Hotshot 2

[Saito2 6677]

I got a body and decals on my Hotshot 2 this week. I'm not quite done fixing it up yet. Its a Tamiya that for one reason or another doesn't get too much attention. I only got one to complete my early 4wd buggy set. Honestly, it and the Boomerang probably sat at the bottom of my interest in the early 4wd set. Perhaps there was too much competition by its release time that the HS2 simply got lost in the shuffle. It lacks the notability of the Hotshot, Super Shot, Bigwig or even the popular Boomerang. Seeing it all stickered up in the flesh (or plastic, as it were) gave me a new appreciation for it. Its quite a handsome buggy. Hey, it came with a cool silver box originally too! Any Hotshot 2 stories out there?

 

[Cynan 520]

After seeing another kid at school with what I believe was a Grasshopper, I was suddenly and utterly embarrassed by mine, which I had believed was the best R/C in the world (a kids RC model of KITT from Knightrider).

Since I got home that evening I mustn’t have shut up about it for months and come my birthday my mum took me to someone’s house who was selling their RC car - a Hotshot 2 - as he himself had just built a new one that his girlfriend had bought him for his birthday.

As soon as I laid eyes on her I knew she was the one. I’d never seen any of the other Tamiya models at this point but wow she was a beauty. I looked at my mum, she looked at me, I looked back at the car and after my some haggling we came away with the Hotshot 2.

Along with it we got a Futaba Magnum Junior, an old (still working) battery wrapped in black insulation tape and a charger powered by a cigarette lighter.

I don’t know which of us were more relived, my dad or me, when we discovered you could buy AC chargers!

Some years later I got into computers and wanted some money for some games and stupidly sold the Hotshot 2. What a crime. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I did however keep a set of green crystals that I used the most as a souvenir, which I still have today.

Something in the air recently cast my mind back to those days and I recalled all the fun times that I’d had with it. So I started the hunt. I soon found that Tamiya had been rereleasing models from my childhood, the old 27MHz radios were no more and now there were brushless motors and LiPo battery packs. Nor could I believe how rare some of the older models were (and the prices!) and that Tamiya had not released this one! I kept looking and was so lucky to eventually find one for a good price and in almost stock form, with all the rare parts in tact (other than the CVA shocks).

I’ve so far disassembled and catalogued all the missing stock parts, thanks to the help of online manuals and placed orders for the parts I need to restore her to her former glory. Now I’m just waiting for them to arrive so  I can put her back together and take her for a spin.

[Baddon 860]

I never really thought about the HS2, I had slowley picked up most of the HS series buggies, some vintage like my own Boomerang and a Super Sabre, some re re like the BigWig, HS & Super HS. Added a re-bodied Boomerang as a Winger and suddenly the only car missing in the family series was a HS2.

 

So started a search and a fellow TC offered me a good condition one at a reasonable price and my family series was completed.

 

 

[Hudson 53]

Maybe Tamiya made a mistake by naming this buggy the Hotshot 2, I mean you can see the sense in 'using' the well established Hotshot name, but maybe this decision counted against it - it was always in the shadow of it's older brother.  The 2 buggies have tonnes of similarities so arguably retaining the Hotshot name makes sense,  however I believe with a different name with no link to the original Hotshot it would have sold in bigger numbers.  Does anyone agree with me??!!

In any case, it's a great buggy, perhaps it's had a slight renaissance of late based on its relative scarcity, certainly NIB prices are at the high end.

[Cynan 520]

If I’d have bought a HS and then a SS, I very much doubt I’d be able to justify buying a HS2 a year later with what I bet many would say is a downgrade.

However, seeing all three and never owning any of them and going off looks alone I would have bought the HS2.

So yeah I think I agree - if they’d given it a other name then it probably would have sold more. However I quite like the name so glad they didn’t 

[markbt73 5311]

I think part of the reason you don't see many of them is that when they came out, the Boomerang was already available, and it was pretty much the same thing, only cheaper. And the Thundershot overlapped with this era as well, and it was a newer design, and also a little cheaper if memory serves. Tamiya were in competiton with themselves for sales of basic/mid level 4WD buggies, not just Kyosho and Marui and the like. It is a handsome car, but standing there in the hobby shop and having to choose, I think a lot of kids left with a Boomerang or a Marui Ninja, and saved a few bucks (or bought an extra battery).

Myself, I barely noticed the Hotshot II existed back then. But then, as far as 4WD goes, I only had eyes for Kyosho...

[Saito2 6677]

I kinda agree with Mark. By the time I got heavily into RC, the Hotshot was gone from most shelves (though still there as a Mini 4wd) so I only glanced at the HS2 knowing it was somehow linked to the original. My guess is the Hotshot and Boomerang probably sold the most out of the lot. The Hotshot was somewhat revolutionary being the first, so it probably sold decent. It still wasn't cheap and ballracing it broke the bank back then. The Boomerang was more affordable and technically simplified making it a better performer. My theory is it sold the best. The Super Shot was well known as being a Hotshot with everything Tamiya had thrown at it. It was aggressive looking and sought after amongst my peers but also incredibly expensive so probably not a high seller. The Bigwig was certainly well-known for its importance but its high cost (back then), polarizing looks and the increase in market competition likely held its numbers low. This leaves the Hotshot 2 and Super Sabre as also-rans, which as Mark pointed out were also struggling with competition from Tamiya's own, better-performing, Thundershot around that era. 

[moffman 5747]

I remember when hotshot 2 appeared with its silver box to this day I still didn't understand why it was silver and other than the wild willy metallic special it's the only white box that's had a colour change!, I think the problem with the hs2 was things had moved on with rc buggies when it hit the shelves smooth belt drive cats rc10s had become 4wd and kyosho optimas became mid driven unfortunately all that happened significantly with the hotshot 2 was it got independent rear suspension and a slightly different body it was still a pain to get into although it did have the inspection hatch that is on the re-re's so people just started to look at other manufacturers!

[a.w.k. 665]

The HotShot 2 with its unique parts is one of my many soft spots.....and it drives really well. Whenever i can get hold of one for a reasonable price i have to have it....

[Saito2 6677]

Nice little collection of HS2s you got there. Your right, they do drive really well. Of three original actual Hotshot buggies, you'd could make a case it was the best. All the kinks of the original are ironed out except the bump steer. HS2's probably have more travel up front than the Super Shot despite being a monoshock plus it got an access hatch the original HS and SS lacked.

[Klausen 1197]

Back when I got my first Tamiya (Falcon), I also had one of the guide books. In that there was an action photo of the HSII, and for years it was all I dreamt of. Finally a few years ago I landed one on Ebay, which I restored, and it is one of my favourite shelfers.

[Cynan 520]

Is that paint on the tyre lettering? What kind? Looks mint!

[Klausen 1197]

2 hours ago, Cynan said:

Is that paint on the tyre lettering? What kind? Looks mint!

Yes it is done with a white ball pen. Fades over time, but fairly easy to draw up again.