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426Purplefish

Your Shelf-Queen Philosophy?

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26 minutes ago, A-Baum said:

See this is something I don't quite understand. Why would people spend money on performance upgrades for a shelf queen?  I would think if I were to ever have a shelf queen, it would be bone stock and likely with box art livery.  Why drop $100 on hi caps for a shelf queen?  Or a brushless system or an upgrade diff if it will never run.  I guess people have their reasons but it makes no sense to me.  

I agree 100%

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I only have three shelfers and of those only one has never been run by me. I never used to get shelfers and I was in the camp above who don’t understand why you would add hopups and yet not run it. 
 

Today however I get it all. For some looking and imagining how these thing go gives them a smile 😃 I can’t say my shelfer will never run but the old vintage cars aren’t really very good compared with everything after the RC10. The blazing blazer, the epitome of Tamiya RC is simply dreadful to drive, no suspension, top heavy, poor steering and tracking. Far better off with a WLtoys thingamigig for running. BUT a blazer new built, polished up with aftermarket Tamiya shocks on a stand wow, what a car, what a center piece. Plus when anyone shows interest the gearbox is a thing of beauty. Stick the WLtoys thingy on a shelf and no one would bat an eyelid.
 

I am currently bashing the wheels off an old TGS nitro, some parts are available but not the engine, when it’s gone it’s gone but I’ll have fond memories, pictures and videos of it.

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To me RC cars are like real cars and are meant to be driven. 

I have an optima mid that I break and fix all the time. Fun Hobby. 

My daily driver is a 98 Boxster if I ever can upgrade to a 911 I will drive the heck out of it. 

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36 minutes ago, benitom said:

To me RC cars are like real cars and are meant to be driven. 

I have an optima mid that I break and fix all the time. Fun Hobby. 

My daily driver is a 98 Boxster if I ever can upgrade to a 911 I will drive the heck out of it. 

If I ever get a 911 I will be driving it like I stole it

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4 minutes ago, ploots said:

If I ever get a 911 I will be driving it like I stole it

1:1 car shelf queens make less sense to me than 1/10 car shelf queens.  Unless you're Jay Leno and you simply have too many cars to drive.

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Normally, I'd say "just build a static model if you want a shelf queen" - but -

I have an OG Kyosho Javelin that isn't quite a shelf queen, but I don't drive it very hard or put much power through it.

My philosophy with Tamiya kits is somewhat different, since a Kyosho re re typically doesn't share many parts with the original. That means that you either have to scrounge up NOS or find used parts, if you need replacement parts for a Kyosho.

Both options are often expensive, and always subject to availability.

For better or worse, an original Tamiya doesn't have this problem.

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6 minutes ago, Mrowka said:

Normally, I'd say "just build a static model if you want a shelf queen" - but -

I have an OG Kyosho Javelin that isn't quite a shelf queen, but I don't drive it very hard or put much power through it.

My philosophy with Tamiya kits is somewhat different, since a Kyosho re re typically doesn't share many parts with the original. That means that you either have to scrounge up NOS or find used parts, if you need replacement parts for a Kyosho.

Both options are often expensive, and always subject to availability.

For better or worse, an original Tamiya doesn't have this problem.

I would actually say that most parts are interchangeable except for the internals.  I think parts abound for the optima series. Mids of course, a bit harder to find.  Try getting parts for a 959.

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For those that have restored never-drive shelfers because of their rarity, Do you feel the need to have them complete with motor/speed control? or just bare?

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Figured I'd add my 2 cents here as one of the (presumably) younger members of this forum. While I personally drive all of my cars pretty hard except for my bigwig since it is much more fragile than my other cars, I can totally understand it for very rare models or ones that are hard to get parts for. If I had say, a Williams FW-07 or a Kyosho Vanning or the like, I would most likely run it a little bit to see how it drives out of curiosity. The one thing I don't understand is the people who keep them sealed in the box. I know they are super valuable, but at least take it out of the box. They are all toys and are meant to be used for fun and entertainment, which you can't get by keeping it in the box.  

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@Bash so here the thing with your question about nib. i will build this, however it is sorta like a kit that isnt the easiest to get a hold of. so, build it and shelf queen it because its a rarity or build it bash it and dont worry about it? i have a few great kits here unbuilt and unopened from the shipping. its a tough call. kits that are 20 years old and still a great build that can keep up w2ith a modern buggy? theres a strange thing there as to the value, not money, but the fact that i have it in the first place

BGiwsrW.jpg

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4 minutes ago, Finnsllc said:

@Bash so here the thing with your question about nib. i will build this, however it is sorta like a kit that isnt the easiest to get a hold of. so, build it and shelf queen it because its a rarity or build it bash it and dont worry about it? i have a few great kits here unbuilt and unopened from the shipping. its a tough call. kits that are 20 years old and still a great build that can keep up w2ith a modern buggy? theres a strange thing there as to the value, not money, but the fact that i have it in the first place

BGiwsrW.jpg

I Don't know enough about that kit to give you a good answer, but I would do whatever feels right to you. If you want to keep it on a shelf in the box, that's great, but also is building it up and sending it to the moon. There is no wrong answer here.

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@Bash of course i agree with everybody has an opinion.and we will all do what we want. i was only trying to explore the conversation. are there exceptions? are there kits that shouldnt be built but sat on unopened? where do we as hobbyist come to an agreement on what is reasonable or not? 

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@FinnsllcI'd say something exceedingly rare, like a black edition 934 or an Edinger RC10

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well go find a db-02, thats my point, im not at all being aggressive. im saying kits are kits. dn01 lexan bodies are nowhere to be found. do i save my 2 nib zahhak because i have the bodies in the kits? theres alot to this conversation @Bash 

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These are my only 2 shelf Queens. Both got original electronics in them and are mint. These will never be ran. The shogun was what I had as my first car back in 88 (not this exact car).  The ninja just completed the set.

IMG_20200701_194608.jpg

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20 hours ago, 426Purplefish said:

For this discussion, shelf queen refers to a special car that you enjoy seeing on your shelf and not just a car sitting on a shelf waiting to get run again.

What is your stance on shelf-queens in the following context?

1. Do you run your shelf queens lightly or at least once?

2. What state of completion do you need them to be?  Completely bare chassis or full up with all electronics?

3.  When you restore a shelf queen how mint does it need to be? Many cars seem to be rebuilt from all NOS parts and look new.  Others don’t need their restos to be perfect.  

Im curious about this...but maybe no one cares😁.

 

I now feel the need to lightly run the shelf queens no point keeping them as statues - some light running on lawn IMO won’t destroy them. 

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1 hour ago, slimleeroy said:

These are my only 2 shelf Queens. Both got original electronics in them and are mint. These will never be ran. The shogun was what I had as my first car back in 88 (not this exact car).  The ninja just completed the set.

IMG_20200701_194608.jpg

1 hour ago, Avante2001R said:

I now feel the need to lightly run the shelf queens no point keeping them as statues - some light running on lawn IMO won’t destroy them. 

totally get that.  Only one I probably won’t run is an original optima I put together with NOS parts.  It has the chain, MSC, and never even put oil in the shocks.  I have few other optimas and a new TO so don’t really feel the need.

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I have 20+ cars and I run 2 of them (beetle and a neo scorcher both running LiPo 3s Brushless)

The rear are shelfers. But they all have radio gear and motors and bearings.

may as well as creating a tidy radio gear install is all part of it :)

rCdzvSJ.jpg

 

JJ

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7 hours ago, Mrowka said:

Normally, I'd say "just build a static model if you want a shelf queen" - but -

I would just leave it there - I have plenty of cars and boats and they all get run.

I look at it this way - Lego (and other static models) get displayed, Tamiya (and other RC vehicles) get enjoyed.

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If I am making a shelf model- it gets at least the stearing servo, and maybe the speed controller  - always put in a motor as well - in case It needs to step down as shelf queen and get dirty with the rest or gets a new owner-

If I run it, I run it - how much depends on how much fun it is and how much damage it gets - 

older models will stay shelf forever, like my Falcon. 

I really love building and painting them. Great times

 

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On 7/30/2020 at 11:38 AM, 426Purplefish said:

1. Do you run your shelf queens lightly or at least once?

2. What state of completion do you need them to be?  Completely bare chassis or full up with all electronics?

3.  When you restore a shelf queen how mint does it need to be? Many cars seem to be rebuilt from all NOS parts and look new.  Others don’t need their restos to be perfect.  

Im curious about this...but maybe no one cares😁.

 

All of my fleet are Shelf Queens when they are not being run. I don’t have any Vintage cars maybe it would be different if I did with those.  As they are Rere’s parts are available, not that I drive them to destruction but as the fleet grows the wear on individual cars is reduced as it gets shared around more and are still very presentable in there either slightly used or heavily used state.

From seeing Ewan & Charlie’s ‘Long way Round’ world motorcycle adventure and Ewan explaining how every scratch or dent on the bike told a story of different occasions and experiences along the way changed my view on keeping, some things at least, pristine. As did @Juggular’s one eyed Hopper. It gives something its individual character and personality and thus seen and still enjoyed as such. 



 

15 hours ago, A-Baum said:

See this is something I don't quite understand. Why would people spend money on performance upgrades for a shelf queen?  I would think if I were to ever have a shelf queen, it would be bone stock and likely with box art livery.  Why drop $100 on hi caps for a shelf queen?  Or a brushless system or an upgrade diff if it will never run.  I guess people have their reasons but it makes no sense to me.  

I suppose it’s like spending $75 on a Restaurant meal or $2 on instant noodles when they all end up being flushed away anyway. 
I would put it down to people tend to do such things just because they can and they want to as it’s how they get their pleasure from the hobby, and the more I get to know the people on this forum the more I understand why they do what they do, if your not enjoying something then it’s hardly worth doing. After all life would be boring if we were all the same. 

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It looks fantastic on display and gets plenty of "oohs and aahs" from the local RC crowd.  Far more than bone stock Javelin would receive.

17E36C71-42C1-485C-B2F1-B32D355A24AF.jpeg

B9DBE72D-5752-4DD6-A47E-CA947A98BD2D.jpeg

C02175C5-D021-4F56-82B6-6A7D86489A20.jpeg

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Personally, i bought my rc to run it, and if its broke and there is nothing i can do about iT, then ill shelf it.

But if i have a avante og/ re re, i would never run it.

That beautiful thing/car cost $500++, i can buy a seconhand motorbike (scooter) with that amount of money for my daily activity XD, and its easier to find scooter parts rather then avante parts here.

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Generally I build all my models with the intention to run them occasionally (I don't have access to a track).

However; due to the lack of free time I have these days with work and 3 daughters, generally a single build can take a whole year to complete. In that period of time I add hop-ups as and when I happen upon them, slowly upgrading the car as I go.

Then suddenly I've sank £300 into something without realising it and then get all precious and anxious about wrecking / scratching it, so move on to something new and pilfer the electronics (no point having electronics in a shelfer - save for perhaps a basic servo).

It's a perpetual loop / trap!

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