the price of rc kits

[Wandy 1527]

I obviously missed the 'cheap' years

I've just had a quick look at my PayPal history and these are the prices I paid for kits, delivered to my door, back in the day versus what they cost now..

February 2006 : Frog kit with ESC from Stella. Then - £84.87....Now - £134.60. (58.6% increase in 6 years)

November 2006 : Lunchbox kit with ESC from Stella. Then - £67.13....Now - £111.66. (66.3% increase 5 years, 3 months)

January 2007 : Full Operation Knight Hauler from jr-rc. Then - £330.08....Now - £660. (100% increase in 5 years, 1 month)

October 2008 : TT-01E Countach with ESC from Stella. Then - £108.84....Now - £125.36. (15% increase in 3 years, 4 months)

I sold the Knight Hauler one year after I bought it and got my money back. It's my one big regret and the worst decision I have made since I got back into the hobby in 2004.

[adam1973 1]

Just looked at the price for an F350 HL, Modelsport has it in £449 (£555 rrp), I paid in '07 (I think) £330 from lhs... another hs not so local had it in for £300...

Noticed the HPI Baja 5SC for £899 (£1139 rrp)!!!!!!!!!! for lets face it, a toy.

[Flerbizky 225]

All Things considered - I don't think it's THAT bad - still quite expensive though.

Paid £ 470 for my Tundra, incl. shipping and getting owned by Danish customs.

[bromvw 744]

I think it has more to do with exchange rate and 20% VAT more than anything. When I bought my highlift pre 2008 it cost £220 to my door from HK......., similar cost for a King Hauler. Sold both of them in a purge and can't afford another now

Shipping from HK has gone accordingly as well, with the increase in cost of aviation fuel, airline running costs, etc.

Also, for the UK do not underestimate VAT and duty. On the really expensive kits like tanks, the extra cost really does add up as the VAT and duty is charged on the shipping as well as the cost of the kit. For a £500 tank you might expect a £200 bill from parcel farce.

Plus your local LHS has to pay exorbitant business rates. Although with the number of empty shops in the high street, you'd think the government would realise that the high street is being crucified by the internet and lessen the business rates. Still, no-one ever accused a politician of being bright, or having the countries best interests at heart....

thats the problem in a nut shell - customs and inport costs .Add in the ever increasing cost of running a actual store these days in the uk and its no wonder prices are getting out of hand . Its just plain crazy when you can buy from HK and pay less then from a UK retail store .

[Hibernaculum 933]

All the more reason to forget the new releases and start restoring more vintage, eh chaps?

(Cue: howls of "no, vintage is even moar expensive!!")

[markbt73 5316]

All the more reason to forget the new releases and start restoring more vintage, eh chaps?

(Cue: howls of "no, vintage is even moar expensive!!")

That's exactly the conclusion I have come to over the past couple of years. It seems the trouble with that strategy is not cost, but storage space...

[Flerbizky 225]

But cost of used is also getting out of hand. As said, I spend just shy of £470 on my Tundra. NIB incl. shipping and customs etc. The only one for sale used here in DK is listed at around £520 - without box.

[Daves956 157]

I just got the latest Tower Hobbies flyer and any high lift you want with a max price of 499 dollars. Lunchbox is 119. Converted to British pounds that's 300 for the high lift and 74 for the lunch box. It's not too hard to see where the extra money is going.

[Shodog 1835]

Back to the original comment. Yes the High Lift and its variant are pricey but they are a complex scale vehicle. The MFU is a slick unit and I feel is worth the price you pay for it. I like the MFU so much, i adapted one to fit into a trailfinder 2 chassis.