58418: The Boomerang (2008)
58418: The Boomerang (2008) - Manual
Build Date: August 2019 (Original)
Build Date: September 2019 (Rebuild in red)
I built one of these when I was 12 years old with my dad staying up all Christmas day and night to build it, and when I found out there were re-releases I just had to build one all over again.
This time of course I could get all the parts I couldn't afford as a kid
Electronics
The car requires the following additional electronics which are not included with the kit.
- SC-0254MG - Savöx Digital Servo
- GR3E/F - Flysky GR3E/F Transmitter
- GT3C - Flysky GT3C Receiver
- Any quality 4000mAh Tamiya shaped Lipo battery will suit. example
I have since switched to a DumboRC transmitter and receiver because of the superior range.
- X4 - DumboRC X4 Transmitter (X6 is also good)
- X6F - DumboRC X6F Receiver (one comes with the transmitter)
Basic Hopups
Tamiya official recommendations
Tamiya includes the following hopups sheet with the instruction book which recommends ball bearings, and drive shafts, shocks and wheels from the DF-03 and DF-03 series of buggies
Original hop ups
It is a must to build with full ball bearing when using modern more powerful motors
- 54002 - Tamiya Hotshot (2007) Ball Bearing Set (only has 13, 1150 bearings so you will need two sets)
- tamiya58418 - RC Bearings: Tamiya 58418 Boomerang FULL Bearing Kit (5 x 850, 17 x 1150) - Alternative 3rd party bearing set
- 30120201 - Quicrun 1060 Brushed ESC (2-3S), much better than the standard Tamiya ESC included
Brushed motor upgrade
The motor selection I tried first, settling on the Super Stock BZ. Don't even bother with the included "silver can" motor.
- 37021 - Kyosho Le Mans Motor 490 Brush 30T - Slow, my original Boomerang had a Kysosho motor so I wanted to try this. Nice motor just not very fast.
- MT-0012 HACKMOTO V2 13T 540 brushed motor - Fast, ran too hot, melted! almost burned! Not recommended!!
- 53930 Tamiya Super Stock Motor Type-BZ (23T) - Higher performance brushed motor, great motor.
Extensive Hopups
Below is my experience with the recommended and other hopups I have tried out, after the original build.
Brushless motor & ESC
First point of call is to switch to a more modern, maintenance free, more powerful brushless motor. This also requires a brushless ESC.
ESC
- 30125000 - Quicrun 10BL120 ESC (1/10th scale 120A sensored Brushless ESC) - bulletproof ESC works with most motors.
Motors
I found that the sweet spot for the Boomerang was 10.5T brushless motors.
- 30125000 - Quicrun 3650 Sensored brushless motor G2. - Matches the ESC nice motor.
- 54611 - Tamiya Brushless Motor 02 (Sensored) 10.5T - Never tried this motor but it is the official Tamiya one and apparently quite good.
My final choice had to match the colour scheme of the car.. search for "blue 10.5T brushless motor". Aliexpress will show a heap of them: example
Pinion upgrade
To get some more speed, you can switch to the largest pinion supported in the Boomerang.
- 84181 - Tamiya RC 08 Module Pinion Gear 17T
Propshaft upgrade
The original propshaft is like a piece of coat hanger wire, switching to the Hotshot aluminum propshaft is also a must with more powerful motors. The TRF urethane bushings can be placed inside the propshaft joints to have a snug rattle free setup.
- 9808130 - Tamiya Propshaft joints (2 pk)
- 3450053 - Tamiya Propshaft (HotShot)
- 53577 - Tamiya TRF Damper Urethane Bushing (10pcs.)
Wheel & tyre upgrade
White rims
Black rims
- 0440209 Tamiya Rims DF-03 Chassis (2 pcs., front) Dark Impact
- 0440210 Tamiya Rims DF-03 Chassis (2 pcs., rear) Dark Impact
Tyres
The official recommended tyres are good, but not really suited for dirt or gravel which was what I was looking for.
- 54185 - Tamiya Dual Block Tires K (4WD/Front, 62/25)
- 54186 - Tamiya Dual Block Tires K (Rear, 62/35)
I switched to these "Redcat HPI Tyres" you can search for on many Aliexpress stores. Remove them from the rims that they come with and stick them on the Tamiya rims above, these have been great in the dirt and gravel!
- Redcat Tyres - 12mm Hex Redcat HPI Buggy Tyres
Universal drive shaft upgrade
Tamiya offers the following upgrade from the original dog bone drive shafts, you can use to replace all four drive shafts.
- 53791 - Tamiya DF-02 Assembly Universal Shaft
I found that it was more trouble than it was worth. I had the pin work it way loose on a number of occasions even with locktite applied to the grub screw. In the end I returned to the standard dog bone drive shafts in the rear and switched to the Top Force universal shafts in the front listed below in the front.
- 4135028 - Tamiya Top Force Universal Shaft
Stronger joint and axel cups that will not wear out as fast as the originals
- 53218 - Tamiya Touring Car Hard Joint Cup Set (2pcs.)
- 54048 - Tamiya CR-01 Reinforced Wheel Axle (2pcs.)
Dual front shock conversion
Converting the single shock to dual shock there are basically two options. Use the 58517 Super Hotshot mounts or the 47330 The Bigwig mounts. Having driven a Bigwig I decided to go for the Super Hotshot mounts which drives and looks better!
Shock mounts and brackets
- 4305176 - Super Hotshot Front Under Stay Left
- 4305177 - Super Hotshot Front Under Stay Right
- 4305174 - Super Hotshot Front Damper Stay Left
- 4305175 - Super Hotshot Front Damper Stay Right
Nuts, bolts, washers and spacers for mounting
- 9805334 Tamiya 4x6mm Brass Pipe & 3x15mm Screw (2 Pcs.)
- 9805897 Tamiya 3mm Flange Nut (10 Pcs.)
- 9805636 Tamiya 3x6mm Screw (2 Pcs.)
- 50586 Tamiya 3mm Washer (15 Pcs.)
- 9805895 Tamiya 3x20mm Screw (10 Pcs.)
- 9805898 Tamiya 3x12mm Screw (10 Pcs.)
- 9808200 Tamiya 3x8mm Aluminum Spacer Bag (4 Pcs.)
New shocks
- DF03-01/V2/LB - 3Racing Tamiya DF03 Hop-Up Option Aluminum Oil Damper Set Ver. 2
- Standoffs - M2.5 11mm motherboard stand offs (these were need to extend the length of the rear shocks)
Below are the official recommended shocks, which I have but never used. I didn't buy them originally as the 3 Racing shocks were half the price, and now I have switched to the red GMade shocks (see below) I haven't used them. I probably should have skipped the 3 Racing and went straight to these.
- 53926 - Tamiya DF-03 Aluminum Damper Set (OP.926)
A-arm brace
CRP 1650 A-Arm brace (vintage), was made back in the day to support the front suspension arms more securely. These are very hard to find and if found expense nowadays.
3D printed reproductions are available or...
Make your own from two plastic washers and a rubber o-ring!
Suspension hinge pins upgrade
All of the original hinge pins on the suspension points are the screw in type for the Boomerang/Hotshot family. These can lead to the suspension arms cracking under stress. All modern RC cars use hinge pins with e-clips.
or
- 53301 - Tamiya TL01 Stainless Steel Suspension Shaft Set (4pcs.)
You can replace the screw pins on the end of all four rear suspension arms with hinge pins. This is the weakest part of the suspension arm and usually cracks first, so a nice upgrade.
Going red
I saw this forum post where a Boomerang had been painted in a red/white/gun metal gray colour scheme and I just had to have it.
Red plastic parts
I didn't want to paint any plasic parts, and I discovered that right after the Boomerang Tamiya released the 58066 Super Sabre. It has almost the exact same chassis except all the blue parts are red! If you can find the 10005299 A Parts tree you can take the battery brackets and rear hubs from it.
- X10102 - 10005299 A Parts tree (Red battery mounts, rear hubs and front stabiliser arms)
- 50648 - TA01 Car Front Upright (red)
You sadly can't get the rear shock mount or wing mount in red.
Red Gmade shocks
- GM22007 - Gmade XD Diaphragm Shock 103mm (2pcs.) - rear
- GM22307 - Gmade XD Diaphragm Shock 75mm (2pcs.) - front
Final result
The car as it stands today
Parts List
A complete parts list of all parts that make up the car as it is today
- 58418 - The Boomerang (2008)
- 54002 - Tamiya Hotshot (2007) Ball Bearing Set
- SC-0254MG - Savöx Digital Servo
- 4000mAh Tamiya shaped Lipo battery. example
- X4 - DumboRC X4 Transmitter
- X6F - DumboRC X6F Receiver
- 30125000 - Quicrun 10BL120, 120A sensored Brushless ESC
- Blue 10.5T - "Blue 10.5T brushless motor"
- 84181 - Tamiya RC 08 Module Pinion Gear 17T
- 9808130 - Tamiya Propshaft joints (2 pk)
- 3450053 - Tamiya Propshaft (HotShot)
- 53577 - Tamiya TRF Damper Urethane Bushing (10pcs.)
- 0440209 Tamiya Rims DF-03 Chassis (2 pcs., front) Dark Impact
- 0440210 Tamiya Rims DF-03 Chassis (2 pcs., rear) Dark Impact
- Redcat Tyres - 12mm Hex Redcat HPI Buggy Tyres
- 4135028 - Tamiya Top Force Universal Shaft
- 53218 - Tamiya Touring Car Hard Joint Cup Set (2pcs.)
- 54048 - Tamiya CR-01 Reinforced Wheel Axle (2pcs.)
- 4305176 - Super Hotshot Front Under Stay Left
- 4305177 - Super Hotshot Front Under Stay Right
- 4305174 - Super Hotshot Front Damper Stay Left
- 4305175 - Super Hotshot Front Damper Stay Right
- 9805334 Tamiya 4x6mm Brass Pipe & 3x15mm Screw (2 Pcs.)
- 9805897 Tamiya 3mm Flange Nut (10 Pcs.)
- 9805636 Tamiya 3x6mm Screw (2 Pcs.)
- 50586 Tamiya 3mm Washer (15 Pcs.)
- 9805895 Tamiya 3x20mm Screw (10 Pcs.)
- 9805898 Tamiya 3x12mm Screw (10 Pcs.)
- 9808200 Tamiya 3x8mm Aluminum Spacer Bag (4 Pcs.)
- Home made A-arm brace, 2x plastic washers & o-ring
- 50380 - Tamiya E-ring set
- 9808241 - Tamiya F104 3x33.4mm Stainless Steel Shaft (2pcs.) 2x
- X10102 - 10005299 A Parts tree
- 50648 - TA01 Car Front Upright
- GM22007 - Gmade XD Diaphragm Shock 103mm (2pcs.) - rear
- GM22307 - Gmade XD Diaphragm Shock 75mm (2pcs.) - front