OK, lets see if we can get some commo with the Munster people. Do you have a contact there?

Also, I am posting the ROE, Rules of Engagement, for all to see. This is a draft and open for discussion. We can tweak it, but we don't really want to get in to extreme detail. Simple speed charts will follow.

1. Tanks should be of either 1/16 or 1/15 scale.

2. Since the Tamiya Battle System is the standard of the hobby, all battle systems used in a combat competition meet will be either Tamiya Battle System or a Tamiya Battle System compatible system. Any non-Tamiya Battle System must be capable of both receiving and giving hits from a Tamiya Battle System.

3.A vehicle inspection will be performed before any meet, with an individual inspection sheet for each tank, listing the owner, the type and make of tank, the tank number if so painted, and the various inspections with a pass/fail column for each inspection.

3a. A speed test on a flat, straight course of 7.62m length using a timer. The tank will be run at full speed thru the test course and the scale speed of the tank will be noted on the inspection form. A tank speed chart is included with these rules, defining the historical speed of the tank both on and off road. Any tank coming to meets for the first time will be allowed to participate in all competitions regardless of results of the speed test. However, at the next meet the tank must meet the speed regulations in the speed chart. An inspector will check the competitors radio before the speed test. All adjustment pots on the radio must be set at neutral to assure a proper speed test. If during a Competiton Event the motors or transmissions of a tank are replaced or repaired for any reason, the tank must then be re-inspected for proper speed.

3b. A Battle System function test will be performed. All battle systems used on any tanks in the combat competition must be Tamiya Battle System compatable. The test will consist of 4 test shots administered from a distance of 5m on four quadrants, 0, 90, 180, and 270 degrees. The tank being inspected must take a hit from each quadrant, the exception being tanks adjudged as having Invulnerable Front Armor. hereafter referred to as IFA, in that the tank was not penetrated from the front in actual combat. These tanks include the turrets of the King Tiger, both Porsche and Henschel variants, the Jagdtiger, and the JS2. Masking of the Tamiya Battle System for these IFA tanks will be discussed in a later paragraph.

After the hit test, the tank will be reset to zero hits, and the number of shots needed to kill the tank will be administered and recorded on the inspection sheet. A separate data sheet listing the kill settings for the tanks will be attached to these rules. The tank being inspected must be set to it's proper kill setting, Light, Medium, or Heavy, to participate in the competitions. Any modification of the tank's settings after the inspection will lead to removal of that tank from the Battle Competitions for the meet.

3c. Installation of Tamiya Battle System receivers and emitters. All receivers for battle systems must be mounted in their correct direction in accordance with the manufacturers instructions. The allowed height of any mounted receiver for a battle system can be at or above the height specified by the manufactures installation instructions, or lowered. Any lowered receiver must be mounted in the correct installation quadrant, and also must have the correct number of filter fins as supplied by the manufacturer. The receiver if lowered must clear the top of the cupola or surface where it is mounted by at least 3mm. Lowering the receiver assembly is strictly a cosmetic modification and in no way affects the receiver's ability to record hits. No hatches, figures, stowage, or other articles can be around the receiver to block a competitors shot. The receiver must be mounted so the fins on the unit are horizontal to the ground, in other words the receiver can not be mounted at any angle, and the number of fins on the receiver as delivered by the manufacturer must be present on the installed unit. Receivers must be mounted on a stable mount to prevent movement in driving and combat.

All receivers mounted in a turreted AFV must be mounted on the top of the turret. For non-turreted vehicles such as the Jagdpanther, Jagdtiger, Soviet SU, Elefant, and German Stug series, the receiver must be mounted on top of the fighting compartment. All receivers must be mounted above or parallel with the emitter of the battle system.

The emitter must be mounted on the front of the turret or fighting compartment and move with the direction of the main gun, both elevation and traverse. Mounting of emitters is at the tanker's discretion, but must be mounted at a level below the lowest fin of the receiver system. The maximum diameter of the emitter installation tube is 6mm, and minimum depth of the emitter in it's mount tube is 9mm from the crown of the emitter element to the outer edge of the emitter tube.

3d. Painting of the battle system receiver is allowed, however the receiver must be disassembled to do so. Fins, top, and the receiver case below the lowest fin can be painted. Under no circumstances can the area of the receiver behind the fins be painted or contaminated in any way. After painting, the receiver must be reassembled in the factory configuration, all fins, mirrors, and screws must be returned to their factory location.

3e. Radio frequencies of each tank will be noted on the inspection sheet and a Frequency Board set up near the inspection area. It is desirable to have at least two frequencies available for each of your tanks. Two tanks of the same frequency can not operate on the same field. Tanks in the actual competitions must have different frequencies to prevent interference with their respective radios. During inspections and competitions, all tankers not involved in the actual inspection or competition shall have their radios and tanks switched off.

4. Tank Combat Compteition. Tanks for combat competitions will be divided in to teams of two to four tanks. These teams will choose a commander for the event.

To begin a combat competition, the respective teams will place their tanks at opposite sides of the combat area. All tanks and radios will be turned off.

A Battle Master and if possible one or two Monitors will be asigned to oversee the event. The Battle Master is in control of the competiton event. The Monitors are to ensure that all rules of combat and fair play are observed. The Monitors can report a tanker to the Battle Master if said tanker is not following the rules or intentionally contacts another tank with his tank. The Battle Master can then, at his discretion, give a warning to the tanker, or order the tank off the field for either that battle competiton or for the day.

At the Battle Master's command, radios are turned on.
At the Battle Master's command, all tanks are then turned on.
At the Battle Master's command, the battle competition will start.
The battle competition will continue until all tanks on one team are knocked out.

4a. When participating in a battle competition, if your tank is knocked out, you must immediately switch off your radio. The knocked out tank will stay on the battlefield until the competition is finished. A tanker can not turn his radio back on during the competiton.

4b. At no time during or after the event will there be intentional contact between two tanks. During combat, it is desired to stay at least 1m away from other tanks.

4c. Tankers may not enter the battle area during battle. All control of the tanks is done from the perimeter of the battle area. The exception of this rule is if your tank becomes uncontrolable, at which time you may go on to the battlefield to retrieve your tank. If a retrieval is necessary, then that tank is considered to have been knocked out and can not be put back in service for that battle. If possible a Monitor will retrieve an out of control tank. If no Monitor is available, then the tank owner may enter the battle are to retrieve his tank and take it off the field, taking care not to interfere with other tanks on the field. .

If a tank suffers a mechanical failure such as a thrown track or a jammed turret, the tanker can not enter the battlefield to repair the failure nor can he drive the tank to his position to repair the tank. The tank can continue to fight and if possible move, but it must not be touched in any way. If the tanker considers the failure to be possibly damaging to his tank, he may, at his option, turn off his radio and inform his team mates that his tank is knocked out.



On the possibility of a 'lowered apple', the rules clearly state how it's to be done. After extensive experiments and testing over the last 6 years or so, I have determined that a lowered apple to the specs in these ROE offers no advantage what so ever, it is strictly a cosmetic deal. That being said, nothing is engraved in stone here, so lets have some comments when you lads have the time.

Sev