ORIGINAL: Rob_ac05
Looking at inexpensive IR battles, hoping to get a few people from around here interested in the hobby. Then probably look at the more expensive Tamiya tanks with IR systems.
Are the Tamiya tanks and IR systems really worth the extra hundreds of bucks? Not having seen the HL or Tamiya up close and in person I'm at a loss.
Rob
Hi Rob,
Are the Tamiya tanks worth it??? YES THEY ARE!!!! Please excuse me for shouting. However, if you want a good (not the best, as is the Tamiya TBS) I R battle system the HL IR series is very good. They can be run in shallow water puddles. mud and snow and year round. I would never do that with the Tamiya TBS tanks. A middle cost alternative is a HL tank with the Tamiya systems installed. Below are some pix of the Stug II that i converted to tamya TBS. They are viable alternative and sold privately on these various forums and Ebay. They do require RC skills to build and maintain. If you buy one from Ebay see if you can get full instructions and technical assistance from the seller. When I sell my tanks ( I'm thecommanderwpd on Ebay ) I make a instructional DVD for each unit. It is included in the sale and takes you step by step from charging prior to use, to startup, IR battle and driving, to shut down and storage. I don't know why no one else offers this but I think it reasures the buyer and e,imnates any grey areas.
Yes, you could buy two IR Heng longs for what you will pay for one Tamiya tank so it all depends on your budget. Mato toys in Canada is top shelf and they may make you a package deal if you call or email them. Make sure you get the tanks with the metal gearboxes and on separate frequencies number 1 thru 4. The are 27 Mhx AM. Extra crystals are available outside those four. You can use these tanks year round (in the snow is my favorite). Buy some extra 7.2 batteries and a fast charger (do not buy from Mato though as they are cheaper on the web). The HL metal options (wheels tracks and idlers) are nice but not really necessary. If you must have them it is cheapest to buy them in one lot with the tank rather than separate packages. I just got the Heng Long Jagdpather IR tank from them. They sent me the wrong color and not on the channel I requested but everything else was fine so I can deal with it. I'll try and post some pix and video of the H L IR system in action. The WSN/Wasan IR tanks are very unrealistic and hold no resale value but the H L do. Send me a email at
[email protected] if you are interested in any of the Tamiya tanks that I'll be selling this fall.
Bob thecommandernj