occasional nonsense....

[thesuper]

most of the pics were taken with a digi and i forgot to use the flash....might have to crank up the monitor brightness.

on a recent run with the TA03FS, in some really rough rocks....this happened...i'm guessing a small stone crept into the drivetrain and since the pinion i use is made of steel and spur of plastic....good thing i've got more where that came from.

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on thing that kept me from having to end the "rally" early was having another spur with me. i recently found that the boxes used for fishing supplies can organize and hold everything very well.

screws with fine thread, tapping screws, spurs and pinions, black and orange o-rings, diff cups and driveshafts, springs, nuts, e-clips, body clips...and another silver can....just in case...

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one thing i have noticed with the dampers...that even if i grease up the o-rings, oil still seeps out...a tiny bit only. but then the dirt collects and makes a mess.

so i went out and got some skinny ballons and punched a tiny hole at one end and then trimmed them to length.

i WAS going to wrap the ballon over the spring BUT....the ballons were too skinny and i ripped two, trying to get them on without having them stretch over, because, they compress the spring.

this will hopefully mean less time cleaning and more time running. i know they make something like this...i've seen them on monster trucks....but ballons are cheaper and you can get them in colors.

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the collection never stops growing....

my brother and i share this area for supplies and he uses this area for storage of his kits, runners, and spare parts.

some of the body boxes have other bodies than what the box shows. the lancer box has oils and spare parts, and the M03 box has extra stickers, a variety of paints, charger, discharger, tires and wheels, and and F-150 that's waiting for bearings.

more stickers in the Impreza, the 206 box has enough new plastic parts to build two TA03FS kids but they are kept there are spares for the current runner. and the Corolla box has tires and wheels. extra bodys in the body boxes.

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two more and my TA03FS bodys....

these two are mine....always ready to go.... the 206 body on the wall has marcus Gronholm's name and New Zeland Rally plates for the year after he won his first WRC and no air dam....or whatever you call that black stip under the front body edge.

the second 206 has the air dam and Delacour's name and plates.

more of my bodys....

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and finally....a shot of the new Xsara on the TB01...completed...

[rclapcar]

Man you really like rally racing.

Can't wait for the new TCS season to start and go do some rally racing.

[yannick]

again really nice []

[Leckster]

Wow, that's some collection! and so organized too.[:0]

I think you've got enough spares to enter the real WRC![]

[thesuper]

rclapcar...i think rally is one of the most amazing motorsports...seeing the stuff on the rally reviews...i'm always amazed at the skills of the drivers.

i don't race but i'm waiting for the day that Tamiya starts and off road rally class.

Leckster....it used to be in shambles....everything in plastic bags....i was always looking for one thing or another. one day we threw out all the trash from the kit boxes and used them for storage and then got those fishing boxes and now....if i need a diff cup i know where to look.

my brother recently had to totally over haul his TB01 and in doing so, noticed that the "ring gear" as Tamiya calls it, was looking a bit worn....he made the comment that maybe, we should have diffs already built and greased and ready to go in case one fails.

i lauged and thought the same thing you said....just like the real WRC events.

maybe we'll make some tents like in the service areas so we can change a diff, install new tires, clean the windows, and install a new stick pack...hehehe!

sadly...today...on a drive...i came too close to a corner marker and flipped the Xsara on to it's roof. i broke the right rear view mirror and scraped up the roof a bit. it still looks ok but i was sooooooo sad because the body got damaged on the first drive. UGGG!!!!

[CarKing]

Wow bud, that is a sweet collection. I would join you in saying that having a TCS Rally Off-Road class would be amazing! I would like to see a class like GT2 or GT3 but for offroad rallying.

I would agree with your brother saying having built parts like diffs is key sometimes, and always makes life easier. I remember one time racing my TA03F at the Tamiya track when something started going wrong and the car was almost sputtering. Eventually I could hear the motor reving fine, but the car wasn't going anywhere. Pulled the car into the pits, took off the body and noticed the cover for the spur gear had an unusual bulge in it where it looked like the casing had extended itself outwards as if making more room for the spur gear. Tried to unscrew it with not luck. Finally cut the cover off with my dremel and found that a stone had gotten caught in sugh a way it knocked the spur gear off so it was loose under the gear cover. The motor was so fast that it actually spun the loose spur gear into the side of the cover melting the plastic gear with the plastic cover.

Luckily the week before the local hobby store was selling all TA03's for $50 a set because they were going out of business. Bought one and built the car in specific sections incase i needed a quick change. Since the gear had melted the gear box, I pulled off all the suspension arms, pulled the diff and counter shaft, popped on the new one fully assembled minus the shocks. Put on the shocks I had been using, popped the motor in and off I went to finish the pack I had been running with. Whole change took 10 minutes when it could have easily ended my weekend.

One of these days I need to track you down and do some rally racing. Not many guys in the US like the rally stuff for the technical aspect and driver talent. More people here just like seeing the cars drifting and jumping and fliping.

What plans do you have for the Citroen? You have a TB-01 already, but the Citroen is a TT-01 correct? I also need to get myself a tackle type box like that to help myself out.

That collection is very impressive indeed. I have been driving my TNX more than my TB-01 lately, but once I get some more batteries, the TB will be out again. Right now I am trying to figure out what the TNX can't just drive over/through.

[thesuper]

CarKing....the spur melted the cover? impressive!

and TA03s for $50????? that's a deal!

there aren't any great places to drive off road here in Texas....it's mostly private land...and the land that IS for public use is scarce...

one tiny park that was popular with mountain bikers recently got a **** installed to prevent the houses nearby from flooding. well, after some recent heavy rain...now all the trails are underwater. so now it's down from three parks to two for biking.

there is another that i need to check out. problem there is....they are walking trails and not very wide.

the baseball feild is a great place....when that sand packs down it's really hard...like concrete and dust on top. as soon as i get a video camera hooked up to the computer i'll up load some videos of the cars....

the Xsara was just the body set. pre ordered from Tower Hobbies. that's on my TB01. since it still has the air dam i might restrict it to on road but there is a chance we might go the base ball feilds this weekend...if so....expect pics.

as for the truck you mention....i've been thinking about getting a Mini T or an RC18T.....i like the idea of a small truck that is more for speed than crawling...fast like buggy but with the travel of a truck.

where are you driving the TNX?

[CarKing]

Yeah man, I lived in Texas for 9 years. Lived in Sugarland (30min Southeast of Houston). I can't imagine where I would go to drive my cars if I was there still. Still have a lot of family there in Houston too.

Right now I just drive the TNX around the neighborhood scaring the children and racing up and down the street. Took it on that horse trail of mine, but it is way too narrow for that big fast truck. I can't even turn around on the trail. Sure is a **** fun truck though. I am going to take the TNX out to the local high school and check it out on their track and baseball diamond and see how that goes. I still need to find a place with some jumps, and hopefully a place built for these big nitro trucks.

[thesuper]

CarKing..if you go to the baseball diamond...make sure to take he TB01.....you'll be surprised....it's about the closest you can get to a good rally experience....