Siclick33

Well it took a while but they came good. 2x Lowrider Pumpkins, a CC-01 Isuzu Type X and 2 VW Wheelie bus bodies. All unavailable in the UK and most of the ‘bigger’ import shops. It wasn’t cheap (I think I paid Norway and U.K. tax!), but difficult to get these and probably cheaper than paying second-hand resale prices.

Have you tried using it as a voucher rather than a coupon. I used one before and it worked (somehow). That was 6 months ago though, and although I didn’t think they could get any worse than they were back then, I think they have.

It took a while but I did hear back. The order process was slightly strange, as I don’t think they are set up for international (certainly UK) sales, but they have helped me to place an order. Now the wait until it arrives. It appears that Norway is hoarding all of the discontinued models

Do you have a better picture? Are the servo plugs in the receiver the correct way around?

HW1080 doesn’t come with the programming card any more.

Different driver figure, different colour chassis (dark grey v black), different colour wheels, but effectively they are the same other than the bodyshell. I made my Dancing Rider up the same as the Tamico limited edition (number 334 of 333 ) from parts - it’s not an OG limited edition. I think the Dual Rider is getting a little more difficult to source; I bought mine from Japan.

Thanks. I’ve managed to get a response from someone via FB Messenger, so we’ll see if they reply with a quote. At least I now know that somebody has my query.

Does anyone from Norway (or anywhere else) know anything about the shop SamiRC? They show a couple of discontinued kits in stock that I would like to buy. I’ve emailed them to ask if they ship to the UK but haven’t heard anything back yet. Does anyone know if they ship overseas? Are their website stock levels generally accurate? Do they (eventually) reply to emails? Many thanks,

BBX. It needs a screwdriver.

WHAAATTT! I have a dancing rider, and a dual rider. I thought they were the ultimate scale model Yes, they’re a bit silly, but fun. My BBX is a pain compared to these, and the Lunch Box.

Can anyone recommend me a driver for adjusting ball diffs? Is there a Tamiya tool for this? The bolt head has quite a wide slot, and all of my long thin screwdrivers have thin tips that end up with everything getting chewed up. The drivers I have that are beefy enough to fit the head, won’t fit into the drive cup. I’m having a hard time adjusting it, as I can’t tell if my screwdriver has seated correctly. I’m hoping someone has come across this before, before I go out and buy a hundred different screwdrivers!

Last night I started making a list of some of the models I would like to try to get my hands on, and there are loads that are unavailable. It’s a shame that Tamiya didn’t re-release any of these popular kits at Nuremberg. How about the Honda City Turbo, Mountain Rider, Lowride Pumpkin, Isuzu MU, VW Wheelie Bus, Juggernaut 2, Jeep Wrangler and others? I’m now sad again ☹️

Discontinued, but you can still buy the sticker set I think that one might be a bit too weird!

Yep. I think we might have a winner

I returned to Tamiya after a long break from RC vehicles, with the purchase of a very serious Scania 770s 8x4 truck. Whilst at my parent’s house over Christmas I bought a Lunch Box to keep me occupied, and I am loving it. From there I bought a Wild Willy 2 and I’m finding myself increasingly drawn to their ‘fun’ models. I watched a video the other day featuring one of the ridiculous VW wheelie vans and couldn’t stop smiling. I’m now on the lookout for parts to make up my own as the kit is no longer available. This got me thinking. I can’t imagine there is anything much more silly than the wheelie camper van, but what is the craziest kit that Tamiya has ever produced? Who else loves these types of models and who thinks they are silly and sticks to the serious vehicles, and who does both?

Do you also have the plastic (D?) parts?

Yes, the ‘handling fee’ is their admin fee for processing the VAT on behalf of HMRC. I’ve just ordered 2 kits from Tamico. The VAT handling fee is the same no matter what the cost of the order, and the shipping for 2 kits isn’t usually double that for one kit, so it works out more cost effective to place bigger orders less often.

Post brexit, VAT on items below £135 is supposed to be collected by the seller. You don’t pay the handling charge as it’s effectively just like you bought the item in a UK shop. However, the shop has to be UK VAT registered. Tamico isn’t, hence why they have a minimum order value to ensure that it is over the £135 limit, allowing the couriers to do the work with collecting the VAT.

DHL will still add a handing fee. Sometimes the couriers will deliver and then bill the VAT later, so don’t assume that just because it has arrived without being charged VAT that you’ve got away with it. Even Parcelforce has the option to pay online. Effectively, it makes no difference who delivers it, you’ll still have to pay!!

It’s not just rare stuff though. Maybe the postage has something to do with it (the same seller is listing an Egress for sale with £7.93 shipping to the UK!). All I know is that is it really annoying having to scroll past dozens of ridiculously priced search results. I think I’m going to stop looking for international bargains and just filter the searches for UK items only.

Horizon/Tower are completely contrary to everything that the USA stands for. I had the nerve to question one of their sales prices on Facebook so they simply banned me from their page without warning. I apologised (even though I shouldn’t have had to) but they completely ignored my polite request to be re-instated. They are one of the nastiest companies that I have ever had the misfortune to deal with.

I’ve just seen a sneak preview of a couple of new body shells for one of their latest releases.

My car is in storage at the moment and it will be a couple of weeks until I can check exactly how much space there is, but the saddle lipos online are only about 67mm long and I don’t remember there being tons of spare room. Super Shortys are also almost impossible to get here. I might have to just get anything and shoehorn it in, but it’s a little bit sad that I can’t put it back together as it should be, just through a lack of the correct battery. Hopefully the Super Shortys become a bit more common, although even they could be tight!

Out of stock and Optipower have discontinued it. The only one that Optipower has left is hard wired, so I’m not sure if I will be able to take them out of the model for charging. That might be my only option unless I can find something else, otherwise the car might be unusable which would be a shame. If you know of others that can be bought, then I’d be grateful for a point in the right direction.

Bulk order of Tamiya/Hobbywing 1060 ESC’s. I needed a few of these, and they will also be useful for my model boats, so I will easily find a home for them all. These weren’t quite eBay bargain prices, but were from a UK model shop and cheap enough that’s it’s worth clubbing together with a friend if you don’t need all 10!