The Tamiya TT-01 is a great beginners car. Foolproof to assemble, foolproof to drive, and about as cheap to buy as you will find.
Downsides with a TT-01 is that it can't handle any serious power, and the hop-ups, while pretty, are money down the drain, it will never handle as well as a true racing chassis, so you are better off saving for a race chassis when your skills are up to scratch.
My TT-01 is great fun, it's basically a no-stress race meeting if I take it, only problem is that the standard silver can motor is very slow compared to higher-powered cars on a big track. If there is a class for silvercan motors at your club then it is much better.
Next step up the ladder is a Tamiya TA05. This is still an easy build and an easy drive, but needs a little more care with the setup and the maintenance (due to having more adjustments and a belt drivetrain - the TT-01 has basically no adjustments and a sealed shaft drivetrain).
The great thing about a TA05 is that the hop-ups are worth buying, with a few well selected ones you can have a car that is the virtual equal of the top-end racing chassis.
I used to have a TA05-R in the past and it was a really good drive, excellent on low grip surfaces, and only fractions of a seconds per lap slower than my current TOP Scythe.
Tamiya also do a TB-03 which is like a shaft drive TA05 so might be a bit less maintenance, but I have never actually seen one in the flesh.
The TC3 would still be a competitive car, my concern would be new parts availability as it has been out of production now for 4 or 5 years. Also, it is not quite so easy to assemble and maintain as the Tamiyas.
If you are prepared to spend £300 on a chassis, then all the top cars are competitive (just look at the tech charts). But they also tend to need even more care when setting up and even more TLC to keep them running fast, and they tend to have a lot of steering which can be hard to handle for beginners!
|