RC10Talk - The Net's Largest Vintage R/C Community

Hey guys, I'm a new 13 yr. old here, and this is my first post.
I got this old Team Associated RC10(built from the kit by my dad and grandpa), and I want to bring it back to life.
It's also got a Futaba Magnum Junior transmitter, and an aftermarket speed controller system. Stock motor, driving through a Vari-Lok differential.
In the box, I also found a Kyosho Le Mans 34 Super Stock motor(with bearings)!
I'm considering swapping it in, or selling it to buy other parts, what's y'all's advice?
The Kyosho Le Mans 34 says 0.65mm x 27 turns. What does this mean? Is more turns desirable? And for what reason?
I can't find ANY info on the web for the LM34, so any info about it would be helpful.
it's also got dual bearings, so that's a HUGE plus!
I also want to repaint the body, since that color is just, ewwwwww.....!
Yesterday I also lubed up the moving suspension parts and cleaned it up a bit, so the suspension is much smoother now. I'll eventually maintenance the shocks.
Any thoughts/advice on this build would be immensely helpful!
I don't really know much of anything about this stuff except what I read on places like this, and my previous ham radio experience.

Nice kit bud looks pretty much stock except for the red stuff which is ‘Hot Trick’ aftermarket hop ups. Do you plan on modernizing the electronics?

I would take the original wheels and tires off and get some others so you don’t ruin them.

Cool! I didn't know the red components were hot parts!
My plan at the moment is to just get it driving. I think I'll keep the vintage electronics to add to the historical factor.
My dad says the aftermarket parts widened the front end about a 1/2", so that's cool.
Any suggestions on wheels/tires and where to get them? We used to have a Hobbytown near us with a wicked parts counter, but they moved.
EDIT - Ooooh, Hobbytown's website has sand tires......

JTSpeedDemon wrote: ↑Sun Oct 20, 2019 9:21 am Hey guys, I'm a new 13 yr. old here, and this is my first post.
I got this old Team Associated RC10(built from the kit by my dad and grandpa), and I want to bring it back to life.
It's also got a Futaba Magnum Junior controller, and I think it may have an aftermarket controller, IDK. Stock motor, driving through a Vari-Lok differential.
In the box, I also found a Kyosho Le Mans 34 Super Stock motor(with bearings)!
I'm considering swapping it in, or selling it to buy other parts, what's y'all's advice?
The Kyosho Le Mans 34 says 0.65mm x 27 turns. What does this mean? Is more turns desirable? And for what reason?
I can't find ANY info on the web for the LM34, so any info about it would be helpful.
it's also got dual bearings, so that's a HUGE plus!
I also want to repaint the body, since that color is just, ewwwwww.....!
Yesterday I also lubed up the moving suspension parts and cleaned it up a bit, so the suspension is much smoother now. I'll eventually maintenance the shocks.
Any thoughts/advice on this build would be immensely helpful!
I don't really know much of anything about this stuff except what I read on places like this, and my previous ham radio experience.

Hi JT,
You have a really nice car with some very cool upgrades. .65 x 27 turns refers to the size and number of turns of wire on the armature - less turns usually means a hotter motor.
As for the body, it's tricky to strip the paint but you can repaint the body on the outside (it's probably been painted on the inside). Either apply paint that's meant for polycarbonate (lexan) in a color of your choice to the outside then, if you want it to be glossy (lexan paint is flat), you can simply apply ordinary gloss clear. Or. you can "prime" the body with polycarbonate paint (white for instance) then apply just about any ordinary paint from a Walmart or from the auto parts store. If you apply ordinary paint directly to the lexan, it won't stick and it will flake off pretty quickly.

The steering parts and front arm pivot blocks are the parts I've broken most often - mostly likely because they've become dry and brittle over the years. If you re-hydrate these parts, it will improve their strength. Just dropping them in boiling water for about 10 minutes will make the nylon more pliable and less prone to breakage.

Cool, I'll put rehydrating the nylon parts on my to do list.
I'm thinking black with lime green details for the paint color, maybe with some Spaz Stix holographic or color changing effects.
Could I just paint over the existing paint? Or would that result in unwanted bleeding or effects? How would one strip the paint?
Also, does anyone know any specs on the stock AE motor?

Hello there JT

I might consider a new body.
Stripping an old paint job is messy, requires harsh chemicals and almost always results in a poor paint job .
Do a search here on the forum for "stripping old paint" and you can find a mixed bag of results.
Painting the out side will work fine and isn't too durable but would be the most affordable.
Dan, a business member here and great guy to work with, has a web site called Sabula Tech. I just looked and he has "error" bodies for sale.
Basically a new body with imperfections that he will sell at a reduced price. For a first paint job or a basher they are well worth considering.
https://sabulatech.com/storefront/index.php?id_category=76&controller=category

Vintage brushed "stock" motors are 27 turn, not sure of wire gauge. In my experience there is not a huge difference between the vintage 27 turn stock motors. It seemed to me batteries, gearing, type of car and mostly driving ability were just, if not more, important.
New brushless stock motors are considered 17.5 turn. The new 17.5 brushless motors are now more like vintage 10-12 turn brushed modified motors. Brushless motors will require a new brushless ESC however.


Chuck

Cool, I'll probably get one of those to learn on/use as a beater body.
The current body is original anyway, so I wanna protect it.
I also noticed it's got the hot shock tower mount, so that's cool, I wouldn't be surprised if it changed the shock angle for higher performance.
I want to get some different wheels and tires to protect the originals, any suggestions on wheels/tires?

JTSpeedDemon wrote: ↑Sun Oct 20, 2019 7:39 pm Cool, I'll probably get one of those to learn on/use as a beater body.
The current body is original anyway, so I wanna protect it.
I also noticed it's got the hot shock tower mount, so that's cool, I wouldn't be surprised if it changed the shock angle for higher performance.
I want to get some different wheels and tires to protect the originals, any suggestions on wheels/tires?

Wheels can be found on ebay but be aware that many of them will not fit your car because they are for 3/16" axles or they are for 12mm hex drive (your car has 1/4" axles with pin drives). A UK company called JC Racing makes nice wheels for vintage RC's like your car.
https://www.jcracingproducts.co.uk/vintage-wheels/wheels/rc10
The wheels shown in the link are a direct fit and they accept modern 2.2" tires.
It's possible to retrofit modern 12mm hex drive wheels but it requires a lot of parts changes.
Do you know if your car is fitted with ball bearings at the wheels and in the transmission or is using the bronze bushings? If it's using bushings, upgrading to bearings will enhance performance and make the car more fun to drive. Avid sells replacement bearings to fit vintage RC's like yours and they're only about a buck each.
https://www.avidrc.com/flexkit/?kit=680&kitname=RC10+Classic

Hey JT, you'll want a manual for your car:
https://img2.associatedelectrics.com/pdf/cars_and_trucks/RC10/Original/rc10_manual.pdf

Thanks XLR8, but I already found that manual.

So I'm about ready to buy a battery for this thing, and I have a few questions.
One person told me to use a NiMH to keep from frying the electronics, but I don't see how a 7.2V NiMH would protect the components as compared to a 7.2V LiPo.
Any particular kinds of batteries I should avoid or look for?
What is this battery connector?
Also I noticed it's got an aftermarket Novak solid state speed controller, so that's a huge plus.

that's an associated style connector, made by molex. You won't find any batteries today with that style connector on it.

going to lipo should be no problem, however you need to look for a couple things:

first, that esc is a novak 4, which predates the novak t4, which had tempfets, which gave some protection from overheating. So that esc can be damaged with overheating.

Second, it has the old style connector on it, so you will need to replace with something. I would suggest finding a shortly lipo such as this:
https://www.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=ASCC2166&P=FR&gclid=Cj0KCQjwrrXtBRCKARIsAMbU6bGjf3NxEkqySQ3Ds8ds8VCTFLgFYPon2qwlcY2p0Mlsib3DULm2crAaAmFtEALw_wcB

it doesn't have to be that one, but something like it in the 30 ish dollar range. whatever you purchase, swap out the connector on the esc to match the battery. don't forget you will need a lipo compatible charger.

be super careful to watch temps and if you can touch the heat sinks, you are OK. once it gets too hot to touch, stop and let cool. run for 5 ish minutes and check temps.

I would run something only about as hot as a 17-16 turn motor. there is no lipo alarm to alert you to when the battery is discharged, so read up on lipo voltage and safety.

that speed controller should have two heastinks on it, one on the forward fets(6 of them) and one on the brake fet/diode(two of them), if that is a single heatsink on there, don't even apply power, you will damage the esc.

"there is no lipo alarm to alert you to when the battery is discharged, so read up on lipo voltage and safety." - jwscab
This is super important. Discharging a lipo below 3 volts per cell can ruin the battery and it can be dangerous.

I'd think it would be a good idea to install a small voltmeter. Or maybe some kind of low voltage cutoff? Or is there some kind of protection components I could install? I know how to solder and have adequate equipment.
I checked, and it's two separate heat sinks, I was able to remove the small one entirely and reinstall it.
Would it be a problem to switch to Li-ion or another kind of battery chemistry?(As long as it's in the voltage range of the motor of course)

XLR8 wrote: ↑Sun Oct 20, 2019 7:57 pm Wheels can be found on ebay but be aware that many of them will not fit your car because they are for 3/16" axles or they are for 12mm hex drive (your car has 1/4" axles with pin drives). A UK company called JC Racing makes nice wheels for vintage RC's like your car.
https://www.jcracingproducts.co.uk/vintage-wheels/wheels/rc10
The wheels shown in the link are a direct fit and they accept modern 2.2" tires.
It's possible to retrofit modern 12mm hex drive wheels but it requires a lot of parts changes.
Do you know if your car is fitted with ball bearings at the wheels and in the transmission or is using the bronze bushings? If it's using bushings, upgrading to bearings will enhance performance and make the car more fun to drive. Avid sells replacement bearings to fit vintage RC's like yours and they're only about a buck each.
https://www.avidrc.com/flexkit/?kit=680&kitname=RC10+Classic

Wow! That is a screaming deal on wheels! Only about $20 shipped!
The bearings are only $16 as well, so that'll be on my to do list.
The manual says it's got bushings, and the ball bearing kit from AE is part# 6900. I'll see If I can find any NOS.
EDIT - Here's one:https://www.ebay.com/itm/Team-Associated-RC10-Transmission-Bearing-Set-ASC6900/231114207168?epid=1750224312&hash=item35cf7aefc0:g:Pw0AAOSwbw1c7-oH
If I have enough money when I'm looking to upgrade to bearings, I'll go for the NOS since I know they'll fit. Then again, there's always the chance my dad and grandpa have already upgraded it to ball bearings.