Does Anyone else enjoy restoring vintage tamiya cars that have been abused and forgotten?

[2Dover3D 589]

So this was basically free with latest car lot I received and it was the worst of them. Both rear and right front axles are broken, missing gears and diff, stickers are peeling, tires have flat spots, missing front shocks,cracks, rusted, missing screws, bolts and more but I must say  im excited to start working on it. I always wanted one of these as I am a Ivan Stewart fan but it wasn't top priority. My challenge to myself is to completely restore this one without buying anything for it just using everything I have in my inventory. I enjoy restoring builds that had been beaten up and forgotten. I appreciate it more when its finally done. Lets see how this turns out. 👍

[Civil142 2]

yes I do. Im just doing a Hornet and a Midnight Pumpkin - been years since I messed with Tamiya cars (well RC in general) i think I sold them all when I was 17, Im 51 now! I bought a Plasma Edge 2 and have built that from the kit, but the Hornet i bought in a bad way and the Midnight Pumkin, I bought a chassis unit and have been buiilding it up from there. Have to say I have a soft spot for the MP its such a looker! 

[Saito2 7654]

At the moment, this is how I've been enjoying the hobby. Some new offerings tempt me, but I'm I've been trying to curb my consumerist urges. I like bring things back and putting them to good use again.

That said, two things stand in the way of that. Old Tamiya plastic can be a crapshoot, restorable or cracking to dust. Can blame Tamiya. I doubt they thought people would be fixing and using their products 30+ years down the road.

The other problem is that while there are plenty of abused old Tamiyas out in the world, it tough to find a "forgotten" one now. What I mean by that is just about everyone putting one up for sale online has some idea there's a market for these things and good deals are getting harder to find. Luckily coming across them somewhere seems to be the best bet now rather than actively shopping for them.

[Kowalski86 4274]

1 hour ago, Saito2 said:

Old Tamiya plastic can be a crapshoot, restorable or cracking to dust. Can blame Tamiya. I doubt they thought people would be fixing and using their products 30+ years down the road.

The other problem is that while there are plenty of abused old Tamiyas out in the world, it tough to find a "forgotten" one now. What I mean by that is just about everyone putting one up for sale online has some idea there's a market for these things and good deals are getting harder to find.

This is pretty much my exact situation too, I like fixing up old stuff, but old ABS is a major crapshoot and people think that their broken old estate find flips are worth as much as a NIB example.

Sometimes you'll get lucky and find a Frog or Monster Beetle for about half the price of a new one, but more often than not "lots" or bundles are the best way to get an old Tamiya.

[Charcoal burst 6]

Same here. The love of restoration. I currently is working on a madcap and a avante 2001. Wrecked!! 

[87lc2 2848]

I did a lot of this when I got back into the hobby 5-6 years ago.  I loved buying old, neglected Tamiya models for next to nothing and making them look like new again (or at least presentable).  There are two problems with this now 1) Hard to find this stuff cheap enough to make it worth it anymore (as others have mentioned) and 2) these can't be used for runners.   I am pretty much done with vintage stuff as I don't like to keep shelf queens around and I like to run my stuff.  I have had awful experiences running vintage Tamiyas and that was just with general use, not abuse.  If you're the type that likes to run them very gently or just "have them" then its a great activity, just no longer for me unfortunately.   I get tempted from time to time on Marketplace, but it would have to be really cheap for me to bother...Or a Big Wig, that's really the only Tamiya I've been looking for.

[ADRay1000 524]

yes, the first one being my lunchbox from 1988 in the late 90s. An interesting gap of time between the birth of eBay and when Tamiya began reissuing models. Another memorable project was a box full of dead grasshoppers & hornets that I was able to constitute a pretty good runner (that I sold on eBay). 

[Kowalski86 4274]

2 hours ago, 87lc2 said:

2) these can't be used for runners.   I am pretty much done with vintage stuff as I don't like to keep shelf queens around and I like to run my stuff.  I have had awful experiences running vintage Tamiyas and that was just with general use, not abuse.  If you're the type that likes to run them very gently or just "have them" then its a great activity, just no longer for me unfortunately.   I get tempted from time to time on Marketplace, but it would have to be really cheap for me to bother.

Yup, same for me, my Grasshopper/Hornet were decent runners (crap handling aside), my Monster Beetle disintegrated anytime that I drove it. Somehow my Frog has been decent (other than when I tried a set of re-re dogbones).

Months ago I was at an RC swap meet, someone there had a few vintage Blackfoots for about $100 a pop. I passed since even if one could be made into a runner all of my replacement parts would be just as old and brittle.

On the other hand I have this, it's old but I can drive it all day without the plastic cracking. Sometimes they pop up cheap, and theres enough used/aftermarket parts out there to keep one going without giving Traxxas a dollar.

[Saito2 7654]

31 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

On the other hand I have this, it's old but I can drive it all day without the plastic cracking. Sometimes they pop up cheap.

I wish I could find a body like those original Stampede ones for mine. Sabula Tech makes a similar one called the Bard, but its out of stock. I'm not a fan of the huge wheel arches of the current model nor the massive set-back most aftermarket bodies for the Stampede seem to have. I know a lot of it has to do with how far the front wheels come back on compression thanks to the generous kick-up angle in the frontend. The Traxxas Bigfoot (old) body is nice but also usually cost a mint and would be cringy to bash with at that price point.

I know I'm beating a dead dead horse here, but I positively HATE Traxxas (the business side) with all my heart. The sad thing is, the Stampede is a great truck for aimless beating on without guilt (although I'd feel guilty if another RC'er caught be wheelin' one). I've been casting about for a replacement (the better-looking Arrma Gorgon being the most attractive) but part of me is wondering "why reinvent the wheel?" Oh, how I wish Tamiya made their old (or re-re) vehicles out of sterner stuff but they don't and sometimes its about selecting the right tool for the job. Sorry for the thread derail.

[Kowalski86 4274]

2 minutes ago, Saito2 said:

I wish I could find a body like those original Stampede ones for mine.

I know I'm beating a dead dead horse here, but I positively HATE Traxxas (the business side) with all my heart.

I've entertained the thought of dressing up a Stampede like a Blackfoot or Monster Beetle. Beetle shells are fairly cheap last time I checked and pre cut/drilled.

And I hear yah on the business side, I'm not a fan either (in fact I find myself shopping modeling supplies at LHS more than RCs, dont like one brand hogging up space). Chiefly, I don't like this recent trend of clipless body mounts, very expensive bodies, and non standard wheelbases.

To bring this thread around, here's my Frog. I had to install longer bodyposts, but thanks to Tamiya using a similar wheelbase on their old models everything worked out. I dunno if I could throw an aftermarket body onto a Kyosho/Traxxas "scale" truck.

[yogi-bear 2447]

I think there is something rewarding about saving a RC from the rubbish bin, even if it becomes a shelf queen. Also given todays readily available technology, if you are inclined (and have the patience to learn), then not being able to get original parts is not necessarily an issue, and in some cases you can improve the original design to make them more robust and drivable. Personally I like the idea or remaking some parts myself.

and some pics of a before and afters, because every post needs pics.

This one was really just a strip down of the body and a repaint. I made the stickers for it and had to flatten the chassis plate.

 

This one I had to rebuild the back end of the body with styrene card. Maybe not good for bashing though.

 

 

And this one I remade the chassis plate in aluminium. I was aiming for for a scale look here.

[Grumpy pants 5503]

1 hour ago, yogi-bear said:

I think there is something rewarding about saving a RC from the rubbish bin, even if it becomes a shelf queen. Also given todays readily available technology, if you are inclined (and have the patience to learn), then not being able to get original parts is not necessarily an issue, and in some cases you can improve the original design to make them more robust and drivable. Personally I like the idea or remaking some parts myself.

and some pics of a before and afters, because every post needs pics.

This one was really just a strip down of the body and a repaint. I made the stickers for it and had to flatten the chassis plate.

 

This one I had to rebuild the back end of the body with styrene card. Maybe not good for bashing though.

 

 

And this one I remade the chassis plate in aluminium. I was aiming for for a scale look here.

Some amazing skills at work here 👏

[Wooders28 4913]

I love a , restomod!

Not just strictly Tamiya, but restroing ,whilst upgrading to make them able to use modern power plants.

[wtcc5 5758]

I am at the point where I don’t have real joy building new cars out of the box. Most fun are old run and tuned cars. Nothing beats the joy to discover a rare tuning part hidden under a casing.

[Mrowka 496]

I have made a sort of hobby of rebuilding wrecked r/c helicopters. Or rather "wrecked", as 90% of the time, there was nothing wrong with them, or nothing that a bit of adjustment wouldn't fix. 

Probably 5% of the time, they needed a $3.00 part, usually broken as a result of pilot error, 5% of the time, more major surgery is required. 

[JimBear 1024]

Well, I have to admit to having a soft spot for, and sometimes also bringing "stray dogs" in. I think it perhaps is the "maker" part in me. I like the tinkering and swapping parts and seeing something coming back to life, even if it's just bits of metal and plastic. Way too often I bid on crusty stuff, luckily there are kindred souls who outbid me.

[Kowalski86 4274]

On 10/2/2023 at 12:55 PM, Wooders28 said:

I love a , restomod!

Not just strictly Tamiya, but restroing ,whilst upgrading to make them able to use modern power plants.

That's basically what I did with my TRX Rustler, modern metal geared transmission with a few upgrades and a brushless system.

I wouldn't mind doing the same with other brands but parts are a roll of the dice. Or I'm dealing with old ABS.

[Wooders28 4913]

37 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

I wouldn't mind doing the same with other brands but parts are a roll of the dice. Or I'm dealing with old ABS.

The old kyosho fare quite well tbh!

An RB5 gearbox, shocks and drive shaft onto the back of an original Ultima (way before the rere, and giving me a slipper and a ball diff), re-did the steering to allow to move the servo further forward, allowing fitment of a super shorty down the centre.

 

A Kyosho Optima Mid Custom, with some custom carbon, machined and nailed in a Schumacher multi plate slipper, (otherwise stock running gear) running a 5.5t now.

(Not sure why the thumb nail is of someone else's car, with 'donk' 2.2" wheels, but.....🤷‍♂️)

 

Couple of mods on a DF03 , to make the drivetrain bulletproof.

 

[Kowalski86 4274]

2 minutes ago, Wooders28 said:

The old kyosho fare quite well tbh!

An RB5 gearbox, shocks and drive shaft onto the back of an original Ultima (way before the rere, and giving me a slipper and a ball diff), re-did the steering to allow to move the servo further forward, allowing fitment of a super shorty down the centre.

 

Are RB5 parts still in production?

One of these days I need to pick up a Dirtmaster, I've yet to try a proper 1/10 scale Kyosho out.

[Wooders28 4913]

7 minutes ago, Kowalski86 said:

Are RB5 parts still in production?

I don't think so, back then, model shops where selling the old stock off cheap, I think I got the rear end parts tree for £3!! 

Not had a Dirt Master in my mits, (or grabbed a copy of the manual), but looks very like a RB5? 

Cost wise, I'm looking more at the likes of the Schumacher KF2 and maybe the Laydown, for parts transplants, I've seen them going for around the £100 mark (mid motored DT03..🤔)

 

[Pablo68 1118]

Yeah I enjoy resto-ing old Tamiyas, and several other brands too.
I find it rewarding bring something old and neglected back around. I've done something like 13 out of the ~27 Tamiya cars I have, some are still in progress though.

I've done 4 out of 8 Kyosho buggies I own.

One Associated RC10. All three Marui's I have, Bear, Hunter, Samurai.
A Baja 5B converted to Flux that I gave to my youngest son. And two generic old HSP 4x4 buggies.

Yeah, now I think about it, it's a fair whack of my collection.

Also, +1 to many old and completely kacked Cars/buggies out there with owners or flippers trying to sell them for new or over prices.

[ringding350 9]

Repairing is what got me into them. Always wanted one as a kid but couldn't afford one. Got ill in my early 40's and couldn't do most the stuff I used to. So bought an old Madcap, I refurbished the suspension pivots, replaced the bust stuff etc. Then a mate gave me his old Hotshot so I could run two cars to muck around with with my kids. 

Have since bought two more Hotshots but they're a work in progress due to getting more ill and a house move. I'm hoping to get to them over the winter. 

My vague plan is to 3D print a new chassis for one with linkages to solve the bump steer. Nothing that no one else hasn't done before but I find "the journey" in repairing things almost as entertaining as using the thing when it's fixed!

It's good to see on this thread how many others are like minded.  

[Willy iine 18829]

I restored all but one M38 in my collection.  The one was a fresh build from a NIB I bought a few years ago.  I still have one NIB in my collection.  

Some of the M38's were badly damaged and worn to the point I could not use it as a car but for parts.  All bodies needed some kind of restoration work..  they were either cracked, deeply scratched, or parts broken off.  It was a fun experience as I always wanted a caravan of M38's as a kid.. I just love Willy.      For me, Tamiya's all about Willy and his brother Billy.. and their flagship cars.