ElMod and Tamiya Leopard 2 style drive information
 

Guys, as most of you know I distribute the ElMod units here in the states. There seems to be a bit of confusion about being able to use these boards on DKLM style transmissions, which work the same as the Tamiya Abrams and Leopard 2A6. Guys are saying that only Clark and IBU can run them...well this simply is not true. ElMod will run those as well as any other tanks out there. All you have to do is choose the beta motors in the setup menu of the configurator software. It is literally a click of your mouse and you are set. Just wanted to set things straight.

Joe,

Good info to know. But why? Seems like your putting a good Honda 1.5 liter turbo motor in a Lamborghini Aventador and tossing the Lamborghini motor, probably more reliable if done right or not.

:cool::cool::cool:

John

In all honesty John a lot of guys prefer the scale control over the race car electronics Tamiya offers. Though guys don't want to admit it, they are quite dated. However, this is more about the DKLM conversions than Tamiya. Their gearboxes work exactly the same as the Leopard 2 and Abrams where one motor drives and the other steers.

:cool:

Which “one” ElMod user guy are u referring too?

Amusing concept, never heard that before, Tamiya RC Tank DMD out of date. LOL. Says who? No one who actually builds Tamiya rc tank kits is saying that dude. Though, I guess the guys who do not purchase Tamiya kits, the kit bashers, used, beater rc tank buyers might claim that. What I do know to be true is that ElMod is a good cheap upgrade for a HL or Taigen rc tank.

In all honesty Joe, I absolutely do not believe your words as truth, but would like too. Pretty weak marketing tactic bro. FYI, Tamiya scale running is easily dialed in if and when needed. You would be hard pressed to give away a ElMod Tamiya hybrid, when the time arrives to sell it on. Probably, like never, ever, would one find a Tamiya collector willing to pay top dollar for a hatchet job, hybrid, Tamiya ElMod, down sized and cheapened model. Fine way to degrade a Tamiya Leo 2 rc model.

For the lower end HL, Taigen or Carson offerings, sure, but the Tamiya Brand has a world wide following including and past IR RC battle day participants and bashers, thus what you are trying to market and suggest is no doubt not workable, least with the purists Tamiya rc tank modelers, though good luck. Weaker marketing ideas have worked, you know.

Finish your Jagdtiger?

Happy New Year, Joe

Your responses are always good for a laugh John.

https://imgflip.com/i/22h7gp

Thank you Tom.

Joe is a really good modeler and FB friend, but also a New Jersey dude, got to watch out for those East Coast guys.

Probably wants the Leo 2 DMD Unit as a trade in too on the ElMod Unit.

So, you might have noticed the thread is a lot shorter this morning. Consider this a general warning to knock off the pot shots, cusssing, ranting, name calling, and anything I might have left out that doesn't pertain to discussing tanks.

I spend most of my time on the airplane side, so I would hate for the true tank enthusiasts for me to judge all of you by this thread so show me your good side.

PS If I'm back, someone will end up on MS

I would think that one aspect of the Tamiya electronics that is outdated is their reliance on the 4 channel radio. With SBUS and other multiplexed tech on the market, 12-32 channels on a radio are not unheard of. Of course I am one of those non-Tamiya tank people...to each his own. I like the fact there are other options out there besides Tamiya. If I want to dump a DMD for something else...that's my choice. If you want to laugh and point because of it...so be it. Good thing I don't base my self worth from the opinions of others.

OK, but do enjoy a little factual rc help based on build experience. You write to say you do not have and do not own a Tamiya rc tank, yet do not say what you do run? Well, if you ever change your mind; here is some good news for you! You can use as many channels as you want with a Tamiya electronics package. Channels one thru four are used to drive the tank, elevate and depress the main gun and operate the turret. Other channel functions are assigned to trim tabs, switches etc. FYI. Using multi channels to operate a Tamiya DMD MFU setup just requires any multi channel receiver and transmitter. A seven or eight channel rc radio system offers the flexibility to assign radar servo control, add a servo glitch suppressor, lights, and even add an accurate Benedini sound card (turn the Tamiya sound volume to low/off with a Y Cable to the MF), a camera position controller - in line to control the servo operated gun elevation and depression and so on and so forth. It is expensive to build a full option conversion using a static/display Tamiya 1/16 armor model, regardless of what electronics package you spec for your model. Converting another 1/16 rc tank brand to hobby grade electronics package is still an investment of few hundred dollars, but with a low resale value attached.

That final build cost will probably come close to matching the cost of a Tamiya kit, when all is said and done. Just another factor to consider. Been there done that with BARC, Benedini, Clark and of course Tamiya. While hybrid and converted rc tanks can be fun to build, it does not come close to the bang for your buck you will get from building a Tamiya kit. As stated before, the sale on for a well done Tamiya f/o RC Armor in good shape is excellent. The year round demand is very good and has been for years. The hybrid model, not so much.

Why only 4 channels: Anyway, the Tamiya IR RC TBU dedicated fighting tank just does not need a complex multi channel setup. Why? This infrared battle quick action game is to fast paced to be messing around with trim tabs, switches and nobs on a multi channel complex transmitter. An added button yes, for main gun firing works great though! Plus, you will forget all the complex transmitter commands in the heat of battle. LOL. Your RC TBU tank will die quick if you are fooling around with your multi channel complex transmitter and not maintaining game situational awareness.

Futaba 7 Channel setup with a Tamiya electronics package; photo below.

Most modern electrics let you assign functions off the two sticks so you have tamiya controls. You just get the rest without additional expense and faffing about. Hell I have fire switches on my 9xr pro without having to mess abut and alter wiring. Like you do on one of those over priced futaba 4 channel Hobies.

Thanks for the heads up on the info Joe. At some point I'll really need to pick your and Jim F's head and get into an Elmod system. Have the M-16 and Puma board but not the same as a full out tank board.

Anything you need brother. By the by can you give me a call when you have a second? I wanted to ask you about some parts.

Slowing down tonight but can give you a ring tomorrow pm or on Sunday?

Sounds good man. Thank you.

Wow guys, this is scalating...

Pcomm1, I must confess I love the Tamiya electronics... Because when I build a Tamiya kit, I can sell the electronics for quite a big cut and then I can invest that money in an ASP or in an Elmod and still have quite a lot money left for spending it in other things.

You should really give it a try to aftermarket boards. You will be very surprised that your tank will have WAY more functions. Wont you like to have 2 or 3 working machine guns? More realistic drive and sounds? Your own custom sounds like music, tank commander voices or wathever your imagination wants? To be able to switch very basic functions that most of the tamiya electronics does not have like switching lights? (And not only headlights, but working brake and reverse lights, convoy lights, searchlights) and an many many more?

I dont know you, but with my tanks I can play a bit more than 200 custom sounds, and I love each of them. Meanwhile with Tamiya... After 20 minutes of ultra basic functions I got bored. Tamiya electronics were OK back in the day when there was nothing else.

And also you dont need to make strange stick combinations, with any programable radio you can assign any function to any switch. You wont get lost in any heat of battle, is even easier than with the prehistoric tamiya radio.

Nice find Joe.

I don't have the pdsgb but should I get one I'll test out one of my elmods.

Thank you guys. There is no problem here. This is only a hobby for me. I distribute the ElMod units because Phil and I were close friends. He wanted me to take it over when he passed away because I had a good understanding and used them often. This is certainly not my income...or I would be homeless. With that said, I am happy to do it and be in the loop with these boards. They get better all the time and do work as advertised. Thanks for the support. I plan to get one of those gearboxes to test as well...but maybe I will do it with a Tamy Leopard just to make a few grown men cry. :)

All are valid and great aspects of this hobby we all love. You have to love it to stay with it. This is about me and not forcing my opinions on anyone. I can attest to the Taigen, Heng Long vs. Tamiya. They all have their benefits. With my personal experience of starting out with the Taigen Tanks, have moved on to Tamiya. After seeing 10-13 year old Tamiya’s still rocking and rolling, I bit the bullet and went Tamiya. I still have 2 Taigen Jagdtiger, not made by Tamiya and a Tiger 1. I did get an ElMod from Joe, and he’s been great with helping me getting it going. The simplicity of the Tamiya electronics kept me in the game. The ElMod is a great unit, especially since Tamiya ditched the lifetime warranty on their electronics. You also get to do modifications on the Tamiya’s. This is the exciting part, we can add lighting to a Tiger, get the machine gun to move. Cool stuff, the stuff that made us all tankers. The best thing Tamiya did is KISS keep it simple stupid with the electronis. Just my thoughts.

Joe, Can I look at the elmod products on your site, Armorcreations.weebly.com? I am at work right now and can not take a peek. :cool:

Thanks, Rudy

Maus the website is www.armorcreations.weebly.com
You cannot get on?

Thanks for the info Joe. It's nice to know.
I think John's response is typical of the Tamiya Fanboy attitude - not of someone his age. I love your builds John.... but seriously?
I know ElMod is not everyones cup of tea, but it certainly is nice to know that i can install it in my Tammy Leo 2 - thanks again Joe :)

No problem man. Thanks. The point wasn't actually about the Tamiya Leopard, but the transmission system it uses is the same as some of the aftermarket ones where one motor drives the tank forward/backward, while the other functions for turning. I am planning to buy the DKLM Abrams lower hull which comes with that style as well. I will build it around ElMod and do some videos.

May I ask about present Elmod boards?

The previous Elmod Fusion boards worked with 540 type motors. (This boards had programmable PWM frequency up to 5kHz) but didnt work with Tamiya Leo2A6 type gearboxes (one separate motor for driving and one for turning)

In this case dual ESC is required for example from SGS-electronic
https://www.sgs-electronic.de/websho...er/24_TVC-M-10

How the situation looks like in new Elmod boards?

P.S.
For me the problem in all Tamiya tank MFC's (I have experienced so far) is a high pitch tone. This noise is produced by the motor/motors itself. Probably the reason of this noise it is too low switching freguency in Tamya MFC units (in all Tamiya tanks and trucks) . I tested the same motors with another modules like German Servonaut or German SGS-Electronic - both using 16kHz switching frequency - no any noise was present.

WSN, if you go into the configurator software you change the motor type to BETA version. This is the "LEO STYLE" Gearbox. I don't know which version of Elmod you mean, but the firmware can be updated. Do you know how to do this or you need some help?

What is wrong with you guys?? My Community Moderator comes into this tread and has cleaned it up several times by deleting posts that should never have appeared in the first place. Now since you have failed to listen to him you are now going to deal with me instead.

Ok gentlemen, it's time to some serious thinking around here??? You may ask yourself "what thinking". Well, I'll be more than happy to tell you exactly what I mean by this. It is time that you think and decide if this petty childish bickering that has been going on is worth the around of attention you are now going to get from me!!!! Now I haven't directly Moderated this forum for quite a few years now, but I know that the people involved with this bickering have been here long enough to know that I don't pull any punches and that I also won't hesitate to take Administrative actions if I'm not listened to with what I am about to tell you. So here is it, you guys need to quite bickering like little children here. This included direct and outright attacks on each other. Period. It ends here and now are I'm going to start sticking people in the corners until they learn to work and play well with others. And when I say "the corner" I mean placing you on Moderated Status until you can learn to play well. While on MS any post you make will be held and not appear in the forum until a Moderator/Administrator reviews the post and either approves it or deletes it. In addition, while on MS if you can't prove to me that you can get along with everybody else you may find yourself banned from RCU completely. I would prefer to not have to go to that, but don't fool yourself that I won't take those actions.

Now I apologize to those of you in this thread that have not done anything to contribute to this problem. However, I had to do this because those that have been causing the problems (and you know who you are) don't seem to get the messages that have been sent to them so far. So let's bury the hatchets and get back to ENJOYING the HOBBY that we all love so much.

Ken