After years of cheaper RC tanks I've just finished my first Tamiya full option tank. Here's what I learnt along the way. Hopefully it'll help you if you're not sure what you need:

Where to buy:
There are really three sources of Tamiya tank: UK sellers, the USA or Hong Kong. Hong Kong is the cheapest by far with Tamiya's costing between £180-£300 based on exact model. Shipping is around £75. US sellers generally charge a bit more ~£300 a model plus shipping of £80. British sellers are even more expensive but shipping is less. More importantly if you buy from the UK you don't have to worry about customs charges. My £300 King Tiger bought from the states cost me £40 in duty... I was very lucky as the seller had written 'value $200' on the box. If I'd been charged at full value it would have hurt. 4 or 5 Hong Kong based sellers sell on Ebay.co.uk. I'm wary of buying from the far east but I haven't had anything less than perfect service so don't be unduly cautious. Check feedback and pay for insurance. Always pay by secure method (ideally paypal) for max. ebay protection.

What to buy:
The Tamiya Panzers all basically have the same features: great sound, gun flash, Mg flash, recoil and very realistic driving. Anything that moves on the real tank moves on these. Of all the German ones I'd recommend either the jagdpanther or King Tiger for a first go mainly because the large hulls make fitting the electronics in easier than on the smaller tanks. The two US tanks both have working headlights in addition to the other features, however the Sherman DOES NOT have gun recoil which is why its the cheapest in the range. The Sherman also lacks quite a bit of detail and isn't really up to the standard of the other tanks, however as Tamiya make the only 1/16 sherman on the market its still a desirable model. Many experienced modellers feel that Tamiya's M26 Pershing is their finest model though so its worth serious consideration.

Caution!

Every few years Tamiya withdraw their kits, revamp them and re-release new improved versions. I've seen some previous versions on sale that are about $40 cheaper than the current version.... if in doubt check the product code against the Tamiya USA website to make sure you're getting the tank you think you are. The older versions have less complex electronics and are generally inferior to the latest versions. You may also see 'vintage' Tamiyas for sale on eBay. Watch out for these... the oldest ones have a single motor running to two clutches and use mechanical servos rather than solid state electronics. Generally they lack most of the functions of a 'full option' tank and may not even have motorised turrets. Be aware also of 'motorised' versions of Tamiya's big tanks. These literally just run backwards and forwards and lack sound, gun etc.

As with everything- if unsure ASK THE SELLER exactly what version he's selling and how old it is.

What you need:
The following kit is absolutely essential:
-large capacity (I use a 4000mAH) 7.2V racing cell battery
     Tamiyas are heavy and have lots of features. They flatten smaller batteries in    
minutes.
-a suitable charger for the battery
-4 Channel transmitter and reciever.

To make it cheaper for those of us who buy several Tamiyas the kits don't have any radio gear included with them. I'd recommend you buy something like a Futaba Attack 4 channel with reciever (they're usually sold together) from the same dealer you buy the tank from. They'll help you get something compatible. In the UK this will cost ~£100 and about £60 from Hong Kong. Its expensive but it means if you buy a second Tamiya you only need spend about £20 on another reciever.

Edit 16/5/08. I bought my transmitter & reciever from Hong Kong and saved a fortune. HOWEVER I bought a 4 channel 27 mhz set which is standard in Japan but very unusual in the UK where 99.99% of 27Mhz sets are only 2 channel. Buying a 2nd reciever for my new Sherman has been difficult. I would strongly advise any UK modellers make sure their transmitter works on 40 Mhz. It'll save you a lot of trouble in the long run.

In addition to actually build the kit you will need:
-a size zero philips screwdriver (magnetic tip is very handy)
-small sharp scissors and scalpel/craft knife
-a selection of larger screwdrivers (I use one with a magnetic socket that lets you use different screwdriver tips. The drive sprockets are held on with some big screws that need a fairly large screwdriver)
-a small pair of needle tip pliers and some small tweezers
-a selection of small tuperware tubs to hold the contents of each bag.
-polystyrene cement (the sort with a needle applicator is a good idea)
-super glue.
-metal primer (I used vallejo primer but tamiya's own brand is very good too)

Its an idea to have a soldering iron. I didn't need one but if you tear off a wire from the motors etc you'll need one to make repairs. I found assembling the whole model on a large tray useful as it prevented the little screws vanishing into the carpet when dropped. The kit includes certain small spanners, allen keys as well as lubricant and threadlock.

Plastic drinking straws or offcuts of brass tube are useful for covering machine guns and the flash unit while painting. You DO NOT want to cover your flash unit with paint!

Basic assembly:
These kits are very complex but wonderfully built and with very logical instructions. read them through fully, make sure you understand them. I emptied each of the screw bags into a seperate plastic tub and labelled each tub with the letter of the bag.  This kept all the screws together and made finding the various parts very easy. Tamiya include several spare screws of each size so if you lose one it probably isn't a disaster.

Its a good idea to prime certain parts such as the hull, suspension arms and gun barrel before you even think of assembling anything. If you use black primer its not essential to pre-paint parts although you may wish too. If you're using tamiya spray paint rather than an airbrush pre-painting will give you a better effect.

Most of the potentially scary parts such as gear boxes, recoil mechanism etc are pre-assembled so you just bolt them into place. The tolerances on the kit are superb and everything fits together really smoothly... there's no messing about with ill fitting parts.

I work quickly and it took 18 hours (over three days doing not a lot else) to fully assemble (but not paint) my King Tiger. Generally 40 hours is about the average build time.

Electronics:
I'm an experienced modeller but the prospect of assembling all the electronics and radio gear was pretty daunting: I need not have worried. Each Tamiya has two solid control boxes. 4 wires marked 1-4 run from this to your radio reciever. You plug wire 1 into the socket marked channel 1 etc. Each motor wire is coloured and plugs into an identical coloured wire from the control box. The various motors all have comms cables that plug into the board. No soldering should be needed and most of the plugs are different size so the chances of doing anything wrong are small.

My radio reciever had 3 servos and a craddle for 4 AA batteries. You don't need these. Unplug the servos and throw them away (or sell them on Ebay). DON'T be tempted to test the reciever by putting AA's in the cradle.. you can fry things doing that. Bin the battery cradle- you don't need it for a tank.

Tamiya electronics and Futaba controllers have Honda like reliability. The chance of you buying a duff one is lottery odds small. I was worried something wouldn't work but its highly unlikely.

Painting & Finishing:
If you've spent £400+ on a tank you don't want it to look crummy. Buy an airbrush and research your paint scheme before you start. Often its easier to copy someone elses models rather than a 'real' tank. Use google images.

Good luck & enjoy your tank!

28-5-08 My 2nd Tamiya:

I've virtually finished a Tamiya Sherman which I'm converting into British Firefly. This is a DAMN GOOD kit! Its a little simpler than my King Tiger to build and the small hull means you have to position the electronics very carefully but it fits together wonderfully. As Tamiya intends its a great model for a modest modeller to tackle yet the huge range of Sherman variants means even the most experienced builder can use it as a base for something really special. Heavily recommended and great value for money

For more tank info & modelling tips check out my website at:

precision-panzer.moonfruit.com