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In the 80s I had the Tamiya Grasshopper [1], which was the greatest remote control car ever (opinion). I remember attaching three battery packs (instead of the
by louthy 1y ago
In the 80s I had the Tamiya Grasshopper [1], which was the greatest remote control car ever (opinion).
I remember attaching three battery packs (instead of the standard one)—to make it drive at roughly 8 billion miles per hour, in the process ripping the tyres to shreds and pretty much ruining the car—because it couldn’t turn without flipping several thousand times.
Still, for those initial few seconds, it was glorious.
RIP Grasshopper and RIP Shunsaku Tamiya
[1] https://cdn.thingiverse.com/assets/8b/e7/0c/d6/a0/IMG_6201.jpg https://cdn.thingiverse.com/assets/8b/e7/0c/d6/a0/IMG_6201.j...
- jumpingMullet 1y agoThe Grasshopper was good. An underpowered version of the hornet with a 380 instead of 540 motor. The longer run time on the old 7.2 battery was a benefit. Watching YouTube of the current cars, they are actually overpowered and in a way unusable. Many videos degenerate into how high can I jump this thing before it breaks.
- lmpdev 1y agoI sell modern Chinese ones I have to often explain to customers after a certain price point (for me ~$200+ AUD) you have to turn the speed trim pot down for it to be enjoyable at all Similar to what Gran Turismo 7 players have realised with EV “Vision” Cars - car enjoyment greatly diminishes with speed after a certain point - instead of plateauing No-name Chinese build quality is actually a lot higher than I’d’ve anticipated though - brushed thick aluminium and even steel chassis are pretty common now
- spython 1y agoWhich one would you recommend for a novice?
- lmpdev 1y agoUnironically for a beginner the Tamiya Grasshopper is still fantastic value Otherwise if you just want something Ready to Race just whatever is cheapest and most available in your area Don’t be suckered into a $200-600+ RC car until you’ve beaten up something cheap - same advice I imagine drone enthusiasts give
- sumtechguy 1y agoI had that same thing. It was a nice entry level. Still have the 'hot shot' on my wish list on amazon :) After my third set of tires and second set of struts I kinda stopped messing with it as I didnt have the money for that. I had already saved like crazy just to have the thing. Tamiya was the top end stuff. I would go to Hobby Town at eastpark (the downtown original store had more stuff though) and drool over them. So I would get the other ones there were in my price range and go 'some day' well now I have other hobbies. Still have my eye on that f14.
- pengaru 1y ago> In the 80s I had the Tamiya Grasshopper [1], which was the greatest remote control car ever (opinion). Did you never graduate to the rc10?
- ColinEberhardt 1y agoI had a car from the same era, the Boomerang, similar in style but 4WD: https://randomcompetitions.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/IMG_8348-scaled.jpeg https://randomcompetitions.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/... Absolutely loved that car, used it for hours and hours every week. The best 'toy' I ever had (other than my Amiga A500!).
- louthy 1y agoI have to admit—even though I loved the Grasshopper—I did lust after the Boomerang!
- z303 1y agoI had a Hornet [0]. Always wanted a Hotshot. Allow lovely watching the promo video in Beatties [2]. [0] https://www.tamiya.com/english/products/58336/index.html https://www.tamiya.com/english/products/58336/index.html [1] https://tamiyabase.com/articles/46-technical/176-distinguishing-the-hotshot-supershot-and-hotshot-ii https://tamiyabase.com/articles/46-technical/176-distinguish... [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj7__ojFX-g https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oj7__ojFX-g