Typhon 3s v3 upgrades to not pass on, and their benefits. – 12/2021
The Typhon 3s is one of the absolute best R/C cars for the money, period. It isn’t perfect, but it sure does come the closest. Everything, from looks, to how it bashes, to how it breaks….. just a complete beauty.
We can start the recommendations with what cost me the most to repair over time, and what caused it. I have a wife that reads this blog, so upgrade values might not be exact!
-GPM Transmission/Mesh. – This in my opinion is the one i wish folks would’ve just told me to pick up and be done with mesh issues. As a newbie to the hobby i struggled greatly setting a proper mesh, and definitely went through many different meshes, gears… to the point where it had become discouraging. Finally, after many attempts i figured it out…. and then that’s when i found the item below…….
I know what’s coming…. “OMG, but I OWN A TYPHON?!&%^#&!!!!!!”……yes you do, which uses much of the same internals and designs as the sentons, and other popular Arrma models. Arrma wasnt out to re-invent the wheel with the Typhon, just deliver a bit better platform that is upgradable. This means that some parts will interchange beautifully. This is probably the most important one of those parts you want to change. The absolute biggest benefit of this part is that it teaches you where you should be screwing the motor in. This is something that isnt mentioned in any articles or documentations but it is of massive importance due to the stresses that it puts on the actual mesh. Nine out of ten times that your mesh bends it is because the screw points picked are not ideal for the amount of torque this can puts on the mesh. In this add-on, mounting points are numbered by pinion gear used. This helps keep down unwanted torque in weak areas, therefore lasting much longer than the stock one.
The aforementioned item can be found at the following link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NT6X51J?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details
-Proline Badland Tires MX – Yea. You wont regret how these elevate the bashing experience by providing solid threads to rip it up with. The Badland tires are not the most expensive ones, but it’s a tough pill to swallow as they are pricey. The tires look great on the car, but the main reason to add them is impact absorption. In bashing cars it is very important to invest into the components that take the brunt of most impacts; whether it is from jumps, crashes, or mistakes upgrading impact absorption points is very important. When we say upgrading them we aren’t referring to aluminum parts…. we are talking better quality nylon parts. Stay away from aluminum for shock distribution points…. they transfer much more energy than we want transferred. Remember, 40.99 USD is only for two tires.
It is important to note to use these tires up to 3S, as once you go into 6S with these they shred of the rims pretty easily.
Link to the adapters: Amazon.com: Pro-line Racing 1/10 6×30 to 17mm Hex Adapters, PRO633600 : Toys & Games
Link to the tires: Amazon.com: Pro-line Racing 1/10 Badlands MX28 Fr/Rr 2.8″ MT Tires Mounted 12mm Blk Raid (2), PRO1012510 : Toys & Games
NOTE: Many of our suggested links are for amazon.com this is due to the fact that many of the Brands we love have online stores on the AWS system, but most of all because the listings provide part numbers which you can search at other trusted sources you may rather purchase from.
–Bearings- This topic has much criticism from the community. I will tell you my opinion on bearings….. Anything is better than what Arrma adds to their cars stock. Use the Arrma ones until they get nasty and then upgrade. The main argument here becomes, do we go for ceramic bearings?, or do we go for steel bearings?
Ceramic bearings in my opinion are not ideal for bashing due to how fragile they can be. Steel bearings will last, and be able to handle some of that dirt you know will eventually make its way into them. For steel bearings i went to Jimsbearings.com. One of the greatest things about their website is that you can purchase a bearings set for your R/C model… example “bearings for typhon 3s” and you purchase one pack with all of them included. They make it so easy that it will be the quickest 15 dollar upgrade you ever make.
-Tie Rod Pivots – These are very important but only in the sense that they are an excellent measure of the wear your car is undergoing. I have found through time owning several R/C cars that when these wear out and you go to replace them, it usually is also a great time to replace just about any other part that undergoes any sort of friction or direct exposure to the abuse of the land. When they are newly installed they are an amazing addition and make the R/C car look great. As they wear down they begin to loose their color and become silver. This is usually at the point you want to start check on all the moving parts and begin making a list of everything that will have to be upgraded.
-Shocks Absorbers – This is probably going to be one of the most responsive upgrades you can do to your R/C car besides upgrading the motor which we aren’t recommending here. Shocks absorbers keep your R/C car from dying when it lands a proper bashing. The Typhon 3S is a great platform that gives you flexibility on shocks that can be used. We used on the 3S Typhon the following shock absorbers.
We used 4 of the same ones…. Yes, you read that correctly.
After driving the Typhon 3s for sometime and realizing the weight of the car I can say with all the confidence in the world that I am not interested in allowing a shorter shock in the front to give it that buggy lower front end look…. By shortening the amount of travel on the shock, you essentially get rid of some good energy dissipation. This is not something you notice right away, but you’ll notice over time the disadvantage of using a shock that isn’t as long. Length of distance along with spring tension, and fluid viscosity are what provides the response to a shock you seek. By better manipulating these factors you can ensure that sexy slightly lower front end look, along with excellent shock absorption. In these shocks we used spacers to change tension on the spring. Also remember, you want to always try to keep your typhon as level as possible during speed off’s… this will allow you better steering response; Shock flexibility at that point becomes crucial.
NOTE: At this point you are probably wondering why purchase a model if you are just going to have to upgrade it…… The response to this is very simple; These cars go through wear and tear at a very fast pace… specially if you are a true basher kind of driver. Always consider the R/C you buy, nothing more than the platform you’ll be upgrading.
-After market Remote Controller – There are many different reasons to do this upgrade. My top reasons were, controller range, additional channels, i wanted an expandable one if need be. For this I chose the following controller.
Flysky FS GT5 Transmitter
The controller provided in any RTR model leaves much to be desired, plus once you get an R/C car, I doubt it would be the only one you ever get. With this remote you are able to program in 20 models with unique settings. For R/C cars i don’t foresee needing anything more than this.
-Front/Rear Transmission module upgrade to steel gears- This one is a painful upgrade and it is pretty much a requirement if you are planning on changing the stock tires to ANYTHING after market or doing some good bashing. Prior to this upgrade i had replaced this module about 5 different times. Remember, DO NOT GREASE THIS GEAR. The reason for this is that this section doesn’t require it. Grease will only collect the dirt and wear them down 50% quicker than they should. Don’t forget, you’ll need two of these.
-Clear body for Typhon 3s- Yep, this will lead you into a whole different path of learning. Something as simple as a kit body to paint and personalize your modded R/C car. The reason this is a must is because if you are out with others that have stock cars, you don’t want the confusion during races.
-Steering servo – This expense isn’t too bad, but it definitely makes a difference. Specially when you get a typhon shipped to you with a weak one…. I honestly was going to upgrade it anyways so i didn’t even bother putting in a claim with Horizon hobby. This servo is more than sufficient in strength, it has a very quick reaction time, it is waterproof (it has been under the ocean water), and honestly looks great when you take the cover off the car. I get mixed feelings on the price, but honestly this is a great quality item.
Savox servo
The upgrades mentioned here are simply upgrades I feel are worth it and definitely not all of the upgrades we have done to ours. The upgrades here standout because they provide immediate benefits to the driver. Any absolutely essential updates you would do?, if so, feel free to share!!!! We are always glad to learn more stuff to swap out!
UPDATE TO ARTICLE ABOVE – EDITED on 8/21/2022
It has been 10 months since I personally wrote the article above, now I will update you with some interesting happenings after I had released original post, also in that order.
GPM Transmission Mesh Motor Mount
The GPM motor mount was excellent originally. On 3s, 47T Heel, 19T Pinon it ran like a dream however, my son wanted more power for wheelies. I went to install a smaller pinion to factory sized which is 15T.. You should have seen the look on my face when I found out that the pinion mount holes don’t line up with actual motor mount.