 4 bolts per brace. Measure the lower hull width, and when installing your braces make the upper hull the same width.
Sealing the hull is another good idea. You can use a simple piece of foam rubber, cut to fit between the trans and hull and around the final drive shaft. Keeps lots of dirt and dust out of the tank. On the rear, there are two huge gaps to seal. I use plastic sheet cut to size and held in with bolts, and then sealed with dum dum. Also seal the front hull lower seam with dum dum. Stuff never hardens, and sticks well. I also cut a piece of foam strip insulation to go down the hull sponsons on either side, Again, keeps the inside of the tank clean and dirt free, and keeps the countryside out. You would be amazed at the amount of dirt and dust tossed up by our tank tracks.
For other info you can PMme or email.

sevoblast

Lets try the pic deal again. Still dinna work. Oh well. Itried.

bowlman

Im crazy then cause ive got a lot setting here to work on .

the single bearing wheels work good with the ball bearing upgrade from ETO Armor got them in my early made Henschel Kt will buy them for the Porsche KT .

Jimmy

RSEA

Thanks for the info Sevoblast, Bowlman, Perry and even from Eugeni in Russia (am still eyeing that KV)! Will check out those bearings from ETO.

I find this "new" Tamiya compatible TBU on RCCOMMAND interesting.. The $95package that interfaces with an HL RX18 control board. It is unclear whether this combination will work with a Hobby grade 75Mhz transmitter and receiver? I don't have an HL radio, nor do I want to get or use one. I likethe idea of beingable to create my own sound effects for the main gun, machine gun, hit and destruction sounds! The sample audio files gave me some crazy ideas about having the crew screaming in agony when my tank gets destroyed lol! I assume all engine sounds and turret sounds would be stock HL RX18 produced (which aren't really as good as the Tamiya ones, at least the engine effects, but oh well). Is there only one RX18 board with one set of sounds for all HL tanks? Or do they have different sounds for different HL tanks (ex. Tiger is different than Pershing)?

Good to know my level of insanity has not yet reached yours Bowlman Sounds like your in deep ===>> "Im crazy then cause ive got a lot setting here to work on ."

Sevo, never really thought about sealing the hull from dust and dirt... I thoughtyou only really had to be concerned about sealings onRC submarines... My tank won't be going in ANY water, but yeah, I guess these tanks get pretty filthy and dirty after several IR battles. When I get to that stage, I might be contacting you for a few more pointers.

bowlman

At this time the RC Command battle unit only works with hl transmitter he is working on a updated sound card and maybe down the road it will work with other radios .

Jimmy

RSEA

Well that is a bit of a downer...

philipat

That's not an issue of the RCCommand battle unit only working with the HLtransmitter. It's an issue of the RX-18 board only working with an HLtransmitter. The only way to get the RX-18 board to work with another transmitter is to put an EL-Mod or DBU system in the tank.

If you want to use your own transmitter, your best option is probably to stick with the DMD. But, you check with Bill at RC Command to see if the recoil system will work. I think his recoil systems are Tamiya systems that have been tweaked to work on HL and Matorro tanks.

RSEA

Installing an Elmod system including the CSI TBU is another possibility. It is my understanding that the Elmod has its own control board (Think Tank) and Blaster III sound module, so you DONOTrun an HL RX18 with it? I did not think the Elmod setup required any HL control board. Is this correct?

bowlman

Thats correct Talk to Phil on the El-mods some have had problems with the latest boards .

Jimmy

RSEA

I saw this cool little shortened Porsche KT B&W line drawing on a site called "crispyandtherocketman". I borrowed it and colored it, etc.with Photoshop. It isthe new compact version of the KT designed by Dr. Ferdinand Porsche, belonging to the Großporscheland Division with "Ambush"pattern cammo. It is ready to storm the Western Frontand reclaim lost German territory from the invadingAmerikaners. Its performance was said to be so excellent that it left the Amerikan tankers with their heads spinning, and in some cases, their heads burning as well..

edoubleaz

My Feedback: (1)

When you begin getting three dimensional with this project, do not forget to send me some photos so Ican start a build page for you.

RSEA

I'll let you know when I actually start assembling something.. I have a three dimensional Porsche KT static kit sitting in my house, just need to decide how I want to make it functional, and if I indeed want to make it my first and only tank for a while.. If it is not the Porsche KT, and something else, then the Porsche may become tank #2 sometime next year.

So, at this point, I don't know whether I will be battling with you or against you come October. Will you be my principal opponent on the battlefield this Fall, or will it be Squid? Only the Shadow knows..

edoubleaz

My Feedback: (1)

Well, If I finish my Jumbo or actually get into a KV-1, I will be shooting holes in you at your leisure.

Pzjgr

If your driving one of your Shermans it'll just be like Oddball said: "The only way I got to keep them tigers busy is to let them shoot holes in me" [sm=lol.gif]