Ultima RB Transmission - Steve?

[RichieRich]

Just finished building an Ultima RB. Anyways, the transmission is incredibly loud compared to my B3. I remember reading the RCCA review of the Ultima and the author had said that the car has a loud gear whine. Is there anyway to eliminate or minimize the noise? It's not a big deal, I just thought it was odd.

[SteveP]

I don't know for sure because I didn't build the car, but I'm guessing you could try some White Lightning lube on the tranny gears to quiet them down a little.

[outsider]

Finally another with an RB! here is a cool site dedicated to the RB: http://home.kscable.com/projectrc2/

After I built my RB I didn't have the whiny noise but 2 months after i got a rough gritty noise in the diff. My diff wasn't tight enough and made some flat spots on the balls.
Also, the hub pics are a little small for my tastes. No matter how tight I had my wheel nut, it kept eating the inside of my wheels, until i made my own homebrew pins that fit nice, long and tight (no movement). Good luck!

[RichieRich]

Okay, I will try some white lightning. Anyways, who did write the article on the Ultima RB?

outsider - I did have a lot of play at the rear wheels. I just added another shim and everything seems to fit nicely. Have you noticed any other weird things? We'll see how this car does against my RC10B3.

[outsider]

The front end. The first time I built it, I thought I had it nice and tight but it wasn't. Kept getting out of alignement when i took a tight turn. I went back and rebuilt the whole front end and it's great now. Also make sure you get a small ESC. The ultima is much more narrow than the b3 or xxx so there isnt much space to fit the ESC in the tub. Novak Fusion and Futaba 230 or 330 fit great and are cheap, but any of the LPRs should fit good too. Make sure the width is less than 1.5". Other than that no major problems yet. Everyone I know with the RB (not too many but still) loves it. Check out the available hop ups at tower.

[ChumsGum]

tranny noise?

I remember that RCCA issue and the Ultima RB reviewer mentioned that the spur gear and pinion did not mesh as well as they could of. You might wanna try aftermarket spur/pinion.

a question to those who own an Ultima RB.

Besides the spur/pinion problem RCCA mentioned, how is the Ultima's tranny? The RC10's stealth tranny is butter smooth, how does the Ultima's tranny compare to the stealth? XXX?

[outsider]

Hmm, thats worth investigating but I think my pinion/spur combo is meshing well. I don't see any broken teeth or unusual wear either. The tranny is well behaved. It does make some noise, but when tight it's very smooth.

As a side note; they have a new GP version of the RB at tower. It's the sport model so it comes prebuilt. When they release the kit, I think I'll pick it up. But what they really need is a 4wd RB to compete with the XX4. Now that would be interesting. ( I know they have the TR-15 that might compete with it, but the TR-15 looks heavy)

[XXXER]

First, Peter Viera wrote the original review on the Ultima RB for RCCA.

Secondly, there IS a RB 4WD buggy, but it is not here in America, only back in Japan, with enough support, I bet they could get some over here.

Thirdly, the Ultima Sports, do not even share many of the same components and the "Type R" versions, so you may want to rethink your plans.

Later
-Steve

[outsider]

I noticed that too. The whole backend is different. I wonder if I can hack the ST GP backend and rear shock tower to the RB. The parts between the ST and RB are very similar.

[ChumsGum]

http://photos.netclubs.com/live/photos/photocenter/d/v/4/0/401hiqnlqmbk59niel6l94smn0/LazerR3%2D4.jpg
This is a pic of the '91 Lazer ZX-R which was Kyosho's last high performance 1/10 4wd off road buggy sold in America. I now there was a ZX-S update, sold outside of America, but was there a new 4wd after that? If so, can someone post a pic of it?

[ 07-25-2001: Message edited by: ChumsGum ]

[RichieRich]

Well, I switched the Ultima's spur gear with a new one from Associated. The tranny is way quieter and smoother now. I haven't had much drive time with the new buggy so I haven't been able to compare it to my B3 thoroughly. I'm planning a shakedown this weekend.

[outsider]

What tooth spur did you use?

[RichieRich]

I used the 81 tooth spur. My LHS only had the Associated spurs.

[TB-EVO 1]

I'm battling myself over which Buggy i should get, B3 or RB.... so frustrating.... but i think i will end up getting both of it... so anyway.... how much did you guys pay for your kyosho RB type-r? and for those one who have B3FT how much did you pay for it?....I am thinking going to Hong Kong and go on a shopping spree for RC stuff... I checked their weibsite and everything there is soooo much cheaper~~~~...... I bought my Tamiya TB-evolution here for around 400 dollar... but in HK they are selling it only around 230 U.S. dollar..... that's 170 difference..... and in HK you can haggle with the clerk (as in most of asian country besides Japan) so I might even get a better price. Sometimes I wonder if all this money i spent on RC worth it or not. it's like paying double for everything here. :(

[Fergy]

I bought my Ultima RB type R here in Japan and paid 19,400 yen for it, which is about $180 with the exchange rate. I meshed my gears the old Tamiya way using a piece of paper as a spacer. It turned out surprisingly quiet. I read the article too. I was surprised to see a RC10B3 in a Futaba RC store in Tokyo and I plan on buying it.

[outsider]

When i got my RB it cost about $230 (Type R) at tower, but the price is down to $180 now. Comes with everything but the normal stuff like motor, radio/servo, esc, and shock oil. Also check out the website I linked to at the beginning of the thread for links to kyosho hop up parts and optional parts.

[RichieRich]

I purchased the RB for $165 at Tower. 180 - the $15 discount. By the way, the discount is good until the end of the month. I believe my FTB3 was $170 or so.

[ChumsGum]

The RB Type R was $230 and has now been lowered to $180 at Tower. Following the link above, I noticed Kyosho now offers full graphite parts as options, from the chassis to bulkheads, ala AE FTs or XXX BK editions. Do you guys think Kyosho will follow and introduce their own fully graphite race buggy?

[outsider]

I hope. That means people would start paying the RB more attention and more hop ups will come out for it :)

[RichieRich]

Part of the Ultima's problem is that it is priced way too high. I guess that's why Tower lowered the price so much. Hopefully Kyosho comes out with some standard hop-ups like titanium turnbuckles. I would like to see replacement motor guards and battery straps in different colors. Who was the brain who picked brown?

[krayzie]

i have an RB -R(as well as all other kyosho race cars) and its great..Chums, where is the link to the graphite parts at???? I would also like to see different color motor guards ( i died mine black )but i want an aluminum battary strap.. if nobody makes one or is going to,ill make my own..

Krayzie http://www.plauder-smilies.de/tales/grim.gif

[ 07-27-2001: Message edited by: krayzie ]

[ChumsGum]

krayzie, http://home.kscable.com/projectrc2/ go to the "parts" link for the list then enter the part numbers into the towerhobbies.com website for prices and availability.

Yeah, I once owned a Turbo Ultima then the very rare Ultima Pro XL. I later got burned out of the hobby and sold everything, including my Tekin charger, matched packs, etc. Almost 10 years later, I regret my decision. Now I'm looking to get back into the hobby and am thinking about purchasing a XX-4 or the new Ultima. I've always wanted to try 4wd but really like the way 2wd cars fly off the jumps. What do you guys think, 2wd or 4wd?

[ChumsGum]

krayzie, http://home.kscable.com/projectrc2/ go to the "parts" link for the list then enter the part numbers into the towerhobbies.com website for prices and availability.

Yeah, I once owned a Turbo Ultima then the very rare Ultima Pro XL. I later got burned out of the hobby and sold everything, including my Tekin charger, matched packs, etc. Almost 10 years later, I regret my decision. Now I'm looking to get back into the hobby and am thinking about purchasing a XX-4 or the new Ultima. I've always wanted to try 4wd but really like the way 2wd cars fly off the jumps. What do you guys think, 2wd or 4wd?

[krayzie]

thanks chum!!!!

krayzie http://www.plauder-smilies.de/tales/grim.gif

[RichieRich]

Alrighty, here's a pic of my Ultima RB. So, if you're looking for something different, it does pretty well.


http://www.mindspring.com/~christianeelin/rccars/ultimarb.jpg

[ 08-21-2001: Message edited by: RichieRich ]

[outsider]

I think the Ti turnbuckle kit for the B3 would work on the RB. I mean, all it is is ballcups and rods, right? The lengths are very similar.

[RichieRich]

Well, I'll have to do some measuring. I know that the turnbuckle lengths for the Ultima are 40 and 50 mm which roughly translates to 1 5/8 and 2 inches. So, you could buy them individually. But it would be cheaper to buy a set.