I've been into R/C cars since the 1980s, and got my first one in 1984. I began actively collecting and restoring vintage Tamiyas in about 1993, when I first started gathering vintage parts and a few cars. The Internet arrived in about 1996, and I can remember when there were barely any websites related to Tamiya. But gradually sites like those of Hiro, Roby and Blazer Frazer began to appear, and 'vintage R/C' started to develop it's own communities of enthusiasts. I joined eBay in 1999 and started to buy many things I didn't think I would ever find.
In terms of what I enjoy, I love to collect NIB kits - either to keep unbuilt or to build later and relive the fun of the 1980s. I'm not interested in modern racing and high performance... actually I'm a real stickler for 80s originality too - right down to plastic bearings and mechanical speed controls. It's all about the fun of doing things exactly as they were back when we were kids, and running the cars to original spec.
My favourite models are the old, realistic buggies and off roaders, mainly from the first 60 models, with a few later exceptions. But also love a few of the realistic old buggies from other brands, such as Kyosho, Mugen, Marui etc. I also have many early 80s toy-grade R/C vehicles, which is where my interest in R/C cars first began.
Was active on the Tamiyaclub forums for a long time. But in 2012 I started a little R/C nostalgia blog about the things I've found over the years - http://www.rctoymemories.com
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As of 30th March 2013, I will be focusing my time and energy on my own site, and I will not be participating on Tamiyaclub.com
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The main reason for this is because I feel the lengthy rules and regulations imposed upon the paid members of Tamiyaclub, and the interference of moderators in member's day to day use of this site, are spoiling the fun of a community simply based on toy cars. As any website usability specialist will tell you, users need to feel a sense of 'ownership' of a website for them to continue to participate, especially when it comes to UGC (user generated content). When that sense of ownership is undermined, users lose trust and stop participating.
Tamiyaclub actually depends on UGC for most of it's content and it's very existence in the first place. Without people's showrooms, reviews, videos and forum discussions, what other reason would there be to visit Tamiyaclub? Yet despite this, there is an ever-increasing trend toward imposing new 'barriers to entry' - rules and more rules, about how everyone must behave, or else they will receive little 'warning' emails and so forth.
So, like many other vintage R/C enthusiasts before me, I have moved on.
Over the years, I traded with many good people. A few who I met personally and/or have bought significant items from, deserve a special mention! They were:
- RETRO R/C
- dunebuggy71
- minhsta
- Bluefoot
- toybaron
- 3-speed
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