bruiserbuilder

"did you know your wife has a twin sister? and i think i married her sister. in my house you have no idea there is a rc collection inside as they are under the bed, inside closet and desk. Talking about a closet case rc collector.....:-|" Funny Stuff. My wife makes me keep my rc stuff confined to a custom built curio type cabinet

I have recently re opened my ecommerce store that is primarily focused to the preservation of the vintage three speeds and I have a question on an inventory item. for more than a decade, I offered stainless steel screws in a kit form but I think that the demand may have changed while I was away on sabbatical. my question is this. would you prefer: 1) stainless steel screws with button head tops and self locking nuts (big seller for me for more than 10 years) 2) OEM style screws that would have issued with the original kit. thanks in advance for you comments.

i recall that the international consensus about the release of the high lift was a bit of a disappointment for vintage 3speed fans. you really cant go wrong with any of the choices

building bruisers in south louisiana!

I would go with the Bruiser for many different reasons. You will find that the bruiser takes a bit more skill to drive than the alternative, and even more so if you go vintage. The bruiser is also a good heavier which adds an element of realism while trying to mud hawg or even turn sharply when in high gear. good luck with you decision

Hey guys. I have opened my store again. we will be adding lots of vintage parts in the next several weeks. if you dont see it listed email what you are looking for.

I have those original parts available. let me know if you need them Forrest

yep, I am going to apply the decals tomorrow and detail the body this weekend. I'm still waiting for the chrome parts though.

you should be able to braze it back on. send it to me and I'll get it rite.

Ok guys, for those of you who have been faithful customers of my Ebay items, please redirect your interest to my e commerce store www.parts.bruiserbuilder.com why, you may ask? Well, the new Ebay shipping policies for sellers has forced me into a loop hole that I refuse to participate in. Long story short, Ebay wants me to pay for insurance on all sales. So, if you purchased a set of transmission plugs, a set of grommets, and a rubber switch cover for your Bruiser, and you could even buy a full rubber kit for your ruff rider also. All of these items would only weigh about 7 ounces when packaged. This would only cost about $5.00 US to send just about anywhere on the globe. The new Ebay policy changes say that I cant offer Insurance as an option to my customer and that I will be on the hook for lost, stolen, or very slow arriving packages if I do not insure the items. Ebay says that I should pay for the insurance cost which would be about $25.00 on top of the original $5.00. Do you see the problem yet, $30.00 shipping fees for a total sale of ruffly $25.00. I have lost $5.00 before I even pay my ebay and paypal fees. I called Ebay about this and they had an answer, pass the cost onto the customer! I refuse to participate in what I call E-Flation and charge my customers twice the price. anyway, I'll get off of my soap box now. I really did not start this thread to bash on Ebay (but I do feel better now), I wanted you guys to know that I'm not gone but instead I have moved all sales to my e commerce store. www.parts.bruiserbuilder.com

I cant really see which part you are talking about but I also have a few motors laying around if you need one. Not sure what to charge though. additionally, if you are running your truck, RC4wd has a 540 conversion plate and pinion that you can use.

what ever came of this project?

personally, I believe that Tamiya should have just put the bruiser bed onto the hilux high lift kit rather than molding a complete new tundra body.

wow, I never noticed that the chassis was painted black. I never noticed that the old video featured a vintage Hilux tail gate badge either..... I feel like I went to school today.

I would like to see the Tamiya publication with a black bruiser frame. I have never seen it and would like to hunt it down for my files. as for my taste, I like the frame rails chrome plated or painted to match the color of the body. I have never done black but....

I have milled extensions that have to be welded in place. I think that they provide a 2" extension. I think thats pretty close to 50mm??

have you tried rpphobby.com

well, you guys are talking about a very touchy subject with me and I am on both sides of the fence here. It should be no surprise to anyone that I have been a vintage 3 speed parts recycler for the past 12 years or so. There are a few things for understand when you buying r/c parts new or vintage off of an auction site like ebay. first and foremost, Ebay and paypal combined "Epay" is going to take nearly 47 to 50% of the total sales price of anything sold via their service. This does not mean a whole lot for someone just selling off a extra parts that they have laying around. In most cases however, the folks selling parts on Ebay on a regular basis have to factor in the "epay" effect as over head. Secondly, a regular parts seller on EBAY or direct e-commerce ( I personally fill both of these shoes) have to invest A LOT of monies to buy the parts in quantity to be able to buy the parts at the rite price. If you don't invest and buy rite, then you can't sell competitively and pay the fees and make money to then do it again. In summery of above is basically, if you are buying new or vintage parts from a regular Ebay seller, then you will be paying in the neighbor hood of 50% more than if you made the INVESTMENT yourself. I can keep going on this topic and write a novel on it but the bottom line is this. A regular sellers has made an investment and the buyer should understand that a profit is going to be made on the transaction. It is my opinion that the BUYER needs to be aware that there are always crooks out there and that re-re parts will be sold as vintage parts. I DO NOT PRACTICE this type of unethical business practice but it happens and thus the topic of your thread. In fact, if you look on my e commerce web site, you will see that I have made a large investment into NEW replacement parts for the Hilux High Lift that cross over to the vintage 3 speed trucks. I sell them as individual items for a profit but for a far less retail price than if they were original vintage parts. In closing, I think that you topic is rite on and makes sense. I do however believe that its the buyers responsibility to be vigilant about the product that he is buying. Crooks deserve to be taken down, but buyers who buy new parts at vintage parts prices are just going to be dooped. It is not rite but it happens. My dad taught me to be aware and to question everything. Its not the sellers responsibility to do the homework for the buyer. It is however the responsibility of the seller to be ethical and its unfortunate that some folks simply can not. I suppose thats why there are far more lawyers in the world than there are doctors and nurses...... Lets all be thankful for great sellers and buyers who make up web sites like TC and RCMT!

those are neat. they look like they are rigged for tubes rather than factory bumpers.

Have I missed something? what makes you think that the bruiser will be re re?? this has me a bit excited!

you are better off if the car is painted with hobby type spray paints. any good engine degreaser will strip hobby paint rite off. I keep a 5 gallon bucket full all the time cause you never know what is gonna come around in the mail at my place.

I think I might be single handedly proping up the market at the moment so I thought I'd stop lurking and say Hi Is the picture the runner or the shelfer? from the looks of it, its a shelfer! Mince one.

the price is about rite to me if the build is complete and the craftsmanship is pristine.

what kind of price are you taking about for the vintage blazer and Hilux? both of them are legends in the rc business but the bruiser in my opinion is the perfect mix or art and r/c mechanics.

I have exact replacement transmission plugs. you can purchase them here: bruiserbuilder.com