Here is a very good letter about
Getting Started in RC Armor Modeling written by Craig Streetsquid the XO - DAK (Desert Armor Korps)
http://www.desertarmor.com DAK Newbie LetterTo our guests, R/C Armor enthusiast, Scale Modeler, History buff, and general interested parties,
First and foremost welcome to the hobby and to this forum. This forum is an excellent source of information and inspiration. It is populated by lots of very talented and knowledgeable people from around the world, who are always willing to share. In fact there are some who can probably answer your questions better than I, but I'm willing to take a stab at it.
Probably the most important thing you should decide before buying a tank is what you would like to do with it, and at what level you want to participate in this hobby. Some guys simply love to build and run their tanks on relatively smooth ground, while others will join a club that then hosts simulated battles in which your tank will be driven on all sorts of terrain. Deciding this first will help determine what kit and upgrades will best suit your interests.
As you mentioned some of the tanks are designed to shoot the air soft BB's, while others use an IR (infrared laser) battle system. That system uses a "battle unit" to receive and register the incoming shots from another tank. Sounds like you have already decided to go with the IR type system.
Most of the available tanks can be broken down into two categories:
1. Comes in a kit form in which you have to build the tank. (Tamiya and some old Bandai kits are good examples)
2. Come as a pre-built (mostly assembled, except for some small cosmetic details). These are usually the "airsoft" tanks (Heng Long)
Because Heng Long offers more options, many builders will buy an HL tank, and then convert it to an IR battle system. And others will use either the Tamiya or HL tanks as a base to modify and make new variants of a vehicle that do not already exists on the market.
Then there are the upgrades. There has always been much debate within the hobby as to which is better. The "put together toys" which may run you $150, or buy the more expensive "kit form" that will set you back say $800. There are many in both camps and lots of reasonable and logical arguments for both, truth is you have to decide what you would get the most enjoyment out of. I personally started with a kit as my first tank, because when I started the "toy" tanks weren't nearly as popular and simply weren't yet available on the market. I now have both, and am in the middle of building a Tamiya kit, as well as converting a Heng Long tank.
Well whichever route you choose to go, kit or pre-built, there are lots of after market companies that make upgrades and after market parts that will make the tank stronger, more accurate, run better, or convert it into a completely different variant. Depending on the upgrades you can spend 2-3 times as much as tank itself in upgrades. Good examples of websites to check out for available upgrades are Tankzone in the UK, or ETO Armor here in the states. Some of the biggest and most recognized names in after market parts are carried by both internet vendors including Wecohe, Schumo, Kenny Kong and Impact.
Realize too that by doing some upgrades you create the situation that you need to do additional upgrades to support what you've done. For example many would reason that if you upgrade to metal tracks, you add weight and stress to the stock plastic suspension components and plastic gears in the gear boxes. So logic would dictate that you would also upgrade the suspension and transmissions to handle to torque and stress of metal tracks. Again many discussions have occurred about this subject. I would encourage you to ask as many questions as possible and ask them frequently.
You ask what "Full Option" means. Basically Tamiya has packaged most of their tank kits in both static and RC forms. When you buy the RC kit they refer to that as "Full Option" because it comes with a DMD (Dual Motor Drive) and an MFU (Mutli-Function Unit) which is the brains of the tank. It controls traverse, elevation, recoil, sound system, and registers the damage during a battle. You will also here the term TBU (Tamiya Battle Unit) which is frequently referred too as the "Apple". This is an after market add-on that allows you to battle with other tanks that are equipped to battle as well. For the longest time Tamiya had a corner on the IR market, but in the last few years other companies have designed and developed battle systems that are compatible and capable of battling against Tamiya units. Pros and cons to each, and another topic of much discussion on this and other forums. Some of the other companies to consider for the "electronic brain/ battle systems" are Impact, El Mod, and Darkith.
Ok I've blathered on for long enough. As I said earlier there are guys who can answer you questions more completely and accurately than I can, so by all means I encourage you to post frequently and keep posting until you feel you have learned enough that you can make an informed decision before you invest in your first tank. I would also recommend you seek other tankers in your area or a local club; it will make the hobby more enjoyable if you have others to participate in it with.
Once again welcome, I hope this post helped at least a little!
Kindest regards,
Streetsquid (Craig)
XO - DAK (Desert Armor Korps)
www.desertarmor.com _____________________________
In desert warfare, the desert itself is your greatest enemy
