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TWINSET

Supreme Tamiya Hornet

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You know, when you come down to it, any attempt to rationally explain any hobby is an attempt to defend the indefensible. Hobbies aren’t even really in Maslow’s needs hierarchy; they’re sort of balanced on top of the pyramid, completely useless, but enjoyable. When it comes to free time, I don’t like anyone looking down their nose at my choices, and I imagine no one else does either. Do what you like, buy what you want, use it as you please.

It’s the companies involved that I have an issue with. When it comes to the sneakers, you always hear about “only 100 pairs made, ever.” Why? Why the artificial exclusivity? It seems to me like the worst kind of social manipulation, pitting people against one another for the “privilege” of obtaining something. And, in the case of this Hornet, artificially inflating the price far beyond the actual value of the common item, simply because of a minor styling/packaging change. It’s a bunch of… well, because this is a PG-rated site, hooey. Balderdash. Flim-flam.

Old stuff is scarce because it survived when other examples did not. The company made millions of them, people liked them and bought them and used them up… except for that few percent of them that somehow fell through the cracks and are still around. That sort of exclusivity is interesting because it happened naturally, and is a direct result of a popular thing being loved by many. It can’t be compared with the artificial exclusivity of a brand-new “Collector’s Edition,” which, really, is a desperate attempt by a marketing department to capture some of that magic, when they have not earned it.

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16 hours ago, Badcrumble said:

I was chatting to my sneakerhead friend this morning, I learned that in addition to the purchasing, cataloguing, display (and even wearing) of trainers, there’s a whole sub-sect devoted to the restoration of ‘vintage’ sneakers. They send them away to ‘surgeons’ to repair worn leather and damaged soles.

Wow! I'm surprised again! I'm assuming that's not like Trigger's broom; replacing either the sole or the upper, but that they can salvage a good percentage of the original materials?

If so, I do find that quite impressive. I thought that kind of craftsmanship was all but dead. I'm glad to hear that's not the case.

Quote

It’s the companies involved that I have an issue with. When it comes to the sneakers, you always hear about “only 100 pairs made, ever.” Why? Why the artificial exclusivity? It seems to me like the worst kind of social manipulation, pitting people against one another for the “privilege” of obtaining something.

Yeah, Porsche have been doing this quite a bit recently. Churning out some special model every few months that you have to be invited to buy, then getting stroppy when people flip them for a profit.

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12 hours ago, markbt73 said:

It seems to me like the worst kind of social manipulation, pitting people against one another for the “privilege” of obtaining something.

Or marketers are tapping into some primordial human trait that compels us to desire the best or most elite object.

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2 hours ago, Fuijo said:

Yeah, Porsche have been doing this quite a bit recently. Churning out some special model every few months that you have to be invited to buy, then getting stroppy when people flip them for a profit.

They are stroppy because they were out-gamed :D

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Looking at this another way, if Tamiya can make a mint off fashionsitas, great, let the collectors spend a fortune on ‘Supreme’-ly lame (crappiest logo ever) Hornet which may bring down the costs of existing Hornet or provide further fundage for newer models. :) Everyone’s happy, so long as they keep knocking out the awesome original Hornet, coolest RC car ever :) :) 

 

 

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On 8/21/2018 at 1:39 PM, Fuijo said:

 

You don't think that was well deserved after this?

  On 8/18/2018 at 1:18 PM, Wandy said:

You must have been living in a cave then.

 

 

Not particularly. These rather patronising comments didn't go unnoticed though...

On 8/18/2018 at 4:04 PM, Fuijo said:

I've never heard of it either. I've met women who appear to collect shoes, though they would likely not admit to it being a hobby. But collecting trainers? Er, no.

 

On 8/21/2018 at 1:39 PM, Fuijo said:

I personally stopped buying trainers in my late teens, which was a very long time ago. I've had no further interest in them since then, and I knew of no other people who did, until I saw this thread.

 

Because, like, only women & teenagers collect shoes don't they? :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'm happy to inform you that collecting shoes isn't sonething that only women & teenagers do. And the collecting of sneakers is definitely a hobby pursued by many people. And if you didn't know that before reading this thread then fair enough. You do now though.

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12 hours ago, Wandy said:

Because, like, only women & teenagers collect shoes don't they? :rolleyes:

Anyway, I'm happy to inform you that collecting shoes isn't sonething that only women & teenagers do...........................

That's not what those 2 sentences actually say.

I hadn't heard of anyone collecting trainers. Not women, not teenagers, no one.

Teenagers though, ha! They'd have to be very flush teenagers. Personally I was lucky to be able to afford the pair I was standing up in.

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My friend from work collects trainers, he has over 100 pairs. Not so much now but they were kind of like his thing. Lots of limited edition ones etc, he used to get invited to preview events or something because he bought so many. Who am I to criticise with over 50 rc cars :crazy: ;)

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I haven't been in this forum for a while, and when I saw the thread title I thought this was going to be a Tamiya limited 2wd buggy with carbon, aluminium, titanium and nitride-coated components, all specially designed to go under an original Hornet shell.  I'm another head-in-the-sand type who has never heard of Supreme.

I wonder if we'll get a Henley's Designs or Superdry JPN edition next..?  Those logos have been appearing on pretty much everything over the last few years.

I have to admit, however, that I really, really like the Air Jam colour scheme.  Takes me right back to 80s race car paint schemes.  Pure and brilliant, IMO.

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Umm so I’m guessing this type of Supreme is not a Pizza 🙄

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On 8/15/2018 at 9:17 PM, TWINSET said:

this Hornet just might become one of the most collectible of all time

(Quote is originally from elsewhere, not Twinset)

So...

1. First thing - I love collecting. :rolleyes:  It's fun. But I am not a "get one of everything" collector. I collect only the things I truly love. And as someone who collects vintage R/C, and for what my annoying opinion is worth....

  • I would never buy that Hornet. It's just terrible.
  • The Grasshopper is better. I would consider buying this, because it looks like a genuine attempt at depicting 1980s sponsorship on the car, in a well-coordinated way, that looks scale-realistic.
  • Neither design comes close to the original design.

2. There is an old rule in collecting: If it says "Limited Edition" or "Collector's Edition", don't bother collecting it. It will most likely never be collectible. How many years ago did the Watanabe Hornet come out? I bought one last year, NIB, for AU$150.

3. So yeah, there are loads of sneaker collectors. Some of them have crazy huge collections like this <-- I encourage you all to watch this 10 min video. One of the things about sneaker collecting though.... sneakers were often made out of foams and rubbers that seriously deteriorate into cheese, over time. I myself have even bought some vintage NIB sneakers - only to find them often quite flawed, yellowed, cracked, or getting worse. Many sneakers were simply never meant to last decades or be "collected" at all. Which can make the hobby a deflating thing to try to collect. And even if collectors are able to find enough decent vintage pairs around today, in decades to come... you've gotta wonder what is going to happen to all that ultra-cheap Chinese foam. I would be far more worried about that decomposition with sneakers, than with vintage R/C kits. For the most part, 30+ years have so far shown vintage R/C kits to be remarkably tough and resistant to aging.

@Wandy - I wouldn't say R/C collecting is a dying hobby :)  Unless we think it would completely die off one day?

IMHO, it won't die. Does anyone think that in 100 years time, NIB vintage R/C kits will be thrown in the dumpster, or completely unwanted? I've said this before - look at all the toys from 100+ years ago that are now worth a fortune, even though all the people old enough to have actually owned them in their day, are dead. Or look at toys from the 1700s/1800s. Many are treated with reverence by antique dealers. And that's before we look at toys from ancient cultures (Egypt etc) which are often priceless.

There may be a downturn period - between the point when the fanatics (like us) die, and before the historians take notice.

But apart from that, great vintage toys which were built with quality, do not completely devalue when their owners die. They just begin the transition from being a hobby with active collectors, to an antique market for those curious about ancient toys. As centuries pass, any surviving vintage Tamiyas in good condition, will be worth far more than we currently imagine.

And toys are actually unique objects too - because they say unique and significant things about a culture, and an era. I think it's more interesting to see ancient toys, than it is to see ancient pottery. Toys are something that everyone can relate to. They are universal. And they are usually a miniaturized version of the things that people found exciting in their society, at a particular point in time.

So I think in the long term, values will only go up. (So long as there is no nuclear war, or catastrophic global warming!).

H.

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On 8/21/2018 at 7:11 AM, speedy_w_beans said:

* Assembly kit with special Air Jam 2018 decal sheet

 

* Special decal sheet not available separately
* Supplied with transmitter, battery, and charger
* Clear polycarbonate body

Pricing for this limited release is just $230 (around 250,000 yen) and it is expected to start shipping any time now. Use This Link for more details on the official Air Jam 2018 website.

A few mistakes in that...

  • I assume the body won't be "polycarbonate"
  • $230 = 25,000yen (not 250,000)
  • Will this really be an "assembly kit" that includes a transmitter, battery and charger?? Or an XB?

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32 minutes ago, Hibernaculum said:

 

  • I would never buy that Hornet. It's just terrible.
  • The Grasshopper is better. I would consider buying this, because it looks like a genuine attempt at depicting 1980s sponsorship on the car, in a well-coordinated way, that looks scale-realistic.
  • Neither design comes close to the original design.

 

H.

I'm with you on all three counts. Like you the, I feel the Hopper is a far worthier attempt than that disgraceful Hornet sell out, but live and let live and all that. That Grasshopper is kind of cool, I wouldn't buy it but if I was in the market for a GH I would have probably considered it.

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8 hours ago, Hibernaculum said:

2. There is an old rule in collecting: If it says "Limited Edition" or "Collector's Edition", don't bother collecting it. It will most likely never be collectible. 

Kind of like when an artist tries too hard to do something "controversial," and just ends up coming across as silly?

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On 8/29/2018 at 5:56 PM, skinned said:

anyone see where you can purchase this yet?.... link?

It will be direct from Supreme, if it is like their usual ‘drops’.

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I don't get it. Can't see that any design process was followed with that paint/sticker job. It's not even a homage to the much loved original. It looks boring.

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4 hours ago, Bromley said:

I don't get it. Can't see that any design process was followed with that paint/sticker job. It's not even a homage to the much loved original. It looks boring.

It says Supreme on it, that makes it worth more:lol: All we need now is a Diamond Frog and a DGK I heart Haters Bruiser and all will be cool in this world

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On 8/29/2018 at 11:23 AM, Hibernaculum said:

I wouldn't say R/C collecting is a dying hobby :)  Unless we think it would completely die off one day?

IMHO, it won't die. Does anyone think that in 100 years time, NIB vintage R/C kits will be thrown in the dumpster, or completely unwanted? I've said this before - look at all the toys from 100+ years ago that are now worth a fortune, even though all the people old enough to have actually owned them in their day, are dead. Or look at toys from the 1700s/1800s. Many are treated with reverence by antique dealers. And that's before we look at toys from ancient cultures (Egypt etc) which are often priceless.

Ok, so it won't ever completely die. But the hobby is shrinking as new generations of kids are simply not as interested in building model kits and playing with radio controlled models. Thankfully, our generation will keep the hobby going for a good while yet as we have disposable income that we are all prepared to splash around but when we are all gone the model building of cars, planes, boats etc as we currently know it will be consigned to history....unless of course we are on the dawn of an "anti-technology" uprising where future generations reject the ever-increasing march of computer & robot tech created simply for the sake of it, rather than it serving an actual purpose that benefits the human race. Seems to me that the smarter the tech we create then the dumber and less interesting we become as a civilisation. :ph34r:

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1 hour ago, Wandy said:

unless of course we are on the dawn of an "anti-technology" uprising where future generations reject the ever-increasing march of computer & robot tech created simply for the sake of it, rather than it serving an actual purpose that benefits the human race.

Curiously enough, I have often theorized on such an anti-technology movement. This break-neck pace ever forward has to rub some folks the wrong way (I know it does in my case). Everyone seems so immersed in this tech-race, I can't imagine I'm the only one sick of it and willing to step outside its ever-quickening current. I know enough to get by, but I'll be darned if I'm going to live my life glued to a screen. I believe the internet and access to it through our devices to be a great and very powerful resource. BUT, as most humans inevitably do, they abuse this powerful resource and rarely use it to its fullest potential. We have the ultimate source of information in our pocket and what do most people do with it? Facebook or play games. Sheesh. Sorry for the off topic rant.:wacko:

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Agree with you both. 

I think many of us R/C enthusiasts are sympathetic to the idea that technology is swamping society. There is already a revolt happening. Social Media and other Tech companies are actually scrambling to show the public they are sensitive to privacy and addiction concerns - Apple is introducing addiction-mitigation measures in its next OS, Facebook rushing to  pretend they are being more transparent, ever since the Cambridge Analytic scandal. And many more examples.

Personally, I loathe social media for more reasons than its creators could ever repair. And I also loathe the fact that people are constantly on their smartphones.

This animation by Steve Cutts says it all...

But if there is already enough of an economy out there for certain companies to specialize in highly scaled-back technology like Punkt...(to give just one example)...

https://www.punkt.ch/en/

Then there is certainly room for the  tactile, non-screen based hobbies and activities like R/C cars, to be recognized and valued too. And even rediscovered by new generations.

Also consider that hard copy books and vinyl records, have undergone a big resurgence in the last couple of years. Even CDs are experiencing big increases in sales on Discogs.com  

Meanwhile, sales of screen reading devices like e-readers, have peaked and fallen. 

FWIW, in the tech industry, I am regularly speaking to people who are sick to death of screens taking up their time. Even the elevators at work are always filled with people mindlessly fondling their phones 🙄

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Had to bring this thread up again, because just today I saw a Supreme sticker on the back of a van at lunch. So apparently, their cross-marketing works, because I recognized the logo, when I wouldn't have before. I am now aware that they are a company that does something, but as far as I can tell, that "something" consists of nothing more than having a logo and putting it on things like stickers and Hornets. Does that make them a success in today's world? I can't tell anymore...

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All I know is that the return of this thread to the top of the page has made me hungry for a supreme pizza again. Mmmmm...pizza.

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