ChrisPhilpot

First post in a while from me. Earlier this year I constructed a re-re Hornet and have had great fun thrashing it. However, one area where I've let the car down is aesthetics—frankly, my paintwork is rubbish. I'm therefore trying to accumulate parts to put together something I can feel a little prouder of! I'd like to switch the standard Hornet headlights for those from the FAV. Obviously these are available on the Bay, but I wonder if anyone has spares (maybe the odds and ends from an otherwise depleted parts tree) that they'd like to clear out of the toolbox! Furthermore, inspired my a very impressive Hornet on this site which used a Scorcher style driver body with full arms and steering wheel, again I wonder if anyone has any of these as spares that are collecting dust. I'm happy to use the Hornet head if that helps at all. Re-re a-OK by me. (I'm no purist, I'm afraid!) Thanks for reading, hope to hear from you!

Aaaargh, my body trimming has gone completely wrong - a slip of the knife and pow, ruined. Can you get these shells factory-finished?

Just installed all the radio gear properly and wow, at full pelt does this car go! Very impressed… or at least going forwards I am. In reverse, meanwhile, the power seems much reduced; the Hornet chewed up damp grass and spat it out for lunch going forwards, but limply struggled to go in reverse with an inconsistent motor sound (as if the wheels are not receiving power constantly). Should I be worried? Any obvious things to check? Or is this typical of the standard re-re ESC/can? Many thanks in advance.

Cheers Eddystone! Thought that might have been the case but didn't want to ruin the servo. In the few hours since I last posted… it's finished! Well, mechanically and electronically at least; painting the shell will take this perfectionist probably until the end of next week, especially as I need to make an excursion to buy some paint! In your experience, is trimming the shell/wing better done before or after painting? One quick query: I don't *think* it's a problem, but whenever I accelerate the force of the motor turning the drive wheels causes the entire gearbox assembly to rotate forward and into the shell with a whack. Equally, reversing rotates the gearbox into the suspension. Is this normal or do you reckon something needs adjusting? Also, any tips for laying out the internals? There seem to be lots of holes and spaces big and small; how do you attach your electronics to your chassis? As ever, all help and advice gratefully received. I've really enjoyed this project!

Ah, so there are, jammin23! Thanks for pointing those out. I've got another issue: I've bought an Ansmann racing W3.1 2.4Ghz radio set having been assured it would be fine for this car. However, the servo and ESC I have (Tamiya TSU-01 and TEU-104BK respectively) don't physically fit into the Rx (a very small Ansmann R3.1 about 20mm square bundled with the Tx). Please help!! Both ESC and servo look like they *would* fit but for a sliver of plastic on one edge; they have the irregular pentagonal shape of the holes in the Rx, but with this extra bit of plastic in the way. Any advice? Has anyone used this combination of electronics who might be able to advise me what to do? Was looking forward to getting it going this evening and hope I don't need a new Rx! :-( Thanks in advance.

Oh goodness, do I feel stupid! Cheers dimblum, you're a star; it seems the answer to most of my questions so far has been "stop being such a wimp"! All points taken about the aluminium nerf bars. I'll keep an eye open and should some be on sale I'll see if I fancy picking some up – though, as this is going to be a runner, you're all quite right that I'm probably better off with something with a bit of flex. Especially with my rubbish driving (it's been years)! A final question on paintwork (a little way off yet): is it better to trim the excess shell plastic before or after spraying?

Couple more pics - not sure if these make it any easier to see if there's an issue:

Another question has arisen, if I may ask for your help once again—and sadly I suspect not for the last time! With my radio gear on order, I've skipped ahead a few steps and assembled the three-part front and rear wheels. Upon attaching the rear wheels to their respective axles, there's about 2–3mm of 'wiggle' between the plastic spacers locked onto the axles and the actual wheels themselves. Whilst this sounds minor, it's enough that the wheels are able to slide freely between the lock nut and the spacer, and at the far end of this reach rotate freely on their own without turning the axle. Is this normal? If not, any suggestions as to what I might have done wrongly? Thanks everyone. Edit: Here's a photo, if it helps to understand where there's this wiggle room. This shows the wheel engaged with the plastic 'spacer' attached to the axle itself via the short metal shaft; the gap between the wheel and the lock nut is probably 2mm.

Much much appreciated! They're in, and my thumbs are recovering! The front wheels were so easy, I didn't want to snap the rears and was probably a bit too weedy with them. A bit of brute force and elbow grease and they're sorted! Many many thanks.

As a bank holiday weekend project, I am in the process of building a re-re Hornet from scratch – my first R/C kit build. So far, it's been remarkably trouble-free; the biggest crisis was one of the impossibly small springs from the rear suspension boinging out of my hand, and having to hunt around on the carpet with a torch upon finding I had no spare! However, I have come across a couple of sticking points and would richly appreciate the advice of the members of this forum: 1) The plastic side bars (or side bumpers, I think they're officially called) seem a little flimsy. Is their plastic construction simply a consequence of the cost of the kit, or does the flexibility serve a purpose? If not, are aluminium hop-ups available? (My eBay trawl has been fruitless!) 2) I'm having a great deal of difficulty getting the rear tyre inserts to slip into the rubber tyres. I've found an old thread which has a couple of suggestions, but neither adjusting the angle nor using detergent seems to have done the trick. Am I being a pillock and missing something?! Hope you're able to help – many thanks.

On an unrelated note (but not wanting to start another thread and spam the forums): The bug has bitten and I can see why so many of you love Tamiya. Unable to find the aforementioned QDS Tx and contrary to my request for a roller in the 'wanted' forum, I've decided to bite the bullet and order a Hornet in kit form, to learn how to put it together without screwing it up! This post is really to ask if anyone has any tips or advice for a newbie. I've bought metal bearings which I'll fit in place of the kit-supplied plastic bushings. Any other helpful hints? Mistakes you made as a beginner that I could learn from? etc. etc. All will be warmly and gratefully received.

My ongoing search for odds and ends to get my childhood QDS Mitsubishi Lancer going again (I'm missing a battery cover and, more importantly, Tx) has reignited the passion for all things R/C. I'd like to get my hands on a Tamiya Hornet. Whilst I reckon I'd be OK to plug in the battery, Rx and ESC, reading through a PDF of the re-released Hornet's manual (and in particular the pages concerning putting together the gearbox) is enough to bring me out in a cold sweat! Given that the XB route would mean very basic radio gear and no ball-racing, I thought I'd ask the members of this forum if anyone has a new-built ball-raced Hornet that I can carefully look after from shiny new condition and lightly run around the garden! Either a complete rolling chassis or RTR – something suitable for a keen, if totally cack-handed, novice. A boxed rolling re-release in perfect nick sold on eBay a week and a half back for £80 inc. postage, and I'd be very happy to match that price bracket (obviously more with extras or for just the right one). Hope to hear offers I can't refuse via email or PM (both available in my profile). Thanks for reading.

Slightly shameless bump, but I've been trying to read up on the QD/QDS cars (are they one and the same?) via this forum to try and self-medicate, as it were. I see at least one member has been able to get a QD Clod Buster going from a similar position to me, and eBay has a couple of QDS cars for sale sans transmitters. If anyone can give me a definitive answer and/or recommend a course of action (or indeed anywhere other than eBay to get hold of whatever I need to get this car going again) I'd be really appreciative. Heck, if someone's got an old QDS Tx sitting around feel free to make me an offer!

Hi everyone – I'm a long time Tamiya Club lurker, and brand new member. I wonder if I could ask a question about the QDS series cars – in particular, the Mitsubishi Evo IV #46306. I owned one as a youngster and, during a recent clear-out, found it in a box along with its original battery and charger. Unfortunately, there were a couple of bits missing: the battery cover, which I guess isn't crucial, but rather more importantly the Tx has yet to make an appearance! The 27MHz pistol-grip transmitter is one where frequency is changed by matching an A/B/C switch on both the Tx and the car. Would a replacement have to be from the very same model of car, or would one of any of that series of QDS cars suffice? (I recall they all had an A/B/C Tx in the box.) I'd love to get it going again – I know it's not much by the standards of the great models seen on this site, but I have a 7-year-old nephew who'd certainly enjoy mucking about with it in the park – but obviously without the transmitter (and to a lesser extent the battery cover) it's not going anywhere. My plan, if you're able to help confirm which Tx I need, is then to scour eBay. (I'd probably consider getting a used car and Tx and keeping one for odds and sods.) Hope you can help, and many thanks in advance.