16 replies to this topic

[havlicek]

Is it the "FJ13UO"?... the "FT13UO"? No matter, the littlest Mabuchi, their "homeset motor" had a lot going for it.  

 

First off, just its size filled a niche the bigger Mabuchi cans weren't so comfortable in, and builders could easily scratchbuild a 1/32 F1 car around the motor.  No, it wasn't short, but it was very thin... about as thin as you could go and still put a .510" arm in there. I screwed-around with a bunch of these as a kid and, if my memory is correct, they were of the "red" persuasion (Monogram?). They were/are a really appealing package... on paper anyway, and it was a real mind-tweak going from the relatively huge FT36D to the 13UO. Of course, the absolute worst part about these motors was the appallingly weak magnets... and there wasn't any better option if I remember correctly, but things have sure changed.  
 
The endbell on the "13" was both good and bad. "Bad" because of how thin, fragile, and (like all the Mabuchis) how prone to melting it was. The (very) good was, the endbell hardware was a dead-bang ringer for the later Mura-type brush hoods that became the standard... only sort of "inverted". By spreading out the heat over a larger area than even Mabuchi's own "heatsinks", and doing a good job of keeping the brushes perpendicular to the comm, Mabuchi had landed on a superior design, and one you can see still reflected today in the hardware of most motors. Of course, it seems Mabuchi themselves didn't realize what they had there.
 
All this comes back to me every time I work on a 13UO and I'm reminded of how cool... and overlooked... the lowliest Mabuchi was. I get a smile every time I think about the fact that the modern "FK" type motors and even more so the SCX RX42 and similar are among some of the more popular motors around, and yet back in the day, the FJ13UO was strictly "kids stuff".
 
-john

[SlotStox#53]

Awesome potential in the mini Mabuchi. 

Just gotta find the right parts to unlock 'em and create a banshee!

If I remember weren't they hot rodding the 13UO in the UK by putting cobalt mags in them and hot arms?

[Bill from NH]

That "kids stuff"  commands a handsome asking price today. I never had one in the day, I didn't race 1/32, but I might use a couple of them today. I'll probably have to settle on contemporary mini motors.

IIRC Pablo has used these Mabuchi '13' motors in a couple of his scratchbuilts. We always referred to them as a 13D, but I know that's not technically correct.

[Ramcatlarry]

I will let PdL have the last word on the technical ID....
 
Monogram and others used the small '13D' for the 1/32 F1 and midget kits and I think several others eventually used it as well.
 
When I raced in the mid-1960s midwest club, one of the 'production class' cars was the Monogram F1. Still have a couple running and others to restore. My old Lotus is competitive with the modern Scaley Lotus.
 
The Brits took the motor to heart and hot-rodded it. The polymer soft cobalt was refered to as the '13uo' in the 1980s and 1990s and became the nucleous of our cobalt motors of today.
 
The JK Hawk 6 and Pro Slot 4000 series mini-motors are another development of this size and BOTH brands of replacement endbells fit into old Mabuchi and SCX cans.
 
A Mustang started out as a Model T...

[George Blaha]

Hey John H,
 
The 13D (as I knew it then) was a great motor. I rewound them for 1/32, 1/24, and a legal HO magnesium dragster. I was not dissatisfied with performance or durability. Many racers could not believe their performance when rewound or the handling that was obtainable from such a light go package.

Glad to hear that others enjoyed them as much as I did.
 
Shahey George

[havlicek]

Hi George and all.  

It's good to see an appreciation for the "little guy", along with the realization that... over time, its design has turned out to be one of the best things Mabuchi did back then. Like I said, every time I do one up, I'm reminded of what a cool little motor it is... or at least can be.
 
-john

[idare2bdul]

We ran these with polymer cobalts and some full cobalt magnets for awhile in SoCal. I seem to remember Phil Hackett having a violently fast one on a King track in Lancaster.

[havlicek]

Very cool, Mike!  

Anyone have any pictures of hot-rodded "13's"? I know they were heavily done up and have seen some from time to time, but I seem to remember that none of the beefier ones used the stock endbell and the cans were also cut up.
 
-john

[boxerdog]

I have a few hidden somewhere... IIRC, all of the motor manufacturers sold cobalt versions at one time, using the Mabuchi or similar Johnson can and a cut-down Mura endbell. I think I have a Trinity and a Camen. (Peanut motor??).  

I will look and post some pics if/when they turn up. I sure wish those magnets were still available, they were very easy to work with and produced a very smooth, low-cog setup for some reason. 
 
As with all recollections, this is subject to errors and omissions!
 
dc

[dc-65x]

Anyone have any pictures of hot-rodded "13's"? I know they were heavily done up and have seen some from time to time, but I seem to remember that none of the beefier ones used the stock endbell and the cans were also cut up.

 

Hi John,

 

Here's my almost finished and "hopped up" 13. The plastic endbell is replaced with brass, arm style brushes, oilite bearings replaced with ball bearings and a short stack armature:

 

 

In the thread linked below, there is a cool vintage "how to" article on hopping up these and other Mabuchi motors:

 

The Can with nine lives

[havlicek]

Beautiful (as always!) build, Rick. Not only is the build itself beautifully done, the concept is a great example of thinking outside the box... and best of all, you got rid of the "automelt endbell"!    

 

What is the arm from? It's broken up into segments... a model train motor? Are the magnets stock?  

 

-john

[dc-65x]

Thanks, John.

 

The arm is from a Pittman 196B and the magnets are stock. I think the magnets are a real weak link to the motor... well, that "meltable endbell" doesn't help either!

[Half Fast]

There doesn't seem to be much left of the original motor!
 
Cheers,

[Pablo]

Pablo 13UO hybrid with Di Mico can BB and Falcon IV magnets, armature, and endbell:


 
Havlicek 13UOin a Pablo scratchbuilt F1:


 

[boxerdog]

Well, here is what I have.
 
I think the light gray motor is a Trinity Peanut. I also think that the black can is a Camen Peanut, but not 13-based..

I believe the other two are motors that Pro Slot sold using sectioned Mura cans and polymer magnets instead of the 13 cans, so they are slightly larger in diameter and the magnets are slightly thicker. These were great Open/27 motors at the time, if possibly a little fragile.

[havlicek]

Nice David!  I was waiting for some pictures of "peanuts", and you delivered!  These motors have a lot of "cool" value for me, as they represent a lot of "hot-rodding.  Seems like all of them used turned-down C can end bells, which makes a lot of sense considering the arms look pretty stout!

 

-john

[havlicek]

... And here's the one I was working on that inspired this thread.  

It's got "secret sauce magnets", minor endbell hardware mods, and a set of .014" four-coil springs. Armature is the stock stack, shortened to just over .400" and wound 60t/30.  

I've done this combination before and it's faster than all get-out, so I figure why mess with success. Runs like a scalded cat.
 

 
-john