sosidge

The self tappers are actually the most appropriate screws for the soft plastics.

You'll always be fighting understeer with the M-08. Remove the spacers to reduce rear toe, run M-07 front suspension mount and c-hubs, remove the front bar and run the same spring rate all round will all help to generate steering. Running the car SWB also helps. An M-08 is definitely competitive with an M-07, depending on track layout can often be faster. Of course depends on driving as well. We don't have as many Tamiyas running at my club as we used to (because we allow any mini chassis, and because Tamiya supply chain is unreliable, lots of people have switched to other manufacturers like Xpress). But with a bit of effort I can keep my M-08 in sight of the others.

Use a proper oil instead of WD40.

It's still a 1/10th motor, but it's aimed at the small number of 1/10th basher trucks that come with a 5mm motor shaft as standard. It's also a "550" size motor with a longer can so may not fit in the car you are using.

It doesn't mean Viscosity Grade. There's a bunch of VG products that don't have a "viscosity" to grade. It just denotes a premium product compared to the standard Tamiya range.

The carbon is fully impregnated with resin, there is literally nothing to "seal". Sealing just runs a high risk of ruining the finish with overruns of super glue and in some cases actually messes up the fit of items like shock towers that abut directly against other parts. It was one of those faddy things people did to their cars 20-30 years ago which found its way into the Tamiya manuals when it should never have been considered in the first place.

No jumper means full brakes at neutral, plus forward and reverse. It's the crawler mode.

As @Mad Ax says, the "power banks"/"power stations" have become extremely popular over the last couple of years. They are not the cheapest solution, but the prices are coming down. Compact and lightweight with ample power. They're also something you can use for other hobbies/holidays that might need an extra power source. Leisure batteries are still the cheapest but you probably need to factor in the cost of a charger if you don't have a suitable one already, and they are heavy. Probably too heavy for a lot of people in this day and age. Generators have gone out of fashion, I see very few at outdoor meetings now, even the clean, compact "suitcase" generators are seen as anti-social.

It's a 27MHz Am receiver, with a Channel 2 ("Red") crystal. Crystals are interchangeable and in theory compatible across all brands. Note that transmitter and receiver crystals are tuned to slightly different frequencies so you need to run the pair correctly. Some will say that 27MHz radios are compatible across all brands but that has not always been my experience and you are better off matching brands. JR is one of the less common brands but if you are keen on keeping the vintage parts then I would look for a 27MHz AM JR transmitter. Alternatively you can swap for a different vintage radio. Or swap to modern 2.4ghz equipment which is significantly more reliable.

Normally I would say that the price is fair for a computer stick radio from a Japanese manufacturer. Although since it is at least 50% more expensive that the wheel version of the same radio (MX-6), I'd say that it isn't good value. It will be a low-volume product which would explain the cost. Also you are tied to the RX391W FH-E receiver from the MX-6. you don't get cross compatibility with other Sanwa receivers. I have heard bad things about the FH-E system in the past but since I have never owned a Sanwa I couldn't directly comment. Still only 2/3rds of the price of a Futaba 4GRS, although the 4GRS is a much better radio.

Do you have RS in the USA? Or an equivalent that is aimed at electronics/manufacturing industry? Amazon isn't your best bet for a quality tool. There are specialised suppliers who are more likely to have them. Of course, there is often a risk that the specialist suppliers are just selling the same Chinese-made products with their own branding and a big price increase. Mitutoyo is the gold standard for calipers but probably outside your price range. You can always grind down the depth gauge to make it thinner (at your own risk). Or grab hold of of something like a 2mm drill bit and use that to mark off and measure the depth of narrow holes.

FF-04 used the front half of an XV-01 transmission and paired it with a carbon chassis and on-road suspension to make an FF racer. I had one. It wasn't competitive, the XV-01 motor position is several mm above the chassis and that has a negative impact on CG and performance. An XV-01 converted to FWD will be even less competitive.

M-07 high traction chassis is a softer material for better handling on low-grip surfaces. Whereas TT-02 hard lower deck is a stiffer material that might be better suited to high-grip surfaces.

If you are looking at a scale crawler (and from what you have been describing, you are), then you are better off with a non-Tamiya vehicle. Mad Ax gave a good list of starting points. The CC-02 is "OK" but is quite a long way the rest of the crawler market. You get better bodies, better performance, and a wider range of upgrades if you go away from Tamiya. The CC-02 is smaller than the norm, so by getting a "normal" 1/10 scale crawler you immediately get bigger tyres and ground clearance. If you like Unimog 425s, Cross RC make a cracking version (which I have) - https://greensmodels.co.uk/products/cross-rc-nt-4-emo-rtr?srsltid=AfmBOopjmgEMDvLuXndlzWKsfPE47c6BTSeTpaHj08bq1Rv04BClOL8f

Torque isn't really relevant in a 1/10th touring car, the servos that get sold based on torque ratings tend to be cheapies aimed at big wheeled bashers and crawlers. Speed is more important. Less than 0.1s for 60 degrees. Around 10kg torque will be plenty. If you want a cheap servo I would recommend a Futaba U300. Not especially fast or torquey but very reliable. A TT-02 with a torque tuned is a slow car so the servo suits it. There are plenty of off-brand servos at similar prices but they can be a bit of a risk. Higher up the price range you'll find lots or servos that are aimed at racing. I have a high end Futaba and SRT servos in my race cars and would recommend both brands. But I wonder whether they are overkill in a TT-02.