2017 saw a resurgence in my interest in the Radio Control Hobby. I got a couple of Traxxas
Ready-to-Run models for the kids and then decided to go full blown into
kit building. Although being interested in R/C as a kid and
intermittently as an adult, I had never built a Tamiya model
before. Never one to start small, I decided on a 1/14 scale
tractor trailer combo with all the options and upgrades I could find. The pages below chronicle the journey of my build.
The
56301
King Hauler was Tamiya's first ever 1/14 scale tractor truck and was
released in 1993. They would then go on to progressively release
another new truck approximately every 1.5 years until by 2023 there were
a total of 22 different models. The early models were unlicensed
generic cabs, but it wasn't long until Mercedes Benz, Ford, Volvo,
Scania, MAN, and Freightliner were added to the mix. Of those 22
trucks, a few are derivative such as 4x2 and 6x4 versions of the same
cab or box and tractor truck variants of the same cab, but most of them
are unique cabs sharing a mostly common chassis. The King Hauler
and all the other 6x4's have dual rear differentials with tandem dually
axles and a three speed gearbox. More recent 8x4 models have two
steered front axles. The gearbox is essentially
unchanged in all that time, and for the most part the chassis is as
well. There are some servo mounting differences between longnose
and cabover varieties. It is quite amazing that, as of 2023,
virtually
all of these varieties are still available in at least one form or
another so it is a pretty simple matter to collect them all (if you can
come up with the money). Apart from their extreme realism
in appearance, one of the best things about the tractor trucks is the
ability to add the MFC (Multi-Function Control Unit) which adds dozens
of lights, engine sounds, and vibration features to the model.
Once the MFC is installed, these are insanely fun to drive because they
look and sound truly magnificent.
I originally used the "Euro-Style" MFC-03 because it was the most
current. I didn't realize at the time that it has different sounds than
the old MFC-01 which sounds more "American" so I went back
later and it swapped it out. The
56511 MFC-01
came out in 2003. The
53957 MFC-02 is for the Highlift series of 1/10
trucks, and the
56523
MFC-03 came out in 2014 (without a whole lot in the way
of changes). This means that there was no MFC available when the
King Hauler came out in the dark ages (electronically speaking) of
1993. Instead there was the
56501
Tractor Truck Electrical Unit Set which contained lights and a backup
beeper (full of incandescent lights, switches, ribbon cables, terminal
blocks, and circuit boards) and the separately available
56510 Tractor Truck Sound Unit.
To be honest, I didn't know any of what I wrote above when I bought this
model. I just chose the King Hauler because it looked cool and
was available. As it turns out, the
56336
metallic black version had been released in 2013 and was still easy to
find. I didn't know the King Hauler was the oldest and, in some
ways, the simplest. The MFC didn't exist when the King Hauler was
first released which made installation a little tricky, but that was part of the fun.
Update: This model was destroyed in the 2022 fire. As
the first model I'd built at the start of my adult RC renaissance, this
was a priority for replacement. I was able to find the same Black
Edition model kit and MFC and proceeded to rebuild the model very much
as before, but 6 years later and with a whole lot more experience and
knowledge. Changes include a Tamiya TR Tuned motor and different
servos. This time I omitted the ball bearings and oil shocks
because I felt they weren't necessary. Visually the new model is
indistinguishable from my original build so I didn't take any new
pictures.
2017 saw a resurgence in my interest in the Radio Control Hobby. I got a couple of Traxxas
Ready-to-Run models for the kids and then decided to go full blown into
kit building. Although being interested in R/C as a kid and
intermittently as an adult, I had never built a Tamiya model
before. Never one to start small, I decided on a 1/14 scale
tractor trailer combo with all the options and upgrades I could find. The pages below chronicle the journey of my build.
