I am curious as to opinions regarding VS, Marui, and Hen Long Tanks. VS offers a comparison chart which challenges the quality of the others. Is VS really a better quality? Is Hen Long prone to a multitude of problems? I was considering on getting the "Snow Leopard."

I would also be curious to know if anyone has information on replacement tracks for marui tanks (not rubber treads). Sadly when I purchased my Marui tanks a couple of years ago, I neglected to get the plastic piece together tracks.

Finally, are there any US locations that carry airsoft VS tanks?

Thanks

Toyeast carries plastic linked tracks that will fit their VS and your Marui tanks.

Since I only have Heng Long tanks, I'll speak to them. Each model has its own issues. There are basic things that should be done with each new tank to make it more reliable. If you don't do them, you'll have a pile of broken parts like I do! Once done, the HL tanks are very robust and reliable and a lot of fun to drive. Bigger tanks handle outdoor terrain better IMO. Get what you like, do the required mods, follow the recommendations and you'll have an enjoyable experience.

I guess they're comparing smaller 1/24 scale tanks... I'd go 1/16!

Tower Hobbies carries the plastic tracks folks!!!

my Abrams has them..

That said you can buy a 1/16 Heng Long and never have any issues, but it really pays to put a few minutes of effort into guaranteeing they'll survive any harsh treatment or obstacles you might put them through.

Things like:

- adding a better heatsink (for extended runtimes/hot environments),
- hotglueing where the wires meet the board (to stop them from ever coming loose)
- never let the smoker unit run dry (running dry causes the element to overheat because it has no smoker oil to heat up)
- never overfill the smoker unit (overfilling it can make it lack smoke, take forever to make smoke - has to be drained)
- dont "jump" them off stuff, or ram them into steps (can damage track links/suspension, never happened to me but it's just common sense)

Plenty of upgrades available to either add to reliablility, functions etc. If you're getting one, make sure you get S&S (Smoke & Sound) - for proportional control (instead of stepped 2-speed) amongst the obvious benefits. I bought mine as non-S&S off ebay because they were cheap, but have since upgraded them to S&S.

1/24's can have gearbox issues (VS Tank) which you can replace with... another plastic gearbox, and you're kinda stuck for big upgrades (transplanting aftermarket gear into them, multiple batteries, they don't smoke, bad jitter effects)

Good advice Wacky I think you covered it!

Oh and I didn't jump it off the brick wall, I drove it out of sight of my home survailance camera and i was closer to the edge then I thought![sm=shades_smile.gif]

Wacky that isn't entirely true, but your right it's good to know what problems could crop up when you get your tank i.e. damage in shipping, range issues, gear issues, bad boards, bad smokers....but there are helpful tankers here if you run into any problem.

Pzjgr

What do you mean?

Put differently, you can have a Heng Long and never run into any troubles - providing you treat it within reason. They dont just have a mileage/timer set where they just explode after a given time, or just bust all of a sudden "cuz its a Heng Long".

If by chance you are taking the meaning "never" as "for the rest of eternity" than thats not my meaning lol - I don't know where my or anyone elses HL's will be in 50 years time.

My intention was to inform mudtank that he might have trouble before he receives it in his hands. I hope that doesn't happen to him but it's a good idea to be prepared.

Pzjgr

Yep, the great thing about Heng Longs is that even if you manage to bust something, or split them in half - they're still full of parts usable parts (for spares, or part it out for others to buy). Most things are modular (circuit boards, two variants of gearbox: Pershing/Bulldog & Tiger/Panther/Panzer - smoker, speaker, airsoft unit etc) so they can easily easily slip into another different-type tank. Even retailers like MATO sell individual spare parts

FYI my Panzer III showed up with the main gun inoperable and a road wheel fell off in the first 5 minutes. The road wheel was a 30 sec fix, but the gun required me to disassemble the tank, including the gun assembly. Thanks to this forum, I found out what I needed to fix. In fixing the tank, I did break two wires and pulled a solder pad off one of the circuit boards. Mato included the wrong instructions with the tank. It took over a week to get them to fax me the correct one.

My three Tamiya tanks were built and battled straight from the box. In three years of battles, my son and I have lost two gear boxes, and decided to add gear reduction and a new tensioner to the Tiger I. I'm not trying to hide anything. I even started the thread trying to gather info about the pros and cons of each Tamiya tank.

In the end, I do believe, you do get what you pay for.

I'd say "how the heck did you manage that" but the PzIII is confined (I don't own one) so I guess wiring is shorter, harder to seperate the upper and lower hulls far without straining wires (you must have been in a hurry).

Was it shipped from MATO (Canada) or direct from China? MATO seem to be the king of mismatched accessories. Oh, and what did you need instructions for?

Wackywheelzs dont "jump" them off stuff, or ram them into steps (can damage track links/suspension, never happened to me but it's just common sense)

You mean no jumping over my house to see if my brother can catch it in mid air on the other side? Whats the point of the suspension if you caint test them out? .......

HL is ok I guess...

The wiring in the turret and on the board is notorious for poor connections. I've even had wires come loose inside my transmitters.

Below, I discovered this is the cleanest way to deal with HL electronics.

The Pz3 is a favorite and that it is modular, makes it adaptable, and a good choice for many mods. My next Pz3 will use the Impact metal suspension upgrades but with the stock plastic tracks. While the mods left a Tamiya Tiger sitting as a pillbox, the setup is plug and play. Pictured is my first Pz3, which I have since sold to a bay area tanker (sans the f/o DMDs) and I am collecting the parts for a new and improved HL. There is now an almost endless list of detail parts available for this model which makes it even more interesting.

I don't think that problems are centered around one company or tank. Shipping damages are not the manufacturer's doing it's the shippers problem. I will admit that sometimes a tank arrives and just doesn't work reguardless of who makes it. As for modifications that is up to the person who owns the tank. Some are content to run them as they received them. Some want to spend time and money improveing the looks and the running of the tank. The members of this forum have alot of good advice on doing this. I'm a HL tanker not that I think they are better or worse than other companies is a matter of funds in my case. I enjoy working on the tank doing the mods, painting and then running the tank.