Hi Tanker Gurus:

Thanks again for all the info on the Trumpeter Tiger. Still not opened up. The covers over the disassembly screws are glued in place and I'm still trying to figure out how to lift them without damaging the paintwork. My painting efforts look like something you're 6 year old might bring home from Kindergarten, hence my reluctance to mess up the upper hull paint.

While I was playing with the Tiger this morning, the wife used the remote to change channels on the TV and scored several hits on the Tiger. Wow! Hadn't considered that the IR on the TV remote would activate battle damage. She proceeded to kill the tank completely to her great satisfaction.

But not all was lost.

While the Tiger was recovering I had a thought. As the battle damage slows down the tank's movements incrementally, it would seem that the PC board already has the ability to slow things down to a more realistic scale speed. As an indoor operator ("Carpet Crawler") with no battle aspirations and with limited space, a slower scale speed would be just the ticket, especially if it could be accomplished without the expense of 3/1gear boxes, new boards, $$$$$ etc. Not considering that my mechanical and electrical skills lag just behind my painting skills.

Has anyone tried this?

It would be great if the incremental steps could be triggered as desired and remain in effect as long as wanted. It would be especially neat if the levels could be selected with the radio (or remote). Haven't had time to explore the effects of the "battle damage" fully but it might accomplish what I am looking for with little or no expense (hopefully).

Sooooo. Can it be done? Has anyone tried it? Can a complete klutz like me make it happen?

Thanks in advance for any input

Old Fatman

OOPS Senior Moment

Hi Again:

Duhhhh!

If the TV remote will activate the different stages of "Battle Damage" just use it to try each stage out to see what happens.

Select the one I want (If it provides the desired effect), hide the remote so the wife can't mess with it and I'm good to go. As there aren't any other IR Battle Tanks in my limited stable I'm good to go.

Why didn't I think of that?

But wait! Why not order the matching Trumpeter T-34 with compatible IR and use it to access the "Battle Damage" effects?

What a great idea!

Old Fatman

Hi Again:

Soooo.

Using the TV remote I tried every stage of "Battle Damage" through to total annihilation, and although the tank was disabled for a short period, when it recovered I couldn't see any reduction in performance. Maybe its just me, but it seems that the Trumpeter (read Cheap Seats) version of the IR Battle System lacks any reduction in performance other than temporary disabling.

Don't know if its due to the alternate source of IR signal, but I suspect that its because of the basic (Cheap Seats) electronics. But hey, I'm OK with that.

Now, for those of you with somewhat deeper pockets who own more sophisticated systems and who don't do the "IR Battle" thing, you might want to give it a try just to see if it produces a more realistic (slower) action. Ya never can tell.

Cheers,

Old Fatman