Thundershot Black Edition
Inspired by Tamiya's fondness for special colour editions of their models, I thought I might try making my own.
This model started out as a carcass bought for 15 quid at a clearout sale following the closure of the Unit 21 indoor racing venue. It was in a sorry state, with numerous missing and damaged parts, no body or wheels, but most of the metal fittings were present, so it was a start. The carcass was disassembled, inventory was taken and a list was compiled of parts to source. This didn't prove too difficult thanks to the power of eBay, and soon parts were winging their way to me from all over the world, coming from countries as diverse as Canada, Japan, Norway and South Africa, as well as good ol' Tony right here in the UK.
As you know, the special colour editions are often mechanically identical to the normal versions, but sometimes they include hop-ups, so taking this as a cue I decided that this would be more than just a Thundershot with a different colour scheme. Therefore, in addition to the essential bearings, A5 brace and steel pinion, the model also received a Fibre-lyte carbon equipment deck, 3D-printed sintered steel heavy-duty propshaft, 4-shock CVA conversion, anti-crush hingepin tubes and modern wheels, tyres and hexes. Power comes from a GT Tuned brushed motor fed by a MTroniks RV-12 ESC and controlled via a Spektrum SR215 RX and steered by a Futaba S-148 servo.
Perhaps the most eye-catching (and potentially Marmite) addition is the carbon effect wing. A rear wing (50339) was a Tamiya option part for the Thundershot back in the day. While it is disliked by many, I think it adds to the look as well as the handling, so I sourced a modern equivalent and had Fibre-lyte cut me a carbon mount for it.
Instead of the standard blue and white colour scheme I went for black and gunmetal, with recoloured decals from MCI. The first set had a lamination issue, but as soon as I made them aware of this they sent me a new set, express post, free of charge. Can't fault them for service, and the quality of the second set was spot-on.
The car is a great runner, very quick, agile and a good jumper. The abundant ground clearance makes it a bit trickier than a low-slung modern buggy to corner at speed as it rolls more easily, but the up-side is that it can handle rougher terrain. It is also nice to have a representative of this chassis range join my fleet, filling the gap between my Hotshot and Manta Ray,
If you liked those pictures, you should see these...
Lily the Pink
Comments
scollins
Looks really sweet, motivating me to build my re-re Terra Scorcher!
JerseyRC
Great idea and I love the color scheme. I'm not exactly a fan of this body style but you really made it look good!
e30legend
Loving that rear wing, it really complements the lines of Thundershot body.
TurnipJF
Thanks! I daresay I was also not a fan of this shell until I found some old photos of one fitted with the optional Tamiya wing. Until then, I was thinking of using a Terra Scorcher shell instead.
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