Re-thinking my "top three"

[markbt73 5316]

Ever since I've started collecting older RC models, I've been torn on the subject of runners vs shelfers. I have historically come down firmly on the side of "run everything, that's what they're for," but as my time spent driving has dwindled, I find it harder and harder to get the old ones dirty. My Blackfoot hasn't seen action in at least a couple of years, and my restored Kyosho Optima hasn't been run at all.

Those two, the Optima and thr ORV, represent two of my all-time favorite platforms. The third is the RC10. These three chassis, if I had to get rid of everything else, would be the last to go. Through all the years of racing, bashing, buying, selling, restoring, and collecting, these are my favorites, both to run and to work on.

Luckily for me, all three have been re-released. (Or re-made. Or whatever you want to call it.) And I already have two of them: an RC10 Classic, and a re-re Subaru Brat. (I don't make much distinction between big- and little-wheel ORVs.)

The Brat was going to be used for that "Manhattan Project" replica, but thinking about it, I really don't want to paint it red, like in the movie. Nor do I want to strap a big plastic bottle in the back of it. I'd rather paint it black, with the gold stripes, and have fun running it. The Blackfoot, meanwhile, will be kept as-is, very slightly resto-modded, but still with a mechanical speed control, and get cleaned up and placed on display.

My RC10 Classic has been run, a couple of times. Just enough to put a couple scratches in the tub... so it might as well get some more. It will become my runner RC10, and the two old scruffy ones will be disassembled and rebuilt as one that's as nice as I can get it without having to replace any parts.

Which leaves the Optima. The re-re is, by all accounts, even better than the original. But I don't want to buy one. Instead, I want to buy a Javelin. Because that's the one I drooled over in the Tower Hobbies ads when I was young. So (eventually), I will grab a re-re Javelin and use it for my runner, and finally attempt the Optima's notoriously difficult box-art paint job.

This thread will be updated with my progress of turning the three scruffy oldies into respectable shelfers, as well as showing off the young'uns alongside them. Watch this space...

[markbt73 5316]

A little visual reference... here's where everything sits today.

ORVs:

Left: original Blackfoot, restored about 9 years ago. Has new-old-stock drive axles and diff gears, throguh-bolt diff mod, and Traxxas Bandit shocks (which are black plastic, so they look stock). I have a set of nice original tires and Monster Beetle wheels that will go on it.

Right: Fresh-built re-re Brat. Box-stock, and will probably stay that way (though I may scare up some bearings for it).

RC10s:

Left: new-built Classic, with about three runs on it.

Center: old scruffy runner, have been doing the "Granddad's axe" thing with this car for about 20 years now. Staying exactly as it is (meaning, constantly changing because I keep tinkering with it). Probably will retain runner status.

Right: Team car, built from parts. Will be rebuilt as a shelfer, with as many aftermarket bits as I can scrounge up. It already has quite a few.

And finally, my Optima:

Built about five years ago from the best bits of two eBay finds. Marwan tires, body, and decals; all the rest is original. Has not been run since restoration. It will get one gentle run to get an action photo after it's completed, and then retired to the shelf.

And coming soon (hopefully) is a re-re Javelin, which will be set up the same as the other runners: basic radio gear, RS540 motor, 2S lipo battery. Keeping it simple, and just enjoying them.

 

[JennyMo 3526]

Why not have two Brat bodies - the black/gold runner and a Manhattan Project one for the shelf?

Jx

[markbt73 5316]

1 hour ago, JennyMo said:

Why not have two Brat bodies - the black/gold runner and a Manhattan Project one for the shelf?

Jx

Eventually, that's probably what I'll do. But at the moment (and sadly, for the foreseeable future), my hobby budget is zero..

[markbt73 5316]

So I've revised my plans again, slightly, with regards to the RC10s. I was poking around at my Classic, and I have come to the conclusion that I'm just not crazy about it. I don't know if it's the feel of the plastics or the fact that I know it was made in China by Thunder Tiger and not in California by the erstwhile Associated Electrics, but there's just something... off about it. Fake. Like it's a model of an Associated RC10, without actually being one.

It's the first time I've really gotten this feeling off a re-re. The Tamiya ones certainly don't feel that way to me; they feel more like a continuation after an interruption in production. Like they just started churning them out again, with a few minor updates. And the Kyosho Scorpion re-re seems more like a really careful and sympathetic resto-mod; fixing the shortcomings and amplifying all the things that made it great in the first place.

But the RC10 Classic... I don't know. It just leaves me cold. I felt that way a bit when I was building it originally, but I thought I would warm up to it. But it feels more like it wants to be a static display model to me. So it will be. And the other two old beat-up black pan cars, built from all good old Assoicated parts or old aftermarket parts, will be my runners.

[SuperChamp82 743]

This is an oldie but goodie  

And any top 3 could encompass looks, handling, durability, innovation etc.

Even box art plays a part - per @Saito2separate thread. 

Personally, I left the hobby when RC10s turned 70s fun into homogeneous tinkering. 

No critique of the car or its drivers / fans - just, for me, a soulless race to minutiae. 

So - an admittedly old school view:

1. Porsche 959;

2. Toyota Hi Lux;

3. Sand Scorcher.

 

[frameskip 63]

On 6/22/2019 at 9:28 PM, markbt73 said:

I was poking around at my Classic, and I have come to the conclusion that I'm just not crazy about it. I don't know if it's the feel of the plastics or the fact that I know it was made in China by Thunder Tiger and not in California by the erstwhile Associated Electrics, but there's just something... off about it.

I had a similar feeling, but for a slightly different reason -- the manual really put me off from the start. For me, the RC10 is all about having a somewhat confusing manual with blurry black and white photos. The rendered graphics in the re-release manual stole away any sense of nostalgia. I really appreciate that Tamiya has been consistent in their very technical line-art drawings over time.

My other gripe with the Classic was just how poorly it came together. Sure, vintage RC10s take a bit of fettling, but mine was a case of parts so far out of tolerance they would never run smoothly. Unfortunately, this just reinforced the whole "made in China" feeling about it...

Good luck with whichever way you choose to go.

[Shodog 1835]

I feel the classic RC will be quite the collectible in years

Rumors that only 2500 were made make it by far the rarest of all RC10’s  

With the exception of the aluminum screws I feel the Buggy was made well.  It compares a lot better to the original than how the HG407 compares to a bruiser.

I felt honored to get a chance to buy a NIB kit.  To go through all the trouble to produce a kit that they couldn’t have made all that much money on the venture for a small collector market is special in my book  

 

[markbt73 5316]

I don't dislike it, it just sort of leaves me a bit cold. But I've come to realize that I don't really like new shiny things. I prefer some patina. (Probably why I've settled on a 30 year old Chevy truck as a primary vehicle, and would never dream of "trading up.")

Maybe I just need to go drive the Classic some more, get some more scratches on it. Then it'll feel like a "real" RC10.

And with that in mind, maybe I don't want a new Javelin after all. The value of used Optimas and Turbo Optimas has come way down since the reissue; maybe I should just get another original. I could get one of those, and a runner Blackfoot, for the same price... then I could go ahead and do the "Manhattan Project" thing with the Brat.

Decisions, decisions...

[Turbotom 163]

My top three...... 

1 Dyna storm 

2 hilux monster racer 

3 avante 

Just my opinion.... I own them, race them and love them!

[magnumb 97]

I agree. The ORV is a joy to run and work on and will always have a top spot.

My current top three runners besides the ORVs are:

HGP407- People like crap all over this model, but i beat the snot out of if and it takes it and is a joy to drive with it's unique transmission and chassis. 

Tamiya TRF211xm- Just a solid buggy that is graceful and fast and often overlooked. The TRF201 is also good 

Kyosho Rampage Pro- Solid rear axle with tons of front end articulation whats not to like. Throw a gyro in it and power sliding on street is a blast. Also super easy to work on a tough SOB.