coalminer

Hi to all out there.

I'm a new member, so I have yet to find my feet.I run 2 Nitrage cars along with my son. My daughter runs the Tamiya subaru TGX chassis model.
We have had the subaru for about 3 years and it really is a little work horse.Only problem we had was that the con rod shot it.Fitted a new one and its been fine.My daughter tends to thrash it and strip the soft compound tyres (sorry thats how we spell tires in UK).
So I have fitted a harder drift type tyre but we have not had chance to try out yet !.

Me & my son drive the Nitrages. I only recently got mine and have only just run it in ,so I'm rearing to go.
My son however likes to drive his Nitrage hard. He has had it since last christmas and there is some signs of wear in the rear diff driveshaft sockets .Is this normal after 5 months of use ?

I have hopefully added a picture of our race team- hope it has loaded ok. Look forward to talking to you guy's on this forum.

Cheers
Coalminer

rcpowerhorse

man they're so clean try running in sand or dirt and see what happens
and to answer your question mine are like that and i've had it about six months

coalminer

Thanks powerhorse.
They are clean cos I always clean em after every run.How ever todays run was a disaster.My son has screwed the engine in his Nitrage.
The engine started ok but was running very rich, more than I have ever seen it do so.It ran for about 15 minutes ,then stopped.
We could not restart it ,there was no compression there.I stripped the engine and found severe wear to the piston, cylinder sleeve,crank and the engine casting internally where the carb intake is.

I dont really think I have been running lean,If anything I have always tried to run it on the rich side.
I have added some pictures.I would be glad to hear any ones comments on what could be the cause to this.Is it perhaps dirt/grit could be the cause through the intake ?.I dont think it has over heated either,It is quite cool here at the moment and I do keep a feel of the motor to ensure its not getting hot. Has any one seen this kind of damage before? Its only the 2nd engine I have took apart, so I dont know the cause. I thought I may be able to get away with just a new sleeve and piston, but due to other parts also worn ,like the crank below the carb intake I think it may have to be a new engine.There is no wear or play in any of the bearings .The car is only 5 months old !!

rcpowerhorse

the crankcase and crankshaft look ok but the cylinder and piston are gone, the con rod doesn't look too bad and if you do get a new engine i wouldn't recomend the the tamiya one i got an sh engine and have had great runs ever since

SOILWORK

I just smoked my engine and was looking for a piston and sleeve to rebuild it. After seeing that Tamiya wants $127 for a piston and sleeve, I ordered a LRP spec3 28.

coalminer

Upon a closer look.Like powerhorse said, yes I think I could salvage the engine with a new piston and liner.I now think that the main bearing has failed. I refitted the crank back in and re-checked.There is enough play and endfloat in the bearing to allow the crank to rub against the crank case, plus its not smooth running either. Maybe a shaving has got between the piston and the cylinder, causing the bad scoring, not helped by 30,000rpm.

I have found a supplier that sells the piston and liner, at $130.00...(£65.00 uk) ,not cheap is it !!!!

What bothers me is, why has the bearing failed so early ?

When you buy a new engine, does it come with the clutch and all, or is it just the engine without the ancillaries ? because the clutch on this thing don't look too great either.

coalminer

I have just found the culprit. A broken ball in the rear crank bearing. I am now certain this is the bit that has got into the piston. Is it possible the engine could be covered under the manufacturers warranty ?

rcpowerhorse

after breaking the front lower wishbone (a arm) about 20 mins before i went into the desert yesterday i am asking does anyone know of any aluminum ones that fit

Mr Terminator

I like these,does anyone know a good stockist of spares online in the US or UK.From what i've seen here inthe UK the parts availability is poor to say the least.I would consider one of these as they look really good and I like the thought of the gearbox linkage being a dogbone to CB....

rcpowerhorse

trust me, ebay is very good
upgrade the radio and servos and pipe and it's vey good

timbostag

Mr T

Ive had very good service from Time Tunnel

http://www.goldstarstockists.com/tamiyaparts/index.htm

About 3 days delivery
Have to say though, Coalminer had an engine delivered in 5 days from Japan. Now thats service!!

coalminer

Hey Timbo

Be Afraid, be very afraid . The nitrage is back, or shall I call her the Phoenix now, she has risen from the ashes.

Brand new engine.

Coalminer

rcpowerhorse

coal what fuel tank is that??
what advantage does it give??
just wondering

coalminer

Hi Powerhorse.

The original tank sprang a leak on the seam. I got this new tank off ebay for $7. It is a Tamiya TNX tank- the nitrage, was based on this earlier model. I just wanted to experiment with it. It has a priming pump,and the fuel outlet is on the bottom of the tank so it primes the engine easily, not that this is a problem any way. But I find this tank is higher than the original which makes fuelling up through a hole in the side window much easier and I dont spill fuel in the bottom of the car- that is what I like about it most.

There is just enough space to get the tank in, sitting on a 10 mm spacer made from a nylon block.As you can see from the pictures, the original tank is much lower and less accessable that the TNX tank.It is still a 150cc tank

SOILWORK

The primer on those TNX tanks suck in air. Pull the primer button out and also pull the tube that it sits in, out. Find a screw and put a o-ring on it, then screw it into the hole. Seal it up with shoe goo and also put some aroun the seam of the tank to prevent leaks at the seam.

coalminer

Hi Soilwork

Thats a good tip. I dont have any problem with it sucking in air yet.But if it does ,I will follow your advise thank's. I do like this tank though, it is very easy to refuel the car.The cap opens 90 degrees different to the original- for the better.

Coalminer

Nitrager

hey guys! I kinda broke my front lower control arm, I called tamiya and put in a request for them to be made. It will be 8 weeks[:'(] If any of you have any control arms you would sell please call or email me. [email protected] cell 740-502-7548

coalminer

Can any one tell me please ,what the advantage is for using aluminium slipper clutches on these FX32's over the nylon/plastic types used on other engines.
I must say, I think the "ally" ones are rubbish and don't last very long. I have fitted a plastic set from an older Tamiya model.Not sure how they will perform though ! but got some new ally ones on order just in case.

rcpowerhorse

soilwork
how did you grind down the turnbuckles and how much of a difference did it make????

SOILWORK

I used a Dremel tool and the sanding drum to shave the meat off the front end. You need to take qite a bit off to make a difference but when you take enough off, its like night and day. I still have not broke anything off the front end, The parts look weaker wih all the meat shaved off, but they have been holding up really well.

carty

Hi all, im seriously considering buying a nitrage this weekend, would you guys recomend it or am i better off looking else where? are there any major reliabilty issues particually the drive set up from the engine, thanks for your time, Dave.

alex.guzun

i heard that Nitrage will be discontinued soon, is that true? what about spare parts availability?

rcpowerhorse

the nitrage has been discontinued now but i should think that tamiya will still make spares for a while

alex.guzun

i'm glad i have no nitrage
Crossed fingers for you guys

but i really can't understat why tamiya is producing rc stuff for such a short time? on thier site there is a loooot of DISCONTINUED cars

coalminer

Jim

That 69 Charger body shell on page 14 looks wicked. It looks so good that I have ordered one for my nitrage and I'm gonna do it up General Lee style.I have sourced some General Lee decals as well.