markbt73

I have a really tiny adjustable Crescent wrench that I use for things like that. No worries about finding the right size wrench (eapecially since half my cars are SAE and half are metric) and it doesn't chew up the surface like pliers.

One crusty, beat-up original Turbo Optima, with cheap Chinese wheels and tires and a Castle brushless system that it will not be keeping. Someone trimmed the ends of the bumper, added some weight-saving "speed holes" to the chassis, but otherwise it looks straight and intact. Has a belt-drive conversion too, it looks like.

Well, I mostly do restorations these days, so I see a lot of silver-can motors of unknown age and condition. There is some difference in performance between them, but I have yet to come across one that wouldn't run at all. And that includes the two that were in my old blue Clod, which were solid rust (along with every fastener on the thing). I did replace them, of course - but they still ran. Keep in mind these are industrial motors; they're meant to be buried deep inside machines and run pumps or turn pulleys or something for years and years. And often at the full rated 12 volts. We're barely putting a strain on them.

So after spending way too much time and mental energy trying to decide between two expensive re-res, I finally realized I didn't really want either of them. They'd be fun to build, but after that they would just sit on the shelf, or have a few careful runs. I don't want that. I like to tinker. So instead I have a scruffy Turbo Optima on the way, for which I already have a bunch of parts, including a full re-re Javelin cage. And I have my eye on either a cheap original Grasshopper, or a cheap original Bolink Legend, or maybe both. I'm coming to realize, the longer I spend in this hobby (37 years this past August) that there are really only half a dozen chassis that I like to mess around with: the Clod Buster, the original RC10, the Grasshopper/Hornet gearbox and everything that uses it, the original Kyosho Optima, basic 1/10 scale pan-cars, and basic straight-axle crawlers/scalers. There are others I have enjoyed tinkering with, but those six are what I keep coming back to over and over. I keep thinking I'm stuck in a rut and want to try something new, but maybe I've just found my groove and need to settle into it. As a wise musician once said, "You can't get what you want till you know what you want." And I'm glad it didn't cost me $400 this time to realize what I didn't want. Anybody else have go-to chassis that you just keep coming back to?

The "higher resale value" argument always seemed funny to me - it's a classic example of the sunk-cost fallacy. You spent X amount on something, therefore in your mind it's always worth X minus some arbitrary amount of depreciation, or plus some extra amount because it's no longer available. In fact, nothing is worth one penny more or less than a buyer is willing to pay at the moment of sale. Any amount you spent on it, whether it was last week or twenty years ago, is completely irrelevant. That money is gone, and you aren't going to recoup it. Me, I never think of how much something I already own might be "worth," until and unless I think of selling it. Worrying about monetary value tends to take away from my enjoyment of the thing, for fear of "using it up," and I don't like feeling that way. I bought the thing, it's mine, and if it's worth less to someone else because of something I did to it, then so be it. Hence, no boxes. Only the lid face, if it's a good one, saved for that magical future day when I have free wall space to display such things.

Ugh, that's what I get for trying to be clever before I've had my coffee. You'd never guess I was a professional writer, would you?

Nope. I don't keep pizza boxes either, no matter how good the pizza was. I have started cutting the lids off some of them for wall display, but that's it.

Do these have the ads still in them? I have '86-92 saved somehwere, but without the ads. Makes it less fun.

As mentioned, there's another thread, but it has gotten so massive it may be time for a new one anyway. My daily driver is the tamer, more dignified version of your Charger, a 2013 Chrysler 300C. I inherited it from my dad last year. John Varvatos Edition (blackout trim 20" wheels, some other goodies inside) with a 5.7 liter Hemi and the older Mercedes 5 speed automatic. Wonderful car. Parked behind it, you will notice my good old trusty truck, a 1989 Chevy K1500 that started life as a US Forest Service ranger's truck. It has a 4.3 liter V6, an SM465 four-speed manual with granny gear, 4WD, and a bench seat like any good truck should. Tucked away in the garage is my project car, a 1971 MGB GT, which I have owned for seven years and only managed to put a thousand miles on. Stuff keeps breaking. But it seems like I'm getting on top of it now... famous last words... My wife's car is a very nice 2004 GMC Yukon 4x4, with the 5.3 liter LS V8 and 190,000 miles on the clock. Just getting broken in. Photos here if you're curious. (I can't seem to get to TCPhotos to upload anything right now...)

If I'm reading AE's website right, these are run-able models, using clear molded polycarb in place of the nylon, which should be plenty strong. The display cars for the show are 3D printed, but the production run will not be. Of course, these will look absolutely terrible after one run...

Thanks all. I've just looked at the manuals for the Avante and the Mid again, and frankly, I think I'd get a lot more enjoyment out of the Avante. The Mid is a brilliant design, but it's simplified and optimized for racing, so it has maybe half the parts count of the Avante. And my favorite aspect of this hobby is complex mechanical assemblies (which is why modern race cars leave me cold; I don't want one big injection-molded piece when I could have a bunch of flat plates that bolt together, or an "efficient" drive train with three gear meshes when I could have ten). Besides, as stated, I have already had a Mid, and if I'm looking at it from the standpoint of getting to experience as many kits as I can, I should favor the one I haven't had before. And I should buy it for the bargain price before they come to their senses and raise it.

I make it a point to run everything at least once. No point in letting all that mechanical goodness sit around unused, just because the rest of the car is too pretty or rare to mess up. But I sometimes have sacrifical "runner" tires or bodies I use, to keep the originals fresh. That said, I do have quite a few cars I haven't driven yet. Usually because of mechanical failures I haven't yet straightened out, like the DOA original Acoms radio gear that's still in the heavily-modified Striker I bought last year. But it looks great on the shelf, so I'm in no hurry. Or the Kyosho Progress I painstakingly rebuilt from a basket case, trying to keep as much original as I could, including the original "spot-welder special" MSC, which, the moment I first switched it on, shorted out and started smoking, true to its reputation. I have a newer "Heavy Duty" Kyosho MSC to install in its place; I just haven't done it yet.

Once again, I find myself agonizing over an RC puchase. And I know you lot of enablers are exactly the wrong people to tell about it, but you're what I've got, so here goes. I've wanted a Kyosho Optima Mid ever since the re-release was announced. I had a fairly nice original, stupidly sold it, and have regretted it ever since. I kept telling myself I didn't really need it, I have a Turbo Optima that I rarely drive, but since when is this hobby about need? So the idea has been sitting on the back burner of my mind. Since then, I've gotten a second job, a freelance writing gig at a car culture website called The Autopian. (Shameless plug, I know.) It's not a lot of money, but it takes the edge off, and by an agreement between me and my wife, the money I make there is my "fun" money unless something else comes up. As it currently stands, I could order a Mid right this minute and everything would be fine. I even have told my wife I was going to do it, so the money disappearing from my account wouldn't come as a surprise. And yet, here I sit, not buying it. Three clicks, and it would be on its way, probably from Tamico, as it's a few dollars cheaper than anywhere in the US, even when you factor in shipping. But I still can't bring myself to do it. And part of the reason is that I scrolled down, and discovered they they are selling the Avante Black Special for the same price (they just never took it off "offer of the week" pricing, it seems), which makes it a far better deal. And that's a car I have never had the pleasure of owning, and frankly didn't think I ever would. So now I have a dilemma. Do I get the car I've been talking about getting for more than a year now, or the one I have always admired from afar but assumed I'd never be able to afford? Or do do the "rational" thing and not buy either one, until my backlog of unfinished projects gets worked through a bit more? And then there's the BBX (thank you so much for introducing that thing and adding to my confusion, Tamiya), which is new and exciting and could be gotten from any US vendor for cheaper. But it needs a special servo that nothing else I own uses, so I'd have to buy one, and I hate the wheels, so they'd have to be changed out, and then we're right back up to the price of the other two. The worst part is that technically (how many times has that word gotten someone in trouble?) I could afford all three, if I spread them out a bit. But again, I don't really need three more fairly expensive RC kits. And the more I think about it, the more I feel like an entitled jerk for devoting so much mental power to such a first-world problem. And that makes it even harder to spend the money. Does anybody else completely overthink these decisions, or is it just me?

My old CC01 Jeep was painted in the same colors. Great photos!

Another good point. That tactile feel of driving a fastener home and feeling exactly when it's tight enough is part of the experience, and one that I'm not willing to turn over to yet another machine. Besides, after a while these things get almost too easy to build anyway; why speed up the process? I'd rather savor a build.

Wow, really? You guys use power screwdrivers on RC cars? I don't think I ever would do that. Too much chance of overtightening/stripping things.

And why shouldn't it still be in prouction? It's a brilliant design, a very capable and durable truck (even stock, which isn't always the case with Tamiya), it has a deeper aftermarket than just about anything else in the industry, and Tamiya still sells every one of them it can make.

Good choice! Yes, if the kit didn't include an ESC, you'll need one. The best inexpensive choice is a Hobbywing Quicrun 1060, it's available for around $20-23 (or equivalent) from most online hobby shops, or else they're all over eBay. I haven't built a re-release Monster Beetle (though I've had a couple of originals) and I rememeber reading something about the new-style of rear axles needing some attention, maybe some shims or something? Hopefully someone else can chime in on this.

I'll do a top 3: 3. Kyosho Bridgestone knobby chevron monster truck tires, from the Double Dare, Big Boss, and Hi-Rider Vette. I think they were used on the later Tracker as well. 2. Tamiya Sand Blasters. Classic beefy-but-realistic look, they wear like iron, and they work better than you'd guess. Too bad they only really fit Brat/F150/Pajero or Rough Rider/FAV wheels. 1. Kyosho Dunlop off-road tires, as seen on the Datsun Stepside and some others. I am fortunate enough to have one pair of these rarities; they fit perfectly on RC10 rear rims, and work amazingly well on pretty much any surface.

Probably Hyperdrive. I know they made belt-drive conversions for a lot of cars. I had an RC10 one for a while, but as noted, the motor needs to run in reverse, so it's not very practical.

I'm supposed to be clearing my backlog of unfinished projects, I have a lot of detail painting and final assembly to do. I also want to finally learn how to use that 3D printer that has been gathering dust for most of the past year. I've got some truly silly things in mind for it; I just need to take the time to learn it properly. I've gone back and forth about new kit purchases. I've decided I can skip the Optima Mid and the Avante Black, because I have too many buggies sitting around with no place to run them, and those are too expensive to just be shelfers. I might yet spring for a BBX as a Xmas/birthday gift to myself, though. And for some dumb reason I keep looking at that silly Squash Van. I need another plastic fantastic kit like that like I need a hole in the head, but it's calling to me.

That chassis cover is going to create a lot of turbulence, with all those bumps and ridges. What you want for speed is a smooth surface that creates negative lift so it holds the car down. The trouble doesn't come from air getting in under the body; the trouble is when it can't get out again. Look at high-speed on-road race cars, and you'll see they all run vaguely Can-Am styled full bodies, but with the rear panel cut out. That gives a nice smooth path for the air over the car, and a gigantic escape route for any air trapped under the car. And the vertical flat sides of the body act as horizontal stabilizers to help it track straight. When I raced pan cars on an oval, we did the same thing, only with stock car bodies. We'd cut out the rear bumper completely, sometimes all the way up to the trunk lid, then add a wing on the back for stability. You can try the same thing with a normal touring car body, if you're willing to cut one up. My point is that lower isn't necessarily going to be better. The shape, and the path the air takes, matters a lot more. You can try running just the chassis cover, but don't be surprised if it's actually slower than it was with the full body, properly trimmed.

My TT02 is box-stock with ball bearings, and it tracks dead straight. Steering is pretty sharp, actually, although it needs more lock. It does torque-steer a little, turns more easily one way than the other under power, but that's a shaft-drive thing, not a TT02 thing. But the slop doesn't seem to affect it much, really. My advice is to go drive it, and then see what you think. I do have a Fazer as well (the kit version), and it is a lot tighter steering and suspension, but the drivetrain is a lot noisier. And if you think Tamiya alloy pinions are a problem, Kyosho specs a plastic pinion for the Fazer. And the kit includes bearings and oil shocks, but doesn't come with a body or a motor, so value-wise, it's a wash.

I have no idea where you should start, but it looks like a good problem to have. Whatever order you do them in, keep us posted, and enjoy it!

It's an interesting chassis design for sure, but since I'm not interested in either RTR models or Toyota Tacomas, I'll pass. But it does make me wonder if this will fit some of the old Landmax bodies. If those are standard short-course tires, it's probably big enough. Offer it as a "pro" kit with aluminum shocks and some other goodies, and a rally car body (mmmm, Stratos) and that might get my attention.