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tamiyamexifan

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About tamiyamexifan

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  1. Amen, brother. Sure enough, I'll be the first one refreshing this thread during 2019. Let's hope we get lucky!
  2. Well, a Tamiya was significant if it sold a lot of units, like the Thunder Dragon you mentioned, would you agree? Maybe it was not attractive to us in the West, but it was important for Tamiya in terms of sales. As for the TS and Vanquish, those are also my personal favorites. Sadly, I don't think Tamiya will re-release them any time soon. Why? Simply because they have already released various models of that same line that are certainly more marketable: - Thundershot or Thundershot-based models that were infinitely more popular (and cheaper) than the Terra Scorcher, which was the culmination of the Thundershot chassis. So again, we're in the "niche of a niche" territory. - Avante and Egress re-releases. Both are well beyond what any normal modeler would pay for a buggy. They are squarely targeted at nostalgia fans with deep pockets. The Vanquish was the cheaper, but certainly no cheap, cousin of those other two. The two pricier models got all the press back in the day (track down RCCA's review of the Egress and the magnificent photos that accompanied the text). So the Vanquish is stuck in very, very, tough spot. Maybe a little too narrow for the masses. And then we have the Astute line. Now here's an interesting business decision that exemplifies Tamiya's re-release strategy. Lots of us have been waiting for the Astute or monster trucks that use that quirky ball diff (King Cab, Hilux Monster Racer). I believe Tamiya has emphatically denied us that trio of cars due to their questionable transmission design. Obviously the Madcap, also. Instead, they re-released the Super Astute, which solved all the tranny issues of the previous models and can be sold at a higher price. In conclusion, a re-release model must be historically significant, marketable to nostalgia junkies and robust enough as to not create Tamiya more problems than they already have :]
  3. Thanks, yes. That was exactly my point. These "special edition" kits have no particular rhyme or reason, arriving randomly. Example: Avante Black Special, which is a special re-release of the 2011 re-release. Why? Exactly what landmark did Tamiya achieve with the awesome "Black Special". The 2011 Avante I can understand (35th Anniversary), but the "Black"? My prediction is that Tamiya will accelerate their "Special Edition Re-Releases" since the list of possible of attractive or significant models not yet re-released is growing short. I'm pretty sure their profit margins are much much higher with these Special Edition Re-Releases, following the The Hornet example you just cited. We're now in the "niche of a niche" territory.
  4. Nice write up. While all of this is logical, you're forgetting Tamiya's tendency to re-release relevant historic models only when a certain time period has been reached, generally with a "special edition" kit. This tends to throw out the window your statistical prediction, or any prediction for that matter. Surely some Tamiya historians around here can help you out? :]
  5. To the OP: You MUST insert more shims when re-assembling the differential to tighten it up. It also helps to place the shims with the outside of the shim looking to the wheels. This will make it tighter. I did this once after the diff began to slip and I never had to re-assemble it. Ran like a demon with a nice DynaRun motor, The KC is fantastic, specially when you replace the stock tyres.
  6. Yes, that was exactly my point Dave. In the past we have seen MANY racing buggies that are forgotten because they lack "character". While the Leonis is indeed trying to be a racing car it failed massively in that respect and now almost everyone is bashing it soundly. Maybe the same thing happened in the 80's with the Avante, BigWig, etc all of which Tamiya launched as racing options but turned out to be terrible as racers when compared to Optimas, ProCats, RC10s, etc. Anyway, the Leonis certainly is a controversial kit, so that can be only be good for Tamiya in the long run
  7. Yes, that's my point exactly. It's a unique chassis. I know of no other Tamiya buggy wit this kind of rear setup. By tha way, the body is also unique to this particular model. It was designed by TOMS, so that's another interesting aspect. If I were a speculator, I'd collect one or two of these models and see what happens. The market of Tamiya RC seems to revolve in cycles so you never know.
  8. Hello everyone, I've been a longtime viewer of this site. Love it. Over the years, however, I've started to pay less attention to the current Tamiya line-up of buggies and focused my attention on their vintage offerings, some of which I've owned. At heart I'm a collector and a builder. I enjoy the assembly of Tamiya cars much more than the actual running. And since I'm constantly looking for the next great Tamiya build, I stumbled upon the much hated 4WD DB02 LEONIS. Now this buggy strikes me as a kit that will hold some kind of special value in the future. It shares some characteristics that made the BigWig and Avante niche cars: interesting build, very unique chassis, high price tag and over engineered parts. (In the case of the Leonis, I'm talking about the placing of the battery, something that surely impacts on the load of the problematic drivetrain) Does anyone else here feel the same?
  9. No offense intended, Sayer. The Twin Det body just doesn't do it for me. As far as I know, it's based on the TL-O1 chassis, which is also used in a Baja King I had. Never got accostumed to the thing. I'd much rather have a truck built from the ground up as one.
  10. That's exactly the type of comments that many here at TC said before the 3-speed trucks were re-released. Same logic applies to other models that were given the re-release treatment and could hardly be considered classics (see: Fire Dragon). A decent stadium racer, like the KC, is always a looker. More than one persona would buy the thing just to get a new and nice replacement body for their truck, which fetches insane amounts of money on Ebay (I paid 80US for a mint one 10 years ago!)
  11. Totally agree, Max. It's a great truck. My King Cab is still working after 20 plus years of usage. My balldiff set-up has only been a problema ONCE, and that was my fault: I place tyres that were too big and the thing just kept on spinning (saving the delicate bits of the tranny in the process, mind you). The ancient Dyna Blaster was mentioned above. Good truck, but really just a covert Dyna Storm and just as expensive. Other trucks were mentioned with more recent chassis. Sorry, I find the experience bland. Their bodies are just not my thing. Tamiya: Give us a King Cab re-release. Make some slight adjustments to the tranny and you have another success. And let us play with that amazing polycarbonate body, easily the best, most detailed Tamiya has EVER produced. Why not re-release this model when other less popular offerings have been sold already?
  12. Does Tamiya ignore their fanbase by NOT releasing a decent Racing Monster Truck, a là the KingCab/Hilux Monster Racer chassis? I appreciate the complex systems used in their 3-speed trucks, but you could hardly call them racing material. Same goes for the big Clods and TXT-1s. I consider the Twin Detonator-type trucks to be more beginner's models than racing inclined. The Vayra on the other hand, looks interesting (never thought I'd see an Avante with big fat tyres!). I would buy a King Cab re-release in a heartbeat, but it seems I'm in the minority here
  13. Alvarez: I could care less about your selling/personal ethics, so I'll stick with your original post. The Hilux/King Cab is a fantastic truck. I have a King Cab myself that I bought second-hand from a local hobbyshop. The thing is fantastic as a runner. Mine has an electro speed controller and a tamiya dyna-run motor and runs like a champ. I've used it on pavement with slick tires and thing roars. Great acceleration and almost impossible to flip. On dirt the thing performs well, but the back-end seems to give out too frequently if you abuse the really big jumps. Check your suspension carefully. Now this chassis in particular has had a very bad rap with its famous balldiff. You will read dozens of opinions on the subject if you search in these forums that mainly fall into one of two categories: the part is adequate or it plain out sucks. Personally, I have NEVER had any problems with the balldif and the parts I am using are probably 20 years old. My only tip would be to tighten the balldiff as much as posible and use ALL of the washers included in the kit (the manual has some king of explanation on this subject, so read it well). I repeat, use all of the washers and make the balldiff tight. After that, enjoy! One of the most enjoyable Tamiyas out there, given it's ease of use and race-oriented features.
  14. Yep. Feel the same here. For me it's a kit or nothing.
  15. Totally correct. They re-released the DynaStorm this decade (2004?). Not sure if by that year you can call it a "high end 2wd kit", but definetly the top end buggy on the Tamiya line.
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