Tamiya TA01/TA02 F150 Baja Truck questions

[AK KRAWLER]

With the help from this site, I figured out what vehicle chassis this truck was.

Tamiya TA-01.

Oddly, this one does not have the signature red or black drivetrain covers that most of the pictures show.

In the next few months, after I get some other rigs dialed in, I want to swap out the electronics in this one. If I go brushed, I will probably usa a HW1080 ESC, what would be a good brushed motor?

Can these older rigs handle brushless and still be reliable, or will it just tear them apart with the added torque?

Seriously thinking about converting it to an On-Road Car with a '68 or '69 Mustang body.

[JatoTheRipper]

Tamiya vehicles, despite their plastic gears, have a pretty stout drivetrains. I would NOT put 4S and a 5000kv motor in them, but they would easily handle a mild brushless systems like 17.5T on 2S.

The thing about vehicles like this is that they are made back in the day and some are made for more scale driving. This truck isn't going to handle well off-road unless it's groomed like a baseball diamond infield.

[AK KRAWLER]

Thanks Jato, it is definitely a bit rough when she hits bumps...

That is part of the reason I was thinking about converting it to on-road, as I have my Gen8 AXE for off-road stuff.
As for brushless, I figured a 540 can in the 3000-3800Kv range on 2S. When I get home, I'll have to look and see what brushed system is currently in it.
It's pretty quick, but I wouldn't say fast.

EDIT - I guess after doing a little more research, it's probably better to keep it in the 2200-2500Kv range.

[OSRC]

I run mine with 3300kv/2S, strictly on road or light rally situations, like a ball field. I do have an upgraded prop shaft though as that's almost a necessity. Metal motor mount and CVD's up front also. It handles the power very well, it's super smooth and zips right along!

[AK KRAWLER]

Nice, thanks for the info!

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by OSRC

I run mine with 3300kv/2S, strictly on road or light rally situations, like a ball field. I do have an upgraded prop shaft though as that's almost a necessity. Metal motor mount and CVD's up front also. It handles the power very well, it's super smooth and zips right along!

I'm surprised it wasn't crazy fast with a 3300kv.

I can vouch for his truck on-road. It was awesome. My favorite part was that it would squeal the HPI tires in the turns!

[AK KRAWLER]

This little rig is fun on the brushed motor, but could be better on brushless. What are the HPI tires you speak of???

We don’t hav an on road car yet and I was thinking of putting on some road tires/rims and a mustang body. It would just be for cruising around our neighborhood streets. I’ve seen a few HobbyStar and Leopard combos that wouldn’t break the bank.

[JatoTheRipper]

These are the tires - HPI #107977.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/HPI-107977-...UAAOSwFN9eUWqn

[OSRC]

Now it's slammed and wearing modified Tamiya Cayenne tires



Runs a Turnigy system that wasn't too salty - around $50 total I think. About 3000kv IIRC.

[AK KRAWLER]

That looks pretty awesome!!! I might shoot you a PM to discuss some specifics (if I have time today...)

Ultimately, I'd like to drop an old mustang body on it and be able to run some smaller wheels/tires to give it more of a souped-up classic car look.

EDIT - I'd also like to get some new/better chassis and suspension parts due to mine being chopped up from the previous owner, as well as adding a metal motor mount.
Any direction you can point me in to get the chassis and suspension parts? or is it just an internet Easter Egg hunt?

[ferp420]

Originally Posted by OSRC

Now it's slammed and wearing modified Tamiya Cayenne tires



Runs a Turnigy system that wasn't too salty - around $50 total I think. About 3000kv IIRC.

that rig looks great the blue version was the rerelease of that rig the red was the first version and black is the onroad version if i remeber clearly



i had a bad time with mine on brushless the metal motor mount i would say is a must i ate gears every run before the aluminum mount after i got the gears to hold i had issues with the cv joints failing
after playing around with the platform for a while i wanted more so i grafted the ta01-2 gearbox and a ff01 gearbox to the rig and ended up with a independent front and rear moa it was a fun rig i had 2 3000kv motors and ran 3s and it ate parts every run no matter what i did with it and it ran mostly on ruff dirt and trails and sand the beach was the most fun and broke the least amount of parts this thing was quick and handled like poop compaired to newer rigs but still as much fun

the ff01 gear box had to be clearenced for the ta02 gears but they did fit

my plan is to run a brushed set up and use it for on road use
the ff01 is now running the 3000kv motor and used on road i dont have alot of run time on it yet as my new place dosent have any pavement to run it on so i dont know how its gona hold up

tamiyas were never made to handle alot of power there just made to look good

[OSRC]

Originally Posted by AK KRAWLER

That looks pretty awesome!!! I might shoot you a PM to discuss some specifics (if I have time today...)

Any direction you can point me in to get the chassis and suspension parts? or is it just an internet Easter Egg hunt?

Sure, anytime. Been building TA's for years. Very familiar with them. Ebay and Chinese (GASP) stores like Asiatees and RCMart are your best bets.

Originally Posted by ferp420

that rig looks great the blue version was the rerelease of that rig the red was the first version and black is the onroad version if i remeber clearly

Yes, the gearboxes have been in various colors over the years. This truck was red originally, then black and finally blue. I've got a gray set here too somewhere. I replace them when they eventually stress crack. I've had this one since the 90's so it's been around a long time! Original chassis and gears believe it or not!

[ferp420]

Originally Posted by OSRC

Sure, anytime. Been building TA's for years. Very familiar with them. Ebay and Chinese (GASP) stores like Asiatees and RCMart are your best bets.



Yes, the gearboxes have been in various colors over the years. This truck was red originally, then black and finally blue. I've got a gray set here too somewhere. I replace them when they eventually stress crack. I've had this one since the 90's so it's been around a long time! Original chassis and gears believe it or not!

i missed the gray version i had 4 over the years but never a gray version now im down to 1 and lots of parts i also have 1 ff01 still and a bunch of extra parts i could probably peice a tao2 or ff01 together with the extra parts

the ta02 was actualy the one rig that got me in to crawling witch is strange cause i had a clod buster at the time and a juggernaught but some reason the ta02 did it for me even though i had more work in the clod i ran the ta02 alot more and started crawling with that rig then i saw the wraith at the hammers and it was over i was hooked the jug got ran 1 time then i scraped it

[AK KRAWLER]

Well, I pulled the trigger in a brushless HobbyStar motor/esc combo and some “inexpensive” chinglish wheels/tires.

Looking for the right ‘67-‘70 Mustang body, as well as some needed (probably) aluminum upgrades. I’d love a fresh chassis to work with, but we’ll see what happens there...

[58_Willys]

I have always been fond of these little cars. After pan cars, I got into these for on-road fun. My first was a Promarket Merc which I still have the body for. I currently have 2 TA02's, an FF01, and a TA02S(no gray/silver covers any more), all with bodies.

These were originally designed as on-road touring cars. There were 3 stadium trucks using the same chassis with longer shocks. I think the Toyota was the first then the Ford F150 and Chevy S10.

The Vaterra V100 has a decent looking 67 Mustang body.

[AK KRAWLER]

Originally Posted by 58_Willys

The Vaterra V100 has a decent looking 67 Mustang body.

That Vaterra body does look nice, but discontinued

Should be a fun little project.

[AK KRAWLER]

So, after a short conversation with another member here, I think I’ve narrowed down some of the parts I want to get for this build.
Motor and ESC (the motor in it is an old, tired one and the ESC was borrowed from another project)
I would like a new chassis - Just for aesthetics...
4 Aluminum Hubs
Aluminum Steering Linkage
A more Heavy Duty Main Driveshaft
Could probably use some new wheel bearings as well.

My left front hub has a crack in it, as well as all four of them have quite a bit of play where they connect to the lower arm.


Significant play at the ball connections on the little black arm.


General picture to show the shape/orientation of the rear arms.


General picture to show how low it is without the spring spacers.

[58_Willys]

I took another look at your link in your first post, and to be clear, that, my friend, is a TA02. If your looking for parts, especially a tub, make sure your looking for the TA02 tub. The drive shaft between the gear boxes is also specific to the correct model...TA02 is shorter. The TA02 used longer arms in the front with the CC01 hubs, which are blue or black. The TA01 hubs are red and were used by some of the buggies, which were also black.

I thought there used to be a sticky for the Tamiya stuff, but I couldn't find it.

This might be helpful also...
https://www.tamiyaclub.com/tcimages/...52_2_1100_.jpg

https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_...=48983&id=2193

[AK KRAWLER]

Originally Posted by 58_Willys

I took another look at your link in your first post, and to be clear, that, my friend, is a TA02. If your looking for parts, especially a tub, make sure your looking for the TA02 tub. The drive shaft between the gear boxes is also specific to the correct model...TA02 is shorter. The TA02 used longer arms in the front with the CC01 hubs, which are blue or black. The TA01 hubs are red and were used by some of the buggies, which were also black.

I thought there used to be a sticky for the Tamiya stuff, but I couldn't find it.

This might be helpful also...
https://www.tamiyaclub.com/tcimages/...52_2_1100_.jpg

https://www.tamiyaclub.com/showroom_...=48983&id=2193

Thanks, so would this be the correct tub? It's odd that it lists it for the Manta Ray, TA01 and TA02, if the TA02 is shorter.

And yes, the truck in the first post link, is the same truck I am talking about in this thread.

In looking at this link, my truck is clearly the F150 with a TA02 Chassis and TA01 arms, with the rear ones flipped around.

A picture of the bottom side of my truck:

[58_Willys]

Originally Posted by AK KRAWLER

Thanks, so would this be the correct tub? It's odd that it lists it for the Manta Ray, TA01 and TA02, if the TA02 is shorter.

And yes, the truck in the first post link, is the same truck I am talking about in this thread.

In looking at this link, my truck is clearly the F150 with a TA02 Chassis and TA01 arms, with the rear ones flipped around.

Looking at the pic, that is a TA01 chassis. The wheelbase between the 01 and the 02 are the same, but the 02 has the shorter tub because it moved the battery forward and used swept back rear arms to maintain the same wheelbase. The rear arms of the 01 and 02 are not the same, but when flipped around, they're the same. The 01 arms, I think are more stout and better suited for rougher running. The dog bones may different length especially in the front.