# jl t-jet problems



## luke the duke (Apr 26, 2004)

just puchased some chassis is it me or are these things crap.the parts are not interchangeable with my old stock parts.they dont fit my cars as well as the origanals or the model motering ones.the magnet are bigger when i went to put my blue yellows magnets in they swam in the holes.the machineing sucks the holes for the armatures are way to big so they vibrate baddly.the top plate tabs are a diffrent size so i had to change the motor to put in a mean green arm with the green wire then the cluster gear shaft did not hold up withtraction magnets.maybe it just me but i was very unhappy.i keep having people at hobby shops tell me they are a direct replacement for the origanal chassis and all my old parts will fit but they are full of crap.i am going to take back the other 4 to the hobby shop and get my money back.


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## Marty (Oct 20, 1999)

It is unfortunate the hobby shop was either uninformed or just plain lieing to you to make a sale. Myself personally I am very happy with my JL cars.

Not to get too personal but how long have you been racing Aurora T-Jets? I have several T-Jets that are unusable w/o some kind of repair work. Loose gears, smashed gear teeth, poor molding, etc.... Mass manufacturing of toys is going to produce some quality defects. Look through some of the threads on this board for tips on how to work with the JL cars.

Good luck and don't give up on JL yet.

Marty


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## micyou03 (Apr 8, 2003)

I find with a little tweaking of the brush tension, proper lubricating (I use a blue grease in the armature hole to prevent wicking) and Thunder Oil on the gears and axel) and break-in (5 mins on 9vDC) most of my JL chassis will out perform my best Aurora Tuffones chassis hands down.


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## noddaz (Aug 6, 1999)

.the parts are not interchangeable with my old stock parts.
*Correct, they are close, but not exact replicas*

they dont fit my cars as well as the origanals or the model motering ones.
*And the JL wheelbase is off just a litte bit*

the magnet are bigger when i went to put my blue yellows magnets in they swam in the holes.
*Interesting, I have found the JL magnets and Aurora blue/yellow magnets to be about the same size...*

the machineing sucks the holes for the armatures are way to big so they vibrate badly.
*But the JL cars run fast anyway.*

the top plate tabs are a diffrent size so i had to change the motor to put in a mean green arm with the green wire then the cluster gear shaft did not hold up withtraction magnets.maybe it just me but i was very unhappy.i keep having people at hobby shops tell me they are a direct replacement for the origanal chassis and all my old parts will fit but they are full of crap.i am going to take back the other 4 to the hobby shop and get my money back.


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## AfxToo (Aug 29, 2003)

Sorry to hear about your problems. I have over a hundred of these cars and other than a few Release 1s they are all very good runners, with the Release 5-7 chassis being the most consistently good right out of the box. Maybe the loose chassis that you bought were culled from a larger stock or returned. Who knows? I guess it all comes down to how much you paid for them. If you don't feel as though you got your money's worth then take them back. Life is too short to get upset about something that is supposed to be a source of enjoyment. If you do keep them, look around this and other hobby sites for TJet tuning tips that will help you get the most out of what you've got.


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## luke the duke (Apr 26, 2004)

been playing with t jets for 20 years.a number of hobby shops and web sites told me they interchanged with my origanails.yes they are fast out of the box but even one i got with a complet carhas the same problems.i have had no problems geting speed out of a tjet .just with modern machining and molding the hole could be the right size vibration eats power and cuts down on speed.


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## doctorslotcar (Jul 25, 2004)

*fixen em from the factory*

Its Interesting To Note That Every Car I Buy Or Build Im Able To Find Flaws Or Defects.especially In The Cars Made Today.in A Hurry To Get Em Out The Door & On The Shelf.to Me The Greatest Part Of This Whole Deal Is Trying To Make These Cars Faster And Handle Better Buy Trying New Things And Interchanging Parts & Pieces.i Recently Doubled My Lap Time By Putting Low Profile Front Tomy Tires And Wheels On My 69 Mustang Fastback T-jet.howboutdat


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## 1976Cordoba (Sep 20, 2000)

doctorslotcar said:


> . . . i Recently Doubled My Lap Time . . .


Sounds like you went the wrong direction with that swap! LOL

'Doba


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## dlw (Aug 17, 1999)

*You're Forgetting One Thing*

Aurora cars weren't/aren't perfect, either. Though they were made better overall, many tires had that oreo-cookie look, lots of rims came out untrue, lots of dog armatures to replace. And the Aurora Tuff-Ones, those brad front axles that were slightly crooked would compound the tire and rim problem, making a car impossible to run at a slow speed. 

Just replacing any bad rims and axles, and truing tires should smooth out any Aurora or JL car. The same goes for the Afx and XT chassis. Axles, rims and tires are very inexpensive and plentiful. It's very satisfying to take a car that hops all over the place and smoothing it out, making it into a smooth runner.


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## nick danger (Apr 7, 2002)

Back in the day, some 40 plus years ago, I got my first Tjet. It ran like crap! Slow as a snail and wobbled around the track like a drunken sailor!

I learned how to work on the thing to make it faster and handle well. I used the parts available at the time. AJ's thread on wheel/tire axle combo, Common sense, Logic, etc.

My point is this: If you want to get the most out of your Slotcars you will have to get your hands dirty! You will have to spend alot of bench time to get your cars running and handling well. It's not trial and error anymore, folks. There are many websites, including this one, where each step is laid out for you, assuming you can follow directions!!

If this sounds like too much work, then maybe Slotcars are not for you! 

NICK DANGER


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## luke the duke (Apr 26, 2004)

have no problem working on my slot cars installing bushings is no walk in the park. my main problem was with modern machineing and computor controls why cant they get the holes the proper size.when the holes for the armature are so big the arm almost hits the magnets on a new car something is wrong .do they even have a qc dept or do they use a yard stick to measure the holes. i have tjets that i have run to the point that the plate on the arm has the copper worn off of and the arm holes still isnt as large as the one on a new jl.holes that are to large waste power that could be used to makes the car go faster.i have won many races at the local club and hold the track record for the fastest lap with a tjet .my cars never hit the track with out replacement rims and tires a proper cleaning and polishing, greasing and my own personal tweaks rightout of the box.when i have to install bushings in a brand new car to get the motor to stop shaking it tends to piss me off.thats why i have the post in swap and sell looking for more found them at a hobby shop going out of biz from his old stock.this is 2004 not 1965 back then the craftmenship was alot better than today.


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## luke the duke (Apr 26, 2004)

doctorslotcar said:


> i Recently Doubled My Lap Time By Putting Low Profile Front Tomy Tires And Wheels On My 69 Mustang Fastback T-jet.howboutdat


most likely looks better than the stock tires have a cut up vette with lifelike fronts and rears,also a firebird with tyco lo pros on the front and the larger truck tires on the back on chrome tyco front rims.


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## Al Markin (May 17, 2003)

I find that is like any other upgrade, You have to do a little trial and error! Find the chassis that you feel will work the best for you, Do some ohm checking on the motors, find the best fitting motor plates, Shim your favorite magnets if need be. Do a test and tune on various lubes, Outfit the chassis with correct tires, maintain proper ride height, etc. Don't just say that nothing is the same, You can't build a hot car in 2 minutes, Spend an hour or so!---Good Luck, Al.


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