Given A Tamiya By A Stranger.

[Alvarez 1]

Removed as some members are to quick to judge and have resorted to childish insults and messeges towards me.

Thank you to anyone that took the time to actually reply to my topic with helpful infomation.

POSTS RESTORED

"Quite randomly at work today a bloke comes through the door carrying a Tamiya Toyota Hilux box. He drops it on the counter and asks if any of us (staff) were interested in buying it from him. I took a quick look over the car and said I probably wouldnt give him much more than a tenner.

The bloke says is that alls its worth then and then says that if thats all he can get for it he'll just give it away so I happily agree and take it off his hands for no money at all. Took a look over it after he left and it seems to be in very good shape with all its original parts intact however covered in almost 20 years of grease and dirt.

The shell has seen better days by the looks of things there are some very deep scratches all over it and looks to be painted with enamel paints in some areas.

Also came with a handful of rear tyres, the ones fitted are Scumachers, there were some oversized padlatraks but they were almost bold and were perished so I tossed those into the bin. there are also some Tamiya branded tyres which look pretty much new. Had an overlander 1300mah nicad in the box which I also tossed into the bin.

Box is rather tatty and crushed in many areas but thankfully it still comes with the original manual which is in readble condition.

Anyway I dont know anything about this model so im hoping to get some info on how well it performs and if its worth restoring to runner condition.

Also what body shells fit this apart from the Hilux and the Nissan king cab?

So did I get a good deal and is it worth much if I strip and cleaned her up?

[Gruntfuggly 562]

I'd say you got great deal if you didn't pay anything for it!

Those tyres with the crosses and pins are also used on the Blitzer Beetle and they go bald very quickly. Yous look hardly used and they're quite sought after now, so I'd wouldn't use them if I were you.

The Schumachers are great runners - the last really well, so you probably best keeping those on it.

The chassis looks in great condition too...

[Alvarez 1]

.

Cheers.

I was curious about those Tamiya tyres they did look very familiar to me. I'll certainly take note about not using them and instead just clean them all up.

I will probably look at buying some different wheels and tyres to use for running, any ideas on what shells will fit this thing?

Over the next couple of days im going to completely strip and clean every part and install a Tamiya ESC, the period Acoms radio gear looks like its working fine but I dont trust those old MSC so that will come out and go in the spares box.

Also great to see a fellow Brighton resident :]

[WW-nut 0]

Quite randomly at work today a bloke comes through the door carrying a Tamiya Toyota Hilux box.

Where do you work I'm guessing some kind of modelshop, if not that is quite random?

[Sayer 742]

I'd say that's quite good haggling bordering on "ripped him off". Glad you managed to get such a good deal on such an iconic (to me at least) truck, but "a tenner?!" really? certain parts of that truck regularly sell for more than that!

[schonbacher 4]

you robbing git

[Alvarez 1]

I do work in a model shop :]

I said a tenner as to be honest the guy looked half drunk and could barely get a full sentance out. Also I only glanced over the car and from a quick look it looked very poor being covered in filth and me also not knowing anything about this chassis.

But after getting it home and giving it a thorough going over its in fantastic condition everything is almost new, the diff feels fine there are no cracks in any of the plastic.

I did indeed get lucky, And im well chuffed he gave it to me for free as if he did want a tenner for it I wouldnt be able to pay him as I didnt have a tenner on me lol

[Sayer 742]

I do work in a model shop :]

I said a tenner as to be honest the guy looked half drunk and could barely get a full sentance out. Also I only glanced over the car and from a quick look it looked very poor being covered in filth and me also not knowing anything about this chassis.

But after getting it home and giving it a thorough going over its in fantastic condition everything is almost new, the diff feels fine there are no cracks in any of the plastic.

I did indeed get lucky, And im well chuffed he gave it to me for free as if he did want a tenner for it I wouldnt be able to pay him as I didnt have a tenner on me lol

I'd say make it a runner. I've got a King Cab and it's great fun and up to this point, (despite the seemingly high COG) impossible to put on its lid (mind you, I'm running a Sport tuned)

[Tamiya1/10 382]

I smell stolen property and as he is drunk he can ask it back as he was not in a proper state of mind to give it away, provided he remembers where he gave the truck away.

A good haul!!!

[kalsh 44]

Remind us all not to use your shop.....clearly you have taken advantage of someone whocame into your shop for professional advice.Yes - you were able to do what you did being simple economics of supply and demand. I just wouldn't and I dont think many others here or in your industry would. Doesn't project a good image for the shop you work in either. Nice looking truck however.

[skinner2 0]

Remind us all not to use your shop.....clearly you have taken advantage of someone whocame into your shop for professional advice.Yes - you were able to do what you did being simple economics of supply and demand. I just wouldn't and I dont think many others here or in your industry would. Doesn't project a good image for the shop you work in either. Nice looking truck however.

1+ I agree . Stay away from that shop .

[Olly_Lunchbox 28]

I do work in a model shop :]

I said a tenner as to be honest the guy looked half drunk and could barely get a full sentance out. Also I only glanced over the car and from a quick look it looked very poor being covered in filth and me also not knowing anything about this chassis.

Back pedalling indeed. Either way you cut it Alvarez you ripped that guy off good and proper - you might as well have stolen it from him and you know it.

You've been using this forum long enough to know an older Tamiya with box is worth more than a tenner. What are you looking for here - absolution for being a bad word?

Is that the Modelzone code of practice or did you just decide to take him for a ride all by yourself?

It's a shame because for some reason Modelzone doesn't seem to enjoy great patronage from TC members and stuff like this will not help.

In fact the area manager for Modelzone in the south of England is a user of this forum and has, in the past, started his own thread to try to generate interest and discussion in Modelzone. It's stuff like this that I think keep people away from Modelzone. Some say it's the prices but to be honest I can live with high prices within reason but when the staff of said shop come on internet forums revealing themselves to be complete jerks then what can you say? Except - Don't go in Modelzone (particularly south coast ones) unless you want to be treated like a fool.

I did indeed get lucky,

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that and then if you ever do develop a conscience it won't intrude on your behaviour.

[Alvarez 1]

QUOTE(Olly_Lunchbox @ May 1 2010, 04:56 PM) *

Back pedalling indeed. Either way you cut it Alvarez you ripped that guy off good and proper - you might as well have stolen it from him and you know it.

You've been using this forum long enough to know an older Tamiya with box is worth more than a tenner. What are you looking for here - absolution for being a bad word?

Is that the Modelzone code of practice or did you just decide to take him for a ride all by yourself?

It's a shame because for some reason Modelzone doesn't seem to enjoy great patronage from TC members and stuff like this will not help.

In fact the area manager for Modelzone in the south of England is a user of this forum and has, in the past, started his own thread to try to generate interest and discussion in Modelzone. It's stuff like this that I think keep people away from Modelzone. Some say it's the prices but to be honest I can live with high prices within reason but when the staff of said shop come on internet forums revealing themselves to be complete jerks then what can you say? Except - Don't go in Modelzone (particularly south coast ones) unless you want to be treated like a fool.

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that and then if you ever do develop a conscience it won't intrude on your behaviour.

Oh back off man dont start harping on about guff like that if you wasnt there at the time.

I was also with other members of staff who also viewed the item, I was not however the one that consulted him with it I was just offered it as a free item when he knew that trying to sell it was to much of a hassle.

I honestly had no knowledge on this car and neither did the guy that brought it in. He was hoping to off load it for anything he could get, he wasnt interested in selling it on Ebay as he didnt even own a computer, he was hoping to flog it to the local cash converter but they wouldnt accept it. He then said he'll just go down the local pub and swap it for a free pint with any of the chaps in there.

At that point he turned to us (staff) and asked if we would take it of his hands for free. I said I would take it with the intentions of restoring it.

So I would appreciate it if you would retract your statement as I have on many occations turned away many people like him in favor of them getting good money for their Bruiser or Scorcher on the internet.

This particular chap just wanted it gone and he didnt care how or to who and if nobody would have taken he was going to just sling it into the nearest skip.

Thank you.

[Toykid 596]

Alvarez,

Ignore all these guys. The car is a pile of junk and not worth anything, you didn't rip anyone off, they are just trying to wind you up.

I will happily take it off your hands for a tenner. Or you could just give it to me...

Jokes aside you clearly have upset some people here, whether you intended to or not. Even as just a member of staff in a model shop how you treat even you worst, druken, potentially criminal customers directly reflects the reputation of your shop and hence their ability to keep you employed in the long run. I never knew modelzone had such a bad reputation until I read this thread.

It is great that you are on here asking to find out more. Therefore I am going to take the position that you had the best intentions. Which from your last post seems like you did.

So since you clearly are in need of help, especially so you can do a better job of helping your customers, The best way to find out the "current market value" of a Tamiya is go on Ebay. Do a search for the model and check for listings that have ended (you have to have an ebay account to do this). Look for the models that have actually sold, not just ended with a Buy it now price that no one would pay. The highest ending price gives you the top end for the current market value. It will also show the lowest that model might have sold for thus giving you a pretty good range. This isn't a perfect tool but is a good way to get real market data.

I am sorry to see this thread go so bad for you, I am sure you only wanted to tell a story about how lucky you got.

James.

[Alvarez 1]

Thanks.

I really didnt want it to turn out like that either. My intentions for taking off him were honest as I wanted it to go to someone that would look after it and restore it. I feared that it might end up in someones hands that would just destroy the thing by throwing it around a skatepark.

I really want to tidy her up and get her into a fit running condition.

The gentleman that gave it to me said he was given it by the local locksmith who found it in his shed. Given that it was given to a chap that had no clue what it was or what it did I feel I saved it from a horrible death.

I really did want to give him some money for it, even when he was saying he would just take it down the pub to get rid of it in my head I was saying dont let this guy walk out with it! I had absolutely no money on me and if I did I would happily have given a tenner or two for the sake of it.

But thankfully the chap reconsidered and said it would probably be best of in our hands with people that knew how to deal with it.

He left very happy with himself and I said thank you.

I ment no ill harm by taking off his hands and I dont intend to sell it to make any gain from it. I want to honestly restore it and have it in a great condition so I can use it along with the rest of my cars.

I did as you said and did some backlog search on ebay and am glad to see some parts are still avaliable for it, Id really like a new shell as I dont think this ones in a restorable condition and is badly cracked along most of the edges and roof.

It appears to be quite a good chassis as far as I can see by looking at the showrooms on TC.

I apologise for offending any people on here I guess I should have worded it correctly in my original post. I didnt try to con the guy and I was about to let him walk away with it until he just handed it to me.

I also apologise for Modelzones lack of interest in RC of coming years, unfortunately MZ as a company dosnt see RC as a profitable market as much as it used to, We are constantly competing with the internet and on a daily basis I turn away customers who ask for basic things like glow plugs or car parts because we just cant stock it anymore.

I have sent requests to our buyer to stock a better range of Tamiya cars the other week (included cars like DB01, DT02, DF03, CC01) but I feel it was neglected.

Sorry is all I can say, However if you want a static model plastic kit or a micro helicopter we have you covered.

[berman 5315]

I took a quick look over the car and said I probably wouldnt give him much more than a tenner.

The bloke says is that alls its worth then and then says that if thats all he can get for it he'll just give it away so I happily agree and take it off his hands for no money at all.

Also what body shells fit this apart from the Hilux and the Nissan king cab?

So did I get a good deal and is it worth much if I strip and cleaned her up?

I ment no ill harm by taking off his hands and I dont intend to sell it to make any gain from it.

I'm glad others like Olly and Kelvin posted what I was thinking yesterday when I read this thread.

At least edit your original posts before you post a load of codswallop further down the page.

You also contradict yourself the whole way through your posts.

e.g, "I didn't have any money on me", "It's not worth much more than a tenner", "I didn't want him to leave the shop" etc etc.

You could have well said, " A, Come back at lunchtime, B, I will go to the money machine, C, Borrow a few quid off my workmates.

You knew you wanted it, you knew it was worth more than a tenner, it makes no difference if the guy was drunk/blind/three legged.

Saying it's only worth a tenner is talking the truck down, making the guy believe it's not worth anything, Hence his reply (in your words)

"is that alls its worth then ... if thats all I can get for it I'll just give it away" Anybody would prefer ten quid over no quid.

Now your in here talking the truck up? Get outta here.

[lee172 0]

The car is a pile of junk and not worth anything.

The best way to find out the "current market value" of a Tamiya is go on Ebay.

eh?!

[NJhopper 0]

Wow... I guess you kind of ripped the guy off, anyway you slice it. The reallllllllllyyyyy low price you offered to em' was just that. Too low. Especially if you work at the place he took it in to. It seems you have at least a little knowledge of Tamiya brand Rc's otherwise you wouldn't be on this forum. Right? Now, if you were at a "boot sale" flea market or whatever and you waltzed up to a guy sellin that truck and he said make an offer and you offered him a tenner, or what ever you offered this guy, that would be fair and squre. It's just that you work at a shop, and you took advantage of him, that is what is *******in people off.

[tamiyamexifan 3]

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.

[WillyChang 1814]

meh all you do-gooders... just curious, how many used 1:1 cars have y'all Bought & Sold?

Ever tried Selling a used car back to a highstreet car yard??

Or on a different tack... perhaps giving $10 to a drunkard might be a bad thing,

what chances he'll just blow it at the pub/bar or bottleshop 5mins later

then stumble in drunken stupor in front of a moving bus?

Take a break and go worry about bigger things... like those Wall St & London Bank bailouts that your grandchildren will still be paying off for us.

[loaded 4]

Fortunately I had the presence of mind to predict this, so happily I managed to copy and paste all the text, so the curious amongst us can understand what everyone was one about

I was in the middle of replying to remind Willy that he is an ex banker....

The following are not my words

"Quite randomly at work today a bloke comes through the door carrying a Tamiya Toyota Hilux box. He drops it on the counter and asks if any of us (staff) were interested in buying it from him. I took a quick look over the car and said I probably wouldnt give him much more than a tenner.

The bloke says is that alls its worth then and then says that if thats all he can get for it he'll just give it away so I happily agree and take it off his hands for no money at all. Took a look over it after he left and it seems to be in very good shape with all its original parts intact however covered in almost 20 years of grease and dirt.

The shell has seen better days by the looks of things there are some very deep scratches all over it and looks to be painted with enamel paints in some areas.

Also came with a handful of rear tyres, the ones fitted are Scumachers, there were some oversized padlatraks but they were almost bold and were perished so I tossed those into the bin. there are also some Tamiya branded tyres which look pretty much new. Had an overlander 1300mah nicad in the box which I also tossed into the bin.

Box is rather tatty and crushed in many areas but thankfully it still comes with the original manual which is in readble condition.

Anyway I dont know anything about this model so im hoping to get some info on how well it performs and if its worth restoring to runner condition.

Also what body shells fit this apart from the Hilux and the Nissan king cab?

So did I get a good deal and is it worth much if I strip and cleaned her up?

"

End of original first post by Alvarez.

The following texts are chronological replies.

Cheers.

I was curious about those Tamiya tyres they did look very familiar to me. I'll certainly take note about not using them and instead just clean them all up.

I will probably look at buying some different wheels and tyres to use for running, any ideas on what shells will fit this thing?

Over the next couple of days im going to completely strip and clean every part and install a Tamiya ESC, the period Acoms radio gear looks like its working fine but I dont trust those old MSC so that will come out and go in the spares box.

Also great to see a fellow Brighton resident :]

---

I do work in a model shop :]

I said a tenner as to be honest the guy looked half drunk and could barely get a full sentance out. Also I only glanced over the car and from a quick look it looked very poor being covered in filth and me also not knowing anything about this chassis.

But after getting it home and giving it a thorough going over its in fantastic condition everything is almost new, the diff feels fine there are no cracks in any of the plastic.

I did indeed get lucky, And im well chuffed he gave it to me for free as if he did want a tenner for it I wouldnt be able to pay him as I didnt have a tenner on me lol

---

QUOTE(Olly_Lunchbox @ May 1 2010, 04:56 PM) *

Back pedalling indeed. Either way you cut it Alvarez you ripped that guy off good and proper - you might as well have stolen it from him and you know it.

You've been using this forum long enough to know an older Tamiya with box is worth more than a tenner. What are you looking for here - absolution for being a bad word?

Is that the Modelzone code of practice or did you just decide to take him for a ride all by yourself?

It's a shame because for some reason Modelzone doesn't seem to enjoy great patronage from TC members and stuff like this will not help.

In fact the area manager for Modelzone in the south of England is a user of this forum and has, in the past, started his own thread to try to generate interest and discussion in Modelzone. It's stuff like this that I think keep people away from Modelzone. Some say it's the prices but to be honest I can live with high prices within reason but when the staff of said shop come on internet forums revealing themselves to be complete jerks then what can you say? Except - Don't go in Modelzone (particularly south coast ones) unless you want to be treated like a fool.

Yeah, you keep telling yourself that and then if you ever do develop a conscience it won't intrude on your behaviour.

Oh back off man dont start harping on about guff like that if you wasnt there at the time.

I was also with other members of staff who also viewed the item, I was not however the one that consulted him with it I was just offered it as a free item when he knew that trying to sell it was to much of a hassle.

I honestly had no knowledge on this car and neither did the guy that brought it in. He was hoping to off load it for anything he could get, he wasnt interested in selling it on Ebay as he didnt even own a computer, he was hoping to flog it to the local cash converter but they wouldnt accept it. He then said he'll just go down the local pub and swap it for a free pint with any of the chaps in there.

At that point he turned to us (staff) and asked if we would take it of his hands for free. I said I would take it with the intentions of restoring it.

So I would appreciate it if you would retract your statement as I have on many occations turned away many people like him in favor of them getting good money for their Bruiser or Scorcher on the internet.

This particular chap just wanted it gone and he didnt care how or to who and if nobody would have taken he was going to just sling it into the nearest skip.

Thank you.

---

Thanks.

I really didnt want it to turn out like that either. My intentions for taking off him were honest as I wanted it to go to someone that would look after it and restore it. I feared that it might end up in someones hands that would just destroy the thing by throwing it around a skatepark.

I really want to tidy her up and get her into a fit running condition.

The gentleman that gave it to me said he was given it by the local locksmith who found it in his shed. Given that it was given to a chap that had no clue what it was or what it did I feel I saved it from a horrible death.

I really did want to give him some money for it, even when he was saying he would just take it down the pub to get rid of it in my head I was saying dont let this guy walk out with it! I had absolutely no money on me and if I did I would happily have given a tenner or two for the sake of it.

But thankfully the chap reconsidered and said it would probably be best of in our hands with people that knew how to deal with it.

He left very happy with himself and I said thank you.

I ment no ill harm by taking off his hands and I dont intend to sell it to make any gain from it. I want to honestly restore it and have it in a great condition so I can use it along with the rest of my cars.

I did as you said and did some backlog search on ebay and am glad to see some parts are still avaliable for it, Id really like a new shell as I dont think this ones in a restorable condition and is badly cracked along most of the edges and roof.

It appears to be quite a good chassis as far as I can see by looking at the showrooms on TC.

I apologise for offending any people on here I guess I should have worded it correctly in my original post. I didnt try to con the guy and I was about to let him walk away with it until he just handed it to me.

I also apologise for Modelzones lack of interest in RC of coming years, unfortunately MZ as a company dosnt see RC as a profitable market as much as it used to, We are constantly competing with the internet and on a daily basis I turn away customers who ask for basic things like glow plugs or car parts because we just cant stock it anymore.

I have sent requests to our buyer to stock a better range of Tamiya cars the other week (included cars like DB01, DT02, DF03, CC01) but I feel it was neglected.

Sorry is all I can say, However if you want a static model plastic kit or a micro helicopter we have you covered.

---

End of replies

I am not sure he works for a model shop though, as anyone who works for a shop that deals with batteries knows they need to be disposed of properly, not tossed in the bin.

Paul.

[WillyChang 1814]

maybe he meant the bin... full of collected heavymetal batteries to be sent for recycling proper disposal etc, not the general trash can

or in Japan where most municipalities make you sort your garbage into 23+ different receptables

all all to be packed separately into clear plastic bags & prominantly displayed at the kerb on collection day.

Get it wrong and there'll be severe social punishments that takes only the Japanese to invent...

Or... sorry folks, but everyone i know currently working in an LHS ain't totally knowledgeable on most things RC anyhow.

[loaded 4]

Amen to that, Willy

It is like expecting the people in a travel shop to know how to fly the plane nowadays!

Paul.

[Sayer 742]

meh all you do-gooders... just curious, how many used 1:1 cars have y'all Bought & Sold?

Ever tried Selling a used car back to a highstreet car yard??

Or on a different tack... perhaps giving $10 to a drunkard might be a bad thing,

what chances he'll just blow it at the pub/bar or bottleshop 5mins later

then stumble in drunken stupor in front of a moving bus?

Take a break and go worry about bigger things... like those Wall St & London Bank bailouts that your grandchildren will still be paying off for us.

I don't know how much of a drunkard the guy really was since he went from "being unable to get a sentence out" to giving a long and detailed history of how he came by the truck in the span of two posts.

Also, and this is part that's kind of annoying, not one member of the staff in a hobby shop had any idea what a King Cab was?!

[Sayer 742]

Amen to that, Willy

It is like expecting the people in a travel shop to know how to fly the plane nowadays!

Paul.

Nah, it's more like expecting them to know the names of famous hotels in common tourist destinations, you know, because it pertains directly to their jobs.