Just bought HBX Bonzer. Who else has 1??

[mike_nofx]

Hi, just won the auction for a HBX Bonzer on eBay.
Wondering who else has one, and any info they can share?

I know Magnat has 1? He is part of the reason i chose this particular model (he seemed pretty happy with it!)

Heres the one i bought.... price seems ok.
NEW HBX 4WD TIGER RADIO CONTROL MONSTER TRUCK RTR 53360 - eBay Cars, Cars, Land Vehicles, Radio Control, Toys, Hobbies. (end time 17-Aug-08 21:01:46 AEST) (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=150283193203&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=005)

I also see (on another forum) magnat, you have a Hbx site??

Mike

[MatMan]

ebay is the way to go eh? i am now looking at getting something similar... i though i was going to be up for a whole chunk of money for a decent rc car but the electric ones are cheap and from what i have seen pretty good.

[Magnat]

Looks like you have Won a Nice V2 Bonzer... Mine used to look like that but now looks like this

http://img252.imageshack.us/img252/944/bonzz03tj5.jpg

The HBX Bonzer is Basically a Tamiya TL-01 with Tamiya Twin Dagger Suspension arms and tyres. Whilst they are not going to Break any speed records.. they can go into some pretty good places with just a few mods..
I have modded mine for Rock Racing... Which is sorta like rock crawling.. only faster

[BENOLUX]

I have a HBX
Mines got longer shocks and is used for rock crawling to. also has a chevy body on it with flares and bar work. they flex really well for a Independant suspension vehicle. i can flex it up on a coke can easily.
They get pretty hot when used in rocks tho so keep an eye on the motor and esc!!!

[Magnat]

Yeah they are a Half Bred Mongrel.. not really a Cloned RC but more of a Half Bred..

The HBX Bonzer is a Onroad Tamiya TL-01 Crossed with the Dual Engined Twin Dagger..

So HBX Combined the Single Engined Onroad TL-01 with the Offroad Suspension of the Twin Dagger.. Giving you the HBX Bonzer Tiger.

Stock, Bonzers are Severly over geared.. The Onroad Gearing was never ment to be slapped on HUGE offroad tyres.. hence why the Engines Heat up... To this day, the only way we have Made the Bonzers faster and more reliable is to go with Brushless motors..

Stock , they are good fun.. They have oodles of torque for Sand and grass work but they don't have enough speed to make them a Jumping machine... In this respect they are more like a real offroader then a Monster truck..

Benolux, I would love to see some Pics of your Bonzer..

Best thing about the Bonzer is the Price of Spare parts... You can run a HBX Bonzer over with a truck and rebuild the whole thing for a fraction of the cost of a HPi Savage...

I have had mine now for 3 years and it has been a faithful RC with the only real complaint is its lack of adaptability to be changed into a full bred rock crawler.. Its gearing doesn't go low enough to allow it to crawl real slow and the chassis is still too low for going up anything extreme..

Saying that , they are a good Bang for Buck RC as long as you are not expecting $600 performance from an RC costing around $250

[BENOLUX]

Ill try get some pics in the next couple of days been really busy.
Its got a hell booty fab suspesion lift on mine now but it works and it drives stuff you wouldnt think it could. like you said tho the gearing is my issue it has plenty of power but thats useless when you want to go slow lol.
Mines got a chevy body with flares and scale spare on the back along with tool box and fake spotties on the roof needs some paint tho has been battered when i was testing suspension and stuff so is scrathced.

My only complaint is the esc isnt water proof lol :o i took it through a creek and esc caught on fire shorted it and battery exploded lol.

A nice after market motor with some lower gearing would make it awsome in the rough stuff.

[Magnat]

Use an M-Troniks RV15 Viper ESC There water proof.

I use one in mine..

[BENOLUX]

thats a good thought i dont get to use it much coz of uni so last time i used it i was making a working winch for the front lol but didnt finish it that explains the hole on the front bar lol. here are some pics its all dirty sorry the cam is crap to. gives u abit of an idea of wat u can do with them if u sit down for long enough, excuse the booty fab suspension job too haha :crazy: if your not into rock crawling keep the suspension hard coz this suspension is really soft. when u take off fast it bogs down really hard, its great in the rocks and rough stuff tho, took the foams out of my tyres to and that has made them bag more which helps traction heaps.

I did have the rear locked but i must drive it to hard and i stripped the main cog, not the one on the motor but the next one in. was completely flat no teeth lol. it hammers when locked tho, i went twice as far offroad, i might lock it again :mad: lol

[Magnat]

Your Suspension amazes me.. I am suprised your Dog Bones don't fall out ! The Gear you Stripped is most likely the counter gear, which the Gears from a Tamiya TL-01 will fit without a problem..

I would love to see your Bonzer with the Shell off..
Locking the Diff Does wonders on Sandy hills...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqr62pzpS64
Me and my Mate taking the Bonzers down a Walking trail..

[BENOLUX]

Ive never had a dog bone pop out, and ive run it like this for 2 years almost. It looks redneck, but it works really well. there is nothing different from a normal one under the top. i just added long arse coils, the body looks dodgy at the moment as it needs paint but it has barwork and all the bits to try make it look scale lol. only other thing i can think i would change would be use a high torque servo for steering the standard one has trouble sometimes. i got the gear and fixed it all and was reluctant to lock it again but when i get a chance i might lol.

[Magnat]

I had an Oil Filled Shock Collapse on me, So I rebuilt the Shock and wacked extra virgin Olive oil into the shock and so far so good..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD2mVCO-BwA

Quick vid of it playing in the left over Mulch.. I am using the stock tyres as the Rock Crawling ones are too soft and tend to fall off the rims at high speed lol...

[Paj Paj]

Hi I Have an ax 10 converted into a scaler defender SWB as my crawler. Im looking into getting a cheap basher/crawler and the bonzer seems to fit the bill. I also have a TL 01 witch in the past I tried putting bigger wheels on, although these wheels where not that much bigger(im sure there smaller then bonzer ones), ever with a 55t moter it was so underpowered it was undrivable. How does the bonzer overcome the gearing issue?

BTW BENOLUX could you post some more pics of yours not flexing, I like what you have done with it. Samer as yours magnat LOVE those after market tyres.

Heres my ax 10 fairly standard just had the rear suspension set to droop and shorter front coils.
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd64/draven205/IMG_0527.jpg

And heres what it looks like now flexing on the paint cans its soon to be painted with
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd64/draven205/IMG_1606.jpg

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd64/draven205/IMG_1608.jpg

http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/dd64/draven205/IMG_1609.jpg

[Magnat]

The Bonzer never overcomes the High Gearing problem but the use of a High Torque motor seems to help..
I am suprised to hear that the 55T motor was not good enough as I would have thought that with a windage like that the torque would have been great..

[Paj Paj]

hey magnat what tooth count is the pinion gear on the bonzer (gear on the motor).

[BENOLUX]

Here you go paj paj, mine goes ok for wat it is, hasnt cost me much to get it to wat it is, springs are off an old rc truck i had. the body is from an old truck too, it is a chevy not sure wat sort. it just looks better that the original hbx body for crawling and scale look. paint atm is crap lol it has been neglected i will get it going again soon and lock it, paint it and finish all the scale stuff. i had sliders made for it but lost them wen i moved house.

your defender is awesome :waycool: thats wat i want to do but, really id love to get my hands on a tamiya bruiser/ hilux and make it into a dual cab just like my 1:1 (added a pic)would be a sweet addition to my rc collection lol.

[BENOLUX]

forgot to add the pic of me real truck sorry lol

[Magnat]

Bonzer pinion is a Tamiya 19T

So if you need to replace it order a Tamiya 19T Pinion gear