[kidcongo]

Is it just me, or does Tamiya not seem to be keeping up much with their pricing as compared to their product offering? I know they are a premium product, and they are made in Japan, not China, but there seems to be a lot more bang for your buck now with some of the other top contenders. My son recently wanted to get into 4WD buggy, and it would make sense for me to buy a second 502X to match mine, which I know and love, and have all the spare parts for; but when I started comparing prices to X-Ray, Shumacher, and AE, and even Kyosho, I just couldn't pull the trigger on another tamiya. For the cost of buying a 502X and what I think are the requried upgrades, I just can't justify it anymore. For the cost of the tamiya I could get pretty much top of the line from any other manufacturer, and have money left over for batteries and a pile or spare parts and extra tires ect.

I love my Tamiya, I just think they need to consider the modern world and realize that the engineerign and R&D on these older kits is all paid for. They should think about offering a price drop on the 502X IMHO, or start selling it with the upgrades, and maybe big bores etc.

Just a rant.....