Saito2

I would have lost my mind if I could have seen a video like that when I was a kid. I constantly tried to copy the box art and make technical drawings of Tamiya products. I badly wanted to get into design and manufacture of models/RC cars but was firmly shut down by my parents, lol. Its a great behind the scenes look. Looking at some of the thorough testing done in '96, it does make one wonder what happened by the time the Juggernaut was released, lol. Great stuff! Thanks for posting that.

Tower has it for 218 while Amain has it for 272 but I'm with you, I just can't trust them anymore.

Tower's price is great, but can they be trusted? Do they have their system fixed? Seeing folks billed 2 or 3 times but still not receiving their kit or pre-ordering kits and still waiting for them a year later while others who didn't pre-order got theirs is pretty disheartening. edit: wow 58% gave one star reviews on Trustpilot. I want to thank Horizon once again for ruining Tower .

Thank you all. I think @markbt73 hit the nail on the head with the dopamine rush. I guess that hit comes about whether buying a static object (which I hadn't considered) or a dynamic one that you can envision playing with. I love @Kowalski86's collection there. There's something about old stuff, objects or just surviving ephemera, that travels through many hands and time to come to rest in one's collection. It has a story and wasn't "built" to be a collectable. The cynic in me sees new objects specifically created some collector mentality (oft-times with the words "limited edition" or "limited numbers") floating about it, that makes my eyes roll. Its probably why I've been a bit down on the latest spat of RC10 re-releases. They could have shelved the holofoil number stickers and engraved tubs for some actual bearings in my estimation, but that's not where they were going with it. Now that I understand!

I usually keep my ears open when I'm around other folks I know (oft times reading a book) and the topic of the latest "fun" acquisition comes up frequently. I'm a bit baffled by some purchasing choices and what people, well, do with them. For example, some US movie theater chain is selling a plastic popcorn bucket that looks like head of some murder-clown in a movie coming out. Its $35 before taxes and shipping. I don't get it. Its a plastic bucket that probably cost pennies to make, obscenely marked up (with a healthy dose of licensing fees). I don't "get" Funco Pops either. I know people with 100s of them and at minimally $10-15 a piece, that's a lot of money for a piece of plastic that just sits there (at least you can eat popcorn out of the aforementioned clown's head...if that's your thing). But am I being hypocritical? I have lots of RC cars. Granted, I can rationalize that they are a better value. I invest time in building and creating them. They come together to be functioning mechanical devices that can be run, maintained and modified. Still, outsiders may view my hobby with as much confusion as I do clown-head popcorn buckets. I guess I can understand collecting old, vintage things (static or not) but not modern day plastic baubles with a built-in collector market pre-made for them. I don't really care how others spend their money, but I am curious what drives spending habits. I know I'll still treasure my RC cars 25 years from now but will people feel the same way about a popcorn bucket? I don't know.

That looks totally awesome. One of the reasons I never considered trying this is my stubborn refusal of using Lipo would put me down on power. Studying the race footage carefully, it seems (on dirt at least) with good piloting and a well set up truck, one might be able to drive around this handicap.

Kyosho did a more dedicated replica with their '87 Worlds winner IMHO. However, if Associated did a legit replica of their "stealthy" '89 Worlds winner, that would be something awesome to see (if not highly unlikely).

Interesting you brought this up. I'm debating on doing the same to a Lunch Box to emulate the experience of my first Tamiya. 95% of my radios are still AM but I'd need to track down an functioning Airtronics Vector stick radio to complete the feel.

There's no way I could afford to add an ESC. They're half the price if the car. I'll continue maintaining my MSC by cleaning the contacts with a pencil eraser and keeping the switch lubricant fresh and clean. Haven't you heard? The new Hornet and Wild One MSCs feature battery eliminator circuitry. This new BEC system allows you to save weight and ditch the receiver pack. What else is there? Dry cells? Bearing are a sizable investment. Keeping a pile of spare plastic bushings on hand is wise for replacement purposes. J/K I hope @SlideWRX is okay with my "archaic" sense of humor seen through the lens of 1985.

That's a pretty good price, not much more than a standard Hornet at this point.

I'm not going to lie, mid-life crisis has hit. One of the usual signs? Buying a sports car. However, for me that might not be the case... I'm a car guy. Starting at birth until I had a child I was an obsessed car guy, like, autism special interest, throw away your life obsessed. I've owned over 50 cars in just under 50 years, all while usually working a job restoring them professionally. There's been muscle cars, British cars, aircooled VWs, Jeeps, foxbody Mustangs and on and on. My daughter put an end to that and brought balance back into my life. I still love cars, but new priorities, a busted up body and being beating down in the trade along with a strange shift in car culture tied to politics (unfortunately) in my area has caused me to distance myself from car life. All the more time for Tamiya, my first true love. I've grown tired of constantly keeping after all my cars (the fleet is limited 6 or 7). Even when they are all running fine, they slowly suck money like vampires. State inspections, emissions, oil changes, tires wearing or just aging out, yearly registrations all add up. They suck your money and your time. You become a slave to your possessions. Last year, I sold my Fox Mustang, leaving a Corvette, Nova, 2 Chevy Sonics, and GMC ZR2 compact truck and an MGB. It was one of my of my favorite cars to drive and you know what? I haven't missed it or the time/money investment it constantly took in the least. Next up, the GMC. I hate trucks. They are useful as can be when you need them but suck gas and drive like garbage. I hope to make it go away soon. So whats this about a sports car? Well I always wanted a Miata. They are the antithesis of all the raging, diesel smoke-belching, flag waving, lifted, macho-dominant silliness that proliferates my area. At my age, I have zip to prove. But truthfully, Miatas are absolutely sublime sports cars in the purist sense of the word. I love small, maneuverable cars and raw power is something I've grown very tired of. The Miata lets me drive and be free. Free of having my head under the hood of my MGB, balancing the SU carbs. Free from constantly fiddling. Free from headaches. I got too old for all that so now I just get in the car and drive and that suits me just fine. Its an NC2 variant. Even when picking a Miata, I didn't follow the herd. I guess to the Miata purist its huge, fat and bloated but with only 45,000 on the clock, I can't complain. I like it. It smiles at me and it makes me smile. The radio even says "Hello!" to me in the morning on start-up. Whimsy is cool. So, when you already went through having "all the cars", even the mid life crisis-mobile Corvette, is buying a little red Miata really another sign of such crisis? For me, its just a sign of getting old...but I still play with little toy cars .

So the answer, as always, is just go with Tamiya (or Kyosho).

Yeah, just moving the lower shock mounting points really has an effect of how it handles. They're mounted fully inboard in that pic for an ultra-plush ride, but even moving them out one hole gets it ready for more track-like duty. Pretty heavy-duty piece compared to any Tamiya outside of a TNX.

Added a bit more "dust" to the Emaxx I'm attempting to sell. I never quite get over the mass and speed something this size has (and its currently just running brushed) nor how effortlessly it cruises over dirt and grass.

Very good analogy.

The question I have up for debate is simple, between Traxxas and Horizon, which is the "lesser of two evils"? The difficulty is keeping it a friendly debate/discussion. I would like factual information on the two entities for future purchasing decisions. Both have good and bad points and nobody is necessarily going to change anybody's mind. There is no right or wrong answer or winner/loser. I'd just like to know which each company has done for the hobby and what harm they've done to it. I implore civility, please.

I just think tan every time I picture a Cheetah. I guess olive drab works too. There's some images of one in red. Hailing from the 1970s, any number of shades popular from that era might fit. Stretching further into racing liveries that could be applied...well it seems, like it or not, alcohol and cigarette liveries are always good looking. Camel, Martini Racing, Rothmans, etc. If you like spots, paint it like a real Cheetah, lol.

...or sell it to me......wait, ...what? Did I just type that?

And the answer from Castle is....it can only handle dual 21T brushed motors. There goes that Idea. Oh well. Guess its a better brushless controller than brushed one.

Bummer. I got lucky with my TXTs then. Guess that why I saw guy filling in those gussets with epoxy years back. Maybe the TXT's more compliant suspension helped take the shock off.

Thanks. I'll drop Castle an email. I saw it could run brushed motors too, but no mention on turn limits. I miss Clodtalk .

ttt

Does anyone know what the brushed motor limits are for the Castle Mamba Monster 2 ESC are? I ask because its looking increasing certain that my $200 brushless Emaxx is not going to sell. As such, I've been looking at what I could possibly use off of it before parting it out and pitching what doesn't sell. I run Clods on 15T brushed motors powered by 8.4v Nimh and was curious if the Mamba Monster 2 ESC could be used in that application even though its originally intend for big brushless trucks and 1/8th scale buggies. Thanks!

Out of curiosity, where do the housings break? Another stellar truck BTW .

Very nice! I notice the Regulator chassis lets people drop the bodies down lower. I'm guessing the chassis, by design, offers more gearbox-to-chassis clearance, hence more suspension travel. Any tire to body contact issues?