Larger Collection Question

[apk422]

Having recently gotten back into the hobby I had a few questions about the larger collections on display:

1. Do you build the kits out with receivers, escs and servos? IE all they would need is a battery and be ready to run.  

2. If they are ready to run , do you actually run them or is your goal to keep the pristine?  

I have not decided which way I am going to go and was just curious as to what other "collectors" do in this hobby.  

 

[Mad Ax]

I think it's down to personal choice.  There seems to be a mix on here.  Personally I build every kit with metal bearings and I put grease on the gears just in case one day I decide to run the car, then I don't have to strip it down to add bearings or grease.

If I am building purely for the shelf I will use the stock silvercan motor and no speedo.  I don't like to have perfectly good electrics on the shelf when they could be used in runners or sold.  A servo depends on the car.  Some cars will sit quite happily with no servos in - anything with a proper steering system will keep the wheels aligned without a servo in place.  I keep old, slow or broken servos to add into the cars that need a servo (e.g. base-spec buggies that steer directly from the servo horn, which won't sit nicely without a servo in place).

I don't have to 'run' an RC car to prove anything before I put it on the shelf.  Some cars are just for the shelf and that's that.  Although not for this reason, I will point out that I've had first-run cars go haywire (mostly back in the days of 27MHz radios but also because a new-built car is more likely to have a glitch than an existing runner), I had a freshly-built and painted Subaru Brat body on a newly-built CC01 chassis that glitched on its first round-the-lounge test-run and reversed full speed into a cabinet, taking the paint off the tailgate and bending the metal body mounts.

But that's just me, others are different

[Doc Hollywood]

All of my cars are fitted with all radio gear so I just put a battery in it and pick up the transmitter and then run them all apart from my monster beetle that I have built mostly with new old stock and very nice used original parts but that has got all of the radio gear in it as I so run my shelf queens but a lot slower and more carefully they are on grass though I also have a wild willy M38 long wheel base it is in rough condition but due to the parts shortage I use that occasionally other wise I run all of mine I have recently started building them with ball bearings as they are faster and smother and also it doesn't put a strain on the mechanicals. But my collection consist of 24 vehicles 2 of which are shelf queens and about 7 are broke or being rebuilt as I have worn them out as I have been using them a lot recently and at leased 11 runners. 

  

[svenb]

All mine have servos, batteries, ESC or CPR unit and receivers fitted, all Tamiya items no exception! 

It's my OCD! 

 

[junkmunki]

All of my stuff is vintage, so if i've restored an original model that already had the radio gear fitted, then i will also restore the gear and refit it. If the model has been newly built, or was built and just never completed, then i dont fit radio gear. I dont run any of the vintage stuff, as some of the parts are so hard to find, and very expensive when you can find them, that it just isn't worth it.

If i was building re re stuff, then most likely i would fit radio gear and would run them, but for the shelf collection, there's no point.

Just on a side note though, i do have a large collection of vintage radio control sets, they are just not fitted in anything.

J

[Juggular]

I build everything with receivers, ESCs, and servos. 

Flysky GT3C radio is excellent because each car only needs a receiver (about $7).  Hobbywing 1060 ESCs cost about $16.  Cheap servos cost about $10.  Bearings cost about $6.  In all, it's about $39 per car.  Also most of my cars are used ones from ebay, at around $80-100.  Total cost per car is about $120 to $140.  I can't keep them pristine because I often get beat up buggies. (Or do I get beat up buggies because I don't keep them pristine?) 

Many of my vintage Tamiyas still have 27Mhz receivers.  I bought Flysky receivers for them, yet I soldered JST connectors to the old radios, so they could use the 11.1v Lipo battery designed for radios.  Not really sure why I did that.  I guess I just don't like the idea of things not being used. I admit it's strange keeping things ready to go, even for AM radios I'm not likely to use.  

 

[Re-Bugged]

I don't consider my collection as large compared to most, currently on 10.

A 1/8 Thunder Tiger Nitro Buggy was RTR from purchase 8 years ago and still gets run now.

I bought a Stadium Blitzer a couple of years ago with a Flysky GT2 Transmitter, battery & servo to get me going as I had nothing (apart from the Nitro), and before I knew about multi vehicle transmitters. Well that threw a different light on the subject knowing you didn't need a Tx for every car!! Which is what put me off before. So then came a Futaba 3PV.

Since then all the Tamiya's and 1 Kyosho are ready to go once a battery is charged.

I have a varied collection of on/off road 4WD & 2WD to suit different moods and conditions, some I only run lightly on grass to keep them nice, others are for letting your hair down so to speak. Some chassis's have 2 sets of wheels & bodies for that reason.

Currently enjoying them all 

 

[TheMidnight Pumpkin]

I only collect Wheelies and all mine are ready to run, just add battery's. I drive them randomly as time allows. I do have a couple shelf queens. But they are so old I'd never try to drive them...