Originally Posted by JRnotEwing

Just so he's not out there alone. I'd say I agree.Once you've decided this is going to be your "Thing", just bite the bullet and buy good equipment as you can afford it. I now have 3 6.2's. The car is hugely better than the 6.1's. Especially if you don't drive real purty and tap walls from time to time.The arm mounts save you a fortune and because they don't bind up, they make you more consistent. The 6.2 lowered my deviation consistently. And I was able to sell my 6.1's while they still had good value. Trying to sell a TC5 is like trying to sell a Vega now.
Yes, I have good equipment. Yes, I do get beat. But it's usually the loose nut behind the steering wheel, not because of stuff. And I can walk away saying I'll work on that. If I'm having a good night, you won't catch me. But it sucks having a good deviation night and not being able to run with the leaders.
And beyond my chassises (Chassi? My stuff lasts. It's mostly the same stuff I've been running weekly for years sans the motor and batteries.And batteries are a consumable. it'd be the same had the D3.5's not been outlawed. But it was because I bought good stuff to begin with once I committed to the hobby. My .02 cents