I need some help please
 

Greetings,

As a father of 3 boys, everything is purchased in three's....yes lucky me. My boys expressed keen interest in tanks, we already are pretty heavy into planes, helicopters and off-road nitro trucks and airsoft....and now it would appear tanks. I have poured over the great information here, and as always there is lots of different thoughts and likes. Given that I rather stay with one manufacturer, I am capable of making/performing hops ups, I would greatly appreciate all of your input into this matter. Definitely S&S, size does matter, along with some form of respectable reliabilty and affordability. I just finished rebuilding 3 nitro trucks and it does become cumbersome. We have ample property that includes wide stream beds, etc so tanks that could handle moderate terrain would be benefical. They are all very adept at RC, so age is of no consequence. As a father committed to venturing into this in triplicate, I deeply appreciate your opinions.

Bob
[link=http://www.wcrotts.com]West Coast Rottweilers[/link]

RE: I need some help please
 

Sounds like the Tamiya 1/16th full option combat system equipped tanks would be your best choice.

RE: I need some help please
 

The Tamiya 16th scale RC tanks will be about two grand for three tanks and you will have to assemble each one, about 12 hours contruction time each.

The Tamiya 25th scale RC tanks will be about 400 dollars, less construction time.

The Wasan, Ripmax, Kyosho, Hen Long etc. 16th scale will be about 400 dollars for three tanks and are RTR.

The Mauri, Academy, Hen Long etc 24th scale will be about 300 dollars for three tanks and are RTR.

If you are into high grade performance and realism, the Mark-1-tank, Armortek, 6th scale tanks at about five grand per tank some assembly required.

RE: I need some help please
 

Since size is a consideration and you want to play outdoors, you will probably want 1:16 scale tanks.

As you have read through some of the posts on this forum, you have probably already figured out that you can't have it all in one tank. You cannot have Smoke and sound unless you buy Hen Long tanks, but they may not work properly. [:o]

Tamiya tanks are the best in the 1:16 scale (in my opinion) and are very reliable, but like heavyaslead stated, they are much more expensive and require a lot of time and effort to build and paint.

If your sons are anything like me and my clan, you will want to experiment with a trio of cheaper tanks to see how much interest there is after a month or two. :eek: If they are still interested, buy a set of Tamiya tanks and you will be amazed at the difference in quality, not to mention the sophisticated battles you can have together. [sm=thumbup.gif]

Good Luck!
Jason

RE: I need some help please
 

go for tamiya tanks. good luck. tom

RE: I need some help please
 

Hello,

You and 3 sons = 4 tanks not three. (so you can do 2 on 2 battles) check on THQ or RCACN for a local Tamiya based RC tank club (SCAT and BAT are in CA) take the kids to a battle day and you all will be hooked. (and you get to network with experiance tankers so you can avoid the pit traps when doing initial builds). (sometimes you can even pickup a used tank at a resonable price)

Regards,
James

RE: I need some help please
 

All very good advice. I might add:

The less expensive tanks tend to limit the amount of abuse they can handle, i.e., outdoor, cross country stuff. For 1/16th scale, Tamiya would top the list for reliability (as TomZ recommends). Otherwise, you might wind up spending most of your time repairing/replacing parts, which can become pretty frustrating. A lot of guys upgrade the less expensive tanks (like Heng Long) with heavier gear, like motors, speed controllers, drive sprockets, idlers, track, and so on. In the end, you might wind up spending as much for upgrading a Heng Long as you might for a new Tamiya.

You might also want to look at the 1/6th scale M5 Stuart Light Tank (eBay always has some). However, it's a relatively cheap version of the larger scale tanks (usually around $150 ea shipped). And like its smaller 1/16th scale brothers, it's restricted in the abuse it can take outdoors. There are upgrades available but again, costs can climb quickly.

If you want to consider the higher end, more highly reliable 1/6th scale tanks, the price jumps dramatically to around $5500 per (example: armortek and others).

There is also RC Armory's 1/8th scale that comes in at around $2400 shipped. It's highly reliable and just a bit smaller than 1/6th scale and twice the size of the 1/16th scale tanks. (I have their King Tiger and it's loads of fun -- it weighs around 70 lbs).

Also, retailers might also offer a break if you purchase three of any kind. (BTW, if you're going to play too, wouldn't you need four?) Maybe get two and designate two kids per tank (I'm including you as the bigger kid) -- one can be the tank commander and the other the driver or something like that...

Cheers and good luck.

RE: I need some help please
 

Indeed. Good information presented here.

Since your situation can be treated as the proverbial dipping one's toe into the cool water before plunging in deep, why not go with a minimalist initiation phase: buy the less expensive alternative of the Heng Long tanks, say a pair of them, and see how it goes. Let's face it--the Tamiyas, although of high quality, are way overpriced, require meticulous assembly and painting, and fortunately they no longer dominate the R/C tank field so they're not your only recourse. After you get a taste of what it is like, then you can make an educated decision to go with Tamiya, et al.

Heng Long has a lot going for them but I think one of the real aces is a main gun that actually shoots. Granted, it's not a real explosive projectile and it's not overly astonishing but it makes a good pop and really flies out of the muzzle. I can only see the BB when it hits something and/or ricochets and yet it seems to be fairly and consistently accurate (I haven't even used the included target yet). I'm figuring a good way to register hits on another HL tank is to fasten on some of the sticky airsoft targets to the turret and hull (trimmed into appropriate sizes, of course). That way you'll hear and see when you get a direct hit.

HL tanks are ready to go complete with radio transmitter, battery, charger and a small quantity of cheap airsoft BB's (which should be discarded because they're really cheap). The motor, gun, machine gun sounds, and smoking action, albeit of sometimes dubious novelty, are pretty neat too. Adds to the realism and the gee-whiz factor. I got mine (a Pershing) for about $81 shipped.
Gotta love the super-bright LED headlights...

FWIW,

-Harq