Well I think that was what Clark was thinking with the BT-7 project and he probably realized he couldn't hit the numbers or the deadlines he set for himself which is why that project is not actively being worked on anymore. Producing 300 tanks with ~100 die molded parts is an accomplishment all in itself and that doesn't include the tracks. This hobby will always be expensive. It has been expensive since I saw my first Tamiya tank in the back of the Tamiya catalog that came in my Tamiya Hornet R/C car when I was 10. It's not a mainstream hobby and therefore parts are built in small quantities by small vendors who build parts because they enjoy the hobby.

Wow guys..... we need to take it down a notch...
I know all of you guys off line of this forum, and all of you are my friends...
All of you/ us have more experience and more to show than just what we display on this forum. I know you guys all go way back in RC tanks than what we are showing off here. Ive been lurking in this hobby for a long time and didnt really get active beyond one tank until several years ago.
I think the cockyness we are seeing is stemming from the annonimty of the forum and the lack of knowledge of each other. If we were all at an event I think everybody would get along just fine.
Lets get back to just yaking about the haya tank at hand.

Exactly, kudos and many applauds! Remember when the WSN T-34 came out around 2005-2006 and needed SO much work to get it on the battlefield. (what a piece of junk) But we did it and it was the only T-34 for a LONG time. Those that are building this Sheridan really can't hold their head up too high for it has it's short comings too... and it was like 700 bucks. And NO RADIO!!!

I like it and want it. Now just to make the year just a little longer...

I will test out anything to a certain limit. Usually just stuff that interests me but Im good at finding spots that needed to be modded for strength though im not a machinest like Daryl is.
FYI our San Diego battle field does not have sand. It has hard and soft powdery dirt and ground cover and brush. No sand like silica. I have been told be several that have been to many fields, that we have the best field they have ever seen as we rarely loose any tracks or break tanks on our field. It is perfect conditions as long as you stay off the SGMs grass.

My desert training center however does have sand, dunes, lots of them, and they are very soft and hard to drive in and hard on tanks. its very fun but I try to be careful when driving, often the system will stall out electrically before I break something. However I did eat a gear mid tranny in my m50 yesterday... It happens. time to go with a bullet proof eto unit.

All I know is that I have a tracking number for mine and it should be here soon... :)

Got my Chieftain the other day and I'm very pleased with it. The commanders copula is a bit naff but I'm converting it to a Mk10 so thats going to be changed.

£500 for the Pro version is a bit steep but it is a limited run (and I'm a Chieftain Fanboy). I think it's a lot better value then the Tamiya King Tiger.


One word of warning- be careful when you slide it out of the box, mine was upside down and all the accessories fell out.

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...a5a3e71eb2.jpg

Armortek Chieftain 1/6th cupola with acrylic block periscopes - WIP - Builder Youngjae Bae, South Korea
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...13b2253c3b.jpg

Mylar sheet cut to fit periscopes
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...050b03e71b.jpg

Mylar sheet fitted to turret scopes - note reflections
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...4b45a33fef.jpg

Source material for mylar sheet - mini chocolate bar multi pack - free from chocolate contamination
Hi Woz
Are you planning on doing a 3D print print upgrade for the cupola?
If so, would you consider doing one with empty periscopes - that would allow insertion of acrylic block scopes & mylar film (mirror)?

Mk 10 cupola - is that the one with periscopes angled downward at 15 degrees to prevent reflections? Pt 11 in Stephen Whites Mk 5 guide has a bit about it.

You might want to consider doing the latter NBC pack too - point 9 in the guide refers. Guide - Chieftain Mk 5 Guide - Armortek -

Mal

Hi

I'm going to print them in resin with clear resin periscopes.

Cool - less work for me. Angled?

Mal

Action dust
 

I get it. It’s tough out there on the IR battlefield.
Out there, far from home, there’s no mercy, no second chances, it’s man against man, toy tank against toy tank. Decisions are made in the blink of an eye that can affect a mans entire afternoon.
How many of these static modellers have any idea what it’s like to lose a toy tank .?.. to lose a buddies tank..?!
But you do, I can tell. You’ve been there, you counted them all out, you counted them all back in, what was left of em anyway....you’ve seen things you’d probably not want to talk about, yeah, I can see that. You got that ten yard stare..

Now that was funny, Andrew, you really have a way of putting things in perspective. I love the ten yard stare. ;)

30 year ago I flew RC airplanes. My last one was a Graupner Cherokee 1/8. Once a week I used to drive 25Km to the flight field and spent hours flaying. Of course I had built the model and spent millions of hours detailing it with all the parts provided by Graupner, and all what I had at hand watching lots of pictures of the real airplane.

Was I a static modeler… well the wingspan had 2mts so I had to kept the model in the garage until the next time, so I guess that was not a shelf queen.

Of course I saw in the field many newcomers with small trainers, most of the times several flight hours converted them in teachers. To build or to buy a simple model for the first time make in the people the idea that is a genius. I felt so many moons ago.

I forgot to say that in that time I repaired RC for friends as a hobby so I had a wide vision, electronics, modeling and driving a model in the air.

Modeling has many facets, from the hunt for a model, the research for information, the build and of course the showcase or the ground / air / water if it is an RC. My grandsons play with my simple RC tanks, no many details on them as they use to shock them not having much experience in driving, but they are 7 and 5 years old.

I wonder if when you buy a real car, you ask for the simplest one, without luxuries or extras, just because you are going to drive on the street?

Maybe in a few years and after many models have passed under the bridge, some here change their minds regarding the goal of the hobby.

That's the best post I've seen here in a while! Welcome aboard Andrewjohn.

Are you kidding me! Dude best go read about the person fsttanks was directing his statement towards and the long back and forth they were BOTH giving. The statement was clearly aimed at Pcomm1.v2 that has been banded from this site MULTIPLE times and rarely has anything to offer except spiteful remarks that start the unfriendliness. That’s why he keeps getting band! Then he simply comes back each time with a new account and screen name and starts all over.

I have been a post reader here for a long time and don’t post much. That said I suspect you are Pcomm1.v2 the guy the remarks were solely aim at by fsttanks. You probably got strongly warned about being band again and to knock off your BS.....right John.

Flame suit on.......

Guys, Im Sure AndrewJohn, is PCommv1.2 aka John. He has had a war on here with fast tanks. It sure soudns like him. They dont get along. But that post AndrewJohn made was deeply sarcastic and patronizing.

I know both people. i battle with fasttanks in the club. Pcommv1.2 does not come to battles any more but many know him from earlier days when he used to battle. Personality conflicts get to exacerbated here.

Fasttanks has built good battle tanks that perform and look good with performace upgrades and detailing out. He has put alot of effort into figuring out the henglong 6.0 system and how to make it workable in our clubs to get new people involved that cant afford a tamiya or gutting a tank and going clark for their first undertaking, Hes doing alot to help grow our hobby. Im not sure why he gets so much hate from group members here but its unwarranted.

Naw, not me!

AndrewJohn is pretty funny and ME, Pcomm1.v2 ain’t either that funny and or certainly not using AndrewJohn as an alias name. Rich let’s give credit where credit is due! LOL.

Anyway, I left your friend alone after he asked for a truce due to the approaching holidays.
Rich, you do your friend a huge disservice by trying to be the diplomatic representative for him and offering up a bad theory. I understood what fasttrack was saying, he enjoys the hard running bashing, tune up, setup fun and IR fighting as a modeling priority for club fights and using a budget friendly fighting platform to do all that.

Now Rich, how about letting fasttrack fight his own battles, but for sure Rich leave me out of it with your false accusations. I would sue you for defamation of character, but I ain’t got any. LOL, but next time I might have some!

Brief Note: Others enjoy the military history, kit selection, build process, fine scale modeling, paint and weathering model skill development and mastery. Some enjoy the rc electronics creation and setup. A few enjoy scratch building, kit bashing and the making of IR Tamiya compatible IR fighters out of HL RC Tanks. All are valid and more. Fasttracks’ mistake was putting all that he enjoys and what he hobby values, into GI JOE comic book language. Silly move for sure.

Guessing, many guys here are USA Vets or Vets from other countries, some experiencing harsh duty and combat and most others serving honorably and doing their duty well in support roles and never being deployed. None for sure would confuse a rc tank hobby game with any form of military service activity. Just saying, bad choice of written tough words fasttracks.

Update: Probably be February before I order the Chieftan, still researching what to do with it. Impulsively spent my rc tank money on that huge novelty 1/12 HG MRAP and it is RTR fun.

Enjoy 2020, including even the sad sorry cases like Fasttrack and Rich Johnson. FYI, 8 and 9 year old locals Matt and Mark have been trying to ruin by hard driving and jumping my rc tanks way before fasttracks - @fsttracks, they or we adults just do not video it LOL...unrealistic rc tank operation abuse is totally normal for all little boys like fssttracks and is neither new or out of the box model thinking. Old children at best.

John

Why John did you bring me into this!!!! I was going to let dead dogs lie as you are as so many have told me both in person and through PMs a waist of time and breath to keep heads with. I wish to not waist mine or others time reading your unsolicited non contributing thoughts that end up having no bearing on the thread topic much like the one I quoted of yours above. Fact is every time it is YOU that starts in FIRST with me and push buttons. I think you really enjoy the banter with me and so many others others. Sadly I lean toward believing the theory that you are in fact this new AndrewJohn guy. Time will prove this theory either right or wrong.

Now in fair play we have both had our jabs at each other tonight so can we now move on and try a restart and agree to be civil from this point forward here on RCU. If you don’t comment on or about me in any threads or posts I will reciprocate accordingly.

Ok I offered an olive branch.... remember everyone now sees YOU knocked it away and that speaks to your true character.

Hey Uparmor don’t engage with John aka Pcomm1.v2. He just seems to likes to hate. Just have to feel sorry for someone who can’t make peace and accept an olive branch.

John my offer still stands. We don’t have to be friends just civil and leave each other’s posts and threads alone going forward. It’s in your hands now.

Fssttrack, with friends like you who needs enemies?
 

Well, Rich Johnson sucked me into this brawl and the bald faced liar thing you two instigated is not forgivable in the real world. I will leave your hobby posts alone and keep my opinions of your hobby efforts to myself. So, it is not “hate” to take on liars, that is simply the right thing to. Goodnight.

Thank you for taking the steps to met me in the middle and move forward.

Ok boys lets settle down.

If your post is gone its because it violated rules, or quoted a post that violated rules, or in my opinion did nothing but further the kerfuffle.

Last warning before I do some house cleaning.

Also, if it helps you guys move on, Pcom and that John account are from 2 vastly different IP's and geo-locations.

Good to know, thank you for the moderation.
For the record, I did not lie nor defame Pcomm. I simply stated that the AndrewJohn post seemed like his wit of writting and possibly it was his new account if he got banned again. There was no lie made by my myslef. An accusation from a drawn conclusion and I already apologised to him privately.

Personally I thought the post from Andrew was all in jest. It was funny IMO. Sorry if you got caught up in an old battle here on the forums. Welcome to you anyway and it does seem like you know something about the real tanks. I used to volunteer at a museum fixing tanks so I know exactly what you were talking about when you mentioned pumping up the track tensioner. I've helped break track on the M113, the M114, the M60, and a Sherman. Always a good time... :)

Just fight to the death and get it over with. This crap is getting old.

Ref. Also, if it helps you guys move on, Pcom and that John account are from 2 vastly
 

...what you wrote Rich Johnson: Guys, Im Sure AndrewJohn, is PCommv1.2 aka John. He has had a war on here with fast tanks. It sure soudns like him. They dont get along. But that post AndrewJohn made was deeply sarcastic and patronizing.

Rich did kinda apologize via Facebook Message. And I replyed with appropriate words.

FYI-never had a war on with fssttrack, just thought his IR tank battle challenge dual was overly aggressive and mean spirited and wrote about that.

And then pre holidays fsstrack asked for a truce. And it was over. That is until Rich Johnson and his 6 San Diego RC Tank Club guys sucked me back into this thread. Fsstrack is not an issue, Rich Johnson just stirred the pot.

Like I wrote, I have no dog in the fsstrack comedy hunt, but the “10 yard stare” is a pretty funny IR concept.

Lastly: “Also, if it helps you guys move on, Pcom and that John account are from 2 vastly different IP's and geo-locations” per barracudahockey moderator.

Like I said, not me!

I am Andrewjohn
 

Hello. I am Andrewjohn. Andrew John [last name] , to be correct.
I must apologize to everyone , I think , for my late reply. I would have posted last night but I managed to get myself locked out .
I did not mean to make such a splash at my first appearance, and I note that some unfair assumptions have been made about my identity. I should introduce myself properly and thank everyone who welcomed me to the platform.
As John ( the other John lol) surmised , I am a veteran. Three armies in fact. I volunteered for the ZNG in 91 and served about six months in Croatia while waiting for my call up papers for the British army ( I had already signed on at that point, we don’t have conscription) .
From 92 till 96 I served in the British army signal corp. Four and a half years of which two were spent in an armoured signals squadron. I drove a 439 APC variant , which I greatly enjoyed. My last six months where an extension as we deployed to Bosnia.
Later , at the start of 2000 , I returned to the army as a reservist, serving two straight years in Kosovo . I was employed as part of the theatre inventory team . Theatre inventory General Equipment register . - TIGER TEAM.
A cool name and a fun job, but total REMF. But the best times of my life.
More recently , in 16 , I volunteered to join YPG in Syria. This was brutal stuff and I can fairly say that, yes, I have seen stuff that it’s hard to talk about.

I feel myself to be a bit of an interloper on this forum. I do not at present own a single working RC tank and I have not done so for years. And this is quite unusual . My first love was tanks and my second was always Rc tanks. I started with an old tamiya 1/25 tiger when I was a kid and soon moved on to the 1/16 tiger 2. Since which I always had one on the go, sometimes two or three. Other guys treat their women like this by the way..
Right now I am having built for me ,in the Czech republic , a commission built 1/10 leopard 2A5 . I will post pictures when I have accumulated 10 posts. I will also post pics of my last Tamiya tiger 2 which I built and sold before leaving my England (and my fiancee , or maybe she left me, I don’t remember anymore..) I was quite proud of that one (the tank , not the woman) .
I have also collected some future projects, including a really rare piece I’ll talk about one day . God knows when I’ll get a chance to actually do any of this . Years away yet..
in the mean time I keep myself interested by reading threads and looking at other peoples work online. And I must emphasize this ,.. It is mostly way ahead of anything I have ever attempted. Some of the stuff out there is incredible. I am a rank amateur in comparison.
But this does not bother me at all. For me, it has always been enough to satisfied with my own work. I appreciate other peoples work and love to learn, but if something I created pleases me then that is enough . I seek inspiration , not adulation.
Mostly I hanker to get back to it and step up my game..

so, erm, THAT post. Why did I make it ? Well, who’s seen Django unchained? I just couldn’t resist..🤣 sorry Fssttrack
Sometimes, if someone’s sticking their head up that far over the parapet, you just gotta take the shot...sorry dude.
The “Ten yard stare “ was one of the ways we used to make fun of the Saturday And Sunday soldiers , by the way. The Territorial army , our equivalent of the American National guard.

My interest in the Chieftain tank is pure , unadulterated nostalgia. When I joined up they where on their way out but still in service. OPFOR (opposition force) was using them.
I can well remember when one of these things plowed through out Div main headquarters at a rate of knots. That was something to behold. She was moving fast and with a ferret armoured car in tow. (Also officially obsolete by that time) the mud was deeper than the car could handle and you had to pity the poor driver , being dragged along forty feet behind a tank.., and again , those things could move . People go on about them being slow and underpowered but those people have never seen one being driven for real.
Another memory I have is of a firepower demonstration we went to. It was for the divisional officers ,of course , but you have to have some squaddies along to make it look good.
They stood us a little to the right and a little to the rear of the tank and fired a live round down range. Y’know, just to see if it would blow our eardrums out. You gotta love the army!

Contrary to what you might think , having perhaps read my last post, I am not against any one sort of tank enthusiast. IR tank battling seems to be the new thing and it is clear that it has helped invigorate the hobby, providing the commercial platform necessary to launch an incredible range of products and services. This Chieftan tank, for example, would probably not be going to market were it not for IR tank battling. But I do note that, while there is clearly much overlap in terms of skillsets and even historical interest, there is a fundamental difference between IR and other scale modelling disciplines , and it has nothing to do with detail. Modelling , be it with RC to bring it to life, or as a static display , is not , at it’s core , a social activity. There may be clubs and meets where people get together every once in a while to exchange ideas and talk to likeminded enthusiasts, but the activity itself is essentially asocial . IR , on the other hand, is a social activity. Clearly. It is also oppositional in nature and attracts those with a competitive streak.
I do not mean this as either a criticism , nor as a praise for either approach, merely as an observation. I myself have never been especially social when it comes to my hobbies.
In the end I would say that it is important to show respect to each other (perhaps I should try my own medicine, huh ?!?) , and appreciate that it is all, after all, just a bit of fun.
And remember, no matter how realistic your tank model is, wether that is due to highly researched scale accuracy or excellent radio controlled animatronics, it is not a combat machine. Combat is a horrifying experience in which filthy , desperate , and exhausted men strive to kill each other because they are too afraid to die themselves.

Hello Andrewjohn,

Thank you for presenting yourself on the carpet and claiming your humorous post Andrew. Rich Johnson, fssttrack and Uparmor, the best way to get all that egg off your collective faces is with soap and water, Googled that for you. Still ain’t going play rc ir tanks with you all, LOL

John

Well, Andrewjohn, like I said before, welcome aboard. I thought your post was clever and funny and not aimed at any one person. Please don't mind those other ladies having a spat. They have been poking at each other for a while now. Sometimes it's funny, sometimes it's boring. I appreciate your bio, nice to have you join our little hobby family. Looking forward to seeing your models.

No probs
 

No probs John. I just want to let you know that I read your post before you edited it down and I respect everything you said there.

Thanks. Almost accumulated the requisite ten posts..I’ll try to post something later this evening. don’t expect too much, I’m just a humble kitbuilder lol

I am still trying to download some pics
 

This was the last rc tank that I built. Just an almost straight from the box Tamiya king Tiger tank with the minimum of upgrades necessary to make her a runner. Never really finished. The ESC was nicked from a car and the servos were never properly secured. “Well presented” is what I set out for. Classic kit. Total shelf queen.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...6aa8e63b4.jpeg
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...b8e47bef6.jpeg
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...24dd1e19f.jpeg
The commander figure was attached by means of an internally threaded brass tube drilled into the base.

Leopard
 

This is the leo I’m having built.
https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...921aa1245.jpeg
This picture shows the drive train
https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...cbbc57c39.jpeg
I provided the OS FS 110 engine as an upgrade to the OS 91.
https://cimg1.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...289eead85.jpeg
This was my old leopard. An older model 2A3 , lacking the details of the 2A5. In the photo I have just finished rebuilding and painting the rear end , which was smashed up real bad. The paint is “guild “ enamel black , only available in the UK, with humbrol green and red brown. The original paint was acrylic ! On a glow engined model!! You can just see the engine fan at the top
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...ed30e9236.jpeg
The detail work on the newer models is far superior.
https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...50378de8d.jpeg
She’s not far off finished now I am having her left grey so I can do the paintwork and final detailing myself. These models are built kinda like an rc car. The top sides and turret are fiberglass and weigh nothing. All the weight is in the hull. Built for speed , she should achieve about 5 mph , or 50 mph scale. Main gun fires 9mm blank from a six shot revolving magazine.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...5a0b31828.jpeg
The turret baskets are a work of art.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...2839b1d3e.jpeg
I have ordered both types of track guards , the type used by the german army..
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...114eb3de2.jpeg
..And the export type
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...80c82c80f.jpeg
The last photo jiri sent me. He’s a great guy who used to drive a T64 when he was a young man in the cold war Czechoslovak army .

And now for something a bit different
 

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...f5995ea9b.jpeg
https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.rcu...580659254.jpeg
this is a picture of a 1/12 Mitsoboshi tiger from around 1980. They where produced in tiny numbers until the company went under. They are as rare as hens teeth. Like RARE. Unbuilt kits in their box are unheard of. I have one.
I also have an OS FS 40 engine, pre surpass series. That’s old but not too rare . Unless it’s the water cooled version . Like mine. Smirk 😏
a toy obviously, but still an rc tank. Just kooky as hell. Runs on rubber band.

Hello,

Awesomeness! Well crafted scale armor, for sure, and some unusual model types I have not seen before. 1980s, there are only a few here at rcu tanks, I would speculate, that go back as far as you do in the hobby building rc tanks.

And thanks again, that now edited post was to much info, but happy you read it. Just shedding some light on why the rcu tank current or x military guys who served in the rear with the gear would get so upset about your well experienced, spot on, military humor. I would suggest they are to thinned skin and totally without a mature since of hard a** military humor. Difficult to believe they ever served, they seem to have trouble walking the military walk.

Recommend you start your own running rc tank model photo brief post, so you can update your work as time goes on. Enjoy your enthusiasm for your return to the hobby, but leave this wonky snake pit thread and post in a fresh thread. LOL. Anyway, looking forward to getting the rc Chieftain, my one project for 2020.

John

1980
 

I will take that advice concerning running a model photo brief, for sure. At a later date. Sadly , it’s going to be awhile till I can get back to it. For now I am just collecting.
Hey dude! I ain’t that old 😂. In 1980 I was six , so do the math lol. I just like eighties stuff. Mind you , thinking about it, I must have got my first tank around then, the “action man” M41 “Iron tank” . Just like the real M41 tank it sometimes played the part of a german Tiger . Maybe that was 81 or 82. So , you see, I was always into tanks , one way or another. I remember my mum bought me a picture book, in french , about tanks. It must have been about 1982. We where living in Africa at the time. Zaire, now CAR (I think). There was a picture of a Matilda tank in the (very small, cos it was a french book) British section. That was the first time I thought “holy crap, that’s awesome”. Later on , back in the UK, I had an action man scorpion tank for Christmas . And my first model was a 1/35 M3 stuart my gran bought me. She thought it was a complete toy and didn’t know I had to put it together. I only put it together (with that awful humbrol glue that got everything covered in strings of glue, including your fingers) to keep her happy. And that was me, hooked for life 😂!

Regarding military humour,.. also, look, I was mostly in the rear with the gear myself, bud, Signals is hardly tanks. But, yeah, a thick skin sure helps in the army, yes it does. But I’m not
on in this thread to have a go at people I don’t know, and I’ve said my piece already.

Hey, can’t wait to see your Chieftain John. I really wish I could get even one project going this year. You going for black and green , or the other scheme (OPFOR yellow and green)? Don’t forget, plenty of oil stains and mud if it’s OPFOR, those guys never had an inspection.😃