isomer1

Looks good Trowa. Are those the TD4 hop-up servo mounts? Looking forward to seeing the body you choose.

Ahh yes yes. I had the models wrong. It's the DB01 (Durga) I was thinking of. They're very quiet in the videos etc.

Could anyone with a runner comment on how noisy they are compared to your other machines? Trying to decide between this and a DB-02. I was hoping the new gearcase on the TD4 might be a bit quieter than some, even if not as quiet as the DB-02 belt drive.

I have no connection with this eBay posting financial or otherwise, and it's well outside of my price point. Nevertheless, it was just too beautiful not to share: https://www.ebay.com/itm/One-Point-Object-Full-Plating-Tamiya-City-Turbo-Wr-02C-Unassembled-/194688832503?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&_trksid=p2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0

Interesting wear. What kind of power were you running to cause that?

FWIW I've had very good luck with the screws from McMaster-Carr and Screwerk. I use McMaster for the shorter screws as they ship quickly and are less expensive generally. I get the 10mm and 12mm "Stainless Steel Thread-Forming Screws for Thin Plastic" here: https://www.mcmaster.com/catalog/96817a910 The threading is identical to the original Tamiya screws - so you can put them in old models as you please. Or if you hate them you can swap back to Tamiya screws at a future rebuild without damage to the model. They are Torx head so you will need a different driver. I prefer them to JIS or Philips but that's just down to personal preference. Screwerk can be purchased through the manufacturers site or through Amazon. I only use them for the rare long screws.

I'm still finding pretty decent deals, there's just a lot more to sift through. Two key issues come up: (1) Original boxed items from 20+ years ago. I have little to no interest in those but I can at least appreciate the cost. (2) Items from Japan. This has been discussed on these forums many times before, I'm not sure if we know exactly why, but even prior to the pandemic there was a big influx of speculative posts from Japan. If you search on Yahoo Japans auctions (the most popular online auction in Japan) you'll find a regular supply of Tamiya goods. Those same items are then cross-posted to eBay at *huge* mark-ups. Often the same item is cross-posted by multiple sellers. The thought is that the seller doesn't own the item - they're just seeing if they can flip it for quick cash. They set the price silly high which covers the export etc in the event they actually find an oversees buyer. Apparently that is lucrative enough (or requires so little effort) that a number of Japanese merchants regularly engage in the activity. eBay won't let you exclude a particular country of origin, so we're just stuck with it (or not using eBay, which is probably the healthier option in the long run). If you need a part, Tamico / Plaza Japan / Tony in the UK have most of the bases covered.

Comical Thundershot

FWIW Tower has been very accurate thus far. They are basically pre-selling anything that Tamiya are sending them, so they don't build up much inventory, but do ship as expected (or have thus far for several orders this summer).

Please post photos! I got a king blackfoot chassis off ebay a while back with similar intentions. But mine is still sitting in the box. I do agree - it does seem surprising. My only thought is maybe the MB became *so* iconic that they were afraid to fragment the market. The blackfoot series never had the same appeal to me personally. At least they made some concessions in the Re-release, though even that gearbox seems to need improvement. I'm surprised they didn't go the KBF route with that re-release.

Fantastic list. FWIW Re: #2 Differential Putty - a bit of paint thinner and it comes completely clean. I spent a good hour trying to wipe it out with tools and towels to no avail. Paint thinner and it was gone in a minute or so.

Yes, yes, yes! A million times yes. No reliable replacements mean kits sit on shelves unused, means people get tired of the hobby, means we don't get new blood in the hobby. Reliable parts (maybe do different color runs) would be far more exciting than new kits.

In college I would happily spend whole afternoons driving around the countryside. That was a fairly small town though, 5 minutes in any direction and you were out in the fields. Now I live in a larger city and it's a lot harder. The calm of the drive is replaced with irritation at the congestion, endless billboards, etc. I walk a lot more now. And watch various scenic screensavers on the computer. (The SlowTV train channel is addicting )

Hello from St. Louis. Tower is very fickle. I do order from them fairly often, but they only carry a subset of the Tamiya range that they believe will sell. And they have ridiculously few parts available. My go to for kits is Tamico. And for parts they don't carry I use PlazaJapan. I think this is the Capri: https://tamico.de/Tamiya-58578-Ford-Capri-Zakspeed-Turbo-Gr5-Wuerth-TT-02-Kit And here is the Novafox: https://tamico.de/navi.php?a=10172&lang=eng I've never had any problems ordering from Tamico to the US. To minimize shipping I do hold back my orders until I have a few kits I want for the season/year. Hope you get the kits you're after! (Disclaimer: I have no financial connection between either Tower or Tamico)

I love this GF01 video from youtube:

For the wheels: red, blue, and gold were available. They are extremely hard to find for a reasonable price. They do look gorgeous, but also chip relatively quickly. Another option I've seen proposed (but not tried myself) is to take the chrome rims and paint them with one of Tamiya's transparent colors. That's really all they did with the red/blue/gold ones. It wouldn't cost too much to try and if it works you can make your own replacements when they chip. Technically you also have the option of black and white. The black are fiendishly hard to find. The white are often available on eBay and pop up in Pajero searches. Do check they have the hex rears and not the lunchbox style mounts. I've had a partially built mad bull on the shelf for a good while now. Hopefully others will chime in with suggestions for all the other bits.

Very cool! Wonder if it is the same battery choices etc. Hope we get a supplier in the US

@Dug180 My wheels scrubbed the dampers something awful when I tried that, are you limiting the turn radius? Maybe I just did something weird. Edit: ooh I had the gpm knuckles, the stock plastic knuckles have stops that seem to prevent the scrubbing.

In the midwest US we use Archway Anodizing (sorry I know that's no help for you in the UK) for commercial projects. They do small batch jobs as well. Googling will bring up a few projects (few on tamiyaclub, but several on older forums) about DIY anodizing. The chemicals can be a bit nasty - just don't scrimp on the gloves and ventilation. Two things to be aware of: The stripping of the existing color does remove a *very* thin layer of the material. In industrial applications we use plastic plugs to protect critical screw holes. I've never heard of this being a problem at the hobbyist level but the plugs are quite cheap if you want to try (from a supplier like McMaster-Carr etc.). It is possible for a piece, either due to poor handling or inconsistencies in the underlying metal, to be irreparably damaged by the anodizing process. The current is high enough that it can burn away portions of the piece. Again I've not seen this on the hobbyist level but we occasionally lose pieces at work. Shops generally will *not* cover the costs of a replacement piece, it is considered a risk of the process. It's on the long list of things I want to do but never get around to. Personally I'd pay to have it done, but kudos if you go the DIY route. Either way I hope you go for it and post photos to the forums, it would open up a lot of fun customization options.

AFAIK @MadInventor is correct. The Hobbywing docs show the forward as 60A forward and 30A reverse for both the 1060 and 860 dual-motor. https://hobbywing.com/products/enpdf/QuicRunWP1625-WP860-WP1060.pdf

I can't figure out who the target market is for this, but I'm glad you guys are excited about it.

It seems to have exploded this week. There are are several postings for absurdly low-priced kits, all from new sellers, all from HK.

I don't see the debate here - you obviously need both. Perhaps more than one of each. I love both, honestly you won't go wrong either way - just plan out how you plan to upgrade and/or repair them: Lunchbox - you'll probably break those body mounts pretty quickly. I like the metal upgrades available on eBay etc. I have not used the polycarb body but they look almost as good as the hardbody and make it less top heavy. Monster Beetle - you'll need to upgrade or brace the rear diff. If it gets heavy use the stock diff will start to slip, increasing wear, ultimately making it undrivable until repaired/upgraded. If you are searching for lunchbox parts/pieces remember to search for 'CW-01' so you get more results. If you are searching for Monster Beetle parts/pieces you can look for 'ORV/Frog/Brat/Blackfoot', *most* of those parts will be compatible. Obviously you can always ask on these forums if you're unsure of a particular part.

As best I can tell it's a reasonably common mod in Japan. Only seen it a few times on the forums outside of Japan though (though maybe that's me just missing the posts). Here is a video showing the (positive) results.

oooooooh ok, sorry, running a bit slow today on my end. Thank you for the clarification.