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Candidates for the least popular Tamiya rc models...

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9 hours ago, Busdriver said:

A much misunderstood vehichle. I only ran my Dynahead with stock wheels and tires once but it is a surprisingly capable machine. It has a semi tank like quality, nothing really gets in its way. With a little bit of diff putty in all the diffs even with stock tyres its pretty good. The body I agree isnt even Marmite, its just plain awful, especially if you look at some of the prototype bodies they were considering (pictures somewhere on this site). However with a little bit of imagination it can also look like this. (and there are others)

IMG_1466.JPG.a2f1cd2be3d714784eb818db9db1b5ac.JPG

That looks great - but if you're buying it to do that you've already binned the tires and body which were the 2 things I have the biggest problem with (I have previously declared my love of the G601 chassis). And if that's what you're after for actual off-road Traxxas and Axial make substantially more capable 6wd vehicles... hence my point that the Dynahead is a completely pointless vehicle. 

I would also like to nominate the SW01 'MadMud,' a vehicle that takes the charming "mini" Lunchbox and makes it hideous. When the first car in the series is a miniature version of a classic Tamiya RC, why would the follow-up be a generic mish-mash?

Tamiya 57412 MudMad (Assembly Kit) (SW-01) / Tamiya USA

 

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8 hours ago, Howards said:

spacer.pngSaint Dragon was not exactly flying off the shelves (or getting on them in the first place).

If Tamiya was still selling that I would probably buy it. Even the name is cool. It's kinda interesting and isn't that a downgraded version of the Madcap?

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1 hour ago, Mechanic AH said:

version of the Madcap

Not sure about downgraded, I thought they were the same, just this one has red bits. 

Curiously the shell was released first as an option for the Hornet and some 4wd chassis. 

Highly Japan specific.

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12 hours ago, Howards said:

spacer.pngSaint Dragon was not exactly flying off the shelves (or getting on them in the first place).

My first new Tamiya kit when I was 12!  Wish I still had it. 

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47 minutes ago, 78Triumph said:

My first new Tamiya kit when I was 12!  Wish I still had it. 

How did you get on with the stickers? Just did a replica one myself and oh my.... I was thinking if you were new to stickering it would not be fun.

 

(dropped on an Avante for the lols)

 

 

IMG_3045.png

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4 hours ago, Mechanic AH said:

If Tamiya was still selling that I would probably buy it. Even the name is cool. It's kinda interesting and isn't that a downgraded version of the Madcap?

I would absolutely buy one. I remember seeing them in catalogues BITD. I have a Super Astute which is representative of the whole family, kind of.

On topic, one that surprises me that it isn't is the Fox (does that even make sense?) Orphan chassis, RC10 came out a few months later and blew it out of the water. I have a Novafox and think its great, but if I was in the market for a 2wd buggy in 1986 it would be a cheap and cheerful Hornet or an RC10, I don't see how the Fox was an option. Especially since the Boomerang looked as good and was 4wd

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1 hour ago, Jonathon Gillham said:

I would absolutely buy one

I think it was a case of the distributors not bringing them in. So buying one was hard compared to a Madcap. 
 

iirc they are part of a series of more cartoonish models some of which were not RC. 

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7 hours ago, lsear2905 said:

I would also like to nominate the SW01 'MadMud,' a vehicle that takes the charming "mini" Lunchbox and makes it hideous. When the first car in the series is a miniature version of a classic Tamiya RC, why would the follow-up be a generic mish-mash?

Tamiya 57412 MudMad (Assembly Kit) (SW-01) / Tamiya USA

 

OMG !!  .. :blink:

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17 hours ago, TurnipJF said:

The narrow stadium truck models usually seem to be the least popular of their chassis versions. XV-01T Asterion, TT-02T Sandshaker, TA-02T Desert Fielder, TL-01 Stadium Raider, none seemed to sell as well as their touring or rally siblings. 

That actually saddens me, being a fan of the more Scale looking RC Vehicles, that the most Scale looking Tamiya offerings are the LEAST popular...

That tells me that the goofier looking "Trucks" with the Wheels hanging out 2 Scale FEET from the Fenders, is MORE popular!!! 😖😲😞

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Love monster beetles? Want a crawler? Sounds like a gap in the market for something special! Something that when I first heard the name thought shut up and take my money.... errr. No.

Monster Beetle Trail give you all the aesthetic appeal of a cheap plastic toy whilst not being able to crawl or ‘trail’ Thanks but no thanks, I think this was the biggest missed opportunity yet...

80B9DA39-F7F6-4DE0-A458-C7778AD75EB9.jpeg

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#49352 is very high on my "unwish-list" for some obvious reasons.

I mean, how could they do that to a scooby? :wacko:

Looks like a monster truck with 36 inch rims:ph34r:

49352 - Tamiya model database - TamiyaBase.com

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10 minutes ago, Carmine A said:

That actually saddens me, being a fan of the more Scale looking RC Vehicles, that the most Scale looking Tamiya offerings are the LEAST popular...

That tells me that the goofier looking "Trucks" with the Wheels hanging out 2 Scale FEET from the Fenders, is MORE popular!!! 😖😲😞

I have to agree with this sentiment - the TA02T F150 was one of my earliest and most favourite purchases and I loved it to bits (literally).  I still have the remains of it, I'm sure it will get a new lease of life at some point.  I also have a Desert Fielder awaiting paint and an XV01T which is an absolute hoot to drive.

I think a race series with these trucks would be great.  Either as a strict stock-plus-bearings clubman series, or as an open race series but with strict limits imposed on scale bodies, maximum track width, maximum arch overhang and a control tyre.  Looking at a fleet of trophy trucks blitzing around a gravel and clay track would be awesome.  But I know why racers don't like them - hard tyres, narrow track and limited suspension travel make them hard to race on anything but perfect surfaces...

In answer to the original question - not sure what I'd nominate.  I haven't seen a lot of the later instalments of the DF-01 series, such as the Dirt Thrasher and the Blazing Star, and to be honest they came way too late to be relevant.  The original DF-01 was released as the Manta Ray in October 1990 and a year later we got the race-derived graphite edition in the Top Force.  June 92 saw the Top Force Evo on the shelves and December of the same year gave us another base-spec edition in the Terra Conqueror.

It was nearly 3 years later when the Dirt Thrasher came out, by which time 4wd buggies had moved on.  When the Blazing Star came out in December 1997 - more than 5 years since the Top Force Evo and a full 7 since the chassis debuted - it was too late to be any kind of race buggy and too early to capitalise on any nostalgia for the chassis.  Those 1.9 wheels and rock-hard road/trail tyres gave it no real place in the market.  For a time I was looking for one to race at the Revival (purely as a desire to be different) and apart from a very rare NIB at a grossly inflated price, there was nothing around.

Even things like the Striker and the Sonic Fighter - notoriously fragile even when new - have their following now.  Loved perhaps not despite their flaws but because of them, recently a friend of mine bought an immaculate original Striker from another collector for just £50.  I picked it up for him at a Tamiya Junkies meet.  Last summer, my friend raced a Striker in the 2wd class at the Revival and scored an impressive place in the final.

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9 hours ago, Howards said:

How did you get on with the stickers? Just did a replica one myself and oh my.... I was thinking if you were new to stickering it would not be fun.

 

(dropped on an Avante for the lols)

 

 

IMG_3045.png

it was thirty years ago, I don't remember doing the stickers.  Probably what you would think a 12 year old kid would do, haha!

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I may have come up with a serious contender here!! 

58153 Daytona Thunder IMG_20200925_011922.thumb.jpg.76a3aec2f2e67cca1f9ebff186a539dd.jpg

So...... When was the last time you saw one?

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On 9/24/2020 at 6:30 AM, lsear2905 said:

I would also like to nominate the SW01 'MadMud,' a vehicle that takes the charming "mini" Lunchbox and makes it hideous. When the first car in the series is a miniature version of a classic Tamiya RC, why would the follow-up be a generic mish-mash?

Tamiya 57412 MudMad (Assembly Kit) (SW-01) / Tamiya USA

 

I think it looks great, again, it also seems to be selling well.

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On 9/24/2020 at 3:48 AM, Mirrorman said:

Wierd - I kinda' like it's quirkiness . :lol:

 

SaintDragon_58083_01.jpg

Me too. I love all of them.

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19 hours ago, scoobybooster said:

#49352 is very high on my "unwish-list" for some obvious reasons.

I mean, how could they do that to a scooby? :wacko:

Looks like a monster truck with 36 inch rims:ph34r:

49352 - Tamiya model database - TamiyaBase.com

Unforgivable wheel choice. 

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On 9/24/2020 at 6:30 AM, lsear2905 said:

That looks great - but if you're buying it to do that you've already binned the tires and body which were the 2 things I have the biggest problem with (I have previously declared my love of the G601 chassis). And if that's what you're after for actual off-road Traxxas and Axial make substantially more capable 6wd vehicles... hence my point that the Dynahead is a completely pointless vehicle. 

I would also like to nominate the SW01 'MadMud,' a vehicle that takes the charming "mini" Lunchbox and makes it hideous. When the first car in the series is a miniature version of a classic Tamiya RC, why would the follow-up be a generic mish-mash?

Tamiya 57412 MudMad (Assembly Kit) (SW-01) / Tamiya USA

 

I have a feeling that if this was repainted to break the arches and bumpers from the body it could look really good

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On 9/24/2020 at 10:33 AM, Lee76 said:

Love monster beetles? Want a crawler? Sounds like a gap in the market for something special! Something that when I first heard the name thought shut up and take my money.... errr. No.

Monster Beetle Trail give you all the aesthetic appeal of a cheap plastic toy whilst not being able to crawl or ‘trail’ Thanks but no thanks, I think this was the biggest missed opportunity yet...

80B9DA39-F7F6-4DE0-A458-C7778AD75EB9.jpeg

I have one of these.  It is super fun to look at because its so square and squatty.  but it doesnt really do any one thing well.  itll wheelie decently and you can stunt it a bit.  but it always wants to go end over end.  I might see about making it wider and lower it down.

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I love my St.Dragon too. I ended up painting most of mine to avoid the decals. 

To be fair it wasn't a difficult masking job.

20200111_141533.jpg

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1 hour ago, Sweatpants said:

It is super fun to look at because its so square and squatty

The Oddjob of the Tamiya world...

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26 minutes ago, Xeostar said:

To be fair it wasn't a difficult masking job.

Well, you made it look easy.. I’m sure I’d make it a difficult job...

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On 9/26/2020 at 1:49 AM, Sweatpants said:

I have one of these.  It is super fun to look at because its so square and squatty.  but it doesnt really do any one thing well.  itll wheelie decently and you can stunt it a bit.  but it always wants to go end over end.  I might see about making it wider and lower it down.

If you don't want those portal axles you'll fix the problem pretty quickly, and make some money selling them on here.

  

On 9/25/2020 at 7:54 PM, qatmix said:

I think it looks great, again, it also seems to be selling well.

In Australia this (and the G601 Volvo A60H) are the only Tamiya items ever in stock.

 

On 9/25/2020 at 8:19 PM, jonboy1 said:

I have a feeling that if this was repainted to break the arches and bumpers from the body it could look really good

I actually think that may look far worse. The problem is the body is already way too small for the chassis, like it was an afterthought, and if you paint the arches they'll blend into the chassis even more. I can't use Photoshop very well, but here are the arches and bumpers painted grey, black and even purple (to match the MadMud decals). This thing's a train wreck, any which way.

Desktop8.jpg

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On 9/24/2020 at 3:37 PM, scoobybooster said:

#49352 is very high on my "unwish-list" for some obvious reasons.

I mean, how could they do that to a scooby? :wacko:

Looks like a monster truck with 36 inch rims:ph34r:

49352 - Tamiya model database - TamiyaBase.com

This was hugely popular in the UK and always sold out quickly when we got them in stock. Imprezas always sold well but combine it with the ability to be used on grass and moderately off road and you have a winner. I wish I'd bought one at the time - not least because the "RA" had the TL01LA suspension setup, but they were very good value, too. Cheaper than the likes of the contemporary 4wd buggies (Rising Storm, Gravel Hound etc) but just as capable. I also believe the body was pre-cut and maybe even pre-finished?

If Sir wanted, we could also sell some fetching gold plated wheels from the HBX range of knock-off TL01B buggies!

Great car and I'd have one over the later DF03RA attempt to revive the recipe.

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