StrokerBoy

I upgraded to 2.4Ghz when I got back into this hobby a few years ago, mainly because I thought I ought to. I bought the CORE kit too, 'cos sticks are natural and intuitive but steerwheels are weird and annoying. I bought a couple more CORE receivers for later builds too. All my old cars are still on 27MHz though and I've got no intention of changing them. I've got a bag of old transmitters that should last me years if necessary.

Nope, but I noticed last week that alloy versions are finally available.

The valuable lesson I learned was not about the rules at the tip, I know how all that works. But next time, I won't take a photo, I'll just lob my rubbish on top of it and not mention it to anyone.

I'll never own a Fox, so I wasn't bothered. If it had been something I did want, I'd have asked one of the staff if I could take it. Some of the more-useful rubbish is sold on at the recycling centre next door, though there was a complete boxed Scalextric set also in the skip that was yet to be rescued.

2. 8 look OK too. Regarding 4, you need to throw those in the bin immediately and have a long quiet think about what you've done.

What have I done today ? Learned a valuable lesson... Yesterday I dropped some stuff off at the tip (for the benefit of our international friends, a 'tip' is a local recycling facility where you can dispose of your rubbish/waste/garbage/trash in an environmentally responsible way). I saw this empty box sat on top of the cardboard-only skip (dumpster, trash-can etc etc) and took a quick photo. I posted it on a couple of relevant facebook groups, deliberately implying that the box was full and that I'd taken it home. A few people reacted as I hoped, with amusement or surprise that someone had thrown it away, and jealousy at my good fortune. I quickly explained that the box was in fact empty. Nevertheless, I still got lots of stick in both groups from people pointing out that taking anything from the tip is theft, that CCTV and ANPR would guarantee my immediate and justified prosecution, and that I was basically stealing food directly from the mouths of the children of the poor recycling contractors who work there. Lighten-up FFS. It's an unwanted empty box, for a toy car, I didn't take it and no-one died.

Only re-re I'd really be interested in is an Escort Cosworth (tiger-stripe, Michelin or Repsol, not the ugly WRC shell), but anything with Ford branding seems unlikely. Quattro, Ascona or R5 Turbo would be good too. Hope the King Cab is never re-re'd 'cos I've already got one. Buggies ? Meh.

I grew up building normal static models. Matchbox, Airfix, Revell, ERTL etc. First time I did a Tamiya kit I was blown away by how perfectly everything was done in comparison - the quality of the packaging, instructions, moulding detail etc. Took me years to afford one of their RC kits but the same was true, even if it was just a humble Pumpkin. Second one was a Kyosho, which was like a (small) step backwards and less satisfying.

They're not a Tamiya part, they were a random purchase off Ebay. Bought a red/blue set for my Fuzzbox too.

I know exactly which screws you're talking about Ronnyhotdog, they're terrible and I mashed one too despite having a full set of proper Tamiya JIS screwdrivers here, plus another couple of dozen that I use for motorbike maintenance and other stuff. I recommend using a different screw altogether for that part.

Yeah, they're horrible, I messed one up too. I've got a proper set of Tamiya JIS screwdrivers, but I don't think any fitted those. I'd swap those screws for something else if I was building one again.

You're doing a Unimog aren't you ? If you've made a half-decent job of painting it, a lot of those initial decals are a total waste of time, they're just designed to give a nice black edge along the bumpers and arches. I wasn't impressed with my paint job on mine, yet the decals still added nothing and I binned a lot of them.

I finished Tamiya-san's Master Modeler book last night. I thought it might be a bit dry but it was excellent, full of honesty and enthusiasm and very entertaining.

It's not a gearbox as such, there are no switchable gears in it, forward or backward, just some constantly-meshed cogs to drop motor speed down to something that usefully moves the truck. It doesn't care what direction it drives in either way, it just does what the motor asks it to do. And the same applies to the motor too, it'll run the same in each direction quite happily. Any restrictions in reverse speed, or the need to select reverse twice before it reacts, are down to the ESC. Depending on what model ESC it is, you may be able to tweak some of these default settings. And depending on what radio gear you're using, you might be able to adjust things there too. I much prefer driving my 27MHz MSC-equipped Pumpkin to my 2.4GHz ESC-equipped Lunchbox or Unimog CW-01's.

I can't see why anyone's ethical feathers might get ruffled. It's just a couple of re-re's and the odd old part. There are hundreds of non-standard builds on here. I'm doing something similar. I've got a new re-re Brat kit and a complete 037 body set with the intention of making my own Lancia Rally. It won't be an exact replica, just a homage, and I certainly won't be trying to pretend that it's an original one. I've got genuine Lancia Rally wheels/tyres (thanks Grastens) and I'll be opening up the arches but I'm not bothered about the front bumper and some of the details. I look forward to seeing yours progress. You'll definitely get it finished before I do mine...

And while I was messing about...

When I built my Lowride Pumpkin last year, at the back of my mind was a static model I made around 35 years ago, based on the 1:25 AMT '53 custom F100. I was putting the Christmas tree away in the attic this morning and by chance, spotted it. A quick dust-off and here we are. Unfortunately it highlights the deficiencies in the Tamiya shell. And with my original '89 Midnight Pumpkin and MP Jr.

Still got the original MSC in my '89 Pumpkin and slamming it straight into reverse for almost 30 years hasn't done it any harm. Never get bored of stunts and spins.

It's exactly as given to me for free by a generous mate. I've driven it to make sure it runs but that's all so far. Lovely though.

End of year tidy-up in the garage. The 10 built kits are all hanging up out of the way.

I got the Tamiya Master Modeler Book. Wasn't a huge surprise - I bought it off Ebay and gave it to my wife to wrap up for me...

Well, I've got 3 NIB kits to build plus a couple of extra bodyshells, but I ought to finish off a couple of my other builds that got to 95% and then were somehow parked.

Frustrating. Love F100's, bought a Lowride Pumpkin with a very specific idea of how I wanted it to look, spent considerable time and money trying to achieve it, didn't quite get there.

Not round here they're not...