The instruction manual is complete. Written in English, French, German and Japanese, the 31-page manual packs everything you need to know about building the King Hauler into descrete steps. There are several features of the manual worth noting:

• Every item shown has a corresponding bag, blister pack or plastic tree code so you can easily locate the item.
• The smaller parts are illustrated in actual size on the left margin of each page so there can be no confusion about which part to use on a particular step.
• Where necessary, the instructions supplement the illustration with a description of the steps to be completed.
• The kit includes thread lock and grease. The instructions clearly indicate where to use them on the model.

Do not be intimidated by the “jam packed” appearance of each page in the manual. If you take things one step at a time, nothing in the manual is truly daunting or confusing.

If you simply intend to operate the King Hauler with a 2-channel radio, everything you need is included in the kit except the radio equipment, 7.2V battery pack (and charger) and an electronic speed control (ESC), which can be purchased for less than $40.00 from most any retailer that carries Tamiya products. If you want to “kick it up a notch” like we did, you’ll need the following:

• Tamiya trailer unit (we picked the tanker)
• A 4-channel radio system with 3 servos (we used a Futaba Attack 4VWD)
• Multi-Function Unit (which contains an ESC, so no need to buy one)
• Motorized Legs Kit (to automatically couple and uncouple the trailer)
• Trailer Light Kit (plugs into the Multi-Function Unit (MFU)
• Spray Paint (or airbrush paint). We used Tamiya’s Spray Lacquer
• Clear Coat - We used Tamiya’s Clear Spray
• Standard plastic model cement (we used Testors)
• Standard modeling tools
• 7.2V 3300 NiMH battery pack for peak performance

• I took old servo boxes and emptied the contents of the screw bags into them, keeping the labels for size and shape reference. This helped immeasurably.
  
• Keep each blister pack part in the blister pack until you use it
  
• Keep the box bottom as a place to house the truck body and other partially completed parts.
  

The tanker goes together fairly quickly. After having built the cab, you should be completely familiar with the instruction routines, parts and overall process. There is little to paint on the tanker (and what you can paint you don’t have to) so building the tanker should take no more than 5-7 hours. However, if you choose to add the motorized legs and light kit, expect to spend an extra few hours. When we ordered the components for our King Hauler, the motorized legs unit arrived after we had constructed the cab’s coupler unit, giving us some modification work to get the entire assembly to work properly. Getting the automatic coupling to work is not difficult, it just requires your full attention.

Rather than track the entire build process with the tanker, I have included highlights of the process. By far, the most painstaking process is adding the decals. Using the process I described above, I was able to get the Shell decorations on without a hitch!

The tanker is beautiful. When you attach it to the rig, the detail and impact will blow you away!

I can’t say enough about the multi-function unit (item 56511). This is what separates the King Hauler (and other Tamiya tractors) from the pack. Don’t be intimidated by the tangle of wires and plugs. Take one step at a time, beginning with the most important one: labeling each wire with the included color-coded stickers. This simplifies everything and makes connecting each light quite simple.

Monster Sounds

When I unpacked the speaker included with the MFU, I was tempted to use it for my home audio system! It’s huge! Seriously, this puppy can put out sound. It turns out that you can use that output when running the King Hauler outside. I was testing the truck in my driveway and my wife walked out and said she thought the FedEx truck was parked at the front door. That’s what I’m talkin’ about!

The sounds are incredible. Digitally recorded from a real truck, the sound effects are integrated with the controls so every function is accompanied by the appropriate sound:

• Engine starter
• Engine idle
• Air dryer
• Revving
• Running sounds (differs depending on whether a trailer is connected)
• Shifting (up and down shifting)
• Air release (two types: driver initiated and after stopping)
• Exhaust brake
• Brake
• Short and long horn sounds
• Turn signals (two sounds: one standard and one for left turns)
• Hazard signals
• Backing alarm
• Parking brake
• Engine stop
• Alarms (when pressure in air tank is low and when engine stop w/lights on)
• Coupler sounds (if you have the motorized leg unit, coupling will be audible)

The full range of sounds can be controlled with a 4-channel transmitter. The volume is controlled by adjusting the knob on the truck-mounted control panel.

Lights and Vibrations

The MFU comes with a “vibration unit” that literally vibrates the truck at idle to give the visual effect of a large diesel engine at work. You can adjust the degree of vibration by rotating one of the pots on the ain unit.

The lights are just awesome. Tamiya has taken extra steps to ensure realism by supplying special metal backing plates for the head lamps. These give the lamps a halogen appearance when switched on. The running lights, fog lamps, turn signals, speed lights and brake lights all work precisely. At night, the red brake lights get brighter when you apply the brakes. Tamiya has not missed a thing!

Driving the King Hauler

We built and tested the King Hauler on a 4-channel Futaba radio. If you plan to install the MFU, you must have a 4-channel radio to take advantage of all functions. Driving the King Hauler does require you to study the MFU instruction guide pages 8-10 (keep them nearby until you remember the commands). Unlike typical transmitter controls, the trim tabs on your radio are used to set the function you wish to control. With the trims in proper location, you can operate the function by toggling the gimbals as desired. I will not rehash the entire compliment of controls here but I will note a couple of interesting ones:

• Steering & Shifting Templates: The MFU (and motorized leg kit) come with a plastic steering template to stick over the left stick on your transmitter. This limits stick movement to 90 degree increments and makes controlling the semi easier. You can obtain an optional left-stick shift gate (template that keeps your left stick in one of three vertical columns), although we were able to drive successfully without it by mimicking the stick postions illustrated in the manual.
  
• Trims: Make sure you return all trims to neutral position after you execute any of the commands that require a change of trim. Nasty things can happen, especially if the left stick, left-right trim is off center (this messes up your gear shifting).
  
• Braking and Backing Up: To apply brakes, simply move the stick backward. If you are using a shift gate, pull back in whatever column you are in. If you have the time and distance, try to downshift to first gear before applying brakes. This appears more realistic. Don’t worry, sliding the stick back will not jam the truck into reverse. To access reverse, nudge the stick back to neutral and then pull back again for reverse. The reverse “beeping” will sound.
  
• Motorized Legs: The motorized legs are controlled by the right stick. To activate the control, you slide the left trim over to the left and toggle the left stick to the left. You will know that you are in leg mode if the leg servo moves when you move the right stick fore and aft. If the horn activates, you are still in horn mode! The instructions on leg operation are included in the leg kit, not the MFU book. Before you couple and uncouple, be sure the trailer’s light cord is unplugged from the cab! The motorized legs are powered by 4 AA-cell batteries and a separate motor tucked beneath the trailer frame.
  
• Other Commands: The lighting commands are fairly simple and are explained in the MFU manual. You will have loads of fun testing and enjoying the different functions.

We tested the King Hauler on standard asphault roads and indoors on low carpet. Both surfaces work fine. I would not drive the truck on anything higher than commercial height carpet. Doing so will not only cause your truck to accumulate fibers, but also risks tipping the rig on turns. The King Hauler can work up a head of steam on asphault. To get our video shots, we pulled a dolly along side the truck as it paced through its 3 gears. It easily hit 20 miles per hours (from our best guess). Any more speed is really unnecessary with this model. We had the most fun at lower speeds when turning and backing. The acceleration curve is fantastic. If you nudge the stick slowly, you can achieve a scale start and smooth climb to full speed. Using a 6-cell 3300 mAh NiMH battery pack, we got run times of 8-10 minutes at full throttle (with sounds at full volume and vibration unit at 75%). Just driving around in the cul-de-sac yielded 15-20 minutes of horn-honking, light-blinking fun.

Conclusion & Follow Up