Tamiya Scania R620 project helping

[SCANIA R620]

Hello friends

I just now purchased Tamiya SCANIA R620 KIT and Tamiya 45028 TEU-302BK Esc.

And I’m looking to purchase MFC-1 and Motorized Support Legs , so I have some questions and I hope your answers help me to purchase the right parts.

1- what is the best remote control work with my truck ? as a sample FM or AM/ Analog or digital / How many channels and servos?....etc.

2- what is the battery type , size , capacity ,Voltage …etc ??, and the suitable charger for it?

3- If you have any more helping tips and ideas I will be appreciate any useful notes.

Regards

[astecme]

Hello friends

I just now purchased Tamiya SCANIA R620 KIT and Tamiya 45028 TEU-302BK Esc.

And I’m looking to purchase MFC-1 and Motorized Support Legs , so I have some questions and I hope your answers help me to purchase the right parts.

1- what is the best remote control work with my truck ? as a sample FM or AM/ Analog or digital / How many channels and servos?....etc.

2- what is the battery type , size , capacity ,Voltage …etc ??, and the suitable charger for it?

3- If you have any more helping tips and ideas I will be appreciate any useful notes.

Regards

I use a spektrum DX6i mode 2 with an orange rx6 channel rx. If you use the mfc then you need to do a few things......

1. set the channel reverse on the aileron (this will be the speed left stick ) and throttle (this will be horn etc)
2. set the channel throws to 125%
3. go to the set up list DR and expo. set all the rate switches to 0 and then set the 100%'s to 66
4. set all the rate switches to 10 and make sure the figure du=isplayed is 100% if not set to 100%
5. go to the dr combo setting and change inh to the switch of your choice.
6. set all rate sws to zero and go through the truck set up for the gearbox and steering
7. run the mfc set up.

all functions will now work. to access any extended function flip the sw you chose to 1 and then do the stick movement. to get back flip to 0

[ClassicTyro]

Hello!

First of all, your post is two months old so I’m sure you’ve found answers to all your questions. However, here’s my two cents…

If you're going to use the MFC-01 (#56511), then you won't need the ESC (speed controller) because the MFC has one built in. I'd return that ASAP and get your $80 back unless you want to keep it for other projects.

As for which radio works best, I'm no expert, but I can only tell you my story and hope it helps you. By the way, I built an R620 6x4 and a 3-axle Reefer with motorized support legs so I know where you're coming from! Anyway, Tamiya recommends that if you are going to use the MFC, then you should use a 4 channel radio with analog trims. However, I think the key requirement here is the analog trims, regardless of if you choose narrow band (AM or FM) or 2.4 GHz. Analog trims allow you to access the full feature set of the MFU using the steps laid out in the Tamiya documentation. I think you can use radios with digital trims (nothing will catch fire), but you'd have to spend time figuring out how to access all the MFC features using the knobs and switches and make everything work on your own. And in some cases, there can be more steps required to access a particular function with digital trims. So, digital trims may work, but not as eloquently as analog.

When I was first looking to buy a radio for my rig, I really wanted a 2.4GHz radio because I knew that it was superior to narrow band in terms of interference avoidance. But I never could find where Tamiya made a recommendation for a 2.4 GHz radio (In fact, in some of their literature, they recommend the Futaba ATTACK AM radio although it has been discontinued and you can only find it on eBay) and some folks in the forums I visited (this one included) said 2.4GHz did not work for them. Soooo… I bought a Futaba 4YF FM (75MHz). This radio never did work for me. I experienced large amounts of interference and servo glitching. I was afraid to run the truck at all in fear it would accelerate or steer into a wall or curb. I was not happy. When I powered on my truck in my room, all the servos would twitch back and forth unless I held the radio antenna a certain way. It was ridiculous. Cable management did not help. Running the receiver antenna into a traditional tube and extending the radio antenna all the way out did not help. I even took the rig 3 miles from the house to an empty parking lot to test it, thinking there was interference from the power lines over the house. Although the interference was much less, I still experienced servo glitching about every 10 minutes or so. It did not instill confidence at all. Out of desperation, I ordered a Futaba 4YF-2.4GHz

The radio kit I bought was a T/R set so the radio shipped with a R2004GF receiver which was already linked. All I did was disconnect the servos and MFU from the old R168DF FM receiver (noting the channel location for each) and plugged everything into the same spots on the R2004DF. I powered on the radio and then the new receiver and tada! It worked! I’ve been using this for about two months now, and not once has the truck misbehaved plus ALL the MFU functions work as expected. I don’t know if the problems I had with the FM radio were caused by a malfunctioning radio or receiver unit or what. All I know is that It didn’t work for me and I’d rather have a 2.4 GHz radio any day over AM or FM. I’m glad I didn’t listen to the person who said this radio wouldn’t work!

The battery I use is very standard. I bought two DuraTrax Onyx 7.2v 5000mAh NiMH batteries, thinking it would be good to keep a charged spare with me just in case. But honestly, I’ve run the truck for 90 minutes and never discharged the battery to the point where the MFC failsafe kicked in. Keep in mind that I probably “run” my truck differently than some folks. I read one post where a guy was asking the forum about battery life. He said he only gets about 15 or 20 minutes of running his truck wide open around his back yard and he was wondering if that was normal. I run my truck slowly most of the time; backing up, maneuvering, hitching, unhitching, etc. I do run my truck through the gears because it’s fun, but I don’t keep the left gimbal jammed forward all the time. I’m not sure that’s good for the motor and trans anyway. For me, two 5000mAh batteries is good. I’m using an inexpensive AC/DC peak charger from Tower Hobbies. There’s nothing fancy about it but it does automatically go into trickle mode when the cells are fully charged so I don’t have to worry about over charging. Getting a nicer charger that also does load balancing and discharging is a good idea because those features can prolog battery life. It just costs more.

I hope this helps!

[hellcat]

[QUOTE=ClassicTyro;36729]
'When I was first looking to buy a 2.4Ghz radio for my rig... I ordered a Futaba 4YF'.

Can you explain a little more about this Tx please? I'm familiar with 2.4Ghz as an r/c aircraft flier, but I understand that, for trucks, the ratcheted throttle stick has to be modified so that both sticks are self-centring. How did you do that? Is it a standard mod for this Tx, or did you have to buy an add-on to do it? This Tx is available on my side of 'The Pond', and I would like to add it to my shortlist.

Thanks.

[ClassicTyro]

Hi David,

Converting the throttle gimbal stick to self-centering is very common. In fact, I called Futaba tech support, explained what I was trying do and they knew exactly what I was talking about. They sent me a kit for free. The kit consisted of a spring and little plastic swing-arm which as very easy to install, especially when I removed the back cover of the Tx and saw how the other gimbal spring is installed. The number on the bag was #6441462, but I don't know if that number corresponds directly to the parts they sent or just happened to be on the bag. the Futaba tech support number for me (North America) was 1-217-398-8970 extension 2. UK may have a different number.

Anyway, I'm still very happy with the radio. It's a great entry level 2.4GHz radio at an affordable price and it happily runs the ESC, MFC and support legs with zero servo glitching or interference problems.

Hope this helps.