Bear with me - What tank to get?

[cathurga]

Hey All,

I did an intro in the Newbie section, and after the formalities, I thought I would get into some questions....I have done a lot of searching in the interwebs, and am still not really decided on what tank to get. There are many choices, and I hope to get some infor from the pro's. In my searches I have seen many threads on the HL vs Tamiya vs Taige vs Imex vs whatever. Let me state early on that I don't want to start the battle of the brands, so I am not asking which is better, I merely want to narrow down what options might be best for me, given my expected use from it. Don't flame me, I am not looking for a fight on which is better, I am sure they all have their merits.

So, a bit about what I intend to do...and why.

I am an old Tamiya fan, but only because I have have always liked their kits (only ever had cars from them) and I do like a good build. That said, I am not a rivet counter so I don't need to have the EXACT scale, proper accessories and make it EXACTLY like the original. But I do like to build and tinker.
I have seen many different options, and was a whisker away from ordering a Full Option Tamiya Tiger 1, but then I did a little looking around, and saw the wonderful examples from HL, some crackers from Mato and the full metal jobs from Imex. All of them look great, and would probably serve well as a starter. But I am still confused.

What am I going to do with it. Well, since it will be for my OWN amusement, not really looking at IR....Airsoft is not a necessity and I am not keen to mess around with the smoke business. All nice to have, but will probably be surplus to requirement. Actually, my main concern is a scale motion/speed, reliability, serviceability and above all else....wait for it.....I live in Dubai, and will probably be chucking it around in some sand. I know, I know....very bad for gears if the sand gets in the gearboxes, but given the Imex/Taigen/HL versions seem to have some decent parts support from 3rd parties and modders, I could always replace broken stuff if needed.

Do these things run nicely in sand, and if so, what would be my best choice? Metal, partially metal, metal tracks or plastic tracks...so many questions.

If I have to be honest, I am leaning towards a Tiger 1 Late. They seem to be pretty wide, with wide tracks, and yeah, they look the business. I am not too keen on the modern leo's or the challenger/Abrams. When last I looked, the Taigen/Imex Tiger 1 all metal with the 4:1 tranny's looked like what I wanted.

If you think a Tamiya with some upgrades would be better, feel free to comment.

With regards to budget, the Tamiya Tiger 1 Full Option has everything I need, so not afraid to drop the same coin (around US$600 excl shipping) would be a universal funding option, regardless of the model.

I hope to see some valid commentary, and hope not to start the 'battle of the brands' argument.

Nice tameetcha all!

Regards
Andy

[edpanzer]

There's a big choice I had trouble choosing mine as well here's the Taigen I went with

[cathurga]

Ed,

That looks like what I need
Is it a plastic, metal/plastic or full metal?

Looks awesome

[edpanzer]

It's plastic/metal. Metal roadwheels,sprockets,idlers and tracks metal lower hull (covered in plastic) its a great tank I love it and thoroughly recommend Taigen and with the support this forum gives you any problems soon disappear.

[jarndice]

Might I be allowed a word of caution? Were you to buy a full option TAMIYA TIGER 1 and then discovered that this was a hobby for which you saw no future you would be down a hole in the ground to about $700 and that is why I would suggest The TAIGEN TIGER 1,
If you love the Tank all that will happen is what happens to all of us, We buy another Tank and then another ad infinitum
But if you don't like the Tank you havn't spent the Children's inheritance.
I hope you love this hobby and spend a lot of time with us, and please ask us lots of questions and should you be in possession of information then let us know!!! Finally a very warm (Dubai) welcome to the Forum.shaun

[billpe]

A Taigan isny that much different in price than the Tamiya, and if things don't work out the Tamiya has a better resell value.

[jarndice]

You are both of course right gentlemen, BUT if you take your Taigen Tiger 1 out of the box and put in a fully charged battery and run it up and down the endless beach and then discover you don't like it, why then you remove the battery and put the Taigen Tiger 1 back in its box and put it up for sale on E-BAY.
If you buy a Tamiya Tiger 1 you are then committed to spending weeks of building the thing before then discovering how much you dislike it, and you put it up for sale on E-BAY for less than 1/2 what it cost you shaun

[jackalope]

Word of caution if I may. STAY AWAY FROM SAND!!!! Running through sand has destroyed 3 gearboxes, 2 idler tensioners and is a double BITCH to clean it all out! Also beware of gravel as these tanks don't like it much either. Keep in mind if what you are driving over gets kicked up between the tracks and the wheels, especially the idler wheels, things break.

Also I have found out the hard way that the Tiger I has kinda a problem keeping its tracks on when you run through grass and try to turn too sharply, nothing breaks but the tracks just come right off. This has led me to not be the fan of the Tiger I that I once was. Try driving it up a hill at an angle, the tracks pop off then too. I'm telling you it gets old FAST!

I own 3 Tiger I's and 1 King Tiger and my King Tiger has more run time on it then all 3 of my Tiger I's put together!

[edpanzer]

Omg we'll all be putting him off at this rate!! Go with what your heart and pocket tell you Andy!

[jackalope]

Not trying to put him off just giving a word of caution is all.