pantablo
I wanna be Dave
the finished product:
You want to use Tamiya Brat REAR wheels. Do not use front brat wheels as they are different and have a significant positive offset.
REAR<------->front
Brat wheel pairs can be purchased from Tamiya directly or through sellers on ebay, where you can get pairs of wheels for $10 or less, new. If you go this route you will also have to source the M2x8 screws and nuts that hold the 3 pieces together.
This is what the brat REAR wheels look like before you start.
First step is to take the center piece and remove the center cone. You need to do this because the axle is not long enough. the center piece is a good place to start so you can practice using the dremel cutting wheel inside the wheel without touching the outer lip. Since the center is concealed behind the tire you can slip here without harming the look of the finished wheel. I like to work from the center out to keep the cutting wheel far away from the edge of the wheel.
Once done, it should look like this:
(Before<---->after)
Now you need to take the back part of the wheel and remove the 5 point star that engages the axle on the Brat. Again, use special care to not have the barrel or cutting wheel of the dremel touch the outside lip. Cutting from center outward helps.
(before<----after>)
Now that you have a flat area on the back you need to take a 12mm hex and trace it on the back. Special care needs to be taken here to center the hex. The hole in the wheel is larger than the hole in the hex. Ideally you'd make a dowel to run through both to center it. I'm lazy and have done both sets of wheels simply eyeballing it.
Now take the dremel, with cutting bit, and remove the material in the center to the traced line. Start slow and work your way to the outside. Just as you reach the traced line the dremel cutting will speed up because you'll be cutting through less material at that point so be very cautious to remove less than you think. You can test fit the hex multiple times until you get the sides smooth and then get the corners sharp. I get the outside edges cut first then go back, using the same bit, and sharpen the corners. The corners can remain slightly rounded and they'll work just fine.
Nice tight fit on the hex. Note the black and red lines (had to retrace it to center it).
Nice tight fit on the hex. Hex will not sit completely inside the opening but will stick out a bit, as shown, when the wheel is assembled.
finished wheel, assembled. You can see the black hex in the big center hole.
Now you'll need a 1/2" diameter washer to use under the axle nut to keep the wheel on. If you look carefully you can see it in the first couple pictures, where they're shown mounted. An alternative is to use Montana Scale Designs locking hub style nuts (shameless plug). They have a 5/8" base so they'd cover the hole completely. I'd show a picture of them but mine havent arrived yet, lol.
The final step is not necessary but a good idea for a perfect look. The stock brat tire has a deep lip. If you use regular tires on these wheels the front lip will stick out a bit from the edge of the tire. If you look closely at the second picture at top you can just make that out. On the second set I did, for the orange toyota, I took the front piece and sanded down the front lip until I had removed between 1/16" and 1/8". Do this with the wheel in your hand against a sanding block (or sandpaper on a hard surface).
Look closely at the front piece and notice there are 3 steps on the outer lip. Sand down to midway on the second one. Final wheel should only have one step and a bit of lip.
At 1/10 scale these would be 17" wheels. The Toyota is slightly bigger than 1/10 though so they'd be closer to 15-16" wheels on that.
Now you need to reduce a set of 1.9 tires to fit...to follow.
I needed to make another set so I recorded it. added video, 7.17.09
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tsltnIn070
You want to use Tamiya Brat REAR wheels. Do not use front brat wheels as they are different and have a significant positive offset.
REAR<------->front
Brat wheel pairs can be purchased from Tamiya directly or through sellers on ebay, where you can get pairs of wheels for $10 or less, new. If you go this route you will also have to source the M2x8 screws and nuts that hold the 3 pieces together.
This is what the brat REAR wheels look like before you start.
First step is to take the center piece and remove the center cone. You need to do this because the axle is not long enough. the center piece is a good place to start so you can practice using the dremel cutting wheel inside the wheel without touching the outer lip. Since the center is concealed behind the tire you can slip here without harming the look of the finished wheel. I like to work from the center out to keep the cutting wheel far away from the edge of the wheel.
Once done, it should look like this:
(Before<---->after)
Now you need to take the back part of the wheel and remove the 5 point star that engages the axle on the Brat. Again, use special care to not have the barrel or cutting wheel of the dremel touch the outside lip. Cutting from center outward helps.
(before<----after>)
Now that you have a flat area on the back you need to take a 12mm hex and trace it on the back. Special care needs to be taken here to center the hex. The hole in the wheel is larger than the hole in the hex. Ideally you'd make a dowel to run through both to center it. I'm lazy and have done both sets of wheels simply eyeballing it.
Now take the dremel, with cutting bit, and remove the material in the center to the traced line. Start slow and work your way to the outside. Just as you reach the traced line the dremel cutting will speed up because you'll be cutting through less material at that point so be very cautious to remove less than you think. You can test fit the hex multiple times until you get the sides smooth and then get the corners sharp. I get the outside edges cut first then go back, using the same bit, and sharpen the corners. The corners can remain slightly rounded and they'll work just fine.
Nice tight fit on the hex. Note the black and red lines (had to retrace it to center it).
Nice tight fit on the hex. Hex will not sit completely inside the opening but will stick out a bit, as shown, when the wheel is assembled.
finished wheel, assembled. You can see the black hex in the big center hole.
Now you'll need a 1/2" diameter washer to use under the axle nut to keep the wheel on. If you look carefully you can see it in the first couple pictures, where they're shown mounted. An alternative is to use Montana Scale Designs locking hub style nuts (shameless plug). They have a 5/8" base so they'd cover the hole completely. I'd show a picture of them but mine havent arrived yet, lol.
The final step is not necessary but a good idea for a perfect look. The stock brat tire has a deep lip. If you use regular tires on these wheels the front lip will stick out a bit from the edge of the tire. If you look closely at the second picture at top you can just make that out. On the second set I did, for the orange toyota, I took the front piece and sanded down the front lip until I had removed between 1/16" and 1/8". Do this with the wheel in your hand against a sanding block (or sandpaper on a hard surface).
Look closely at the front piece and notice there are 3 steps on the outer lip. Sand down to midway on the second one. Final wheel should only have one step and a bit of lip.
At 1/10 scale these would be 17" wheels. The Toyota is slightly bigger than 1/10 though so they'd be closer to 15-16" wheels on that.
Now you need to reduce a set of 1.9 tires to fit...to follow.
I needed to make another set so I recorded it. added video, 7.17.09
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2tsltnIn070
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