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New Tamiya Monster Beetle Black edition.

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I guess it was time to spin the color wheel again. To me it just screams Blackfoot. Idk, maybe black dampers, and black chrome wheels would have finished the effect I would have expected.

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i agree i don't see the point in a "special" edition release that comes in a colour that can be achieved via a rattle can that can be brought .

in my eyes a special edition paint release should only be a metalic/chrome version like the 

gold lunchbox 

black chrome midnight pumpkin 

chrome king hauler

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Not feeling it.

If they had done more of an update, sure. 

Would have been nice if they would have gotten rid of the troublesome gearbox and used the gearbox that was used on the Bush Devil and Super Blackfoot.

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I think many ORV-fans will want the black frame as dyeing the ORV-frame black based on any of the existing versions isn't really possible. The plastic used doesn't absorb the dye well and high temperature is required for decent absorbtion. And with high enough temperature, warping is virtually unavoidable. I want a black frame for sure!

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It looks a lot better in black than the Lunchbox does in red, I'll say that...

I still think they should do the "Molded in one of four colors!" thing for kits like this. In fact, to keep the collectors happy, don't even do a "normal" re-release. Just do the alternate colors, but don't have any indication on the box as to what color it is.

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Not a fan of the color editions at all, but strangely, this... this works for me. Looks awesome in black. 

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9 hours ago, S-PCS said:

Not a fan of the color editions at all, but strangely, this... this works for me. Looks awesome in black. 

Yeah me too! Maybe because I'm just a fan of the tamiya scorcher body in general and the monster beetle always looked so good from the first day it made an appearance (just my opinion😊) so I probably will get one I just hope they do the box art in the full black colour instead of just a sticker in the corner (which is more likely what they will do🤔), so please tamiya do it justice! like you did with the wild willy 2 metallic special🤞

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3 minutes ago, moffman said:

Yeah me too! Maybe because I'm just a fan of the tamiya scorcher body in general and the monster beetle always looked so good from the first day it made an appearance (just my opinion😊) so I probably will get one I just hope they do the box art in the full black colour instead of just a sticker in the corner (which is more likely what they will do🤔), so please tamiya do it justice! like you did with the wild willy 2 metallic special🤞

 

931771ac9b04422e2daf0dbc6ee23d2d.jpg

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I've never been a Monster Beetle fan and especially not of the re-re, but I think the new colour scheme looks great and I love that they have updated the graphics too.  Original colours wouldn't look right on black IMO.

Again I think they could have gone a bit futher - black or silver wheels and black shocks would have really set it off.

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47 minutes ago, Mokei Kagaku said:

 

931771ac9b04422e2daf0dbc6ee23d2d.jpg

I'll still get one!😏

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So no black chassis according to that sticker, just a grey (Gray?) one :angry:

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18 minutes ago, mtbkym01 said:

So no black chassis according to that sticker, just a grey (Gray?) one :angry:

Yes, noted that too, but it seems to be a darker grey than the "Frog grey" and possibly darker than "King Blackfoot grey" too. The Blue Brat seems to get the chassis in the same colour as the Black MB, and there are indications that the H-parts and C-parts will be the same grey too (bumper mount/front susp. arms and rear susp arms/gearbox center etc.)

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These “editions” Tamiya has been doing, where its the same car in some other colour/chrome, are like when a classic chocolate bar gets a “mint!” or “dark!” edition that nobody asked for or wanted.

Want Tamiya to survive long term, they’re the only non-Chinese R/C maker left. Longtime collector/nerd for the brand and its history. Yet completely disinterested in products like this :mellow:

H.

PS. I liked it far more when Tamiya created things like the Tamtech-Gear buggies. As they seemed like miniature tributes - at least different from the 1/10 cars. And presented in beautiful packaging. Totally cool to collect and muck about with, and even had their own line of hop-ups.

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1 hour ago, Hibernaculum said:

PS. I liked it far more when Tamiya created things like the Tamtech-Gear buggies. As they seemed like miniature tributes - at least different from the 1/10 cars. And presented in beautiful packaging. Totally cool to collect and muck about with, and even had their own line of hop-ups.

This makes me wonder what you thoughts are regarding the "Comical" buggies and the new little 4x4 Monster Beetle. Same idea, but less proprietary and separate from the rest of the lineup. But they feel more like "old Tamiya" to me than anything has in a long time.

And that goes for the 6x6 chassis as well, although they have yet to sell it with an acceptable body shell, as far as I'm concerned.

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One thing that I think we need to take into consideration is that the number of new releases is much higher now than it was in "the good old days". Or in other words, when Tamiya releases a model that we disapprove of now (a colour special, awkward combination of chassis and body etc.), it's not at the cost of other more or less genuinely new models.  Tamiya releases BOTH brand new models, parts bin specials, colour specials, re-res and evolutions of already existing models.

That said, I think Tamiya compromises a lot more now than before. Generic manuals, bodies with multiple holes for different body mount configurations (re-re Bf for instance), recycling of wheels rather than releasing specific correct wheels for new bodies and so forth. So not everything is fine, but I'm pretty confident that they know what they're doing, even if it sometimes looks very strange to us, especially for those of us outside Japan.

To visualize number of releases a year, I did this chart about three weeks ago. So it's not entirely up to date for 2019 releases so far, but close:

 

58608396_10155912158937407_6651202692641193984_o.jpg

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1 hour ago, Mokei Kagaku said:

So not everything is fine, but I'm pretty confident that they know what they're doing, even if it sometimes looks very strange to us, especially for those of us outside Japan.

From several decades of experience with mighty General Motors, I'd say you can't always trust your favourite corporation to know what they're doing. Sometimes they really don't. But in the general case of Tamiya, I very much agree with you, I'd say they do. 

But... while the number of releases is clearly up, what about innovation? How many of those "new" releases shared the exact same platform? Might be interesting to adjust that chart for new platforms only. 

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10 minutes ago, S-PCS said:

From several decades of experience with mighty General Motors, I'd say you can't always trust your favourite corporation to know what they're doing. Sometimes they really don't. But in the general case of Tamiya, I very much agree with you, I'd say they do. 

But... while the number of releases is clearly up, what about innovation? How many of those "new" releases shared the exact same platform? Might be interesting to adjust that chart for new platforms only. 

I agree, all these different color releases is a money grab (i get why) but tiresome and show a real lack of creativity. Other than re releases there hasnt been a  completely new buggy released in a few years. 

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1 hour ago, Mokei Kagaku said:

One thing that I think we need to take into consideration is that the number of new releases is much higher now than it was in "the good old days". Or in other words, when Tamiya releases a model that we disapprove of now (a colour special, awkward combination of chassis and body etc.), it's not at the cost of other more or less genuinely new models.  Tamiya releases BOTH brand new models, parts bin specials, colour specials, re-res and evolutions of already existing models.

That said, I think Tamiya compromises a lot more now than before. Generic manuals, bodies with multiple holes for different body mount configurations (re-re Bf for instance), recycling of wheels rather than releasing specific correct wheels for new bodies and so forth. So not everything is fine, but I'm pretty confident that they know what they're doing, even if it sometimes looks very strange to us, especially for those of us outside Japan.

To visualize number of releases a year, I did this chart about three weeks ago. So it's not entirely up to date for 2019 releases so far, but close:

 

58608396_10155912158937407_6651202692641193984_o.jpg

Wow, that's an impressive effort put into making that graph.  Are you sure you are not employed by Tamiya?  

What happened in 2012?  Over 120 models?  (I'm not keeping up with on-road, tanks, trucks)

 

 

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8 hours ago, markbt73 said:

This makes me wonder what you thoughts are regarding the "Comical" buggies and the new little 4x4 Monster Beetle. Same idea, but less proprietary and separate from the rest of the lineup. But they feel more like "old Tamiya" to me than anything has in a long time. And that goes for the 6x6 chassis as well, although they have yet to sell it with an acceptable body shell, as far as I'm concerned.

The "Comical" buggies are, overall, a misfire to me.

Pros:

  • At least they were something "nostalgic" that wasn't just another remake of a classic model.

Cons:

  • They just look like toys for little babies. :blink:
  • Still have fake brand decals.
  • The fact Tamiya literally named them "Comical" over-emphasizes the fact they are "not normal" models, which is stupid.

Marketing and impressions are important especially for adult collectors (which is the entire basis of Tamiyaclub). The Wild Willy (and Willys Wheelers, and Mitsubishi Pajero) worked in the 1980s because they were presented as normal models with "some stunt capability". Plus they didn't sacrifice detail and realism, to enable the stunt action. Wild Willy looks really exaggerated, but is still somehow also a heavy, realistic and interesting scale model.

The Comical buggies are clearly trying to emulate those models. But they take it too far, and become too cutesy and caricatured. Even the driver figure looks like a cartoon baby.

This is all just IMHO though - if some people like them and collect them, that's great. ^_^ But much like the "wheelie tractors" a few years ago, they're not for me. Nice try at something different, but another misfire unfortunately.

Why I liked the Tamtech-Gear buggies...

Don't get me wrong, Tamtech-Gear wasn't perfect either (cons - fake decals + the cars chassis/suspension would have been far better if they were perfect miniatures of the 1/10 cars, they would also have been better as kits of course!)...

But the pros were:

  • They were something "nostalgic" that wasn't just another remake of a classic model, but a new chassis/design.
  • Miniature versions of the classic 1/10 cars are a fun "souvenir" type idea and these were the best of the lot (there have been numerous products along these "miniature" lines, from Q Steers to Coffee Cup cars, and so on, and some have been popular)
  • They looked good for what they were.
  • They had a spare parts line that felt like a throwback to the past - e.g. the pink anodized optional parts felt specifically for the Tamtech-Gear Frog (much like the way Tamiya used to design certain spares specific to certain models)
  • Beautiful packaging, despite being RTRs

The above was enough for me to buy all of them.

On top of all that, Fumito Taki was a designer on them. When I asked him some questions a few years ago, he said "The latest project I did from scratch would be the Tamtech Hotshot".

8 hours ago, Mokei Kagaku said:

To visualize number of releases a year, I did this chart about three weeks ago.

It's great someone has finally done this, as it's been a very important factor in why I suspect Tamiya offers nothing I'd buy any more - they stretch themselves too thin.

I'd rather they sold half the number of products - but produced a few "boutique" level nostalgic off road kits (with new designs, not just more boring remakes!) for collectors of our age group. With proper detail and no fake brand decals. There is absolutely no excuse for fake brand decals, when $7 Hot Wheels cars from the supermarket are covered in real sponsor logos.

I have been banging on about this idea for years. Tamiya cannot seem to see that they are missing a market opportunity, by creating something genuinely new, scale, realistic, retro... but with no compromises, and in the style of the classic kits. Tamiyaclub would go nuts for it. But apparently it won't appeal to the little kids in Japan. So all we get are boring remakes and colour variants of remakes, for the "40-somethings". And that's lazy to me.

Sorry for the rant - as you were! :D

cheers,

H.

 

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Re: 4x4 Monster Beetle, this appears to be along Tamtech Gear lines, without using that name. Only just caught up and saw it.

Edit - After looking into it, it seems like an unnecessary rehash of the QD Monster Beetle, on a new chassis. At least when the Tamtech Gear buggies came out, there had never been a "miniature R/C Frog, Fox, Hornet, Hotshot, Rough Rider" before. So they were kinda novel for their time, and other companies were also doing the odd 1/16 buggy.

Miniature Monster Beetle has already been done before. So the 4x4 Monster Beetle doesn't do much for me.

Also, a miniature Wild Willy has been done before too... just not by Tamiya ;)

( Tomy/Taiyo 4WD Army Commander - 1984)

ZOHJi53.jpg

 

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1 hour ago, Hibernaculum said:

The "Comical" buggies are, overall, a misfire to me.

Pros:

  • At least they were something "nostalgic" that wasn't just another remake of a classic model.

Cons:

  • They just look like toys for little babies. :blink:
  • Still have fake brand decals.
  • The fact Tamiya literally named them "Comical" over-emphasizes the fact they are "not normal" models, which is stupid.

Marketing and impressions are important especially for adult collectors (which is the entire basis of Tamiyaclub). The Wild Willy (and Willys Wheelers, and Mitsubishi Pajero) worked in the 1980s because they were presented as normal models with "some stunt capability". Plus they didn't sacrifice detail and realism, to enable the stunt action. Wild Willy looks really exaggerated, but is still somehow also a heavy, realistic and interesting scale model.

The Comical buggies are clearly trying to emulate those models. But they take it too far, and become too cutesy and caricatured. Even the driver figure looks like a cartoon baby.

This is all just IMHO though - if some people like them and collect them, that's great. ^_^ But much like the "wheelie tractors" a few years ago, they're not for me. Nice try at something different, but another misfire unfortunately.

Why I liked the Tamtech-Gear buggies...

Don't get me wrong, Tamtech-Gear wasn't perfect either (cons - fake decals + the cars chassis/suspension would have been far better if they were perfect miniatures of the 1/10 cars, they would also have been better as kits of course!)...

But the pros were:

  • They were something "nostalgic" that wasn't just another remake of a classic model, but a new chassis/design.
  • Miniature versions of the classic 1/10 cars are a fun "souvenir" type idea and these were the best of the lot (there have been numerous products along these "miniature" lines, from Q Steers to Coffee Cup cars, and so on, and some have been popular)
  • They looked good for what they were.
  • They had a spare parts line that felt like a throwback to the past - e.g. the pink anodized optional parts felt specifically for the Tamtech-Gear Frog (much like the way Tamiya used to design certain spares specific to certain models)
  • Beautiful packaging, despite being RTRs

The above was enough for me to buy all of them.

On top of all that, Fumito Taki was a designer on them. When I asked him some questions a few years ago, he said "The latest project I did from scratch would be the Tamtech Hotshot".

It's great someone has finally done this, as it's been a very important factor in why I suspect Tamiya offers nothing I'd buy any more - they stretch themselves too thin.

I'd rather they sold half the number of products - but produced a few "boutique" level nostalgic off road kits (with new designs, not just more boring remakes!) for collectors of our age group. With proper detail and no fake brand decals. There is absolutely no excuse for fake brand decals, when $7 Hot Wheels cars from the supermarket are covered in real sponsor logos.

I have been banging on about this idea for years. Tamiya cannot seem to see that they are missing a market opportunity, by creating something genuinely new, scale, realistic, retro... but with no compromises, and in the style of the classic kits. Tamiyaclub would go nuts for it. But apparently it won't appeal to the little kids in Japan. So all we get are boring remakes and colour variants of remakes, for the "40-somethings". And that's lazy to me.

Sorry for the rant - as you were! :D

cheers,

H.

 

Glad i am not the only one who has the dislike for these type of releases, and dont even get me started with the comical line lol

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Interesting take on the Tamtech buggies, H... what I always disliked about them was how non-standard they are. They're sort of their own little ecosystem, completely separate from the rest of the lineup. They don't use standard servos, or motors, or batteries; they use smaller hardware; they can't use any parts from other Tamiya products. The comical buggies do, and that makes them a lot more accessible to me (and a lot of others, I would imagine).

I have a TTG Hornet; I got it in a trade deal. It's in pieces right now, because I got bored with it in its standard form and I like to tinker with things. It may or nay not form the basis for a full-on custom scratch build, for which the smaller components are just about ideal. But using those components for something else is tricky, just because the parts only fit each other.

Maybe it's the hot rodder in me, but one of my favorite things about Tamiya kits has always been the interchangeability of parts: with a screwdriver, a couple of extra parts trees, and some outside-the-box thinking, you can have an entirely new model. (Which is exactly what Tamiya did themselves for that new 4x4 Monster Beetle.) Which is why I like the re-res (or remakes if you prefer) so much: they're a great source of parts to tinker with, to try out weird ideas, without sacrificing a "real" one. And I think that's the biggest difference in our hobby philosophies: you tend to see the model as a whole, an end in itself. I see them that way at first... but then I start looking at the parts, and thinking, what if...

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1 hour ago, markbt73 said:

And I think that's the biggest difference in our hobby philosophies: you tend to see the model as a whole, an end in itself. I see them that way at first... but then I start looking at the parts, and thinking, what if...

Yeah, that is totally true Mark, well put. B)

I really love the idea of a model being a unique piece, unto itself, and created by the factory. With its own parts, character... and I don't mind if those things are not interchangeable with anything else. I probably like it even more, if that is the case. I like the collectibility of it. The special nature of it. The idea that it's not all just different bodies on the same car, over and over. Or that the same parts are reused over and over.

But I totally see why this would be a pain if you're more inclined to modify and transplant, across models. I never look at a model and think "what if" :P I prefer the idea that it's a product all it's own.

And I think this harks back to how I viewed the original 1980s cars, and how they were presented... Yes some parts were interchangeable across them, and eventually there was a hop-up line. But Tamiya did "silo" them a bit in those days. I liked the idea that a Fox gearbox belonged to a Fox, a Frog body was for a Frog, and so on. I like things to be separate. Distinct and unique. Because then, the fun becomes - how those individually unique and distinct cars race against each other - e.g. a Wild One and a Super Champ are utterly different cars. Yet they were designed just 3 years apart. And that's amazing to me. If they race, it's a battle of two completely different philosophies. And I love the idea of races between unique vehicles, each with different strengths and weaknesses.

I have the same outlook in 1:1 motor racing. LOVE the idea of different teams competing using unique vehicles. HATE it when its a race of 20 identical cars and the only difference is the driver alone (who cares about drivers? lol).

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