No.89 Tamiya BBX

[89Industries]

So in the midst of figuring out the TWS Datsun 510 build I also picked up some non-crawler projects. Certainly encouraged by the riff raff that inhabit this forum.

I'm not going to do a full build thread on this. This is my first Tamiya RC vehicle (I poorly built a model as a child) and part of the experience was following the Tamiya directions since people say they are quite a bit better than most.

For the most part I agree. Nothing weird popped up and assembly order was definitely done to make things easier.

So, for the optional parts list I chose:

-Holmes Hobbies 540s Puller Pro 3300kv
-Hobbywing 10BL60 ESC (not the new or waterproof one, works but leaves room for improvement)
-ProTek 140T low profile servo
-Dumbo RC tx and rx

Kit came with chromed plastic 1.9 wheels and tires but after seeing Fallen's BBX I didn't even bother to glue the tires on and just bought some 1.55" aluminum beadlocks and knock off BFG KM3 tires from Ebay.

Pictures to prove i did any of this (until IMGUR goes belly up and swallows all the pictures with it). Lots of place holder wheels.

Tamiya box art. Love it. Bought at the local HobbyTown.

Shocks are quality aluminum units.

Transmission built, started in on the chassis

And the magically the whole cage and mechanicals together

Got the body cut out and pre-fit. Making sure batteries and wiring fits, etc.

This was in December 2024 so still a few warm days to paint. Paint is clear pearl, racing green, black backer except roof which is clear pearl then white).

And the driver

The decals are the most stressful part but they came out ok.

I forgot I actually ran these wheels for about 5-10 minutes. On a field with super short grass and dirt patches at my son's school. They were $15 for wheels and tires on Amazon.

So now with better wheels ready to go. I was able to run it and figure out I was trying to use too much power and my 35C rated 5200mah 2s battery couldn't supply the power quick enough. Rather than buying batteries I just made it a bit slower, still plenty fast.

So that's pretty much done. Might change some electronics or move stuff around between vehicles in the future but likely not much else.

 

[JatoTheRipper]

I really need to build one of these! I love them.

Nice work.

 

[Fallen]

Good looking BBX. I've wanted Goodrich tires for mine but I've been unwilling to spend the money on new ones.

Your stickers came out nicely and the driver looks great.

For a boringly basic build, it's a surprisingly good looking and fun buggy to drive. Durable, predictable and very capable offroad. And I mean real offroad terrain, unlike the current definition of "offroad" used for indoor buggy racing. Those tracks are road courses with jumps.

The BBX does a great job of taming unpredictable terrain.

 

[89Industries]

These BFG are eBay specials, totally unlicensed and inexpensive. Though you might have to get wheels with them though.

Here is one such example that I got with the tires.

Knock off BFG 1.55 tires on wheels

I don't have much to compare them to know if they are good compound, etc.

They sent seemed to have lasted through 2 full 5200mah 2s packs. That's all I can claim so far.

 

[Gula]

Aliexpress has those tires for $17 or less

https://a.aliexpress.com/_mLX68Eb