The $100 vintage challenge

[markbt73 5316]

Today at work, we got our customary Christmas gift from the boss: a box of chocolates and a $100 bill. Some years, the $100 has to go straight into the bank account to pay bills, but this year we're doing OK, so I want to spend it. And naturally, my first thought is RC stuff.

But it's only $100. Doesn't go very far. You can get a few hopups, I guess, or a cheap brushless motor system, but I'm not a hopup kind of guy, and I like 540 motors. Tools or supplies, I guess, but that's not much fun. I do have a couple of body-less chassis sitting around, but I still think I want to try to make something for those instead of just buying body shells.

There are, I guess, a few cheap Chinese kits available here and there for under $100. But those always feel so cheap and plasticky, in a far worse way than any Tamiya ever did. And I don't like to encourage that sort of "cheap fast junk" attitude in the hobby. And I'm trying to stick to used/vintage stuff as much as I can in general. I just like the idea of bringing something old back from the dead.

But you can't find vintage projects for $100 anymore... can you? Prevailing wisdom says that all the good cheap buys have been gone from eBay and other marketplaces for ten years or more, and all that's left are a few junky parts cars, unless you want to pay extortionate "buy it now" prices or get caught in a bidding war.

Or are they? I think it would be fun to find out. So I'm taking this $100, and going in search of a vintage RC car. I'm setting down a few rules in my search:

1. I'm defining "vintage" as "old enough to have, or have originally had, a mechanical speed control." Since those disappeared roughly 20 years ago from kits, it seems like a decent metric to use. And MSCs are definitely a hallmark of the vintage RC experience.
2. $100 is a firm limit for the purchase price. But if I need to go a tiny bit over for shipping, that's OK. $89 plus $15 shipping is still more or less a $100 RC car.
3. This is all-inclusive, so I need to find something that's either intact, or I already have parts for. I'm not doing a shelf-queen restoration here, so no spending another $100 on parts for some old junker. It has to run and drive, and look "cool," but not pristine (obviously). Oh, and no spending $150 on something and then selling off $50 in parts, either.
4. It has to be bought from a stranger; no under-the-table deals from fellow TC members or local friends.

I will, of course, keep posting about the search, and the results. And if anyone else has $100 to spare and wants to play along, please feel free. ($100 is about £75 right now, I think.)

Ten years ago, this would have been easy; $50-60 Hornets and Frogs and Kyosho Raiders were everywhere. Today, I'm expecting quite a bit more of a challenge. We'll see.

[Frog Jumper 3661]

The killer deals are out there...  I found a Kyosho Raider for dirt cheap on Craigslist last year.  I think it was $20???  Except for flat tires, it was in great condition...

[markbt73 5316]

Oh, I know they were out there. The best one I ever found was a box at a garage sale for $10, labeled "RC truck stuff," that turned out to contain a complete bowtie Clod in pieces, among other goodies.

But I haven't seen anything decent for cheap in at least a year or two around here. Everything seems to have dried up.

[lentner3 281]

Eagerly watching this one. For sure the “projects” have become few and far between these days.

[Aerobert 2147]

I think it's possible to find a vintage RC car for $100 (about €80 currently) if you're a little bit patient. I recently bought a Ford Mondeo FF01 for €50, a Super Fighter G (not if you can call it vintage) for €45 and some time ago a TA03-F for €40. Shortly before Christmas the prices for used RC cars seem to increase a lot, at least here in Germany but if you can wait a bit it should be absolutely possible. Just have a look in the classified sites. Good luck!

[Mechanic AH 581]

Interesting, as I was in this kind of dilemma a few months ago—thinking of a cheap old project car under $100 US. A couple months back (October I believe) I was able to win on fleabay a '98 Lancer Evolution IV Monte Carlo 58219 TL01 in I would say relatively impressive condition. It came with a mechanical speed controller, a '90s Hi-tec servo, pristine 540 motor, the body was painted but unfinished (protective film was still on and decals was included but haven't been applied). Some of the hard plastic body parts were painted but not in a good way so those have to be stripped. The paint work and trim on the polycarbonate wasn't up to my standards but at least it's part of the project work. And wheels have yellowed from age. There are other little details that needs to be restored but if I wanted to just run it, it will and I have total confidence that it can take a beating. But, aside from just being a TL01, I was surprised that I won it for $87 US (shipping was $15). I would say it was probably the best deal I've gotten recently because I've spent more on a single used brushed motor purchase or ESC. Personally, I would have paid more for the kit because of what it is. I haven't checked lately for those with MCSs but my guess is prices have gone up a bit compared to some months ago—since I keep track. Good luck!

 

[Toolmaker72 507]

For a used project I tend to go for the hard plastic body buggies.  The hard plastic bodies are easy to repair (provided its in one piece) and with a few coats of paint and rubbing down in between they finish really well.  One of the cheaper buys I find is a mad bull or  fighter buggy rx. If a mad bull, junk the over sized wheels and tyres, fit a set of rising fighter type wheels and tyres and then finish the body in grasshopper 2 decal stickers.  Quite a nice cheap buggy tbh. Oh and it uses a msc also 👍🙂

[markbt73 5316]

So I'm running into a problem I didn't expect. It's not that I'm not finding anything in that price range; it's that everything in that price range is something I've already had, more than once in a lot of cases. And I just can't get excited about that. Do I really want to buy yet another crusty old Blackfoot or Hornet, just to prove a point? I'd consider a Kyosho Outrage, or another Raider, but they seem to have been discovered, and prices have gone up a lot.

And also, the cars I'm finding that do look halfway interesting, like an old TL-01 chassis that still has its MSC, don't come with a body. Or wheels or tires, like the Kyosho Tracker chassis I found. (And who coined the term "slider" for a car with no wheels? Must have been those Traxxas guys.)

Not giving up yet, but if I don't stumble across something that really grabs my attention, I'm not going to bother...

[Saito2 6686]

I saw that "slider" bopping around Ebay today. There's another Kyosho on the 'bay, item number: 

164548905216

I'm not sure what it is as they just call it a car/buggy chassis, but it look affordable.

 

[loco_oso 108]

I hesitate to post this, as it doesn't necessarily fit all your criteria, but I think it's close enough to warrant a look. 

https://ebay.to/2KkIxDH

It's a vintage NIB Team Magic Vampire 2wd nitro 235mm car kit. The seller has multiple available. I'll be getting one for Christmas, but my wife won't let me look at it yet lol. So, I'm not sure how it'll fare but I know that mine arrived quickly and in good shape. 

I know it's $125, but maybe you can call it $25 shipping? Obviously it has no electronics or body, but I'd wager a restoration would also have similar issues. I'm planning on tentatively doing an electric conversion on mine as I'm not really into nitro. 

[GTodd 1350]

My advise is scour your local classifieds. In the past year I've picked up a RC10 Team car and a RC10T2 in very good condition for $100.

Ebay etc are too well know and difficult to spot bargains much anymore.

[markbt73 5316]

So it occurred to me yesterday, in the midst of tidying up my workshop, that I'm an idiot. I already did find a cool vintage model for less than $100 this year. This Parma Hemi was only $65 at a local antique mall.

So no real reason to go looking for anything else.... thread over, disregard...

[tamiya_1971 615]

1 hour ago, markbt73 said:

So it occurred to me yesterday, in the midst of tidying up my workshop, that I'm an idiot. I already did find a cool vintage model for less than $100 this year. This Parma Hemi was only $65 at a local antique mall.

So no real reason to go looking for anything else.... thread over, disregard...

I saw that in your post over in “the shed” thread! I was wondering how it looked. Nice!

[didcos 37]

There are a lot of good deals out there. Nowadays you gotta look beyond ebay. Local classifieds, local auctions, swap meets etc. I found many nice models this year. Lots of people who are not rc enthusiasts had time to sort through their stuff and list their old rc cars for sale.

[Bash 356]

You've just got to keep looking. I've seen many grasshoppers and hornets go for under $50, and I picked up 2 of them for $65. One that I kind of regret not picking up was an FF-01 that just needed tires and an ESC that went for $60 as I've always wanted to try FWD out.