The bodyshell

As I previously said in introduction to this article, some changes occurred while before I even published the article. As you know me, it is no secret I certainly would have preferred a Fox, a Buggy Champ, a Hornet or a Frog: not that I don't like the Desert Gator (its DT-02 Sand Viper cousin is already in my collection), but I must confess I prefer the Vintage look. Anyway, the chassis is exactly the same (apart from the front trailing arms suspension on the Buggy Champ): only the bodyshell is different, in some cases the wheels too.

When this model joined my collection, the last shops were still selling their last TamTech buggies at prices one can't refuse: unfortunately, iconic models were long sold out and you could only find the Desert Gator left at reasonable prices. So my intention was to get one and to look for another bodyshell whenever one would show: this is why I was so happy when my friend Jérémy offered me the extra Hornet bodyshell he received with his Buggy Champ. So, here's how to convert a Desert Gator into a Hornet:

The conversion only takes minutes: just unbolt the Desert Gator rear wing stay (not even removing the wing itself), remove the bodyshell and place the Hornet's. Happy! An additional part has to be tapped at the front of the chassis for the headlights I didn't have yet when I shot the photos: but now, my Hornet is complete. Anyway, I keep the Desert Gator bodyset in a box, but it is stored and I don't plan to use it in a near future. If I ever use it... . To be complete the conversion requires to install a new front bumper and side bars to mimic the classic Hornet look:

Installing the side bars requires to disassemble the whole front drivetrain: not a tough job, but you need take your time though. On the other hand, the front bumper has to go above the stock unit: immediate consequence, the ground clearance gets reduced by 6mm (the new bumper thickness). This assembly is a bit weird from Tamiya since it was to be expected that the new bumper would replace the stock one. Well, not, and you have no other choice since the stock bumper also serves as the front arms support: as the new "vintage look" bumper doesn't, it is only made for aesthetics.

Definitely, this hop-up is only about the look: the good point with the new bumper is that front impacts are now further from the damper stays, but it is not wide enough to protect the front wheels and arms. As for the side bars, their role is again only for the vintage look to remind the famous Hornet.

On the second photo, the new 40542 and 40543 tires are mounted: they alter the Hornet vintage look, but they prove to provide way more grip at our new track.

First runs

Adding this model to my collection is mostly because of the new indoor track we have in the nearby. The GB-01 chassis is very interesting, but still quite similar to my Porsche 935 Martini GT-01 chassis.

The gearings are the same and the handling is very comparable in terms of realism and pleasure to drive, even if we immediately detected a serious problem at our new track: even if the pin spikes surprisingly resist well on carpet, they don't provide enough grip, even with the stock motor.

Sorry for the low-quality photos: in fact, I found it very difficult to shoot these models in action. The new track is much smaller than the ones I'm used to so I don't have much time to follow the model movement before pressing the shoot button.

Here are the mates currently running with my model. There are more to join us in the next weeks:

The Buggy Champ belongs to Jérémy's (the friend who offered me the Hornet bodyshell) and the Frog is my friend David's from RC4ON. As other models will soon join us, we already imagined some pizza-TamTech night events with the Team Vintage Racing: fun to be expected .

One more thing: with either Nimh or LiPo battery packs from 1400 to 1700 nimh and the Sport Tuned motor, the TamTech buggies can run for about one hour! At the moment, the drivers can't concentrate that long, so there are many breaks... But we're working on it

More action photos in the Hornet configuration (I definitely need to improve the quality of the photos when shooting indoor):

Driving the TamTech Gear at the track is a lot of fun when tires match the surface. They are pretty sharp, quick and their handling is great: there is no bad surprise and it is quite easy to handle them at first. Driving is not that simple though: as the scale is different from usual, the track dimensions are smaller too. You will need some time to get used to it, to correctly handle the shaper turns and the different obstacles. But despite many driving mistakes, the TamTech Gear buggies deal with unexpected stunts and other hits due to enthusiast drivers that do not control them very well yet.

I do want to thank lucdu19 for his great advices and for offering me the GT-01 12mm hexa.

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