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About TongueTied

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    Forest Glen, Australia

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  1. Finished my Comical Frog. Kids had a blast driving it and are now demanding I finish the Wild Willys I got them years ago.
  2. Companies live and die on cash flow, not profit and loss. In simple terms, a $0 profit means they made as much money as they spent in a given year and as they are taxed on profit, a $0 profit means no tax. Reporting losses means that on paper, they spent more than they earned. If your bank account is flush to begin with or you have good cash flow, reporting a loss isn't a problem. The problem comes when investors want a dividend and that comes from reported profits. No profits means no dividends which "can" translate into investors dumping the stock which means you no longer have the big bank balance to draw from when you spend more than you earn in a year. I said "can" because it doesn't always work that way because investors sometimes invest based on future performance, not annual performance. What they are looking for is a rising stock value rather than annual dividends. So, in short, don't always judge a company by their profit and loss situation; it is only one of many measures of a company's performance.
  3. I think what you are suggesting is illegal in the US. I could be wrong but as it is the same approach used for other vehicles they released, Model 3, Model Y, Roadster and now Cybertruck, I'd say it's real and not a scam at all.
  4. The Cybertruck already has more than 500,000 preorders so...people do like it regardless of which movie you think he is ripping off with his design. You can bag it all you want but the fact of the matter is that the Cybertruck is coming and when it does, it is guaranteed to influence other manufacturers and in the end, the general design of what we call an ute or truck will change, even if that hurts your eyes.
  5. I actually like the CyberTruck. No, I won't be buying one. I really have no need for a truck even though I already have one (Land Rover Perentie) which I don't use much. I am constantly impressed how Tesla doesn't bother with the fiction of 'Concept Cars' that look awesome but never go to production or barely have any influence on actual production designs. Tesla's idea of a concept is basically the production look. He will probably have to modify it somewhat to get it past safety standards but good on them for pushing the boundaries and getting out of the conventional hum-drum of car design we have seen in the last 30 years. Tesla has certainly pushed stick-in-the-mud car makers to start producing EVs, not just compliance cars. Producing the CyberTruck may also push automakers to start being creative again.
  6. If you can't get one from the source, you could try a machine screw supplier and I believe there are tones in the UK so you should be able to try a few. Get out a pair of vernier callipers and measure off the diameters and lengths and then give the shop a call. See if they can find something suitable.
  7. Oh God yes! Not about building and running the same car but about being able to build the ones I never got to when I was young. My first car/Tamiya was the Holiday Buggy. I didn't particularly love it. I wanted a Sand Scorcher but it was far too expensive for me. I saved and saved and finally caved in and bought the Holiday Buggy. Problem was that I had to save some more to buy a radio. I was really lucky because about 4 months after buying the Holiday Buggy, it was my birthday and my parents bought me a radio. That car was a blast! I was envious of my brother and his Rough Rider but I had fun anyway. My next buggy was a Frog...well, Subaru Brat actually which I upgraded and upgraded until eventually it was a frog. So now that the re re's are out, I can drool over the buggies I never had or could afford. I haven't bought the re re Frog or the re re Holiday Buggy, I went for that first love, the Sand Scorcher, followed by the Avante and Egress and a couple of Wild Willies. Yes, it is nostalgic and it brings back the excitement of opening and building those kits again. Will I get a re reHoliday Buggy or re reFrog/Brat in the future. Holiday Buggy, no but the Frog I won't rule out. I do however have my eye on a rereHotshot!
  8. I've used them quite a bit. Very reliable
  9. I found this on FB. Someone in Townsville, Australia is selling a Thunder Shot NIB for AU$850 which is about US$570. You have to join the FB group to see the listing. The group is https://www.facebook.com/groups/283560371698482/ and do a search on "Tamiya Vintage RC Thundershot NIB Thunder Shot Radio Remote Control" which is the title of his post or search the guy directly "Davey Sprocket". The kit looks pretty sweet.
  10. I don't go into Brisbane enough to drop by and negotiate so I rely on what he has on the website which seems to actually have gone up recently, on a number of kits. I picked up a Buggy Champ a week ago and about 2 days after purchasing it, it increased by about $30 on his site. His Comical Grasshopper seems a really good price if you wanted one of those. I'm not desperate for another kit but if the price was really good, I'd pick them up. Currently, they are being advertised at good prices but not stellar prices.
  11. I was in there on Monday and there is still quite a few kits in stock and a number of those I would like. The trouble is that the "Everything Must Go" statement isn't translating to pricing. The pricing is good but not enough to cause impulse buys (aside from the Comical Grasshopper which I actually am not keen on). Many of the ones I would consider, I can get from other stores in the country at around the same price without the pressure to buy before they close down. I wonder if they already have offers on remaining stock so aren't overly motivated to shift what they have left. Maybe as we get closer to their final day, they will slash the prices a bit more to actually shift stock.
  12. Yes, but look at the prices of the NEW STOCK, not the stuff that was there before the server shutdown. The Grasshopper was there before the shutdown. Dark Impact White Edition US$115, RCMart US$106, Stella US$106. My guess (and this is pure speculation) is that they have agreed with either T or the local distributor that they can sell off their old stock but any new stuff is going to have to have prices more inline with other countries.
  13. Looks pretty much the same to me. I do see there are a few more Tamiya kits there and the really interesting thing is that the prices of the new kits are about the same as you get from Stella or RCMart. In the past, I always found Banzai to be really cheap but when you added on the shipping, it was only a little cheaper than Stella or RCMart. Now, if we start seeing all their prices being similar to Stella and RCMart, they are going to be much more expensive once you add shipping.
  14. AAARRRGGGGHHHH! B1@@dy Autocorrect! However, they are both going to be Wild Wendys rather than Wild Willys so maybe....
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