TK.45C Upgrade Path Q's; please can an AEG tech take a look and make recommendations?

[CJSpalding]

Hello Z1 Forums.

I'm acquiring a new KWA TK.45C soon, and I'm interested in getting some upgrades for it. It has a V2.5 gearbox, which is similar enough to a V2. I'm not confident enough in most of my own abilities to upgrade this thing, so Steps 1 and 2 will be done by a professional techie.


1 - MOSFET
Firstly I would be having a MOSFET installed by a professional. The two main candidates are the Jefftron Leviathan V2 (built-in trigger with the gear, BlueTooth connection to the App, binary trigger capability so it fires a shot upon releasing the trigger too) or the Gate Titan Advanced (extremely common, plenty of online help for it, optical sensors are more reliable than the Leviathan mechanical). If I get the Titan, I'll get a snazzy looking trigger too.

If anyone has any experiences with both or either, which would you recommend? And for those with Titans and aftermarket triggers, which would you recommend? I believe this to be the main upgrade within the RIF, so I'd like to see if anyone has any experiences or opinions that aren't in YouTube videos.

2 - Gears
Aside from a proper shimming, I understand a 16:1 spur and bevel and a dual sector gear (DSG) will be just what I'm looking for.

Are there going to be any huge issues with this? I understand high-speed gears and high-torque motor are the thing for snappy semi-auto, and with a DSG I'll need a better piston (below).

3 - Motor and Spring Assembly
I'm eyeballing the ASG Infinity 22k/30k motor, as that's got some solid reviews. If I'm using a DSG as well, I'll also need an upgraded spring since it won't get fully compressed. The DSG will also speedily kill a plastic-toothed piston, so I'll use a metal-toothed one.

Any better options than the ASG Infinity? Will I need an M140 or M150 spring (or other)? Are there any recommendations on pistons, or will any do?


Sorry this is a bit wordy and possibly a bit vague. I'm extremely green with actual internals beyond what I've seen on YouTube. I also know the TK.45C is a bit new or uncommon, so I've been unable to find a whole lot online.

[sj_asc]

Sounds like a fairly good plan,
For MOSFET choices, I would only opt for one of those units if you plan to use the features, if you are looking for a simple power upgrade and trigger contact protection, then a decent high power fet will do the job just as well and cost ~£10
The Gate Titans have been enjoying good rep whilst the BTC units have been M.I.A, but there is a Mk3 Spectre on the horizon, so if you want the very best then may want to hold out for that, but again, they are delayed and have been for some time.

Gears;
I would strongly advice avoiding the 16:1 combo, reason being is that the 10 toothed bevel gear included in any sets are flawed by design. I have plenty of experience and evidence of destruction testing to back up that these are far inferior to the 9 tooth pairing. If you choose to use the 10 tooth part at higher speeds and or higher loads then it will fail sooner rather than later - and there won't be signs on maintenance inspections either.
The common ACM 16:1 sets are actually 17.28:1, if you use the 9 tooth bevel with this pairing you would up the ratio to 19.2:1 but with significant reliability gains. Remember that the effective ratio will be half of that, and you would also be reducing the load on the motor whcih would reduce heat and improve battery life.

Piston - The new KWA pistons are well thought out and have design considerations for the initial pickup tooth loading characteristics, however with that said, due to the first stages of the rack gear being plastic, it is not suitible for long term use with the DSG config. A modified SHS Blue, CYMA FMR, or a modified Retro Arms FMR is a better option as they are made from GR Nylon. Avoid anything with a polycarbonate body.
Piston Head - The included one is metal and has no ports - I would avoid this as you want to be reducing the mass of the piston in this type of build. Something Nylon or POM, with ball bearings removed and with ports is the ideal way to go - Lonex is ideal.

Motor choice - Either the ASG 22k or 30K is a soild choice. The 22k would be more efficient and better suited with an 11.1v pairing. I designed the can ports for ASG's 22k unit, so it at least has cooling unlike the earlier, faster offerings that they had...
Other solid choices are Tienly, Starwei, or if you want to enter the ACM lottery then the ZCI 22K.
The 30K motor would only be the better option if you were using a 2 cell pack.

Other pointers are - Use low resistence wiring throughout the entire loom, this includes removing any bottlenecks. Low resistence connectors such as deans, and make sure the motor connectors are super tight.

M150+ springs, or use a spring spacer.
G.A.W make DSG Specific springs.

[BigAl]

Try asking on the FB KWA VM4A1 / Ronin / TK45 / QRF Users Group.

[CJSpalding]

Thank you both for your replies.

I do plan on using the advanced MOSFET features, like burst-fire and pre-cocking. I didn't know about the BTC Spectre, so a special thank you for that. It looks good going by reviews, but since the Mk. 3 is almost a year late and the Titan is now up 3-0 over the Leviathan in recommendations and has much more in-depth reviews, I'll probably end up going with it next month.

You lost me a bit on the gears... As long as the bevel gear has 9 teeth, it should be fine right? I've heard fantastic things about Siegetek, so I've been keeping an eye out for any cheap DSG sets of them.

Yeah I figured I would need a new pistol assembly. I was going for plastic piston, metal rack, and plastic ported head. I'm happy to know the research has been accurate though.

I've got 7.4V 1,100 mAh LiPo batteries right now. I think I'll go for the ASG 22k, and if the ROF isn't what I want then I'll up to the 30K or 11.1V LiPo's.

I'll make a note of the M150 spring with the DSG combination. The Titan comes with Deans connections too, so I don't have to worry about getting those snipped and replaced.



I'll poke around for the KWA FB group

[sj_asc]

If you are going for a 7.4v pack I would strongly advise going for a higher drain pack, Something at least 2000mahm with at least 25C sustainable drain - bare in mind that this is more important with the faster motor since the initial and running current draw will be a lot higher which will cause a significant voltage dip in a low drain pack.

As for the 9 tooth pairing, they were designed for pairing with the 39 tooth spur/step gear from the 18.7:1 set, the 16:1 set uses the 36 toothed spur/sector part and whilst this meshing isn't ideal, its still within reliable operating tolerance.

Siegetek/RiotSC are the finest gear sets, there is Zero question about this - They will not let you down, and if they did, they will be replaced under warranty.

[CJSpalding]

What's "higher drain pack" in non-techie speak? An 11.1V battery?

Eh, I aim to keep an eye out for an entire Siegetek set of all three gears rather than just their single DSG, so I don't anticipate any of those teeth meshing issues to be a huge problem unless the point of failure happens to be the pinion gear.

[sj_asc]

High drain basically means a pack that can deliver more current. The more current available, the better. The motor will only take what it needs. So if you are going for the 7.4v option + faster motor then maybe opt for something 3000mah+ and 25C +
The general issue with low capacity packs is that they simply cannot hold a decent voltage line under load, so with the motor’s initial startup current being around 7~x running current, on startup, or semi auto in particular, a low capacity/drain pack will, as I said, have a more severe voltage dip and recovery time - and as voltage is proportionate to the motors RPM, It will affect trigger response and likely even full cycle performance.

Siegetek/Riot also make motor nichromoly pinion gears if you didn’t know