delray901

I'm tired of my quad copters a and have been thinking about a tank. I want something that's a lot of metal and prefer air soft. Im thinking taigen tiger or tamiya m4. Budget is ~400 usd. What's the best buy in that price range?

Martellus

Tamiya doesn't sell airsoft tanks iirc, but they are out of that price range anyway

I don't have experience with taigens though so I will leave that to someone else.

Max-U52

Welcome to the wonderful world of RC Tanks. I've only been in it for under two years but I'm really having a blast, and I'm sure you will, too.

You won't be able to touch a Tamiya on your budget, so definitely go with the Taigen Tiger. Even that is a little over what you want to spend, but if you go to Gene at Artistic Hobbies he usually has free shipping on tanks. The toll free number for Artistic is 1-800-610-4294 and if I were you I'd give Gene a call tomorrow. He's a good guy with a great track record.

And be sure to let us know what happens!!

Max-U52

Or, you could start with plastic and work up. I got this tank for $250 at my LHS (this is TAG12010 but I've done a lot of work to it.

ausf

The Tamiya M4 can be found for just under $500 shipped from a US store.

I'm not saying it's your best choice, but I'm just putting that out there before you spend $480 on something that needs a bunch of upgrades.

The biggest question really is what you want from the hobby (driving around, shooting BBs, IR battling) and your ability to work on and maintain. If you're used to hobby grade Tx/Rxs with your quads and aren't afriad of opening things up, you might not like the toy transmitters of RTR and may be better going HL and keeping the extra cash for upgrading to better gear.

Or go the extra $100 for the Tamiya M4 and get a master class in tank building as you assemble it.

Max-U52

The only reason I didn't suggest the sherman (I'm saving up for one of those myself) is because you also have to buy the radio, but now it occurs to me that if you're already into quads you probably already have a four channel (at least) radio you can use for tanks. You might hae to pick up an additional receiver for the tank, bbut those are usually pretty cheap. But like ausf said, a lot depends on what you want to do with it, since the tamiya sherman doesn't come in airsoft.

delray901

Do you thing the taiga would need upgrades? It seem like the full metal version they sell is pretty nice as-is but I am new.

Max-U52

The full metal taigen tigers from imex really don't need any upgrades at all if you're gonna keep it airsoft. I have five tigers, three are imex full metal and they're really great tanks. That's one of the few tanks I've found that really is ready to run. With Heng Long you almost always have to fix something on the first day. Give Gene a call tomorrow and see what he's got in stock. You won't be sorry with the Imex tanks. They also have just about the best customer service in the game, and it doesn't matter what dealer you get it from. If it's an Imex tank the Imex Model Company stands behind it.

ausf

I don't have any Taigen. They appear to be well done and if it's an IMEX, it's been sorted through and should work well. That said, it the original poster is used to hobby grade control I assume he uses with quads, the included radio might seem too toylike since there's nothing you can do to alter or adjust it.

Most people who stick with a hobby, relatively quickly outgrow RTR stuff, but again, it's really up to what they want to get out of it.

Max-U52

EXACTLY!! Thank you! That's why I keep saying the RTR stuff is fine for airsoft. If you want to battle or ad stuff like lighting control and maybe servos to move stuff like machine guns and hatches then you really do want to go hobby grade, but if you're just bombin' around the back yard shootin' BBs at the squirrels then the RTR stuff more than gets the job done. Delray, you said you're interested in airsoft so that's why with your budget I think the Taigen is the place to start. You probably already have the hobby grade radio so with an aftermaket board you can upgrade that if the RTR stuff don't float your boat.

Max-U52

One more thing - if you're plannig to battle and you can get the sherman I would if I were you. If you want to battle then everything I said about the taigen won't apply. Ausf is right that you won't be happy with the RTR electronics if you want to battle.

delray901

No, this would only be used to run around in the backyard. Maybe add an FPV camera to it for grins.

delray901

Yes I have a taranis with a bunch of free slots

Max-U52

I think you'll be quite pleased with a taigen tiger. They have plenty of room for an FPV system and they're just a great tank. The full metal is a real beast.

ausf

Just to be crystal clear, you can't use another Tx with the Taigen without upgrading to another system.

electric45

I bought two Taigen's from Gene about 2 months ago. They come RTR with radio and battery. The quality is poor in my opinion. Something will break pretty much the first or second day. I bought the Tiger and the Panzer. The Tiger seems to be the better of the two in terms of quality. So far, on the Tiger, I have replaced the IR emitter (it failed) and a couple of the axles broke(Plastic). Otherwise pretty good. On the Panzer I have replaced the Gearbox(pot metal and stripped second day) with steel gears. Gene supplied me with the front wheels for the Panzer when I bought it and sure enough the plastic ones broke the third day. Replaced them with the steel ones supplied and no problems. I also upgraded the electronics in both tanks with the ability to do IR battle with the Tamiya's. I have not tested it with Tamiya's yet, but they are working with each other with the new electronics installed. The tank club gets together in a January and will test then. My sense is, the range of the IR system I have put in will not be compatible with the Tamiya's, but have not tested it yet.

Since the initial repair and upgrade cycle they have run pretty well with no breakage.


The radio's work fine (2.4ghz). The big deal is the support from Gene at artistichobbies, great guy, always willing to help, and went well beyond expectations to ensure the tanks were running well. I have been to his store front and it's a small, but nicely run place and he is active (President, I think) of the tank group in Houston, so very active in the hobby.


Really would prefer the Tamiya's, but they are very expensive and this was a good way to get started in the hobby and see if it is something of interest for my son and I.

Rustytrax

Actually I would go with the T-34 since the tiger is very heavy and unless the back yard is grass-less it could become a problem with the gear boxes.

Cruiser133

Since you are new to Tanks, I would wait on the Tamiya and buy something a bit less expensive in case you decide Tanks are not for you. Tamiya's are expensive but they are the gold standard for a reason and they hold their value much better than the others but you will almost always lose on resale with any model.

BludoTheSmelly

Taigen infrared so you can battle. If I had know what I knew now i would have started at that point. I'm switching from heng long airsofts to Tamiya now though.

Pcomm1.v2

Checkout these reliable guys for a Japanese market Tamiya kit which includes the rc radio and battery/charger, still over budget though, but a good price:

http://banzaihobby.com/radio-control...a-1-16-rc-tank

ausf

Wow, Banzai dropped their prices a bit. Or maybe it's a sale, but yikes, that's impressive. I paid $94 shipping on the JS-2, but it was in my hands in NY in 2 days. The new price puts it well under $800.

The OP doesn't need a Tx/Rx though and the M4 can be found local for under $500. Plus he wants airsoft.

Man, I wish I was in the market for a new tank, I'd probably jump on a King or Jagd.

The only downside to Banzai is the currency exchange. Since the price is in Yen, PP and most CCs will charge about 3-5% on top, but you may have a card that doesn't.

Max-U52

Correct me if I'm wrong, but once you add shipping from japan, isn't it still a better deal to get the Sherman from the AAF Tank Museum? Is there something about the banzai tank that makes it better than the one offered by the museum? I'm saving up for a sherman myself so I'm trying to find the very best deal.

Imex-Erik

Ok I usually stay out of these conversations but I'll jump in here... my name is Erik, I work at IMEX/Taigen and handle most all Tank stuff for us. Our tanks are pretty nice and we have a range of them from plastic to metal models. Recently we acquired a new tech here and with that help we are now able to double check all tanks before they go out. They are started, fired, ran, hatches taped down, styrofoam added to handles and barrel support, and more. This has almost ELIMINATED all issues customers have had. Granted, shipping will still cause a problem every once and a while, but if it does we do our BEST and more to make sure our customers are happy. Many forum members here can back me up there, if something is wrong you can be happy knowing I get stuff fixed very quickly.
Now since you have a nice TX, there is a nice little adapter board called the RC2TG from RCTA here:http://rctanksaustralia.com/shop/ind...roducts_id=258 that will allow you to use your own TX for our tanks and have a hobby grade radio with airsoft This board is compatible with all of our current tanks. I have a few on order myself for a few projects coming up...
Now on to model choice, we have lots of metal models but of course the Tiger is the most popular. I like our Russian models personally, our T34 just launched and is pretty nice. The new Sherman from us is super nice though, the lower hull is quite thick and should be much easier to waterproof than the last models All parts are easily obtainable through our dealers (some are present here on the forums like Artistic Hobbies, Immortal Hobbies, and ETO Armor) or directly through us. I take all tank calls personally here and my phone number is in my signature if you ever need me. If something breaks, you have a question, or just anything tank related I can be reached at the number below. At IMEX/Taigen we make customer service a priority and I can guarantee you will be happy with our products.

MAUS45

The kits from Banzai come with the radio.

ausf

Not just a radio, but a Futaba Attack Tx/Rx and a NiCad pack with charger.

Max, in some cases, yes, the AAF is better, some it's a wash, some worse. The JS-2 couldn't be found for under $1000 in the States and I got mine from Banzai for $840 shipped (2 days EMS) which included the Futaba (worth about $140).

When I was getting both the Panther and the Pz IV, it was pretty much a wash (the packaging is heavier, so shipping is higher), they both were around $800. I think the museum UPS put it a little higher and I didn't want another radio (After the JS-2, I had 3 Attacks and a DX6i, so enough for 4 tanks to battle in my backyard) so I opter for supporting local.

This new pricing may tip that equation somewhat. Don't confuse Banzai with an eBay shop, you get full communication, tracking and service, just try to avoid getting smoked for a high exchange rate with your payment method. Paypal charges a premium.