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The Tamiya Lunch Box is my all-time favourite RC Car. So much so, I’ve just picked up yet another bargain 1987 original off that well know auction site!
Tamiya Lunch Box Hop Ups
No matter how Iconic this model might be, there are still several things that a Lunch Box owner should consider upgrading or Hopping Up, to improve its performance, increasing its already massive fun factor and making this awesome RC Car a real head turner.
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Ansmann 75mm shocks
Oil Filled Shocks -- Tamiya Lunch Box standard shocks are little more than miniature pogo sticks. They consist of little more than 4 large springs, damped only by a length of rubber tubing. This makes for one hell of a bouncy ride. Upgrading to either the Tamiya CVA shocks, or two packs of Ansmann 75mm shocks. Luckily Tamiya have pretty much included all the brackets and bolts you’ll need to perform the upgrade too. All you need to purchase is the new shocks.
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Tamiya Sport Tuned Motor
Sport Tuned Motor -- If you’re a speed-freak and you want to see your Lunch Box hurtle along at break-neck speed then a Tamiya Sport Tuned Motor has to be the next hop-up on your list. These superd 23 Turn motors give way better performance over the standar RS540 motors included in the kit. Plus, you can run one of these motors off either the vintage 3 speed mechanical speed controller or the new TEU-101BK supplied with the re-release. Run-time is still very very good too, even running at full speed for extended period. Upgrading to the Sport Tuned Motor takes less than 10 minutes and is well worth the investment and effort.
Some RC enthusiasts have recently experimented with fitting Brushless motors to their Lunch Boxes, but this is seriously over-egging the pudding IMO. With just a Tamiya Sport Tuned Motor the Lunch Box is capable of some serious wheelies and very impressive jumps to say the least! Save the Brushless systems for Buggies and Short Course trucks.
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Tamiya TLU-01 Light Unit
Head & Tail Lights -- The Lunch Box is crying out to be pimped and there’s no easier mod that fitting lights to a Lunch Box. You can either opt for a home-made variety using a couple of resistors and a battery, or go all out and splash out on a Tamiya Lighting Unit TLU-01. Headlight LEDs fit straight into the front Chrome work, but if you want to fit rear lights, you’ll need to get the drill out!
- Bearings -- Nothing improves an RC Cars performance than fitting Ballraces or Bearings. A Ballraced car will run faster, much more smoothly, and give increased running times for any given battery charge. Many cars come with bearings a standard now but the Lunch Box still comes with the traditional Plastic Bushes. Replace these as soon as possible and you’ll be very pleasantly surprised.
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Acoms Technisport 2.4G II
2.4Ghz Radio -- Not so much a direct hop-up for the Lunch Box, more a general one, but I still have this on my list of essential upgrades. The technology used in 27Mhz radio systems has been around since the 60′s and is susceptible to all kinds of interference, signal drop outs and limited range. Upgrading your RC Radio System is definitely worth the investment. For a little over £30 you can pick up a superb 2.4Ghz radio system with servos and tiny receiver. The advantage of these over 27Mhz systems is that they don’t use crystals, so any number of people can use their cars at the same time, plus they have extended range, and the receivers are incredibly small and light, with gives you a weight saving too. My recommendation for beginners is the Acoms Technisport 2.4G II (Part No: AP2401)
- 5th Shock Upgrade -- One design flaw with the Lunchbox is that those tiny axle springs simply aren’t up to the job! I’ve used my Re-Re Lunchbox twice now and the springs are already bent and not doing their job properly. So this simple idea eliminates those darn springs and makes one of the biggest improvements in the handling of this great RC Car. The mod is the 5th Shock, which fits in the center of the fixed gearbox axle, and prevents gearbox roll much much better than those flimsy springs.Here’s a two part video series showing you exactly how to carry out this modification.PART 1
PART 2
Bonus Recommended Upgrade:
Aluminium Lunch Box Body Mounts -- Much tougher than the standard Plastic ones.
All of these recommended upgrades can be purchased from your local Hobby or Model store. Or you save up to 70% on RC Cars and Accessories online..
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justin
I'm Justin, and I've been building & bashing RC Cars since 1987 when I got my hands on a newly released Tamiya Lunchbox! Since then picked up so many hints, tips and techniques I decided it was time to share them all with you...
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21 Responses to 6 Essential Tamiya Lunch Box Hop-Ups
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Nice one Justin, just had a looksee and it’s a really nice article. You’ve covered the essentials really well as these will help the handling no end without removing the fun factor from the lunchies performance.
Just in case anyones interested there are a few more mods that are good but not essential,
The first one works well in conjunction with the shock upgrade, if you use the little brackets that come with the lunchie kit to mount the top of the shocks you can fit a strut brace across the top of the front suspension struts, just use a longer bolt to fit the bracket (put it in from underneath so the threaded section sticks up through the top of the suspension tower), then you can use a tie rod or a small secton of threaded rod with a pair of rod ends to make a brace that goes between the two shock towers. This makes the front end a lot more sturdy when the shocks compress and reduces the camber change on the front wheels.
The second I like is to use an upgrade kit from CRP that was designed for the Grasshopper, it’s the FX-10 Double Wishbone kit and this will upgrade the front suspension on the lunchbox from a single wishbone that makes the wheels rotate in an arc as the suspension compresses to a double wishbone system that keeps the tyres nice and flat on the ground as the suspension compresses, this not only fixes the wafty steering but when you run a lunchie at speed in reverse it normally bottoms out the front end, this doesnt happen any more when you do this conversion, check out this site for a load of pictures of different setups, all using that same kit to do the upgrade,
http://www.tamiyaclub.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=50292
The last thing I would do is upgrade the wheels to a set of 2.2″ rims. HPI do some really nice rims and they come with a fitting kit that lets you mate up the rims to the lunchies axles, the only issue I had was the offset was a smidge too small and the wheel was rubbing on the steering knuckle, but I used one of the old plastic bearings as a spacer and that pushed it far enough out to cure the problem.
Hope thats useful
Jim
epic upgrades, i am trying to add a 5th shock to my lunchbox
the old metal springs broke and i wonderd why it dident do weelies any more (I blamed my battries, there great really).
whers the best place to get a led kit cheap (EXTREAMLY CHEAP)? the cheapist one i can find is £14 on ebay!
tnx for the upgrade ideas
james
where can i get one of those dirt bag things in the picture at the top of this page they look good but i cant find any?
plz help
james
Hi James. They’re from http://www.quaggies.com. They have an offer on this weekend for free postage too
Hope that helps. Cheers, Justin
brilliant thanks!
were the ansmann shocks a sraight fit over the LBs rear ball connector as thats where ive been having problems with other shocks thank you
Hi, Thanks for your question Nug
The answer is no! I removed the brass ball studs and used 15mm M3 bolts with Nylock Nuts. The Ansmann Racing shocks come with their own Aluminium Ball connectors with a 3mm hole already prefitted top and bottom, so just bolt them on 
Use the U Shaped brackets supplied in the Lunch Box kit for the top ends and a handful of M3 bolts and Nyloc nuts all round 
Let me know if you have any more questions and I’ll do my best to help. Thanks, Justin
many thanks
Great advice, thanks for the tips. I’ve used most of them so far for my re-re Lunchie. With some minor fabrication, I’ve moved to Traxxas XX-Long shocks in back (Long in front), 3rd rear shock mod, Sport Tuned motor, Dean’s Connectors, bearings, and the 5mm metal knitting needle body brace. FX10 parts on the way.
I tore apart a kid’s dog doll and refit the “hide” and face over the LB body with hot glue to make it look just like the “Dumb & Dumber Shaggin’ Wagon”:
http://imageshack.us/g/4/20110711233657.jpg/
That’s one fantastic Shaggin’ Wagon you got there RonPaul! Those traxxas shocks look they work great too. Which esc is that you’ve got in there? I like the idea of mouting the receiver in the front. I guess when you’re running it on 2.4ghz you can put it anywhere you like as the antenna is so short
I’m still running mine on an old Futaba receiver… but that’s soon to be changed for a 2.4Ghz system once I’ve sold off some of my stock of rebuilt cars 
Thanks! Poor pup body is taking a beating out there so I just ordered a Lexan body (might do an ambulance). That’s just the stock Tamiya ESC that came in most of the re-releases. I plan on moving up to faster motors until I burn this ESC out and then I’ll go brushless.
FX10 double wishbone suspension parts, and a machined, adjustable rear shock/axle mount (being sold on ebay right now) are also on the way. Researching methods to get as close to waterproof as possible as well. Would love to be able to dive into the pool and “swim” across the top!
That is some great info Justin,
Just getting about fitting my ansmann shocks (although they didnt put in the aluminium metal connectors sure i’ll find something suitable), what size shock did you use for the 5th Shock?
Cheers
Well many thanks to justin for info my shock and wheels arrived today(my shocks where as u discribed)I remember this kit as a kid could never get it now i have it and love it.My first lunchbox and RC build but not my last. Many thanks justin.Heres a pick http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/594/imag0036c.jpg/
@nug What kind of wheels/tires do you have there? LB looks very nice.
@harvey Unless you have a spare oil filled shock lying around, you can just use one of your old stock shocks for the 5th mod. Considering you’re replacing two flimsy “bent paperclips”, the stiff spring setup is a huge step up.
I have a spare oil filled shock, but didnt know if I could use it? its a 75mm ansmann one
Hey Harvey. The 75mm shock may well fit as a 5th shock. You’ll need to check for space between front gearbox axle/pivot bar and the top of the chassis. If it’s smaller than that gap, it’ll be fine
I’ll measure mine later when I get a minute if you like and let you know!
Thats would be great if you could, cheers Justin
Wheels are billet beadlock rims from a jato(which fits with no adapters)the tires are team losi rock crawlers the only issue i had with the wheels was there a little thinner on the axel so even with the nut lock they would slide around.I used the plastic bearings tamiya supplied to eat that space.Now i just need to do the double wishbone mod as the LB bottoms out it reverse and install my lights.Im loving this hobby.Many thanks to everyone out there putting their knowledge and time on here to guide us newbs and LB lovers.
That is one awesome Lunchbox you’ve got there Nug… I just approved your pic in our Readers Rides gallery. Sorry it took me a few days, I was away last week. Loving those Billet beadlocks. I might just have to keep a look out for a set of those myself! http://www.rcknowhow.co.uk/readers-rides/
I have a small issue with the tires rubbing when I turn and when reversing(which I had a similar problem with stock). I find that keeping a good pace when turning helps.I also trimed the wheel well(not much)which helps.Im currently looking into the double wishbone mod.When I found the wheels I ebayed jato 2.2 wheels they have several colors if I remember correctly.The local hobbyshop really likes it also Im known as the guy with the pimped up lunchbox:-).Many thanks Justin for your time and help.
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