Mid-Rat/TC02C/Mad Monkey build photos
 

Some photos from TC02C mid-engined Ansmann 2WD buggy build. First impressions are very good (kit comes in a nice corrugated plastic box instead of usual cardboard) with a sleeve showing photos of the the completed buggy. I've been seriously surprised by this kit, the quality really isn't reflected in the price - it gives the impression it should cost £50 more than it does. No flash on any parts, no cutting, grinding, kit goes together superbly. Only a few areas needed minor modification but more 'cus I'm fussy than because of any real build issues (more on that later).

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060414.jpg


Transmission bits - everything is anodized a nice shade of blue, even the alloy bits you can't see inside the gearbox!


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060425.jpg


Diff is conventional, nice large diameter, twin ball raced, builds easily and feels as smooth as anything else out there. Only problem I had was I split the plastic carrier the nyloc diff nut sits in, but that was due to being clumsy and impatient... Thrust race is a pre-assembled captive type with the teeny little balls held in place in a brass carrier - soooo much easier and no faffing around. One annoying point - diff screw has a Phillips screw head rather than a hex - going to be annoying trackside trying to adjust your diff. Do yourself a favour and fit a hex head bolt at this stage of the build.


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060430.jpg


Diff even has machined flats on the steel outdrives to save weight...this does not look like a budget kit - no corners skipped here


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060433.jpg


Twin idler, full 4spd gearbox - not a conversion kit for a Mad Rat, a properly designed buggy in it's own right. Metal idler gear as standard on layshaft, optional alloy idler gears available but I haven't heard of any issues with the kit standard items so no need for them AFAIK.


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060427.jpg


Twin slipper pads, beautifully made, falls together, quality looks as good as anything out there. Plus parts are dirt cheap,no more £10 replacement slipper pad sets...


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060446.jpg


Fully assembled gearbox (with optional machined alloy grey motor plate) fitted onto rear T-plate. Note alloy motor plate brace - standard in kit, not optional like X6! Front rear pivot block moulded into T-plate limits tuning options later on (antisquat not adjustable).


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060456.jpg


Full assembled back end. Optional alloy rear bulkhead fitted, weighs 20g versus 8g for standard plastic part so doesn't add a great deal of weight but looks good :).


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060444.jpg


The drive shafts have C clips like the B44 so no need to faff around with grub screws, plus they come assembled in the box - bonus!


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060470.jpg


Front end is similar in style to the Kyosho RB5, but is not a clone, all parts are unique - fell together perfectly. Only slight issue was had to file the wishbones slightly to get the castor blocks to drop under their own weight, but that's 'cus I'm fussy. They'd free up fine with a few runs on their own, it wasn't a big issue. Photo shows optional alloy bulkhead with brass insert, only adds a few grams in weight even with brass insert, which weighs 4g so not really going to set the world alight as a tuning aid, however it helps make the car stronger. There's still room above the front bulkhead to add extra lead. Also shows grey alloy front brace (not needed! Kit comes with an identical blue alloy one as standard).


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060469.jpg


Ballraced steering, integrated servo saver, more lovely blue alloy bits..


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060476.jpg



Front axles are RB5 style, but might need bearing crush tubes (same for rear) for reliability during racing - time will tell


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2070477.jpg


Complete front end - Ansmann include foam rings for all ball studs, anodized alloy shock mountings plus all ball studs are a 2mm allen key hex fit - nice touches and really easy to change on the car. Only thing on the whole car which doesn't match other modern competition buggies is the use of old school "E" clips for all the pivot pins. Not a big problem - just I've got used to using captive hinge pins and screws. Ansmann do give you plenty of spares in the kit in case one pings off into orbit behind the TV during assembly...



http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060465.jpg


Completed car minus front end and shocks - real carbon fibre saddle Lipo battery brace looks great (and is included as standard in the kit), but comes a little close to shorting the battery connectors for my liking - 1 minute fix with Dremel. Chassis is slightly more flexible than other buggy's graphite moulded tubs, but it stiffens up once the battery and brace are fitted. Plus flexible chassis's tend to make a car easier and more forgiving to drive, so can only be a good thing.


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2070482.jpg


Shocks were the biggest surprise of the build - they are awesome! No lie, they are far better than the last set of Associated and Losi shocks I've built, if not quite up to the Japanese firms yet (I should point out I haven't built any of the new B4 shocks so am comparing these to 2008 era RC10 B4 Asso). The lower seals drop together in a cartridge like the RB5 and have a smooth consistent feel when assembled. The top end uses a bladder and has a small bleed hole in the cap to remove any excess oil / allow air to move in and out.


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2070485.jpg



The kit doesn't include any other pistons but B4 ones fit. Pretty much any springs fit which is handy as the standard ones aren't ideal for high grip UK tracks. Another nice touch - small locator on shock eye stops spring seat from moving and helps stop it from coming off in a crash (how many spring stops do you see littered around a race track after a big meeting? Loads). Also Ansmann have used a black anodized alloy shock ball which allows free shock movement - better than the non-round crummy plastic moulded things covered in flash that some other kits come with...

Looks very nice and easy to build. I have been waiting for a build thread on one of these to decide if I want one or not and I think I have just made up my mind! :thumbsup:

P.s. where did you buy it from?

Nice write up! These cars are fantastic for the money!! I love mine!!

Do they need any weight adding to them and what turn motor would you recommend?

Ive only run the car twice indoors and for one race outside so im still playing around with setups and weight... It will need weighting up, im guessing similar to an X6, maybe around 1650g total, ive not weighed mine yet though in truth!

Im personally running a 6.5 in mine...

I can post my setup from the last time i ran the car if you would like? Was on med grip carpet indoors...

Regards, Tom

Yes please. Do they need weight adding at the front?

Yeah, most of the weight ive got in mine is towards the front, the car generates alot of rear end grip... Ill post my setup after the football ;)

Where is the best place to buy one of these?

Mine was a madrat originally so i bought the conversion... Any modelshop should be able to get hold of one, i know apex models have them listed online but not sure if they have any in stock...

How does it compare against the mad rat?

Completely different car to drive, like the X6 compared to a B4... Probably fractionally slower over a lap but quicker over a race as its more consistant... Well, until you get to the top drivers who can drive anything consistantly...

Complete car piccies...

Rear suspension with optional hubs & hexes:

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160725.jpg

Front corner

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160726.jpg

Shell cut out is easy - marked very well. Bodyshell holes I had a small problem with, the dimples to mark the front hole is a couple of mm too far forwards and "pulls" the shell against the front shock tower. Annoyingly there is no mark for the aerial tube, & I c*cked it up whilst trying to guess where it should be.

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160728.jpg

Shell is good looking in a functional way, not a knock-your-socks-off gorgeous way. It'll never win a beauty contest but to my eyes is much better proportioned than the slightly frumpy Mad Rat shell.

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160727.jpg

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160734.jpg

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160730.jpg


It's a minor thing but all the R-clips are pre-bent and the bodyshell clips come with small rubber tags - more attractive than using tie wraps.. Not planning on using all three as I'm going to velcro the bodyshell on.

Optional Parts
 

Optional bits:

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060451.jpg


Optional alloy 1 degree rear hubs are well made and look good, plus offer vertical roll centre adjustment with washers


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2070481.jpg


Nice alloy servo mounts - no need for them, just look good and match the other bits.


http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060474.jpg


Alloy clamp on wheel hexes

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160735.jpg

Alloy idler gear

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2160736.jpg

Uprated (thicker) turnbuckles. Also have holes pre-drilled in the rod ends to allow access to the hex ball studs so you don't have to unclip the turnbuckle when changing roll centre holes

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060461.jpg

Alloy front bulkhead with brass insert

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060442.jpg

Rear alloy bulkhead

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060467.jpg

Front alloy brace (grey) and kit (blue) - optional part not needed!

http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i...C/P2060422.jpg

Kit versus optional lightweight motor mount

Dear i have the rear hubs 1° too and the wheel hex, but i putt the wheel and block (visée in french) she can't turn ... but if i putt the pastic one, or the rear hubs alu 0° i haven't this problem!
Did you have the same, or another guys, and what did we can do?
thanks

Could I be a pain and ask what size hinge pins are used on the car? Those rear hubs look good and I'm wondering if they'd fit on my car...

What car have u got??

Rear outer hinge pins are 3 x 30.5 . I tried fitting some kyosho rear hubs to my X2C last night and wasn't very successful. they fitted ok but it then cocked the driveshaft up and so I either got no droop or no up travel. I will have to buy some ansmann ones to use the vertical ball stud adjustment :cry:

There was someone talking about the alloy hubs a while ago. The problem they had was not being able to get the bearing in one of them whereas the other hub they had no problems.

Could be a manufacturing error, and not just an ansmann one because I had some rayspeed hubs that on one side the bearing fitted perfectly and on the other they were a nightmare to get in/get out. Could be you have got an out of tolerance hub?

My right hand side rear alloy hub was fine, however the left hand side alloy hub was a bit tight. The solution is to add a small metal shim between the two bearings (doesn't matter which one you pick). It's now runs freely.

The alloy hexes I got came with small shims, which I originally put between the hex and the outer bearing. I ended up not using them as they're not required (kit doesn't come with any as standard) and they mean you have to be careful fitting the hexes as they can bind a bit.

Hi, best place to get Midrat is from Concept Racing - speak to Eric, helpful bloke

www.concept-racing-rc.com