chef_bikes

Not an issue with the tourists at Sand Bay - like I said, they all seem to go to the crowded W-s-M main beach - if they only knew what was just around the headland (but thankfully they don't)!

Would that be mine?

Great thread I'm old enough to have been there during the early days of 10th off road racing - (not meaning to sound like an old git but...) we used to meet up once a month in the bumpy, pot holed car park of the local greengrocer wholesalers to race SRBs. The site of a line of Scorchers, Rough Rider and Ford Rangers was just superb - all pristenly prepared and looking oh so real. I recall that one of the fundamental rules was that each car MUST conatin a driver figure, a silly sounding rule perhaps, but one that went (for me) to the core of scale racing - it looked real. The cars were all of a similar performance and it was down to the skill of the driver to get his car across the line first. Then along came the Kyosho Optimas and the plethora of Tamiya plastic moulded blobs that, granted, performed waaaayyy better than the SRBs but in my humble opinion lost that 'real' look. Then followed the host of wallet busting hop ups, up grades and available modification parts - that was the point at which I lost interest in racing. I had no interest in watching an uber expensive, ultra hopped up plastic winged wonder hurtle around a track at an obscene speed. So, vintage racing - yay! Keep it (looking) real (istic) and bring it on! Chef

I've got two Trailfinder builds on the go too (tee hee!) !! Chef

Forgive my ignorance but what sort of track is it going to be? Chef

Cool, I might even make this one! In terms of alternative venues for next time, have you thought of Sand Bay, just north of Western-super-Mare? There is a good mile of open empty beach (for some reason everyone goes to the crowded Weston Beach), with sand, shingle, grass and sandy paths ideal for all sorts. At one end is a headland with loads of flat short grass, rocks and more, plus a hidden bay full of fantastic rocks, and at the other end is another headland with a woods with loads of great climbs and a hard packed sand BMX trackl (which I've never seen anyone use). To top it off there are decent car parks at both ends of the bay and one in the middle. Chef

Except we didn't get the short bed in the UK so here the long bed is more common, which makes the UK 'special' right?!

I use a fine brass brush wheel and a dremel. Comes off a treat and takes no time at all! ;-) Chef

Get in touch with Rad22rad - he will be making some spacers soon. Chef

I seem to remember visiting a web site for a company in the states (x-treme hobbies?) that norrows 2.2" tyres and wheels - I've spent hours trying to find their site again but with no luck. Does anyone know what it is? Thanks. Chef

Hi there, I could do that for you. Have a look in my showroom for examples of my work and if you like what you see we can talk more. Cheers. Pete

I like it a lot. I recon I could do something with that....... Chef

Thanks chaps - that is a great help. In most of the footage they seem to both be wearing white helmets with red linings. I meant no offence with the anorak thing! Thanks again. Chef

Most of the models I make are SRBs, trucks or tanks and they always take months to build. So, as a bit of a change I'm doing a quick build - a 2002 WRC Ford Focus (Monte Carlo rally) in Sainz/Moya colours. I'm doing an interior with driver/codriver and what I'd like to know is how their crash helmets were painted. I've searched Google but it hasn't helped much. Can anyone help with pics or a link? I'm not interested in McRae/Grist just Sainz/Moya. Many thanks. Chef

I'm with you Dee - I can't abide Lexan either. Ok so Lexan can sometimes be more durable (if the Lexan is thick enough), but I've had Lexan WRC bodies (Celica for example) which disintegrated the first time I hit anything! Lexan is a pain in the butt to mask, a pain to paint and always ends up with that horrible arificial plastic oh too shiney look. Yuk. I think the ugliest car(s) are the things that aren't modeled on real vehicles, that said, the Touraeg is based on a real car and man is that ugly! Chef

Agreed, but I want different shocks for mostly cosmetic reasons - preferably alloy ones! ;-)

Can anyone tell me if they've found any replacement oil filled dampers to fit the High-lift yet? Cheers. Chef ;-)

Hello all, I'm sure a while ago I found some pictures of the original 1:1 'Rough Rider' Baja racer in the blue and white ISS/Bell Raycolours on TC. Anyone know where they are or have a link? Thanks. Chef.

I always use Halfords plastic primer - it stays flexible and works with no problems with celulose or acrylic paints regardless of make. And it's a far bigger can for £5.00 than the Tamiya stuff !! Chef ;-)

Not sure how to answer this one - surely if your fuel tank is leaking then it needs replacing if only from a safety standpoint?!! I think you'll find the problem will go away after fitting the new tank. Chef ;-)

Try Fusion Hobbies - they're in the UK and you get a 10% discount for being a TC member! Chef ;-)

If you got to: http://www.scale4x4rc.org and have a hunt around, somewhere on there is a very useful chart which lists the sizes of pretty much every tyre known to man. Ranger tyres are approx 82 mm dai and the wheels are 44mm. Ghef ;-)

Use tamiya polycarbonate paint, thinned. It'll then 'flow' into the lettering and gives a real neat finish. It'll probably need two coats though. Chef ;-)

Not exactly but it looks like it has three poles on the armature and the wind looks fairly fine. I'll take an educated guess and say that it's no more than a 20x3. (but I might be wrong). If it were me I'd plug it in and see what happens! Chef ;-)

I've found Milliput superfine to be the best. It can be moulded when wet, smoothed with water, carved, sanded, filed, drilled, doesn't crack or shrink and is without doubt the best filler I've used (and belive me I've tried a few!) Chef ;-)