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Kumamon Bajon - what are your thoughts?

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Tamiyablog says 'tentative' but it really does look like 58601 will be a WR-02G. A Kumamon Bajon.

I love the tractors so, for me, this is good news :D

What do we think then??

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What is a Kumamon Bajon.?

Can't find much on Kumamon except;

Thinking of a gift for children (or even ‘kids at heart’) to ease their way into RC cars and hobby racing models, the Tamiya Mini 4WD Kumamon Version will be a great start. The plastic model from Tamiya features the mini racer with the Kumamoto Prefecture mascot “Kumamon”. Kumamon’s image can be seen in the black plastic body, along with the detailed metallic stickers. The RC model uses the Super II chassis and comes with the cute Kumamon doll, part of the Kumamoto Surprise of the Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan. It has been the main tourist attraction in the district and was the most popular Japanese character in 2011.

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I did the same as Twinset and googled it... Just seems like a little black bear character for kids? Where's the tractor connection?!

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Delving further, it's some kind of mascot;

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kumamon

Kumamon (くまモン?) is a mascot created by the government of Kumamoto Prefecture, Japan. He was first created in 2010 for a campaign called Kumamoto Surprise (くまもとサプライズ Kumamoto Sapuraizu?) to draw tourists to the region after the Kyushu Shinkansen line opened.[1] Kumamon subsequently became nationally popular, and in late 2011, was voted top in a nationwide survey of mascots, collectively known as Yuru-kyara (ゆるキャラ?), garnering over 280,000 votes.[2][3] Following his success in the contest, Kumamoto earned ¥11.8 billion (US$120 million, GB£79 million, €93 million) in merchandising revenue for the first half of 2012, after having only earned ¥2.5 billion (US$26 million, GB£17 million, €20 million) throughout all of 2011.[4][5]

It is thought that Kumamon's popularity and brand presence stems from how he is solely the representative of Kumamoto Prefecture, unlike other institutions and regions that have multiple characters vying for popularity. The Bank of Japan estimates that in the two years that he has been promoting Kumamoto that he has generated ¥123.2 billion in revenue.[6][7]

Kumamon's name is created from the combination of kuma (くま), the first two syllables of Kumamoto and also Japanese for bear (); and mon (モン), a variation of mono (?, things) used in the local dialect.[8]

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All I gleaned from that was that the little guy has made more money than I ever will! £79 million in a year :o

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Can easily be converted to Mr Blobby to suit the UK market.

I love trying to figure out what Tamiya releases will look like. Same for when the Tumbling Bull was announced. Whatever it is, I'll love it because Tamiya can do nothing wrong in my eyes.

It must be a Cute Bear Tractor though surely. Possibly with him sat in a Farm King body or sat on a Tumbling Bull. Would be very cruel to put a cute bear on a Tumbling Bull though coz he won't last long! :D

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Can easily be converted to Mr Blobby to suit the UK market.

I love trying to figure out what Tamiya releases will look like. Same for when the Tumbling Bull was announced. Whatever it is, I'll love it because Tamiya can do nothing wrong in my eyes.

It must be a Cute Bear Tractor though surely. Possibly with him sat in a Farm King body or sat on a Tumbling Bull. Would be very cruel to put a cute bear on a Tumbling Bull though coz he won't last long! :D

You must me Tamiya No.1 fan or is under its spell...on a count to 3 you will snap out of it and find everything that are wrong with Tamiya.
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It must be a Cute Bear Tractor though surely. Possibly with him sat in a Farm King body or sat on a Tumbling Bull. Would be very cruel to put a cute bear on a Tumbling Bull though coz he won't last long! :D

I also believe it will be a variation of the Farm King (less likely the Tumbling Bull), just like the 95068 Mini 4WD Kumanon Version is a variation of the 94813 Astute (Jr.) Open Top.

(Edit: latest information indicates that it will be named "Tractor Kumanon Version" (Bajon possibly a translation error), which imho, further points to a variation of the Farm King)

644371_10152383642902407_266859360659075

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Can easily be converted to Mr Blobby to suit the UK market.

You what? :lol:

If there is a UK market for Mr Blobby themed RC stuff, they're quite underground/niche

You sure it's not just you fella? ;)

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You what? :lol:

If there is a UK market for Mr Blobby themed RC stuff, they're quite underground/niche

You sure it's not just you fella? ;)

He's a national institution isn't he?? :D

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Kumamoto is the "sister state" to Montana and my agency is the liaison with the Kumamoto Prefecture so we work with the Japanese quite closely. We have tons of Kumamon swag in the office and I usually get free Kumamon calendars, pins, pens, cards, etc.

As you might imagine, most Montanans don't have a clue what Kumamon is - outside our agency anyway - and mostly they just don't get the whole mascot thing. Funny though - every single person in the state cheers for either the Grizzlies or the Bobcats {football teams} and yes, you guessed it, they have ... life sized MASCOTS. :lol:

My coworkers rag me all the time since my office is a veritable Kumamon showcase, so when I saw this I just about bust a gut. I just saw the mini-4wd a few days ago and almost bought one just because. Whatever this R/C is I'm buying one just for the heck of it. And yes, it will get driven at least once in the office!!!!

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I wonder - will it just be a Farm King with a bear in it, or will it have any other changes? If it is appreciably different, I might get one and put a different driver in it. I thoroughly enjoy my Farm King, and it could do with a friend...

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Strangely, I find myself hoping it is a Tumbling Bull with Kumamon driver instead of the nasty Farmer Bob.

The whole tractor thing just has me puzzled to be honest, but then I saw the build thread with the Tumbling Bull and Willy driver and it got me to thinking about buying one. Now with Kumamon driving it ... well, how can I not buy one?

I wonder if I charge it as a business expense whether it would be approved? Probably not. :lol:

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What is a Kumamon Bajon.?

Can't find much on Kumamon except;

Thinking of a gift for children (or even ‘kids at heart’) to ease their way into RC cars and hobby racing models, the Tamiya Mini 4WD Kumamon Version will be a great start. The plastic model from Tamiya features the mini racer with the Kumamoto Prefecture mascot “Kumamon”. Kumamon’s image can be seen in the black plastic body, along with the detailed metallic stickers. The RC model uses the Super II chassis and comes with the cute Kumamon doll, part of the Kumamoto Surprise of the Kumamoto Prefecture in Japan. It has been the main tourist attraction in the district and was the most popular Japanese character in 2011.

Posted Image

Vrdetailing needs this for his track!

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Next build-off: Teletubby conversions of this :D

I like the tractor in black, but not too sure about the bear.

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Yeah the red and black go great... no so keen on the rider. But I'll definitely have some of what the design team were having!

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That is really really weird! :) you have to look at that with your Kouki glasses on to see the thinking here :)

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Totally pimp in red and black...shame I'm not a fan of the chassis (I know...)

Don't get the bear thing, but I suspect that's because I'm 5000 miles and 30 years away from where I'd need to be to get it.

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