[mopar marv]

Now that we have a dedicated Off-road section,I figured that I would introduce myself and find out what the rest of the folks here have in their collections.

I am known by all my friends as Marvelous Mopar Marv. A die hard Mopar fanatic and all round gear head.

I've been building,racing and restoring cars since I was fifteen years old,now 56 and I still eat,sleep and live by almost anything automotive.

Even though I can no longer earn a living doing my thing[mechanic]because of a permanent back injury with nerve damage,I just can't give it up. I love automobiles! Big one,little ones[RCs],I don't care,they are all cool in some way.

Anyways,a few years ago an old friend gave me a Radio Shack Black Phantom RC and it started me down another slippery slope,lol. And here I am now, a full blown RC addict.

I tried racing for a while but due to incredibly poor driving skills,I am strictly a basher and crasher but hoping to improve, eventually,lol.

My first hobby grade RC was a Traxxas Hawk2, which I still own and drive, that I bought from a member of this site in 2006.

I even managed to get my wife and eleven year old daughter into the hobby but they aren't addicted like I am,lol.

My wife has a Tamiya Sand Scorcher,a 3905 E-Maxx and a restored Pro 15 T-Maxx. And my daughter has a Hawk2 and a 3906 E-Maxx.

And now for my list[broken down by brand]

Traxxas

- Bullet[built with nearly all NOS parts and I'm not done with it yet]
- Bullet2[Traxxas didn't make one,so I made my own,basically a Bullet chassis with Hawk2 parts]
- Sledgehammer
- Blue Eagle LS [customized for street use only]
- Hawk2[modified to resemble a Stampede but handles wayyyy better,lol]
- Snow-Maxx[2wd E-Maxx with Dubro skis]
- Pro 15 T-Maxx[another restoration project]
and my favorite Basher of all time, a 3906/3905 hybrid E-Maxx that I have been torturing the snot out of for nearly two years without breaking one single part! Not one!!! And I have witnesses and lots of them,I love showing off.

Tamiya
- Midnight Pumpkin[street rod project]
- Clodbuster[mildly modified driver]
- Clod based Crawler Project
and an ESP Clodzilla 2

Kyosho

- Optima[rear motor]
- Lazer ZX-R

Associated

- RC10L-2[I was thinking of giving carpet racing a try but local club lost their track so now its a dust collector,lol]

XTM

- Mammoth ST[started out as two destroyed trucks,made one out of the good useable parts and in three years since then the only parts that I've managed to break was a couple of body mounts]

And then comes my least favorite RC of all time,a basket case Savage 21, that is in pieces in a box until I find someone that need a few parts.

And before the Flaming gets started, I have nothing against HPI products as a whole, just this one! I'd love to get my hands on a nice E-Zilla or Wheelie King.
Let's just say that now I know why the previous owner dropped his asking price from $250 to a hundred bucks in fifteen minutes. It was a twisted pile of crap, held together with wishes and wood screws,yes,square head wood screws.

But I came out of the deal with a real sweet Mach 427[.26]engine with less than a quart of fuel through it. And six Hot Bodies 40 series Tires[flame tread] and rims plus a few useable Savage parts so I can live with the deal.



Any how,I hope that I haven't bored you all to death. And I'm looking forward to hearing what everyone has in their collections

[MK_Reloaded]

Welcome Marv!

You have quite the collection of vintage RC's: a Traxxas Sledgehammer was one of my first RC's many many years ago. You should post some pictures!

[mopar marv]

Originally Posted by MK_Reloaded

Welcome Marv!

You have quite the collection of vintage RC's: a Traxxas Sledgehammer was one of my first RC's many many years ago. You should post some pictures!

Thanks MK_Reloaded.


Yeah,the vintage RC collection kinda matches my taste in real autos. The older they are, the better I like them. They have way more character and style.

The large fan base for the Sledgehammer was a major part of the reason that I bought the one I've got,I just had to find out why they are so popular.

It is a cool truck but it has a few issues that when combined, leave me liking my Hawk2 that much more. The Hawk2 is lower,lighter and has way more to offer as far as gearing and up-grade options.

I'm actually thinking of selling or trading the Sledgehammer to make room for another vintage project or up-grades for my Blue Eagle LS,like a full Traxxas VXL[brush-less] conversion.

I have lots of photos of my RCs loaded on Photobucket but so far I can't seem to manage to master posting them on any of the forums that I frequent. I can build computers from scratch but do you think I can master copy and paste? Not on your life,it is sooo embarrassing. But I will give it a try and see if I have any better luck here.

[williame3590]

Welcome Marv, great post. I'm not into cars but like you I also prefer the vintage stuff.
My thing is airplanes and engines that power them. To me there is just something about the older stuff that turns my crank.

Mopar...oh yea, me too!!

Bill
ps. even though you don't fly you have a twin now.....props! lol

[mopar marv]

Attempt number one,If this works I'm going to dance an Irish jig,lol.


Thank you for the welcome Bill and for the props too.



My photos worked,the shock may be the end of me,unless I trip while I'm dancing a jig,lol!!!! Wahooo!! It is so much easier than any other site I frequent. This is freakin' Awesome!!!


P.S. I almost forgot,Bill,I do try to fly. I've got a cheap little Heli that I keep trying to fly but so far its been one spectacular crash after another,lol.

[mopar marv]

I am so pumped to finally be able to post photos,without having to e-mail them to someone else and having them post them for me!!!



So here is a photo of my Hawk2.


Its not the greatest looking body but its not bad if you consider it is actually two totaled off Parma bodies sectioned together with Super Glue,lol. I'll toss a paint job on the outside of the body sometime this winter.

I'm currently running a Traxxas 2055 steering servo,Traxxas 2 ch. Tx/Rx with an XL-5 ESC and 12 turn Titan 550. With 13/90 gearing.

My friends and I have been beating the tar out of it for over six years. And I personally have sent it tumbling end over end for over thirty feet on numerous occasions. Its tough and super reliable and I love it to pieces,literally! Its on its third chassis and second diffy since I bought it in 2006[Thank You Jason!!] IMO it is one of the very best two wheel drive RCs that Traxxas ever sold.



And here is my Bashing Champion,literally two years of total carnage without breaking a single part!!! Other than a few scuffs and scrapes, it runs and drives just like the first time I took it out and bashed it.




It is running a stock 3906 chassis,transmission,diffies,steering and 550 motors with 3905 drive-shafts throughout. Its got an RPM Tru-Trac Kit in the rear, RPM front Arms and Bumpers on both ends with full RPM Skids. A Cirrus metal gear,high torque steering servo. And Gorilla Max battery straps[I run 5000mah 7 cell hump packs] Everything else is all stock Traxxas 3905 E-Maxx parts including an EVX-2 ESC.

I have no idea who produced the body or what it is supposed to be. I picked it up pre-painted for ten bucks when my favorite hobby shop shut down a few years ago. So if anybody here happens to know anything about it, please let me know because people keep asking me about it and I am tired of telling them that I have no answer for them.

[Jamie James]

Welcome and nice collection.

My first RC was a Tamiya Fox back in the mid/late 80's. I wish I never sold it.


...oh, and i'm a Chevy guy.

[mopar marv]

Originally Posted by Jamie James

Welcome and nice collection.

My first RC was a Tamiya Fox back in the mid/late 80's. I wish I never sold it.


...oh, and i'm a Chevy guy.

Thanks Jamie,glad you like my hoard,lol.


I just traded off a very nice original Tamiya The Frog, I know I should have kept it but it was one of those offers you just can't turn down.

And no worries on the Chevy thing,some of my best friends and both of my younger brothers suffer from the same ailment but I never hold it against them.

I've even owned a few GM products myself but that was many,many years ago. The only ones I really miss are my '63 Acadian Beaumont SD and a '67 Firebird and my '55 Pontiac Star Chief 2 door Ht. They were a lot of fun but I've always had much better luck with my Mopar projects.

I've got a '68 Dart two door coupe,a '78 Dodge Adventurer SE,an '89 Dakota and two '90 Voyager minivans right now.
The wife has a '79 Duster,a '91 Plymouth Acclaim,a '92 Grand Voyager and a '97 Jeep Cherokee.
And our oldest daughter[22] has a '92 IROC Daytona.

We're not total Mopar snobs though,I do own an '80 Honda CB750 and a '78 CB650. And my wife has an '80 Honda Twinstar 200.

[F34RL355]

i have an emaxx that i lend to people and their children. u are missing a Baja! u need this and u will forget about the rest.

proud owner of a 5b and 5sc im addicted

[mopar marv]

Originally Posted by F34RL355

i have an emaxx that i lend to people and their children. u are missing a Baja! u need this and u will forget about the rest.

proud owner of a 5b and 5sc im addicted

The Bajas are pretty cool but I kinda prefer smaller[1/10 scale mainly] vintage RC


That and my wife would shot me dead if I came home with an RC that cost over a grand. A couple of hundred bucks here and there, every so often, she can deal with,no problem. But a Baja would be pushing my luck a bit too far.

Mind you, If she ever figures out how much that I have spent on RCs in the last six years she would probably try to have me committed to the local looney bin.

And RCs are not my only hobby either. I also have nearly 300 1/24 and 1/25 scale model cars and trucks,six or seven Road Race sets and five full sized vehicles ,not to mention nearly five grand worth of Hot Rod and Muscle Car magazines.

So I try to keep things kinda low profile, total cost wise, to avoid "female fireworks". I'm a bit crazy,but not suicidal,lol.