Joel Johnson Ultima Release Kit

[rwordenjr 1889]

Kyosho will be releasing a Joel Johnson Ultima kit for their 60th anniversary.

 

https://www.modelsport.co.uk/product/kyosho-ultima-87-jj-replica-2wd-110-kit-60th-anniversary-limited-1352493

[Willy iine 17797]

Dang, I was hoping for a different Optima..  but I guess to traditional Kyosho fans, that makes sense.

I've only become a Kyosho fan in the last 8 months (?) so don't know their history at all.     

 

Kyosho America released PN 30642 (due September) a few moments ago on Instagram..

[toyolien 3971]

That's a lot of cash for a 2wd buggy, but it does look nice.

[Saito2 6002]

Wow, did actually predict (read: guess at) this back on July 15th? Spooky. Almost tragically above what I can afford (sorry honey, no groceries for this month, but on the plus side, look at this limited edition Ultima we now own!), but absolutely awesome nevertheless.  

May I'll copy the 2nd and 3rd place Ultimas from Katsunori Kondo and Kris Moore.

[rwordenjr 1889]

I think it will be much cheaper in USD. Probably $350 usd 

[RichieRich 551]

That would seem more reasonable, especially if we could apply a coupon code at Tower.

[Beetlemankurt 588]

That's ultra cool. Great that they decided to do a nod to a very special car. I'm sure they will be snapped up pretty readily by eager punters...

Me though...I'll happily wait until the Turbo Ultima or equivalent is released at some point.

Just awesome they are continuing to bring back the classics.

Keep it up Kyosho!

[_Ben_ 189]

It's 399.99Euro at Tamico. I might get it delivered to family in Germany, to save a few quid.

[Willy iine 17797]

https://rc.kyosho.com/en/87-jj-ultima

JPY 72,600 so about US$500.. ?

 

Update:  I saw that TowerHobbies is listing it for $389.   

[Sogogi 2379]

I wonder how ‘limited’ it would be.

[Willy iine 17797]

I placed my order tonight.  I do not plan to do any mods on it.. will build straight out of the box in box art.  

[Twinfan 756]

Some nice pics etc here on Kyosho's site:

https://rc.kyosho.com/en/87-jj-ultima

[Willy iine 17797]

So I got all the items I need to build the car once it comes in.   I decided to run brushed setup on mine using my old 19 turn Chamelon (like new condition) mated to a 1060, 1252MG and SR215 receiver.  I also ordered some white paint so I should be all set.

I checked out modern Trinity BL motors and the terminal take off location and how it bends might make contact with the motor cover in the back.  I ran into this problem while trying to use a ThunderPower BL with similar terminal take off on my regular rere Optima.  Ended up running a Reedy BL motor on that car.

On my regular rere Ultima I run a LeMans 240S with the terminals pointing towards the rear axle with sufficient clearance (insufficient clearance with rear motor cover if I position the motor with the terminals pointing upwards)..   since the car comes with Trinity decals, I want to run a Trinity motor.  

[Champ85 581]

2 hours ago, Willy iine said:

I checked out modern Trinity BL motors and the terminal take off location and how it bends might make contact with the motor cover in the back.

Interesting. Per this picture from Kyosho, it looks like they took a Kyosho Gold 240S BL 13.5T (based on endbell shape and color) and put the Trinity motor sticker on it (comes on decal sheet) and the terminals don't touch the motor guard.  Maybe I'm not understanding what you mean by "motor cover" in this context.

[Willy iine 17797]

Kyosho motors will fit, the Trinity BL's.. check out how the terminals take off from the side of the housing.

[kyoshofan223 11]

Y'all think this means there won't be a re-release of the production version that eventually followed, a proper Ultima Pro?

[Willy iine 17797]

I would not know, but I will get it if Kogawa-san does one.  At this point it's like he is doing us (maybe just me) a favor for keeping nostalgic cars alive.  

[Beetlemankurt 588]

@kyoshofan223I still think they will continue with the Ultima line. They almost have a Torbo Ultima now if they make some different rims, new Body , and leave the shocks silver instead of gold anodizing. 

I'll be curious to see which version of the Pro could follow given the different chassis and suspension arm widths etc.

History so far would dictate they will keep following the lineage, with the slight (and awesome) detour we are seeing with the 60th anniversary JJ Ultima and the new McInt Green Mid.

Just my 2c. Cheers.

[kyoshofan223 11]

I tried to quote the original post, but it got all screwy .. this is in response to that amazing re-re Ultima above by @Willy iine - is there any chance you have a list of upgrades someplace handy? I would love to see that. I picked up that new green special edition Optima Mid (well, it's on pre-order anyway), but stopped short of the new Ultima Pro-ish release, as I already have an original Pro NIB I am trying to get around to building one of these days. I would love to see them re-release that one so I could finally run the thing knowing replacement parts are plentiful & not so overpriced as to be afraid of a lost dogbone.

[rant]

The insanity of the market for vintage parts (on eBay anyway), has gone completely mad, following this trend of making sure inflated prices stick around because behavior hasn't changed - the rich people who got richer these past few years keep paying them no matter how high they get (hotels, luxury items, and nostalgic toys), while prices of necessities for the rest of the peasants like me slowly coming back to earth - gas, eggs, etc. I walked into a horror-themed collectible shop recently & ran into a "Good Guy" doll from Child's Play that I would have had to put on layaway! Case in point, do a search on eBay for anything related to the Tamiya Falcon, my 1st car.. examples in pretty poor condition are priced > $600; a decal sheet for $150. It is completely bonkers. Kyosho re-releasing these kits in very limited quantities are causing scavengers to buy them up & flip at double the price (Fantom 60th anniversary gold edition)...smart for them I guess; you don't really see the same phenomena with Schumacher's Cat line..interested to see what happens with the re-re RC10.

[/rant]

[Willy iine 17797]

@kyoshofan223  Thanks!  and yeah, I'm also waiting on that peppermint green WC Worlds spec MID.  👍

I honestly don't remember what hopups I bought for the rere Ultima.. but it's got basically all the essential hopups like turnbuckles, universal, etc.  It's running a LeMans 240S (19.5) and my usual 1252MG servo and XR10 Justock ESC.  Cosmetics were the factory black injection molded wing, Tamiya gunmetal paint, aluminum wheels I got off eBay.    Decals are actually the one that comes in the kit, I just trimmed the black outline carefully with hope.. 

I have a top CF deck for the car in my parts bin thinking I would build a second one, but that plan got pushed out as I decided to get the JJ WC Ultima instead.  I still plan to build another one down the road.. maybe for 2025, not sure yet.   I want to see if I can get black springs for the rear dampers just for the cosmetics.. not sure which color code is equivalent to the gold spring rate.   (heck, I should just ask Kogawa-san himself.. lol)

I too agree about the prices going bonkers.. I noticed this a few years back when I had to pay like 3x the price on the 2018 SuperAstutes.. but heck, RC cars are only worth what they are to me, so bought 2 units anyway    along with CF decks, hicaps, etc.  Tamiya might do  another release, but I don't care.  The time I got to spend enjoying the cars is pricesless.. plus I could be dead tomorrow, who knows.

 

[kyoshofan223 11]

That is a really sweet looking collection! I see a Z on that shelf too yah? The Scorpions look great too...another re-re on my wish list.. Are those the same "red" shocks that were on the original Ultima? I'm sure they fixed the leaking issue ...They look different. I am going to have to spend some time checking out your "garage" ... I thought I was an R/C hoarder! Your workshop looks like how mine might if I had a bigger budget & didn't get laid off Though I still have more projects than I will ever finish.

Speaking of the Mid special edition ... y'all ever hear of this Kosword Edition? Euro-only .. I remember how much everyone drooled over the Custom Special ... any of these kinds of limited versions (I have a few myself of Kyosho 1/12) always generated excitement among fanbois like us, but I wonder if re-re based versions will have the same panache ... This one does seem to have some interesting upgrades; and at $400, it doesn't even seem crazy - right around the price of the original

 

[Willy iine 17797]

@kyoshofan223 Thanks, that's right that is Kogawa-san's Fazer Mk2 design 240Z.   I installed a 1252MG servo and a Futaba receiver so that I can drive it off my 7PX-R.   👍.   I also have the Hakosuka GT-R Fazer Mk2.

I believe Kogawa-san and Kyosho re-engineered the dampers.  They don't leak as bad as the short ones that come on the Scorpion and Beetle.  Even so, they don't leak on my display shelf or while driving them casually, but when I'm pushing the cars pretty hard outdoors, they do need to be maintained from time to time.  They don't make a mess or anything like that, the oil gets contaminated with dust and sand and the oil level drops as kind of expected.(?). They aren't difficult to maintain at all.

I have an instagram page if you're interested.  #pretendRCshop.  I usually do daily updates on RC and 1:1 car stuff.   Please check it out.

[kyoshofan223 11]

Wow, very cool. I just found your instagram; didn't include the underscores at first but I found it @pretend_rc_shop! Very, very cool collection.

I love that Wild One Blockhead Motors edition; always wanted a Wild One. I've been in the middle of that build now for many months; keep procrastinating on it; it's not coming out so good. I have been very disappointed in the quality of the parts...the "chrome" coming off when separating the parts trees. I haven't built a Tamiya kit in many years, but compared to the instructions & quality of the parts in the Kyosho kits, it's just not in the same league. I dunno; if I don't finish it by the new year I'll probably just sell it as-is.

Those 240Zs are fantastic.. wish I could afford a full-sized one. Maybe if I stop blowing all of my cash on R/Cs!

 

[Willy iine 17797]

@kyoshofan223 thanks and thanks for letting me know about the underscores.  I updated my text shortcut in my iPhone to include them.. #pretend_RC_shop 

Yeah, I agree that the BHM WildOne is a bit of a toy grade finish compared to the Kyosho’s, but it looks good on the shelf so decided to get one.  This is my other WildOne I made for Willy.. Fast Time Attack Vehcle.  

I love the 240’s as well.   I can only dream having a real one mainly because I would not know how to fabricate parts for the car if damaged or worn out.