TOPIC:

OK, so not quite a barn find, but giving the condition it is in, I felt the title was appropriate!

I've owned this Madcap since new - I'm not sure of the year - but it was a Christmas present from my parents sometime in the early Nineties. After owning (and destroying) a multitude of RC cars, mum and dad finally caved and agreed to get me a real RC car. I still remember going to the model shop with dad, and picking out the Madcap. I was given the kit a few days before Christmas in order to allow me to build it up in time for Christmas day. As far as I can remember, 14 year old me built it mostly by myself. My memory is a little hazy as to when I got the first drive, but I remember it was a dark evening (possibly Christmas Eve), when I finally got to thrash it about until the battery went flat! Good times!
The paint was originally highlighter yellow (no idea why I chose that colour - it was the Nineties remember!), but I think I cheaped out on the paint, which is why the shell is now clear. Somewhere along the line I peeled off the decals (again, no idea why). The car received an absolute hiding in my hands - my weekends were spent building ramps and jumps and performing stunts and the odd bit of circle work - usually resulting in the car ending up on it's roof - which explains why I went through so many heat sinks - and why the rear spoiler has been fashioned out of an ice cream container. Any yes, those are teeth marks in it...
The car has sat untouched for years, and aside from the dodgy body mods, the only upgrade I ever did was to splash out on a fast charger - because waiting 12 hours between drives was never fun!
Now the time has come to restore the Madcap to it's former glory, but I'm a little unsure on where to start... I figure a strip down, clean and rebuild is in order, but I'd like also to upgrade to an electronic speed controller (I always wanted one - but they we're soooo expensive back in the day!). I also have a new bodyshell from TBG, which I intend to paint (along with the current shell) in the original colours, and add some repro decals.
I have no intention racing the car, just wanna relive the good old days and thrash it about. Any tips for the rebuild and update would be greatly appreciated!

Hi there,
Great pictures, I love the dust....I mean patina you should be doing photos for Hemings or the like, for their latest, freshly fake dusted barn find cars, I always get a kick out of those. Seriously it looks great and the story is even better
I think you have got the right idea about adding a ESC get a newer style one with Li-po cutoff, there are lots of inexpensive ones to choose from now. You could even go with a Tamiya TBLE-02S they are simple and work just fine. Run Li-Po batteries you will love them .....You need some tires and the ones for most of the DT-02 cars will work on your rims or do what I did for my Astute and get new DT-02 wheels and tires all around they are quite cheap if you shop around and good for bashing. Don't forget MCI racing for the decals they are not perfect but the next best thing to OEM.
Looking forward to seeing pictures of it tearing up the yard again!!

Welcome to TamiyaBase, and thank you for a great story!
Your Madcap show signs of heavy use, but still in great condition. When I restore I go all the way making it "new" again, which can not be justified looking at money spent....
You have every option from "going over the top" to just making it run again. If you run it again, be aware that the plastic has probably gone brittle the last decades, so it bight break easily.

-Lars

Welcome on board K1W1.
The madcap was my first RC built too. Lot of fun. The best way to restore it is to dismantle it, check all brocken spares and rebuild it. Be carefull with the diff relatively fragile.
For the options, the first one is a set of ball bearings. After, you should invest in a hilux monster racer/ Nissan king cab Metal motor plate ( the plastique one break easily with a hard use). You can buy a set of oil shocks too.
Good choice with TBG body repro and like said oldwilly, MCIRACING decals are nice.
Keep the moon disc rims they are the identity of the madcap. DT02 tires are a good choice because original ones are expensive.
Good luck for this nice resto.

Hey again,

Those aren't oil shocks I never even noticed, I have never had a Madcap so I was guessing that because it looked like the Astute series it would have them. So what Stingray said, get some oil shocks dude. Even after market ones will take the bounce out of it and of course bearings, if you don't already have them....doesn't everyone have bearings??.....
So tear it down and make that shopping list! As was mentioned before, it's up to you how far you want to take it....custom alloy this, trick titanium that.....the sky is the limit!....or maybe like me..... the bank account is the limit

The madcap is the basis of the astute. A beginner version. No shocks nor bearings nor slipper. But with a ball diff. Identical gearbox to the kingcab. A super car. You can put lead weight under the front train.

Thank you for all the replies - some great tips there. I will post some shots of the resto when I get started. Looking forward to getting it running again!

Finally got around to tearing down the Madcap in preparation for the restoration - here's a short video of the process...

Nice. You are organized. That's a good thing to begin it.

Well done mate !