spaint2k

Saito's got it, and it's not just a problem with the re-releases. I noticed this clicking in that very area when I rebuilt my thunder shot. I decided to ignore it as I figured nothing untoward happened to it when I was a kid and I doubt it's gonna start now. Still, I'll have a dig at it next time I strip the thing down.

I've never understood why parents bin their children's stuff like that. My parents never did it to me, and I'd never do it to my kids either.

Hi there, Are you talking about the M-parts? You've mentioned in a couple of threads that the DB01-R comes with carbon reinforced pieces that you would actually prefer to downgrade to the regular kit parts. However, I can figure out which parts you specifically mean, nor can I seem to find basic replacement parts for the DB01 (as opposed to the hopped-up parts). Steve

Bumping this topic because I wasn't able to come through for the seller (sorry!).

I have sent you a PM.

I think that within the 'hobby of actually "building stuff"' there are many, many different elements. RC cars are just one part of the hobby, and to be honest has always been a fairly expensive part of the hobby, so perhaps it's not really representative of the rest of the model world. As an alternative example, take Warhammer miniatures. While the building aspect of RC seems to have decreased over the years, the building aspect of wargame miniatures seems to have increased. Warhammer miniatures for example. There was a time when wargame miniatures were only available in metal, each model with a single pose (not quite RTR, but certainly not very customizable without razor saws, pinning, epoxy putty, and no small amount of skill). Nowadays, the trend is increasingly toward multi-part plastic kits that offer a wealth of modeling and customization possibilities. Furthermore, the wargaming hobby seems to be going from strength to strength and so while companies like Airfix have seen better days at least it can be said that kids today are still building and painting plastic models. In the end, the most important part is not whether or not people are playing with RTR kits or scratch-built models made from pieces, but rather that the hobby as a whole will continue. RTR kits have value in bringing new blood into the hobby. They are priced low and being ready-to-run means that a lot of the barriers to entry into RC are done away with at one stroke. There's no need to worry about receiver, controller, servos, ESC, etc... And at least some of the people who buy an RTR vehicle will realize that they could have even more fun if they learned a little about how to repair, tweak and modify their model, so there'll always be a market for hop-ups, spare parts and full kits. Ironically, with RC I prefer the kind of models that require assembly and an understanding of the kit, while with Warhammer I'd much prefer a return to the old days when many different single-pose metal models could be bought with ease as I really don't enjoy the hassle of cleaning and assembling multi-part plastics and I'd rather get on with the painting and playing. But for me, I'm just happy to know that both of these hobbies are still being enjoyed in one form or another, and I can leave and return to them whenever I like.

High-end drift chassis kit. The characters translated by Google as (only) mean "limited edition".

How does the DB01 run in your region? I know from your posts that belt-driven vehicles usually end up ruined because of the local conditions, so I'm wondering how well sealed the DB01 really is. Cheers, Steve

Yup, that's what happened to my A5. Caught the front left wheel on something and it ripped the long (mostly) threadless screw out through the screwhole on the A5. I fixed it by epoxying washers to either side of the hole, but I'll be getting that brace shortly. However, I believe my blue suspension arms are stressed because I left the car in storage for 16 years with the suspension monoshock pushing on them for all that time.

Best post ever.

Guys, thanks so much for all the information. Thanks in no small part to what you've all said here, I've decided against the DF03 and I'm looking at the DB01R instead. Since it's not "limited edition" I have the added luxury of being able to take more time over my decision. Out of curiosity, which of these two chassis came first? It seems to me that the two of them are actually more or less the same age. And can we expect Tamiya to bring out new evolutions of either of these chassis anytime soon?

You can use superglue (CA), liquid poly or even white glue. Some of the sheet styrene shops out there sell "special" liquid glues for bonding sheet styrene. I thought it was a bit of a scam and probably just regular liquid poly till I realized that my stuff wasn't sticking so well. I think it's a specialized formulation of liquid poly with a solvent specific to styrene plastics. If you can find it, it'd be well worth trying out.

Not sure on the rarity, but the A-tree contains all the gearboxes so it's a big waste for one small part which breaks all too easily. And Tamiydan, the Fire Dragon has been REALLY tempting me recently, just as a spare part resource...

You got it. Thanks for the note of commiseration. I've fixed it with epoxy and washers to strengthen the hole on either side, but I'm concerned it won't really hold for long. I guess I'll have to get a CNC'ed piece to repair it with. Steve

After a disappointing time fooling around with NiMH batteries in my rediscovered and repaired childhood Thunder Shot (http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x6/angryboy2k/RC/DSC08854.jpg - excuse the mess!) I got a couple of Nicads and have been having a great time. Now I'm finding myself looking for an excuse to buy a modern buggy but looking at what's out there and what people are talking I feel like a complete moron without a clue about what's gone on in the last two decades. I'm interested in the DF03. The DF03-MS specifically. I think it looks amazing and just from the amount of upgrades that the package includes it seems like a worthwhile purchase. However, it lacks a lot of kit to make it functional; namely the motor, the esc, and a radio system. So I was wondering if someone could hold my hand and explain to me some of the options available. First, and before I forget, I've seen talk about brakes on modern cars. I don't think the DF03 has brakes on it (please tell me if I'm wrong), but could someone please explain to me how you activate the brakes with a two-channel radio? Second, what radio options are there out there these days? Are two-channel stick transmitters still around? I'm not a fan of transmitters with steering wheels. Third is servos: are they specific to transmitter/receiver sets, or can I mix and match servos from one company with a tx/rx from another company? Fourth is a big one - what kind of motor would be a smart purchase for this car bearing in mind that I'm not racing and I'm not looking to spend more than the value of the car on it. I'd also prefer something that won't shred the gearbox to the point where it needs replacing after each use and seeing as I know nothing about pinion sizes if someone could explain to me like I were a child it'd be greatly appreciated. I think that's it for now. But if anyone has any convincing reason why I should not drop my money on this buggy I'd also love to hear it - upto and including that I'm an idiot for wanting this as a first modern buggy. Thanks for any and all replies! Steve

Finally broke the A5 piece on my 20 year old Thunder Shot

Oops! Well, that'll teach me I suppose. Given how messy and filthy my table was while I was cleaning up the car and replacing pieces, I just assumed something had fallen into the motor. Any idea how soon I can expect my motor to die now that I've unbalanced the rotor? Cheers, Steve

Okay, I found something disturbing on one of the copper coil windings: it could have been a blob of grease, blu-tac, or chewing gum. Whatever it was, it was cooked solid and I had to pick it off the coil. The motor works a lot better now (still a slight spark inside but it appears normal). I'll be sure to update if I fry it and need a new one. Steve

I rebuilt the gearbox of my old old Thunder Shot and added ball bearings to replace the plastic ones. I also removed a lot of the grease that was inside because basically, it was more than enough. Everything seemed nice and smooth when I put it back together. However, the motor REALLY screams now when I'm in full forward. Not only that, but the motor sparks too (blue sparks, not yellow). It does neither going in reverse. Does anyone have any idea if there's a problem here, and if so what I can do to fix it? I'm using the stock motor. Cheers, Steve

It's interesting to read everyone's optimism that the rereleases will continue, although I must disagree with a few of the theories being put forward here. For example, the "30th anniversary" theory doesn't really match up for most of Tamiya's rereleases... And thanks to all the guys who pointed me toward Terra Scorchers that are currently available. I guess I wasn't really very clear but I'd just be delighted to get a rerelease of this kit to open, build and paint as the first owner without having to worry about thrashing it. I know there are vintage kits out there still MIB, and I know I could build one up or repair someone's childhood toy if I wanted but I don't. I've just got "done" (can you ever be "done") with restoring my own childhood Thunder Shot and I'm already feeling concern about wrecking it. I didn't replace many of the bits on it, but if I was to go really all out replacing damaged/worn/stressed/bent parts I'd have to just buy a Fire Dragon on the cheap and cannibalize it. But then it wouldn't be MY childhood toy anymore... I personally really like Tamiya's rereleases. I must confess that I find them a lot "friendlier" than the current models. I can browse the stock in online stores but the only kits that really jump out at me are the vintage ones. Some of the new ones dont even seem to have bodies and none of them really look that appealing from a bashing point of view. I don't even know where to start...

So now that the Sand Scorcher has finally come out, does that mark the end of Tamiya's foray into rereleasing vintage cars? I would love for them to rerelease the Terra Scorcher as it's a kit I wanted very much when I was a kid, but I get the feeling that there's not much momentum left in the rerelease vehicle and can't see them doing it. Does anyone out there have any insights? Cheers, Steve

Correct.

Nope, I'm using a cheap and nasty Peak Delta charger that charges either Nicads or Nimhs. Except that the Nimh battery worked for about a minute then gave me a lousy experience for the rest of the drive while the 1200mAh Nicad I'd had in storage for 16(!) years gave me better performance and was more fun to use. I don't think it matters how great the charger is - TA-Mark's posts are proof of how bad Nimh batteries are. For the kind of money you'd need to spend on the right charger to squeeze a dozen decent charges out of your Nimh packs, you might as well have gone Lipo.

I broke a piece on my car last year and even though I bought a replacement part for it I was pretty discouraged. I didn't bother fixing it till this week as my interest in RC has been revived (by an IR helicopter of all things). I threw the NiMH in the recycling bin. It was a big waste of money as far as I'm concerned and I won't touch NiMH again for anything RC. Since I don't want to invest in a Lipo charger for my car I just bought a couple of cheap 2200mAh Nicads on eBay and I'm REALLY happy with the performance from them. I confidently expect them to last another ten to twenty years.

I was very disappointed in my (single) venture into NiMH land. I had exactly the experience you're describing with a brand new 3300mAh NiMH battery in my 20 year old Thundershot that I'd just lovingly restored. It was ridiculous to the point that my ancient 1200mAh Nicad battery gave better performance and in the end I bought a couple of cheap new Nicads and couldn't be happier.