What R/C tank vendor - Mato or Torro?

[NickyB65]

Hello all,

New to the forum, hope someone can give me some advice.

Interested in purchasing my first R/C tank and have been looking at the range of Mato 'all metal' R/C tanks. I like the ideal of 'all metal' giving it some good weight and I guess will be more robust when out and about. Does anyone have any experience with Mato tanks?

I also looked at the Torro 'Pro' range of tanks, like the Tiger I. However they don't seem to be all metal, any feedback on these ones.

I like the ideal of the recoil system (for IR tanks), but I think the Mato does not have this, but the torro pro models do.

Thanks for any help

Nick

[jarndice]

Hi, There are a few more Tank makers than just Torro and Mato,
Heng Long often dismissed as third rate have advanced exponentially in the last few years,
Taigen make a far better product than Mato (Everything here is my opinion )
And Tamiya are rated as the best and to a limited extent they still are, Certainly they are more accurate than the forenamed makers,
The Ideal construction is a Metal Hull with metal suspension, Wheels, Tracks and Steel gearboxes surmounted by an ABS Body topped off by a Metal Turret,
I have a pretty poor regard for Mato products but that's just me,
Buying a Ready to Run (RTR) Tank is how most of us begin but Tamiya sell kits which you have to assemble, (A decided advantage in my opinion) But you can build the tank of your choice by for instance buying a Taigen Metal hull ready fitted with gears, tracks etc, A Heng Long Body and a Taigen turret,
Studying the pages of this forum will certainly help you deciding which way suits you most.Then you descend into the Black art that is R/C

[General Jumbo01]

I'm another that has not been impressed by Mato tanks. Torro and Taigen differ in that the boxes they use are branded differently! Imex are the US distributor. HengLong are far better now that their paintwork and latest electrics have improved. So, what to look for?

Firstly, plastic tanks are fine. They are plenty robust just so long as you don't play football with them. Metal hulls and workings are great too but be aware that plastic hull tops carting the weight of a metal turret/gun is fundamentally bad design. A metal.hull with plastic uppers (deck, turret etc) makes better sense. Nevertheless, a plastic deck can be reinforced to take a heavy turret if you enjoy sorting out these sort of problems.

Generally speaking, metal tanks are more expensive, harder to modify than plastic and will give you a hernia. But. I love them! For me, Torro.

[PainlessWolf]

Good morning,
Welcome to the Forum. You have two posts so I'll bet the other one is an introduction. Taigen\Torro tanks are some of the best offerings currently available in 1/16 scale. They may not be 'all metal' like the newer MATO offerings but that is part of their design and make the turrets infinitely easier to work on. This feature combined with their excellent metal lowers on their 'Pro' series make them a great RTR tank. They are only getting better. MATO tanks are a little more expensive than Taigen\Torro and they _do_ have the recoil\ir barrel flash functions like Taigen\Torro tanks. Just make sure you specify and buy the type with those offerings available. Their metal lowers and turrets are solid. The only severe issue that I have run into with them is the pot metal that they use for hooks, handles, guards, etc. is sometimes crumbly and needs replacing with parts from a Tamiya sprue or some accessory Schumo nickel steel parts. Either manufacturer will serve you well and both offer a wide range of RTR Tanks. I will include a pic of a Mato M36 B1 and the latest Taigen\Torro IS-2 tank.
regards,
Painless

[RenoirLV]

Mato has very good gearboxes. For Tiger 1. Loads of torque and silent. The latest lower hull has torsion bars, which looks very attractive. The older design was like that of Heng Long. Not impressive. The first roadwheels don't have bearings and they really suck. Those with bearings should be ok. Tracks are not very high quality. Difficult to split. But they work ok with Mato sprockets. Other tracks don't mesh well.
I'd actually go for Torro/Taigen. Or the ultimate choice is Aeromate.

Sent from my POCOPHONE F1 using Tapatalk

[velthal]

Hmm, good topic.
Hi!
I'm also thinking about which manufacturer to choose. i'm thinking of buying a tiger2.
I have a tiger mato deck, tiger taigen lower hull (old versions). i have an old heng long, i have an aeromate.
I'm leaning towards tamiya at the moment (just because I didn't have one).

[velthal]

But it seems to me the most interesting thing right now would be heng long with their latest gearboxes and electronics.

[Son of a gun-ner]

But it seems to me the most interesting thing right now would be heng long with their latest gearboxes and electronics.

I have three Heng Long King Tigers with plastic suspension arms. Sadly they suffer from those arms being held in opposing directions, which causes track derailing problems, especially as both my Porche versions have idler misalignment.
I believe the taigen chassis would be an advantage, unless you fit track tensioners and metal arms to a Heng Long.

[velthal]

To be honest. I really don't want to saw anything. I want to buy. paint and enjoy )))

I have 5 1x tigers, and probably as many more in the form of parts. and these are not all my projects))))

[Herr Dr. Professor]

"I have 5 1x tigers, and probably as many more in the form of parts. and these are not all my projects." This seems familiar to me. Have you been snooping around my hobby basement?