Porsche 997 online resources

Forums Rennlist – the premier English-language forum 6speedonline – another popular English-language forum porscheforum.nl – Dutch Porsche forum PFF – German Porsche forum Repair manual The repair manual can be downloaded from this Google Drive location. Pelican Parts have a lot of useful DIY articles on their website. Parts catalogue […]


Porsche 911 (997) buying advice

The sixth-generation 911 with the internal code 997 was an evolutionary update of its predecessor, the 996. This means that much of the buying advice for the 996 also applies to the 997, especially the 997.1 (pre-facelift) model. The 997.1 differs from the 996 mostly in terms of sheet metal […]


Porsche 911 (997) OEM wheels

Like for the 996, Porsche offered several wheel styles for the 997 Carrera models. 997.1 The standard wheel for the Carrera was the Carrera III wheel in 18″. This is somewhat similar to the 996’s Carrera wheel, being a five-spoke design. The standard wheel for the Carrera S was the […]


Defining conflicts in the history of the Battletech universe

Battletech is about war. “In the future there’s only war” paraphrases a quote about the Warhammer 40K universe, but it is equally applicable to the Battletech universe. Here’s an overview of the most important conflicts and how they lend themselves to gaming. 4th Succession War, 3028-3030 This is the most […]


Mercedes W211 OEM wheels

Default wheels The W211 E-class came in three trim levels: Classic, Elegance, and Avantgarde. All came from the factory with alloy wheels of different styles, which were changed with the facelift. 16″ was standard. Pre-facelift:  Classic : 7-hole design Elegance: 13-hole design, a reinterpretation of the classic “manhole cover” wheels […]


Buying a Mercedes-Benz W211 E-Class

Why? I’m a pretty devoted BMW driver and I love the E39 530i that I’ve driven for almost four years. But at 21 years old and 340,000km on the odometer, it was developing some minor if annoying issues like doors and windows not opening and closing properly. Given that I […]


How to make a TRX-4M charging cable

The Traxxas TRX-4M comes with a proprietary connector for its battery that plugs directly into the receiver/ESC and the supplied USB charger. This means that you cannot simply use another charger that you might already have. While the USB charger is certainly usable (much more so than the 12B charger […]


Building a Camel Trophy TRX-4M, part V: decals, tires, wheels, and accessories

The final steps in my Camel Trophy build are applying the decals, mounting new tires and wheels and the accessories. My decal sheet is from an eBay seller called screenprintdigital. Unfortunately the largest Camel Trophy logos, suitable for the doors, also had the Team Germany text below them. I careful […]


Building a Camel Trophy TRX-4M, part IV: 3D printing

While there’s a huge aftermarket for TRX-4M parts, some things aren’t available, or it’s just easier and cheaper to 3D print them. I bought a Prusa Mk. 2S six years ago, and while I don’t use it daily, this project once again showed me why I wouldn’t want to be […]


Building a Camel Trophy TRX-4M, part III: Painting and building the body

I used a spray can of Tamiya TS-34 “Camel Yellow” to paint the unpainted white Traxxas Defender body. I first cleaned the body with Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA). When using spray paint it’s important to use multiple thin coats, instead of trying to get good coverage in one go – this […]


Building a Camel Trophy TRX-4M, part II: Parts

Body Getting a suitable body is easy – Traxxas sell not only painted bodies, but also a white body, including all accessory parts. This includes the roof rack, mirrors, fender flares, and even the jerry cans and jack that are mounted to the rear. The part number is 9712. You […]


Building a Camel Trophy TRX-4M, part I: Research

One of the most enjoyable parts of a new project is to me the associated research. There’s nothing wrong with slapping some Camel Yellow paint on a Defender body and adding some stickers, but I wanted to be a bit closer to the look of cars that were actually used […]