The Transporter Saga [or, how I learned to love the Wi-Fi Bomb]

HEALTH WARNING

The following mechanical nerd-out contains homemade diagrams, incredible amounts of probably nessecary detail, an absolute truckload of technical terminology, and graphic images of possibly the most over-engineered RC gearbox system ever devised.

Side effects may include a compulsion to dismantle everything in sight, seeing blueprints and electronic components in your sleep, constantly smelling of sweat, tears and WD-40, a massive hole in your bank account from purchasing truckloads of obscure Japanese tech, and a need for excessive amounts of coffee [black, no sugar].

Viewer discretion is not advised [go on, read it, you know you want to   ]




TOMY have outdone themselves here. Literally.

So, I took the plunge, and carefully opened the chassis to have a peek at the gearbox, and frankly, it made my jaw drop. This thing is like a Plarail gearbox on steroids, gears everywhere, sprung components, a small motor, and of course, being fiddly as heck to re-assemble, and incredibly risky to work on due to the serious risk of dislodging tiny components and wrecking the whole mechanism - This one is even riskier though, as you will soon discover.

So, here's the basic list of features we're tackling here:

• 2-speed automatic propulsion gearbox, like Plarail it has Hi and Low settings, which in this case are actually used for very specific purposes rather than just for fast/slow running. This shifts automatically via a mechanical linkage system connected to the steering gearbox. This automatic propulsion gearbox has it's own transmission to connect it to the motor, and other than the gear shifter, is not mechanically connected to the steering.
  
• Power-steering gearbox. The steering on this unit, as opposed to being servo-controlled, is actually linked mechanically to the single drive motor, which also powers the seperate propulsion gearbox. The power-steering system, via mechanical linkages, automatically shifts the propulsion gearbox between Hi and Low gears as nessecary, based on the position of the wheels [steering or neutral]
  
• Rheostatic steering control - The steering is electronically controlled using a basic rheostat connected to a key part of the steering mechanism. This works in conjunction with the mechanical timing/synchronisation system.
  
• Mechanical timing - Although the rheostat informs the controller of the timing position based on steering position, the actual timing is NOT on the circuit board or capacitor based, but rather centred on a mechanical cam which also controls steering and gearshift.
  
• Single-motor disconnected drive - Instead of using a clutch, a planetary gear linkage attached to the motor is used to shift power from between the steering gearbox, and the propulsion gearbox. This means the motor physically disconnects from the gearboxes during it's normal action.
  

Now, if that text wall was too complex, lucky for all of you, I took photos, because there is NO WAY i am ever reopening this thing unless it's absolutely nessecary. As implied earlier, there are literally vast numbers of components that can work loose, and need to be kept still, and thus trying to dismantle this thing is like open heart surgery - Not for the faint of heart [lol irony] and needs a rock-steady hand. 

Therefore, for the benefit of BPT [and the wider internet since there literally doesn't exist any teardowns of one of these things], I present the picture guide to the RC Transporter gearbox.

I have added my own annotations and notes to these pictures to explain all the components and their functions; Hopefully this helps it to make some level of sense, as what we are actually dealing with here is an incredibly complicated electro-mechanical system that really needs to be seen to be believed.


Propulsion gearbox and auto-shift system


Steering & Timing cam & gearbox


Planetary drive


Steering rheostat



But, the best part of all this? For some bizzare reason, after having dismantled & explored this thing, and re-seating the aerial, it's now got no disturbance issues whatsoever. How that happened, I don't know, but it works as the makers intended, and you know what, I'll take that gladly.

I'm due to leave town for a couple days tomorrow evening, so I won't be able to shoot any footage of the beast in action for a while, but just as soon as I'm back, that's the next, and final step