Tamiya M-05 Pro
Build-up and review by Sim Tong
12 Jan 2010
This is the Pro version of the M-05, the successor to the M-03 platform which has been one of Tamiya's hottest sellers over the past decade.
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Nice kits come in small boxes.
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The goodies.
The difference between the M05 Pro and a regular M-05 kit:
Pro has full ball bearings, 1.5 degree toe-in rear hubs with adjustable rear camber links, see-through shocks, a set of springs,
anodized blue hardware here and there, no body shell and no ESC.
Regular kit has a shell, an ESC but no bearings and no frills.
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I opted for the aluminium motor mount (54184), so in it goes.
Also, I'm using 20mm screws instead of 15mm to mount the battery holder parts (C14 and C17).
Some friends said they didn't bother installing that top part that looks like a handle as it does nothing (D2 and D3).
I'm leaving mine in for now.
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The gear arrangement is identical to the M-03 so no hassles here. Remember to push in the 850 bearing so it sits deep inside the spur gear.
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I also got some M-05 Aluminium Front Uprights (54177). You need four 1050 bearings (51239) to use these.
I weighed them with the four bearings and mounting hardware.
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The kit uprights, mounting hardware and the accompanying 1150 bearings weigh a little less.
I don't care about a few grams, but I do like the bigger bearings.
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I don't like to use aluminium ball studs, so I'm replacing them with ball nuts (53640) and some M3 X 10mm screws.
That added back 1 gram (if anybody is interested).
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Here's how everything goes together. A tiny drop of blue threadlock helps to keep the ball nut on the screw.
I also had a set of the 5mm clamping wheel hubs laying around (53823), so no more lost pins (hopefully).
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I found that I needed about 0.6mm of shims on each axle to keep the slop out when using the clamping hubs.
(Update: I've since switched to universal drive shafts (53597) and reduced the shims to 0.3mm)
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I mistook the bellcrank step screw (left) for the kingpin screws (right) and for awhile there,
couldn't figure out why my steering was so sloppy.
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You can't see them here but four 850 ball bearings for the bellcranks are included in the kit.
I like to leave the grease in these, but I degreased and oiled all the other bearings.
The steering rack is all plastic but aluminium bellcranks (54191), steering links (54192) and steering posts (54193) are available.
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Front shocks are laid down quite a bit compared to the M-03.
I'm running the TRF M-chassis shock set (54000) with no internal spacers.
I also didn't like the screw style hingepins, so I used TL-01 ones (53301).
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The rear uprights give 1.5 degrees of toe-in (came with the Pro, otherwise part 54178).
2 degree plastic knuckles are also included in the kit (part F2 and F3).
You can also buy 0 degree ones (50965).
The red springs that came with the shock set are softer than the white springs with red dot from the kit.
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There's quite a big gap between the battery and the battery slot. The M-05 battery retainers don't jive with my Team Orion packs
(they get in the way of the Corally plugs), so I'll either have find some M-03 ones or make my own.
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The kit includes what looks like a set of regular 60D radial tires with foams and wheels.
Good for photos and not much else.
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Blue anodised wheel nuts complete The Look. There's about 1.5mm of thread left on each axle after the wheels are mounted,
so there's plenty of space for track width adjustments using the wheel spacer set (53646).
(Update: with the universal shafts, there's hardly any space left, so adjustments will be mostly limited to the rear axles).
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Wheelbase adjustments (between short, medium and long) are done at the very back end of the car.
This means lengthening the wheelbase transfers weight to the front wheels.
I'm going for the longest (239mm) wheelbase on mine. A BMW Mini shell should fit that nicely.
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If you put your head against the floor and squint really hard, it almost looks like a buggy.
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Almost there. Still need body posts, a shell, electronics and some play time.
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Update: Before I've had a chance to drive the car, some of my friends have started to complain about
the weak steering system. The solution: More blue aluminium.
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The kit parts were about 7 grams lighter.
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Tamiya makes you buy 3 sets of parts to make up the aluminium steering rack (54191, 54192, 54193) so the 3 sets of
instructions get a bit confusing when put together. Here's how I interpreted them... first, install the steering posts
and add a 5mm X 0.1mm shims on each post.
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Next, pre-assemble the cross link to the bellcranks and drop the whole assembly onto the steering posts and add two more
5mm X 0.1mm shims (one on each post). In this pic, I've accidentally installed the crosslink upside down, so I'll have to
re-do that.
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Lastly, top it off with the steering post holders. The two back screw holes were previously threaded with self-tapping screws
but the new screws are machine screws. If you have 3mm X 12mm countersunk self tapping screws, I suggest you use them in
place of the machine screws.
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Finally finished the build. The Lightweight Aluminum Battery Holders (54224) solve my problem with the Team Orion packs.
Fibre tape is used to keep the battery in place.
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Upgrades used in this build:
Tamiya M-Chassis Aluminum Damper Set (54000)
Tamiya M05 Aluminum Motor Plate (54194)
Tamiya M05 Aluminium Front Upright (54177)
Tamiya 5mm Claimping Wheel Hubs (53823)
Tamiya 5mm Blue Alloy Ball Nuts (53640)
Tamiya TL01 Suspension Shaft Set (53301)
Tamiya M03 Assembly Universal Shaft Set (53597)
Tamiya DF-03 Heat Sink Bar Set (53924)
Tamiya M-05 Alu. Racing Steering Set (54191)
Tamiya M-05 Alu. Steering Link (54192)
Tamiya M-05 Alu. Steering Post (54193)
Tamiya M-05 Lightweight Aluminum Battery Holder (54224)
Upgrades I'm eyeing but don't really need:
Tamiya M-05 Ball diff set (54194)
What I really need:
Tamiya Mini Cooper S 2006 Body Parts Set (51335)
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