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Tamiya TT02 Build and Review

Fusion Hobbies recently delivered me a nice new TT02. Again it arrived quickly and well packaged with the great customer support and go...



Fusion Hobbies recently delivered me a nice new TT02. Again it arrived quickly and well packaged with the great customer support and good prices that have made them so popular


The Tamiya TT02 is the new replacement for the ever popular TT01 and hence it is an important car. The TTO1 has been one of Tamiya's big success stories over the last 10 years, this car will be a lot of varied things to a lot of different people so lets see if this is able to carry on with that winning formula.



Getting started

The Manual is Typical Tamiya quality, but it is always a good idea to give it a quick read and check you have all of the needed tools to start the build. You will need
  • Phillips drivers (Std and a smaller one for the Diff screws)
  • Cutters (For the sprues)
  • Tamiya Wrench (included)
  • 1.5 mm Hex head driver (There is an alan key included)
  • Sharp knife (to cut off any excess plastic)
Bearings
The kit includes bushings which are fine for most casual users, however bearings really help a car run better. They increase running time, overall speed and also dont wear down. I intend to do a lot of running / racing and testing with this car so I included them in my build. You will need the following sizes
  • 8x 1050
  • 4x 1280
  • 4x 1150
Tamiya do a set (part number 54476) RC Bearings sell a set if you need them here

So lets begin the build

Stage 1 - Checking the wheelbase
Configuarable wheelbase.. The TT02 is even more configurable than the TT01, so it is good to check what wheelbase your body has before building the car. I am building the Ferrart 458 so looking at the seperately included body instrictions I can see that it uses the standard 257mm wheel base and has the low ground clearance setting and the car uses the std width setting. 

The TT02 is able to be configured in many ways so you are able to make a rally car, street racer, Hyper car etc 

Stage 2 - Spur assembly

We are working on the prop shaft, straight away you can see a difference, the main prop shaft cups are longer than the TT01 and also they are both the same length (The TT01 had unequal shafts) this will help with the rotating mass and it is encouraging to see how this works with the new shorter prop shaft.

The Spur is 70t and the fitting is really nice, there is a Cross fitting so the shaft cup connects to the spur with the metal pin and the carbon enforced plastic of the spacer, this is an improvement over the TT01

Stage 3 - Prop Shaft

Now on to the rest of the prop assembly. The Shaft is now made of carbon re-enforced plastic and it is also now shorter and the shape is structurally stronger. This will allow more power to be ran through the car without needing to upgrade the prop shaft (An essential upgrade for the TT01 if fitting a hotter motor). The proof will be in the running, however a quick bench test shows it is much stiffer than the old tt01 part.

The Shaft also now has an end that is keyed in to the cups, this gives a really good fit with lots less slop than the TT01 shaft, giving a more spritely acceleration. The whole assembly feels really good.

Stage 4 - fitting the Main Prop
Now its time to fit the prop in the chassis. 

The chassis has also been totally redesigned and its great! First thing thats a big improvement is that Lipo's fit in with no hassle. The lower bulkheads are also moulded on to the chassis, this will make strong against collisions, but importantly as they are solid they will not warp / twist to impact the power deliver to the shaft.

Another plus is that the underside has a skid plate all along the middle of the car (Again, great for rally) and there are no other holes, allowing dirt to be kept out.

To be honest the chassis reminds me of my old Tenth Technology DTM car, and thats a very good thing.. 

Stage 5 - Diffs

The diffs are the same overall design as the TT01, however a big change is that the bevel gears are now made from re-enforced plastic and not steel. This is massive improvement, it makes the diffs lighter helping throttle response as well as also reducing the weight of the car. 

Tip - I use Tamiya AW Grease in the front diff to make it a little more sticky and help you give a little more front drive out off corners.

When making the diffs just ensure you cut any excess plastic off the bevel gears, this will ensure its a nice smooth diff. I found they went together really quickly and I only sparingly used grease on the ring gear.

Stage 6 - Front of the car upper bulkhead
We just need to fit the top of the bulkhead, and the suspension mounts. This is a pretty easy step, I personally do not use Grease on the hingepins as it just attracts dirt. 

TIP - Check you fit the diffs in the bulkheads as per the instructions. On the TT02 you can fit them either side so you could pop them in the car incorrectly and the car wont actually move once you apply the power. Just build them so when looking at the chassis from the top, the front diff bevel is on the left and the rear diff bevel is on the right.

The shock tower has been redesigned, there are now 2 mount settings on them for tuning, its the same design front and rear. It is now also a separate part and not moulded to the bulkhead (An issue with the TT01) its also made with stiff plastic, it is still attached to the top suspension arm, its not a problem but I would have preferred it to have another suspension mount.

The front arms are also redesigned, lighter and also stronger with less flex ensuring a more responsive car. 

Stage 7 - Rear of the car 

Again really simple, same procedure as the front.


Stage 8 - Fitting the Motor
The TT02 has a simple motor mounting plate which stops any issues for alignment, but obviously restricts gearing options. The Motor plate allows a whooping 10 different pinions, the kit comes with a 22t pinion. If you are going to race these cars a lot I would suggest looking to get a Steel or Hardened pinion, although for onroad the stock one will be fine for quite some time.  

The TT02 also has a plate for fitting a 380 motor.. This is fantatstic for beginners and you can safely race your car with a 380 motor and then simply swap in a 540 style motor to get more speed and power. 

Another upgrade is that the motor mount is also now attached via 2 screws under the chassis. This is a massive improvement and will ensure there is no wobble, even with fast motors.


Also ensure that the motor mount has the markings at the front to ensure you get the best mesh. I am building it with the kit motor for the review, although will fit brushless in a future update.

TIP - TT01's use 0.6 mod pinions. Fusion sell a wide range of steel ones by RW racing these will last for ever and are great value Just follow this link 0.6 mod pinions

Stage 9 - Lower arms

The lower arms now have their own mount thanks to the bulkhead changes. This is a good thing and it also means that the suspension mount will take most of the impact in a crash, not the actual bulkhead, this would be a great thing for those who rally the chassis.

Easy fit, just check they move easily and are not binding.
Its then time to fit the front and rear bumper mounts. again an improvement over the TT01, better fitting and they feel more sturdy.

Stage 10 - Front uprights

All quite easy, they are different to the TT01 parts as they now have 1050 bearings and the shafts are longer for the height adjustments. They are stiff plastic and the bearings clip in nicely

Next up is fitting them to the arms, here the TT02 shows its new adjustibilty, You can set the hubs to be for low (Racing) or High (Rally) clearance. The following parts are included and you just need to follow the manual. I set mine for low as I intend to race it before trying out the Rally spec.

Stage 11 - Rear uprights

Easy, The rear uprights are able to be turned upside down to allow better ground clearance, again I went for the low setting.. although I could make it look like a dragster and just raise the rear... ;) This shows the simplicity and design ingenuity of the Tamiya Designers, it so simple I am surprised others haven't done this before.

Stage 12 - Shocks
Shocks.. Friction stock are included.. easy to make fine for messing about with street driving, bashing and beginners racing, although I would upgrade if I was serious about racing. They fit on to the towers with step screws and feel fine when attached.  The springs are stiffer than Tamiya Yellows but softer than Tamiya Blues

Fusion sells a range of springs and shocks that you can add (you want 55mm ones) here

Stage 13 - Steering 

The TT01 has a lot of slop in the steering, it was one of the most annoying things about the car especially if you wanted to start hopping up the chassis to be more precise. Luckily the TT02 has a new steering set-up, its much much better as it uses trapped pivot balls to create a steering set-up with much more articulation than a stock TT01 (Again another issue was the front arms of a TT01 had restricted suspension movement unless you added ball cups).
Use plyers to pop the balls in the arms as they are quite stiff

So not only does the suspension have better articulation out of the box, this system also reduces slop dramatically! It honestly feels pretty impressive.

The servo arm also uses the trapped pivot ball system, reducing more slop around the steering.

All sorted  nearly there now!



Stage 14 - Fitting wheels

The wheel hex's are looking more scale with brake discs moulded on them. With a drop of paint they would look really impressive especially on a drift car or one for the shelf

Stage 15 - Fitting electrics
The TT02 comes with Tamiya's latest brushed ESC the TBU-105 it is a nice unit, it has a low voltage cut-off (Although it references LIFE not Lipo batteries) It works well and is easy to set up.  The main specification for the esc allows you to run a speed tuned or similar 23t motor if you want more speed.


Included in the box is a separate plastic motor cover that has fittings for a Fan or you can just add the included scoop.

There is also a dirt / splashproof box included for electrics if you want to race in the wet or Rally, again another concession to make this car a chassis for all types of RC hobbyist.

Here is the finished chassis (The wiring could be tidier but I will be fitting a brushless soon)

The chassis weighs 1280g with all electrics installed

Test Drive

Once I made the beautiful body, and fitted all 80 decals the car was looking spectacular so I was keen to take it out for a spin.

The handling was very good, and really was impressive for this car. The STD gearing was good considering I  was running the silvercan with a lipo. The car accellerated well and had a good turn of speed for driving around the street. This coupled with the beautiful body reminded me of just how much fun a scale shell and a nice neutral car can be.

It wasn't long before I had made a small circuit to test out the car and it handled it well. The car has a little bit of under-steer with its base settings, although it is also quick to respond to direction changes and the lighter, less sloppy drive train ensured it was really responsive. The chassis is also more narrow so it is less likely to drag against the floor.

I have to admit this car felt better to drive than my hopped up TT01 that I use as my current everyday onroad car (It wont be fair to compare it to my TRF).. that's impressive as this is the std kit settings so it will be interesting to see how this car is with hop ups (I will cover this in later blog posts).

Overall!
This car is a fantastic update, and Tamiya has just reinforced its position as the best newcomers and general hobbyist's chassis with the TT02

You can set it up for Rally, Drift and Race. Long and short wheelbase and you can even change track width. This chassis takes all of the good things about the TT01 and drives them forward to something really special. If you want an onroad car that's able to be easily configured to match your changing tastes and ambitions there really is only one :)

The only negatives is that it would be good to have bearings in the std kit, and the front Uprights can sometimes break under a heavy collision. (*** UPDATE Tamiya have a revised front upright that will be included soon in the kits that strengthens the current design).

Overall though this car is very good and recommended for a fun general purpose onroad / rally chassis. This car changes the base standard for a new generation of RC car enthusiasts, it earns an A star!

Buy TT02's here http://www.fusionhobbies.com/

Keep coming back for more updates soon


Comments etc welcome, if you follow the facebook page you will get up to date information and comments.

TT02 6299370743976779339

Post a Comment

  1. Looks like tamiya have taken this very seriously fully hopped up it may very well tread on the heels of the current tb03.

    Good job mate very useful see you sunday

    ReplyDelete
  2. the diff boxes, are they same with tt01?
    So can you use tt01 cs kits on tt02 ?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yes the diffs are the same as TT01 diffs so they should work.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hey could you explain the adjustable height, width and wheelbase a bit more? I'm very curious, since I have a TT01, and it doesn't allow too many such settings...

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi,

    the adjustable width is with the wide hex's and longer Wheel Axles. The adjustable wheelbase is with the arms being swapped around. Its similar to the TT01. The TT02 also allows you to change the ride height (to a rally spec) by swapping the drive hubs (Front and rear) upside down.

    Any more questions please ask, or join the facebook group

    ReplyDelete
  6. Hi,

    Should I want to upgrade to a solid axle, what would I benefit to my tt-02? also what where is it placed? also the front one way gear or a cs gear, are they both the same thing? also where is it placed? I've just bought a tt-02 and this is my first time building my own kit. thanks alot

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi,
    A solid axle will give you more drive out of the corner, as the front will pull more. When racing it is a popular set-up.

    A front one way acts like a solid axle when on power, but both wheels run free when not on power. This solution is good for a smooth racer, who does not use much brakes, however a spool is what most racers use.

    A CS gear is for drifters, this makes the rear wheels move quicker than the front wheels, making the car want to spin out, this is good if you run a drift car with drift tyres, but it is not good for anything else.

    The TT02 is a great kit, take your time and enjoy it, and study the manual and the instructions above.

    You do not need any of these to enjoy your TT02, just build it as a kit and then go from there and feel free to ask questions :)

    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey thanks for the reply! and by the way thanks for the great post, very informative, would surely help a noob like me :D

      Delete
  8. Hi.

    Thanks for posting this build thread. I have beening using it alongside the manual to build my Lancia Delta TT-02. Also your comments on tamiya TT02 thread on RCtech.net are very helpful.

    One problem Im facing is a potential missing part in the kit. I was going to try the wide body option which replaces A14 wheel hex in the rear with A13 wide wheel hex and wheel axle C3 with C6 in the front.

    I have part A13 but looks like C6 was never molded into the plastic.

    Did your kit come with this part or have i just recieved a incorrectly packed box?

    I have viewed some unboxing vids on youtube and they appear to be missing as well.

    I look forward to your reply.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I checked it as well. It doesn't have the part molded.

      Delete
  9. Hi, thanks for your feedback. The C6 part only comes with the kits that require it.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Funny that I got the capri which needs it for the rear. Was not there.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. For the capri you do not need the C6 part. You have to ensure that the silver barrels on the wheels are flipped for the rear. This makes them stick further out and fills the arches. Hope that helps.

      Delete
  11. Hi, do you know if a tt01 body will fit the tt02 without having to make additional holes? thank you very much!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Hi Andre

    Yes TT01 bodies fit fine. I have fitted a couple of TT01 bodies on the TT02 since owning it. The body posts are in the same position.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I just bought one and just wondering if the suspension arms are the same as TT01. Can I use the TT01 aluminum parts on this?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi David

      I would not fit TT01 arms, they are different for the TT02. There are aluminium arms for the TT02 if you want them, although I would suggest you run the standard ones as they are lighter

      Delete
    2. Thank you for the reply. I ran with stock parts and it is cannot handle the brushless set up. I used Speedpassion reventon R and Dokyo drift spec 6.5 R. I think I had too much on it.

      Delete
    3. That is a lot of power :) What is the issue with the stock parts? If you want aluminium arms then there are a lot of TT02 ones around on Ebay.

      Delete
  14. When do you plan on adding the rally update? Will you change the car much?

    ReplyDelete
  15. I am curious about the bottom plate comparison with TT01. Can they swap around easily and will fit or not?
    I cannot find any Graphite frame for TT02 since Eagle racing discontinued the item. I have all the hop ups for TT02 but no frame to get. There are plenty of TT01 floating around.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Unfortunately not. The bulkheads are mounted differently so I would imagine they will never really work.

      I will look at the possibility of an upper deck that could fit if you want to stiffen the car. This could make a cool project for me to look at next.

      Delete
  16. rcracerman.. first very informative review I enjoyed it well.. ive been out of the rc hobby but recently got hit by the bug again. me an my nephew have already built our tt-02 kits an now the nieceis building hers. we will be racing the plastic Tamiya chassis class at our local hobby shop.. so my ?'s are this, we have added the turn buckles to mine an the nephews cars, seems we get a bit of wonder from time to time in the front which wasn't there before we installed them.. an suggestions on that.. also im thinking the upgraded propeller shafts are we gonna see any improvement with or stay with what it came with. as well as the speed gear set right now we re running a 25 tooth pinion with stock spur, if we swap for a speed gear set will we notice a change worth making.. an lastly a front one way was mentioned, do you recoomend that for carpet racing an if so where can one be located as I am in the states

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks thanks for that :)

      I would say that the high speed gear set is useful as you can change your gearing.

      If you are running a std motor I would not say that you need to up upgrade the prop shaft and prop joints. The more powerful motors will benefit from using them as they could make the prop flex.

      A one way is fast, but hard to drive. I honestly think you are best to race without it and just concentrate on learning lines and building your speed via consistency.

      Thanks

      Delete
    2. I'm also looking at a shock upgrade I see u say 55mm what shock oil you recommend

      Delete
    3. remember it is 55mm from the centre of the mounting eyes top and bottom. Not the overall shock length. So check that when you look for new shocks. I like the Std TRF dampers #42102 (They are 55mm). For shock oil it is more about the track and set-up but 450wt is a good starting point.

      Delete
  17. Will the golf mk4 gti shell fit on the tt 02 chassis? Sad i know but really want a golf shell like on the m05

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep the Tamiya MK4 golf is a STD size shell so it will fit the TT02. :)

      Delete
  18. Hey, What servo did you use?

    ReplyDelete
  19. I played RTR tt01 and built tt02. TT02 definitely has many improvements over the tt01 and its price is right for an entry level RC car. I am a blogger of unxq.com (RC crawlers)

    ReplyDelete

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