Wednesday , 27 March 2024

Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 5 – Suspension | CompetitionX

Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX

The suspension on the Tamiya TRF419XR has always been one of the best in the industry. Precision-molded arms, aluminum arm mounts and the super-slick TRF shocks all compliment this ride’s amazing drive quality. It even comes with double cardan drive axles on the front as standard equipment.

Build Notes:
Everything went together fine in this step, right up until Step 19. You’ll need to insert some .5mm shims that are kind of a pain. I show you, in Step 19, the way I figured it out – you may come up with a better solution.

Tamiya includes a cap of their thick anti-wear grease. This stuff works wonders but can be a bit messy. Use with care.

Step 1:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Start off this step by assembling a pair of rear arms. I sort of guesstimated the rear droop screws; I’ll give the car a full setup walkthrough prior to its first run.
Step 2:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Slide the inner hinge pin through the arm and slip the 3mm, 1mm and .3mm shims into place. A light dab of Anti-Wear Grease on both ends (before slipping the 5mm suspension balls on) will help keep everything in place.
Step 3:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Slide the rear suspension arms into place, then capture with the 1E aluminum suspension mount. Blue threadlocker into the 1E mount is suggested.
Step 4:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Build the front arms. Process is similar to the rear arms (Steps 1 and 2).
Step 5:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Set the front arm assemblies into place, the capture with the 05G aluminum mount. Blue threadlock is suggested into the 05G mount.
Step 6:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Assemble the 4 aluminum wheel hexes.
Step 7:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Assemble the rear universals. Anti-Wear Grease is suggested here. A little patience is also required while installing the axle ring.
Step 8:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Assemble the rear uprights. Only thing to note here is the 2.5mm holes required in the uprights for the set screw. I would suggest doing this PRIOR to assembling the rest.
Step 9:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Flex and install the white axle savers.
Step 10:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Install the 8mm ballstud and 2mm spacer on each upright. Your final assemblies should look like this.
Step 11:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Build a pair of rear turnbuckles.
Step 12:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Attach the rear upright assembly to the rear arms. Make sure you get the small .5mm shims on each side of the upright assembly.

Manual shows a little bit of Anti-Wear Grease into the outdrive; I would suggest only a very little as to much could make it spray all over after the first run.

Note: the hinge pin needs to be installed with the flat spot facing out. The 3mm setscrew needs to come in contact with the flat spot to secure the hinge pin.

Step 13:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Here’s a look at the final rear assembly.
Step 14:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Build a pair of front double cardan joints. Yes, two axle rings – double your fun.

Don’t forget the Anti-Wear Grease.

Step 15:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Assemble the left and right steering arms.
Step 16:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Attach the 8mm ballstud and spacer.
Step 17:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
These two little guys will be used in the next step. This is to show you that they are different heights; the short one goes on top, the tall one goes on the bottom.
Step 18:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
And here’s the assembly. I would suggest installing the bottom 10mm screw first to hold everything in place before attempting the upper 9mm ballstud.

You’ll also want to make a 2.5mm hole in the bottom of the caster block for the set screw in Step 21.

Step 19:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Now, here’s the tricky part. We need to slip a .5mm spacer into this gap, but doing that and installing the 9mm ballstud (and spacer) is a bit difficult with only two hands. Oh, and chubby fingers don’t help.

So, my solution was to wedge an Xacto knife in the space (to keep the 3.9mm flanged tube out of the way), slide the .5mm shim into place and then install the 9mm ballstud. Wah-lah – success.

I’m not going to lie – there was a bit of cussing going on prior to this solution.

Step 20:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Build a pair of camber links.
Step 21:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Attach each steering assembly to the front arms. Make sure the flat spot on the hinge pin faces down so the set screw can catch hold of it.
Step 22:
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build - Part 5 - Suspension | CompetitionX
Front suspension done! Swing all 4 arms up and down to make sure they move freely.

Longest step so far, but it’s beginning to look alot like a Touring Car! Let’s roll to Step 6 and attach the Anti-Roll Bars!

Use the links below to follow each step.
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Opening Page
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 1 – Chassis/ Bulkheads
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 2 – Rear Differential
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 3 – Driveline
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 4 – Steering
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 5 – Suspension
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 6 – Anti-Roll Bars
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 7 – Shocks
Tamiya TRF419XR Touring Car Build – Part 8 – Final Assembly

About Tony Phalen

Tony Phalen - As an avid RC enthusiast, Tony has been building, bashing and racing RC Cars for over 30 years. He has participated in every kind of surface racing events - 1/18 scale trucks, 1/10 scale TC, Rock Racers, Rally - if it had wheels, he's raced it! He's also worked on both sides of the industry fence; collaborating with many major manufacturers (as well as being a sponsored driver) to working for a high-profile industry magazine. During this time he has learned many tricks, tips and techniques and is sharing that knowledge on CompetitionX - the most informative RC website on the internet!

Check Also

Video: Tamiyas Toyota Supra on the BT-01 Chassis - First Drive | CompetitionX

Video: Tamiya’s Toyota Supra on the BT-01 Chassis – First Drive | CompetitionX

There is alot of buzz surrounding the new BT-01 chassis from Tamiya. This is mainly …