R/C Tank Combat

How-To Articles

First Steps In Constructing An R/C Combat Vehicle

The large scale used for R/C Tank Combat makes it possible to outfit vehicles with all of the equipment needed to wage scale warfare, but it also makes it more difficult, but not impossible, to find scale vehicles to purchase. Fortuntately, the process of constructing an R/C combat vehicle is relatively straight-forward and all of the required parts can be purchased or constructed from parts purchased from surplas catalogs, hardware stores and flea markets. This article focuses on the initial steps that can be taken to start building an R/C combat vehicle.

Tracked vehicles are cool. There are many different ways to build an effective track system for an R/C combat vehicle. This article describes a number of different techniques that are currently being used by various commanders, with references to more detailed explanations of specific techniques.

The plastic Intralox tracks discussed in the article above can be used as-is for good performance, but for added traction in rough terrain and to allow for more quiet operation you may want to add rubber cleats to each link. This article provides step-by-step instructions for creating a mold for that purpose.

An R/C combat vehicle isn't much good unless it can move around the battlefield. This article describes a number of different methods to build an inexpensive, reliable speed control for any R/C combat vehicle.

A comprehensive review of the various types of Track/Speed controllers that can be used for large scale vehicles, including a comparison of capabilities and cost, with links to suppliers.

It's harder than many might think to build a robust steering linkage that is capable of handling rough battlefield terrain and heavyweight vehicles. This article shows how to build just such a linkage using common parts and tools.

Shouting bang, bang is pretty boring, so you'll probably want to mount a paintball gun in your AFV before too long. This collection of photos shows one way to convert a standard, inexpensive paintball marker into a remote control tank or armored car weapon.

If you start with the right marker, arming your AFV is made much simpler. This article describes in the detail the steps needed to convert a GTVe electronic paintball marker for use in an R/C tank.

Unless you plan on running alongside of your tank and pulling the trigger whenever you want to shoot, you'll need to trigger the paintball marker remotely. Mike Lyons surveys everything you wanted to know about switches, relays and remote triggering.

If you can't feed paintballs into your gun reliably, then you might as well just drive around with a big target painted on your vehicle. This article describes the design of a paintball magazine that should work in any turret with minor modifications.

One possible way to quickly and cheaply make hull parts would be to vacuform them from plastic sheets. This article documents a research trip made by a couple of battlers to the shop of some local Star Wars modelers, who have lots of experience molding large parts from plastic.

Although not specifically related to tank construction, this set of articles provides an excellent tutorial on how to make your own springs. No more too mushy or too stiff for you, everything will be just right once you know how to make your own springs.

If the theory of spring making presented in the previous article boggles your mind, take a look at how easy it is to make your own torsion springs. Doug Conn shows his homemade rig for winding springs to suit your purposes.