New and clueless

[jimbo_wa]

There's also a Taigen Tiger I kit you can build:
https://www.taigentanks.com/taigen/tiger-1-kit

Another option is to buy a second hand tank that needs finishing...

Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

[Exhibitedbrute]

Honestly rod it’s all down to personal preference. Each brand has its own strengths and weaknesses. Not a single one is perfect so it’s really down to what suits the budget at the time

[Son of a gun-ner]

Hello and welcome to the forum Mr Rodacademy

Right people, let's try and answer this new members questions and queries
I've numbered them and put them in bold for ease of recognition.

Hi everyone
I am looking for advice. 1) I wish to build a WW2 1/16 tank and 2) I believe Tamiya kits are slightly better.
3) Is this true? If it is, 4) which kit is most involved. I make models but never an RC tank. Also 5) is it possible to fit a smoke module for exhausts!
6) Am I better with a four ch or 6 transmitter if I wanted to add smoke and lights.
7) What transmitter do you recommend.
Sorry if these are very basic questions but keen to learn.
Stay safe
Rod

1) To 4) Sadly, not everything in this world is perfect, some people will have better experiences than others with the same products, this happens with real cars quite a lot. As for tank kits, there are a few makes of tank kits, but some have to be converted for RC. however, there are kits like the Taigen Tiger 1, quite robust, and at a reasonable price. But, that one doesn't fit into your number 4 requirement, I'm guessing you'd rather have a step by step instructional kit rather than having to work out how to do modifications and some manufacturing of parts, therefore I would recommend a Tamiya kit, and to really comply with your number 4 request, I'm guessing an M26 Pershing from the allied list, possibly a Tiger 1 or more likely a Tiger 2 from the Axis list.

5) to 7) I'm not to sure about smokers connecting up to Tamiya control modules, nor which transmitters with receivers are Tamiya compatible.
Did anyone give these answers? If not, maybe someone can come along and give the answer to this.

[X82d Pathfinder]

I have some with Futaba, Spektrum, and Tactic. Heng Long Transmitters are a joke. The degree of detail is not there on the Heng Long. Would I run my tanks through mud? No. The PZ IV is a newer tank. Perhaps Tamiya took a short cut on the tracks. The Sheman Firefly weighs four times what the MATO/ Heng Long plastic versions weigh. I have seen the reinforcement and I added the drive bearings to support them because I am running the heavy Mato tracks and VVSS bogies.
The truth is Tamiya is out of the price range for many. They aren't cheap. I have both the earlier King Tiger and Tiger 1 along with three Shermans.
Yes, you can run a smoker with the Tamiya electronics, it's just wired differently. It's not plug n' play.
I'm not being hard nosed, I have worked with both. Heng Long electronics are trash. I have a Elephant here too. The electonics from Hooben leave much to be desired. The up -side is the kit has servos for elevation and recoil. I just can't stand toy-store radios that all Chinese tanks are supplied with.