TOPIC:

So I recently re-read Jonny Retro's post on Tamiya RC Evolution from a few years back and it got me to thinking...hmmmm dangerous I know but......

I recently asked for thoughts on How old is vintage? and had a few good responses so now I waned to ask what do you all think is "new" from Tamiya or what is new on Tamiya cars? After reading Jonny's excellent post I am not sure myself, one could argue that Tamiya has never really been an innovator but very good at producing a collection of others ideas at a very high quality level. Perhaps just good example of ideas that Tamiya was the first to mass market?
Did anyone have a front wheel drive RC car before the M chassis ones?
How about carbon fibre items? not black FRP but real modern carbon fibre pieces?
Was the TLT-1 the first real crawler?
Shocks, steering suspension ideas? I don't know so I am asking the experts, all of you.
One of my problems might be that I don't buy enough new releases, but I do try and follow along.
This may seem like a strange line of questions but I really am curious as to what you all think. I guess there my also be a part of me that doesn't want to believe that everything we have in RC today was already done back in the early 80's. is there anything new? And I don't mean that silly 3 wheeled thing Tamiya was showing off at the recent hobby show, I was thinking more along the advancement of the species......

So fire away my friends, what do you think??

I have several ff01. Long and short wheelebase. It is based on the ta02. Black oil shocks balls diff. You can replace the central bathtube by the ta02 option, the carbon double deck chassis.

The clio was my favourite. Especially with the sport tuned. I love it more than the primera calsonic special edition (hopuped).

I don't think there is a complete history of RC anywhere ... equally dim and distant is my memory, I can't remember the first FWD road going RC car, possibly it was one of the more minor Japanese RC manufacturers, such as Nichimo? The first production FWD buggy is generally regarded as being a Kyosho.

Proportionally controlled RC cars supposedly have been technically possible from the mid 1960s, racing was estabilished enough in the US by 1968 to be formalised (under ROAR rules), and a year or so later in the UK (under the BRCA)... I have a copy of "Model Car Racing by Radio Control" by George Siposs, published in 1971 - which shows RC racing (IC anyway) as quite a mature and advanced sport. (I scanned it a while back, PM me of you want the PDF). EP car kits, the internet suggests, were available from 1974.

I remind that Model Racing Car released a buggy fwd. It was during late 80's. The sand master I think. The rabbit had its fwd traction too by MRC too. It was around 1984 and a 1/8th buggy gp.

stingray-63 wrote:

I remind that Model Racing Car released a buggy fwd. It was during late 80's. The sand master I think. ...

tamiyabase.com/...and-master

I'd kind of assumed there was only one MRC , but no ....

edit - Model Rectifier Corporation

Yes Jonny I had the same idea. But when I bought my mt10m, I was surprised by the trade. The french manufacturer is Model Racing Car. They sold a lot of rc under this name from thunder tiger the eb4, mfi, and other. I think That the rabbit was a french car.
It is the last french rc «manufacturer».
I have several rc from them. Ep and gp.

Yes very interesting stuff guys,
I was interested because of your great old post Jonny, I guess perhaps there really isn't or never was anything new for Tamiya other then making better quality? RC's for us. I have some older modeling magazines in my collection and know that RC cars were around long before the 934 but perhaps Tamiya made them more accessible to the market?? Perhaps it was the right thing at the right time?
I am perhaps just grasping here, trying to give the big T some credit, trying to figure out why we collect them etc. Other makes like Kyosho have been around just as long, have made some brilliant stuff, some fun stuff and some fast stuff ( for sure won a lot more races) but for some reason people are just not as interested in the old ones like the Tamiyas...hmmmmm.. there is no KyoshoBase website is there
All am trying to do here is stimulate some conversations, memories, and fun it's not to serious, its just a hobby right?