Wongataa

I have a bodyshell where the light buckets are made from Lexan and you have to paint them.

Here's mine:

Batteries are heavy! The Tesla has a lot of battery. Petrol is a lot lot lighter for the same energy output.

My wife might not be happy with me if that happens as I would be rather tempted! It would go well with my M1A1.

M1A2 Abrams full option tank for me.

I would buy paint from a local model shop if possible. If you buy over the internet you will find the shipping costs will be high as paint is classed as a dangerous good and has to go via a courier.

Yes, it will now be on its way to you, pending any fees.

Customs will be assessing the item to see if you owe any import duty & VAT. Once they have done their thing it will be released to the carrier. If you owe anything you will get a card/letter stating what you owe and how to pay it. Once any fees have been paid the item will be delivered. If no duty/VAT is deemed to be required the item will be delivered once customs release it. It is normal and all you do is wait to see if you need to pay anything. Sometimes the item will be with customs for a few days so be patient. If you put your tracking number in the Royal Mail/Parcelforce (whichever is appropriate) tracker you will likely get a little more information as the item is now in the UK.

I haven't done any track driving.

I have a DB01. I prefer the Baldre body shell (it has more room underneath) as the Durga shell won't fit over my electronics and wiring. I think it drives really well. I have hopped it up somewhat with TRF dampers and aluminium suspension mounts.

What you need to do is work out the possible customs charges and VAT and add it to the price. Then if you get charged you have budgeted for it and if you don't get charged or get charged less than you could be it is a bonus. Customs duty for models is 4.7%. VAT is 20%. VAT is applied on the price after the duty is added. I have bought a r/c kit from Rcmart. I had to pay some customs charges but it was less that it could of been so I was happy. How much you get charged will partly be down to how much the supplier declares the cost of the item is. They maybe naughty and not declare the full price. Then it will depend on how much customs check into the item. Don't forget to add on the fees from the delivery company if you need to pay customs charges.

You could put the ESC in a bladder but that would cause heat issues as it would prevent air getting to the heatsink.

DB-01

I do it like in the manual - some needle nose pliers with paper towel around the shaft to protect it. It works just fine and I haven't scratched a piston rod.

Not really. I work out what the price is with all the correct tariffs and VAT added. If it gets through without attracting the fees or less fees than I was expecting I consider it a nice bonus. Some sellers may be naughty and declare lower values for the goods to try and reduce the duty you might be charged. If you want to look up the import & export duty for anything you can do so here: https://www.trade-tariff.service.gov.uk/sections. Just find the category the product you are look at fits into. once you have the duty add it to the cost of the goods and the postage. Then work out the VAT due (20% in the UK) on the price you just worked out.