[NEW MEMBER signing on :)]

Hello all, new member posting for the first time...  Is there a

tradition of n00bs getting a round of drinks in on this forum..?

Anyway, thought I'd say HI!  I had lots of Tamiya stuff when I

were a youngster, my first was a Nissan King Cab that I was given after

my cousin built it from new and then destroyed it.  I bought a new

shell and ran the rest on what I was given for a year, then swapped it

with a school friend for a CB radio

Next I bought myself a NIB Mud Blaster, ran it for a few years. 

Then I got given a job lot - including a complete original Grasshoper

that I still have (now with badly damaged chassis), and a damage

HotShot on a custom fibreglass chassis, with a Fox shell - now gone.

A few years later I hit a motherlode - a load of stuff was given to me,

including a Mardave Mini (old solid shell, not a later lexan model) and

a near-complete Hi-Lux!!!  All the components were there, the

shell had minor damage, all it needed was motor, radio and

battery.  I got it running with parts I had spare, but

unfortunately a servo froze on its first outing and the front wheel hit

an obstacle, damaging the outer hub.  Would make a good

restoration project for someone with the time and money.

Finally, I bought a Kyosho Sandmaster - my only nitro - but found it to

be so self-destructive - destroying the drivetrain each time I used it

- that I gave up on it and never used it again.  Will probably be

selling this sometime soon.

There ended my Tamiya obsession - all models consigned to the shed -

until a few weeks ago, when I bought a Dark Impact, rekindling an

obsession that I thought had died 8 years ago.  What can I say -

I'm absolutely HOOKED all over again!

At the end of the month I hope to buy a Midnight Pumpkin - this was my

absolute fave when I was a teenager, but I could never afford it. 

I'm going to build it as a runner, but use a lexan shell for longevity,

and save the beautiful chrome Pumpkin shell for a rear-drive tarmac

chassis that will be a customised shelf queen project.  If I can

afford it I might also acquire a tarmac model and do some racing - I

would like to do off-road racing, but there are no clubs in my area.

When I'm not messing around with radio controlled cars, you'll usually

find me riding one of my customized motorbikes or working on my novel

Look forward to sharing many discussions with you guys

Ax