Tamiya TRF 419 Project

The sixth generation of the TRF touring car line began in December of 2014 with the 42285 TRF 419 chassis only one year after the previous generation (TRF 418) at exactly the same price point.  It's never been clear exactly how Tamiya decides when to call a chassis model a derivative and when they assign a brand new generational designation.  In this case, there had been only a single version of the TRF 418 before the TRF 419 was introduced.  There are so few changes between the TRF 418 and 419 that it probably would have made more sense to call it a TRF 418X, and in fact there are many more differences between the variations within the TRF 419 line than there are differences between it and the previous generation.  Probably the biggest change from the TRF 418 was the introduction of "big bore" dampers which went from an inner diameter of 10mm to 10.5mm.  These particular dampers were only ever included in this model because they changed again for the TRF 419X.  The first update that came out in June of 2016 was the aforementioned 42301 TRF 419X and included a lot of improvements, the most significant of which was the inclusion of even bigger "super short big bore" dampers which further increased the inner diameter to 11.2mm and decreased the overall length by 6.5mm.  A slight variation called the 42311 TRF 419X W came out the following April.  This was just a regular TRF 419X with an optional aluminum lower deck and optional thinner upper deck included for more stiffness variability when racing on carpet.  Finally, in December of 2017 (3 years from the initial model) Tamiya released the final version which was designated the 42316 TRF 419XR.  This version focused on including a lot more building options and adjustment variability.  I present a detailed list of the changes to each major generation of the model in the table below.

TRF 419X

TRF 419XR

New chassis plates New lower bulkheads New 3-piece motor mount All 4 upper bulkheads now identical with separate upper arm mounts Glass filled instead of carbon filled suspension parts New rear uprights Very slightly different kingpin bushings New sway bar stopper (this model only) New shorter big bore dampers New lower shock towers New optional ballast weights New servo mount (aluminum and carbon) Greatly improved battery supports

New chassis plates New lower bulkheads New motor mount with extra holes for chassis stiffness adjustment Bigger center shaft (5mm) with stronger mounting screws New bearing supports for sway bars New optional center stiffener New optional battery supports New optional cooling fan mount Includes optional shock towers for longer dampers

There were also various modifications available.  The expensive 54886 Suspension Upgrade kit swapped out the entire suspension setup (lower arms, rear uprights, front hub carriers, and steering knuckles) for much more durable and adjustable versions.  This could be used with any of the TRF 419 variants (and several other chassis as well).  For the original TRF 419 you could change the chassis stiffness by getting the 42290 2mm Carbon Lower Deck (as opposed to the 2.25mm version in the standard kit) or the 42296 Aluminum Lower Deck.  Note that the TRF 419X W which also came with an aluminum lower deck did not use the same part.  In fact, yet a third aluminum lower deck was available for the TRF 419XR as 42333 continuing the Tamiya tradition of having pretty much every version of every generation of TRF chassis use a unique lower deck.  Just for fun, I compare the three versions of the aluminum lower deck options at the right (top to bottom: TRF 419, TRF 419X W, TRF 419XR).  They all have the same thickness and overall dimensions, but the hole locations for stiffening options are different as are the cutouts.  It's kind of interesting (to someone like me) to see how the hole locations and number moved around while everything else stayed the same.  There were also lots of other option parts available including fancy aluminum pulleys and differential housings, beautiful brass suspension mounts, and ridiculously priced titanium screw sets.  It's always been amusing to me how every optional part is described as adding "more grip" or "improved cornering" even when the part it is replacing claimed exactly the same thing.  By far the most extensive modification available was the 42317 upgrade kit which converted a TRF 419X to an XR.  This included both chassis decks, stiffeners, and all the modified aluminum bulkheads and motor mounts.

The TRF 419 is extremely similar to the TRF 418. Like all the TRF touring car chassis, this a twin belt driven 4WD model with carbon fiber chassis plates, loads of machined aluminum parts, and generally the best parts Tamiya could come up with including hardware and axles.  The general layout with the electronics on one side and the battery on the other is the same.  The real changes are all in the details and are explained much further in my build journal below.