Blista

It was probably the Durga that gave you covid. Better send it to me to permanently quarantine it just to be safe. Hope it was a good b-day.

It took three different suppliers and several months before I could get a set of the Rock Block soft tyres. I think softer would be a more accurate description because they're still quite stiff compared to modern crawler tyres. They'll suit the Unimog better than the stock tyres and should perform better, though.

Got some supplies in for painting a driver figure I've had sitting around for ages. I'll then look at how to sit him inside the Unimog body.

Final touches to the Unimog are underway. Primed the wheels front and back. The reverse sides are going to be done in matt black and the face in Italian Red. I also completed the paint on the Mk2 Escort body. It's going to get some Castrol stickers but you'd be forgiven for thinking it's a poor man's Lancia Stratos.

A spare CRX body arrived from Tony's. I was tempted to buy a few of them but managed to limit myself to just one.

Got the Unimog painting done last night. Stickers tomorrow hopefully, and then I need to decide if I'm going with the stock red wheels or painting them.

Thanks. I used up the last of a mostly empty can of paint on the shell, so I was happy to get that part of the painting done before running out. I'm thinking I might strip all the grille chrome, paint it black and see if there's enough body colour paint left over to do the Merc symbol.

Step one of the CC02 Unimog body complete. Painting the grille did not go well. I had the Merc symbol masked and sprayed the rest with PS paint. I quickly realized that it was a mistake not to use a primer. So I did my best to wipe it clean and now I'll either just use the stickers or look into doing it all in black. I used a little Tamiya polycarbonate body cleaner to see if it would lift the remaining paint, but it also started to clean off the chrome.

I was thinking of using TS46 Light Sand spray on the outside of a rally body to give it a dusty appearance. Anyone done that before or something similar? I figure a few light passes across the front, some heavier arcs after each wheel, and then a bit on the rear. Spray the outside face of the wheels and maybe tape off the windscreen to simulate the wipers cleaning it.

I'm guessing someone just had a bad day.

Same. RCmart have the TD2 pre-order listed for NZ$400 plus NZ$125 shipping which works out to be around the same as buying it locally. No motor or ESC, and only basic tyres with the kit. The value just isn't there. Maybe prices will drop later in the year.

Watching it run makes me think this could be a car that lives up to and surpasses the XV01.

I had started gathering parts for an M06 Escort Mk2 rally car but I've realized there's simply nowhere to drive it like that guy can. I've seen a lot of these wide flat gravel areas in Japanese RC videos. Are they used for something in particular?

I expect RC will continue just fine but it'll look completely different to many people. Tether planes seem like the perfect example. I'm sure it's fun, but I can just buy a drone and do way more with that for much less effort. Fixing, tweaking, and improving kits is more for the older folks. Modern buyers want to do things with their kits not necessarily to them. RTRs significantly out-sell assembly kits. A lot of people have rose-tinted glasses around this. People who didn't really have a choice back in the day still buy things that fail or aren't good designs. That's the hobby to them and there's nothing wrong with that. Some people don't have an attachment to the vehicle, it's only the activity of using it they enjoy. I've been thinking about it.

The upright battery is odd. There was definitely room to have a slightly wider chassis with a battery lying flat. Even if it was on an upwards angle to keep the chassis bottom away from the surface in corners. One reason might be there's a possibility of adding different suspension to create a variety of new vehicles with the XV02. Longer arms for a buggy or truck. Lower mounts for a touring car. Like the XV01, it wouldn't excel with different setups but it's still versatile. A new bumper and it would make a better truck than the Asterion did. I wonder if they're going to end the XV01 production? These days a new chassis doesn't seem to mean it's always a replacement for the old chassis.

I wish Tamiya would offer a wider colour selection. Tamiya paints are basically the only option here for polycarbonate paint, or at least the most widely available. Traxxas are getting into selling spray-paint so I'm hoping they can fill the gaps Tamiya have left. There must be 7 or 8 greens but no browns. They had a light grey but discontinued it for some reason. Some limited releases would be good at the very least. Audi have some really nice looking colors but all the ones I see on the road are silver, charcoal, black or white.

Tamico have it listed as arriving end of June. No word on bodysets but I guess there will be one a month or two later. Looks good in the Corsa Grey but makes me wonder if they've got a stockpile of that color since the Unimog kit was the same and there's now a pre-painted Mustang body in it as well.

Yeah, looks the same as the 425 Unimog kit version, which I think is stiffer than the soft rock blocks. If they sold some super-soft rock blocks it would be a step in the right direction. I'm not sure why they're so resistant to the idea of actual soft tyres given they have different tyre compounds for other chassis types.

Could be a long wait. Better buy both. But, yeah they haven't given a date and there's no images of the actual kit so I wouldn't expect it soon at all.

I'm also quite impressed with the Bronco. I think it's a safe bet that there will be an aftermarket option to chop off the body bumpers and replace them but I too wish Tamiya offered it as an option. Hopefully there will not be a big delay in body-sets being released. Metallic green for mine I think. The roof rack looks great and it has several mounting holes so it could be a new separately available part or intended for other upcoming trucks. Combined with a new set of wheels it really elevates the whole kit.

Bronco looks amazing. Tonnes of added details. Even a new set of wheels. New tyres are still too much to hope for I guess. XV02 is a bit odd but I guess the original was as well. Some interesting details in the information about it: Being able to overpower the rear will make for good tail slides. I hope the upright servo means a standard size one instead of requiring a low profile. No mention of an adjustable wheelbase though. That would've been something great to include.

I don't have a specific budget but I keep track of most RC stuff in a spreadsheet. Once I decide on a new model I start adding up what I need to complete it and pretty soon I cross it off my list for another 6 months. Sometimes even just seeing a big list of what I already have is enough to tell me I don't need to spend any money.

You've done a great job on both bodies. Perfect shade of green for a Unimog. Did you do anything to the red wheels? I've been looking at my set and trying to decide whether to paint them or just replace them because they look so plasticky.

Gave the CC02 a run around the garden.

29 degrees Celsius, scorching sunshine, BBQ, and everything is decorated to look like snow. Another successful Christmas day in New Zealand.