Saito2

Thanks. Yeah, I just won't leave, lol. We're hangin' in there and my daughter is well. She starts 4th grade in two days. They grow up incredibly fast. All I can say is you must have super-human abilities to cope with 4 young ones. Very impressive!

Welcome! The Monster Beetle was the vehicle that got me hooked on Tamiya. As far as additional hop-ups, it depends on just how much/hard you want to run them and how far down the rabbit hole of modifications you want to go. A steel pinion for the Blitzer wouldn't be a bad idea but otherwise, its a fairly tough design. It sounds like you're familiar with the diff issues on the Monster Beetle but there are several fixes (some 3D printed) that support the stock diff and are cheaper than the full MIP ball diff treatment. I find the Sand Scorcher's chassis plate a bit too flexible myself, Which can put strain on the body and radio box if the buggy is driven with aggression. Numerous aftermarket chassis plates or simply doubling up with two stock plates can alleviate some of that flex but again, it depends on how you run them. There are tons of mods which can lead to quite the slippery slope. Good luck and have fun!

Nothing impressive to see compared to the wizardry some of our very talented forum members are capable of, but there's the chassis plate with the curved sides and the small scrap of ABS extending the throw of the servo saver. I did bump the servo mount holes back a bit for some clearance there, which is easily taken up by the servo rod. The brass square tube strengthens the narrow front section of the chassis but is low enough for steering tie rod clearance. Oh, and there's my ancient AM radio gear and Nimh pack (would be Nicad if I could still get 'em) because I'm stubborn and old about new tech. I consider rear tires to be a tuning aid on SRBs without a diff too. With no diff and all that rearward weight bias, the buggy will plow and steer like a super tanker when using spikes on grippy surfaces like grass. The paddle tires let the rear come around a bit. I should have been using the spikes in those loose dirt shots I took as things were getting sorta over-steery but the paddles make for nice donuts and kick up the dust I was after in those pics.

When I get out my rere Super Champ (sorry, the buggy has never fought with me or anything else and thusly does not deserve being called a "Fighting Buggy") for a run, I'm reminded how much fun these early Tamiya designs can be. They have a certain heft and realism to them that no modern buggy could hope to match. SRBs are a truly unique driving experience for those who have not yet sampled them. My favorite is the ultimate evolution of the series, the Super Champ. Just referring to it as an SRB would have invited spirited debate years ago, but today we all seem to get along. Whereas my Rough Rider and Sand Scorcher seem a bit slower and bouncier, the SC's unique rear suspension seems to really plant it and the momentum from the weight really carries it through the rough stuff. Mine's a bit modified however. To trim a tiny bit of weight from the admittedly very heavy rear-end, I fashioned a plastic-composite rear bumper. Zip ties are present (somewhat like the original) to reel in the overly extreme positive camber at full droop. The chassis is handmade aluminum with curved sides and hollow brass reinforcement square tubes at the front. Besides quelling the body-breaking flex from the stock chassis, it hides some of the under structure that's visible in the stock setup since the body rides a little high. I still use the radio plate as I feel its a defining feature. Two roll over antennas hopefully protect a body that can be vulnerable crashes. At the front, I use a homemade front bumper. The rigid ABS factory one shows stress fractures after only a few impacts, The steering is much better than the earlier SRBs but I did extend the front horn to give it a bit more throw. And as the sunbeams cut through the dust raised by this SC, I come to my odd choice of blue and red wheels. There's thought put into that, believe it of not. Its inspired by an old guidebook photo: I could never decide on which color as this version in the guidebook has blue wheels on the chassis model and red ones on the fully bodied model. So I chose both but even the red wheels at the rear have meaning or inspiration: I remember seeing a SC with red rear wheels on buggy sponge tire boxes at the LHS back in the day. So that's the story of my little SRB. As a kid I literally dreamed of finding a magic hobby store with discontinued Tamiyas in stock and I envisioned walking out with a Wild Willy under one arm and Super Champ under the other. It takes time, but sometimes, some things do work out.

My daughter got her first shot at driving an SRB this evening...

Glad to see you back! The Lego rabbit hole is as tricky as the Tamiya one. My wife and I are still working away at the Lego Titanic.

I always wondered if that was Tamiya's idea of overestimating the importance of size rather than how you use it. Did they they think "big" sells (something years of successful Clod Buster sales may have taught them) so to out-do the upstart T-Maxx, bigger tires were the answer? Sounds like marketing overruling engineering.

So that was the deal with the "2000" bit, a pre-release name? I always wondered why folks kept alternately using WW 2000 or WW2 BITD when the box said WW2. And not that I've been reminded that was 23 years ago (how is that possible?, where did the time go!?), I feel obsolete myself.

Does it get a new kit number? I'm willing to bet the ESC is the heart of the matter. We might simply be seeing the change over in ESCs. Instead of just quietly slipping in the new ESC, its "news" the that the kit be being "re-released" when it probably never really halted production. I don't think supply was even interrupted.

I sometimes feel that Tamiya is off doing their own thing and that we enthusiast, outside of Japan, sometimes try use their products in imaginative ways that they may not have intended at first. Take the CC01. It came about long before crawling but after the buggy-boom of the 80's. Tamiya was doing their "more realistic" thing at the time with touring cars, TA02T trophy trucks, etc. I think that's all the CC01 was meant to be, as possibly a smaller, less expensive version of Kyosho's old 1/9th scale Toyota 4Runner. When crawling/trailing came about, people began to use the platform for that. It wasn't until relatively recently (compared to its introduction date) that Tamiya even offered hop-ups for the CC01 to increase its trailing ability. The CC02 seems like a nod to what folks were/are doing with vehicles like this in this market segment. The CR01 is a different story, one where Tamiya was distinctly aiming for a particular market segment.

Your right. I did skip a bit of pure racing truck history in all honesty. Truthfully, once again, Tamiya was first to the market with the King Cab. The King Cab was the first kitted racing truck and drew praise for its ability to run with the conversion trucks which were running the old Blackfoot racers out of town. That spotlight was brief as the Losi JR-XT came out shortly thereafter and folks went nuts for it. The Eagle, Blue Eagle and budget Hawk followed. This is unique as most trucks would be spawned from previous racing buggy designs but in Traxxas's case, the Eagle series came before the TRX-1 buggies. Even Schumacher got in on the action with the Shotgun truck. Associated was noticeably absent, not immediately jumping on the racing/stadium truck bandwagon. In audio interviews with Cliff Lett, it was alluded that Associated wanted to take their time and bring a truly unique and thought-out truck to market rather than rushing it. It paid off, The RC10T, despite sharing the aluminum tub/Stealth trans with buggy was completely different and introduced the lower, slammed, wheels-out look that would shape stadium trucks going forward. They even introduce narrow front tires that were quickly banned. The later Tamiya Stadium Blitzer would mimic this look, if not performance.

I wish the CC02 was $200. I wouldn't have thought twice at the price but in reality Tower wants on average $246. That's getting close to the much better equipped TRX4 Sport kit at $299 especially after adding in the usual "necessary" Tamiya additions like bearings. YMMV however. The Thunder Dragon wasn't too bad at $180 but after the price hike, now its up to $200 and the Thundershot (literally the same buggy except the body) is $214. Still if you want a Tamiya, only Tamiya will do (or Kyosho which is, at times, arguably nicer).

That's what I was doing wrong. I was only doing it 6 times and a portal to another dimension kept opening up. Its 6 times for the portal and 7 times to fix it. At least I got the sage part right. Sorry, its been a long week folks, lol

Amen. You don't have RC the way we do today without Tamiya. Its interesting to follow just one thread of development. Without Tamiya, we might not get off road electric. Without that, Marui might not make the Big Bear. Without the Big Bear, we might not get the Blackfoot. Without the BF, we don't get monster truck racing. Without that, there's no RC10 truck conversions. Without them, Associated never sets up the stadium truck template (with the wheels hanging way out past the slammed truck body) with the RC10T. Without the10T and the huge Clod Buster, Traxxas never invents the T-Maxx (Traxxas will probably sue because I typed the word "Maxx") and then we never have the truggy monstrosities we have today.....wait, is this all Tamiya's fault somehow? Nevermind, just kidding. I NEED a time machine. The funny thing is I remember RC10 guys calling Tamiyas toys BITD, while their RC10s were "serious" racing machines. Now we get that from the RTR crowd "sending it" (I feel dirty just typing that phrase, but alas...) over houses. Tamiyas are models at least. Seems like less of a toy than something yanked out of a box by someone who couldn't be bothered to learn how to wield a screw driver.

Just as a disclaimer, while I have noticed the difference in odor between Tamiya red and blue threadlockers, I've never actively smelled them or "huffed" them intentionally nor do I condone it. It was a joke. Many of the substances found in Tamiya kits can be hazardous if handled/used improperly.